EXPLORING TURKEY: PINOY STYLE!

EXPLORE TURKEY IN WINTER SEASON! CHEAP AND FUN! 

Let's go to Turkey together, Kabayans!  This is probably the cheapest travel to Turkey we could get - ALL AROUND TURKEY FOR LESS THAN 1000USD! That is really impossible during the peak season. Personally, as a Pinay, I enjoy Turkey more during the winter. Come and let's go all over Turkey next winter!

Please contact us for more details. 


Here is the overview of the travel itinerary. Tentative date of travel would be 4th November 2012 - 14th November 2012.

DAY 01:

On arrival on Istanbul Ataturk Airport, we will be transferred to the hotel. Overnight in Istanbul. Exploring Taksim Square is optional. 

DAY 02: 

Istanbul Historical Tour
We will all have breakfast together, then we move on to visit some of the most important historical sights of Istanbul such as the Blue Mosque, St Sophia, Hippodrome Obelisk , Basilica Cintern, Grand Bazaar. Overnight in Istanbul.

DAY 03: 

Istanbul Historical Tour

Bosphorus Cruise & Two Continents

Breakfast, then we move on to visit some of the most important historical sights of Istanbul - Topkapi Palace (Harem rooms optional extra), we drive Eminonu Port to board the regular city boat for a 2 hour Bosphorous Cruise and enjoy this relaxing cruise along the shoreline while your guide explains to you the history of sights seen while on board. and visiting Cemberlitas Hamam. Overnight in Istanbul.

DAY 04: 
Breakfast, check out and transfer to Istanbul Domestic Airport for morning flight to Nevsehir. On arrival meet with the tour coach . The tour begins with a descent towards the centre of the earth, with a trip to the underground city of Kaymakli, one of the largest and deepest of Cappadocia’s many such settlements. From here we drive to Ihlara canyon, walking for about 4km through the canyon via the Steps of Anatolia to Belisirma village, the ancient Peristrema. Set by the Melendiz River this is known as the “Valley of the Sky”. Churches carved from the rocks form a gallery of early paintings that are remarkable for their accuracy. We will have lunch in Belisirma at a local restaurant by the river. On the way to the Caravanserai of Sarihan, we visit the beautiful village of Selime. Sarihan is a very fine example of the Turkish Seljuk art, built in the early 13th century on the legendary Silk Road, for the accommodation of the traders and their camels. Overnight in Cappadocia.

DAY 05: 

Our first real encounter with Cappadocia’s almost Martian landscape is in the Dervent valley, where the rock formations are amazing. A walk through the Zelve Open Air Museum is a journey into the past, with its troglodyte houses. This is one of the earliest inhabited and latest abandoned monastic settlements in Cappadocia. After Zelve we visit Pasabag’s “fairy chimneys”,where the voice of the wind harmonizes with the songs of the fairies. From here we pause at Avanos, a centre of terracotta art since 2,000 BC, for a demonstration in a traditional pottery workshop. After lunch in Avanos, we visit the famous Goreme Open Air Museum to see the best examples of Byzantine art in Cappadocia. These are found in rock-cut churches with frescoes and paintings dating from as early as the 10th century. We complete the tour with a visit to the Uchisar Rock-Castle, giving you a panoramic view of the valleys of Cappadocia. Overnight in Cappadocia.

DAY 06: As we check out, we start our drive to Pamukkale. We make a visit to the Sultanhan Caravanserai, where the medieval merchants used to stay overnight, then we arrive in Konya. After visiting the world famous Mevlana Museum, formerly the place where the mystic philosophy of Mevlana Celaleddin Rumi was taught, we have lunch at a local restaurant and head to Pamukkale. Overnight in Pamukkale.

DAY 07: 

We start the day visiting Hierapolis, only a stone's throw away from our hotel. After we enjoy ourselves walking on the calcareous terraces of Pamukkale, we start for Kusadasi, giving an en route visit to Aphrodisias, where there was a fertility cult dedicated to Aphrodite. After a well-earned lunch, we drive to Kusadasi, and check-in to our hotel, and have time in the late afternoon hours to see the sun set over the Kusadasi Bay. Overnight in Kusadasi.

DAY 08: 

Today we first drive to the Virgin Mary's House; after that we visit Ephesus which was founded in the eleventh century BC by the Ionians. Strolling through the streets of Ephesus, we will witness the perfection of the Greco-Roman Art. Later in the afternoon we will drive to Assos. Overnight in Assos.

DAY 09: 

We will visit Assos in the morning. After lunch drive to Troy National Park and visit the ruins of the ancient city. Overnight in Canakkale.

DAY 10: 

After breakfast we will have a half day Gallippoli tour than drive to back to Istanbul.

Exciting, right? Let's all explore Turkey together! CONTACT US NOW FOR MORE DETAILS. 

Keep exploring!
 

Exploring Istanbul: Taksim Square

Taksim Square is a the heart of Istanbul, the perfect place to hang out when we got tired of viewing all museums. It is perfect to appreciate the Turkish culture! It is also plays an important hub for all public transportation in Istanbul. It will not be easy to get lost in Taksim Square as you will see a lot of public transportation in the area. 

There are also lot of things to do in Taksim Square. Tourists can shop, eat traditional Turkish food, drink Turkish coffee and tea, walk and appreciate the diversity of crowd, enjoy free museum, check out the Church. 

Since the half part of the family is Christian, the Turks make it a point to emphasize where the churches are located in Istanbul like we went there solely to visit churches. And to think that I myself, don't even go to church as frequently as any priests would like. I wonder whether will be doing the same to them when they reach Manila... "and here is where the mosque is located..." not that I know any mosques in Manila. 

Anyway, here are the photos of my sister and sister-in-law strolling along Taksim Square: 

posing by the Monument of the Republic (1928) 

look a tram!

Taksim Square by the background

50% Sale for kids clothes! Tita Ayish to the shopping spree!

One of the infamous Turkish stree food: Mussel with Pilav! Awesome!

I think she loved it!

ahhh kokorej!

fried mussels in garlic sauce!

loving the crowd at Taksim Square

posing by the church at Taksim Square

La Santa Messa

inside the church - hope she made a wish! 

posing by the museum - apparently, they feature different artist every week

Galata Tower - at the far end of Taksim Square!

Go ahead and enjoy Taksim Square at Istanbul, Turkey. You will love it for sure! :)



Keep exploring!

Turkish Coffee in Doha!

Missing the authentic Turkish coffee! The photo above is my little sister's Turkish coffee in Turkey. I hope to be able to taste exactly the same Turkish coffee here in Doha.

Photo below is the best guide I've read so far illustrating how to prepare a Turkish coffee.

Keep exploring!

Turknoys with Grandparents in Turkey

This time last year, the kids were with their grandparents in Turkey. They cry every evening whenever we checked on them over the phone. They missed us and we missed them terribly. Truly, being able to provide to kids a good life while being with them physically is a great blessing nowadays.

In Philippines, it became very typical routine for family, especially OFW families to be away from kids. Kids grow up with their grandparents. Sometimes, I wonder whether this is fair for the grand parents and the kids themselves.

Our eldest, as most of us who personally know us know, grow up with her grandmother for the first three years of her life. As much as I hate to admit it, it was more of a convenience on my part. I was able to live without being a "mother" to her. Of course, I obliged my mom and sisters to upload pictures of her in the internet so I could see how she is growing up (I will be eternally grateful for my family for taking care of her while I was away.) It was not easy to leave her everytime I go home to  Philippines to see her, but it was almost impossible to leave her when I experienced how it was to become a hands on mom, being physically together with my children.

I know realized that not only I gave up the right to influence her attitude in the early years of her life (which may or may not be good!) but I also missed on those little happiness everyday seeing her achieve important milestones in her growing up years. And there is a lot... a LOT of happiness everyday just being with kids, seeing their "firsts"; first smile, first words, first kick, first time falling off the bed, first time falling off anything!

While I know a lot of Filipino kids growing up with their grandchildren, on the other hand, my Western mom friends are arguing whether to leave their kids with the grandparents for one to two weeks over the summer. And most of them are hesitant to leave the kids for so many reasons I sometimes curse them for how fortunate they are for having so many alternative options not to be away from their kids while they earn horrendous amount of money - I am taking responsibility for that little lapse of insanity taking a take at a superior race; sorry!


The two situations are extreme and when you look at it ( and I have lots of times), it sometimes boil down to what every parent thinks is best for the children, considering all the constraints at hand. Most of the Filipinos abroad don't even have the opportunity to bring their kids with them, whilst they have a great need of money which they can only earn in other countries to be able to support their kids. It sucks big time that they had to be away from kids to be able to do that; such is a great sacrifice a parent would be able to bear for kids.

Other nationalities may have other constraints that I may not know but I'm sure that they do sacrifice for kids too.


Anyhow, onto my reminiscing...

These photos were taken exactly a year ago and the kids were away from us for less than two weeks and I was already going crazy! As a result, we changed our vacation plans and joined the kids as soon as we could. The feeling of being together with them is always cherished. Everyday is a blessing  to be together indeed!

teaching the kids how to cook!

fresh from the garden!  

kids cooking! hahha

getting pro at cutting veggies!

wow!

now with the kofta!

hurry up! I am hungry!

breakfast al fresco during summer 2011

Oh well, it was a great opportunity for them to learn how to cook  - a skill they would never learn from their mom anyways. Sometimes, it is great to learn skills from  others.

Happy Summer 2012 everyone! I hope everyone is having a blast. (As of this writing, Philippines is going through horrendous amount of rain - my thoughts and prayers are with all of my kabayans.)


Keep exploring!
 

My Life in Ruins

I had to copy the blog title from the movie, My Life in Ruins. It just makes me happy to know that I have visited some of the famous ruins from ancient times like Troy. For me, my little existence here in Earth had become justified by knowing that every little thing that we do now will have an impact to the future. These ruins remind me that. Also, for the shallow part, these ruin photos, remind me that I could lose weight again. HA!

It is my wish that everyone would be able to visit these ruins, analyze for themselves if they wish and find their own version of interpretation in the meaning of life through the lives of others long time ago.

I'm so grateful that I saw these and I dream to share this experience to everyone anytime soon!

Keep exploring!

Turkish Dishes: Ayvalik Tostu (Toast)

It's a popular toast from Ayvalik - Ayvalik Tostu. For a tourist like me, it's really nothing special. It's a sandwich in a special bread using special hotdogs, chili, cheese and mayonnaise - that's what it is for me. But for the locals, the taste is amazing compared to the normal toasts they make at their home. I am smartly deducting that theory because Turkish don't really like eating out much. But since we had to travel to an island (Ayvalik) to eat this toast, then it must be really special. 

For those of you who are running out of idea on what to pack for lunch for the school kids, this is something new and easy to prepare: special hotdogs, chili, cheese (try mozzarella because it melts) and mayonnaise). Don't forget to toast the bread though - duh, Ayvalik toast! 

Enjoy! 

Ayvalik Tostu - toast from Ayvalik!

It's a big serving of bread!

Alvalik Tostu + Ayran is a good combination apparently

It's not that I didn't like it - I just find it ordinary. The kids loved the toasts and devoured it like crazy or probably they were just starved so much! Ha, mean I am not!

Ayvalik, on the other hand, has some spectacular sights to see!


Afiyet Olsun!

Exploring Grand Bazaar, Istanbul

One of the major landmark of Istanbul is the Grand Bazaar. Grand Bazaar Istanbul is one of the oldest and largest covered market in the world with 61 streets and over 3000 shops! It is very easy to get lost in Grand Bazaar. The first time I went here was to shop for our wedding ring, wedding ring and other wedding "stuff." I don't remember any of stores. All I remember is the excitement among other feelings. 

The other times I went here is to but souvenirs for loved ones back home in Doha and Philippines. Not being fond of shopping, the funny incidents I remember is how tired and hungry I got. Since we usually visit Istanbul during the summer, it tends to be so hot during this period especially during with the big crowd. The heat, the crowd, the choices, the overwhelming things to buy, is synonymous to stress and boredom. 

The first 2-3 hours of exploring the Grand Bazaar is pure bliss. The history behind the infrastructures, the uniqueness of the place really lives up to its name, The Grand Bazaar! However,  3 hours or so of shopping, is really my tolerance. Well, I am properly fed with lots of Turkish dishes then I could still go on for the next 30 minutes, but usually, I get too impatient to even stand up. 

My mood aside, no one should visit Istanbul and not go to the Grand Bazaar. 

Turkish Viagra for sale! 

a typical summer crowd  at Grand Bazaar 

pashmina. Turkish decorations  and other kitchen stuff 

cheese and other Turkish goodies 

Turkish Delight and other Turkish sweet! 

i think this is the wholesale isle

woohoo- kokorec

I am tired and bored, can we go now?

spices!

baklava and other fattening yet very tasty sweets!

candies and other sugar-dishes! 

fresh fish!

OLIVES!

CHEESE!

A word of caution: plan what you want to buy at the Grand Bazaar or you will end up with lots of stuff you really don't need. It's very expensive a bit pricey shopping at the Grand Bazaar!

Enjoy!


Keep exploring!