Istanbul - Turkey By Ruby

Instanbul was our first stop in Turkey and it also marked the start of our trip in Europe! Going there was amazing but it was a big change from the hot weather in to Dubai to the near freezing temperatures of Instanbul. Luckily though, we were prepared and ready for this new weather.

There are so many sights to see in Instanbul and fitting them all into three days simply isn't possible, but we tried to visit some really cool and interesting places! One of these places was the blue mosque, it gets its name from its turquoise coloured walls, and the word turquoise actually came from this mosque when the French came to visit it and decided that that shade of blue should be called turquoise meaning the colour of the Turks.

The mosque has many minerets outside of it which are tall towers with a pointed roof. On top of this mosque there is a large dome, which is the same for all Muslim mosques. Sadly, the blue mosque was closed for construction so we couldn't go inside but luckily we could still got a great view from the outside.

Another mosque that we went to is called the Hagia Sofia which is very tall and grand, from the outside it looks as if there is only one dome but when you come inside you can see the shape of many semi domes as well! The Hagia Sofia was made in 537 AD on December the 27 by an emperor, it was first made as a Christian church but in the 15th century it became a mosque.

In Instanbul there are many food venters on the side of the cobblestone streets selling many different food, most of them being hot to warm you up. Some of these foods including corn, potatoes, nuts, and many different breads.

We also went to markets where we saw lots beautiful necklaces, lamps, and sculptures. We wanted to take them all with us but sadly we can't. Maybe a necklace or two but we definitely can't take a big lamp with us around Europe.

We all had a really good time in Instanbul and despite the cold weather I loved going outside and exploring the area!