"Istanbul used to be called Constantinople," Eric said to me. We were sitting on a bus driving into Turkey's largest city. "I've been reading about the history of Istanbul. People have been living here and making beautiful buildings for thousands of years."

"I've seen a lot of pictures of a really big building here. I think it's a mosque or maybe a church. Do you know which building I'm talking about?" I asked him.

"You're probably thinking of the Hagia Sofia. It's a beautiful building with a rich history. That's the first place I want to go!" Eric exclaimed.

The bus dropped us off in the center of the city. Eric and I saw large some large towers sticking up over the other buildings. "That's the Hagia Sofia," Eric said. We walked over and bought entrance tickets so we could explore the beautiful building.