Dear Readers,
I returned last night from my recent trip to Turkey. It was the experience of a lifetime, truly not something to be missed. To walk in the footsteps of Alexander the Great, Suleiman the Magnificent, Caliph Abu Bekr, and see more or less what they saw... unbelievable!
I have decided that I will post about my trip in 2-day intervals. I will begin of course with my arrival on Tuesday the 23rd.
The flight from Paris to Istanbul was an unexciting 3h05m trek, complete with an Air France lunch and a lack of anything interesting. I was picked up at the airport by my private driver. I could go on about this guy alone for a few paragraphs, but I will summarize my ride to my hotel this way: no matter if the speed limit was 30, 50, 70 or 100, this guy went 110. He also created lanes for himself whenever necessary. I loved Istanbul already.
Upon arriving at my 4-star hotel, I checked in and logged on to inform certain key people that I'd arrived safely. I then set out to walk the streets of Istanbul. This city is truly a great outdoor museum, and the people there are among the most patriotic I've seen.
I was hungry so I went to find dinner. I found it by following my usual instinct: follow the music. There was live music at one place, and in the window, 3 women dressed in traditional Ottoman robes were making Turkish crêpes. Needless to say, I went in.
Turkish service is interesting; if there are 4 waiters working, all 4 will attend to the person that needs their help at a given time. If someone walks in, they all greet them, leaving all the other customers alone. And yet, the Turks pride themselves on quick service. No sooner had I ordered my first 2 crêpes than my waiter showed up with 2 crêpes. They were absolutely wonderful. I then ordered some meat, and followed it with a dessert. All the while, the band was playing traditional Turkish music. First dining experience: exceptional!
I then walked back to my hotel, relaxed and went to bed.
The next morning, I was supposed to have a walking tour of Istanbul. Supposed to. Turns out the company switched my day 2 with my day 3. So instead, I went on a boat cruise of the Bosphorus river. It was quite cold and cloudy, so it was the least suitable day of the week for a boat cruise. That said, the cruise was nice, and I got to see the European and Asian sides of Istanbul.
After the cruise, we stopped for lunch at a local restaurant, and then headed to Dolmabahçe palace, a very fancy Ottoman structure, similar to Versailles, but with a view on the Bosphorus.
Following this tour, I went back to my hotel, dropped off my things, and went off to find another dinner. Somehow, following the same aural instinct, I ended up at the other side of town in a small Döner shop blairing club music. The man standing outside yelling at potential customers told me I just had to try their Iksender dish, basically a Döner drenched in tomato sauce. De-friggin-licious.
I then went back to my hotel for some sleep. Maybe I'd have a walking tour the next morning!
That covers the first two days. Stay tuned for days 3 through 6!
Advance warning: Pictures will be slow this time, as there are over 300 of them, and Facebook (as well as Blogger) want me to upload 5 at a time. *sigh*
Hope you all have a good evening!
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