treasures of turkey

8/2/2019 Treasures of Turkey

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Best of Turkey

My wife and I have just returned from the Best of Turkey tour commencing on the 27 May

2011. The tour is conducted for Trafalgar by Neon Tours and was excellent and certainly

great value for money. The Tour guide was Ozan, the Driver, Ibraham and his Assistant,

Yelchin. Ozan was a very proud Turk with an excellent knowledge of all the sites we visitedduring the tour. There were only 38 people on the tour from UK, USA, Hong Kong, South

Africa, India, New Zealand and Australia so the bus was very comfortable.

If you take this tour you need to be prepared to spend a lot of time travelling on the bus as

on most days this was about 4 to 5 hours. During the tour we usually had a toilet stop every

1 to 2 hours and a hour stop for lunch. Lunch was usually at a restaurant in or

associated with a fuel station. We usually shared a pizza (7 10 TL) and a cup of plain or

apple tea (free 3 TL) so it was very inexpensive. After a walking tour the Assistant usually

welcomed us back to the bus with a cup of cold soft drink and always had cold water for sale

at 0.50 TL for a 500ml bottle.

All the hotels were very good although the Pam hotel at Pamukkale was not up to the

standard of the others. I have provided our rating for each hotel in the detailed daily report

using the normal star rating (1* to 5*). The rooms were clean and the food mostly excellent.

All breakfasts were included and were buffet style and all but two dinners were included. All

except for one were buffet style.

Alcoholic drinks were very expensive if purchased at the hotels or restaurants but very

reasonable at supermarkets.

The weather during our tour was very pleasant, not too cold or hot so we would recommend

this time of the year to take this tour.

We found Turkey to be surprisingly modern. The people were very friendly and polite. Most

that we came across in the tourist areas spoke English and we did not feel threatened at any

time.

During the tour we went to four factory outlets and a number of people on this site have

complained about time wasted on such visits. We found the presentations made at these

factories to be comprehensive and interesting. We didnt buy anything and felt under no real

pressure to do so.

To join the tour we flew from Brisbane to Singapore on Singapore Airlines then transferred toSingapore Airlines Code Share partner, Turkish Airlines, for the flight from Singapore to

Istanbul. Both flights were very good with excellent service from well trained crews.

Day 1

We arrived at Istanbul Airport at 5:35am, got our visas ($US 20) easily and were out of

customs by 6:30am. We saw a person holding a Neon Tours sign (Trafalgars Agent) at the

exit from the baggage claim area and made ourselves know to him. He took us to the

terminal exit where we waited for the transfer to our hotel. When the minibus arrived, after

about 15 minutes wait, we got in and the driver, who did not speak much English, took us to

our hotel. He dropped us off at the Hilton despite our attempting to explain that ouraccommodation was at the Dedeman Hotel. Luckily he did not leave immediately and the


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hotel reception helped us to convince him that we were in the wrong place. After a number of

phone calls, we were on our way to the correct hotel and arrived by 8:00am.

There were no rooms ready so we gave the reception our bags to mind and went for a short

walk. Unfortunately, we were very tired after our flight and decided to rest in the hotel foyer

until a room was available. The reception staff were very accommodating and found us aroom by 10:30am so we were able to rest and have a leisurely lunch which we bought at the

bakery shop near the hotel.

The welcome briefing was scheduled for 7:00pm so we decided to eat dinner early. Next

door to the hotel there was an Italian Restaurant called Maci and we ate an excellent meal of

pizza, pasta, rolls and olive oil, tea, ice cream and tiramisu for 60TL (including tip).

The welcome briefing was the most comprehensive that we have ever had on a tour and

went for well over an hour. Ozan handed out maps and summarised each day of the tour.

Hotel: Dedeman Istanbul Rooms 4* Breakfast 4* Dinner: not included Free WiFi

Day 2

Wake up call: 6:30am Bags out and Breakfast: 7:15am Depart: 8:00am

We drove from Istanbul to the Gallipoli Peninsula with a stop for lunch on the way. As it was

a Saturday there were a lot of Turkish busses at Gallipoli so it was quite crowded at the

Turkish sites. The roads are quite narrow so parking is a problem in some locations. It is

obvious for anyone planning to be at the 2015 Anzac Day ceremony that they need to be

prepared for long delays in getting to and from the event.

We visited Lone Pine Cemetery, the New Zealand Cemetery, the statue of Gallipoli hero andfirst President of Turkey, Mustapha Kemal Ataturk, and the marble plaque containing his

1930's poignant address to grieving New Zealand and Australian families. Then we walked

along the beach at Anzac Cove to the site of the Dawn Service. After these visits we drove

the short distance to the ferry for the crossing to our hotel at Canakkale. We arrived at

4:45pm to a large room overlooking the Dardanelles.

Distance travelled: 320km Time in bus: 5hr Time on ferry: 20m

Hotel: Kolin Rooms 4* Breakfast 4* Dinner: Buffet 4* Free Internet (cable)

Lone Pine Cemetery


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Day 3


First stop, after a short drive, was Troy which is best known for being the focus of the Trojan

War described in the Greek Epic the Iliad. We spent about 1hr at the site and saw the ruins

of many 1000s of years of the development of the City of Troy. The highlight was a replica of

the Trojan Wooden Horse.

Then we went to Pergamum which was the site of an ancient Greek city. We did not go to

the Upper Acropolis but went to the Sanctuary of Asclepius, the god of healing. In this place

people with health problems could bathe in the water of the sacred spring, and in the

patients' dreams Asclepius would appear in a vision to tell them how to cure their illness.

Notable structures include the Roman theatre, a circular treatment centre, a healing spring,

an underground passageway and the Sacred Way, which is a colonnaded street leading to

the sanctuary.We spent about 1hr at the site and then drove to our hotel at Izmir arriving at

5:15pm.

Distance travelled: 330km Time in bus: 5hr

Hotel: Swissotel Grand Efes Rooms 4* Breakfast 4* Dinner: Buffet 4* No Free

Internet (6 euro per hour)

Trojan Wooden Horse


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Day 4


First, along with thousands of other people from 5 cruise ships that called in that day, we

went to the house of the Virgin Mary, where she spent her last years after the death of

Jesus. Apparently she and John the Baptist preached to the Turkish people.

Then we went to the ancient city of Ephesus which was an ancient Greek city, and later a

major Roman city. It was one of the twelve cities of the Ionian League during the Classical

Greek era. In the Roman period, it was for many years the second largest city of the Roman

Empire, ranking behind Rome, the empire's capital. Ephesus had a population of more than

250,000 in the 1st century BC, which also made it the second largest city in the world. The

city was famed for the Temple of Artemis (completed around 550 BC), one of the Seven

Wonders of the Ancient World. It was very crowded but is a very interesting city.

For lunch we went to an authentic Turkish restaurant but we did not feel like the full buffet

lunch (18TL) instead opted for soup and bread (5TL). After lunch we called into a jewellery

factory but their jewellery was too expensive for our taste, although a few people on in our

group purchased some.

Then it was off to Pamukkale to our hotel. It rained heavily on the way but this was the only

rain we had during the tour. This hotel is famous for its thermal spring pools but we did not

try them. There were quite a lot of other tour groups staying at this hotel so meal times were

very crowded.


Hotel: Pam Thermal Rooms 3* Breakfast 2.5* Dinner: Buffet 3* Free WiFi

Ephesus Library


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Day 5


The number of people at breakfast was completely beyond the hotels capacity and most

food that we would normally eat was completely gone, however we found enough other food

to sustain us and saw it as a bit of an experience.

Today we went first to Hierapolis which was believed by the ancients to have been foundedby the god Apollo. It was famed for its sacred hot springs, whose vapours were associatedwith Pluto, god of the underworld. The city also had a significant Jewish community and was

mentioned by Paul in his Letter to Colossians. The area is well known for its travertineterraces which are snow-white terraces of pools and cascading water. There is also anexcellent museum for an extra 11TL entry and a thermal swimming pool.

We then drove towards Antalya, stopping for lunch and then on to Perge which was anancient Greek and then Roman city with extensive ruins and is most renowned for itsmassive Hellenistic-Roman gate towers. Through the gates are remnants of a finecolonnaded street, baths, stadium, and market.

Finally we arrived at our hotel, which sits on a cliff overlooking the Mediterranean Sea, at5:45pm where we stayed for the next two nights.

Hotel: Divan Antalya Talya (for 2 nights) Rooms 4* Breakfast 4.5*

Dinner: Buffet 4* Free WiFi


Travertine Terraces


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Day 6

Wake up call: 7:00am Breakfast: 7:30am Depart: 8:30am

First we went to a leather factory where they make brand-name coats for the Italian marketfrom sheep skin. They call their leather silk leather because it is so soft, light and silky. Wehad a fashion parade with dramatic lighting and slick models then it was into the showroomto meet the sales staff. Some coats were reversible, even some with patterned woollenlinings. They cost up to US$2500. They sold about 8 coats to our group but most paidaround US$500.

We then went to the Antalya museum which had lots of Greek and Roman sculpture, coinsand displays of Turkish art, weapons, carpets and clothing.

We went to a mall for lunch and then back to the old town for a walk through narrow lanes ofmarket stalls down to the picturesque harbour and then back up through laneways ofrestored Ottoman houses to our hotel arriving at 3:00pm. It was quite hot walking as it wasabout 30 degrees and very sunny.

There was relatively little time on the bus because we were staying in Antalya again

overnight.

Three Graces


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Day 7

Wake up call: 7:00am Bags and Breakfast: 7:45am Depart: 8:30am

Today before breakfast we went down to the beach platform below our hotel. TheMediterranean Sea at this point comes right up to high cliffs and there is no beach so thehotel has built a beach at the base of the cliff a few metres above the water. You take a liftabout 4 floors down from the hotel level. There were people taking an early morning swim.

The first tour stop was the Roman town of Aspendos which boasts thebest-preservedRoman theatre in Turkey, and one of the best in the world. Still used for performances today,the theatre really allows you to imagine what it was like to attend a dramatic performance inRoman times. They were setting up for a program of operas over the next week. You wouldhave to take a pillow with you because the seats are hard marble.

We then travelled over a very high mountain range to a small Turkish village where we hadthe be my guest lunch at a 100 year old wooden Turkish house. The food wasnt much butat least was a taste of traditional Turkish food.

Then it was back on the bus to Konya where we went to a Mausoleum and Museumdedicated to the Whirling Dervishes sect and later to a Koran School where we saw adisplay of colourful Turkish tiles.

We arrived at the hotel at 5:45pm which was a high rise blue glass tower looking out overlots of recently constructed 6 and 7 story residential blocks in the University district. Theguide said that the staff were all hospitality students so dinner was very disorganised.

Hotel: Rixos Rooms 4* Breakfast 3* Dinner: Set Menu 3* Free WiFi


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Aspendos Theatre

Day 8


Today we first went to the Sultanhan Caravansay which is a restored inn of a type that havebeen used since the 10th century. Trade across Turkey in medieval Seljuk times wasdependent on camel trains which stopped by night in inns known as Caravansay, literally

'caravan palaces'. These buildings provided accommodation and other amenities for themerchants and stabling for their animals. Guess they were the original motels.

Then we drove to see the underground city of Sarhatli where they hollowed out a city belowground in the tuffa (volcanic rock). It was pretty interesting and quite cool inside. Some partswere very narrow with low ceilings. We then drove to Goreme which has a lot of buildingshollowed out into the mountains. There were a lot of ancient rock chapels decorated with 6thcentury frescoes on the walls.

We arrived at our hotel at 3:30pm so we had plenty of time to get ready to leave at 5:30pmfor the optional show put on by the whirling dervishes. They whirl around in long white robesto connect with their God. They were interesting but you were not allowed to photograph

them during the show because it was supposed to be a religious ceremony. They did a fewtwirls at the end for photos. We went back to the hotel for dinner at 6:45pm.

Hotel: Dedeman Cappadocia (for 2 nights) Rooms 4* Breakfast 4* Dinner: Buffet 4*

Free WiFi

Distance travelled: 230km Time in bus: 3 hr

Sarhatli Underground City


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Day 9


Some people were up at 4:00am for a 4:30am departure to do the balloon flight optional (not

a Trafalgar optional) but arranged by the guide at a cost of 150 euro. Everyone who went

said they enjoyed it.

Today we went to a Turkish carpet making school. We saw some instructors making bothwool and silk carpets. They do this by tying knots, in some cases, 100s per square inch.Some carpets take them years to make. We also saw how they produce silk thread from the

silkworms cacoons. Then there was a display of all types of carpets they make and wecould buy them if we wanted to. The prices varied from about $500 to hundreds ofthousands. Some people in our group bought carpets.

We spent the rest of the day driving around the Cappadocia area. The area is littered withmushroom-shaped hills. In many places these hills have been hollowed out to form cavesand houses. Some of these dwellings have been inhabited since the troglodyte times.

There are market stalls at every stop each selling the same range of local crafts some witha strangely Chinese feel about them. The stallholders are not too pushy and are verypleasant to talk to.

On the way back to the hotel we went to a winery and tasted some of the local wines whichwere ok. Some people bought bottles for 20TL each. We arrived back at the hotel at 4:00pm.

There was relatively little time on the bus because we were staying in Cappadocia again

overnight.

Cappadocia


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Day 10


First we went to a pottery factory and saw how they made pots, plates and tiles. We saw theartists painting the patterns and how they glazed the painted items. They were also for saleand some of our group bought them.

We had a long drive to Ankara stopping for lunch on the way. When we arrived in Ankara wevisited the Mausoleum of the founder of modern Turkey, Ataturk and were lucky enough tosee the changing of the guards ceremony. The mausoleum is quite impressive

architecturally. There are two permanent exhibitions inside. One is related with the life ofMustafa Kemal Ataturk and his clothes and other objects are exhibited. The secondexhibition is about the Independence War and the revolutions following it.

We then went to the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations which occupies two Ottomanbuildings that have been specifically renovated and altered to suit their role. The museumhas Palaeolithic, Neolithic, Chalcolithic, Late Bronze Age, Hittite, Phrygia, Urartu and LateHittite sections.

We arrived at the hotel at 5:30pm.

Hotel: Barcelo Ankara Altinel Rooms 4* Breakfast 4* Dinner: Buffet 4*

Free WiFi


Ataturks Mausoleum


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Day 11


First we drove to Gordian where Alexander the Great cut the Gordian knot in 333 BC. Wewent along a narrow tunnel into the burial mound of King Midas (the one with the goldentouch) and then to a small museum that showed a lot of ancient artefacts that had beenfound in the burial mounds that dot the area.

Most of the day was spent driving between Ankara and Bursa which is over 400km. Westopped for lunch at a Turkish restaurant. The prices are amazing. We shared a Turkish

pizza and each had a cup of apple tea for 7 TL.

When we got to Bursa we went to the Green Mosque which was finished in 1424. Themosque was destroyed by earthquake in 1855 and was rebuilt. The mosque's domedcentralhallis flanked by rooms to left and right that were used for both prayer and for conductingOttoman government affairs. The mosque is currently being restored so there is not a lot tosee although some of the green tile work is complete.

Then we crossed the road to the octagonal Green Tomb which was covered in blue/greentiles during restoration work in the 1800s. It was again restored in 2008. Inside you can seethe richly tiled cenotaphs of Sultan Mehmet I and his family.

Then we went to the Silk Markets where there are hundreds of shops selling lots of thingsmade from silk, like scarves, ties etc. We arrived at the hotel, which is located next to an oldTurkish bath complex, at 5:15pm.

Hotel: Kervansaray Termal Rooms 4* Breakfast 4* Dinner: Buffet 4*

Free WiFi


Green Tomb


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Day 12


Today we drove from Bursa to the Marmara Sea and took a ferry across the sea to Istanbul.The traffic from the ferry landing into Istanbul was very heavy and it took a lot of time totravel the relatively short distance.

We went to the main square in the centre of Istanbul for lunch and then to the Spice Marketswhich is a complex of stalls selling all kinds of spices as well as a great variety of other bitsand pieces including jewellery, pottery, Turkish delight and other sweets.

We then went for an optional cruise along the Bosphorus Strait which was a greatopportunity to take photos of the buildings that line the strait. There are over 2500 mosquesalone in Istanbul as well as the many palaces of the old Ottoman sultans.

We arrived back at the hotel at 4:30pm so that those going on the optional dinner could getready. We decided to have an early night and returned to the Italian restaurant next to thehotel for dinner.

Hotel: Dedeman Istanbul (for 2 nights) Rooms 4* Breakfast 4* Dinner: not

included Free WiFi

Distance travelled: 100km Time in bus: 3hr Time on ferry: hr

Photo from Bosphorus


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Day 13


First we went to the Blue Mosque which is one of the biggest mosques in Turkey. Thecascading domes and six slender minarets of the Blue Mosque dominate the skyline ofIstanbul. Construction work began in 1609and took seven years. Inside, the high ceiling islined with the 20,000 blue tilesthat give the mosque its popular name. The interior is lit with260 windows, which were once filled with 17 th century stained glass. We were along withthousands of other visitors and all had to take off their shoes. It was magnificent but thesmell of feet was overwhelming.

Then we went to the sultans palace, Topkapi Palace, which was again magnificent,especially the treasury where there were lots of jewelled daggers, headpieces, necklaces,thrones, rings, etc.

After that we went to the museum of Hagia Sophia which is a former Byzantine church andformer Ottoman mosque in Istanbul. Now a museum, Hagia Sophia is universallyacknowledged as one of the great buildings of the world. Hagia Sophia was rebuilt in itspresent form between 532 and 537. It is one of the greatest surviving examples of Byzantinearchitecture, rich with mosaics and marble pillars and coverings.

Finally we went to the Grand Bazaar which is a gigantic maze of market stores selling

everything including carpets, leather, jewellery, silk, etc.

We arrived back at the hotel at 5:30pm and then left for the farewell dinner at a restaurant

overlooking the Bosphorus at 6:30pm. It was a good meal and we were back again to the

hotel by 8:45pm.

There was relatively little time on the bus because we were staying in Istanbul again

overnight.

Blue Mosque


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Day14

Breakfast: 8:00am

As we had one more day in Istanbul we said goodbye to our new friends at breakfast and

caught a cab outside the hotel at 9:30am to transfer to the Crowne Plaza Hotel in the old

town. The cab fare (including tip) was 30TL. This hotel is certainly a 5* hotel.

We caught the tram which stops just outside the hotel (fare 1.70TL) to the Spice Markets

and spent some time there purchasing gifts to take home. Then we went back to the hotel for

lunch and, after a rest, caught the tram to the Istanbul Archaeological Museum, which has a

large collection of Turkish, Hellenistic and Roman artefacts, and spent a couple of hours

there. Then we walked back to the Great Mosque area and bought more gifts at the market

stalls there. We returned to the hotel and went out to dinner at a garden restaurant in the

Historical Markets near the hotel.

Alexander Sarcophagus


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Day 15

Breakfast: 8:00am

We visited the Laleli Mosque opposite the hotel and then spent a couple of hours mostly

window shopping in the area around the hotel. It is surprising how modern the fashion

designs on display in the windows are. After lunch we took a cab from the hotel to the airport

for 50TL including tip and caught our flight to Zurich to join Trafalgars the Best of

Switzerland tour.

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