Thoughts on Turkey: - Istanbul the Cultural Capital of Europe!!
We loved it, the historical sights of Pumukkale, Canakkale, Ephesus, Istanbul, Konya, the shopping in Istanbul at the Grand Bazaar, all the people we met, Turkish and other travellers it was great fun, the Turkish people are very friendly and happy to have you in their country, even if you don’t spend much!
Very cosmopolitan really, everyone dresses just like us, mostly, but its a really big city and crazy traffic.
Countryside of Turkey is so different depending where you are, on the west side is very arable so lots of farming on the east is desert again. So it is just a nice mix of both enough to keep you interested.
Turkey is not cheap, gas prices were the highest we have encountered anywhere else so far on our trip $3.99 per litre, so thats $100.00 to fill as opposed to $23.00 in the US when we started out.
Beer well if and when you can buy it costs around $1.70 per 500ml not too bad.
Hotels anywhere from $40-70 is what we paid but it should have been more in some places but we got some super deals.
Weather was ok, I really thought Turkey would have been hotter, in the 20’s most of the time, we were here in November though.
Our Route: Entered into Marmaris from the Greek island of Rhodos via ferry, very rough ride and not a very big ferry. Off to see Ephesus so stayed in the town of Seluk for the night. Overnighted in Avyalik on our way to Canakkale, rode around the world war 1 sight of Gelibolu, very large. Stayed the night in a really crappy hotel in Gelibolu but the next day had a great breakfast and chat with a soldier so it was worth it. Onto Istanbul that night for 3 days, stayed in a great hotel called the And Hotel right down near the Blue Mosque, great price $70euro a night, great location for all the attractions and great parking for the bike right outside, enjoyed a Turkish bath. One night in Bursa, home of the Thermal pools so stayed in a huge hotel and had the full treatment!! Hotel price included everything so not bad price of $160 TL each. One night in Afyon, one night in Konya, went to the Mevlani Museum and met a really nice guy who we ended up having dinner with. Highlight of Turkey was our stay in Uchisar at the Argos Hotel, stayed for 3 nights absolutely top notch, the sights and the hotel. Then down to the border to Antakya before crossing the border into Syria.
Highly recommend Turkey for a 2-3 week visit, i know Cappadocia is a ways out from Istanbul but well worth the trip.
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