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Steven Coe
Steven Coe

Steven Coe

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  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Rila Lakes & Rila Monastery

    May 5, 2024 in Bulgaria ⋅ ⛅ 7 °C

    📌 We set off with a hire car to the Rila Lakes, a national park in the south of Bulgaria. We intended to stay the night but the day was Easter Sunday and when we rocked up at the accommodation around midday nobody was there and there was no response. We decided to cancel (thanks free cancellation) and then try somewhere else, the language barrier was difficult and appeared there was no room and minimal staff due to the orthodox Easter celebrations. Ultimately, we made it a day trip and would return to Sofia late.

    📌 We headed for the lakes and got on a chairlift amongst beautiful pine trees, as we were ascending we realised we were greatly unprepared ( I had shorts on and no backpack) as we were soon passing snow covered ground and heading for higher areas of snow. We had about 3.5 hours before the last chairlift so we decided we would walk as far as we could of the loop.

    📌 The hike was difficult as there was so much snow, luckily we had hiking boots, some people had sneakers. We walked about 6km and saw 6 of the 7 lakes but we wouldn't have had time to make it to the 7th. Ultimately, we saw everything and more on this gorgeous hike. The snow was blanketed so soft and flat, the mountains poking out were jaggered and vast, but the best part was, there was nobody around and it was so quiet we could actually hear small avalanches. We descended down slowly, slipping over in the slushy hard compacted trail other hikers had created and enjoyed the slow quiet chair lift down the mountain.

    📌 We went around the mountain and through some quaint little hillside villages on a way to the Rila Monastery. The Monastery still functions and it was Easter Sunday so it was reasonably busy, even at 6pm. It was lovely to see the complex in the afternoon sun, the colours with the mountains in the background and the rushing mountain rivers nearby made it a special place. We were starving and found some delicious Nutella and jam doughnut balls outside (thank you tourist stalls for once) and then we headed back to Sofia for a late dinner and check in    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Sofia

    May 2–5, 2024 in Bulgaria ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    📌 A bus to Sofia meant arriving late around dinner, we were staying in a comfy large Airbnb a little bit out of the centre. We found a small food truck park which seemed to be the local 18 year old hang out, but we enjoyed a drink, dumplings and pizza in the trendy Bulgarian capital.

    📌 Another walking tour gave us a great insight into the city and a bit more if an interesting insight into their communist era. Most interestingly, Bulgaria never joined the Soviet Union and were rather their own communist regime. We saw some old communist buildings, some former churches and mosques from the Byzantine and Ottoman ages, and some beautiful Austro-German architecture that survived WW2 bombings.

    📌 Day 3 we visited a an old communist era flat that was telling the story of the locals that lived there. It was such a different museum because you felt like you were in their house and you could open cupboards and look at old relics etc. This day also involved a short visit to an illusion museum to mix it up and kill a few hours, it was fun to be tricked out by illusions and it was a nice change to regular sightseeing.

    📌 Funnily enough, Damien McShane (from East Bentleigh) was in Bulgaria and we caught up for dinner and some drinks. We talked for hours over some beers and delicious traditional Bulgarian food about vet and travel. It was great to catch up with someone as we hadn't really had much conversation with anyone else since Vietnam, Damien is also such a great person to chat with.    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Sozopol

    Apr 30–May 2, 2024 in Bulgaria ⋅ 🌬 15 °C

    📌 We spent a few days down on the black sea coast, a popular thing for Bulgarian locals in summer. We road tripped down to the coast through some beautiful forested areas, towns and saw plenty of wild tulips.

    📌 It was offseason and day 1 was pouring rain, not ideal weather for the coast. However, we were there to not do a great deal and the hotel was comfy and warm, perfect for some supernatural and truly relaxing. When we emerged into the rain we had a beautiful dinner looking out right onto the black sea.

    📌 Day 2 involved a relaxing day, a wonder around old town, browsing some shops and a struggle to find lunch which turned out to be great as dinner was phenomenal. One of our Bulgarian highlights, a small 10 table or so restaurant perched up on a cliff overlooking the black sea. We enjoyed fresh seafood pasta and some delicious stuffed peppers with Bulgarian cheese. Sozopol was a great little trip that broke up the sight seeing which had started to become a little repetitive.    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Plovdiv

    Apr 27–30, 2024 in Bulgaria ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C

    📌 A long overnight train took us into Plovdiv. A comfortable and clean journey, just one disrupted 3-4 times in the space of 3 hours for so many passport checks 😂

    📌 We arrived in the city after checking in and it was very beautiful, it is home to the longest pedestrian street in Europe. This is lovely to walk down as it is lined by colourful buildings rather than communist style architecture.

    📌 As per usual we did a walking tour, which was quite fascinating given Plovdiv may be one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Europe. As a result they have a great deal of Roman ruins, most buried under the city. Additionally, we learnt about the history of Bulgaria, empires that have been through and communism.

    📌 We particularly enjoyed the old town, with many traditional old houses and also a trendy bar and restaurant district. Another standout was all the wild tulips we saw around the area, the most we had seen in our travels so far.    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Istanbul: Stop Over

    Apr 25–27, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C

    📌 Time to head back to Istanbul and to start making our way West into Europe. We caught an interesting flight from Yerevan airport with Flyone, a budget Maldovan airline. The airport sucked but luckily the flight was short and straightforward without any extra charges or bags lost.

    📌 We landed in Istanbul and pushed through a long transfer from airport to accommodation with all the bags during peak hour. We eventually made it to the hotel and were keen to eat dinner by this time. A true blessing came across us when we found a small family owned authentic Indian restaurant that was super cheap and incredibly delicious, the perfect meal after an afternoon of transit.

    📌 We started the day with our fav Turkish breakfast, kaymek (cheese and honey) and then spent the rest of the day in Istanbul ticking off some admin tasks as we can only receive texts in certain countries (Turkey one of them) thanks to Aldo mobile. So we had to book some trains whilst we could recieve bank codes to authorise payments. We bought a few souvenirs and then headed out of the city for our overnight train. Taxis are horrible in Istanbul, so it meant a long walk up the hill with our bags to get to the train which would take us to the overnight train. We got there after a tough slog and we were keen to get into our private sleeping cabin. The cabin was quite comfortable and clean, it even had a few snacks, possibly better accommodation then some of our Vietnam ones 😂 Next stop, Bulgaria!    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Yerevan: round 2

    Apr 22–25, 2024 in Armenia ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    📌 After some big Armenian meals from Marietta we made our way back to the capital in search for some different flavours, the next few days we enjoyed some delicious Italian, Vegan food and even a Georgian restaurant (defs our favourite cuisine so far in Europe).

    📌 We spent the days in Yerevan with freedom, we explored the city a little more, we went to the gym even and also did a little Pilates workout in the room. Hitting the gym again after 2 months off, geez was the soreness intense the next few days!

    📌 We spent a full day visiting some sights around Yerevan such as an ancient temple that was believed to be built by the Romans (Temple of Garni) where it was part of a bigger complex several thousand years ago. It was quite a different structure that we hadn't come across on our journey of seeing lots of Roman ruins. Not too far from here was a interesting geological formation of organ pipes which was a nice walk through. We then finished the day with an attempted visit to a monastery, however the road works were so insane with absolutely no traffic control, we gave up and turned around. Basically the road was getting grated on one side and cars were trying to use the other in each direction but there was no traffic control 😂

    📌 Our final full day involved a day trip to Dilijan, a township near Armenias largest national park, this area was mountainous and quite pretty due to the dense greenery and spring flowers. A short walk through the forest and a delicious lunch overlooking a lake meant a successful day trip. We finished the day in the capital where they were celebrating/commemorating the genocide anniversary in the old Soviet square, the sound of the speaker echoing around the square really made it feel quite intense, thinking about what soviet speeches would have been spoken in this square.    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Goris/Tatev Roadtrip

    Apr 21–22, 2024 in Armenia ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    📌 We set off early out of Yerevan for our 4 hour roadtrip to the mountains of the south of Armenia. It was interesting driving through the country for a number of reasons;
    1. Roads are horrible, pot holes literally everywhere and where potholes are getting fixed, they have cut a chunk out of the road to be filled, but have not yet filled it. So basically you drive on the wrong side of the road a lot and have fun around trucks.
    2. The tensions with Azerbaijan meant there was a war over territory around the borders in 2020 and driving near the border is an unfamiliar feeling.
    3. Lots of Russian soldiers in trucks driving around as they are stationed in the area to keep the peace apparently.
    4. The close proximity to Iran, a country with so much happening right now, and we were approximately an hour away

    📌 All in all the drive was fun and really beautiful due to the mountains, including mount Ararat which the bible lovers think is where Noah's Ark landed.

    📌 We arrived in Goris and headed for the wings of Tatev, the world's longest tramway through some mountains to a monastery. It's 5km approx and offers some awesome views. The Monastery was from 10th century but it was pretty similar to some other ones we had seen, so we had a look around and moved on. We found a random hotel with a restaurant that had beautiful views over the valleys and enjoyed some Armenian/Russian lunch.

    📌 In the afternoon we headed back to Goris where we met our host Marietta, she welcomed us with a hug and said welcome my son and daughter. She was lovely! That night she made us home made dinner of Armenian specialities all sourced from her garden or the area. She even gave us home made vodka and wine. It was so nice to have a home cooked meal.

    📌 The next morning we were treated to a delicious breakfast in Mariettas veggie garden and after many hugs we set off on another fun road to a nearby attraction. We visited an old town where people lived in caves until approximately 1960, it was in a beautiful location with a fun swinging bridge across the gorge.    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Yerevan

    Apr 19–21, 2024 in Armenia ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    📌 A visit to another Caucasus country, Armenia! This was also occupied by the Soviets and our arrival came with a fun minivan trip across the border and into the capital of Armenia thanks to some more crazy driving.

    📌 We started our trip with a traditional Armenian meal, the cuisine was similar to Turkish and Georgian. It is mostly meat based but they did have more variety then Turkey. This restaurant was good fun, they had some singing and traditional music which even got some locals up from the table.

    📌 Day 2 involved a visit to the genocide museum, a horrible event in Armenian history centred around the Ottoman/Turkish genocide against Armenians occupying eastern Anatolia (now turkey). The worst part is, Turkey does not officially recognise the crimes committed.

    📌 We finished day 2 with a walking tour of the city, the guy was a character, he was fixated on whether people were married (apparently very important to Armenians). The Aussie guy on the tour was great to have a chat with, whilst the Americans were too serious as usual ☺️. It was interesting to hear the political tensions between Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Turkey, and therefore how they must still rely on Russia for many things despite them previously occupying the country during the Soviet era.

    📌We ended the day by picking up a rental car and we were in for a treat, driving around another crazy driving country.    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Tbilisi: stop over

    Apr 18–19, 2024 in Georgia ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    📌 A very hungover morning meant we were both dreading the drive back to Tbilisi. We had somehow managed to organise a lift with the neighbour who was going that way and he ofcourse was leaving at 7.30am. He was a nice man but he drove like crazy and his car ran on gas, this meant I was soon asking to stop as I had to vomit on the side of the road. Luckily this only happened once.

    📌 We arrived in Tbilisi and thankfully we had booked some really nice quiet, clean accommodation that let us check in early. We soon had delivery Maccas, and did that come and nuggets go down and absolute treat! This was accompanied by some supernatural and was the perfect do nothing morning.

    📌 We figured we eventually should leave the room, we went and found some Kombucha at a cafe to try and get our bodies back on track and we went looking for souvenirs. The day ended with some delicious Mexican and some fond memories of Georgia and Tbilisi.    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Telavi: Khaketi Wine Region

    Apr 16–18, 2024 in Georgia ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    📌 Another gotrip got us from Kazbegi to Telavi through some beautiful countryside of mountains, lakes and spring trees. The ride was 5 hours but we were welcomed to another lovely guesthouse in the small town of Telavi. We were keen to try some of the wine from the oldest wine makers in the world.

    📌 We organized a driver name Mamuka who was from the area thanks to a tripadvisor forum and he drove us around for the day for 50$. Bargain! We started at a winery that he knew, being off season it was very quiet, so essentially we were getting a private tour and private tasting. They're very generous, a tasting includes essentially free pour wine once a glass is finished, plus cheese and biscuits. They showed us how they make the wine in these large terracotta pots known as Qveri which are buried in the ground for months. We then went to a larger more industrial winery/warehouse which was equally as good due to their nice garden, sitting amongst the vines on a 25 degree day was perfect.

    📌 We attempted to visit a third winery I had seen on Google but as we got there the owner was extremely pushy speaking Russian to our driver, once we left after he starts shouting kangaroo at us, the driver tells us that he was drunk. We ended up at Mamauka's recommendation, a winery run by an 80 year old man known as Shota. We were shown around the Qveri area and we were seated out on the balcony overlooking the mountains, us, mamuka and Shota, basically it felt like we were at a friend's house. The afternoon went on and Shota asked us to toast and with each toast you had to skull your wine. We were winning him over with our Australian drinking ways and he started saying "Steven" and pointing to my glass to finish and get more. Everyone was having a good time and then came out the local spirit known as ChaCha, soon shots were being had and stories about the Soviet union were being told. Eventually we had to leave as we were way to drunk and Shota somehow had to keep hosting some Russians. This was the most authentic experience we had to far.

    📌 The day ended with us back at the guesthouse where we were given more wine by the hosts and we sat on the balcony drunkenly talking to some Georgian people our age and Mamuka who had stuck around as he coincidentally was good friends with host of the property. The night finished with some trips to the bathroom vomiting (both of us) and some very dizzy sleeping.    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Kazbegi; The mountains near Russia

    Apr 14–16, 2024 in Georgia ⋅ 🌫 0 °C

    📌 We travelled to Kazbegi/Stepansminda with a gotrip driver (super convenient) named Vano who was Russian but was able to use hand signals and understand when we wished to stop. We drove a couple of hours through beautiful landscapes of snowy mountains on some sketchy roads. There were tunnels through mountains pitch black or avalanches that had closed off parts of the road. This was a main highway between Russia and Georgia also, so there were heaps of trucks from Russia and central Asia.

    📌 We arrived in Kazbegi, a quiet town with many trucks waiting to cross the border, surrounded by huge mountains on both sides. The accommodation was a really nice guesthouse that we basically had to ourselves.

    📌 We started day 1 with lunch at a local place, it was basically a little shack with a guy bringing us home made wine and delicious khinkali dumplings. We then walked into the square where a taxi driver soon approached and asked us in broken English where to go, we suggested some waterfalls nearby and off we went. As per standard he was a crazy driver but he was nice and he kept pointing at things saying "it's nice, it's nice". The waterfalls were beautiful, it was nice to be in rugged nature. Interestingly, the falls were not far from the Russian border so trucks lined the side of the road as only 50 or so can pass per day and some trucks can line the road for days.

    📌 Day 2 was our full day and the weather was perfect, the day started with a hike to the UNESCO Trinity Church up high on the mountain. The hike was tough but worth it, we admired the views then started the hike to the glacier behind the church. This gave us an even better view but unfortunately we couldn't go too far along the 10km track as snow would have stopped us. The views were incredible and we even ran into a aussie guy from Richmond.

    📌 Day 2 continued with a adventure, we went back down from the church around lunch, found out taxi friend in his beaten up x-trail and asked to visit one of the highest villages in Europe, Juta. He was keen and enthusiastic and we drove off through some awesome valleys, so far, no problem. We started ascending up a very sketchy road and at times a narrow one where old mate driver was saying "no problem, no problem", despite being basically on the edge of a crumbling dirt road. At one point we got out and walked whilst he went over snow half covering the road. Eventually we made it to an impassable spot, despite him thinking he could make it, we translated walking is better from here and he says "walking is nice". We made our way a few kms up the road but eventually got stopped by an avalanche over the road near the town. We ventured back to a happy taxi driver who was enthusiastic to show us more spots on the way back down plus a nearby waterfall. Our near death adventure was one not to forget, the driver was a reflection of Georgian drivers and his car just made it even more hilarious.

    📌 Overall, Kazbegi was incredible, a very unique place in the world and very friendly people.    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Tbilisi

    Apr 10–14, 2024 in Georgia ⋅ ☁️ 15 °C

    📌 Arriving in a new country is always a little difficult, knowing how to get to the accommodation, having no internet, having no local currency. As we got off in Tbilisi at 2.30am, the esim was average so we had to get a local Sim and fend off the taxi drivers. It was a smooth ride to the accommodation as Georgia actually has a reliable rideshare app unlike Turkey.

    📌 We were staying in a trendy neighbourhood with some cool coffee shops, bars and a former Soviet industrial building converted to a hostel and courtyard of bars/restaurants. The city was also full of trendy restaurants, wine bars and shops. Some say Tbilisi is the Berlin of eastern Europe.

    📌 We started our intro to Georgia with a free walking tour, we were shown old Soviet buildings, old Tbilisi town which was not destroyed by the Soviets and learnt a great deal of history. It was evident that Georgians do not like Russia and they are very angry that Russia still occupies 20% of Georgian territory. It was also fascinating how Georgia has only been independent since 1991 and they had a revolution in 2003.

    📌 The food in Tbilisi was incredible, some of the well known Georgian food we have tried so far includes; Khinkali (dumplings), Khachapuri (cheese filled bread), Chkmeruli (garlic sauce chicken) plus many others. Of course, good food needs to be consumed with good wine, and Georgia has been found to have been making wine since 4000 BC using clay pots in the ground, potentially the first wine makers in the world. It tastes delicious and is super cheap, approx 3-4$ a glass.

    📌 A couple of other highlights included the cable car over the city, a converted market to a food hall of different bars and restaurants, an outdoor wine courtyard of bars and restaurants, and the old architecture and the monument celebrating Georgia over time. Another nice surprise was the national museum which showed the importance of this area in human evolution. The first humans potentially migrated to Europe from Africa through this area and thus many fossils have been evident here.    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Ankara

    Apr 9–11, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    📌 Last stop in Turkey, the capital city. A short bus trip of a few hours was refreshing and a smooth check in to a neat hostel. We had one night booked here and we basically had 2 full days as the flight was booked for almost midnight on the 10th.

    📌 Ankara doesn't appear to have a whole lot of attractions, it appears similar to Canberra, a capital due to location more then anything. As a result there are less tourists and prices are cheap.

    📌 Day 1 involved me getting back on the Turkish doner kebabs which was a good choice. We were super full from those, so we decided a wine bar and a late dinner was ideal. Where we were staying was quite busy and had plenty of pubs, bars and restaurants. Italian for dinner in a small restaurant playing old school jazz and blues. The ravioli was delicious. We finished the night watching the MAFS finale with some chocolate.

    📌 Day 2 was an interesting start, it was the holiday for the end of Ramadan, hence the place was a ghost town. The city got busier as it was lunch time and the shops started to open. Lucky it was a day for not much, organizing some work and accomodations in the UK, visiting the tomb of Atarturk and having a slow coffee. We were able to hang out in the hostel and sort out a few things also which was handy. Off to Georgia next, which we were both keen for.    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Cappadocia

    Apr 6–9, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 7 °C

    📌 Arriving at 11am in Cappadocia after the overnight bus, we checked into a hotel and went for a wander, obviously being a super popular tourist destination it was more expensive and touristy restaurants. Cappadocia is famous for a few particular dishes such as meat cooked in terracotta pots.

    📌 We enjoyed a unique dinner in a local Turkish restaurant where you could sit on the ground next to the fire. We enjoyed some dips and bread with hot wine and stuffed eggplant. Of course tea was consumed at the end.

    📌 The main highlight arrived on the morning of day 2, the air balloon ride. We got up at around 4.30am and arrived at the balloon field around 5.30. It was about 3 degrees so it was freezing but all the balloons were getting ready and it was exciting. We were waiting around for a bit and then we were told to wait 30 minutes, they weren't sure if flying was going to happen due to some temperature or wind issues (potentially not windy enough). We got the greenlight at about 6.30 and about 20 people got into our basket including a lovely Kenyan family.

    📌 We were up in the air for about 45 minutes with about 100 balloons, it was amazing! The journey was so smooth and we went up, down and around the rock valleys, it was such a clear day we could see the huge mountains in the background. It was a great time limit too, not too short or not too long. When we touched down the cars and crew speed to the area and run over to grab the basket, it's all quite chaotic but fun and in the end they prevented us from landing on our side. We finished with champagne type juice and a certificate.

    📌 We spent the rest of our days wandering around Cappadocia, quite a small place but gee we were glad we went up the first morning because the next two mornings were cancelled. It was nice to not do much but wander, we went through the canyons on walks which involved a dog following us inevitably. We went inside the rock dwellings and explored a few viewpoints. Overall Cappadocia was a very unique place and the balloon was incredible, a bucket list item.    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Antalya

    Apr 4–6, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    📌 Our last coastal area, Antayla is a much larger city and driving through here was another fun experience, more crazy drivers losing their mind or almost crashing. One moment was essentially a one way road (thanks google maps) with cars and trucks coming the other way, and a truck tailgating us whilst flashing his lights because we weren't going fast enough. A good laugh now but a stressful time then 😂

    📌 We wandered around old town, which being right next to the ocean was charming. This was a very touristy location however, as there were many British pubs and clubs.

    📌 The main highlight of Antayla was on day two where we explored a nearby very well preserved city of Aspendos. This stadium was huge and there was hardly anybody there, I can't imagine what it would have been like in its prime. We then went on to visit some waterfalls, one with beautiful blue water and another that ran directly into the ocean.

    📌 We dropped the car off in preparation for the bus to Cappadocia and then realised we hadn't actually booked the bus for the next day. We assumed this would be fine as most of the buses so far were half empty, well we were wrong and the buses were all booked as it was the weekend. We managed to find an overnight bus which meant we left at midnight instead of 8am the next day, when we eventually got on the bus after poor communication and it arriving at 1am, we were quite ready to sleep. So, in the end this turned out to be a good decision as sleeping part of the 9 hour journey made it go a lot quicker.    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Kas

    Apr 3–4, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

    📌 We continued our coastal roadtrip onto Kas, this was an interesting drive through the windy roads and it really showed the questionable driving of the Turkish. They don't really use lanes very well and happily tailgate you, possibly the worst/ most aggressive driving I've seen outside of Asia.

    📌 Our first impressions of Kas were it was a smaller more wealthy town on a very steep hill. The houses and hotels were well kept, the port was lovely and the water was crystal blue.

    📌 We had a great accommodation with a great view, which was a nice change from some previous ones. We wandered up and down the steep hills and decided to get a few drinks from the local bottleo. It was a lovely view over the water watching the sunset, we even saw a sea turtle swimming around.

    📌 We had some Italian for dinner at a place making fresh pasta, it appears Italian is our go-to when we don't feel like Turkish meat and salad, which is getting a little tiring. We met a dog at the restaurant who Chloe named Mila 2, and she loved the pats. She started following us home when we left and we had to walk away fast so she would loose us, it was heartbreaking. The next thing would happen the next day with a German Shepherd, the street dogs really crave love 😔    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Fethiye: Coastal Roadtrip

    Apr 1–3, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    📌 Time for some relaxation and not a whole lot of activities planned, the next few days were a couple of stops through various coastal towns of the Mediterranean.

    📌 Fethiye was quite large and we were staying a little bit out. It was a port town with a decent district of food and drinks but by this point Turkish food was not as appealing, we weren't feeling the meat and salad dishes as much, maybe the food poisoning didn't help that ☺️

    📌 We ofcourse found a happy hour, a beer for a few dollars and then decided on some vege burgers. We were both pretty cooked after a bad night sleep.

    📌 The next morning involved a 5km or so hike along the coastal Lycian way, one of the most scenic long walks in the world (500km) that follows an ancient group of people in this area. This walk was hot but it was well worth the views over the crystal blue waters and islands.

    📌 We then headed along the coast to the blue lagoon and beaches of Oludeniz, voted the best beach in the world in 2006 and often Turkey's best. This area was lovely but also made us realise how good Australian beaches are, the shops in abundance along the water for tourists (even a Starbucks on the sand) and the darts everywhere took away from the charm of a beautiful place. Big fan of beaches that are just beaches with a dirt path!

    📌 We finished the stay here with a great dinner as a restaurant that was dead quiet but we are glad we went in (after hesitation) as the food was great and even the chef came out to chat to us. The main worker even started showing us photos of all the places in Turkey he'd been, he loved a chat ☺️    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Pamukkale

    Mar 31–Apr 1, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C

    📌 A short stay in Pammukale, we road tripped 2.5 hours in order to go in city the natural wonder known as the travertines or cotton castle. The town was small and the hotel we were staying at was a very quiet (offseason strikes again) family run hotel.

    📌 We went for a wander and we were glad we were only staying one night as there wasn't a whole lot of appeal to the town. We had a doner kebab for lunch and headed back to the hotel, was this the beginning of Stevens downfall.

    📌 A few hours later fevers were coming on and body aches, I had no appetite and we just sat around the hotel restaurant whilst Chloe ate and I had some pieces of bread. It was a great night, a few vomits and minimal sleep had Chloe super happy.The morning was better but the thought of a kebab still feels gross at the time of writing this (7 days later), not sure if I'll have another in Turkey. It probably wasn't even the kebab but who knows.

    📌 We visited the pools and the ancient ruins of Hierapolis. Both were incredible to see! The pools were beautifully blue and white and we were there early enough to avoid large tour groups. It was a shame though that they are not as beautiful as they once were, hotels have been diverting water the past 10 years, meaning less in the pools. The ancient Roman City was impressive, there was barely anyone there and it was in great condition (so much better then the Coliseum), it was incredible to walk through history with so much freedom.    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Selcuk

    Mar 29–31, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    📌 Getting to Selcuk was a little bit of a journey, a short walk to Chios bus station ➡️ A bus to Izmir Airport ➡️ pickup a rental car ➡️ drive to Selcuk. All in all, it was pretty smooth and easy despite not knowing the bus timetables.

    📌 We arrived in Selcuk around lunchtime and tucked into some local food, some shish kebabs. We wandered around and found Selcuk to be a small town, some nice green parks.

    📌 We were keen to see the ancient Roman sites. We booked a day trip visiting the house of Mary apparently, a place where she come after Jesus death. This was basically a small church which was underwhelming. We then moved onto the city of Ephesus which was the main attraction. Ephesus was excellent to see, it's very well preserved given its around 3000 years old and they are still finding things under the earth around the area, it would have been a huge Roman City. Seeing the toilets and the library were the highlight. We then were given PTSD from India where they took us to a carpet salesman but disguised it as them wanting to show the craft of women and we had only been just next door at lunch. The carpets were quite nice but we soon ran out of there, not wanting to drop a few grand on a whim.

    📌 We finished the tour off at the temple of Artemis which is just a small pillar, what is left of an ancient wonder of the world. There was also a short visit to an old greek town in the hills which turned out to be overrun with tourists shops and fake looking wineries. Overall Ephesus was the highlight and worth it.

    📌 We capped off Selcuk with a visit to the coastal town/port nearby known as kusadasi, this was pretty touristy as cruise ships stop here. We finished the trip/evening with ofcourse a baklava shop and a Kunefe (a baked cheese pastry type desert). The family owning the shop were super friendly.    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Chios: a short stop in Greece

    Mar 26–29, 2024 in Greece ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    📌 A short trip to Greece by ferry, we enjoyed a tasty breaky with delicious greek feta whilst waiting for the car and this was a good start to the Greek food to come. Impressions of Chios were that is was a large island with little tourists and mostly residents. The population is 50k.

    📌 We had a lovely host at an Airbnb type accommodation a few metres of the beach, it was nice to have freedom with a car and space.

    📌 The main attractions visited were the mastic museum and mastic villages. Mastic is a unique product of the trees growing on Chios, it was popular during the the last 500 years as medicinal and cooking products and was exported all over Europe. The museum also talked about how the island was often ruled by others such as the Romans, the Ottomans and the Genoans. Eventually it rejoined Greece in 1920. Pygri and Mesta villages were big stone walled village complexes with narrow lanes and unique buildings.

    📌 We drove around the island, taking about an hour where we visited some 11th century monastery and an abandoned village that was abandoned during the massacre of Chios by the ottomans in 1820.

    📌 The food was a highlight, the feta was delicious, particularly when in a stuffed capsicum. The gyros were brilliant of course and the seafood was also great. A couple of standout restaurants were an old stone building and a traditional Greek taverna. Overall it was a worthy stop over in Greece, and an island worth visiting if avoiding overrun tourist Greece.    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Cesme

    March 25, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ 🌬 16 °C

    📌 This was a long day of travel, we started the day in Canakkale, we got the local bus to the main bus terminal which was no problem. We were then on a 6 hour bus to Izmir, one of Turkey's large city's which was a slow journey due to multiple stops. Once arriving at the Izmir bus terminal, we found the local bus to Cesme, approximately another hours drive to the coast.

    📌 Once arriving in Cesme it was such a relief to leave the bags behind and go and find dinner. Cesme is a small coastal town surrounded by a yacht filled harbour and some old fortress walls, the streets are narrow and cobble stoned.

    📌 We found a small bar who with the language barrier established we wanted some wine and they were very accommodating. We then moved on to find a place serving Mezze and tucked into dips, Halloumi like cheese, calamari and bread ofcourse. No dessert was needed after all this tasty food.    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Canakkale

    Mar 23–25, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 14 °C

    📌 A bus trip to Canakkale, the closest city to Gallipoli started with a little difficulty getting to the main town from the bus terminal due to scammer taxis and being unsure how to buy local bus tickets.

    📌 We arrived at the small coastal town which has quite a charming waterfront. We found a small stall serving fresh fish sandwiches and tucked in.

    📌 A walk along the waterfront meant visiting the Trojan horse replica from the movie Troy, as Cannakale is quite close to the ancient ruins of Troy.

    📌 The full day we had in Canakkale involved visiting Gallipoli on a tour. The tour started and we knew we were in for a treat as there was an old boomer from Brisbane (a former barrister) on the tour who loved telling everyone about himself. The tour involved visiting Anzac Cove, the front lines and Lone pine. It was quite fascinating to hear the easy mistakes made that cost many Aus/NZ lives, such as landing at the wrong place or the Brits having a day off instead of supporting NZ once they'd taken the objective. It was also interesting to hear the significance of the win for Turkiye and how it led to the rise of Ataturk and therefore the Turkish revolution and independence.

    📌 We finished Canakkale with a small hidden woodfired pizza dinner and then a very authentic dessert shop with the friendliest staff. We didn't know what we ordered but found out later it was Halva (a cheese based sweet cake). A nice change from the Baklava.    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Istanbul

    Mar 19–23, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    - We arrived in Istanbul after a stop in Dubai, somehow managing to get a whole row on both flights 👌

    - Istanbul is super well connected by metro, trains and ferries so we got to our hotel pretty easy, this hotel was a nice change compared to Vietnam, well kept, clean, no mould and no loud motorbikes tooting. We were staying on the European side. First impressions were kebabs everywhere, cats and dogs everywhere and not a lot of English.

    - on the first full day we did a walking tour where we visited the old city/ or former constantinople with the mosques from 500 AD and a cistern from the Roman Empire. The Romans also stole a 3000 YO obelisk from Egypt which sits in Istanbul. This area was super touristy but the history was cool.
    We finished the tour and were pointed in the direction of a local kebab shop, the menus and the people don't speak a whole lot of English so it was a bit of a guessing game/translation on phone situation. We finished the day visiting the mosque built by some famous sultan and the grand bazaar/spice bazaar. Dinner involved a small restaurant in Karakoy where we had Mezze (little share plates) of dip and cheese filled filo pastry. We then found a wine bar nearby with local wines from all over Turkiye.

    - Turkish breakfast was served each morning to the room and included cheeses, cold meats, eggs, and bread which was quite tasty with Turkish tea. We visited the suburb of Balat where there are cafes, colourful houses and cool shops. The cats were friendly here and joined us for a coffee in a cool cafe. We browsed some vintage and antique shops, and found some lunch at this street slightly further out which was very local. They were hand rolling the dough (like a pizza chef) for our pides and pitas. We then stumbled on a tiny baklava shop which was super cheap and delicious. We ended the day with a boat tour which was underwhelming but had some interesting history. We ended up on the Asian/Anatolian continent/side of Istanbul where we went to the local fish market for a fresh fish sandwich and some cheap markets.

    - We started the last day with a highlight, buffalo cheese with honey and bread and baked eggs, it was so fresh and so delicious.

    - The Asian side was very local, more of a student area with bars and pubs and cheap replicas. We had an unreal doner kebab on this side and some traditional Turkish coffee brewed on coals. Our last highlight of the trip was dinner on the final night at no.19 which was a small restaurant where the woman cooked all the food and served it out of casseroles, she changed the meals each day and had no menu. It was like going to a friend's kitchen for a party. Ofcourse, we found a small baklava place on the way home before we get an early bus to Canakkale/Gallipoli the next morning.    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Hanoi

    Mar 17–19, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 26 °C

    - We made our way back to Hanoi via a limousine bus which was pretty interesting, purely because the communication is always lacking

    - Ofcourse food was on the agenda once checked in and we made our way to a restaurant on the list to go to, a cafe where the owner has built everything from recycled materials and is trying to fight the uphill battle of sustainability in Vietnam. This was another little adventure in itself as we ordered a few things and the fresh spring rolls hadn't come. We grab a waiter and he sort of goes to check and then comes back 15 mins later and he uses google translate to apologise and says they accidentally went to another table. So we translate back and forth with confusion and eventually I ask if we can get a new batch, basically he says okay so you'll have to pay again. Hilarious, not sure how he got to this logic even with the language barrier. We find someone who speaks english better and the issue is resolved, but still unsure what he was thinking 🤔

    - We wander around Hanoi aimlessly and find an antique shop, the perfect place to collect an obscure souvenir.

    - the afternoon/evening involves a visit to train street where they are extremely intense with hassling you to sit at their cafe, evidently social media has made this place a crazy capitalist location. Anyway we sit down, have a few 2$ beers and watch a few trains go by, if this was in any western country, it would not be a thing.

    - A visit to a local brewery and then some Bun Cha for dinner, which is kind of like Pho but has bbq meats in the soup instead, so it's rather smokey.

    - The last day is just hanging out, we sleep in, we eat another banh Mi from another stall and then a delicious authentic Beef Pho (Pho Bo) for lunch. Ticked off all the essentials before treating ourselves to a nicer vegetarian restaurant for dinner, one because why not and two because we have no cash and need a place that takes EFTPOS not annoying cash only ☺️

    - Vietnam and Cambodia segment done, overall a good experience with Cambodia being the clear winner of the two. We most likely won't be back to Vietnam for a while, perhaps China, Phillipines or Japan/Korea next    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Ninh Binh

    Mar 16–17, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C

    - Early morning train to ninh binh at 6am, this was a nice little taste of local life as there weren't many white people on here. The train chugged along for 2 hours and included sales of random things from Banh mi to Pho.

    - we arrived in Ninh Binh to a cloudy foggy landscape of dotted mountains, where we got a grab to the accommodation which was quite remote. The accommodation was great, early check in and time to hire bikes for a ride around.

    - we hired bikes and went out to Mua caves, good 7km ride through rice fields and random little pathways through local areas that Google took us on, even short cutting through a cemetary. The Vietnamese love to try and trick you and ofcourse as you arrive at the destination on your bike, they try and make it look like you need to go into their parking lot and almost stand Infront of your bike yelling at you in Vietnamese to stop. They are sky dogs. Overall, the viewpoint was cloudy but it was still nice to go for an exploration, we also ran into the Dutch couple from the Halong cruise.

    - We were starving and had a great falafel sandwich and a margarita/goats cheese pizza (in a woodfire oven!), this was elite, particularly in the foggy weather with damp clothes. We almost rode the 7km back when we realised we didn't have Chloe's bottle, so back we went in the rain and by now the section that required you to ride on the side of a road was very busy with trucks which was super stressful. Long story short, no bottle and no sign of the bike that had the bottle, so not sure if someone stole the bottle or the bottle and the bike.

    - We ended up having a quiet and peaceful dinner with a early night in the comfortable bungalow which was very beautiful. I quite liked the outdoor shower/bathroom but Chloe didn't because of the bugs 😂    Read more

  • Steven CoeBrisbane to ManchesterTraveler

    Hanoi

    Mar 15–16, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C

    - Return back to Hanoi from Halong Bay, early in the morning, today's goal was to eat some good food and relax. However, that wasn't going to be easy as the hotel decided to cancel our reservation last minute in an attempt to scam us for more money

    - We decided to book a last minute hotel with decent reviews, it was only for a night. We checked into the worst hotel we have ever seen, the walls were so dirty and the room was super damp. It was like a horror movie hotel.

    - We went and found a good banh mi and wandered around looking at the shops. The amount of fakes here is insane and they look incredible, quality however?

    - Dinner at a small little restaurant, of course spring rolls were eaten. Early night for an early morning train.    Read more

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