Roast Turkey

When we last left you we were on route to Istanbul after a lovely four days in Bulgaria and now, here we are, at the end of our Turkey journey - my how time flies!

Having had such a bust two months we hadn't had time to prepare for this trip in the slightest, so when we arrived at Esenler bus station somewhere in the huge city of Istanbul, we had no idea where to start. First things first, we jumped in a taxi which took us at frightening speed to our hostel in Sultahnamet. This was our first insight into the culture - as drivers they are very nippy, speedy and aggressive on the horn. This probably makes them fantastic drivers with lightening reflexes, but there was more than one occasion during our time here where we awaited a crash with bated breath - overtaking on a blind corner while texting, undertaking a truck veering off road to do so... Just a few examples of what we encountered on the roads here.

Not that we were complaining though as we arrived at our hostel in record time and were able to hit the road immediately and start exploring glorious Istanbul. Our first impressions - an enthralling city! Dusty, beyond hot, bustling, beautiful and haunting with the muslim call to prayer sounding five times a day. Our first night was spent wandering the Sultahnamet area, taking photos and exploring our local Arasta Bazaar, before hot-footing it to our hostel’s rooftop bar for glorious views and an ice-cold Efes beer.

Istanbul is huge. It makes sense really given it is the capital of what is an extremely populous country. Over 12.5 million people live in Istanbul and the city is as sprawled as far as the eye can see. We were there for four days and didn't even see a small fraction, although we did see enough to ascertain that this is somewhere we could definitely go back to. If it weren’t for the visa restrictions, language barriers and the fact that I’m a female and therefore a second class citizen, I’d move there tomorrow!

The next morning after brekkie on the now infamous rooftop terrace, we set off on Operation Explore. We wandered around for hours, taking photos left, right and centre, popped into the Blue Mosque for a nosey, and booked a tour to Gallipoli the following day. By this stage we were drenched in sweat, so to seek refuge from the sun, not because we were even slightly hungry (the heat kills any hunger pains that’s for sure) we settled down for the most delicious Turkish meal ever.

We decided to walk towards the river with the idea of taking a cruise to the infamous bridge which connects the Europe and Asia continents. The walk along the ocean was beautiful and the view of the city on either side of the river, alongside the countless mosques was stunning. Also dotted along the coast were hundreds of men sunning themselves on rocks before jumping in for a quick dip in the Marmaris. The heat made me want to join them, but given Turkey is a Muslim country I didn’t see one woman getting involved, so alas – I sweated in silence.

Our boat cruise was an event in itself. Jumping on board the first boat we saw at the best price, we were aghast to find ourselves still moored an hour later while the captain packed as many people as he could fit onto the boat – never mind regulations, seats or the fact that these poor beggars couldn’t see diddly squat on account of having 500 people in front of them. Thankfully our view wasn’t impacted so much, but it certainly wasn’t our most pleasant boating experience! The boat ride was two hours long which gives some idea of the size of Istanbul - for two hours we trundled along, never once leaving the city behind.

When the tour ended we made our way to the ice-cream stall - despite the fact that when we finished it was 6pm, we were beyond hot and were in dire need of something to help take the edge off. This is where Brad had his first ‘Beyaz experience.’ We all know he is more of a savoury man, leaving me to munch away to my heart’s content on the sweet stuff. Not so in Turkey, not so. I cannot count how many of these ice-creams he had, which is a special type of Magnum, covered in white chocolate and almonds with a cookie/ chocolate type ice-cream inside. Imagine my misery when he struck luck with this gem and I was fobbed off with a dismal cornetto. I didn’t make this mistake again and between us both, we must have eaten a crate of the Beyaz magic.

After a quick rest and refresh in sweet air-conditioning, we made our way back out walking the hustler mile in search of dinner options, dodging the countless restaurateurs trying to convince as to try their lovely establishment.

The next day we were up and waiting outside for collection at 6.30am for a tour of Gallipoli. Eceabat, the closest city to the Gallipoli peninsula, is about a five hour drive away from Istanbul, hence the early start and late return of 11pm. The day was very moving and informative, and was lead by a fantastic guide who was very passionate and knowledgeable, not only about the war, but about the local heroes amongst the many soldiers killed there. We learned remarkable stories of men so brave that it defies believe and it felt very surreal to be there. We visited all key historical points, such as Chunuk Bair, Lone Pine Hill, as well as the landing beaches, but we were surprised to learn that very few deaths actually occurred on the beaches, contrary to popular belief. The majority of the fighting took place in the rough hills, which were referred to as Death Valley. It was beyond hot, so to imagine fighting in such heat, wearing huge packs on your back and running through steep, rough terrain – it was impossible to even imagine and it certainly makes ANZAC Day all the more real to us.

The next day we set off to see the famous spice market, followed by the buzzing Grand Bazaar. One of the great things about Turkey is the fantastic shopping and I could have spent all day picking up all sorts of trinkets, but alas the heat prevented me from going too crazy! After dropping our purchases off at our hostel, taking refuge with a few seconds of reprieve from the heat, we made our way back to our favourite restaurant for a delicious ‘same again thanks’ lunch. This was followed by further wandering, photo-taking and general ‘soaking it all up’, alongside the occasional spot of shopping before heading back to our hostel at 7pm.

We went out to dinner that night with a plan of attack, which meant we managed to avoid most of the hassling and enjoyed a beautiful dinner overlooking the Marmaris Sea, before hopping down the road to a funky wee bar for a spot of Shisha. Not to harm our wee lungs (we are athletes after all), we opted for the apple tobacco and had a grand old time huffing and puffing and feeling rebelliously cool! It really is relaxing and we were quite the fans and next time we’re in Turkey (we absolutely want to go back ASAP), we might pick ourselves up a shisha pipe to take home with us.

The next morning we barely had time to pack our bags and enjoy one last rooftop breakfast, before our flight out. Our friend had invited us around to dinner that night so we had a lovely evening without having to cook, but woke up the next morning sick as dogs! We think something must of disagreed with us as we had the dreaded Gastro and were out for a few days at least – poor Braddles was out even longer and just made it back to work on Thursday.

Love to all and we’ll blog again soon. We just got back from Barcelona, so there’ll be another update before you know it.

xx

България

Well Bulgaria has certainly been interesting. To be honest, a lot of places somewhat merge together in Eastern Europe and when reflecting back it takes a few moments to recall each different place. That said, I don't think will ever be the case here. For a start, we are deep in the Balkans so not only does everyone look different, the writing is all in Cyrillic so following street signs all comes down to trying to identify different shapes rather than spelling out words.

We have enjoyed Bulgaria and while its not our favourite, we are of course very glad we came. As I type this we are on route to Istanbul - half hour in to an eight hour bus journey. Thankfully our bus is the creme de la creme of public transport, complete with smiling stewardess offering us deliciously sweet Turkish coffee and not so Turkish Pepsi every five minutes! Best of all, it has air conditioning, which saves us from the 35 degree heat where the sweat runs off our faces. Yuck!

We arrived in Sofia, Bulgaria just before midnight on Friday thanks to a delayed flight out of Heathrow. I hated to jinx it, but the moment we got to Heathrow I knew it would be a hideous flight. We were surrounded by 80s Cher lookalikes, all lining up to fly the hideousness that is Bulgaria Air. Nonetheless, we got there eventually after negotiating our way by Taxi (no mean feat as taxi drivers in Bulgaria are notoriously horrible con artists). The streets of Sofia are quite rough looking and we didn't feel comfortable exploring that late without having a feel for the land, so instead we opted to watch Downton Abbey, which we picked up at the airport, and go to bed.

Our sleep was fitful thanks to the lack of air con, meaning we slept with the windows wide open to avoid drowning in our own sweat, but therefore had to contend with the car alarms and noise right outside our window. We got a bit of a lie in the next day and before we put on our explorer hats, we hot footed it to the bus station to buy tickets for the following day to Bourgas. This was a bit of a mission given everything is written in Cyrillic and we had no other option than just walking in the general direction and hoping for a spot of luck. We were sweaty, dusty, lost, but jubilant when we found it eventually and although presented with a few translation issues, our usual trick of an apologetic smile meant we eventually found the tickets we were after.

Hot and exhausted we wandered back to our hotel for a quick lie down, before our walking tour kicked off. Our hostel offered a free walking tour and as there were just three of us, it was more or less a guided private tour - bonus! Our guide was born and bred in Sofia and we absolutely chewed his ear off with questions for over two hours. If we were going to describe Sofia in one word it would be 'raw'. While its not particularly pleasing to the eye, it feels very raw, rugged and authentic - quite an experience we felt.

Bulgaria has a tumultuous history really, more than any other nation. Alongside Athens, Sofia is the oldest European capital (3000 BC) and has been fought over by almost every nation in Europe! It was a part of the former Ottoman Empire (lead by Turkey) and only managed to break free in the 20th century. Next up was the Balkan war, followed by Nazi occupation then the Soviets with communism. Interestingly enough, Bulgaria was the only country whose Jewish population were kept safe, thanks to the smart thinking of the Bulgarian Tsar. Bulgaria had basically no other option than to side with Germany in the war, or in effect the population would be crushed, but they managed to keep out of actual combat somewhat. When Hitler's plans for the Jewish population became clear, the Tsar managed to avoid sending Bulgaria's Jews to their population by effectively saying: 'Of course the Jewish are terrible, but we really need them at the moment for cheap labour in helping with the war efforts - I'll send them to you afterwards of course for you to execute.' Nek minute, statues are erected all over the city by way of thanks to the Tsar. No other country managed to save their Jewish population.

One of the highlights of the tour was seeing the array of religious temples from Christian Orthodox to Catholic - I even got to don a full green robe complete with head covering and go inside a Mosque for the very first time. For sure the most beautiful building was the Christian Orthodox Alexander Nevsky Cathedral.

This was the most interesting tour we have done as thanks to our guide, we didn't just see the token sights. He gave us insight into the history, culture and current social living situation of Bulgaria. One of his man topics was the country's biggest current social problem - Gypsies. We've encountered these communities all over Europe, but nowhere are they more prevalent than in Bulgaria and Romania. In fact, just before we left London, 200 arrests were made of Romanian Gypsies who were ripping and conning tourists in London - they're cracking down on this immensely in the build up to the Games. In Bulgaria, they don't go to school and parents don't work - instead they make their money stealing in effect. As a result, others don't want to live near them and move away, meaning the two cultures don't integrate and the children have no way of learning a different life. When we were walking we were shown a big natural spring where locals fill up their water bottles. Gypsy children were bathing in the fountain, which used to be home to a copper monument, which was recently stolen by them and used for scrap metal. A bit of a chicken and egg situation really.

Perhaps 7.7.12 was an auspicious day to be married as over our tour we must have seen five different couples getting married - one of which we were witness to the full, traditional ceremony! Brad had the good grace to look uncomfortable, but I was snapping away as if the couple were my dearest friends! The Orthodox priest with his long beard and incense, the trailer trash bridesmain with every inch of her own display in a Eurotrash dress, or the bride in all of her glitter and diamante glory - nothing was off limits for me! Bulgaria is traditionally a very religious and traditional country, but times are changing apparently - the girl wearing next to nothing is a prime example of this our guide said, as traditionally you wouldn't be caught wearing something like that anywhere near a church, let alone under the nose of the priest! Not that it matters mind, as unlike Catholic priests, Orthodox priests are allowed to marry. This, the long beards and hair are just about the only differences between the two religions apparently and more and more, they are becoming more accepting of the other. In fact when Pope Jean Paul died, apparently a section of the service was in line with Eastern traditions as a gesture.

After the tour we were in dire need of a beer, so we made our way to the park for a cool beer (which is ridiculously cheap in Bulgaria) and copious amounts of iced tea, which has been a staple for us here and is far more popular than Coke. We then found a vintage antiques market where wee had a nosey, before wandering some more then picking up some traditional pastry stuffed with cheese and spinach for dinner, followed by some pizza. Exhausted, hot, dusty and sweaty, we made our way back to the hostel for a Downton Abbey fix and some much needed sleep.

We awoke bright and early the next day, and had checked out, picked up some breakfast and made our way to the bus station (this time by tram - screw such a big walk with a big backpack) by 9.30am ready for our 10am bus eastward bound to Bourgas on the Black Sea Coast. What we thought was going to be a four hour ride, turned into an exhausting six hour journey across Bulgaria without air conditioning. It did mean we got to see a lot of the landscape however, which we were surprised to learn was completely covered in fields and fields of sun flowers - as far as the eye could see. Who knew!? Eventually we arrived in Bourgas and after purchasing bus tickets to Istanbul for two days time, we made it to our hostel with relative ease, once again trying to identify shapes on street signs against our own Google map!

Not wanting to waste any time, we dumped our bags, changed into togs and hot-footed it to the beach to make the most of the 30+ degree heat, despite it being 5pm. We remained here for a few hours and for the very first time, swam in the Black Sea. The verdict? Very warm, quite flat and full of seaweed!

Having not eaten properly since 9am that morning, we hopped straight from the beach to a delicious dinner, before taking a walk through the streets and stopping off for a 'Soprano' ice-cream after seeing everyone else eating them.

The next day we had a set plan - beach, beach and nothing but beach, other than perhaps a beer and ice-cream pit stop. Having decided to have a more adventurous, rather than relaxing summer holiday, we agreed that one day of beach action was a necessity, which is why we decided upon Bourgas. We arrived just after 10am and managed to nab an umbrella, which came very much in handy when seeking respite from the fierce sun. We spent the day swimming, sun bathing, reading and swimming some more, with a brief stop in the afternoon for a lunch of Bulgarian meat balls and bread. The sun is so hot here that you can stay on the beach until about 7pm, so after a quick shower, we headed back out for a quick bite, as well as to pick up some refreshments for our bus journey the next day to Istanbul.

Which brings me to today! This morning we grabbed a few last hours on the beach and a last dip in the black sea, before boarding our eight hour bus trip to Istanbul. We've just passed through the Turkish border, which was the harshest border crossing we've seen - with the entire bus even being x-rayed with an x-ray truck! The weather has turned into an electric storm, so combined with the misty mountainous landscape, it all feels very unfamiliar - almost a bit like Hong Kong, which I suppose is fitting given we are officially crossing into Asia.

The customs officer did manage to say "Aotearoa - long white cloud" when he saw our Passports, so perhaps its not as unfamiliar as we think!

Love to all. We're closing the Bulgaria chapter - our next update will be the Turkey instalment.



Xx

No Carbs before Marbs!

When my boss announced she was getting married in Marbella, Spain on the Costa del Sol and what's more we were invited, we were instantly excited. Having already been to the Costa del Sol there was absolutely no pressure to sight see or soak up the culture - no, no we were there to tan, drink champagne, dance and just generally have one of the best weekends of our lives. Don't mind if we do...!

Having spoken with Alison about her impending nuptials every day for the year building up, its safe to say I was almost as excited as the Bride, so when the weekend finally rolled round I just couldn't believe it.

Our Friday night flight got off to a rather ominous start when a bunch of matching t-shirt lads almost got the plane turned round due to their loutish behaviour. It seems that in England, a group of young friends can't just go away together on holiday and enjoy themselves like normal human beings - oh no, if you're going away with friends it is compulsory to get matching t-shirts made with loutish nicknames printed on the back. While you're at it if you're a girl you must screech/ sing at the top of your lungs/ giggle like a hyena, with the lads shouting/ shoving/ winking lecherously at the air hostess, much to the guffaws of your oh so cool friends. Which is why when we not so much saw, but heard, 20 'lads' from Essex lumber onto the plane wearing classy t-shirts that read 'Deepsex Boys', my heart sank. Even more so when their nicknames turned out to be subtle-as-a-brick-through-a-window things such as 'Sausage', 'Chop Suey' (the token Asian friend of course), 'Stani' (the token Pakistani) and my personal favourite 'I've been fingered.' This was too much for the bright pink t-shirted girls in the back and the next 2.45 hour flight was spent listening to the Deepsex boys' crude comments, or the countless threats by the Easyjet staff. Highly amusing now, at the time I was just itching for a fight!

Thankfully we landed safe and sound, bid the Deepsex boys adieu and hot-footed it to our car rental. Stressed and anxious to reach Marbella, but at least we were on our way! Driving on the wrong side of the road, with useless instructions and in 30 degree heat is enough to test anyone's patience and given we were already late to the rehearsal dinner, we weren't in the cheeriest form. Any trace of the grumpy gills soon lifted though as soon as we walked into the gorgeous tapas place Alison and Darren had booked and were greeted with open arms - the perfect start to what was a perfect weekend! We laughed until our sides hurt, before laughing a bit more, all dosed down with delicious cocktails and red wine. We left at around 1.30am, with plans to meet up with the others the next morning to bags a few sun loungers by the pool.

The next morning, after a hilarious breakfast sharing stories, we made our way to the beloved pool. We had a great crew of seven in total and we couldn't believe our luck that we had all managed to stay at the same hotel with no prior planning. Just when we thought it couldn't get any better given the on-tap access to sun and swimming, out flows the jugs of sangria - don't mind if we do.
After what was the most relaxing say we'd had in a long time, we split up to get ready then made our way down to Villa Del Mar at the infamous Marbella Club. The wedding was held in a beautiful cobbled and tiled Spanish courtyard like something off a postcard, complete with personalised fans to keep the heat at bay - it was just perfect!

While the newly married couple went off for photos, we got to stand around drinking quality champagne and eating the most delicious nibbles - definitely got the better end of this deal I'd say! We then moved through to a stunning courtyard overlooking the ocean for dinner only to discover that, much to our delight, we'd hit the jackpot with the table and were seated next to our friends Gareth and Kara, as well as Darren's kids Meghan and Callum. We smirked our way through the speeches, trying to hide our glee as we all made murmurings centred around how jealous everyone else was of our table. I've been assured by the others the following day that they felt the same about theirs so perhaps this is the secret behind throwing a great wedding.

After a glorious five course meal, complete with our own mini lobster, up came some traditional Andulasian Flamenco dancers - not your average wedding! This was followed by one of the best first dances we've seen, before everyone took to the dance floor to dance under the stars to the amazing DJ while the mediterranean sea lapped just metres away from us - bliss.

Of course, as is the case when you're having fun, time just flew and when 2am came along we were gutted - I could have danced for hours more! We all gathered up our shoes, made one last trip to the candy buffet, had one last cheeky cupcake, before walking home along the beach giggling to ourselves at what a great night it was.

Sunday kicked off with the usual 'bags the sunlounger' game of the previous day, followed by a leisurely breakfast spent reminiscing about the night before - unanimously we agreed it was a fantastic wedding.

The remainder of the day was spent between the sun lounger and the pool, where we gossiped the day away, pausing only to bid adieu to those departing for flights. One by one we whittled away until sadly it was our time to go. Hoping back in the car, we meandered our way back to Malaga, trying to soak up as much of the beautiful view as possible before the flight home.

While we were gutted to leave, the pain wasn't too bad as we were departing for warmer shores just five days later thanks to a week in Bulgaria and Turkey.

Xx

Yes I Cannes!

I cannot believe another year has passed since my last Cannes adventure – everything was so familiar, as if I had only left just a few months ago. They say that time flies when you’re having fun, so surely it’s a good sign that my life seems to be flying past at the speed of light? It’s a scary feeling at the same time though.

 

  This time knowing full well what to expect, I approached my second Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity with open arms and enjoyed myself even more than the previous year. Comfortable that I was across everything, each day was as fabulous as the last, yet at the same time it all seemed much more clam and relaxing than the year before. I’m sure it all came down to my own state of mind, as I felt a lot more confident and relaxed – I’m already looking forward to next year.
 

 

We arrived on the Friday afternoon to glorious sunshine and after a quick trip to the hotel and a brief stint on the beach, we met up with three colleagues for our luxurious dinner at Baoli – perhaps one of the most gloriously tacky places on earth, where they sell bottles of champagne priced at 40,000 and the waiters light the bar on fire and clap their hands at random intervals throughout the evening. Home to the French Riviera’s elite, Russian oil heirs and girls with botoxed faces and dresses that don’t even attempt to cover their behinds. Great people watching!

 

 

Saturday we ventured down to the Palais des Festivals after a sunny morning spent soaking up the atmosphere, where the festival kicked off with the first Young Lions competition. This year I was presenting on Getty Images, training people how to use our website. I was a little nervous at the beginning, but by the end of the festival you couldn’t get me away from the wee podium. After such a start, it of course was mojito time (the first of many), which we had at one of my favourite places in Cannes.

 

 

I won’t take you through each day, as they all merge into one crazy work hard/ play hard week-and-a-bit of utter chaos and exquisite meals. The entire experience is just exhausting, although amazing at the same time. It takes a good week to recover, but people unite in their exhaustion and share rueful smiles at the airport on Sunday when they take refuge beneath dark sun-glasses. It is crazy, but I love it.

 

Highlights include the opening and closing gala, which is like the most beautiful wedding you could ever imagine, if budget was never an issue. When the DJ finishes at 2am you’re flabbergasted, convinced they’ve got their wires crossed – it can’t possibly be 2pm. Other options exist of course, like the infamous Gutter Bar which sees people sleeping on the side of the road come 9am when you’re up for the next day’s work. I avoided this place like the plague as I always had a sneaky suspicion that one you gave in to this, you’d never get to bed. It’s so much fun, you really could just keep going all night.

 

 The seminars are so incredible as well, with companies competing with thought-provoking discussion, laden with celebrity faces such as Bill Clinton, Matthew Morrison, Blondie, Ronaldo, Selena Gomez and Forest Whittaker to name a small few. I didn’t manage to see as many as I would have liked, given it was pretty full on, but I did sneak a peek at a few key seminars.

I’m sure it would be quite hard to come back to reality, but really my life right now is from anything real. With seven back-to-back weekends of pure fun in the European sun planned, reality is far from my mind!The Sunday night showcase is like the Oscars of advertising and its awesome to see the best of the best from all over the world. Here’s one of my favourites from this year, from a French television channel, which I’m sure you’ll all enjoy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Edeu4mz_tzg

Love to all and I really do wish you were here. $50 cocktails are delightful, but they’d be so much more sweeter if I were enjoying them with my beloveds.

 xx