Two Continents, Four Seas, and a Strait; 15 Incredible Days in Turkey

Loving your report so far!

Ellencmog, Did you plan your own trip? I am considering planning my own trip with help from local hotel owners and local agencies as you did in Cappadoccia. Looking froward to more!!! The photos are great too. Zin

Excellent! We are still working on plans for our trip in March/April. We won't have quite as many days, so we are only visiting Istanbul and Cappadocia. Looking forward to more. Thanks for posting.

zinfantic, yes I planned the whole thing. Had lots of advice from a friend who's been there four times, asked a lot of questions on Fodors, and read travel guides, but basically I did it by myself. My husband was content to let me do it and I checked in with him from time to time to make sure he agreed with my choices. It's definitely do-able (and was a lot of fun).

ms_go, you'll absolutely love Cappadocia. I can't imagine going to Turkey without visiting it. In retrospect, we probably could have omitted the Aegean and Mediterranean coasts (with the exception of Ephesus) since we didn't have time there to see any historical sites. That would have brought it down to about 12 days.

Ellen

Hi Ellen, I am glad you got safely back with a wealth of experience that you are sharing with everyone.

And thanks for the compliment.

Am now in Detroit, driving to Chicago tomorrow through perrysburg, Ohio and then I90 West, meeting a former TA destination expert for lunch in the process.

Hope you can make it again to Turkey, and visit other exciting areas such as Western and Eastern Black Sea and down the Georgian and Armenian Borders, where we are well versed plus Antioch to Antalya on the coast and Mardin in the Southeast, the sentinel of Mesopotamia.

for Eastern Black Sea My wife (and i as the writer of the sidelines) have four related blogs:
www.eserahmetcelebilerblackseatrip1.blogspot.com (also 2,3, and4)

I am looking forward to the rest of your trip report.

thanks again.

otherchelebi,

I hope we can get to Turkey again, too. We'd love to visit other areas of the country, especially the east. It's such a large and varied country; we did a lot in two weeks, but there's still so much to see!

It's a small world; you're now traveling in the general area of the US that I was raised in - Cleveland, Ohio. Not as picturesque as Turkey, but I hope you're having a good trip. Looking forward to reading your blog.

Ellen

Look forward to more

Cappadocia Day 2

The second day, my favorite of the three tours, began with a visit to Mustafapasa – the Greek name is Sinasos - an old Greek village. We visited a 17th century Greek church and a charming small Greek hotel with beautiful mosaic tiles. In 1923, after the end of WWI, the Greek and Turkish governments signed a treaty creating a “population exchange”. About 1 – 2 million Greek Orthodox residents in Turkey were deported to Greece and just under a million Turkish Muslims living in Greece were sent back to Turkey. Villages like Sinasos in central Turkey still display the years of Greek culture.

Farming is the main industry in that part of the country and on that day we saw dozens of small family farms harvesting squash. Often, the entire family was in the field. The seeds are dried and sold at market and the fruit is given to the livestock.

Our next stop was Keslik Monastery, a serene and beautifully cared-for church, refectory, kitchen, and school built into the rocks. The 11th century frescoes are beautiful and well preserved. It’s a quiet place, unlike the hustle and bustle of the Goreme open air museum. The caretaker asked us to sit down with him to drink tea under the shade trees. It was an educational and peaceful hour. The frescoes in these old churches were painted with vegetable dyes. Saffron was often used for yellow and terra cotta for red.

We then drove to Sognali Valley, a peaceful area of rock-cut churches and homes built from the 9th – 13th centuries. It has been continuously inhabited for centuries. We walked about 3 km through the beautiful scenery, visiting some of the churches along the way and ending with a delicious lunch made with locally grown produce under an apple tree in the village.

There are 36 underground cities in Cappadocia. We visited two of them. The first, Kaymakli, is the smaller of the two, and it housed up to 6,000 people at a time together with their animals. The cities were built between 2,000 and 1,200 BC by the Hittites to protect the residents from the attacking Assyrians. The map we saw before we went in reminded us of an ant farm and it didn’t disappoint!

It’s a labyrinth of hundreds of rooms and narrow, low-ceilinged passageways. It’s definitely not for the claustrophobic. We had to literally double over in the passageways and a couple of times we thought my husband might actually get stuck! Our guide told us that the Hittites were small. The villages were built as temporary (up to six months) shelter and included adequate ventilation systems, shafts down to underground rivers for water, areas to house and feed animals, wine cellars, bedrooms, kitchens and gathering areas. Huge round stones called keystones were carved out of the rock and were rolled across the entranceway to tunnels and rooms in times of peril to keep invaders out. Absolutely amazing.

We also visited an archeological site of a Roman city which was fascinating. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to take pictures of the site because it’s an active dig. The mosaic tiles they’re uncovering from the floors of the homes are beautiful.

Cappadocia Day 3

Day three began with Derinkuyu, the larger of the two underground cities we saw. It not only housed more people (up to 20,000 at a time), but it was physically bigger. Still very much an underground city, but its ceilings were higher and the passageways were wider than Kaymakli. Some of these cities were also used in the first century AD as shelter by Christians traveling from Jerusalem to Cappadocia.

On day three, we hiked beautiful, 10 million year-old Ihlara canyon, with a small river, poplar and pistachio trees as well as churches carved into the ancient stone, some with beautiful frescos. According to Selim, it’s the third largest canyon in the world. It’s not a terribly difficult hike, but it does require some solid footwork to climb on and around the rocks. We ate lunch at another small village and ended the day with a peek into a caravansaray on the historic Silk Road which is under renovation, and a visit to an onyx factory. We were able to observe an artisan sculpting then polishing a raw piece of onyx. Our narrator asked if anyone knew the meaning of the word “Kappadokya”, the Turkish word for Cappadocia. I said that it means Land of Beautiful Horses, which was the correct response – and they gave me the onyx piece we had just seen made – a treasure and wonderful keepsake from another amazing day.

I’ve left out many details of those three days because there were just too many churches, monasteries, frescoes, pigeon roosts, unique rock formations and cave dwellings to mention. If there is another area on the planet that has rock formations this unique, I’d like to know where it is. I hope my pictures give a hint of what we saw. It was truly an unforgettable 3½ days and one of the highlights of our trip.

Rock Valley was excellent to work with; we were picked up at our hotel promptly every morning around 9:00 and dropped off at the end of the day (around 5:00 or 6:00). We paid for all three tours together, about $350 in all, or just under $60 per person per tour – well worth it. The young American couple we were with on our last day had planned to visit on their own the next day, but based on the quality of our tour, they booked another tour instead.

We were lucky to have met fascinating and delightful people during our time in Cappadocia. Like the three young women on one of our tours; two from Canada and one from the US. They work for a reality-based website, www.jetsetzero.tv. They decide on a city to move to for several months with no job, no place to live and many times, no knowledge of the language. They have to find a job (i.e., a source of income) and a place to live. Readers experience their successes and trials through their blogs. They had lived in Istanbul for several months and were treating themselves to a little R&R before leaving Turkey for Ho Chi Minh City. I admire their courage and resourcefulness and envy their world travels.

We ate one night at the Melekler Evi. Arzu is a wonderful cook and enjoys cooking for her guests. We were treated to a salad of fresh greens, grape leaves with rice, a mushroom quiche, meatballs, fresh vegetables and a chocolate flan. Heaven. We also ate at the Dimrit Restaurant and at Ziggy’s, both within an easy walk of the hotel in Urgup, and both outstanding.

We chose not to take a hot air balloon ride. We’ve done it before (in Arizona) and didn’t feel the need to do it again. But we spoke to several people who did do it and they loved it. I can imagine it’s quite an experience looking down on the breathtaking landscape.

The weather in Cappadocia was cloudless and warm and we hated to leave. I especially hated to leave the Melekler Evi. I told Arzu that I want to take it with me wherever I travel! I think I could have stayed another week – even if I never left the hotel! Pure luxury and relaxation. The cennet room was $115 Euros per night. As with most other hotels in Europe, the cost includes breakfast which, in Turkey, was a feast.

We had a morning flight on Turkish Airlines to Izmir, connecting in Istanbul. We flew three times on Turkish Airlines; each time they were efficient and on-time. They served a sandwich, a green salad (with ample mayonnaise!) and chocolate/banana mousse on each flight, regardless of the time of day – much better than the bag of pretzels served on US airlines!

Next, Ephesus and the Aegean and Mediterranean Coasts

http://picasaweb.google.com/Ellen.Corradini/CappadociaTour2#
http://picasaweb.google.com/Ellen.Corradini/CappadociaTour3#

ellencmog - I ama really enjoying reading your memories of a wonderful trip. Your words certainly bring your pictures to life. I can't wait to hear about your time in Ephesus.

tC

This is not only a good read but very helpful, as we're planning our trip to Turkey in May. You've sold me on Cappadocia. Will try and remember "Land of the beautiful horses," should lightening strike twice. Thanks.

Terrific report. Thank you. Can't wait for more.
I tried to click on the website you give for your hotel in Urgup, but got one of those pages where they're trying to sell the URL or something. I finally was able to make it work by making it .com.tr which apparently directs you to Turkish sites.

Ellen, I'm glad I stumbled on your report! I am anxiously awaiting the rest. I do regret that we were unable to get to Cappadocia, but as we were traveling in February the weather just didn't work out for us to visit. Oh well...we loved Turkey and are anxious to return one day and Cappadocia will definitely be on our itinerary.

Tracy

Wonderful--very informative report and photos--thank you!
We typically do the driving when we travel but having someone else at the wheel is growing increasingly appealing. What was the cost of your daily tours?

I'm glad that you're all finding it a good read - and helpful. Fodorites have been so helpful to me that I want to return the favor.

Fra, LOL re the land of beautiful horses. I was so touched to get the beautiful little piece of onyx! It's small and has no use whatsoever, but I love it - here's a picture. You'll love Cappadocia.

http://picasaweb.google.com/Ellen.Corradini/Onyx#5402623174624396130

Julie, thanks for the info on the website for the Melekler Evi. I should have thought to add the .tr. I think we lucked out on the weather in Cappadocia. The reason we went there first was on the advice of otherchelebi and others who said that at this time of year, it can get cold. I know it gets snow and it must also be beautiful with a blanket of the white stuff, but I'm so glad it was in the 70's when we were there.

Bon_voyage, I'm fortunate that my husband is game to do the driving. Actually, it wasn't bad in Turkey (although we'd NEVER drive in Istanbul!). Compared to driving in Albania, this was a piece of cake. I'm ready for my next international trip to be somewhat simpler, though I do love how the Turkish drivers as well as drivers in the Balkans have made a science out of creating three lanes out of two!

The total cost for two people for all three tours was $350.00, so I figure a little less than $60.00 per person per tour which included lunch all three days and all entrance fees. I don't know how it compares to other companies that offer the same tours, but we felt that we got a lot for our money.

Ellen

Thanks, Ellen!

Ellen - Great trip report so far - anxious to read more. It will definitely help with planning our trip in late May. So you're a former Clevelander - east or west side?

Debs, west side. I briefly dated someone on the east side and we joked about having to show our passports as we crossed the river! East or west for you?

Ellencmog, Did you self-drive and hire "guides" through your hotel when you arrived at each destination?

Oh sorry, did not read one of the last entries!

Ellen - West side rules! Like you, I dated a guy from the East side & we used to joke about the passports as well! He's now my husband and we live in Lakewood.

To this day, we can be in a foreign city and not get lost, yet when I venture to the east side, I'm always going in the wrong direction!

Awaiting your next installment -

Ephesus and the Hotel Bella

We arrived at the Izmir airport late afternoon. We rented a car (Renault Symbol) through Auto Europe. There were several car rental counters at the airport, but no Auto Europe. To make a long story short, our reservation was with EuropCar. In reviewing the confirmation I received while we were in Turkey, it did mention that the operator was EuropCar, but I missed it. After walking around the airport for a while, we called the 800 number in the US and were told to go to the EuropCar counter. The EuropCar people were friendly and directed us out of the airport. By that time it was dark, but it’s an easy 45-minute drive to Selcuk. Easy, except that we thought we’d be put in Turkish traffic prison. We arrived at a toll plaza, pushed the button for the ticket, but no ticket. We looked for an attendant, but there were no humans, so we decided to press on and make the best of it. When we exited at Selcuk, we told the attendant as best we could that we got on in Izmir, but there were no tickets. My husband gave him a 5TL note, he smiled, gave us change, and we were on our way, remarking that our children could rest easy knowing they wouldn’t have to bail us out.

I made a one-night reservation at the Hotel Bella (thanks again to Fodorites). Erdal, one of the owners, had told us how to find the hotel (again, very easy). When we arrived, we made the decision to stay two nights and fortunately our room was available for the additional night. Erdal met us and told us after we settled in to meet him on the roof lounge - one of the coziest and well-decorated roof lounges I’ve ever seen. He gave us a guide to Ephesus and offered to drive us to the upper gate the next morning. We ate dinner at the hotel both nights, a “prix fixe” menu consisting of three mezes per person (which we chose from at least a dozen), a main course of either grilled lamb or chicken and baklava for dessert for the unbeatable price of 17TL per person plus drinks. We didn’t even think about leaving the hotel for dinner the second night. The only thing that wasn’t stellar about the hotel in our opinion was the size of the room and bathroom. The bathroom was so small that you had to close the door to move in it. But for a couple of nights, a small price to pay for an excellent hotel. The rate was 70TL per night.

The day we visited Ephesus was October 29, Turkey’s Independence Day. One of the things I grew to love about Turkey is their nationalism and proud display of the Turkish flag. Triple that for October 29; flags everywhere! As you exit Ephesus, there’s a large area of souvenir shops and eateries. Every shopkeeper and server was wearing a t-shirt of the Turkish flag!

The cost to visit Ephesus is 20TL per person. Having just spent three days on guided tours, we opted for the audio guides rather than a tour. The audio guides were $6.00 per person. In retrospect, I felt that the information they provided wasn’t very useful. If I had it to do over, I think I would have hired a guide. The audio guides did let us visit at our own pace, though. It was another cloudless – and HOT – day, so we took our time. Again, I’m going to let my pictures tell the story. What an amazing place. What astonishes me is that archeologists can figure out what different spaces were used for; this was the dining room, this area was for greeting guests, etc. Truly fascinating. Also, just the history of the place and the beauty of what they created. We did pay the additional 15TL to visit the terraced houses and I’d strongly recommend it. It is an active, sheltered archeological site undergoing significant restoration. Beautiful frescoes and mosaic tiles, and good, informative signage. Except for another group of three people, we were the only visitors in the houses.

I don’t know how this season compares to previous fall seasons in Turkey, but I’d say tourism is alive and well in Turkey. There were thousands of people at Ephesus the day we were there (many of those from cruises). At times it was difficult to get a good picture, but since it’s an open area, it wasn’t too restrictive or bothersome.

Erdal told us to ask a particular shopkeeper to call the hotel and they’d pick us up. It was easy and nice not to have to worry about the car. We had fun shopping at the exit and experiencing the excitement of Independence Day.

When we got back to the hotel, a hotel employee drove us the 15 minutes to the House of the Virgin Mary and waited while we did a short tour. There was no charge but we did give him a 10TL tip. The house of the Virgin Mary is a tiny house, high on a mountain in a beautiful wooded setting, now a shrine to Mary. As we were driving miles up the winding mountain road, we remarked about how Mary must REALLY have wanted to get away from it all…no easy trip for a gallon of milk for her!

We also visited the Ephesus Museum in Selcuk. It houses statues and other objects discovered at Ephesus and of course, the famous Artemis. It’s a little gem of a museum and a bargain at only 5TL. Their objects are displayed nicely with informative labels. We spent about an hour there and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Again, another delicious dinner at the hotel with two couples we met. Erdal and his business partner Nazmi also own a carpet shop adjoining the hotel. The morning we left I bought two small, beautiful kilims from the shop. It was fun to see their extensive inventory of carpets.

The Aegean and Mediterranean Coasts

Our plan was to drive down the Aegean coast, make a left turn and end up in Antalya on the Mediterranean coast. We hadn’t made hotel reservations for the next two nights. Erdal suggested we drive to Fethiye on the Mediterranean coast the first day and he suggested a hotel.

We took a quick detour to see Sirince, a mountain village a few minutes from Selcuk. It’s a quaint village with interesting shops; worth a quick detour. It’s known for its wine, but since we were there at 9:00 a.m., we passed the opportunity to sample.

Turkish roads are well signed, we had a good map and even a compass my husband thought to bring, and it was a beautiful day. We drove through Kusadasi, a large and not particularly attractive resort community on the Aegean. Although , below us were beautiful resort hotels on the water, but we didn’t detour to see them. I had hoped to visit Bodrum, but we weren’t comfortable driving the coast at night and detouring to Bodrum would have added about two hours to the trip, so we bypassed it.

We arrived in Fethiye late afternoon. Or what we thought was Fethiye. While route signage in Turkey is excellent, you’re pretty much on your own when you come into city. Street signs, if they are there at all, are hard to see. We ended up driving around for about an hour, and finally found Fethiye and the street that the hotel was on. Villa Daffodil is on a picturesque bay, about a mile from the main part of town. The area had a quiet off-season feel to it. I’m sure it’s jumping in season.
Unfortunately my husband had a 24 hour bug by the time we arrived in Fethiye, so we ate at the hotel and went to bed early. At the time, of course, we didn’t know that his problem would last only a short time and I was considering contingency plans were it to be the flu or something of longer duration, since I don’t drive stick shift.

Fortunately by the next day, he felt better and we set off for Antalya. That was the first cloudy and sometimes rainy day of the trip. The Mediterranean coast is beautiful. The roads wind up and down, but they’re well-maintained and there wasn’t much traffic. Much of the drive reminded us of the rugged beauty of the Pacific Coast Highway in California. We loved Kas, a seaside town a couple hours west of Antalya. We also loved seeing shepherds with their goats and sheep along the way. Look out for unattended goats in the road!

I had printed out information on a particular hotel in Antalya before we left the US, so I called it the morning we left Fethiya and was able to reserve their last room. We discovered that Antalya is a large city of just under a million people and fortunately we decided to turn the rental car in at the airport as we arrived rather than trying to find the hotel on our own. The airports in Turkey are well marked and we had no problem finding the one in Antalya. What we hadn’t thought to ask, though, was where to return the car. I guess we assumed there would be signs for rental car return as there are in the US. No signs at the Antalya airport. We drove around the airport a few times and finally decided to go into the parking lot and call the rental company. We told them where we were and voilà, a few minutes later, a nice man appeared in the parking lot to whisk our car away and finalize our paperwork.

Not driving directly to the hotel was one of the best decisions we made because we never would have found the hotel in the old section of Antalya. Our poor taxi driver had to ask at least three people before we finally found it. The Puding Suite Hotel, www.pudingsuite.com, is a lovely small hotel in the middle of the tiny, cobblestone streets of Old Antalya. What I didn’t know was that their last room was a suite! We were ushered into the Sultan Suite, certainly fit for a sultan! A beautiful, large room with a more beautiful and almost as large bathroom! All this for the bargain price of 134 Euros. We had fun exploring the old city and had a good dinner at a local restaurant.

I had thought we’d be able to explore more of the surrounding areas during our time along the coast, but the fact that we spent an extra night in Selcuk meant we had less time to explore along the way. And no matter how many times I drive in Europe, I always underestimate the driving time.

The following morning we took a taxi back to the airport for our AtlasJet flight to Istanbul. AtlasJet was also a good experience. They served a cheese sandwich (but no mayonnaise, salad or banana chocolate mousse). It was on time and overall a good flight.

Next, back to Istanbul

http://picasaweb.google.com/Ellen.Corradini/HotelBellaSelcuk#
http://picasaweb.google.com/Ellen.Corradini/VirginMaryHouse#
http://picasaweb.google.com/Ellen.Corradini/EphesusAndTheEphesusMuseum#
http://picasaweb.google.com/Ellen.Corradini/Coasts#

Istanbul - Day One

I’ll try to limit words and tell the story with pictures…

We checked back into the Faros Hotel, to a large room overlooking Divan Yolu, a busy main street in Sultanahmet, our home away from home for the next week. I spent hours researching hotels in Sultanahmet. There are so many good hotels in the area, all well-situated, and I think it’s hard to go wrong. But we loved the Faros, its staff, cozy restaurant, location and room, and we’d stay there again. The Sultanahmet tram station is conveniently just down the street.

http://picasaweb.google.com/Ellen.Corradini/FarosHotel#

First stop was the Basilica Cistern, a couple blocks from the hotel. It was built in the 6th century. Admission is 10TL per person. It’s a warm, damp (no surprise) cavernous place with reddish mood lighting and haunting music to match. I don’t know why, but I was surprised to see large carp swimming in the shallow water. There are two oddly-placed Medusa heads, each supporting a column for eternity. Why they’re there is still unknown. They have a “fast food café in the Cistern. I wasn’t expecting a café in a cistern and frankly, the thought of eating down there didn’t especially appeal to us!

http://picasaweb.google.com/Ellen.Corradini/BasilicaCictern#

From there we crossed the street to Hagia Sophia. Originally built as a church in the 6th century, it was converted to a mosque in 1453 and finally converted to a museum in 1935 by the secular Republic of Turkey. Admission is 20TL per person. While we appreciated its beautiful, soaring interior, we were more captivated by its stunning exterior. I think I could sit in the park across the street for hours and stare at it.

http://picasaweb.google.com/Ellen.Corradini/HagiaSophia#

Istanbul – Day Two

The next day, Monday, began with blue skies, but became cool and windy with off and on showers. We started the day with a visit to the Blue Mosque. It was completed in the early 1600’s and contains over 20,000 hand-designed mosaic tiles. Of everything we saw in Istanbul, the Blue Mosque was my favorite. The combination of the colors, designs and the architecture is breathtaking. There’s no entrance fee, but they suggest a donation. Removing one’s shoes is a practical, not a religious requirement. Since Muslims kneel on the floor to pray, they want to keep the beautiful carpet as clean as possible.

http://picasaweb.google.com/Ellen.Corradini/BlueMosque#

The call to prayer from the Blue Mosque is an experience. The Blue Mosque is of course is the granddaddy of Istanbul mosques. The call resonates for miles, it seems, and the other mosques in the area do their best to compete, but it’s just not quite the same. I finally slept through the 5 a.m.-ish call by the end of the week. It’s one of the many things I miss.

After walking around the Hippodrome next to the Blue Mosque, we walked through the Arasta Bazaar, a small but colorful assortment of shops. The area in back of the Blue Mosque and Arasta Bazaar is an interesting puzzle of narrow streets, shops, small hotels, and cafes with a pretty view now and then of the water.

http://picasaweb.google.com/Ellen.Corradini/HippodromeArastaBazaar?authkey=Gv1sRgCOvH0b2Oi46wPA#

Next was the Topkapi Museum. The entrance fee is 20TL and another 15L to visit the Harem. We again rented audio guides, 10TL for the museum and another 10 for the Harem. The grounds are beautiful and I think we spent close to four hours there. The Treasury houses indescribably beautiful gems, gold and diamond-encrusted swords (including the sword around which the movie Topkapi was made), thrones, and clothes worn by the various inhabitants of the palace. The audio guides were excellent and gave just enough information. Unfortunately, we weren’t allowed to take pictures in the Treasury.

The Harem is a palace within a palace with beautifully-decorated rooms, including stunning mosaics. From the audio guides we learned a lot about the women of the palace and the important roles they played. When you visit Topkapi, be sure to follow the signs for the café at the back of the property for a sweeping view of the Bosphorus.

http://picasaweb.google.com/Ellen.Corradini/Topkapi#

Istanbul – Day 3

Tuesday was a picture perfect day, so we walked…and walked. We walked up Divan Yolu toward the Grand Bazaar, to Eminonu, the port. I don’t know where Istanbul stands in the world in terms of busy ports, but it’s got to be right up there. We walked across the Galata Bridge, enjoying watching the fishermen reel in their catches. Along the lower part of the bridge at the edge of the water is a string of colorful fish restaurants where we had lunch on our way back.

We continued toward the Galata Tower in Beyoglu. The 360 views from the observation deck at the top are worth the 10TL entrance fee. Walking around the tower gives you a good idea of the immense size of Instanbul, a city of about 15 million people.

http://picasaweb.google.com/Ellen.Corradini/GalataTower#

We continued on to Istiklal Caddesi, a busy, mainly pedestrian street in Beyoglu with upscale shops, restaurants and consular offices. The old trolley makes a run up and down, to Taksim Square, adding to the picturesque quality of the street.

http://picasaweb.google.com/Ellen.Corradini/IstiklilCaddessiAndEminonu#

From there we walked back down to the tram. By then we figured we had walked about five miles over six hours and deserved to ride the rest of the way back to the hotel. The tram is a convenient way to get around Istanbul. Buy a jeton (ticket) for 1.5 TL at or near each station. They run constantly, every couple of minutes.

Next, our final days in Istanbul, final thoughts, and the Bosphorus cruise, hightlight of the week.

Bookmarking. Just starting my Turkey research, hoping to go next September. This report will be a great resource for planning! Thanks so much for writing, ellencmog!

bniemand,

I hope it will be useful in your planning. September should be a good month to go to Turkey. Let me know if you have specific questions.

Ellen

ellencmog - Lovely pix. Thanks for investing your time in a way that we all can enjoy. Nicely written.

tC

Thanks fot the great report, bookmarking!

Really enjoyed both your very detailed trip report and accompanying pictures! Very helpful in planning our trip next year.

If you don't mind, how did you handle the 'suggested donation' at the Blue Mosque? Is it in line with entrance fees at other, similar sites?

Now for a more delicate question - what are the facilities like at these sites? Westernized?

We'll have 9 days in Turkey, split between Istanbul, Izmir and Epheseus (also hoping to get in a quick trip to Bursa)-will be re-reading your report many times between now and then to be prepared for our adventure. We are seasoned travelers to Europe, but this might be our undoing!

Great trip report. Thanks!

May I ask how you decided to hit Cappadocia first? Did it have anything to do with the flight itinerary? I was contemplating hitting Ephesus first, then Capp, then the extended time in Istanbul but would love to hear if there's any reason why Capp first would be better.

Sorry for interfering Debs, but why Izmir and Bursa? They are modern and hectic cities, with little in terms of antiquity, architecture, art and museums. Why not try Iznik (Nicea) instead of Bursa, and possibly Pergamom if you are driving from Selcuk (Ephesus) to Istanbul.

If you are not driving to Istanbul, i recommend the antique sites of Heraklia (Kapikiri village) on lake Bafa with its many species of birds, orchids and interesting rock formations, Prienne, and Aphrodisias, all within driving distance of Selcuk.

Debs, my husband said that people were just reaching into their pockets and giving coins as we exited the Blue Mosque, so he gave a couple lira (and got a receipt!). He said the man seemed very happy with it.

Regarding the "facilities", most places offer at least one Western toilet. I can't remember anywhere where I didn't have a choice, but there were definitely many "traditional" options (including on the IDO ferry). The public bathrooms were very clean, even in the country. Do take bacterial lotion or towelettes for your hands, though.

Your comment about being seasoned European travelers is interesting; I felt exactly the same way, but I don't think this trip will be your undoing. My impression of Turkey was that it has enough of Western Europe to be familiar and comfortable (for me), but it's also different enough to be exotic; a perfect blend. One of the big obvious differences is the use of headscarves by Muslim women. It's a constant reminder you're somewhere very different. I also saw about a dozen women in burqas. Also the language. No cognates in Turkish. We'd be driving along and there would be a big road sign and my husband would say, "Well I wish I knew what THAT means!" You'll love it!

PegS, interesting you should ask about the itinerary. I believe it was otherchelebi (or maybe another Fodorite) who suggested going to Cappadocia first. Because we were there late October/early November, they were concerned that it might be cold and the sooner we could get to Cappadocia, the better chance of warmer weather. It turned out that Cappadocia was having a bit of a warm spell anyway, and it was GORGEOUS!

Also, cold is a relative term. I'm from upstate NY, and Turkey (especially the coast) is pretty temperate, so my definition of cold is a bit different from most Turks'.

Otherchelebi, you may have input for Peg about the itinerary, but I think you'd be fine going to Ephesus first. I loved finishing the trip in Istanbul.

ellencmog, I'm having such fun reading this and reliving our trips to Istanbul and Ephesus. We've got to return to see more of the country. It's wonderful

debs, For years I'd fantasized about Istanbul before going there. I imagined it as a gritty, almost Middle Eastern place which would be incredibly exotic. Imagine my surprise when we got there and saw broad boulevards that almost reminded us of Paris, lots of greenery and very clean streets. To be sure it's not Zurich and there is some grit and exoticness, but nothing like what I was expecting. It is both old and new, exotic and homely. Perhaps most interesting to me was that the more modern area is actually the Asian side--although that is also where we were treated to an incredible sight when two men emerged from a butcher shop carrying a blindfolded ram which they positioned over a grate in the street, proceded to slit its throat and drain its blood. To this day I still don't know if this took place because it was New Year's eve day or because Mrs. Olson had called and ordered a ram for her Tuesday dinner.

What a story, Julie! How long ago was that? Three years ago we saw essentially the same thing (with goats) in Albania - it was unsettling.

Istanbul is indeed very European-ized. It's very different in the small towns (in Cappadocia, for example; the Saturday market in Urgup stuck us as much more "gritty" and exotic). We also loved seeing sheep crossing the street in front of us and the shepherds guarding their goats in the countryside.

On our next trip we'd like to see the eastern part of the country which I imagine is much less developed than the areas we visited. I'd also like to go to the Kurdish area north of Iraq, but right now might not be the ideal time for that. We also didn't spend much time on the Asian side of Istanbul. So much to see and so little time!

Julie, I hope you'll include a few days in Cappadocia on your next trip

Ellen

Ahh, thanks Ellen. I think I remember that conversation about the weather.

Hi PegS,

In Ellen's case it was purely the probable weather conditions originally, and i was glad that the scheduling went OK also.

in your case, if the weather does not play a role, i.e. your trip is June-October, you should decide on the basis of flight schedules.

The locations are so very different that neither will overshadow the other. If the weather is coldish and rainy, Cappadocia will be more depressing and miserable, whereas Selcuk will have a higher cloud cover, will be lighter and not as depressing, also because rains last very short periods in that region. On the other hand, Selcuk can become suffocating with heat and humidity in July-August, whereas Cappadocia will be drier and more bearable.
If you are going to be at Ephesus in July or August i strongly suggest that you have a hat, a small towel around your neck to wipe the perspiration, sun glasses, some small bottles or thermos of water, and sun block cream in addition to the cat food for the cats of Ephesus (do not forget to pour some water in indentations in the marble near where you feed the cats.)

I'm not very good in the hot weather and we visited Ephesus on October 28. It was so hot that I was ready to throw the towel in after a couple of hours (fortunately we had seen everything we wanted to see). I can't even imagine how hot it would be in the summer. (I'm not complaining; it was a gorgeous day; I'm just glad we didn't visit in the summer).

What a fabulous report. I thank you for the effort you put into this. It just makes me want to go back to wonderful Turkey again!

Thanks for putting the time and effort into such an engaging trip report. I'm planning a June Turkey to Greece adventure. I'm curious, in hindsight, is there anything you would have done differently? Any, if I had known...?

pasqualino, that's a good question. We don't regret anything and the trip was pretty close to perfect, but...

If we had it to do over again, I think we either would have planned more time for the coasts (I would liked to have seen Bodrum and Aspendos and other archeological sites in the area), or skipped the coasts altogether in favor of more time in Istanbul or Cappadocia. As beautiful as the Mediterranean coast is, it's another beautiful coast... I keep wondering how long it will take me to realize that driving in Europe takes longer than I anticipate - every time!

All in all, though, no regrets

Thanks!

Excellent report. Even though Turkey is not on my travel list for now, I really enjoyed reading about your time there and your pics are wonderful. I know how much work goes into a report, so thanks for taking the time and energy to share your trip with us.

Final Report

Istanbul – Day Four

The Grand Bazaar and the Spice Bazaar. The Grand Bazaar was constructed in the mid 15th century and houses more than 4,000 shops on 58 “streets”. Does that make it the oldest mall in the world? It’s a fascinating place in which to walk around and get lost. One of the things I love about Turkey is the colors. Everywhere you look you see the beautiful reds and golds of the carpets, the bright colors of the ceramics and the soft colors of the pashminas. The Grand Bazaar is a delight to the senses! We wanted to buy some pillow covers for our couch and chose a small store in the Bazaar. We were invited to sit down and drink some apple tea (another thing I love about Turkey) while we looked at samples. I love the feeling of being a guest rather than just a shopper (although I’m sure that’s clever marketing). We chose two beautiful kilim covers and after some friendly negotiations, shook hands and left with our treasures.

Later that day we took the tram back to Eminonu and want in Yeni Cami (New Mosque), across from the port and near the entrance to the Spice Bazaar. I think we were spoiled by the Blue Mosque, but the Yeni Cami was also beautiful and impressive. It was interesting to see men praying in the main part of the mosque, and women praying in the back, behind the partition.

The Spice Bazaar is a much smaller market than the Grand Bazaar and is also a visual treat with the pyramid mounds of different colored spices, Turkish Delight and dried fruits. We were interested to see big jars of medicinal leeches at shops outside the Spice Bazaar. A fun way to spend time on a rainy afternoon.

http://picasaweb.google.com/Ellen.Corradini/GrandAndSpiceBazaars#

The busy tangle of streets and shops stretching between the Grand Bazaar and the Spice Bazaar are as frenetic and fascinating as the bazaars themselves. Be sure to make time to wander around them. It’s an easy and unforgettable walk.

On the subject of shopping…we weren’t prepared for the pressure from merchants to buy from them (especially carpets). I understand and appreciate that it’s the culture, but being accosted on the street was unnerving and annoying, bordering on offensive. As we spent more time in the country, we learned to react to it (or not react) more effectively, but had we known about it in advance, it may not have hit us so hard. Also, I like to spend time perusing merchandise; I’ll ask for help if I need it. The minute you step into a shop or visually lock on an item, the merchants are all over you. (This wasn’t the case in the stores at the mall we visited at the beginning; they were helpful but not on top of us). I did appreciate the shopkeeper in Selcuk who came right out and asked us how he could take our money!

Istanbul – Day Five

Our last day in Istanbul was picture perfect for a cruise up the Bosphorus. I had read a lot about the virtues of the state-run ferries vs. more touristy cruises, and we did opt for the state-run (IDO) ferry. In the off season it departs Eminonu at 10:35 and returns around 4:00. The cost is 20TL round-trip per person. Get there early for a good seat. They let us board at 9:45 and it was full within a few minutes. This was one of the highlights of the trip for us. It took about an hour and a half to reach the northernmost port, Andalou Kavagi, at the mouth of the Black Sea. On the way up it stopped at several other ports both on the European and Asian sides. It’s such a relaxing ride with the sun reflecting off the water and beautiful scenery at every turn. There is a snack bar on board and tea, coffee and yoghurt with powdered sugar are sold by vendors who come around often.

Andalou Kavagi is a small port that caters to tourists. The restaurants were ready for us when we arrived, but some of us headed for the Yoros Fortress at the top of the hill for a breathtaking view of the Black Sea. It dates from the 5th century AD. It takes about a half an hour to hike UP. Did I mention it was UP? The view is worth it, though. I couldn’t believe I was actually looking at the Black Sea.

We ate lunch at a restaurant (Yoros Café – it is right on the trail; you can’t miss it.) at the fortress with another breathtaking view of the northern end of the Bosphorus. In addition to absorbing the amazing scenery, we also watched a steady parade of shipping traffic making its way north to the Black Sea ports. On a beautiful day as we were fortunate to have, it was the perfect way to end 15 memorable days in a wonderful country. I hope my pictures reflect the beauty of the day.

http://picasaweb.google.com/Ellen.Corradini/BosphorusCruise#

In Closing…

The Faros Hotel, like many other hotels, advertised free transportation to the airport for stays of four nights or longer. I inquired about it the night before we left and was told that we would have to ask the manager. In the end, they were happy to provide a van. I got the impression that it’s not quite as much of a given as it appears in the ads, though.

http://picasaweb.google.com/Ellen.Corradini/FarosHotel#

Again, I want to thank all the Fodorites who helped us plan this trip. Aside from the loss of my husband’s luggage, it was close to perfect. Turkey is a big country. Our goal was to see and experience as much as we could in two weeks, and even though we didn’t see some things we had hoped to see, we felt we largely accomplished our goal. Planning a trip like this is a lot of work and the intent of this report is to provide useful information for people contemplating a trip in the future. I hope I’ve done that. At one point my husband said he learned that when planning a trip like this, you should budget very liberally…then triple it!

Some of the things I’ll miss…

• The friendliness and sincerity of the Turkish people
• The haunting sound of the call to prayer
• The sound of the tram and the street below our window at the Faros
• Apple tea (although we brought enough home for a year!)
• Tea being delivered to shop workers on the round trays (never saw a drop spilled!)
• Like other big European cities, the ability to walk, and walk, and walk
• The Bosphorus
• Turkish nationalism and proud display of the flag
• Trying to read Turkish - my husband said it looks like an eye chart!
• The rich colors everywhere you turn
• Mezes, the mouthwatering hot and cold appetizers that you can order at any meal
• Turning the corner and seeing Hagia Sophia, then turning again and seeing the Blue Mosque and its minarets, especially when fully illuminated at night

http://picasaweb.google.com/Ellen.Corradini/LeavingIstanbulAerialViews#

Barb, thanks for your comments. I've thoroughly enjoyed reliving our time there through my postings and organizing my pictures. I'm glad you've enjoyed reading about it.

Ellen

Your report is very well organized. I really enjoyed your photos of different parts of Turkey.

Turkey is definitely on my radar, and you make it seem even more accessible. Thanks for all the hard work to put this report together.

ellencmog - Congratulations on a super trip report and some stunning pictures. The weather appears to have been ideal for your travels. This was a pleasure to read.

tC

ellen, thanks again for a wonderful report. FYI our ram slaughter experience was December 2006. You've definitely gotten my attention on Cappadocia. Thanks.

Yes, thanks again. Good reading and very helpful.

Thanks for the comments; I'm happy that people are enjoying it and getting something out of it. Cappadocia rules!!! Also, the Melekler Evi Cave Hotel rules!

Julie, our goat slaughter experience was around the same time. Our older son and daughter were in Lebanon and Aleppo, Syria this summer. Our daughter send a picture of fresh sheep heads at the market, eyes and all...it was hard to look at, but that's part of traveling and learning about other cultures.

I want to go back to Turkey; there's still so much to see. The problem always is, do we return to a place we love, or visit someplace new? Tough choices!

Ellen

Ellen, thanks again for the great report and photos. This will definitely help as we put the finishing touches on our plans. We will have seven nights in Istanbul, with a three-day trip to Cappadocia in the middle. We are splitting our stay in Istanbul--the first part in Sultanahmet and the last part in Beyoglu. I hope we are as lucky with the weather as you were!

I hear you on the return-to-a-favorite or visit-someplace-new debate. It comes up every time we start thinking about the next trip...

ms_go, I hope you'll do a trip report when you return. Where are you staying in Cappadocia? We met people who loved staying in Beyoglu; good for you that you're splitting Istanbul that way! I'll be interested to hear your thoughts about staying in the two areas.

I hope you're lucky with the weather, too. We would have loved it regardless, but the good weather certainly didn't hurt.

Ellen

Hi again ellen,

Here are two presentations my wife (Eser) had prepared to whet your appetite for your future visits to Turkey.

Sure you should play the nostalgic theme a bit. But there is so much new to discover... : http://travel.webshots.com/video/3058940900104991763JAmlCB
http://travel.webshots.com/album/575600988utcqOM?vhost=travel

You're right, otherchelebi. There is always something new to discover. Eser's photos are beautiful! And the second set looks like it has a few pictures of Cappadocia mixed in. We have American friends who have been to Turkey four times (all areas) and still haven't seen everything they want to see. I have a feeling I'll be back!

Ellen