A turkish delight in Istanbul

After a short and comfortable flight of about 3 hours I arrived at Ataturk airport in Istanbul. I found my way to the visa desk and handed over a steep $60USD (last time I came it was $40) before passing through passport control and onto to collect my luggage and change over some money in to liras. With a two hour time change it wasn’t until after 9pm local time I found a bus that was to take me into Taksim square. Driving into the city lights and heavy traffic I was excited to be back in Istanbul! With some vague directions written on my hand I got off the bus in the bustling square and headed down the the steep hill following my memory rather than the sweaty words on my palm. Sure enough 10 minutes down hill, left, right and following my nose to dominos pizza I arrived at my hostel; route 39. A very disorganized but friendly hostel, it took me a good 45 minutes to check in, making friends with the staff (even on Facebook….?) and sharing bindis with them I escaped upstairs to the roof terrace to get some breeze and a beer! The manager of the bar; a local man from Istanbul befriended me and we spend hours on google translate and exchanging smiles before retiring to my 10 bed dark dorm before midnight. 

The next morning I woke at just after 6, knowing that my sister Danni would have just touched down in Istanbul, dozing in and out of sleep for a few hours she finally arrived at the hostel just after 9am. Excited to see each other we spent he morning catching up and swapping months of stories! Taking advantage of the free breakfast upstairs…a rather sparse serving of apple tomato and cucumber pieces, flakey white bread, a cake of feta cheese and some rusty looking olives, escorted by an indecisively sweet/sour black tea we were ready to tackle the day. Map in hand, we caught the metro and headed towards the blue mosque before stopping for a few photos in front of a stream of turkish flags. Standing on the steps I looked over to see what I thought was a familiar face, a mid 20s male that I seemed to recognize, unable to place it at first I then noticed his little day pack; as it turns out Ben was actually on my flight from stansted the day earlier so soon enough we all made conversation and all spent the rest of the day together sharing travel stories and plans! The three of us made it to the blue mosque first taking our shoes off upon entry, the carpet was soft and bouncy but was soaked in such a stench of dirty feet. It was incredible inside; the colorful tiles patterned along all walls, Accompanied by vidid stain glass windows, all eyes were up but the captivating beauty of the religious haven was not enough to keep us inside, but the smell was enough to drive us straight through to the exit. In need of a little kick in our step we set out to find a strong Turkish coffee, an authentic experience at a cafe in a grave yard found us just that. 

We then headed onto the grand bizarre to frantically find our way though the crowds as the underground somewhat 4000 shops and stalls bellowed at us with all kinds of trinkets; from rugs, jewelry, shishas, tobacco, Turkish delight, lamps, tiles, lanterns, clothes, bags and other leather goods, not to mention the novelty souvenirs, it was like a a colorful maze that will steal your money or forever hold you with in it’s walls. Successfully escaping in search of food we climbed the streets up and over the bridge Snacking on street muscles on route; the delightfully tasty creatures are cooked in rice and served in their shell with lemon…and only 1 lira (50 cents Aussie)! Making our way past the fish market and fishermen we searched for a small shop Which i had eaten at years ago, using my vague memory to navigate us we luckily stumbled upon it for a delicious chicken kebab and salad in a dodgy alley crawling with cats! (so many cats in turkey!) 

After our late lunch we headed back to our hostel for a cold beer, popping into a few vintage shops along the way! Saying out goodbyes to our lovely new friend Ben, before heading back out to grab some dinner with three boys that were staying at the hostel. We headed to a cheap local place that they had been to before ( the three of them; tom, Tobias and phill had been in Istanbul three weeks sorting out visas). As it turns out the two Brits and one American were on an epic bike ride, starting their journey in London, through europe and heading onto Africa and India. A grilled eggplant salad and beer later we headed back to hostel for a few more beers before calling it a night.

The next morning we packed up our things and headed for the metro which led to a train to catch a ferry. An hour wait and a two hour ferry ride later we tried to communicate with the locals that we wanted to catch a bus to canakkale. They usher us onto one, which took us to another, a few hours later we were pushed onto a different one…and then again once more! Yes, therefore it took us a metro, train, ferry, four buses, near a hundred lira and 9 hours to reach our destination. (unknown to us you can catch a direct buss hitch takes about six and costs 50 lira so you can imagine our frustration!) We booked ourselves into anzac house hostel in a clean 10 bed dorm before strolling the streets and settling on a chicken kebab next door. The next morning we woke early to book ourselves a Gallipoli day tour departing at lunch through the travel agency down stairs. With a few hours to kill we walked along the water in search of the horse from the Troy movie, as we didn’t have enough time to see the actual site. 

Meeting back at 12 we joined an already large group on the bus and set off for the ferry, over to Gallipoli. It was an excellent tour, and our guide was incredible, we visited Anzac cove where the troops landed, memorial sites, trenches, and grave yards. Even though Australia fought against the Turks, our guide ‘Morat’ spoke of in a really respectful manner, knowing that the Turks were defending their land, and the Aussies were sent on behalf of the Brits. During the 8months of war, they even sang to each other and traded goods, even pulling out the white flag to collect fallen soldiers. The Terrain looked tough, the hills were steep and the heat was intense! The tour finished around 7 and dropped us back to the hostel. Dan and I went out for an early dinner and a spot of shopping retiring home to pack up our things and plan where to head to next. 

The next morning we caught a shuttle bus to the main bus station (it seems they are always a few inconvenient kilometers out of town) before catching our direct bus to bergama. The coach was comfy and clean, with tv screens, chair tables and an assistant to serve food and drink it felt more like a plane. It seemed that the 30 year old friendly chap was paying particular attention to serving us…then continued to ask for my Facebook and phone number, when I replayed saying I didn’t have a phone here he insisted on writing my fake Aussie number down. Glad to be off the 4 hr bus and away from the persistent man, we stepped onto the streets of bergama in the 40 degree heat before waiving down a taxi to take us to our accommodation; odyssey guest house. The place was really lovely and very charismatic, we even had a balcony in our private double room! Feeling fresh and clean after a cold shower it took barely one block on route to dinner before feeling a stream of sweat slide down my back! Settling in to a sports bar, (I counted 56 men, and 4 women), sold on the mist machines attached to the roof to cool us down I ordered and incredible mezzo platter of delicious veggies and assortments. A few beers later we became friends with a some lovely Turkish teachers that spoke incredible English, insisting that we follow them to find a night club we did just that! 

Upon entering the almost empty club, Dan and I made our way to the bar to buy a round of drinks, for some reason we weren’t able to communicate that we wanted 5 beers and were taken back to our seats; as it turns out the extremely trampy looking hostess (the only other woman in the club) threatened the staff that she would quit if they let us buy drinks as we should have them bought for us!? We spent the eve dancing to strange tunes as a man played a giant drum, whist the hostess threw napkins in the air like confetti. It was fun and our new friends were lovely, as it turns out we may even take them up on a offer to visit them in bodrum and stay in their apartment. 

The next morning, quite hungover and tired we rolled out of bed and up the hill to visit the Pergamum ruins and incredible views of Bergama! The site was very impressive as the marble pillars still stood tall, but after 2hours in the 45degree sunshine we headed home…on route a mix of sunstroke and too many beers the night before tackled dan. Barely making it home she ran for the bathroom! Due to check out time we were back in the streets with our bags packed and heading for the bus station! Not long into the journey heading further south, dan reached for the plastic bag while I held her hair back! After two hours we changed buses in Izmir and another two hours later we finally arrived in Selkuk. Staying at atillas guest house which is a few kilometers out of town we called the shuttle to collect us and finally reached our destination, to be told that we get breaky and dinner for free! Diving straight into the pool and then onto the bar we couldn’t have been happier! The next morning we booked a tour to see Ephesus, one of the 7wonders of the world, and mother Mary’s house! The tour was really good and we were on it with two lovely guys from our hostel; Sam and oli, who happen to be from Newcastle! The sites were amazing dating back BC which was mind blowing! On the journey back the tour stopped at a leather factory where we were greeted with cold delicious apple tea and a fashion show…before being prompted backstage to be apart of the show! Oli and I were fitted in leather jackets before strutting our selves down the cat walk! It was halarious, but even a little bit of lime light didn’t sell me their expensive goods! 

After our incredibly tasty home cooked meal we we spent the night boozing and playing pool! Oli and dan losing a few games and succumbing to a nude swim! The rest is a little hazy, my memory and half a bottle of Jameson seemed to have disappeared! Today I woke feeling a little sorry for my self and starting the day with a Turkish omelette and a swim in the pool! Dan, sam, oli and I then made our way into town to be dropped at the Hamam (Turkish bath). Stripping down to our swimmers we were sent to a large hot dome sauna to sweat it out on the marble table. One by one we were then exfoliated by a Turkish man with a sandpaper like grove, then onto the next man who had a sack of bubbles and a scrub. Out of the heat and upstairs we were all treated to an olive oil massage and back crack before drying off over some tea! So much dead skin flaked off it was revolting but my skin is now glowing! It was such a funny experience and definitely well worth it! 

After our cleanse we enjoyed ice cream before saying our goodbyes to the boys who were moving on. Dan and I came back to the hostel; Atilla’s getaway, to watch the afternoon fade away by the pool! It seems that what was supposed to a two night stop will be extended to a four…I’m pretty comfortable right now lying on the floor cushions, listening to the water fountain and smelling a home cooked meal! I may never leave…