Final Thoughts and Snippets
Trip Start
Oct 11, 2006
1
10
Trip End
Oct 19, 2006
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Friday, October 20, 2006
The number one thing in my mind is how friendly, courteous and nice people were to me there. Its odd that I had to travel halfway around the world to get treated with the courtesy and respect that I can't even find on the streets of the neighbourhood that I live in.
Some snippets to twig my memories:
-The walk up the hill to the Pension in Goreme.
-The luxury of the buses in Turkey.
-Arriving at the travel agency Saturday night in Istanbul and finding it closed.
-The shuttle bus arriving and the driver knowing where I was supposed to be going.
-The agent at the Ottogar finding me in the crowd.
-First impressions being wrong at the Flintstone.
-All public WC's are NOT free. Usually cost 50 or 75 Kurus.
-There are no level roads in Istanbul. There are roads that you walk down and there are roads you walk back up.
-Burger King, Fit for a Sultan!
-Cheesy butter for hot flat bread at Morkec cafe in Sultanhamet.
-Pack of smokes, 4.50YTL (about CDN 3.75).
-The friendly and rount about persuasive way of the carpet sellers in Sultanhamet.
-Standing outside the train station when a large group of young men chanting political slogans came around the corner en masse.
-Guy trying to get me to pay 20 YTL for a tour of the Blue Mosque.
-Waking up Saturday morning to the sound of the Muezzenin from the Blue Mosque.
-In Goreme, Mike telling stories over breakfast about people he knew making mistakes with the english language.
-Bunk bed shaking when someone climbed to the top and me waking up thinking it was an earthquake.
-Pigeons doing backward flips in the air in Goreme. Apparently this is the only place in the world Pigeons do back flips mid flight.
-Playing cards with Stacey outside and having her kick my ass at the game as well.
-Tuesday Oct 17th, 20:25 hrs, saying goodbye to Mike and Lia at the Ottogar in Goreme.
-Heading back to Istanbul, had to transfer buses in Nevsehir and met the Spanish Couple and one other person from the tour on Monday.
-Getting on the bus in Nevsehir and the sense of relief in finding it was the same bus crew that had been on the ride TO Goreme.
-Attaturk airport. Bathrooms free, one cup of Instant Nescafe 6.50 YTL served by a Turkish male with a bad yet still snotty Italian accent.
People I met on the trip:
At Bahaus in Istanbul-
Kelly: College hottie from Australia who wants to be a cop.
Kara: US College girl from Camden, Maine travelling Europe for three months.
Josh: Software Engineer who lives in New York, accused me of lying (jokingly) when I said I was Canadian!
Jenny: From Australia, there to meet her daughter for two weeks.
Sally: Jenny's daughter on a three month tour of Europe.
Glynnis: From Australia on a three week holiday.
Antonio + Nogur: The guys who worked there.
At Flintstone Pension in Goreme-
Dervish: The guy who runs the place, one of the nicest and friendliest people I have ever met.
Sean + Carrie: From Southern California. Two weeks in Turkey then heading to South Africa to do Humanitarian work for four months.
Alicia: From outside London, ON and shortly on her way home for her brothers wedding.
Mike: From England, walking the trail to Kathmandu.
Lia: From Manchester, destination Iraq.
Karin: The quiet girl from New Zealand.
Stacey: The not-so-quiet girl from New Zealand living in London. You Rawk!!!
Marissa: Stacey's friend from Texas, USA.
