creynolds

Day 16: We got picked up and shipped off to our hotel in Goreme. It is called the Shoestring Cave Hotel, one of many cave hotels in the area. We had to wait until about 1030 to receive our room which is as stated, in a cave. Naturally, after another 10 hour bus ride, we took a 3 hour nap when we got our room. Here are some facts regarding caves, the positive thing about sleeping in a cave is you never get too hot. The bad thing, the cave is very humid and without a dehumidifier things get very damp. We have started to store our clothes in plastic bags to keep them relatively dry. When we awoke we decided to venture around the town and see what it had to offer. We stopped at ... read more

Day 14: Today we got up in the morning and hopped on a bus bound for Pamukkale. The word Pamukkale means cotton castle and is so coined due to the cotton appearance of the bleached limestone. Since we were staying in Hieropolis ("holy city"), also known as Pamukkale, our tour guide informed us we could wander at our own pace because we didn't have to catch the bus back to Selcuk. Naturally it wasn't the ruins that interested us at this point; but, the copious amounts of limestone that naturally deposited out of the thermal springs. When we first arrived at the site of Pamukkale our guide informed us that we were lucky because there was water. I was a little confused at first until I realized that this place is run strictly by tourism and ... read more

Day 12: Today was a day of relaxation. We got up and went for a little boat ride; I like boats. We had a minor setback where the tour voucher was left in the hotel room; but, that was easily fixed by our tour company vouching for us at the docks. When we first got on the boat we didn't know what to expect because our original tour to Paragum was cancelled and this trip to Samos was our replacement option. It was about an hour before the boat left port and Terri and I both had no trouble drifting off into our little dream worlds while waiting for the boat to begin moving. Once the boat was underway I decided to go up and order some tea. What I haven't mentioned is that we are ... read more

Day 10: Our last day in Istanbul. Today we didn't receive our laundry until 9 am. This caused a few stressors since we had to be showered and packed by 10 am to avoid paying another night. Since we were in such a rush a few things got left behind. My cheap little alarm clock and unfortunately Momma Bear's Ipod. On top of that it cost us 80 TL ($48) to do our laundry. It was not the best start to the day; needless to say we will be doing our own laundry from now on. We loaded up our 50 lb bags and all of our purchases, (Yes Kim; presents!) and proceeded to walk up the hill hoping to catch a taxi on the way. No such luck. So we both managed to haul our ... read more

Day 9: It has finally arrived, the day you have all been waiting for, the day we visited the infamous Blue Mosque and Ayasophia of Istanbul. Now it has only taken two highly educated individuals nine days, but we finally figured out the shortest route with a smaller grade of hill that takes us to the metro. This is only because we decided to walk to Sultanahmet region today. It was 0900 hrs and the heat was already making its presence felt. As we walked through the entrance of the Blue Mosque we realized that it is the only mosque in Istanbul with six minarets. For those unfamiliar with what a minuet is, it is the the pointed towers that you see surrounding the mosques in the pictures we have taken. They are where the calls ... read more