Sokullu Pasa Hotel Istanbul

... with 2 twin beds and a queen size bed, which gives us enough room to spread out and repack our suitcases. The hotel has a friendly feel to it and a nice rooftop terrace where breakfast is served. After a brief respite we head towards the Sultanahmet to enjoy the view, the people and, of course the shops. We stop at the Doy Doy and have a late lunch on the terrace while enjoying the view of the sea below us and the Blue Mosque which ...

... to drop our stuff at the hostel before heading out eager for more action. The Sultanahmet area is basically tourist central, the grass is perfectly coloured, the fountains are perfectly positioned and the whole area is perfectly clean... it is an Eastern wonderland. Happily trapped between two humongous world heritage sites Nick and I wander round in amazement- compared to Eastern Europe, hell compared ...

... I explored the city on Monday. But, she had arrived in Istanbul a day early so she gave me some tips on things to see. I woke up bright and early on Monday so I could try to fit in as many sights as possible in one day. Mission accomplished. As I walked to Taksim Square I still hadn't decided if I was going to take one of the double decker tour buses or just hop on the tram and see the city myself. Well, I got to the square at 9:30 and the first bus wasn't leaving until 10:30 so that ...

... eat, drink and swim. Playing draughts - and drinking draught - for a week straight because it was too hot to do anything else in Olympos. Discovering secret hidey-holes in spectacular fairy chimneys in Cappadocia. Feeling the cleanest we have ever felt after a thorough scrub down in an Istanbul hamam. IF WE WERE GIRL GUIDES, WE'D HAVE EARNED...: The "Alternative Hygiene" badge: For excellence in creating the illusion of ...

... took some punches on the first day - it was chaotic. We re-grouped and planned out a much better day today. We are definitely receiving strength from above - reminded of the story of Dan Stenson at this funeral, taking the wheelbarrow to the top of the hill! Part of the issue is that we are all very jet-lagged and waking up at weird times or not sleeping at all at night. Please pray for this. The Sprout kids are awesome. Everyone is participating and ...

(S) Finally, we're in Turkey. Getting here, however, was not that pleasant of an experience. First of all, we couldn't read the signs in the Sofia train station about how late our train was and when it would be leaving and from what platform. Finally, it arrived from Belgrade, and not knowing how long we would have, we ran up the stairs to the platform. Unfortunately, at the top of the stairs was a step down, that I missed of course and stepped off, twisting my ankle in the whole ...

... as one of history's most important trading cities, and a link between Europe and the east.

We wound our way thru the maze of streets near the Eminoumou market & the Spice Bazaar. The market was a great spot for seeing what the locals buy. Every kind of olive, date, & fig you can imagine was available, and the next stand had almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, and more. Tiny 8 ft. wide hardware stores were bursting at the seams with tools, brushes ...

... the most beautiful rugs I have ever seen. And I was tempted, but at $3000 I decided a t-shirt would have to satisfy me. The next day one of the girls and I headed out for a horseback ride through the vineyards and an old village. I guess we were the first tourists on horseback of the season and we felt like a parade as people stopped and stared at the procession. The guides were quite fun as were the 5 dogs that joined us on ...

... home of one of the most famous Roman Cities , Ephesus . Before I end this entry some parting thoughts on both Istanbul and what I have noticed about Turkey so far. Stray Animals Everywhere around Istanbul (and Turkey in general) there are hundreds upon hundreds of homeless cats and dogs. At first I thought this was a bit seedy and dirty, but over time it has come to grow on me and I now like having the attention of a cat or dog when there ...

... passengers throughout the duration of the trip. Bottled water was handed out at regular intervals, served up in plastic cups, as was tea or coffee. Little vacuum-packed cakes were also available and, after any such snack, the attendant would come around and squirt a little lemon-scented eau de toillette on everyone's hands. Swaying Turkish music came from overhead speakers as we climbed up into the hills of Mediterranean Turkey. I didn't remember it being this heavily forested the last ...