Dubai

Today, I left Turkey and headed for Dubai for an extended stop over before the big trip to Africa. But, due to wasting some time in Istanbul while i recovered from the tour, I had quite a bit to do this morning. I hadn't seen either of the two large mosques of Istanbul. Sultanahmet Camii and Ayasofya Camii. As such, I got up as early as I could to get into the Mosques. Google and told me they were open 24 hours, but this clearly wasn't true as I had to wait around for about an hour before I could enter. The first mosque was the Sultanahmet Camii, and this was a much smaller and older mosque with a really nice courtyard. As the older mosque, it is less elaborate or luxurious but is still incredibly nice. The Ayasofya Camii was significantly larger and with more detail. But I liked both equally, as they both had their own character.

After these two, I went back to the hotel, packed my things, and headed to Istanbul Airport. The departure terminal was incredible on its own. The structure was mesmerising, photos attached. I then had a few hours to kill, so I bought some very overpriced popeyes chicken. I had never tried it, and all other food stores were equally expensive, so I gave it a crack. It was OK, nothing very incredible but it did the job. Eventually, though, my flight was due to depart, and I was shocked at how empty the plane was. It was amazing. It was maybe 10% of full capacity.

When I arrived, I gathered my belongings and got an Uber to my hostel. Given that it was now evening, the trains were not running regularly, and I could not make the next train. But the drive to the hostel was one of the most shocking experiences I had ever witnessed. The sheer grandure of the wealthy city was far above anything I had expected. Massive roads, massive hotels and malls, fancy cars, and all the rest. Once I had checked into my hostel, I headed straight for bed where I would remain for the rest of the night.Baca selengkapnya