Geo: 41.0078, 28.813Again the weather in Istanbul is beautiful- sunny and no need for a jumper. This afternoon I did the Istanbul city tour on an open double decker bus. It was a great way to orientate yourself with the city- should have done this a few days ago. Went past all the major sites. Saw the long section of the old city wall and gates. Then went into the Aya Sophia- another old church with many mosaics. In the middle supporting the dome was the biggest piece of scaffolding that was covered in dust and has been there for a long time. At 6pm went down to the foyer and met my tour leader and the others that were joining the group in Istanbul. There were three of us newbies. Katie the tour leader spoke ... read more

Geo: 41.0078, 28.9313We arrived at Gallipoli at 2am. On the bus we got our breakfast boxes- I thought I had seen the end of the buggers. Hard boiled egg, honey, a tomato, boiled potato, cheese and a hot dog roll was all tossed out on the way in. It was not what I expected at Anzac Cove, I thought that the whole area would be larger. There didn't seem to be that many people. There were grandstands- mostly full and grassy areas- full. We wanted to get into our sleeping bags for a snooze, but there was no space and our tripped out tour leader was useless. We found some seats and tried to get comfy and have a nap- it was hard to do. It was freezing and a bit windy. Just after 5 we ... read more

Geo: 41.0976, 28.6816Another late check-out of a hotel. Got a note from Steve to say we are going to meet that night for dinner. Most of the group were still going to be in Istanbul for a few days- it was a staggered breaking up.Met Jenny, Mike and Rachel in the lobby and we all walked to my next hotel a few blocks away. There was an issue and they told me to come back later on. So we went and got some greasy food and then did some sightseeing. We walked across Galata bridge and saw some mosques on the way- partly covered in scaffolding! (What's new, seems to follow us around). The bridge stank of fish. There were lots of men fishing from the bridge. Lots of ferries leave from here, I assume they ... read more

Geo: 41.0976, 28.6816Managed to sleep for a few hours on the bus until we stopped at 4am for half an hour. We finally arrived at Istanbul at 8am. Our group got on a minibus and drove to our hotel. We weren't able to check into our rooms which was annoying us, as we felt feral and wanted a shower after being on a bus for 12 hours. Hussein told us that we could have breakfast at the hotel, as it was included in our tour package. I asked him what kind of food it was that same breakfast food that we have been given all through the tour and we are so over it. So we all went out for breakfast. I had an iced coffee and a yummy omelette. Was such a change to eat ... read more

Geo: 39.0425, 35.3437After breakfast, which we ate out in morning sun. We were told we were going for a hike this morning and had a local guide with us for the day. Was hoping it wasn't going to be too much hard work. We went for a short drive, then began walking into the valley. The area is covered by pointy rocks that have been formed due to erosion. The area is full of underground cities, caves, rock churches and chambers. People used to live in these caves. They are made of solidified volcanic ash and is soft to carve. We walked up a dodgy ladder to a small church- one of the highest spots in the valley. The walls were painted with bible scenes and in quite good condition considering they don't seem to be ... read more