Following our last years Christmas Market visit to Krakow, we decided it was time to book this years little jaunt. Somehow this got extended to an 11 day Exoticca tour of Turkey, because we're equally a bad influence on each other. And so it was that Patina and I ended up on a bus tour in Turkey. Not quiet where comes to mind when you think of Christmas Markets in Europe, but surely there would be glühwein and a sausage somewhere (spoiler, there weren't. Actually, I'm sure there were, but we didn't have any).
Arrived late on Friday 13/12 and we were impressed with our hotel in Istanbul (not Constantinople) , even if it was a little far out of town. Saturday 14/12, cold, but blue skies, saw us up early (this would be a trend and our 1st morning was in fact a rather leisurely sleep-in in comparison with the following mornings) and visiting the Suleymaniye Mosque before venturing off on our own. We visited the central area where the Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque and other gorgeous buildings are. Chose to skip the Sophia as I had previously discovered that entrance fees in Turkey are expensive. That and the Blue Mosque (9th Tick) is free and was on my 60 before 60, so a no brainer. Upon recommendation, we did go into the Basilica Cistern (€25), which was fabulous. Rest of the day we wandered around the grand bazaar, crossed the Galata bridge and had a walk in search of the elusive Baclava shop on the corner (found the one eventually). Dinner was not bad in one of the many seafood places under the bridge. Lots of walking, and I can honestly say that I loved Istanbul (not Constantinople), it's a fabulous crazy busy city of close to 20 million. Uber ride back to the hotel took over an hour, but it wasn't expensive.
Sunday 15/12 was rainy as we headed back into the city. Our first visit was the Egyptian Spice Market for tea and tastings, and then had a cruise along the Bosphoros. Beautiful homes, palaces and buildings. After that, we were again free to explore on our own, so after another walk through the bazaar, we decided on a Hamam. 3 hours later we were scrubbed, rubbed and polished. With heavy rain settling in, we settled in to the serious job of eating Turkish food. After that, heading back to the hotel seemed a good idea as the rain didn't appear to be going anywhere anytime soon.
Monday 16/12 it was time to join our other 6 tour buds and our guide Yousef and head towards Ankara, capital of Turkey. Along the way - snow! Never gets old, so a little play was in order. Stopped at Anitkabir, where the Mausoleum of Ataturk is and saw the changing of the guard. Stroll around Ankara and dinner at the hotel. Sleepless night, not feeling well - I would soon find out why. Bloody shingles!
Tuesday 16/12, up at 5am, and not feeling great. Stopped at the Salt Lake of Tuz Golu, followed by an obligatory rug shop stop (surprisingly only 1 rug shop stop on the whole trip and at least the salesman was funny). Onto Cappadocia (an area, not just a town) with a gorgeous views at our lunch stop. Another stop to the see the awesome fairy chimneys and then to our hotel (stunning but a bit far out of the main town). Our 4wd trip that afternoon was heaps of fun - bouncing over the terrain. Great driver, who doubled as our very proficient photographer stopping at several places for photos and finishing with sunset and bright pink bubbles.
Wednesday 18/12 was the big one. Picked up at 6.25am and taken out for our balloon ride. Awesome, amazing, every bit as magical as I'd hoped it would be and a huge tick off the list. Then off to a pottery place, followed by a stroll around the Goreme Valley Open Air museum. After lunch, it was off to the interesting Kaymakli Underground City. Busy and long day, but luckily we were staying a 2nd night in Cappadocia.
Thursday 19/12 was a long day on the bus. Made longer by a truck accident due to the heavy fog. So straight to the hotel for dinner, a bit of belly dancing (watching, not doing) where the belly dancer was upstaged by a cute kid and had an expensive and very average cocktail.
Friday 20/12 having not visited Pamukkale yesterday due to our late arrival, we headed off early this morning for sunrise. Probably better this way as it was spectacular and also a popular ballooning spot. Pamukkale means "cotton castle" in Turkish (slightly confusing as both names are used interchangeably and then they go and throw in Hieropolis as well, so totally bamboozled). Anyway, the bits I really wanted to see were the travertine pools and terraces made by the thermal spring water, as shown in the posters and brochures. Gorgeous and again a tick off the list. This was followed by a very odd fashion show at a ridiculously expensive leather shop - run away! A visit to the House of the Virgin Mary (glad I skipped that on the cruise), lunch and on to Ephesus - take 2. Stopped at view point overlooking Kusadasi before checking into our lovely, but once again out of the city hotel. Some had a spa, we went for a rainy walk along the beach to the supermarket. And discovering I have shingles thanks to Dr Google explained why I hadn't been feeling great.
Saturday 21/12 1st stop, the Asclepieion of Pergamon, a healing temple and then on to Troy. Lots of history, they have a Trojan Horse, but no Brad Pitt was to be found. Cannakala was our stop for the night. Went for a walk to check out the Trojan Horse that was used in the movie and gifted to the town. Nice beer stop on the way back and dinner at this much smaller hotel was great.
Sunday 22/12, another long bus ride as we made our way to Istanbul (not Constantinople). Stopped in Bursa to visit a couple of mosques, the green tomb and an interesting silk market. Lunch out of town, why take us out of a lovely city to a boring place on the side of the road next to yet another expensive shop is beyond me. Back in Istanbul (not Constantinople), we went for a walk in search of somewhere to eat. Found a place that looked popular amongst locals and while we were still trying to use google translate to work out the menu, 3 "sandwiches" were placed in front of us. OK, we'll have the sandwich then. Hot, tasty, still unsure of what we were eating. Turns out it was sheep bits wrapped and rolled in sheep stomach with herbs and spices. Sometimes it's best not to know these things.
Monday 23/12 and it was time to bid farewell to our tour buddies. Decided not to go into the city centre, so walked to the Mall of Istanbul and spent the day wandering around and eating. And just like that, our Turkey adventure came to an end and not a single Christmas market in sight.
Overall, the Exoticca trip was excellent value. The hotels, although out of the city centre were all very good. Other than in Istanbul, dinners were included, usually large buffet style and I'd say the food was average. The coach we were on was comfy, and it was great only having 8 of us - much easier to get around. Lots of things included and knowing how expensive entrance fees are in Turkey, this was great value. The usual stops at a few "shops" to buy, but honestly, there was no real pressure.. And as for Turkey and its people - fabulous. Would 100% visit again and Istanbul (not Constantinople) sneaks in to my Top 10 favourite cities in the world.
Turkish Delight (Lokum). Remember the old Fry Turkish Delight bars in the purple wrapper? Or the Turkish Delight chocolates that would remain at the bottom of a chocolate box? Those rose flavoured jelly like sweets? Well Turkish Delight is so much more than that! It comes in all sorts of shapes and flavours and is delicious and much like the country - a delight!
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