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Traveller’s Guide: Turkish shores

The crowds are dwindling, so seize the chance to enjoy sunshine, culture and history at your own pace, from the Mediterranean to the Black Sea, says Simon Calder.

Simon Calder

Clear, blue water laps soft white sand in a safe, shallow bay. A benign afternoon sun gently toasts the forest-clad mountains above the shore, while the local wildlife wakes noisily from a collective siesta. A few miles along the coast, the atmospheric ruins of an ancient city or medieval castle are ripe for exploration. At the nearby port, the fishermen are returning with a fresh catch that will soon be grilled and served up at a convivial local restaurant.

This appealing picture recurs along the beautiful, serrated coast of Turkey – especially on the quadrant of shore most visited by Brits. This is the south-west coastline of Anatolia (Asian Turkey) from Alanya, about halfway along the southern coast, around to the Dardanelles guarding the maritime access to the Sea of Marmara, Istanbul and the Black Sea. Even busy (and sometimes brash) resorts such Fethiye, Bodrum and Kusadasi provide easy access to secluded coves, serene islands and a rich history.

September and October are the best of times to visit. The crowds are dwindling along with the strong summer sun (the average high at the key airport of Dalaman drops from 33C in July and August to 31C in September, 26C in October and a still-pleasant 21C (70F in old money) in November, leaving the shores ripe for exploration – or sheer indulgence.

Prices fall, too, at the start of September. Thomas Cook (0871 895 0038; thomascook.com) has a week in a two-star hotel in Icmeler (near Marmaris) for £324 from Manchester on 3 September, including flights to Dalaman and transfers, but no meals. Spend a little more, and you can have your meals and drinks included. The “all-inclusive” model is extremely popular in resorts along the Turkish coast. Thomson (0871 231 4691; thomson.co.uk) offers a fortnight at the Lara Beach hotel near Antalya, departing 4 December, for £405. This works out at less than £29 per person per night, including daytime flights from Gatwick and transfers, for a venue that the company says has “enough swimming pools to rival a waterpark and a restaurant for every day of the week”. For a more exclusive all-inclusive, the Hillside Beach Club (hillsidebeachclub.com), outside Fethiye, has yoga, meditation and an art workshop. In October, the typical rate for a room for two is €332, which works out at about £400 per person for the minimum three-night stay.

Turkey’s 4,500-mile coast (longer than Spain’s and Portugal’s combined) has so much to offer. You can hike the Lycian Way – 300 miles of coastal and inland paths between Antalya and Fethiye – or go mountain biking along the Turquoise Coast between Dalaman and Kas. Exodus (0845 287 7411; exodus.co.uk) has an eight-day bike trip, departing Gatwick on 10 September and 22 October, of around 25 miles a day for £949 including flights, transfers, guiding and breakfast.

Metropolitan sophistication on the waterfront is at hand in Izmir, Antalya and (especially) Istanbul. Coastal towns and cities reveal layers of Byzantine, Genoese and Ottoman influence, while tragic tales of heroism and despair are revealed in the cemeteries of Gallipoli. And that is just the Aegean/Mediterranean shore. Another 1,000 miles of Black Sea coast, between the Bulgarian border and the Georgian frontier, provide escapes from the crowds and a much more Turkish experience. The south-eastern corner of the country’s coast is a riskier prospect: the proximity of Syria’s largest city, Aleppo, and the activities of the Kurdish separatists, the PKK, combine to make this a hard-core destination. Elsewhere in Turkey, as the shadows lengthen and the scent from the pine forest and bougainvillea intensifies, such problems seem a world away.

Splashing out

Club Mark Warner (0844 273 5576; markwarner.co.uk) has a week at the secluded Sea Garden Beach Resort in Bodrum for £695pp including BA charter flights from Heathrow, transfers, full-board, local drinks and a range of activities. Departure is on 1 September. Neilson Beach Clubs (0844 879 8155; neilson.co.uk) has active breaks to Adakoy, Teos, Ortakent and Foca with sailing, windsurfing, kayaking, tennis, mountain biking, daytime kids’ clubs and evening childcare. With flights from Gatwick to Izmir on 28 October, transfers and “Club Board” (breakfast, lunch and four evening meals), a family of four pays £785pp. Or cruise on a gulet – the two-masted schooners built in Bodrum. Exclusive Escapes (020-8605 3500; exclusiveescapes.co.uk) has crewed gulets that sleep 10 to 16, departing Gocek for the Lycian coast on 1 or 15 Sept; cabins are £1,200pp for a week, with full board and flights on Titan from the Private Jet Terminal at Stansted (though you return to the main terminal).

Ephesus without the effort

Even close to modern resorts there’s a remarkable range of Greco-Roman ruins and evidence of even older civilisations. Ephesus, the capital of the Roman province of Asia and an important Greek city, is a sprawling site. The most crucial aspect of any visit is timing: the site is less than 10 miles from the port of Kusadasi and thousands of cruise passengers are bussed in daily. Get there at opening time, 8am, and they will still be having breakfast. The alternative is to turn up at around 5pm to enjoy the last two hours at the site. (Last admission is 5pm from November to March, but this also coincides with an absence of cruise ships.) Entry is €12.

Wild Turkey

South-west Anatolia has remarkable sea life. At Iztuzu beach, outside Dalyan, loggerhead turtles lay eggs and hatchlings venture into the sea from May to October. Travel Republic (020-8974 7200; travelrepublic.co.uk) has a week’s B&B at the two-star Donmez Hotel with easyJet flights from Stansted for £514 (excluding luggage or transfers), departs 1 Sept. On the Nature Trek (01962 733051; naturetrek.co.uk), which departs next April, you can expect to see flamingos, pelicans and terns on the Gediz Delta. The three-centre holiday includes flights from Heathrow via Munich to Izmir on Lufthansa, transport, guides, and half-board, all for £1,395.

The Black Sea

Trabzon is a fascinating destination with echoes of the Byzantine era. (The Great Komnenoi ruled here back then.) Markets and villas have a strong eastern flavour. Take an overnight ferry to Sochi in Russia or focus on the Black Sea’s western shores. Less than three hours by bus from Istanbul is Kiyikoy, where the Endorfina boutique hotel (00 90 288 388 63 64 hotelendorfina.com) has doubles with half-board for YTL160-240 (£60-£90).

Continental collusion

For city lovers, Istanbul offers the best in Turkish shores, where the mighty Bosphorus connects to the Black Sea. The Golden Horn has plenty of cafés from where you can watch ferries shuttle across this global crossroad. By 2015, when the Marmaray rail tunnel is due, vessel numbers may dwindle – so make the most of it by going to the Eminonu ferry quay near the railway station where Orient Express passengers used to transfer. Expedia (020-3027 8682; expedia.co.uk) has two nights at the W Istanbul, near the Besiktas ferry pier, for £752 for next weekend, with Turkish Airlines flights from Heathrow (returning to Gatwick) and including breakfast.

Travel essentials

Getting there and getting around

The gateway to coastal Turkey is Istanbul. Turkish Airlines (020-7471 6666; turkishairlines.com) flies from Heathrow, Stansted, Birmingham and Manchester to Istanbul Ataturk, and from Stansted to the secondary airport, Sabiha Gokcen. BA (0844 493 0787; ba.com) flies from Heathrow to Ataturk, while easyJet (0843 104 5000; easyjet.com) flies from Luton and Gatwick to Sabiha Gokcen. Pegasus (0845 084 8980; flypgs.com) flies from Stansted to Sabiha Gokcen. Turkish Airlines and Pegasus connect to many coastal destinations, including Izmir, Antalya and Trabzon.

To avoid the need to change planes, you can take advantage of a range of non-stop flights from the UK to Turkish coastal airports. The main targets, going anticlockwise from Istanbul, are Izmir, Bodrum, Dalaman and Antalya. They are served by BA, easyJet, Jet2 (0871 226 1737; jet2.com) and Monarch (08719 40 50 40; monarch.co.uk). Reckon on a fare of £300 return for September and October. Given the ready availability of package holidays, it may be better value to book a hotel-inclusive trip via Thomson or Thomas Cook.

On arrival in Turkey, Britons must pay £10 (in cash) for a “visa” – a stamp in your passport.

Turkey has several high-quality bus companies, which offer frequent and reliable services between towns and cities. Just turn up at the local otogar (bus station) and buy a ticket. The 15-hour overnight luxury bus operated by Kamil Koc from Istanbul to Alanya costs YTL75 (£27). Local bus services are mostly operated by the dolmus (which translates as “stuffed”): minibuses that connect resorts with outlying beaches.

https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/europe/traveller-s-guide-turkish-shores-8077046.html

August 26, 2012
In Istanbul, Chef Forgets to Cook for his Family

This is the second installment of Hoss Zare’s overseas trip diary. For Part One — his experience in Oslo —

The mosaic of spices on the street.

The day after celebrating my 50th birthday, I flew to Turkey to reunite with family I had not seen for 26 years. My six sisters were traveling from Tabriz, one brother from Oslo, and another brother from Antalya. All together, the nine of us had not been under one roof for 37 years.

I’d secured an apartment building with six units. It was important to be together. A hotel, I thought, would feel impersonal. I arrived a couple days earlier, so I walked around the neighborhood meeting people. One thing that was really touching about Istanbul was the way they treated stray animals. There were stations on the street with a bowl and a container. A sign read if you see empty bowl, please put one cup.

My first welcome to the neighborhood came at the market. Every block has its corner market called a baggali.

I met the owner of our baggali. He was very nice, patient. We talked for a while. He said he’d heard about our reunion. I asked him to help because I needed to fill six refrigerators. He told me not to worry, to just pick out what I wanted. Two hours later, his car rolled up in front of the apartments. He had six boxes, all perfectly organized, and he even put a few extra things for me. We became friends after that. I told him whatever new exotic product he got, he had permission to make six assortments and bring them to me. Some days he knocked on our door before breakfast. My favorite thing was the beautiful multi-colored mulberries; I hadn’t had those in a long time.

***

When it came to my family, I made everyone promise not to bring sadness. How can I explain it? If one person started crying, everybody was going to cry. It would have turned into crying all the time.

I had not been to my parents’ funeral. I didn’t want, in my presence, to have another funeral for them. I wanted this to be a celebration in their honor. That was the whole thing.

First, my brother Saeed and his daughter arrived from Antalya. The next day, the three of us went to the airport in a big bus. The whole time we were waiting for my sisters, I was fine. I was like ice. 15 minutes before they landed, it hit me. My brother looked at me. He said, “It’s about time. You’re human.”

Seeing them all in one place after 26 years is hard to describe. It’s very hard. They were all walking towards me. I was walking, but I was watching them. I was watching and feeling proud. At the same time, they were looking at me. I could see their heads lifting. My posture straightened. Our pride was showing. It was intense. We had no idea at the time, but everybody in the airport was watching us hug.

Counting the nieces and nephews, here were 24 of us. We put the luggage away and boarded the bus. There was a tense, silent moment. I didn’t know what to say. I thought I would break down.

Suddenly, I said something that I had no idea where it came from. As a joke, almost scolding them I was like, “Hey! Which one of you sisters was the one that told the secret about me being in the tree naked?” This happened when I was five or six, but by then even the youngest niece had already known about it.

[Background: Growing up, I was a bad boy. One day my mom and dad weren’t home. My sister was watching me. She decided to go to a party. I told her they had to take me too. She told me I was a kid and the party was for adults. I told her I wanted to go. She said no. I took off all my clothes and ran out of the house. There was one meter of snow outside. I ran through the snow into the garden. We had a beautiful, huge garden. I climbed to the top of a plum tree and stood there, freezing. They yelled for me to get down. I said they had to take me too. They said I was going to die. I said they had to take me. Finally, they said, “We can’t take you, but we won’t go either.” Then I was happy. I came back down.]

Boom — laughter erupted on the bus. That story led to another story about my brother crying over bone marrow. See, everytime our mother made abghoost — braised lamb shank — we’d take turns for the bone. He never waited his turn. He had this honking cry that got under everybody’s skin. One day it was my turn. My brother, Hassan, starts honking. I try to give him the bone, but my father says don’t. My father asks Hassan to come to the other room. Hassan perks up, he stops crying. He follows our dad. From the other room, we hear the real crying start. That story led to another story.

After that, we were laughing and hugging each other all the time. On the trip, my sisters had a little routine between themselves. I found this out later. I would be talking with one of them, and the next thing I know she would make the conversation short. Then another sister would come close. They were timing it so they could share their brother evenly. It was like every ten minutes, they kept shuffling.

Occasionally, of course, there were tears. We were good about not bringing it to the entire group. We started to joke that whoever brought the crying would be the one to buy the dinner.

***

One day we were having lunch. All of us were sitting there. I’d bought a hat and put it on. It was like the hats in old gangster movies. We used to call them shapo. Suddenly, all my sisters were going one by one to the bathroom. They were crying. I didn’t realize why. They were all in the bathroom. My brother came and sat next to me. He said, “Take the hat off.” Then it clicked. My father used to wear a shapo. My face, the hat — it was the image of our father sitting there.

I kept thinking that in a few days, none of this would be real. Before the trip, I had been saying that I wanted to cook for them, but we had so much fun all the time that we didn’t even think about cooking together. The last day they were like, “What happened? We didn’t even cook together.”

I told them time goes fast, and it does. I can say this though: No matter how long you don’t see your family, be it five days or 26 years, when you get together, everything is like there never was a distance. At the end, they were hugging me and not letting me go. I told them this was not going to be goodbye. This was ‘see you later’. Later is coming next month, and let me tell you, next month couldn’t come faster.

August 26, 2012
Istanbul’s Top Hamam Experience: 456-Year-Old Historical Hammam Re-Opened in Istanbul

A majestic tribute to the art of bathing in the heart of Istanbul’s historic Sultanahmet area, the Ayasofya Hurrem Sultan Hamam has hosted 15,000 visitors in its first year of operation. The hamam opened its doors last year after a three-year restoration and 455 years of history.

A majestic tribute to the art of bathing in the heart of Istanbul’s historic Sultanahmet area, the Ayasofya Hurrem Sultan Hamam has hosted 15,000 visitors in its first year of operation. The hamam opened its doors last year after a three-year restoration (that cost approximately $10 million) and 455 years of history.

None of Istanbul’s many hamams are quite as magnificent as the Ayasofya Hurrem Sultan Hamam. Its historical location is incomparable and the bathing packages are the most luxurious in the city.

It has steadily gained a place as one of the top attractions in Istanbul on Trip Advisor. One guest wrote: “This is a must do in Istanbul. Totally gorgeous, cool inside and plenty to photograph.”

“The architecture is incredible. Incredible marble fountains. Brilliant tasseled chandeliers. It was huge, immaculate,” another guest remarked.

The hamam languished for years after a checkered history including life as a prison, a storage facility and a carpet bazaar. It has been restored to its former glory with painstaking attention to the historical details.

Located between two of Istanbul’s most celebrated sites, the Hagia Sofia and the Blue Mosque, the hamam exudes a quiet confidence in its esteemed company.

Sinan, the most renowned Ottoman architect, built the hamam in 1556 after Suleiman the Magnificent commissioned it for his beloved wife Hurrem Sultan.

Known in Western history as Roxelana, Hurrem Sultan, was born in the Crown of Poland, today’s Ukraine. She was captured as a slave by the Crimean Tatars at the age of 14 and later presented to the Ottoman court.

Hurrem soon caught the eye of Suleiman and her strong influence on him is well known. She became one of the only women to have officially married a sultan.

Hurrem was also the mother to five of Suleiman’s children including his successor, Selim II.

Historians believe many public buildings were commissioned in Hurrem’s name as part of her prolific charity work. However, none has more connection to her legend than the hamam which was believed to be built for her in her last years so people could pray for her return to health.

For more information:

Simin Atayman

ATAYMAN PR

+90 530 284 9504

simin(at)ataymanpr(dot)com

via Istanbul’s Top Hamam Experience: 456-Year-Old Historical Hammam Re-Opened in Istanbul.

August 26, 2012
Medical Park to Invest $300 Million in Hospital Chain

Medical Park to Invest $300 Million in Hospital Chain, Star Says

By Ercan Ersoy – Aug 16, 2012 8:10 AM GMT+0200

Medical Park, a Turkish hospital operator that’s 40 percent-owned by Carlyle Group LP (CG), plans to invest $300 million over two years to set up a hospital chain in Turkey, Star reported, citing Chairman Muharrem Usta.

The company will open two hospitals in Istanbul and one each in Ankara and Izmir, under the Liv Hospital brand, and will sell a stake to help finance the investment, the newspaper cited Usta as saying.

Medical Park hopes the hospitals will earn $100 million of revenue from health tourism, Star said.

via Medical Park to Invest $300 Million in Hospital Chain, Star Says – Bloomberg.

August 17, 2012
Don’t Miss My Live Bicycle Touring Webcast From Istanbul, Turkey – Thursday, August 23 @ 7 PM Eastern

August 15, 2012 by Darren Alff

My touring bicycle and I have been on the road for more than three months now and we’ve made our way to Istanbul, Turkey where it is hot, hot, hot!

To celebrate, I will be hosting a LIVE bicycle touring webcast on Thursday, August 23 at 7pm ET / 4pm PT!

That’s one week from today, so mark your calendar right now!

During the webcast I will be talking about some of the things I’ve learned from my last three months of bicycle touring in Europe and answering your questions in real time from my current location in Istanbul, Turkey.

The live broadcast is going to be amazing and I can’t wait to share with you some of the secrets I have learned over the past few months as well as answer any questions you might have about planning, preparing for, or executing your own bicycle touring adventures.

However, this live webcast is only going to be for people who have bought and read “The Bicycle Traveler’s Blueprint” – my ebook on bicycle touring.

It’s only for people who have read the book because I don’t want to waste a lot of time on the webcast going over a bunch of information that is already covered inside the book.

So, if you’d like to attend next week’s webcast and get your questions about bicycle touring answered in real time by the Bicycle Touring Pro himself (<– that’s me!), there’s still plenty of time to pick up a copy of “The Bicycle Traveler’s Blueprint: The Definitive Guide To Long-Distance Bicycle Touring”

You can get the book right here… right now> The Bicycle Traveler’s Blueprint

If, however, you’ve already purchased the book, then you have nothing to worry about. You’re already on the free webcast invite list and you’ll receive an email later today with all the details on how to attend the event next Thursday.

So, that’s it for now!

I look forward to seeing you on the live bicycle touring webcast next Thursday, August 23 at 7 PM Eastern / 4 PM Pacific.

REMINDER: Only those who have ordered the book, “The Bicycle Traveler’s Blueprint,” will be able to attend next Thursday’s live bicycle touring webcast.

If you haven’t done so already, you can grab your copy of “The Bicycle Traveler’s Blueprint” right here.

If you purchase the book between now and August 23rd, 2012 you will receive an email after you make your order with all the details on how to attend the live event.

See you then!

via Don’t Miss My Live Bicycle Touring Webcast From Istanbul, Turkey – Thursday, August 23 @ 7 PM Eastern.

August 16, 2012
Postcard from Istanbul: Prayer and silence at Eyup Sultan Mosque

Photographed by Heba Helmy

It was Friday prayer time. The resonant, melodious sound of azan, the call to prayer, overwhelmed the vast marble plaza surrounding Eyup Sultan Mosque and Tomb in Istanbul with instant silence. Nothing was heard but the footsteps of people hurrying to offer their prayers, merged with the chirps of birds from a huge plane tree in the courtyard.

Built in 1458, it was the first mosque established by the Ottoman Turks after putting hands on Constantinople. The real attraction, however, is the burial site for the later sultan, known also as Abu Ayoub al-Ansari, a close companion of the Prophet Mohamed, after whom the mosque is named — Eyup is the Turkish version of Ayoub.

The cozy working-class neighborhood, which holds the same name of the mosque, is a magnet for tourists and locals alike. Both come to enjoy a laid-back day in the handful of restaurants scattered across from a fountain and the mosque’s differently sized domes and pencil-shaped minarets. Specialized authentic food and Turkish coffee, served in tiny, inlaid copper or porcelain cups, add to the traditional Turkish atmosphere, scented with bukhoor (scented natural woodchips).

Entering the great gate of the mosque, a huge Ottoman-style chandelier hanging down from the ceiling was the first thing to grab my attention. However, this is not the only thing inside created for the eye’s pleasure. There are verses of Quran inscribed in golden, handmade Arabic calligraphy on the walls that perfectly match the color of the elaborate carvings on the minbar, the Islamic pulpit, and the mihrab, the prayer niche.

On the other side lies the tomb and a short biography written on a marble plate, recounting that Ayoub hosted the Prophet at his home in Medina during the first months of the hijra, or migration, as well as the glorious battles of Islam he joined.

Behind the historical site, little souvenir shops occupy the uphill road that eventually leads to a long line of colorful cable cars. On my ride to the top of the hill, I passed a wide array of tall trees that shade dozens of white marble Islamic tombs facing the turquoise waters of the Bosphorus, the narrow strait that separates Asia and Europe.

This piece was originally published in Egypt Independent’s weekly print edition.

via Postcard from Istanbul: Prayer and silence at Eyup Sultan Mosque | Egypt Independent.

August 10, 2012