Final stop... Istanbul.
Trip Start
Jun 21, 2008
1
20
23
Trip End
Jul 24, 2008
Istanbul,
Turkey
Saturday, July 19, 2008
I mentioned this before, but backpacking around Turkey is extremely easy. Things are labeled, most Turks speak english, and they don't write in Arabic (which helps heaps). On top of that, they are a friendly bunch and you can always just ask for help. The things that I'm not so fond of are the prices (duh), the tourists (more specifically, the type of tourist this area seems to attract), and the distances. Compared to where I have come from, this country is BIG!!! I kinda forgot about that. I have covered more ground in the past 2 days than I have on the entire trip prior. It's huge. On long hauls over 10 hours, the bus will stop 3 times for 40 minutes at each stop, during which I am usually half delusional and half asleep. I stumble off the bus and must remind myself not to fall victim to spending a ridiculous amount of money on vanilla cookies.
I took a ferry to get to the city, where I became confused as hell. There are apparently 2 bus stations in Istanbul, I asked the driver where we were and he said to get out. So he told me to get in the shuttle, so I took that until he told me to get out at Harem station, took another ferry across the Bosphorus Straight, jumped a tram to a district called Saltanahmet, and then proceeded to walk around aimlessly. This was the longest "after bus trying to find a hotel" experience I've had yet. I always try to minimize the pack carrying, and usually it just takes one taxi from the bus station to the hotel, or a short walk. But this was something else.. I was so tired and sweaty by the time I got to Saltanahmet it was ridiculous. And you guessed it.. all the hostels were full. Leave it to me to NOT book a reservation, just show up and assume that everyone can accommodate me. lol Woops. High season in Turkey, I didn't know. I finally got a bed at a place called the Orient, which is where I am now. All I want is a good meal, maybe visit the Hamam before I head out, buy some shit in this robbery of the city (can you tell that I am bitter for not having bought things in the Middle East??!).
I tried to extend my stay. I called Delta Airlines who wouldn't refund my ticket.. I'd be out 400 bucks. I am still thinking about it though, I'd really love to go back to Jordan and Syria and meet back up with any of the great people I've traveled with here. It took me so much to get here, I may as well stay right?! Blast.
