Touching down in Turkey, the first thing that hits you is the hustle, and it hits you hard. My perennial disorganization didn’t help me any, and before I’d even dragged my dazed and confused body out of the airport I was the declared prey of a legion of Turkish taxi drivers. The one I ended up going with was to prove typical of this particular species of parasite, boasting an impressive array of methods for sucking money out of your pocket. “No I don’t have a hostel. I was thinking of just finding one. Istanbul is a pretty big place isn’t it? Just take me to one.” “Oh, no hotel? Big problem. Istanbul is full. There is big conference going on. Many delegates. Many hostels and hotels taken. Very few rooms.” I tried to imagine the ... read more