EDIRNE: One-day Itinerary
MORNING:
Start your day with a visit to Selimiyi Mosquein Dilaver parki. This park is easy to find, as it is right in the centre, and beside the mosque's four slender, 70m-tall minarets are beacons from wherever you are in the city.
At the entrance of the park, you will see the statue of Mimar Sinan. He was the court architect to three sultans, and the Selimiyi Mosque, built in the 16th century, was his masterpiece. He wanted to build a dome higher and wider than the dome of the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul. With a diameter of 31.5m, the Selimiyi dome is just a few centimetre wider, one of the mosque's wardens told me proudly.
Stroll through the park until you get to the entrance of Selimiye Arastasi, a covered market full of clothing and household goods (closed on Sundays). It is one long arched corridor with some 60 shops on both sides and a prayer dome in the middle. Its historical name is Kavaflar Çarsisi, which means "bargain bazaar." The shopkeepers say their prayers under this dome and promise that they will trade honestly. I did not see them pray, but I bought a few things at a fair price.
In the middle of the bazaar, you go up a flight of stone steps. They lead to the mosque's courtyard, surrounded by with red-and-white colonnaded arches, and to the entrance of Selimiyi Mosque.
Its interior is sober and sumptuous at the same time. Sober because there is no furniture apart from the pulpit made of finely carved marble and resembles delicate lace. Sober because the interior is one vast expanse covered a wall-to-wall carpet, all red and blue. The pattern of this carpet is such that it resembles individual prayer mats.
Sumptuous because of its millions of ceramic wall tiles, 12 mother-of-pearl decorated pillars, and calligraphy proclaiming the glory of Allah (but difficult to check for non-Arab reading visitors).
I liked this mosque far better than the Blue Mosque in Istanbul with thousands of tourists each day. The Selimiyi Mosque is more a place of worship and less a museum.
Go back to Dilaver parki and sit in one of the tea gardens. Sip your tea or coffee (ask for Turkish coffee, which is served in tiny cups, and allow the grounds to settle before you drink it).
LATE MORNING:
Two more mosques to visit. First, Üç Serefeli Mosque (three balcony mosque) is easy to spot, because it has four different minarets: one is fluted, one with red-and-white squares, one with red-and-white diamond-shaped stones, and one with a corkscrew pattern. The prayer hall is only 24m in diameter. The courtyard is rectangular, and the four minarets are placed at its four corners. This was a new feature, and many other mosques were built in this style.
Two mosques may be enough for one morning, but if you are a mosque buff, the Eski Camii, or the Old Mosque, is just opposite Selimiyi Mosque. It is the oldest Ottoman monument in Edirne and dates back to early the 15th century. It is multi-domed and has a marble gate and many decorative inscriptions inside.
AFTERNOON:
The best place to sit down for lunch is opposite the Kervansaray Hotel in Antik Park. It is one of the few places where you can sit amidst plants and flowers, but the best recommendation is that the exhaust fumes are hardly noticeable. Most of the waiters speak English, and they can help you choose from the menu. Try green-pepper dolma with rice stuffing and a salad. Dolma means stuffed. Vegetable dolma is prepared in olive oil and eaten at room temperature.
You are now energetic enough to walk the 1km to the Sultan II Bayezid Complex. On the way, you pass two of the many arched Ottoman bridges spanning the river Tunca.
Just past the stone Beyazit II bridge, you will see the multiple domed building, which is very beautiful and a very good photo opportunity.
The Bayezid complex includes a mosque (in the process of being renovated), a medical school, and the asylum. The insane were treated in domed cells. In those days, psychiatrists used therapy treatments similar to those we have these days: the sound of water, occupational therapy, music, and sweet smelling of flowers.
The asylum is now the Health Museum. It has been restored beautifully. There are six rooms and a music hall. Water runs from a fountain in the middle. Wax dolls in the rooms represent doctors and patients, so you will get a good impression of what the hospital/asylum must have looked like.
Walk back to the centre and drink tea from small, tulip-shaped glasses in Antik Park. There are other places, but this is by far the best place to sit.
It is now time to do some shopping, and a good place is Alipasha Kapali Çarsisi, the covered bazaar. It is an old building built by Mimar Sinan. There are six gates and over 100 shops. Don't forget to look up at the vaulted ceiling.
Walk to Kaleçi. This is area west of the covered market and bordered by Londra Aspfalti Road and Saraçlar Street. Wander at leisure through the small streets and alleys and look out for the timber framed houses. They are characterised by broad eaves and bay windows.
EVENING:
Walk back to the Rüstempasha Kervansaray Hotel. This was another building designed by Mimar Sinan. This karavansaray was used by merchants travelling along the silk route. It provided a safe place for merchants to trade and stay the night. Travellers could stay for up to 3 days, and they were catered for and their animals looked after and fed. Karavansarays were built at a distance of 40km, 8 or 10 hours on foot.
The rooms in the Rüstempasha Kervansaray hotel are built around the central courtyards. Each room has its own porch and fireplace. The windows and door frames are beautifully decorated with stone carvings.
The restaurant of the hotel is a good place for a meal. Arnavut cigeri and imam bayıldı, spiced liver and stuffed eggplant, were my favourites. Finish your meal with kazandibi. The translation said: a milk pudding slightly burnt on the bottom. It was delicious!