Kocatepe Mosque in Ankara

Said to be one of the largest mosqok like, and held three architectural competitions to choose from different projects. Eventually, the mosque was builtues in the world, Kocatepe Mosque impresses every visitor. Regardless of your religion, you will me stunned not only by its considerable size, but also by its interior. People come here to pray, to look around, even to sit or lay down and have some rest from the summer heat. This mosque can easily house up to 24 thousand worshipers, and you can absolutely believe in this statistic data just by walking inside it.

Actually, this mosque is relatively new: it was finished in 1987. At the same time, its construction began 20 years earlier. It lasted for such a long time because the authorities could not agree on how it should look in the Neo-classical Ottoman architecture style.

Don’t hesitate to take photos near it, and definitely take shots of those marble 88-meter high minarets around the mosque. Take a look at the shining gold-plated central dome, 25 meters in diameter. Be careful when you want to enter the mosque: down, in its basement, the mosque has a big supermarket. If you don’t want to end up strolling around the aisles in search of the way up, turn left or right before the entrance to the market and climb up the stairs.

When you enter this mosque, two things will strike you most. Firstly, the enormous spheric chandelier hanging in the middle. And secondly, its large area fully covered with Turkish carpets. If you come not to Namaz, but at any other time, you may even see some surprised children playing around on these carpets.

You can try to enter the internal balcony (which is actually the female prayer section) and take some impressive photos from above. In general, this place is definitely worth visiting, and unlike the museum mosques in Istanbul, entrance is free of charge.