The Blue Mosque was commissioned by Sultan Ahmet I to be built near the Hagia Sophia. Work began in 1609 it took until 1616 to complete. Designed by architect Mehmet Aga. The Sultan died a year after completion and is buried outside the mosque with his wife and three sons.

The Blue Mosque features six minarets which are visible from a distance and lure you towards them. Most mosques have one, two, or four, and so even this makes the Mosque almost unique, unfortunately the Haram Mosque in Mecca (holiest) also features six minarets. The Sultan fixed this by having architects add a 7th minaret to the Haram Mosque.

The interior is lit with 260 windows decorated with stained glass windows. The arcades running beneath each dome add further visual appeal. Despite its name the Mosques exterior is not blue – the name “Blue Mosque” comes from blue ceiling inside which is lined with 20,000 blue tiles.

Weather for Istanbul

Today	05/20/2012	05/21/2012	05/22/2012	05/23/2012	05/24/2012
Mostly Cloudy 68°/57°	Chance of a Thunderstorm 70°/61°	Fog 70°/61°	Partly Cloudy 77°/63°	Chance of a Thunderstorm 73°/63°	Chance of Rain 73°/63°