We experienced that during our time in Cappadocia in a big way. The family that owned our pension proved to be so kind and good spirited that it was very emotional to leave. They made us promise to return and bring our children (don't get excited that wasn't a hint). Our surrogate mother washed our clothes(she would not take payment in the end) and cooked us a home cooked meal before we left. It was scrumptious!
We also got to know a very sweet girl who worked at the pension who is a refugee from Iran, and she is waiting for her paperwork to be complete and then is moving to Vancouver where she has been accepted into Vet Med. She was so sweet and I could tell her and Niki really hit it off. We plan to see her in BC in the spring!
We also a day earlier met James and Penny, our Australian doppelgängers, as James refers to us:)
They were so much fun and had
a shocking amount in common with us. There was just a natural connection with them and we spent the evening and next morning shopping and just hanging out. Laughing was the norm with them and even though we had only known them a few days, it felt like a lifetime. They had hilarious stories that included "bargaining problems", but that's a whole another story:)
They also had a very convincing sales pitch on moving to Australia which revolved around Brisbane's climate:)
So after many hugs goodbye( and I
mean MANY, we thought our shuttle had arrived 3 times but it was always for someone else!) were off to "the bull
*sigh* Istanbul......it has been an experience. I am writing retrospectively so we are on day 2 here and it has proven to be a fantastic place though there are some downsides. Long story short , arrived to our hotel that looked pretty rough around 11:30 pm the kid working there( who was texting the whole time he talked to us,told us they had a computer error and gave our room away, we stated angrily it was late and that we needed a room, we also called my mother in law who was a super star in that she contacted the online booking agent within minutes to help us deal with the headache. After some heavy exchanges this kid walked us to about 5 other places until we found one that had availability.( it's now 12:30 am). Our new hotel has been fine though I'm pretty sure the manager is baked all the time and there is a birds nest on our air conditioner! I could not make this sh&t up:)
We then were starving after having not eaten since 9 am so walked down the street (little did we know that walking south of our hotel is more seedy so
of course we walked south) and the only place open was a kabab place run by a guy who was totally liquored up on Raki and no joke was dressed like a circus performer and was dressing us
up in traditional Turkish wear. Just plopping hats on our head randomly as we ate! Nice enough guy though but just made our night more bizarre.
What has been the biggest downside however is that we are staying in a cheesy tourist area that I find very in genuine. Anyone reading who has been to Istanbul and stayed in Sultanameht I'm sure understands. Lots of tacky tourist shops, annoying touts and lackluster restaurants, and at night an ugly array of neon lights everywhere. However,the reason it's so popular is most of Istanbul's top sights are in this area and in a city of 13 million, being able to walk to all of them is nice.
So we are making the best of the location and yesterday we visited the Blue Mosque, built by Sultan Amhed in the 1600's, it is an architectural gem and indescribable with words, even our photos won't do it justice.
We then visited the Grand Bazaar. It was massive, chaotic, and fun.
I could have spent many Turkish Lira here but we stopped at 3 bags full!
In such a busy city centre we called it a day after the Bazaar and walked around a garden by the sea before retiring early.
As I write, I am sitting on a ferry coming back from a cruise down the Bosphorus ( day 2) It was an hour and a half from the city centre to a small village that lies where the Bosphorus meets the Black Sea. It has been wonderful and just what we needed today!
We disembarked at the charming little fishing village of Anadolu Karvagi and walked up to an old Byzantine castle from the 4th century. Of course used to fight off the regions huge array of invaders. It had views of the black sea that were absolutely mesmerizing. It was nice to get out of Istanbul's dizzying centre for an afternoon and enjoy the sea. It was a great way to see the Asian coast of Istanbul which was tastefully dotted with historic mosques and castles juxtaposed with wealthy suburbs boasting very large and majestic seafront homes.
Cruising the Bosphorus is an
activity I highly recommend to anyone visiting Istanbul!
When traveling I always feel like I either become friends with a place or just stay acquaintances. It may be the size that keeps Istanbul as an acquaintance or the fact that it is still early on but the city and I are still shaking hands and trying to get to know each other.I'll keep you posted as time goes on:)
Cheers!
P.S small update:
It should be noted that if you are
persistent enough there is some good shopping and good deals to be had even in touristy Sultanameht, just moments ago Niki bought 2 T-shirts for a buck a piece! :)
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