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    • TravelerOke jetzt doch Persien
      Day 25

      Alles scheiße!

      April 28, 2022 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

      Daniels Iranisches Visa wurde abgelehnt und auf meins sollte ich bis Dienstag warten. Bis ich bescheit bekommen. Weil Freitag bis Montag keiner arbeitet. Also meins auch gecancelt und online nen neues beantragt. Dass soll in ner Woche zur Abhohlung in Erzurum bereit liegen. Werde berichten wie gut das klappt.
      Wegen der Misere gestern nur 70km geschafft.      Read more

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    • D&G's 2023 Adventure
      1
      Day 160

      Belgrade —> Istanbul, Turkey

      August 24, 2023 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

      We started the day with an early bus to then catch our flight to Istanbul, Turkey.

      We met our English friend from our South American tour, Tommy, at the airport and then all made our way to our hotel in Istanbul. The airport is around 50km from the centre and the traffic was bad so it took about 2 hours to get to the hotel in our transfer.

      We checked in and then went for a walk around the historical part of town for a few hours with Tommy. Istanbul is so busy and bustling and it's amazing seeing the diverse architecture and amazing smells from markets and stores.

      We went inside both the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia and admired the amazing domes and structures. Some people were praying in a certain closed off area (though the mosques close to tourists for the 5 prayer times during each day). Truly incredible and special places!

      We then took a stroll through the Grand Bazaar. The Grand Bazaar is enormous - with around 4000 stores and different streets and sections for different products (for example, there is a leather clothing section, carpet section, gold jewellery section etc). So amazing to walk around and see it all (and get lost!)

      We then made our way to the Galata Bridge over the Golden Horn area which separates Europe and Asia, crossing momentarily over into Asia before heading back to our hotel. We saw a lot of people fishing here from the bridge and also saw a lot of boat tours down in the harbour. You have a great view over part of the city and can see many of the mosques and minarets.

      We returned to the hotel, freshened up and had our G Adventures welcome meeting at 6pm and were introduced to our tour guide, Hazal, and our travel companions for the next couple of weeks. There are 15 people on our tour which starts and ends in Istanbul and there a mix of ages and nationalities (some Canadian, one other Aussie, one American, one British and a few Kiwis). We met on the rooftop of the hotel which has a very nice view (which also attracts a very large and loud seagull) and we all introduced ourselves. We then went to a restaurant near our hotel and we had Turkish kebabs.

      A few of the group (the younger 6 of us in the group in 20s/early 30s) decided to go for a walk down to the water to see Istanbul at night which was truly beautiful with all the lights. We had a wonderful view from the Galata Bridge and the restaurants, bars and shops were so busy even at 10pm on a Thursday night.

      We then came back to the hotel for a much needed sleep after a busy day! It is amazing being in a hotel again but unfortunately our electricity in our room kept going off (including the AC) so we spent some time going back and forth to reception and finally moved rooms at 1am when they couldn't fix it and went to sleep straight away!      Read more

    • Oliver & CA - Turkey & France
      Day 6

      A typical family day in Istanbul?!

      April 19, 2022 in Turkey ⋅ 🌧 7 °C

      So today we thought we’d do what we think the locals would do on a day off together… so we went to the always-crowded İstiklal Caddesi, which runs from the main Taksim Square to Tünel Square, and is one of the city's main shopping streets. We stopped in a mall where Oliver and Arthur spent an hour jumping around in a trampoline gym and then we shopped for some essentials for the rest of our trip at Decathlon. Then we went to hang out at Starbucks, naturally. When the barista asked, Carly said her name was “Jack” and even that came out interestingly spelled in Turkish! And they have resident cats like everywhere else in Turkey 🐈

      Finally, we took a fun but crowded tram back up the busy street and then a funicular down to the water and the metro back to the neighbourhood with lots of great restaurants and we had a nice last meal in Istanbul!      Read more

    • TravelerBackpacking Türkei & Georgien
      Day 1

      Istanbul

      May 1, 2023 in Turkey ⋅ 🌙 14 °C

      Ich bin wieder mit dem Rucksack unterwegs, diesmal in der Türkei. 🇹🇷

      Aus praktischen Gründen für mich poste ich auf dieser Plattform „nur“ die Reiseroute - zusätzliche Bilder, Stories & Texte verlagere ich auf Instagram 👉 patrick_jordi

      Folge der Karte für mehr Infos zu meinem aktuellen Aufenthaltsort.      Read more

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    • Istanbul
      Day 2

      Dan 1 obilazak oko hotela

      December 12, 2022 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C

      Prvi dan u Istanbulu smo iskoristili da skontamo da malo ovaj dio oko hotela.
      Hotel je pravo fin i odmah uz Hagia Sofija i plave džamije.
      Super lokacija.
      Danas smo totalno neispravani i umorni bili ali nam je pravo lijepo.
      Obišli smo malo onaj poznati Gulhana (Đul bašča) park i prošetali po mahali.
      Sutra du u planu obilasci znamenitosti.      Read more

    • TravelerTurkey & Egypt 2020
      Day 3

      Istanbul

      March 7, 2020 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 14 °C

      Istanbul City Tour

      Following breakfast this morning we were picked up from the hotel and visited Topkapi Palace, the great palace of Ottoman Sultans from the 15th to the 19th centuries, which houses an exquisite collection of crystal, silver and Chinese porcelain Robes worn by the sultans and their families, the famous jewels of the Imperial Treasury, the Holy Mantle, and enshrining relics of the Prophet Mohammed were also featured.

      Next, we saw the Sultan Ahmet Imperial Mosque, built in the 16th century known as the Blue Mosque, due to its magnificent interior decoration of blue Iznik tiles. Afterwards we went to the ancient Hippodrome, the scene of chariot races, with the three monuments; the Obelisk of Theodosius, the bronze Serpentine Column and the Column of Constantine. We had some free time so at the suggestion of our guide we walked down to the river and Jan, Silvana and Roland had an apple tea overlooking the city and the Golden Horn River. We then walked to a really nice lunch place and had 3 to 4 courses of local food including a whole fish. It was fabulous. After lunch we went to the Spice Bazaar. The air here was filled with the enticing aromas of cinnamon, caraway, saffron and many more conceivable herb and spice. We were given Turkish coffee and Turkish delights to try. Being a Saturday afternoon and there were a lot of people there, we were too tired to stay on. We went back to hotel. Some of the group went to the river cruise and didn't get back after midnight.

      Ramada Hotel & Suites Istanbul Golden Horn

      ABOUT
      Istanbul, the city which divides Asia and Europe, is the only city in the world which is situated on two continents. This city of (officially) 13 million inhabitants - the largest city in Turkey - celebrates a unique culture which fuses eastern and western influences and a history stretching back as far as 5500 BC. It's a city which can easily compete with the most beautiful cities in Europe or even the world and walking around its historic streets and along mosques and bridges, you will soon see why. Be sure to spend at least 3 or 4 days here, as there is a lot to explore, especially on the European side, though don't forget to pay a visit to the lesser known Asian      Read more

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    • TravelerIstanbul 2020
      Day 1

      Aankomst

      January 17, 2020 in Turkey ⋅ ☁️ 6 °C

      Ik had wat mijn twijfels over de app van turkisch airlines gezien die wat vreemd deed, maar alles verliep vlot en de passport controle in Istanbul is zeer vlot. Wel had ik in mijn voorbereiding gemist van luchthaven. Ik kwam aan in de gloednieuwe luchthaven die momenteel de grootste ter wereld is maar verder ligt en geen metro of treinverbinding heeft. Geld afhalen is geen probleem ondanks dat ik weer vergeten was om de bank te bellen om mijn kaart open te zetten, blijkbaar is Turkije nog Europa. Ik had echt geen zin om een taxi te nemen en besloot om eens uit te pluizen hoe de bussen werken. De juiste bus kon ik rap vinden, die naar sultanahmet, en ik kocht een istanbulcard, wat een herlaadbare kaart is voor alle openbaar vervoer.

      Na inchecken in het hotel ging ik direct op wandel op zoek naar eten. Ik vond een straat vol restaurants, maar er was geen kat, de hele stad was zeer rustig. Ik besloot toch een gokje te wagen door een van die lege restaurants binnen te gaan en het was vrij lekker en zeer veel. Ik had een half uurtje wandelen nodig om het te verteren en tijdens dat doelloos rondwandelen vond ik nog verkeersvrije straten vol restaurants. Er was al iets meer volk, ik denk dat ze hier niet eten voor 9u, maar toch zeer rustig. Na nog een pint gedronken te hebben in een café hield ik het voor bekeken vandaag, ondanks dat het nog maar 22u was en vele winkels nog open waren. Mijn eerste indruk van de mensen hier is dat ze zeer vriendelijk zijn.      Read more

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    • TravelerA&K Adventure 2019
      Day 63

      D63 Turkey - Istanbul

      September 5, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

      A Snapshot of Our Day

      Photo 1 - One of the wonders of Hagia Sophia, a mosque turned museum. It has an amazing fusion of religious displays, including Christianity and Islam. This mosaic wall design is 13th century AD, with Christ in the middle, John the Baptist on the right and Virgin Mary on the left.

      Photo 2 - Story of our lives, another beautiful building we can’t fully appreciate due to maintenance works! Being one the major attractions of the Golden Horn we had to go, but there was only about 50m square of tiling that we could admire!

      Photo 3 - The Basilica Cistern is the largest of the underground cistern network in Istanbul. It was built in 6th century AD and is now kept open purely for public access and for the occasional movie.

      Photo 4 - In the north west corner of the space we were able to see the two columns that had Medusa’s head as the foundation stones.

      Photo 5 - A brilliant way to see both sides of Istanbul in 2 hours is a public boat ride along the mighty Bosphorus River! It was great being able to see many of the different districts from the boat as we wouldn’t have time otherwise!

      Photo 6 - It’s becoming harder and harder to not buy these beautiful hand painted (and for the most part, authentic) tiles. We would both love to have these tiles make a appearance in our future non-existing kitchen!

      Photo 7 - The main bridge near the Golden Horn is lined with stalls and restaurants specialising in fresh fish dishes. This gentleman was smashing out delicious looking fish sandwiches at an amazing rate.

      Photo 8 - Anthony is Andy while we are here. Either that or we stole some other guys coffee...

      Photo 9 - We went to the top of the Galata Tower for sunset, and although the glow across the Horn wasn’t particularly intense, we had a great time seeing the light bounce off the city.

      Photo 10 - Ant and his new found friend, Brent. We all had fun roaming the streets together today and are sorry to say goodbye to another new friend.      Read more

    • TravelerA&K Adventure 2019
      Day 46

      D46 - Greece to Turkey

      August 19, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

      We had a few hours tucked up our sleeves this morning, so after a decent sleep-in we slowly wandered around the local area (which seems a bit rough but I’m sure is absolutely safe) for coffee/pastries/pharmaceutical items. It seems very few businesses that we go to are open, so we’re trying the “wing it” approach.
      All was well soon enough - coffee and pastries were devoured and we’ve stocked up on our anti-travel sickness medication for the impending amount of Turkish buses we’ll be riding!

      We packed up and locked the apartment, and headed back towards Athens airport. The line in security took so long that we lost any spare time we had given ourselves to eat lunch, so fast and friendly takeaway was the go. As it happens we sat on the tarmac for almost an hour! We’re not Algean Airlines biggest fans at this point...

      Once we touched down at Istanbul’s recently opened airport, which is pretty swanky pants, we managed to trade our residual francs and euros for lira. We then had the pleasure of finding a taxi - we got lucky with our incredibly grumpy old Turkish taxi driver who had initially agreed on 140 lira, tried to up the price to 160 lira once we pulled away and pulled the “I don’t speak English” stint. Tired and not wanting to cause an argument, we would only settle for 150 lira. It was a great drive, but by the time we got into the Golden Horn District our driver was fed up and didn’t even drive us to the hotel. As it turns out we only had to walk 5 minutes, and very little local traffic was present so we can forgive him this time.

      We arrived at the hotel and rushed to unpack in our tiny abode which looks way more glamorous on its website, of course! We went downstairs to the lobby and met the rest of our tour group, plus our guide Mete. There is 11 of us in total, which makes a nice change from the 16 he had last week, however one person hasn’t arrived yet.
      Over the next hour or so Mete went through the itinerary with us, which included some exciting changes and optional activities.
      We all went out for dinner together to a local restaurant, and it was great to relax and get to know people. There’s 3 married couples, 2 single blokes and 2 girls who have been travel buddies for 18 years! The food was pretty good and there was lots of fanfare by the waiters with one balancing wine several glasses on his head while dancing down the cobbled street!

      Tomorrow we do a walking tour, so sleep can’t come quick enough.      Read more

    • TravelerA&K Adventure 2019
      1
      Day 47

      D47 Turkey - Istanbul

      August 20, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

      Today is officially day 2 of our Turkish tour, and for the remainder of our time here we’re going to approach the blog with a more visual perspective. Each of our days is pretty jam packed with activities so there will be plenty of photos (and commentary) to keep you entertained!

      After breakfast we left the hotel and started the walking tour which, of the next 5 hours, led us to:
      -Gulhane Park, one of the biggest parks in Istanbul.
      -The plaza of the Blue Mosque, which is unfortunately going under significant renovations, which means minimal viewing of its famous blue tiled dome. This plaza also houses the Hagia Sophia Museum, a huge Turkish hammam (public baths) and most important, snack carts. Shortly after we’d digested our breakfast we were introduced to the Turkish ice cream called Dondurma, which has a “gummy” consistency and is made of goats milk, sugar, salep flour and mastic gum. The ice cream vendors put on an theatrical act by stretching and pounding the icy block with a long metal stick to make it palatable, and then they tease and taunt you by pretending to drop it, steal the cone etc. I would’ve loved to have had this as a kid growing up!
      -The Grand Bazaar, a HUGE labyrinth of stores selling everything from shoes to jewellery to fake Gucci tops. I believe Mete said it’s currently the world 3rd largest market, and its hard not to get completely lost!
      -The Suleymaniye Mosque, an ornate 16th century mosque which has recently been renovated and is absolutely inside.
      -The Spice Market for tea and Turkish delight!

      Enjoy!      Read more

    You might also know this place by the following names:

    Messe Istanbul, fair Istanbul

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