Istanbul ... gateway between Europe and Asia

I’m on the road again!! Turkey was my first country during my 3 months trip around Europe to celebrate my new title: MSc. Istanbul was my first pit stop and it did not disappoint. In case you don’t know, Istanbul is the capital city of Turkey and lies between continent Asia and Europe. The main currency used in Turkey is Turkish Lira but in tourist spot they also received Euro (with horrible currency converter, don’t be that stupid tourist who use Euro in Turkey!).

After getting proper sleep following my 5 hours flight, I went directly to number one tourist destination in Istanbul: Hagia Sophia.  It was once a cathedral and then become a mosque but now it is a museum (with both culture mix in between).  You just cannot go to Istanbul without going inside Hagia Sophia, because it displayed the great empire that is Ottoman with all its glory. I never realized how big the civilization in Turkey back then until I went inside Hagia Sophia.

Entrance fee to Hagia Sophia is 30 tl and additional 20tl if you want audio guide with several different language to choose from. I really recommended the audio guide because you will get the museum map included with your guided tour (and you will be very happy to have it, trust me!) and me personally learned a lot from the audio tour not only about Ottoman empire and the history of Hagia Sophia but also meaning of different mosaic or painting inside the museum. There also other option to use guided tour instead of audio tour, it will cost you roughly 30tl (usually bundle as 60tl with guide and entrance fee included). They will be a lot of people offering for the guided tour near the entrance (you will not miss them), especially when there is a long line to enter Hagia Sophia.

Hagia Sophia open from 9 a.m. 'till 5 p.m. with last admission an hour before closing. It is advisable to come early so you will not catch in long line to enter the museum and get better picture when less people inside. Inside, you I saw the mix between Islam and Christianity culture in the form of fresco Maria the mother of God between two big coins shaped in scripted Allah and Muhammad. In front, I can see Mihrab the place where imam lead prayer or Shalah.

I’ll continue sharing my trip to Istanbul in the next blog post :)