The Grand Turkish Currency Bazaar Monk, who considers himself to be very organised when it comes to currency matters, finds himself getting very frustrated and annoyed at the currency situation in Istanbul. The Turks seem to have some kind of misapprehension that they are already part of the EU. When booking hotels on the Internet, all prices were quoted in euros - not Turkish lira. Monk naively assumed that this was an 'indication' of price for the convenience of Europeans so that they don't have to convert Turkish lira to compare prices. Having spent time in Istanbul, Monk now realises that the euro, and maybe even the dollar, is actually a 'shadow' currency prefered by the Turks. That's fine with Monk except that, actually, when it comes down to paying, everything then gets converted back to ... read more

The Topkapi Palace and Aya Irene Monk allocated the best part of today to explore the Topkapi Palace. It's physically the largest site on the Istanbul itinerary. There's a great deal to see and it takes a long time to do it properly, made longer by the queues one has to join to see some of the exhibits. The palace was the seat of government of the Ottoman Empire and the residence of its rulers. The architecure covers almost the entire span of the Ottoman Empire and the various buildings are now used as mini-exhibitions of aspects of the Empire. Within the First Court area of the Palace is the church of Aya Irene, the Church of the Divine Peace. This was obviously not to be missed by Nellie and Monk. The original church was one ... read more

The Blue Mosque and the Mosaic Museum Monk set about organising his day for fear of not seeing everything he wants to see in Istanbul. First trip was back to the Blue Mosque suitably dressed in long trousers to ensure he was not turned away at the door. The mosque, impressive enough on the outside, is breathtakingly beautiful on the inside. The stained glass windows, the blue tiles and blue decorations on the ceilings and domes make the mosque a sight not to be missed. Monk spent so long with his head titlted at a 90 degree angle that, for some minutes after leaving the mosque, he felt a bit dizzy and light-headed. Being an active mosque, entry is free, but Monk is sure the Ministry of Tourism would love to find a way to levy ... read more

Sabiha Gokcen (Istanbul) Airport, Transfers to/from Istanbul and the Taxi Rip-off Monk had booked a flight from Dalaman to Istanbul on the Turkish airline Pegasus. At just about €30, it was the best value flight so far - almost a quarter of the price of the Aegean Airlines flight of about the same distance from Athens to Rhodes. Most of the low-cost airlines, including the UK's easyJet, use Sabiha Gokcen airport, which is about 40km from the centre of Istanbul on the Asian side of the city. It's a lot less convenient than Ataturk airport on the European side and getting to and from it is not easy. There is supposed to be a rail link due to open in 2011 that will link Ataturk, the centre of Istanbul and Sabiha Gokcen. But for now, it's ... read more

Epta Piyes, Ancient Kamiros and the West Coast At breakfast Monk again booked for another night and made out for a circular tour inland and over to the west coast of the island. En route, Epta Piyes (Seven Springs) gets a high billing which Monk thinks is unjustified. It’s in a pleasant enough wooded valley but the ’lake’ formed by the tiny dam is more like a village pond. It’s firmly on the day-trip intinerary and gets very busy. What does look interesting is the 186-metre aqueduct through which a number of brave souls were walking. It’s just high enough and wide enough for a single person so changing your mind once you’re half way in is not an option. Monk decided to skip it this time. More beautiful driving through the interior leads to the ... read more