Wow Hotels & Istanbul

... got to about 9 Turkish Lire but when we got to the ship all of a sudden it was 66 TL which should have been about 30 euros. I gave him 50euros and all of a sudden he showed me 5 turkish lire and said that was what I gave him. Pam backed me up and said that I had given him 50euro and he kept saying that he had 4 kids to feed and needed the money. He offered us different amounts and ended up giving us $20 US in ...

... is a big city alright.

Minarets of mosques were dotted all over the city, in fact on crossing the border there was a mosque 100m from the border buildings so we new we were in a Muslim country then. The traffic got thicker and soon we were in the city and after a few attempts were unable to locate the seaside campsite and kept driving then into the city centre on a Sunday. Little did we know this was the day every Istabulian was out enjoying the city and we were in traffic ...

... The one good thing we got out of that was we got Turkish delight. It was gross!!!! For dinner we went to a restaurant called Amedros! It was the number one restaurant in all of Istanbul on trip adviser. We got this really ummy thing called a clay pot dish a man would come out with a clay pot and he would take a knife tap it on the side of the pot then WABAAM he would break it open. It was really ummy. GOOD NIGHT!!! Esther

... our *bsolutely fin*l gin &*mp; tonic sever*l thous*nd feet in the *ir on the w*y b*ck from London (this should tell you everything you need to know *bout both of us!) But *s with (most) decisions m*de *fter * pint of gin, it turned out to be *n inspired choice. Symbolism *side it re*lly is *n *m*zing city. Built on l*yers of history the city showc*ses *n *m*zing *rr*y of *rchitectur*l *chievement *nd resilience. Itīs *lso blessed with * truly unique setting, *s it ...

... in the ground that was about twice the size of an average basement and twice as deep. It had stairs in all four corners leading to the bottom, and you could see fresh groundwater pouring in from a fountain. This too, apparently, is very old and used for water containment. We also saw a vine that we could swing from. Historical data about said vine was unavailable. We finally got back to where we started and decided to walk ...

... past weekend for tomorrow. I have too much reading to do tonight. by the way... my comparative iranian politics class is basically taking over my life here... I feel like I dont do anything else related to school but read for that class. its crazy. but I'm learning! the other class is boring. I have to start writing my final papers for each of them! oy. OK I'll try to remember to post the rest tomorrow! enjoy! I miss everyone so much!!!! post comments pleaseee

... took the tram across the river and back into Sultanahmet (the old city) for a little shopping and then, to meet Nicole and Hakan at a Hamam (Turkish Bath).    What a wild experience.  (these pix are from the web) Once in the door, Hannah and Nicole go one way and Hakan and I go another.  (Hannah will have to tell you about their experience).  Even though Hakan goes to hamams regularly, he had never been to this one ...

... to go across the Golden Horn for dinner. We took a tram across, then walked up a bunch of steps into the Beyoglu area and ate in The Turkish Pub. Everything there was spicy. We also watched a good soccer game on TV while we were there. Everthing was like nothing I had ever seen before in Europe or America. I don't actually think that I will see anything like this anywhere else, that's is how amazing it was.

... the buses were free for the first three days of this week in the rush hour (Ken please note this is a great idea for all commuters). Actually the traffic was as bad as ever in the evening as people rushed home to prepare Iftar for their families. Saturday was traffic free day in Istanbul with people encouraged to use bicycles. At least this was the subject of an article in Monday's Turkish daily news. I still didn't see a reduction in traffic. Now that ...

... Licata, no doubt about that. A divine sleep in and a poolside club sandwhich for brunch - life in Athens is pretty damn good! Evi takes us up to the motorbike shop in the afternoon where the bikes have had a full blood transfusion and fettle so that they can stand up to the next 10,000km thrown at them. The team in the shop are again wonderful, and after taking some pictures of a gorgeous 1978 BMW R100 they just restored for the managers missus (how many bikers dream of a relationship ...