Istanbul was Constantinople!

We arrived in Turkey late Wednesday night and after purchasing Visas at the airport we just caught a cab to our hostel. There was only a slight hiccup getting there when the car in front of us ran into a pole. (No one was hurt). But eventually we got to this hippie looking place with cats wandering free, candles burning, posters, and peace signs everywhere. In the morning I didn't remember where I was when I was awoken at 5:30 in the morning by a call to prayer. I said some prayers of my own and it eventually stopped and I got to go back to sleep.

A couple hours later we hopped on a trolley and headed straight to the Hippodrome, which is the historic center of the city. Our first stop was the Hagia Sofia, a basilica/mosque/museum which has an extensive history. It was built by the Greeks in 360, thus the name "Heavenly Wisdom." Then it was re-built by the Emperor Justinian in the 5th Century. It served as Constantinople's church until the city was conquered by the Ottoman Turks who turned it into a mosque in 1453 and then in 1931 it was secularized and turned into a museum.

You can still see some of the mosaics put up by the Christians.

And the Sultan's loge, from when it belonged to the Muslims.

The image of the Madonna and Child over the nave area.

You can see the images of seraphs in the corners and the Arabic signs below.

And all the light fixtures hang incredibly low.

It's an incredible place and I think everyone should go here at least once in their life. Oh, and I almost forgot, there's a wishing knot on the bottom of one of the columns and you put your thumb in it. Supposedly if you turn your hand all the way around and make a wish it will come true. Here's hoping.