Rüstem Paşa Camii

Tucked away in the backstreets just west of the Spice Bazaar, this Sinan masterpiece was built in the early 1560s for Rüstem Pasha, a grand vizier and son-in-law of Süleyman the Magnificent. Though it's unassuming from the outside, this is one of the most highly ornamented of the Ottoman mosques, and you're in for a treat when you step into the interior, where almost every surface but the dome is decorated with gorgeous İznik tiles in a magnificent array of colors and patterns. The mosque—raised on a high terrace that's surrounded at street level by a warren of small shops—is reached via flights of interior stairs in the corners that lead up to a courtyard and portico, the facade of which is also lined with beautiful tiles.

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