Having just returned from an 11-day tour of Türkiye, I wanted to write about our experiences and share some memories of a great holiday before it all became a blur.
Firstly, Turkish Airlines is amazing! Great service, crew and food. The planes felt new and they were clean, spick and span.
Istanbul
Formally known as Constantinople, Istanbul is the largest city in Türkiye. The total population is unknown, but estimates put it close to 22 million people, a little less than the population of Australia!
The city lies on both the European and Asian continents, separated by the Bosphorus Strait.
We arrived in Istanbul (IST) from Croatia and transferred to our hotel in Taksim. We met up with other travelling companions and went for a long walk. We found a great place to eat in the “Flower Passage” or Cicek Pasaji, which is in a courtyard of the Cité de Péra building and experienced the 1st of many yummy chicken kebab meals!
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We were all quite tired from our flights, so we had an early night after catching up with our tour director, Metin.
The next day started early (as was to be the case for the rest of the tour!). The bus, with Metin onboard, picked us up from the hotel. We only had a small group consisting of 13 people on a full-size bus, so there was plenty of room to spread out and be comfortable. We were dropped off as close to the sites we were to visit today and began our 10km walk (or should I say pace!)
Hagia Sophia
The Hagia Sophia Mosque was built as a Christian church in the 6th century (537AD) under the direction of the Byzantine emperor Justinian. During the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople in 1453 it became a mosque until 1935 when it was made a museum and in 2020 became a mosque again. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site.
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The Blue Mosque
The Sultan Ahmed Mosque is an Ottoman-era historical imperial. Constructed between 1609 and 1617 it remains a functioning mosque. It is also a UNESCO World Heritage site. It is known as the Blue Mosque because of the more than 20,000 Iznik ceramic tiles decorate the interior walls.
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The Topkapi Palace
Overlooking both the Marmara Sea and the Bosphorus Strait, the Topkapi Palace was the centre of power and imperial residence of the Ottoman Empire. Built in the 15th century by Sultan Mehmed II, it is among the largest palace museums in the world. It is a masterpiece of Islamic architecture, with its intricate tile work, marble facades, and beautiful gardens. The treasury at Topkapi Palace is one of the most impressive in all of Istanbul and houses priceless treasures such as a jewel-encrusted dagger that once belonged to Prophet Muhammad and the 86-carat Spoonmaker's Diamond.
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Istanbul, the Hippodrome & The Grand Bazaar
Other places we visited during our full-day walking tour included the Hippodrome, which was a public arena mainly for chariot races. Here you will find the Obelisk of Thutmosis III (Obelisk of Theodosius) from Egypt and the Serpent Column (Yılanlı Sütun) from Delphi in Greece. We then walked to the Grand Bazaar where those of us who had the energy could barter for some souvenirs. The rest of us found a café and had a coffee!
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* Image credit: German fountain at the Hippodrome in Istanbul - Canva Pro - frentusha from Getty Images
Cappadocia
Pronounced Cap-a-doe-kia or Cap-a-doch-ia – either is acceptable.
The next morning was free before those of us lucky enough to have booked the tour that included a flight from Istanbul to Kayseri were transferred from the hotel to the airport. We were collected from the airport in Kayseri by an airconditioned van that transferred us to our “Cave Hotel” in Ürgüp. The hotel has rooms that form part of the side of a hill. A little quirky, but not totally underground. The only thing we found was that we often had dust settle on surfaces.
Once we dropped our belongings in our room we went and had a late afternoon tea at an amazing place called Prokopi Restaurant with outdoor seating overlooking the amazing landscape. We certainly didn’t need the included meal this evening, but we got to meet another couple from our tour who were staying at our hotel.
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We were up very early the next day to be transferred to the location for our hot air balloon ride. Turkish authorities take safety very seriously. We had to wait at a café until we were permitted to proceed by the Turkish Civil Aviation Authority. Approval is only given if the weather conditions are suitable. There are NO exceptions. A maximum of 150 hot air balloons are permitted in the air over Cappadocia at the same time. Training for balloon pilots takes approximately 15 months, by which time they have flown over 200 hours. It was a truly awesome experience; one you really need to experience for yourself!
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Pamukkale
Pronounced Pam-u-karli
There’s no easy way to say, the drive from Cappadocia to Pamukkale is long and tiring.
We had 2 stops along the way:
1. The Seljuk Caravanserai is located in the town of Sultanhanı. This was a large guest house where caravaneers travelling the Silk Road could seek shelter at night with their animals and cargo to be safe from marauders. The animals were housed in a big hall, while the caravaneers had sleeping quarters not too far away.
2. Mevlana Cultural Centre in Konya, home of the Whirling Dervishes. The building is the mausoleum of Rūmī and many of his followers. It was never a mosque but did serve as a major gathering point for the Whirling Dervish sect.
Even with these breaks, we had little energy left by the time we reached our hotel in Pamukkale, except for drinks by the pool and an early dinner before bed. Some of the group decided to sample the soothing waters of the thermal spa.
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The next morning we were up early (again!). This time we were visiting the “Cotton Castle”, an area famous for thermal springs that drip water slowly to form terraces of pools of snow-white limestone and calcite-rich springs. The ancient Greek city of Hierapolis is also found here. Be it known that the Turkish Government controls the flow of water such that only certain parts of the springs are full at any one time. Don’t be disheartened, you will find empty springs. But there will be at least one part of the formations that will be flowing. Make sure you walk up to the theatre in Heiropolis and take time to see the Museum.
On the way to our hotel in Izmir, we stopped to see the Temple of Artemis, once the 7th wonder of the world. The temple was destroyed by invading Goths in 262 CE and was never rebuilt. Only the foundations and fragments of the last temple remain at the site.
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Izmir / Ephesus
At our hotel in Izmir, we paid the most we’ll ever pay for a glass of wine! TKL590 (equivalent to AUD$33) for a small bottle (187ml) of wine!! It was much cheaper to have a cocktail! We arrived at the hotel around 3:00pm and had the rest of the day free. The 2 pools were inviting, so we selected the one in the shade. The water was freezing! It was lovely to be able to do nothing for a while.
The following day our guide Metin had us up early again to see Ephesus before the crowds arrived. It was well worth the effort.
Ephesus was one of the largest and most important trade centres in the ancient Mediterranean world. It was one of the oldest Greek settlements on the Aegean Sea and later the provincial seat of Roman government in Asia.
Most of the ruins found in Ephesus were built during the reign of Caesar Augustus and his successor Tiberius, while some of the Greek sites include the theatre and the library of Celsus.
We also paid to see the Terraces, an archeological excavation that started in 1960. The restoration of the houses is an ongoing process and is well worth the TKL300 to see.
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Çanakkale
Pronounced Chun-a-karli. This was our final overnight stop before heading back to Istanbul. On the way, we visited Pergamom & Troy.
Pergamom
Pergamom was a rich and powerful ancient Greek city in Mysia. It was an important city for the Romans, Byzantines, and Ottoman Turks until its abandonment. It is also well-known as the birthplace of the Greek physician Galen (l. 129-216), as the site of one of the greatest libraries of antiquity, and for its production (though not invention) of parchment. Galen returned to Pergamom in 157 CE after his education to practice medicine in the Sanctuary of Asclepius.
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Troy
We then pushed on to Troy, or Ilion, an ancient city located in present-day Hisarlik, Turkey. It is best known as the setting for the Greek myth of the Trojan War by Homer. The famous archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann first excavated the site in 1870. It is a key archaeological site that illustrates the gradual development of civilisation in northwestern Asia Minor. There are 9 “layers” of the city from the 3rd millenium through to Roman Imperial times.
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Later we arrived at our hotel and were able to relax and unwind for the rest of the afternoon.
Gallipoli - Istanbul
Believe it or not, we were up early again today so that we could catch the 1st ferry from Çanakkale across the Dardanelles Strait to the Gallipoli Peninsula to beat the crowds.
This was to be well executed and planned as we managed to be the only group at Lone Pine, allowing us time to quietly contemplate the dreadful circumstances surrounding the Australian forces attack here in August 1915. The main trench was taken but followed 4 days of intense hand-to-hand battle with the Turkish forces that resulted in over 2,000 Australian casualties.
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After this we went to Chunuk Bair which is where the New Zealand troops made a stand and managed to hold the highest point for 4 days before the Turk offensive regained control. It was never to be held by the allied forces again.
Following this we proceeded to the Nek and Walker’s Ridge Cemeteries from where you can observe the view to the north and to the valleys and spurs leading back up to Koja Temen Tepe and Chunuk Bair. It was so quiet, with the faint whistle of a breeze blowing through the dried grasses and trees. A silent witness to the atrocities of war, so long ago. I don't mind admitting, tears filled my eyes a few times today!
So much loss of life from both sides. May they all RIP.
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Unfortunately, we were unable to see ANZAC Cove as a triathlon was being hosted that day and they wouldn’t let us in. The tour guide and company had not been notified of the event, much to our guide’s dismay. So, we headed back to Istanbul.
After a very long bus trip, we arrived in Istanbul mid-afternoon. The tour officially ended as we said goodbye to our driver and guide. They had both been amazing!
We bid farewell to our travel companions over a few last drinks and a final meal. A lot of them had to be in bed early as they were heading to the airport early the next day.
On our last day in Istanbul, we decided we wanted nothing more to do than relax, so we decided on a Bosphorus River Cruise. It was a harmless bit of fun, floating up and down the river with a glass of wine and some nibbles as we reflected on all that we had seen and learnt for the past 11 days.
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I would heartily recommend Türkiye to anyone interested in history and learning more about the Ottoman Empire. My travelling companions and myself are seasoned travellers in Europe, but we all agreed that the best way to see Türkiye was on a small group tour rather than trying to do it yourself. The language can be challenging at times and without a guide you could easily miss important narrative around what shaped the country. I would also suggest that you avoid travelling in the middle of Summer. We went in mid-September and even then we found the heat at some of the sites oppressive.
Call now if you are interested in travelling to Türkiye |
