Just got back Sunday from a week long trip in Istanbul. We had a fantastic time! This was the first trip in a long time where I wished I had made the trip a few days longer. I am already looking forward to going back to Turkey to explore the rest of it!

Just a few notes as I'm still plowing through my work emails:

- Hotel: We stayed at the Hotel Sari Konak in room 206 for 85E a night. The room was pretty small but in a good location, we thought. It was away from the stairs (which most people used), it overlooked the breakfast courtyard (no traffic noise), and was out of the direct morning sun. The walls were thick and the windows were double-paned so they blocked a lot of the noise from the other guest and from outside. Still, we kept the window open anytime we were in the room just to hear the call to prayer and listen to the noise from the Ramadan festival. The hotel itself was in a terrific location, just down the street from the Blue Mosque and Aya Sofya.
Daphne, at the front desk, was the most helpful friendly person. She always had a smile for us and she loved to talk to us. When we first checked in, she pulled out a city map and circled all the points of interest and told us the best way to get there. When we asked for a restaurant recommendation, she directed us to Hala (delicious!) in Taksim. On our last day there she told us that we needed to see the rest of Turkey as it had so much to offer and encouraged us to write her as she would advise us where to go.
The breakfast was great. A large spread of fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, feta cheese, some kind of bologna, sesame bread, hard boiled eggs, fresh yogurt, four kind of fruit preserves, and bowls of cereal and dried fruits and nuts. You could get coffee or tea or freshly squeezed orange juice. And when I say freshly squeezed, I mean you could hear the machine squeezing your oranges right after you placed your order.

- Taxis: We got a free ride from the airport to the hotel since we were staying more than five days. The taxi rides are not for the squeamish but they are a lot of fun. The man who met us was very nice and helped up with our Turkish pronunciation of “Thank you” and “Hello.” He also pointed out sights along the way as his partner, the driver, weaved in an out of traffic, using the lanes and speed limits as only a suggestion. This was pretty typical of all the taxi rides we took. We has a lot of fun with the one taxi driver who was anxiously following the football game and giving us a play by play. Quite fun and every taxi driver we had was so nice and accommodating. And very fast! We generally used taxis to take us from Sultanahmet to Taksim and back as the tram service doesn’t really go to this area yet. The most we paid was 8.5TL (not including tip).

- Food: The food was very good. If you like lamb, eggplant, olives, and yogurt, you will love the food in Istanbul. There was a Ramadan festival every night at the Hippodrome, beginning around 6:30 pm when the call to prayer sounded and everyone could begin to eat after fasting all day, that served lots of street food. We ate döner kepap, fried “meatballs” that were couscous wrapped around a meat filling with walnuts, lots of fried dough in many sizes coated in a delicious honey syrup, and lots of ayran (tasted like buttermilk). We ate half our meals in restaurants and half street food. Everyone had been telling us how cheap it was to go to Turkey and that everything was really cheap, especially the food. Well, it wasn’t dirt cheap but it wasn’t super expensive either. Our most expensive meal, at Balikçi Sabahattin, was 130TL for three which came to about $97.

- The Sights: Oh, so much better than I thought they would be!
o The Blue Mosque was magnificent! The space was huge and light and airy and so peaceful.
o The trip up the Bosphorus was fun and it took about one and a half hours to reach Anadolu Kavagi. The view of the Black Sea from the ruins at the top of the hill was absolutely breathtaking.
o The Grand Bazaar was overwhelming and we actually didn’t spend a whole lot of time there. We did spend a lot of time at the Egyptian Bazaar though, enough so that the shop guys started to recognize us! My husband had a blast eating all the free samples of the Turkish Delight. The area around the Egyptian Bazaar was just as interesting as the bazaar itself.
o Watching the sunset over the city while at the top of the Galata Tower and listening to the mosques call out to each other gave me goose bumps. I think I have them right now just remembering!
o Walking along Istiklal Caddesi towards Taksim Square was a lot like walking along Sixth Street here in Austin: lots of people, shopping, and eating. Our first time here was on the only rainy cold night we had and it wasn’t too much fun. We went back when it was drier and it was a great place to people watch. We even saw a student demonstration and the subsequent deployment of police in riot gear who didn’t look much older than the students!
o Smoking a nargile. I am not a smoker but the apple tobacco is this pipe was delicious! If cigarettes tasted like this I might have a smoking habit. As it is, we broke down and actually bought a nargile and hauled it back home. We’ve yet to try it out. We are just happy it made it through the baggage handling process.

- Cats: There are cats everywhere who seem to be pretty well fed and have perfected the whole Iamsuchacutelittlekittydon’tyouwanttofeedme? look. We are cat lovers so we had a blast feeding our leftover fish meals to the cats who invariably showed up.

- Weather: Our travel luck held out again and we only had one cold and rainy day. For the most part it was partly cloudy/sunny skies with highs in the upper 50s to mid 60s. It actually gradually got warmer as our week came to an end.

- People: Never have I met such nice, friendly, helpful people. Everyone we met was so friendly and eager to help us. Several times we found ourselves spending the better part of an hour just talking to a shopkeeper or a restaurant owner about Turkey, the sights to see, their mandatory military service, observing Ramadan, America and their desire to visit, and how we liked Istanbul.

I can’t say enough positive things about Istanbul. I am ready to go back today I had such a good time. I think the city and the culture by itself make for a fantastic trip but it was the warm and inviting people who made it an unforgettable one.

Could you post more information, please? What were some of the restaurants you dined in? Did you go to Dolmabache Palas and Topkapi? Where did you shop?

Have you read my report on Istanbul and Buyukada? It is legendary.

Oh, yes, please give us more details!!! Thanks!

Your trip sounds great! We too loved Istanbul. I had to laugh when I read your comments about cats - we too love cats, so enjoyed seeing them all. On more than one occasion, a cat just jumped up and sat on my lap or on my husband's lap.

Great report - thanks for sharing!

What a great report! I will be in Istanbul next week for the first time. I think I have a reservation at the Sari Konak (e-mail back and forth to confirm has been less than 100% clear). The hotel offered to either pay for a taxi or have a driver wait at the airport for 25 EUR, which is for one ride to be shared among 4 passengers. Did you ask to be picked up or did you just grab a taxi? If the latter, about how much does it cost to get from the airport to Sari Konak? Thanks very much.

Trip from the airport is about 25TL; it is easy to fiond taxis outside Ataturk airport.

Thank for sharing your experinces. I think the biggest asset we have for tourists are the human asset with endless hospitality. great to hear your confirmation.
Come to Cappadocia as well next time....
Happy travelling,

Murat

Realized a longtime dream in June with a trip to Istanbul and the West Coast of Turkey. 3 weeks not enough time and I'd go back in a heartbeat, especially to enjoy more of Istanbul. You are quite right about the people-very warm and helpful. The women are especially pretty (from a woman's point of view!). Still enjoying the special memories!