This is the oldest part of the city and contains the Aya Sofya, Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, and the Grand bBazaar/b. Our apartment on this side was newly renovated and modern, but had the speaker for the call to prayer right outside our windows. ... The bsultan/b could have 4 wives and up to 300 concubines (if he could afford that). His mother (called Valide bSultan/b or Queen Mother) wielded immense power and helped rule the empire, if the bsultan/b was incompetent or a child the ...
