Around The World In 80 Cats #30: Istanbul

Gli
(christie yunhwa)

Over the past fourteen hundred years, the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey has been a church, a mosque, and finally a museum, dedicated to preserving its religious and cultural history. BuzzFeed recently revealed that it's also home to a friendly and photogenic feline, who goes by the name of Gli. 


(kradeki)

There are dozens of photos of the adorably cross-eyed cat floating around the internet, and he even has a Tumblr devoted to fan sightings. The kitty curator's hobbies include perching, napping against spotlights, and soaking up attention from cat loving museum-goers, such as this one, and the one below.


(y entonces)

The caption from the photo above reads: 
This cat, who was hanging out inside the Hagia Sophia, was getting a lot of attention from the tourists.. He was mostly polite, sometimes indifferent toward the tourists, until this woman showed up. The cat was immediately drawn to her. He acted like he had just been reunited with a long-lost best friend.


(connie5001)


(echiner1)


(gga)

According to reports, Gli is around 7-years-old, and has lived at Hagia Sophia his entire life. He met Barack Obama during the President's visit to Istanbul in 2009, and is one of several cats being cared for at the museum.


(AsranQ)


(kradeki)


(chrisafer)

To check out more pics of Gli, visit hagiasophiacat.tumblr.com. 

Via BuzzFeed

Previously: Around the World in 80 Cats #1 - 29

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Know of any cat-themed travel destinations, or have any cool kitty vacation pics to share? Drop me a line at catsparella@gmail.com!