Turkiye 2023: A Turkiye Touchdown
I am starting a new series about my trip to Turkiye (the locals don't like the name Turkey - they said they don't even have the bird in that country) that was taken Sept 20 to Oct 4, 2023.
How do I start? This was the trip that would have taken place April 17, 2020, but so thankful that it finally pushed through 3 years later.
As part of the preparation, we called our bank to request for Turkish lira for pocket money. We requested small bills.
The bank sent us $10 lira bills. I was afraid people think we were carrying a ton of money because they were bulky.
This was a guided tour from the same company we go with, but decided to come a day ahead, as we always do with trips - mostly to get acclimated and to avoid delays when the flights get delayed or canceled. We were traveling with another couple who came three days before to do more sightseeing. Another couple that was part of the 2020 trip couldn't make it due to scheduling conflict.
This was a packaged trip that included air so we had no choice but to fly 10 hours to Frankfurt then another 3 hours to Istanbul after a 2-hr layover. Had we had a choice we would have flown direct Turkish Airlines from SFO.
Had we not flown to Frankfurt we would not have tried the traditional German goodies from Heberer's.
We arrived at the beautiful new Istanbul Airport.
Mosque across from the airport.
From the airport to the hotel, my preference is take a taxi, although this is not always the cheapest option. It was not in this case. My husband who likes adventure and prefers to take the public transportation talked me into taking the metro/subway. Not only was this cheaper, it would also make us experience the real Istanbul. However, metro subway has 3 transfers, and the transfers did not mean different platforms, it meant walking out of the building, cross the street and take the other train in another structure.
The only positive about the transfers is that you get to meet the locals.
On the last stop, we took a taxi. It's the only option we had.
We came out of the subway station and we're in Galata Tower, one of the attractions in the city. There was a party athmosphere in the street and we were loving the vibe of the city right away.
What a walker friendly city this was and we felt very safe.
We got to our hotel and met our travel buddies for very late munchies, you cannot even call it dinner. Anyway, they had related their horrific experience with the taxi driver. They took taxi from the airport and were dumped by the bridge because it was too much traffic. They paid full price and were asked to get out. To add insult to this, the driver did not even pull over so they can get out, they were dumped on the street and they had to climb over a fence with their carryon luggage to just get into safety of the sidewalk. Had it been me, I would have not been able to climb over any fence with my short legs and all.
To add to this, we were watching a travel show on tv and saw that the American dude host was also kicked out of the taxi before he can reach his AirBnB and he was mad. I suppose taking the metro despite all the transfers was a better choice in this regard.
We had taken the metro the entire time we were in Istanbul, if the place was not within walking distance.
Anyway, after dinner, we walked around Sultanahmet neighborhood where our hotel is located and decided to see some of the sights.
Blue Mosque
Hagia Sophia
The bank sent us $10 lira bills. I was afraid people think we were carrying a ton of money because they were bulky.
This was a guided tour from the same company we go with, but decided to come a day ahead, as we always do with trips - mostly to get acclimated and to avoid delays when the flights get delayed or canceled. We were traveling with another couple who came three days before to do more sightseeing. Another couple that was part of the 2020 trip couldn't make it due to scheduling conflict.
This was a packaged trip that included air so we had no choice but to fly 10 hours to Frankfurt then another 3 hours to Istanbul after a 2-hr layover. Had we had a choice we would have flown direct Turkish Airlines from SFO.
Had we not flown to Frankfurt we would not have tried the traditional German goodies from Heberer's.
We arrived at the beautiful new Istanbul Airport.
Mosque across from the airport.
From the airport to the hotel, my preference is take a taxi, although this is not always the cheapest option. It was not in this case. My husband who likes adventure and prefers to take the public transportation talked me into taking the metro/subway. Not only was this cheaper, it would also make us experience the real Istanbul. However, metro subway has 3 transfers, and the transfers did not mean different platforms, it meant walking out of the building, cross the street and take the other train in another structure.
The only positive about the transfers is that you get to meet the locals.
On the last stop, we took a taxi. It's the only option we had.
We came out of the subway station and we're in Galata Tower, one of the attractions in the city. There was a party athmosphere in the street and we were loving the vibe of the city right away.
What a walker friendly city this was and we felt very safe.
We got to our hotel and met our travel buddies for very late munchies, you cannot even call it dinner. Anyway, they had related their horrific experience with the taxi driver. They took taxi from the airport and were dumped by the bridge because it was too much traffic. They paid full price and were asked to get out. To add insult to this, the driver did not even pull over so they can get out, they were dumped on the street and they had to climb over a fence with their carryon luggage to just get into safety of the sidewalk. Had it been me, I would have not been able to climb over any fence with my short legs and all.
To add to this, we were watching a travel show on tv and saw that the American dude host was also kicked out of the taxi before he can reach his AirBnB and he was mad. I suppose taking the metro despite all the transfers was a better choice in this regard.
We had taken the metro the entire time we were in Istanbul, if the place was not within walking distance.
Anyway, after dinner, we walked around Sultanahmet neighborhood where our hotel is located and decided to see some of the sights.
Blue Mosque
Hagia Sophia
Oh m gee! what a horrible taxi riding experience for your friends. As a rule of thumb, if I cannot communicate with a taxi driver, I'd stuck to public transport. No matter how inconvenient it can be especially if you are dragging luggage all over town.
ReplyDeleteBtw I've never been to Turkiye. Lost an opportunity to visit it in 2000 for various reasons but nice to see it through your pictures.
ReplyDeleteYour public transit was an adventure with all the transfers but not as bad as getting dumped in the street by your taxi driver. I have never heard of such a thing.
ReplyDeleteCan't believe the taxi driver actually did that to your friends! I went on a cruise to the Greek Isles in the late 90s. Our first stop was 2 nights in Istanbul; we joined tours so never had any local experiences except when we wandered around our hotel in the evening. We love Istanbul. The Grand Bazaar is amazing. I wish I could find my article on my trip because we had a couple funny experiences. Oh we change $50 for some Turkish liras at JFK airport, and immediately became millionaires. The inflation was incredible; everyday the exchange rate was different. Overall it was a wonderful trip. Can't to read the rest of yours.
ReplyDeleteWhat an amazing place to visit. The mosque across from the airport looks modern and beautiful!
ReplyDeleteSounds like a great start to your trip! I'm glad you decided to take the metro. I'm also really excited to hear about the food you'll be trying in Turkey.
ReplyDeleteThe architecture is amazing.
ReplyDeleteGreat to read your trip post, Amazing place, Waiting for more post from Turkey.
ReplyDeleteWonderful account of your travel to Turkiye!
ReplyDeleteWhat an introduction to Turkiye. Years ago I would have taken their Metro but even that seemed a bit daunting. And I grew up riding the New York City subway! But I loved the vibe. I would have loved to go into the Turkish Delight shop.
ReplyDeleteQuite the adventures in Turkey ~ awesome photos ~ favorite is the kitty ~ hugs,
ReplyDeleteWishing you good health, laughter and love in your days,
clm ~ A ShutterBug Explores,
aka (A Creative Harbor)
Whta a beautiful airport and city! That was a ahrrowing taxi expewrinece for your friends! The same thing almost happened to my husband when we lived in NYC. There was heavy traffic and a taxi driver wanted to srop him off at the side of an expressway so she could return to the airport. She tild him to call another cab to pick him up. He refused to get out of the cab and so she relented and kept driving him to his destination. he wrote down her can # to complain just in case,
ReplyDelete