An interesting note on the wearing of a fez; while you will see them openly sold, turks informed me that this is strictly a tourist item, and is not politely worn in public. The fez was worn by government officials under ottoman rule - it is not a happy or proud association for present day turks.
Try to notice graveyards while in Istanbul, especially the one by the grand bizaar. You will see grave stones topped with a fez or a turban - the sign of government officials of yore.

My tips after a wonderful trip
1 learn a little turkish
2 get off the beaten path a little
3 turn to the experts! we were very impressed by the hospitable, generous, friendly people we met - we were helped enormously by bus drivers, hotel workers and owners, turkish tourists, students, etc, etc when booking hotels, making itinerary changes, finding new places to visit, etc.

ncanavan,
As I understand it, under Ataturk and the consequent modernization of Turkey, wearing the fez was strictly forbidden. After declaring Turkey a republic, Ataturk made many radical changes -- becoming secular, westernizing dress, adapting the Roman alphabet--so that it would become a modern, European country. Wearing the fez was associated with the older, Ottoman world which Ataturk was striving to move away from. He succeeded admirably, but sometimes, his methods were on the harsh side. So the book by Jeremy Seal is a search for the older, often hidden world of the Ottoman, pre-Republic Turkey.

The fez is now just a tourist item, and not worn at all anymore. But the ida that wearing the fez became a criminal act is interesting, especially with the pull between the traditional and the modern, the east and the west.

Three tips from our stay in Turkey.

One, don't change too much money before you arrive. There are forex exchange booths everywhere. There lire depreciated by almost 100,000 in the short time we were staying there so if we had changed earlier we would have been stiffed. The rates are very competitive at the forex booths.

Two. If you are caught with too much local currency and want to change it back to US prior to your leaving, check the US currency VERY carefully. I almost got landed with a (very good) counterfit $50. It had the water mark and all, just the ribbon through the middle missing.

Three. An easy word to learn is how to say thank you. You can pronounce it - "two sugar dream". Just say it quite fast.

Turkey has to be one the best places in the world I have been to. I could easily spend a couple of months travelling through getting to know the place. I also found Turks to be very friendly people (and they were not trying to sell me a rug).

Steve

Eek Marko!!! 16 days!! Are you packed!!! :) I almost am!

I have seen the Seal book at B&N, I'll have to go back and see if they still have a copy. Also I did see that Settle had written Blood Ties. I'm going to see if I can get some sort of PB copy to take w/ me. Might be fun reading for the plane. Although I also have my Travelers Tales for Turkey ready to go.

Midnite Express...funnee!!! Marko do you email from the road or will you have time?

The weather is so cold over there right now. I"m getting a tad worried. I'm a soft skinned Californian..and 60 is freezing to me!! In Kars I think it was its like 7 degrees. Now Im wondering if I should toss in my waterproof ankle boots. GAD!

Nice to gather in all of these positive vibes here. Thank you all for your contributions. (We're leaving for Istanbul in four days, so we're consuming this thread as quickly as things are added.)

This is especially for Flyboy-- have a wonderful time! I've posted earlier about my trip to Turkey, but these excerpts are just about Istanbul. We did all of the following...
-------------------
Primary Sights: Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, Aya Sofya, Hippodrome, Yerebatan Saray (Underground Cistern), Grand Bazaar, Spice Bazaar, Suleymaniye (mosque), Chora Church, Archeology Museum, Galata Tower &Taksim,

2ndary sights/activities: Bosphorus cruise, Dolmabahce Palace, Pierre Loti Cafe, Rustem Pasa Cami & Sokollu Mehmet Pasa, Mosaic Museum, taking the ferry to the Asian side and walking around a neighborhood, taking a hamam, shopping at the Arasta Bazaar, seeing the Gates of the City and the old walls.

We enjoyed it all; some of the surprises, though, are the smaller mosques (beautiful and intimate); the Mosaic Museum (a small gem); taking the ferry up the Bosphorus and getting to the overlook of the Bosphorus and the Black Sea; the magic of seeing the Aya Sofya, with all its layers of history.

Prepare for the onslaught of the carpet dealers. They are everywhere and overwhelming; it?s not dangerous at all, but exhausting to deal with. We found it easier to develop a sense of humor and a banter, and over time, it didn?t bother us as much.

Favorite Istanbul restaurant: Daruzziyafe, opposite the Suleymaniye entrance. Excellent food, beautiful atmosphere.

Disappointment: Sarnic, overpriced bland food in a dramatic setting of an underground cistern. Mavi Ev?s food was good, not great, but the setting on the rooftop is lovely (hotel where we stayed).

Have a great flight flyboy, I always find the nearest Internet Cafe whereever I go, its the easiest way to keep in touch. I always take a disc of photos that I have trawled from the net of the places we intend to visit, my kids (and I) then add them to outgoing emails to friends so they can get a feel (and a little bit jealous) for our trip ! This time I also intend to add some short MP3's of Turkish and Greek music, it all adds to the news ! On the same disc I carry images of all documents and passports etc as well as passport style photos of all of us just in case. I make 4 copies of the disc, one for each bag.

Hey Flyboy....viya con dios!!! Have a super trip and let us know how it was when you return!! We can all share our memories then!!!

Marko....wow you are super on the pooter. I'll be lucky to get on line and get here to retort! Lets hope we can all meet up via cyber space.

Arent we all lucky that we have the time and can work hard for the $$ then go spend it on travel!!! Life does have miracles!!!

I work so I can afford to travel (yeah and eat, drive,educate kids ,support the government etc etc) :)

I just booked a table at the rooftop restaurant of the Mavi Ev, I hope the food is as good as the view appears to be.

Marko, Ou la..Dinner at Eight I hope! :) Sounds like it will be fun and nice!! A real treat.

I'll have at least one nite on my own before the tour..I'll have to see how brave I am about venturing out and about.

I work all year and save every paycheck and then each spring go on a trip and spend the wad! Husband is very understanding of my passion for my suitcase! He thinks I'm a loon but at least he is understanding and waves me a nice goodbye!

Leanne, dinner at Nine !! ;)
My wife is sick of listening to the Turkish language in the car...but at least I know how to ask for a wine list !!! One of the most important phrases in any country, ranking jsut below where is the toilet !

Marko,
We stayed at the Mavi Ev and ate there one night; the food was good, not great. I know it's gotten a lot of great reviews, but we didn't thi nk the food was all that special. But the location is fabulous, though. Paule

Ah nine!!

And listening to Turkish lang. tapes...very clever. I've jotted down a few phrases but have no idea how to pronounce anything..I"ll have to check the local library.

Meanwhile I am listening to Turkish Music in my car....drums and all those strange little oboes and horns. I love to pull up next to teenies and blast out my multicultural rock and roll!! I get strange looks!! :)

Phrase books are ok, but you really need to hear the language being spoken by a native to get inflection right. I don't have any Turksih music but I hope to bring some back !

Leannat,
The guy who wrote the Lonely Planet book for Turkey also made a language tape which my husband and I used. Believe me, it was very helpful to hear what the language sounded like before we travelled! I'll have to check to see what the address is and I'll let you know.
Paule

MARK

If you want to hear some turkish on the Internet go to:

http://www.turkish-center.com/demo_giris.asp

Click "ENTER" then click "UNIT 2"

There are some Turkish lesson. I hope you can learn Turkish BUT Turkish Structure is not as same as English as you might learned.

Sinan Akdeniz

Sinan, I find the structure of turkish to be very logical and the pronunciation consistant....unlike english !! The main trouble that I have is that there is very so shared linguistic roots.....but thats half the fun !! Kemal Attaturk has a lot to be proud of when it comes to the language that he introduced.

what I meant to say was so few shared linquistic roots.....damn red wine !
Red and typing just not compatible.
:0

Marko - so glad that you are finally going to make it to Turkey. I have enjoyed reading your posts and all the planning you have done. Given your initial concerns about terrorism, you will be pleased to know that the US has dropped its travel warnings on Turkey, so things must be under pretty good control. As far as speaking Turkish, we went on relative short notice, so only had a Lonely Planet phrase book. Part of the joy of traveling on Turkey was attempting to speak the language, just attempting to do so brought smiles and often mini-courses in how to do it from the ever congenial and helpful Turks! I was amazed at how proficient in Turkish I became after only 3 weeks. Have a wonderful trip!

Thank you and to everyone else who I have gleaned some information from thank you. A report will be posted upon my return ! With all the dirty detail !

Marko...in case I miss you....Viya con Dios ok? I think you leave about the 30th but w/ time changes and all ...just want to send you off w/a smile and an ale in hand! :) Enjoy and we'll all report back when we return. INSHALLAH!

Just returned from Istanbul and it is an absolutely wonderful place to visit. We had no problem getting around and met many friendly people. The mosques and historic structures are truly fabulous. There is an awesome array of food and costs are extremely reasonable. We felt it was very safe.

One of the more exotic aspects is the "Call to Prayer" which echoes from scores of minarets that pierce the sky across the city. We found a website that allows you to hear this:

http://www.orienthostel.com/page4.html

Just click on the link under the picture of the Blue Mosque on the right side of the page. (We didn't stay at the hostel, but we were happy to locate this website because while that sound is something that is truly unforgettable, it's nice to be able to re-live the experience as we are able to hear it again. For those who may be curious, activities continue normally on the street at these times -- just as they would when church bells ring in other cities, for example.)

To those who posted their experiences here, we thank you. For those who have trips planned, I am sure that you will not be disappointed!

The Call to Prayer is one of the reasons I love to travel in Muslim countries. The most exciting time I heard it, I was riding on a camel at the Pyramids in Egypt....I got goosebumps! Also Flyboy thanks for the trip report. Im very excited and I packed today and I dont even leave for 9 more days! GAD! :)

This time next week we will have had our 2nd day in Istanbul, it is exciting. I keep thinking that there is something that I have forgotten, pre travel paranoia I suppose.

One thing I would suggest (and you may have already done this) is that you get in touch with your credit card issuer and let them know you where you will be traveling. While I've found American Express to be fail-safe, we found Visa and Mastercard to be sending back rejects. (No problem in Amsterdam upon our return that far, so it's just a word to the wise, as the original poster noted. We had sufficient cash on hand to prevent any inconvenience.)

that is a good idea, also let your mobile phone provider know where you are going so that they can set up the global roaming feature. I think that it is probably only applicable to GSM countries.

Excellent advice! As I had my Visa card "blocked" while traveling in China, I had my local bank inform Visa that I would be traveling in Turkey and not to block my card. I sat there and listened as the bank personell explained the situation. Sure enough -after my first withdrawal the card was blocked. I called the "24/7" number provided me by the bank and was told to call back during normal business hours. Fortunately my wife's card worked. Two days later my card worked fine and I had no further problem.

Yep did the credit cards last week. Also today a pal told me to take extra pics for passport replacement if needed. Is there ever an end to being prepared? :) I remember traveling the world w/ a small backpack and a comb! Now there are tums, immodium, Ben Gay, vicks, hair gels, sprays, contact stuff etc etc etc!! :):)

Always remember to pack an enquiring mind !! and less clothes and more money !

Marko-
Have a wonderful trip! I can't wait to hear all about it; it's been so much fun to be in on your planning!
Welcome home, Flyboy! I'm glad you had such a great trip!
Leannat,
It's probably too late for you, but if you or anyone else wants to order the Turkish tape from Tom Brosnahan ( who writes for the Lonely Planet guide for Turkey (6th edition)), here's the following info for ordering it:
Send $12 to
Turkish Cassette
c/o Tom Brosnahan
PO Box 563
Concord, MA 01742-0563

My husband and I really enjoyed listening to it before our trip; it helped give us a feeling for the sound and pronunciation of theTurkish language; it also had a lot of background sounds, like the Call to Prayer, so it gave a feeling for the country, too. The only caveat is that we ordered it from an earlier edition than is out now, so I won't swear on my life that it still exists. But it was only 3 years ago that we ordered it (wow, ONLY 3 years!).
Hope this helps someone!
Paule

Progal.....yep too late for me....but I am going to try and hit the library on Wed and see what I can find for last minute studying over the weekend. But thanks for the info.

Marko...point well made and taken. Enquiring mind..that is why we travel huh? To observe, to discover, to learn, to experience. Its all such fun! I spent the long winter months reading and making notes...and there is still so much I will learn. Ah travel!

Thanks Progal, Leanne if you see a family of five with a tall gray haired harried father with a guide book and camera, a tall blonde gorgeous wife with a new leather jacket and three smiling mischievious young blonde teenagers bumbling around Istanbul.....say hello !!

OK Marko....I think I could spot you! :) And if you see a 60ish red head w/ short hair, a travel vest, a tape recorder to her mouth following a tour 10 paces behind.....say hi...cause thats me!!!! Aint we gwanna hev fun!!! Yep yep yep!!

Tomorrow the big day, may have to pack some more winter woolies as the weather.com report for Kayseri predicts -9 minimum the day we get there ! Is Cappodocia a windy spot ?

Hi, Marko,
Wow, it's countdown time and I'm very excited for you!
I don't think Cappadocia is especially windy, but it is inland, with a very changeable landscape, so it's probably got changeable weather, too.
I just checked one of the international weather websites, and Kayseri seems pretty still, but Istanbul looks windier.
I've given you the link in case you need to obsess over anymore details!

Here's the URL for the weather inTurkey: (http://www.wunderground.com/global/TU.html ).

Have a great trip!!! I can't wait to hear all about it!
Paule

Marko...I hear you are ok in Cappadocia until you go underground...THEN it can get very cold even in summer. I tossed my long johns back in just yesterday after being warned by my tour guide! Have fun!

I thought it may be useful to some to top this (including myself....)

My wife and I will be going to Istanbul for 6 nights and then on to Crete for a week. We read that Hepatitis A vacinations are recommended. We are both a little reluctant to get the shots and don't think they will provide any meaningfull protection this close to our departure anyways. Any thoughts? We plan on being carefull to drink bottled water and no ice.
Thanks,
Mark