5 essential Istanbul experiences – 1

This extract is from ‘Travel Tales from Exotic Places like Salford’

Istanbul has many world-class sights including Haghia Sofia, the Topkapi Palace, and the Grand Bazaar. But I would recommend finding experiences beyond these places to discover what this city on the Bosphorus is all about. The following places will give any visitor an idea of the real Istanbul, where layers of history from its previous lives as Byzantium and Constantinople can be found at every turn.

The first place I would recommend is the Chora Church, which has the finest collection of murals and frescoes in Istanbul. Located in the western suburbs near the Theodosian Walls, the current Chora Church, or the Church of the Holy Saviour outside the Walls, dates from the late 11th Century. Chora is short for Chora Zonton and means “in the country” in Greek. This was because a 4th Century church on this site was situated outside the city walls of Byzantium. Decoration of the interior walls of the church began in 1312. Funding was provided by Theodore Metokhites, who was the auditor of the Treasury. The mosaics and frescoes depict scenes from the life of Christ and Mary and the artists are unknown. After the Conquest of Constantinople in 1453, the church was converted into a mosque and the mosaics covered over with plaster for nearly four centuries. It took 11 years, from 1948 to 1959, to restore all these treasures to something near their original glory. The church is now a secular museum and is very popular with coach parties, but visiting at around 1pm is probably the best time to avoid the crowds.