CHAPTER 18
Not to be outdone by his predecessors, Ahmed I, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire decided that he would build a mosque- a mosque to rival the grandest of mosques up to that time, the Hagia Sophia. Naturally, he picked a spot for his new mosque right next to the Hagia Sophia, with the intent of overshadowing its rival. Blue tile must have been en vogue at the time, or perhaps it was just on sale, but in any case, he chose to use it exclusively to line the inside of the domes of his monumental construction, thus leading to the building being popularly known as the Blue Mosque.
After our long tour of the Hagia Sophia, we happily crossed the park separating the two monolithic structures, took off our shoes, the girls donned head scarves, and went inside to see which building won the rivalry. The Blue Mosque is certainly impressive, but being of the opinion that a building is more than its bricks and mortar, that its history is what gives it life, my vote is cast for the former of the two contenders.
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