Blogs from Turkey, Middle East - page 458

Istanbul is the city that has, er 16 million people. There is so much to see here, it is ridiculous. Capital of the eastern Roman empire, Ottoman empire, etc. The old bit has all of the museums, etc and has a distinctly Arab feel (although one suspects that it is ramped up for the tourists). The new part, across the river, is all funky shops, bars, cinemas and cafes and you could be mıstaken for thinkıng that you were in any western city in the world. This is a good place to be stuck - because I am. I am tryıng to get a visa for Iran and it ıs a red-tape nightmare. Gallipoli was okay, but I could not help in thinking that the Australiasians have gone over the top with this one. The casualty ... read more

Ayvalik was the next pleasant harbour town. Linda was starting to realise that harbour towns tend to be built on hills as she hauled her baggage up through the narrow alleys while we hunted down the recommended pension. She was just on the point of refusal when our efforts were rewarded by by the double oak door of the pension. This converted Ottoman house was actually quite a treat as the elevation provided a splendid view over the rooftops of Ayvalik down to the sea. In addition to the double bed our room was large enough for two separate lounging areas and about 14 puffed up cushions (at £11 per night). The town is full of interest and bustle (and the first couple of large supermarkets we have seen). We ate most nights in a small ... read more

We landed at Istanbul airport last Thursday (24/6)and progressed through the formalities to find that the collection service from the pension had not appeared. This meant an immediate introduction to the Turkish public telephone system - which seemed exteaordinarily expensive simply because the cheapest phonecard cost 20000000 lira. Using currency with such big numbers takes some getting used to, I have made some sort of cock-up every day so far. We stayed 5 nights in Istanbul. It is probably more noteworthy what we didn't do than what we did do. We didn't go to the Topkapi palace. We didn't go around the Blue Mosque or the Aghia Sofia even though all of these were on our doorstep. We did take the tourist ferry up the Bosphorus (£2.60) towards the black sea where we just had time ... read more

Sultanahmet is the tourist and backpacker centre of Istanbul. Ideally located in the historical centre of Istanbul, between Haghia Sofia and the Blue Mosque. I was amazed at just how tourist-modern it was; it initially reminded me of Gringolandia in Quito. It was quite a surreal experience walking home one evening listening to the call for prayer from the Blue Mosque; as I turned into the main tourist street the sound became intermingled and then literally drowned out by the sounds of Robbie Williams pumping from a local bar. My first night in Istanbul I was roped into the local nightclub experience, for this you have to leave the fantasia of Gringolandia and head out to Taksim, the throbbing heart of the cities nightlife. As an all male group of six we were turned away from ... read more

Geo: 41.0245, 28.9881 GUN 6 Günlerden Perşembe Rahat bir uçuş ve gördüğümüz yerleri bize tekrar anlatan arkadaşlarımızla Istanbul Atatürk limanına vardık. Eve doğru giderken aklıma şöyle bir şarkı takılıyor Benzemez kimse sana .... Gerçekten canım Istanbul'um tüm dünyayı gezebilirsin ama hiç bir şehir sana benzemez. Boğaz köprüsünün üzerinden geçerken Ayşe ile sadece bakışıyoruz. Konuşmak yok ...konuşmağa gerek te yok .. Başka bir seyahatte birlikte olmak umuduyla hoşça kalınız ...... read more