Kybele Hotel Istanbul

... Harem Room, home to the wives of the Sultan...it was under restoration. Most of the men tourists wanted to go in there. We went to the Circumcision Room...most men didn't want to go it there. If they didn't go in there, they missed a beautiful room completely covered with the most amazing Turkish tiles. We saw the gift room, the jewel room, and the clothing room. When you wanted an audience with the Sultan, you had to bring a gift. This was usually art, jewels, carpets ...

... craftsmen.
A truly luxurious experience.

By the time we left the palace we were all starving and with a slight detour to the Spice Bazaar, for a quick fix of lamb kebab, we headed back to the hostel to fritter away the last couple of hours in Istanbul.

At first our shuttle to the bus station was meant to pick us up at 7pm but lucky for us we double checked in the morning and apparently we would need to be at the hostel between 6.30 and 7. But by ...

... number one from my time in Turkey....   I arrived in Istanbul at 8am on Sa***************ed straight in to the "new city" (still hundreds of year old of course) where I'm staying. I woke the fat and grumpy owner of the hostel, who gave me the silent treatment to suggest that perhaps I should go throw myself into the Golden Horn. Nevertheless I handed over a wad of lira and he brightened up quite a bit. His name is Ahmet and all in all, he's a nice guy ...

... scrubbed down by sweaty, burly Turkish men with a loofah made of steel wool until our skin bled. Needless to say we were a bit apprehensive when we signed up for a session on our final night in town. As we parted ways (men and women bathed separately in the hamam we went to but in some hamams they bathe together), we gave each other a final, nervous look, and headed off into the unknown. Caroline says: After leaving the ...

... started to kick me while he was sleeping so I put him down on the ground floor. He sleepwalked to another room and laid down again. When I tried to pick him up again, he woke up and started crying and would not stop. He was like a hot potato, from me to Stephen to me to Stephen to mom and he stopped the moment mom held him. She says that it is a mom thing. I am the chief executive officer ...

... see Christian and Moslem artefacts sharing one roof. Finally, after trying to find the best deal, we hopped on a boat to cruise down the river that divides Asia from Europe towards the Sea of Marmara. It was finally time to say goodbye to my travelling companions and after a nice meal in an Istanbul fish restaurant, we parted ways. Some headed home, others stayed, others headed towards Gallipoli and I was on my way to Budapest.

... to Istanbul , one that is not immediately recognisable by looking at the buildings. Street Vendors Following on from above, adding to the city's character is the thousands upon thousands of street vendors selling anything and everything. It is impossible t walk a block of this city without seeing something for sale. Early in my stay it was raining so lining the streets were vendors selling both umbrellas and ponchos. Children also seem to get ...

... that respect... can't believe they let this happen in a place that relies so heavily on tourism. Monday, flew to Rhodes with Shipway and Brent. Met Jarek at the airport. No expectations at first, as Rhodes was just a stop-over on the way to Turkey. Turned out to be an awesome place to visit. More genuinely nice people (compared to Santorini), and a great old town. Very cool acropolis in Lindos - great ...