As the 25th of March is a public holiday in Greece, we volunteers used the long weekend for a trip to Turkey. Our journey started with a ferry ride to Cesme, from where we went by bus to the airport in Izmir and further by plane to Istanbul.
We spent Saturday exploring the ancient part of the city, Sultanahment, visiting Hagia Sofia and the blue mosque. We also strolled through the grand bazaar and were amazed by its size. Afterwards we walked to the Egyptian bazaar and used the chance to stock up our spice supply. We spent the evening in a Hamam, a Turkish bath, which was really relaxing after this long day.
On Sunday, we started our day with walking over the Galata bridge and had brunch right next to the Galata tower. Once finished we queued up to go up the tower. We can only recommend this, even if you may have to wait a little, as the view from up there is amazing! You are able to see all parts of Istanbul, the golden horn, the Bosporus and all the mosques from top. We were also fascinated by the busy traffic of the ships. Our waiting time was also shortened as local musicians were playing right in front of the sight. Afterwards we made our way to the Taksim square from where we walked to the seaside to catch a ferry to the Asian part of Istanbul, where we spent the rest of the day. As some of us were already hungry again, we made a little stop in and bought some snacks and water to have a small pick-nick next to the sea. After that, we walked through a beautiful park and made our way to the district Kadiköy were we had drinks in a small café and afterwards traditional Turkish dinner.
The next morning, it was already time to leave again. Before we made our way to the airport (which was quite an experience) we decided to have a look on the ancient city walls and have one last Turkish coffee.
We spent three great days in Istanbul and can only recommend visiting this city. For most of us, it was the first time in Turkey and for all of us in Istanbul. One of our highlights was definitely the experience in the Hamam and all the good food.
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