This sign tells us that we have arrived in Manisa (also Magnesia). We stopped on the heights above the city to look at an ancient theater.
This theater would hold more than 1,000 people.
This rock is Niobe, or "The Weeping Woman." It is right next to the theater.
Rocky outcroppings outside of Manisa.
Manisa from the hillside where the theater is located.
Sheep grazing outside Manisa.
The park where Niobe and the theater are located.
Downtown Manisa
We visited the Muradiye Mosque (cammi, pronounced ja-me) in Manisa.
Muradiye Mosque was built in 1585 and was designed by the architect Sinan, the same person who designed the Sulimaniye Mosque in Istanbul.
The grounds of the Muradiye Mosque are relatively small.
Colorful tiles above the windows
Still beautiful without a complete restoration
The blue color is the famous Iznik blue
Look closely and you can see that age has cracked the ceiling
We liked this mosque because its scale made it easy to see everything.
One of the domes
The stained glass windows were intricate and colorful. Remember that Islam does not allow the representation of living things.
More stained glass