Visited the Blue Mosque first thing after
breakfast. It's a magnificent building but is unlucky to be right next to
Ayasofya - any construction would suffer in comparison. Sultan Ahmet's decision
to take on Ayasofya and attempt to equal or surpass it was about as well
advised as a drunken boast to take on Muhammed Ali in his prime. And I mean the
boxer.
I continued on down past Ayasofya, along a
street lined with wonderfully well-preserved old wooden houses, to the Topkapi
palace. The grounds were lovely, with shady trees and views out over the Sea of
Marmara. I joined the throng and made my way into the inner palace area. Some
intricately decorated doorways, lintels, facades.
The most interesting display for me was the
holy relics of Islam - brought here during the Ottoman period. I wonder
how authentic they are and how important or sacred Muslims consider them. It
certainly reminds one of medieval Christendom and it's obsession with such
things. Countless bits of the Prophet's beard, his swords, bow, mantle, part of
a tooth of his. Swords and other items from a number of his companions. The arm
and skull of John the Baptist (I'm sure a number of cathedrals throughout
Europe would dispute this!), King David's sword and Moses' staff (these ones
I was most skeptical about). Best, though, was Joseph's turban ... being
an Egyptian, I doubt very much the man ever wore a turban in his life.
Naive I suppose but I found these parts of it irritating.
Christianity has rightly been subjected to rigorous historical examination and
is better for it - thankfully few Christians today base their world view on a
completely literal interpretation of their scriptures. Joseph's turban just
reminds me that Islam hasn't yet endured such scrutiny. It desperately needs
it, especially in the current world climate. It would help eliminate the
medieval air that sometimes hangs over it and at times makes it seem more
obstinate than it needs to be.
On the way out of the palace,
I realised the Byzantine building I was passing was Aya Irini, Sancta
Eirene. The man in the tourist bureau had told me it was closed except when
concerts were held there, which disappointed me greatly. The pictures I'd
seen of this church looked intriguing. Bare stone with a large cross stencilled
into the dome above the altar. As I walked by, I noticed with
surprise that it was open, labelled as a museum and entrance was 5TL.
I entered and was rewarded with a truly magnificent space. There had once
been mosaics, no doubt, as there were still some clinging on around the rim of
the apse. But the effect of the bare stone was much more striking - it gave it
the feel of a raw medieval cathedral in a more western land, or the simply
decorated, sometimes Crusader-built churches of Palestine, Lebanon and Syria.
The Basilica's dome soared above impressively and if not parked right next to
the world's most amazing building, would've no doubt been considered worth
coming from miles around to see.
I wandered back, picking up some bread and
drinks for lunch, and spoke to my darling Nadia for another good hour. The
afternoon is sliding slowly towards the western sky and I'm in no hurry to rush
out and do anything. I might go and have a look at the Grand Bazaar or I
might not.
