Turkey - May 8th to May 22nd
May 8th we left Germany and had a late flight to Istanbul, we arrived at the airport at 2am on the 9th - went through customs and found a bit of floor to sleep on. I slept well Aaron watched our stuff, I somehow managed to sleep till 6am, we got up and had an overpriced coffee before heading to the Metro station. Istanbul Ataturk Airport has to be the most expensive airport for food I have come across, about NZ$6 for a chocolate bar!
We jumped on the metro and headed for the main bus station, we found a bus heading towards the Gallipoli Peninsula that left at 7:30am, so jumped on that and we were on our way. The buses in Turkey a great, you can just turn up find the next bus and go. They are all air conditioned with comfy seats and you get free snacks and drinks!
Well waiting for the plane in Frankfurt there was a rather strange man waiting for our plane too, he was all dressed in black mammut gear and kept steering at me, we didn't think much of it until he turned up at the metro station at 6am and then got off at the bus station too and kinda followed us. What made it stranger was the fact he only had a small day bag with him and the bus station isn't in central Istanbul, its out in the suburbs. For the rest of the trip we kept expecting to see him again....but luckily never did.
After a 5hour bus ride we arrived in Eceabat, a small town on the Gallipoli Peninsula and checked into the Crowded House Hostel. After a rest (since Aaron hadn't really slept since Germany!) we had a look around the town and at a nice garden/memorial they had created about the Gallipoli campaign
On Saturday the 12th we caught an 8am bus to Izmir, and then a Dolmus (mini-bus) to a town called Selcuk. On the bus to Izmir we got talking to the bus host (the guy that hands out the free drinks and snacks), he didn't speak much english and we don't speak Turkish so he used his smart phone to translate our conversation! He asked us about NZ and what we did for work, he then asked us if we were going to a place called Pammukale which is home of some natural white terraces. We hadn't planned on going there but after a discussion with him and a look at some pictures we decided to change our plans and go after Selcuk, I am glad we did!
We arrived in Selcuk and found the hostel we have booked (Australia and New Zealand Guesthouse :)), run by a very nice Turkish guy with an Aussie accent. We dropped off our bags and had a look around town, we found the weekly food market which was great to see and bought some cheap nuts and fruit to eat.
The next day we spent looking around the town and the ancient ruins before catching a bus to Pammukale. Selcuk is a lovely relaxed town and there didn't seem to be many tourists as they all head off to Ephesus on day trips instead.
In the afternoon we caught the bus to Pammukale and to our hotel - a small family run pension, they were very nice and welcomed us with Apple Tea when we arrived. That evening we had a super yummy tea at a local cafe, I loved the food in Turkey!
Monday 14th we spent the day on the Travertines, amazing natural white terraces. They were amazing, hard to explain but you can walk up them and swim in the warm thermal pools - you can also laugh at the crazy Russians posing for photos in the pools! At the top of the terraces is some Roman ruins and a park area which you can walk through. We spent the whole day roaming around before walking back through the travertines to the village and our hotel. Hopefully the pictures below explain them a bit better!
The next day we caught another bus to a city called Antalya, it was an early start as we had to catch a dolmus (mini bus) to a nearby town and then the bus to Antalya. We arrived around 1pm then jumped on another dolmus down the coast, it dropped us off on the motorway near the road towards Cirali, where we caught yet another dolmus 7km down to the coast. After a long travel day we arrived in Cirali, a beautiful little beachside village with Pensions and a few cafes, we found our accommodation and as seems to be the norm were offered more tea.
After finding a yummy lunch of omelet and homemade pancakes we spent the afternoon relaxing.
On Wednesday 16th after a sleep-in and an amazing breakfast we walked along the beach to olympos and explored the ruins, we thought about staying at Olympos but I am glad we didnt - as it was full of cheap hostels tailored for the young/drunk traveler market, I enjoyed relaxed Cirali much better!
On our return too town I had a swim in the cold med! And then we enjoyed a dinner of trout, chips and veges put on by the hotel.
That evening we went to see the Chimera, these are flames that come out of the rocks because of natural gas and a thin crust and some other more complicated processes. You walk up to them in the dark and then come out to a rocky area where flames are just bursting out of the earth everywhere, very strange but cool! When we arrived there was some people cooking sausages on them!
The next day we packed up and started another day of travelling, this time we decided to hitch up the road to the highway - we started walking and after about 2km we meet a dolmus which took us up to the road. We were only waiting for 5mins when a bus came past, we jumped on and headed back to Antalya.
It is super easy to find and book buses at the stations, probably because if you just walk around for a few minutes someone will come up to you and ask where you are going, they will then take you to their bus company and they always seem to have a bus going in the next hour to where you want to go! You can save a little money by checking out all the companies but they are all about the same price.
We booked a bus to Lake Egirdir and we were on our way again within half an hour! We arrived in Egirdir mid-afternoon just in time for the weekly vege market, we had fun getting some cheap veges and fruit for dinner using our awesome turkish (and lots of hand signals!)
We checked into the hostel and crashed out, all the travel was catching up with us and Aaron was coming down with a cold/flu.
The next few days we both felt pretty rubbish and the weather was about the same (thunder storms, rain and snow on the surrounding hills) so we didnt do too much, a bit of a shame as it was a beautiful area with some great walks to be done. Although we did manage to find an awesome dinner on the last night which included half a chicken, stuffed peppers, salad, iskender kebap, breads and tea all for $20! That made us feel a bit better!
On Saturday 19th we caught a night bus to Istanbul which left Egirdir at 9pm. It wasn't to bad, and I at least managed to sleep for a few hours!
We arrived in Istanbul at 7am and made our way to our hostel, it was a little difficult to find but a street cleaner helped us find it! It was above a Turkish Bath so every time you came back to the hostel you had to explain to reception that no you didn't want a massage! It was very nice tho and had a great kitchen so we could cook ourselves some food. We had a rest at the hostel and then headed out to explore, we walked across one of the bridges and across to the Aya Sofya. We then found a supermarket before heading back for dinner and a much needed early night!
Monday 21st was spent at the Grand Bazzar and other markets, we found some yummy turkish delight and baklava and ate way too much of both! Then it was back to pack and get ready for our flight to San Fran the next day
May 8th we left Germany and had a late flight to Istanbul, we arrived at the airport at 2am on the 9th - went through customs and found a bit of floor to sleep on. I slept well Aaron watched our stuff, I somehow managed to sleep till 6am, we got up and had an overpriced coffee before heading to the Metro station. Istanbul Ataturk Airport has to be the most expensive airport for food I have come across, about NZ$6 for a chocolate bar!
We jumped on the metro and headed for the main bus station, we found a bus heading towards the Gallipoli Peninsula that left at 7:30am, so jumped on that and we were on our way. The buses in Turkey a great, you can just turn up find the next bus and go. They are all air conditioned with comfy seats and you get free snacks and drinks!
Well waiting for the plane in Frankfurt there was a rather strange man waiting for our plane too, he was all dressed in black mammut gear and kept steering at me, we didn't think much of it until he turned up at the metro station at 6am and then got off at the bus station too and kinda followed us. What made it stranger was the fact he only had a small day bag with him and the bus station isn't in central Istanbul, its out in the suburbs. For the rest of the trip we kept expecting to see him again....but luckily never did.
After a 5hour bus ride we arrived in Eceabat, a small town on the Gallipoli Peninsula and checked into the Crowded House Hostel. After a rest (since Aaron hadn't really slept since Germany!) we had a look around the town and at a nice garden/memorial they had created about the Gallipoli campaign
View from our room across the Dardanelles
Eceabat
Eceabat
On Thursday 10th we had a lazy morning trying to get some sleep back. After our traditional Turkish breakfast of cucumber, tomatoes, olives, cheese, boiled eggs, tea and not so traditional cornflakes we had a look round the town. At lunchtime we returned to the hostel for the start of our Gallipoli tour, we had lunch and meet the others in our group. There was only 6 of us in our tour which was really nice, I didn't really want to visit Gallipoli with a coachload of people, there were two Canadians and two Aussies and our tour guide Bill.
We spent the afternoon looking at various sights on the Peninsula and learning a fair bit from Bill, I was really glad I had read a book about New Zealander's on Gallipoli before I went so all the names and place seemed familiar. We went to a number of places including Brighton Beach, Anzac Cove, North Beach, Lone Pine, Turkish Memorial, The Nek and ended with Chunuk Bair.
It was a sad place to visit, but I am very glad we did. I can see now why they put the Chunuk Bair Memorial on Wellingtons south coast - the Terrain and the Wind is very similar.
Friday 11th we headed across the Dardanelles on the ferry to the town of Cannakale for a look around. We went to the Turkish Army Museum, it was interesting to get there perspective on the Gallipoli battle. We then found a cheap yummy lunch and some Turkish Coffee! We headed back to Eceabat to sort out our bus for the next day and had a dinner of vine leaves stuffed with rice, YUM!
On Saturday the 12th we caught an 8am bus to Izmir, and then a Dolmus (mini-bus) to a town called Selcuk. On the bus to Izmir we got talking to the bus host (the guy that hands out the free drinks and snacks), he didn't speak much english and we don't speak Turkish so he used his smart phone to translate our conversation! He asked us about NZ and what we did for work, he then asked us if we were going to a place called Pammukale which is home of some natural white terraces. We hadn't planned on going there but after a discussion with him and a look at some pictures we decided to change our plans and go after Selcuk, I am glad we did!
We arrived in Selcuk and found the hostel we have booked (Australia and New Zealand Guesthouse :)), run by a very nice Turkish guy with an Aussie accent. We dropped off our bags and had a look around town, we found the weekly food market which was great to see and bought some cheap nuts and fruit to eat.
The next day we spent looking around the town and the ancient ruins before catching a bus to Pammukale. Selcuk is a lovely relaxed town and there didn't seem to be many tourists as they all head off to Ephesus on day trips instead.
In the afternoon we caught the bus to Pammukale and to our hotel - a small family run pension, they were very nice and welcomed us with Apple Tea when we arrived. That evening we had a super yummy tea at a local cafe, I loved the food in Turkey!
Monday 14th we spent the day on the Travertines, amazing natural white terraces. They were amazing, hard to explain but you can walk up them and swim in the warm thermal pools - you can also laugh at the crazy Russians posing for photos in the pools! At the top of the terraces is some Roman ruins and a park area which you can walk through. We spent the whole day roaming around before walking back through the travertines to the village and our hotel. Hopefully the pictures below explain them a bit better!
The next day we caught another bus to a city called Antalya, it was an early start as we had to catch a dolmus (mini bus) to a nearby town and then the bus to Antalya. We arrived around 1pm then jumped on another dolmus down the coast, it dropped us off on the motorway near the road towards Cirali, where we caught yet another dolmus 7km down to the coast. After a long travel day we arrived in Cirali, a beautiful little beachside village with Pensions and a few cafes, we found our accommodation and as seems to be the norm were offered more tea.
After finding a yummy lunch of omelet and homemade pancakes we spent the afternoon relaxing.
On Wednesday 16th after a sleep-in and an amazing breakfast we walked along the beach to olympos and explored the ruins, we thought about staying at Olympos but I am glad we didnt - as it was full of cheap hostels tailored for the young/drunk traveler market, I enjoyed relaxed Cirali much better!
On our return too town I had a swim in the cold med! And then we enjoyed a dinner of trout, chips and veges put on by the hotel.
That evening we went to see the Chimera, these are flames that come out of the rocks because of natural gas and a thin crust and some other more complicated processes. You walk up to them in the dark and then come out to a rocky area where flames are just bursting out of the earth everywhere, very strange but cool! When we arrived there was some people cooking sausages on them!
The next day we packed up and started another day of travelling, this time we decided to hitch up the road to the highway - we started walking and after about 2km we meet a dolmus which took us up to the road. We were only waiting for 5mins when a bus came past, we jumped on and headed back to Antalya.
It is super easy to find and book buses at the stations, probably because if you just walk around for a few minutes someone will come up to you and ask where you are going, they will then take you to their bus company and they always seem to have a bus going in the next hour to where you want to go! You can save a little money by checking out all the companies but they are all about the same price.
We booked a bus to Lake Egirdir and we were on our way again within half an hour! We arrived in Egirdir mid-afternoon just in time for the weekly vege market, we had fun getting some cheap veges and fruit for dinner using our awesome turkish (and lots of hand signals!)
We checked into the hostel and crashed out, all the travel was catching up with us and Aaron was coming down with a cold/flu.
The next few days we both felt pretty rubbish and the weather was about the same (thunder storms, rain and snow on the surrounding hills) so we didnt do too much, a bit of a shame as it was a beautiful area with some great walks to be done. Although we did manage to find an awesome dinner on the last night which included half a chicken, stuffed peppers, salad, iskender kebap, breads and tea all for $20! That made us feel a bit better!
On Saturday 19th we caught a night bus to Istanbul which left Egirdir at 9pm. It wasn't to bad, and I at least managed to sleep for a few hours!
We arrived in Istanbul at 7am and made our way to our hostel, it was a little difficult to find but a street cleaner helped us find it! It was above a Turkish Bath so every time you came back to the hostel you had to explain to reception that no you didn't want a massage! It was very nice tho and had a great kitchen so we could cook ourselves some food. We had a rest at the hostel and then headed out to explore, we walked across one of the bridges and across to the Aya Sofya. We then found a supermarket before heading back for dinner and a much needed early night!
Monday 21st was spent at the Grand Bazzar and other markets, we found some yummy turkish delight and baklava and ate way too much of both! Then it was back to pack and get ready for our flight to San Fran the next day
We knew our flight to the USA was going to be long and security a little tight but it turned into a bit of a mission! Here is the layers of security:
1) Bags scanned and metal detector as you entered Istanbul airport
2) Passport and USA Visa Waiver check at the check-in counter
3) The normal bag and person scans as you enter the departure lounge
4) Passport re-checked as you enter the gate lounge
We changed planes in Munich, but never left departure area however we were subjected to futher security here anyway:
5) Bags scanned and metal detector as you got off the plane and into departure area
6) Passport and USA Visa Waiver check as you were heading towards your gate
7) In addition we were chosen for another "random" bag and person scan before the gate!
As you can imagine I was a little stressed about what customs would be like once we got to San Fran after that exercise! As it turns out, the process at San Fran was the easiest of the day - he asked a few questions, scanned our fingerprints, stamped my passport and wished us well!
But we made it to the USA! I think I will update that part of the blog once we get to Canada in a couple of weeks, but we are having fun so far :)
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