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
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