Monuments, Mosques, and More

Today one very popular broad, beautiful avenue in Istanbul that's full of lots of pedestrian traffic along with lots of restaurants and shops was once the chariot-racing center of public life for nearly a millennium and a half in Byzantine and Ottoman times. It was referred to as the Hippodrome back in the day, and several ancient monuments are still standing in this area, the Egyptian Obelisk of Theodosius and the Hellenic Spiral Column, of which only half of it is still there. Part of the column was destroyed in the 17th century by Christians as it symbolized a three-headed serpent, a god, the early Egyptians worshipped. It's sometimes referred to as the Serpent Column. These date back to 1500 BC and are the oldest monuments in Istanbul.
Our private tour gave us VIP access to Hague Sofia and the Blue Mosque. We were glad we had this service as the lines were long, and we could avoid them. Both of these mosques were spectacular and different.. It was fun to watch how Turkish rugs were made. Such a labor-intensive process! It was a big decision to purchase a rug, but in the end, we felt we made a good decision and that it would be a great souvenir and keepsake from our trip.Read more