Blogs from Turkey, Middle East - page 27

I said my goodbyes to Matt! Then said hello to two nights on an overnight train from Budapest, via Bucharest in Romania (2 hours stop there), then to Bulgaria and arrived at the Turkish boarder. Here I had to get off my train at 1am, get a Turkish Visa then catch a bus to Istanbul! I have so many awesome stamps in my passport now with little trains in the top corner. Initially I was a little nervous about spending two nights on a train, but it was completely fine. On my first train there was a couple from Bristol in the UK in my cabin and second train a couple from London and a Ano a guy from Paris who is a doctor, very good looking, so he ticked all the boxes expect he had ... read more

I took our puppy Bebek to walk. We are trying to be kind to it – street dogs have terrible lives here but our situation with her is complicated by the neighborhood. I try to walk her two to three times a day but the children hit at her and I often feel it is unsafe to walk her at all. Today in fact a little boy ran up from behind us and hit her hard on the back. Of course there are no parents to discipline these children. They literally play outside their courtyards, run the streets – all of them looking and behaving little dirty orphans. Yesterday – I came across a boy who choking a smaller one in the street. I ran up to stop him; he then slapped the little boy hard ... read more

No road is long with good company...” ~ Turkish Proverb Merhaba selam people! We are very very excited that tomorrow we are off travelling again. First a fleeting stop in Singapore, then we head to London to spend a few days with Ren’s sister and her family, after which we travel to the land of Turkish delight for a few weeks. Turkey has finally made it to the top of the travel list! In Turkey we’ll be travelling around the western and central regions, and only going as far east as Cappadocia (keeping well away from the Syrian and Iranian borders). If you received notification of this blog post via email, it’s because you are already on our subscribed list from our previous trips or have expressed an interest in our travels. However we completely understand ... read more

Last day in Istanbul today. Went to Topkapi Palace, which was the absolutely massive home of the Ottoman Sultans. It's actually the largest palace in the world! I went through the famous Harem, where the Sultan lived with his concubines and eunuchs. Then basically just wandered around. Mostly it's just a very beautiful place in a very beautiful setting... it sits on top of a mountain that looks out over the Bosphorus. It was hotter today and I had a long lunch before wandering around Istanbul. My goal was the Mosque of Suleyman the Magnificient, and on the way I went through the Egyptian Spice Bazaar. What a smell! They had every imaginable spice, nut, fruit, you name it, right out on the street. It was fun to just walk around and see what people were ... read more