Turkey

28th August 2010, Legacy Ottoman Hotel, Istanbul.

This morning we arrived at 4:30am in Istanbul from Barcelona. The flight was freezing and I now have a cold. To put it simply this morning was horrible. We got off the plane, brought our 15€ visas and waited for the shuttle bus to take us to the hotel. Unfortunately we landed at the wrong airport, which is on the Asian side of Istanbul and our hotel was on the European side. Something happened to the shuttle bus so some other plans were made. Michelle and I along with an Italian couple were taken to the car park at sunrise. The man went to the car and left us to watch the crime. A car, out of nowhere, sped around the corner and almost crashed into one of the concrete poles. The car then stopped and the driver jumped out, did something to a door to what looked like a little security room then sped off. It kind of looked like he was making sure it was locked. Moments later 2 other cars sped around the corner, one person jumps out and slips a card into the door, opens it, brings out a large white brick, which was undoubtedly drugs, shuts the door and gives it to another person in the next car. There's an exchange of money then they glance at us. I just tried to avoid eye contact and thought don't shoot the witnesses over and over. Both cars sped off and our new car and driver arrives.

The other car we were suppose to have had flat tyres so this guy seemed to volunteer with his own car. Michelle's seat belt didn't work and I prayed to God for dear life in a Muslim country while sitting in the middle seat. As we exceeded speed limits down the highways it wasn't long until we turned into this deserted dirt road. I thought, this was it, I wasn't even going to last 24 hours in Turkey. Turned out we just went for petrol. There wasn't any so he tried another place. While the creepy driver was out, the Italian lady turned around and asked me if I was scared. I said no but in my mind I was thinking that scared was when we witnessed the drug dealing, now I'm fucking terrified! Somehow Michelle fell sleep as we made our way into Istanbul. We got to the hotel alive and were happy with what we found. Legacy Ottoman is a gorgeous 5 star hotel and to top it off at 7am our room was ready. We went to bed and started the day again.
Later when we woke up we decided to walk to the Grand Bazaar, Istanbul's large underground market. The first thing I noticed was how many Turkish flags flew and how many men were around. There was barely any women and it didn't take long for the stares and harassment to begin. Immediately I wished there was a guy with us and it wasn't long after we entered the labyrinth of the market that I wanted to get out. We didn't buy anything and followed the tramline back to the hotel after a quick stop to the harbour. We had another nap and then met the tour group. Our guides name is Yavuz and the group is mainly New Zealanders with 3 Aussies, 3 Brits and 1 American. Tonight we went out for dinner and the group overall seems nice. I had chicken Sis (shish) and so far Turkish food is pretty good.

8th September 2010, Istanbul Ataturk Airport.

Well, the tour is over. This morning we said goodbye to Kelly, Rachael, Z, Tom, Linda, Jude, Hilary, Jim, Claire, Ryan and Yavuz (Uncle Kevin). We're now at Gloria Jeans at the airport waiting for our flight to Athens which leaves at about 9:30pm. It's 5:30pm now.

The tour was amazing and the group was great, so here is a summary.

Day 1:
We spent this day walking around Istanbul. It was so hot and hard to stay awake. Also you can't drink from the taps here so we are frequently buying water. The currency, Turkish Lira, is easy to use and is about the same as the AUD. We visited the Blue Mosque and had to wear these sheets to cover our shoulders and legs. We also had to take off our shoes which was a bit gross.
Afterwards we walked a little way to the Hagia Sofia which is now a museum but had been used for Catholic and Islamic purposes.
After Hagia Sofia we visited the palace and saw a huge diamond and some other things, it was hard to pay attention. That was pretty much all on this day and Michelle and I weren't feeling adventurous so shamefully we had Maccas for dinner. It was gross too.

Day 2:

Today we got up nice and early, packed our bags and travelled for about 5 hours to Gallipoli. This was one of the best days. It was amazing to see the beach on which the ANZACS arrived and the hills they had to climb. The terrain is a bit different these days bit it still really put things into perspective.
We also saw Lone Pine, Simpsons grave, the trenches of both the ANZACS and the Turks and interestingly enough we also got to stand where the Turks did when the ANZACS arrived.
That afternoon we took the ferry over to the Asian side of Turkey and stayed at another good hotel in Canakkale. We saw the wooden horse used in the movie Tory here as well that the Americans had sent over as a gift.

Day 3:

We woke up early on this morning to beat the other groups out to the ancient city of Tory. I don't know too much about the 9 cities of Troy but it was pretty good to see the ruins. Also you got to go inside the fake Troy horse that the Turkish people made.
After Troy we saw the ancient temple of Pergamum. This was really cool to walk around and we got to sit in the ancient amphitheatre.
This nights hotel wasn't great and was in Selcuk but at least it was for only one night.

Day 4:
Today's ancient city, Ephesus, made the other ones seem boring. However on this day the Turkish food had gotton to me as well as tiredness. I could barley keep my eyes open, had the worst stomach aches and slipped down the stairs while making my way to the toilet.
Before the tour was over almost everyone got sick at least once. We escaped the rain in Ephesus and went to the white cliffs of Pamukkale. It was rainy here as well and the mineral water in the Cleopatra bath looked more uninviting than tempting with all the tourist in it. Including the ever posing Russians. We walked along the cliff then through the ancient sites. That night at the Pam Thermal Hotel we had the best dinner yet including the best turkey Ive ever had. Hehe, turkey in Turkey. We also watched a belly dancer, which was pretty so so.

Day 5:

We went for the mud bath in Dalyan today. It was... different. It dried so quickly due to the sun but it did make my skin feel softer.
Speaking of softer skin I forgot to mention earlier during the trip I went to a traditional Turkish bath. It hurt. First we laid in the room on a block to sweat. Then a big Turkish guy came in and rubbed our skin with a mitt which hurt, the dirt that came off me was gross too. After this part we got soaped down with a massage which made my back hurt for a few days. Twas all a bit awkward yet my skin was incredibly soft afterwards.

Anyway, after the mud bath we were put on a boat and saw the Kings Temples which had been carved into the cliff face but even better yet we found a giant turtle! Next we went to the beach for our first swim in the Mediterranean. I couldn't believe how warm (32°C) and clear it was, loved it!

Day 6: Today was awesome, we stayed in Fethiye the night before where the food was gross but on this day I went Paragliding over Oludeniz! It was so amazing. Michelle, Kelly, Z and I got into the jeep and went up the mountain. Admittedly the ride up was 10 times worse than the glide down, that jeep got so close to the edge sometimes. When we reached the top it was a bit of a WTF am I doing moment. We were high, really high. I met my pilot and told him I was nervous. Before anyone else I was dressed in the jumpsuit and being clicked into the parachute and the next thing I knew I was running off the cliff and in the air.
It happened so fast which the pilot said he did on purpose because of my nerves. The others didn't get in the air for about another 5 minutes as there was no more wind there to catch them. The view was unreal and after he assured me that the wind never stops (once in the air) I felt great.
The landing was fine and it was over before I knew it. After this we just enjoyed the warm turqiouse medeteranien untill the end of the day.

That night we went out for dinner since the hotel food was crap. We all ended up going to a fish market and had a great night where I learnt some very interesting information about visas.

Day 7:

Today we left half the group in Fethiye as they went to do the next 3 nights on a gulet. The rest of us went to a giant gorge in Saklikent. This was a really cool experience. Sometimes the water would come up to our knees and we would have to climb and slide down rocks to get through.

We had a nice lunch on the river where we fed a kitten. There's always cats where there is food in Turkey it's crazy.
We then went to a gorgeous beach, Kaputas, the water was so clear and there were tropical fish aound which was pretty cool. he only problem in this area was the roads. They were so windy and our driver was a bit crazy. For the next few days we were all a bit motion sick from it all.

Day 8:

This was our free day in Kas. I headed to the tiny pebbly beach and we finally were able to get some laundry done. Believe me, a fully clean backpack is amazing. You actually have options! Kas is only a small village so there isnt too much to do and it's wierd that there is a greek island about 6 miles off land.

Day 9:

This day was one of the best day, as well as Gallipoli. We got in a boat and went to a place called Aquarium Bay it was so clear and warm and we were able to jump off the boat. We repeated this for most the day just at different locations and inbetween we'd sunbake on the front of the boat.

While we were having lunch on an island the wind picked up and our boat was unable to dock so we had to run onto the ramp when it got close enough. 3 people got on then we had to wait, then finally there was a chance for us other 3. It was an extremly rocky trip back but we made it.

Day 10:

We left the hotel in Kas and picked up the others from the gulet. They all looked completly destroyed fromthe night before. We went to Olympos and had a birthday cake for Michelle who turned 22 on this day.
That night we finished in Antayla and Racheal, Kelly, Michelle and I walked into the Old Town for drinks. We got a bit lost along the way so I had to ask for directions in German as not many here spoke English. Never thought I'd have to use it, but overall it was a fun night out.

And here we are. Still waiting for the Athen flight. The rumors are true that Ataturk is extremly expensive which isnt great for a 7 hour lay over. But we'll survive.