“For my part, I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel’s sake. The great affair is to move.” – Robert Louis Stevenson “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” – Mark Twain “Travel and change of place impart new vigor to the mind.” – Seneca
Today was a long work day for Shannon and a day of prep for Simon. At the end of it all, we met at Nana’s to get the kids settled in before heading of to Logan for our Turkish Air light. Everything went smoothly from check-in to boarding to an on-time arrival. We caught our private transfer from the airport to the hotel with no hassle and arrived at The Vault, House Hotel Karakoy in the late afternoon. The hotel is truly boutique as it is a 150 year old bank that has been refurbished into a hotel with a lush interior. No lobby check in desk, the moment you arrive your bags are whisked of, you are invited to sit with a a cofee or cappuccino and check-in is brought to you. What a nice way to arrive after a 12 hour journey. The guest rooms all have very high ceilings, lovely details and gorgeous bathrooms. Deinitely one for Audley. After a shower and a bit of unpacking, we ventured out to dinner. We decided to try to get to Istiklal Street which promised bars, restaurants and shopping. We got quite lost and wandered around for about 2 hours before we inally found a place to eat. A local cafe where we sampled a traditional appetizer set, Kebabs, and manta which is a turkish ravioli. The weather here is quite warm so we ate outside and then walked back to the hotel. Now sitting in the serene lobby, enjoying an after dinner drink reading and journaling. Tomorrow, a full day guided tour of Istanbul with our private guide! Of to bed.
I am sitting in a dimly lit bar back at the Vault Hotel, exhausted form the day. We have aching muscles from our 12 mile walk today around Istanbul with our guide Gamze. She was an amazing guide with an incredible amount of knowledge . We went to the historic places today and also the grand Bazaar. She walked us thought Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace and the Grand Bazaar. We had a lovely typical turkish lunch and Gamaze and I talked for hours and hours. I feel like I know so much more about this part of the world now!
The market outside the Spice Bazaar.
Sweets being sold at ish sandwich place next to Galata bridge.
Simit -Turkish Pretzels - More like a sesame bagel.
This looks like seviche Turkish style.
After our day of more city touring, we went back to the Vault Hotel to wait for our airport transfer. Our light was a 1 am which made for an interesting airport experience. No free wii at Ataturk Airport, little seating, and just standard fare duty free shopping. The light was uneventful in the way you need lights to be uneventful. Probably had the loudest snorer next to us that we’ve ever heard. Which meant I was wide awake as we lew over Syria and Iraq. And we lew low. Ugh. But the view as we approached the Male Airport was out of this world.
The resort is beautiful. Open terraces everywhere. With very few walls, the ocean breeze just loats through the resort. This is our favorite place for breakfast. Beyond the free lowing champagne and amazing food, the white-washed tropical feel is just so relaxing. Snorkeling here we’ve seen Black Tip Reef Sharks, Sting Ray, Pufer Fish, Trigger Fish, Turtles, Parrot Fish, and an assortment of other small ish. We did not see see a Moray Eel but they were seen by other guests while we were here!