Aya Sofya

On to the nearby Aya Sofya, the Church of the Divine Wisdom, described as Istanbul’s most famous monument. It was completed by Emporer Justinian in 537 AD as part of his effort to restore the greatness of the Roman Empire. According to Lonely Planet, “the exterior maybe squat and unattractive, but the interior, with its magnificent domed ceiling, is so sublimely beautiful, that many seeing it for the first time are quite literally stunned into silence. The building is currently being restored, with scaffolding obscuring the dome, but not even this can detract from the experience of visiting one of the world’s truly great buildings”.

I have to say that we did not find Aya Sofya that beautiful, although its faded splendour and religious mosaics were well worth the visit, and the sloping tunnel to the first floor (instead of stairs was interesting, as were the views of the Blue Mosque……...but we reserve the “stunned into silence” description for the ceremonial hall of the Dolmabahce Palace……more of that later.