Istanbul, Not Constantinople...

Yeah that song just keeps repeating its self in my head over and over again..  But I’m not fighting it..  Places like Paris, and Barcelona, Toulouse, Egypt, Morocco, Australia, Greece, and Istanbul have been destinations I have thought about for a very long time. So every time I’m on my way to one of these places I get very excited about what it will be like.
Istanbul was very different then I had ever imagined it would be.. 

I guess some times I really don’t even know what to expect but there is some kind of fascinating draw about a place like this.. Maybe it could be the mystery of a culture that is so distant and talked about that I have idea of this land holds..  But it could just be the song that I can’t get out of my head..

Traveling with my friend Jerilyn makes things very different in many ways not only do I have someone else to think about but things are more complicated by the fact we both have a different idea of where we should go and how to get there.. But things are easy so far we have been on the same page with just about everything..  I had a different idea of what Moscow would be like and it was very different. I really didn’t know what to think of Kosovo But Istanbul I guess I thought it would be less westernized.. But there were your typical western enterprises Mc Donald’s, KFC, and a few others... But I rarely give in to places like these only in desperate times...

Only the second night I have paid for a place to stay we found a hostel to crash at not to bad of a place very open with a terrace kitchen or at least a place to eat. But the Street was quiet other then the morning and evening call from the Natural Gas delivery truck I just wish I had a  way of recording the sound because I could never describe just how hilarious it was..  

We quickly made friends as you do in a hostel. Then went to explore first stop the famous Spice Bazaar. The place is a treat to my sensuous.  So many incredible colors and sights everything from gold to cloth.. Things from touching like hand made blankets and carpets. Things for smell, spices everywhere. Peppers, curries, and sweets where ever I looked and smelled. For the sounds of people everywhere haggling prices or talking about the customer they just had. But I can’t leave out the constant bombarding from the sales people.. Everyone has the best deal and everyone has a special deal for just us.. Well don’t fall for it as I thought I was getting a deal for some dried fruit and ended up spending 10DKY more then a shop around the corner even after we haggled over 10DKY for ten minutes...  

But that’s the lesion learned, there is always a better deal around the corner..
Two night in Istanbul and a great guide we met from Vancouver Canada. Just a traveler who had been there for a week and had found a bunch of great places to eat and drink spicily drink as he was quite the drinker.. 

We met two other travelers from Vancouver and it made me miss all my friends there and think of the city I have always wanted to live in.. I guess there is something about the feeling of sitting on Jerico beach looking across the water at the city lights and the out line of the buildings against the dark jagged peeked mountains..

The hardest part of Istanbul and what filially drove me to leave as early as possible is the constant question of “Where are you from?” Everyone including a police officer we met on the trip to the bus station wanted to know here we were from..   Some people told me it was because they know a few different languages and like to make people feel like they can communicate better.. But my personal experience has shown me that it’s just a scam. Once you tell then your from Sydney Australia they always have a cousin living there and isn’t it a great place.. Or San Diego they made a friend there on the beach and had a great time when they were there...  But its always the same so I quickly figured out its more about what currency your spending and how much they can take you for... But its all just too much and we just had to get out.

So the trip out of Istanbul was not the easiest we took a bus to get going in the right direction and to get out of the city to a place where we could hitch hike easer..

The bus was easy and everyone was very nice except for the old couple who claimed we were in their seat.. But the driver dropped us off on the opposite side of a city called Silivri where we had a tuff time at first trying to get a ride..

 

At first we thought we were in a bad place as everyone was going by too fast.. Then we found that our sign for Thessaloniki was spelled wrong for Turkey. But we got a ride after about 30 minutes of holding a sign saying Greece.. A bit more simple.. Two rides and we were at the border and everyone we road with took us just a little further to make sure we would either get a ride or get right to the border..