TRAVEL IN TURKEY | PART 3

25 October 2019

Move on with PART 3 of my TURKEY TRIP 

This Article, i will be sharing more about my next destination which is Pamukkale and Istanbul

So we drove from Ephesus to Pamukkale after lunch. 

The journey is around 2.30 hours from Ephesus to Pamukkale. But i suggest you all can take your own sweet time to tour around Izmir area if you are interested to explore more and reach Pamukkale at evening or at night. 

If you reach at night, then you can just check in to the hotel, and visit the attraction early in the morning like 7.30AM/8AM. Trust me, early morning is the best time to visit Pamukkale as it is super super crowded with tourists. We visited Pamukkale in the evening but it is still super crowded with tourists and it is really hard to find an empty spot to take a nice photo. So bare in mind.

This is one of the main attraction in TURKEY

The famous natural hot water travertines in Pamukkale. Also known as "The Cotton Castle”

TIPS : You really need to PLAN YOUR VISIT to avoid the crowds

All visitors must go barefoot when walking on the travertines. You’ll be expected to carry your shoes and your belonging as you walk so try to bring a waterproof bag. 

WHICH ENTRANCE TO USE?

There are two entrances to the Pamukkale travertines; one at the top at the ancient town of Hierapolis and a less used entrance at the bottom of the travertines in the town of Pamukkale itself. You can buy tickets that give you access to both the travertine pools and the Hieropolis at either gate, but access to the ancient Roman baths at the top is extra.  

The top Hierapolis entrance is the one most favored by large tour groups, so you’ll encounter most of  tourists near the top of the travertines and it’s by far the busiest section.  

All this means is that the bottom of the travertines are quieter than the top. As an added bonus, the rock at the bottom pools is whiter. That said, the view from the top is beautiful so if you have the opportunity, it’s worth the trip in either direction.

The entrance fee is 60TL, depends what you want to see 

Does PAMUKKALE really look like the what we see on social media photos? 

Hmmm, Definitely NOT! 

Certainly not when we were there.  Some of the pools actually dried out. How the pools look depend on the time of year that you visit and the weather conditions. Plus, of course, there are the crowds so i don’t really enjoy much of my visit there. But i still think Pamukkale worth to visit at least once. Most importantly, plan your visit to the Pamukkale hot springs carefully to ensure you make the most of your time here.

WHERE WE STAY?

We stayed in ALIDA HOTEL in PAMUKKALE which is located right opposite of the lower entrance. Less than 5 mins walk to the attractions. Also, along the streets, you will find many restaurant, from Turkish cuisine, Western Cuisine, to Chinese Cuisine. So don’t worry about food. 

We only spent one night here, so we chose a budget hotel. The price is reasonable and the location wise is good! It is more like an Inn, don’t expect much for the room. It is around RM180 per night including breakfast. But if you want to stay a better hotel, there are plenty. You can search from booking.com and all. 

I don’t recommend to stay in Pamukkale more than 1 night cause there is nothing much to do there. It is a very touristy place, which has only one attraction to visit. The food here is slightly expensive compare to other places, and it is not as good. It is a very small town. So one night is more than enough to explore this place.

After Pamukkale, we returned our car to DENZILI Airport and flew all the way to ISTANBUL
We spent 3D2N in ISTANBUL and i think it is just nice to explore most of the must visit places.

For ISTANBUL, here’s some
MUST VISIT PLACE IN ISTANBUL

First of all, BLUE MOSQUE & HAGIA SOPHIA
We took a cab there, it is around 20 min from our hotel. The fares is alright. Just make sure that the cab driver is goes by meter fare will do.

The Blue Mosque is also known as the Sultan Ahmet Mosque and is located opposite right the Hagia Sophia Museum. It is perhaps the most well-known monument in Istanbul and dates back to the 17th century. 

Though visiting the Blue Mosque is one of the most popular things to do in Istanbul, it is in fact still a working mosque, and is therefore closed to tourists during prayer time. In general, the opening hours of the Blue Mosque Turkey are from 8:30/9 AM until one hour before dusk each day, excluding 90 minutes for prayer, and two hours during Friday noon prayers. Read more on the prayer times here. You will need to abide by a dress code before you enter, and entry is free.

HAGIA SOPHIA is a must to visit. It is unique because starting its life as the Hagia Sophia Church (Church of Holy Wisdom),and then turned into a mosque after the Ottoman conquest and is now a museum. While Hagia Sophia there is an entrance fee, you can purchase the ticket at the entrance or buy it online to skip the queue. 

After visiting the Mosque, you can take the tram and visit the GRAND BAZAAR.
But i don’t really like that place myself cause it is like a maze and i have nothing much to buy there.

And you can take a typical shoot like this in Grand Bazaar if you want, but please take noted that most of them have to pay for a picture. Just be nice and ask if you want to snap a photo.

Remember to visit BALAT! It is another 15-20 minutes from Grand Bazaar by cab.
Balat is a down-to-earth neighborhood of narrow streets and colorful houses, where hip cafes and cutting-edge galleries sit next to old-school neighborhood grocers. Definitely a must visit!

next, MUST HAVE FOOD IN ISTANBUL?

1. KEBAB
Iskender Kebab is made up of döner meat laid over bread, tomatoes, and peppers, and is topped with yogurt and melted butter.  It is delicious, and a must-try food in Istanbul!

2. SIMIT

Similar to a bagel or pretzel, this chewy, round bread is covered in sesame seeds and is one of the most popular street food snacks in Istanbul–you’ll find simit carts on nearly every corner in the city!


3. MUSSELS 

Mussels are a popular food in Istanbul and are popularly sold as a street food or in small, casual restaurants. Two varieties are the clear favorites: stuffed mussels, and deep fried mussels. I saw this everywhere in Turkey, so i decided to give it a try! Surprisingly the stuffed mussels taste good!

3. NUSR.ET

THIS IS A MUST HAVE FOOD IN ISTANBUL. I’m pretty sure every one of you heard of SALT BAE. YES, he is originally from TURKEY and he owned this restaurant. There are many franchises all over Istanbul but make sure you made an reservation earlier because it is always fully booked.

Remember to order the steak and the burger! It is delicious.
Not to mention, the price is super reasonable too! Strongly recommended!

4.  MIVAN RESTAURANT CAFE

After our tour to Blue Mosque & Grand Bazaar. We walked our way to this restaurant for some authentic Turkish food. Surprisingly the food is good and the services is good too!

We found this restaurant through Google Map and chose this according to the rating. Google Map is so convenient when it comes to travel. So, feel free to do that too if you don’t know what to eat and want to explore some nice food around you. 

If you want to snap some Instagram worthy picture with nice view of Blue Mosque you can go to Seven Hills Hotel. I didn’t get to visit this round, but if you are there, please do visit this place.

WHERE TO STAY?

It took me very long to choose where to stay in Istanbul because i’m not too familiar with this place. I want to stay at somewhere not too far from all the attractions, somewhere modern, good location for food, shopping and bars. So here’s a map for you to understand more about where is everything located at and choose where you want to stay and explore :P  

There are two side of Istanbul. OLD CITY & NEW CITY. Basically most of the attraction is located at the OLD CITY of Istanbul, but it is not very far from the NEW CITY. I choose to stay at the NEW CITY ( Taksim/istiklal area) because there is more shopping, modern restaurant and bars around that area. It is more happening there compare to the OLD CITY.

We stayed in the Beyoglu district, right at Istiklal Street just steps away from the Galata Tower.

I’m staying at MR.CAS HOTELS for two nights. The location is super good, because once you came down from the hotel, there whole street of shops, you can shop any many as you want. 

Love the interior and every single bit of the design of this hotel. It is vintage and classy.

Price range is around MYR350-1500++ depends on the room and season

MR.CAS HOTELS

ADD : Kuloğlu, İstiklal Cd. No:153, 34433 Beyoğlu/İstanbul, Turkey

Website : https://www.mrcashotels.com

Okay, Wondering how many days in Istanbul is ideal?

 For a first-time visitor, there are plenty of things to see and places to visit in Istanbul, and to cover all of the sights you should aim to spend no less than 2 to 3 days in the city. Most of the popular tourist attractions are close to one another, meaning you can cover a lot of ground easily and make the most of your time in Istanbul.

Well, that’s all for my part 3 of my Turkey trip

Next article, i’ll sharing my favourite city in Turkey - Cappadocia 

Stay Tuned <3