Start of the day, we visited Basilica Cistern which is a short walk from our hotel. This cistern is an underground chamber approximately 9,800 square metres in area and despite only a few feet of water lining the bottom nowadays it is capable of holding 80,000 cubic metres of water. The domed ceiling is supported by 336 marble columns, each 9 metres high, arranged in 12 rows of 28 columns. Water was delivered to the cistern via a 20km aqueducts from a reservoir near the Black Sea. The entry fee in April 2015 was ₺20.
