Tour to Cappadocia

Opened another facet of the wonderful country Turkey from 1 to 8 October 2011. I want to immediately warn those whiners who cannot live without looking for a fly in the ointment in a barrel of honey, those who like to sleep until 12 noon, who are used to everyone dancing in front of him, those who believe that everything in this world is something to him should: THIS TOUR IS NOT FOR YOU!!!!

I strongly recommend to everyone else to go to Cappadocia with Premium Travel. I wanted to get into the country of beautiful horses, which is how Cappadocia is translated, for a long time. Therefore, to the invitation from Neckerman, who ordered to live long, Ukraine reacted without hesitation. Separate respect Premium for regional departures! October 1 was the last date of departure from Odessa, so I booked it in order to extend the velvet season. I made the payment through the bank in 2 stages, without any problems. I received a package of documents at the airport before departure. Pleased with the plane. There was Bonig. 2 hours and I am in Antalya. Because the Kyiv plane arrived in the morning, and in the afternoon we took us to the hotel in a minibus. This is a minus, because the main group received all the information about the tour from the guide along the way. We arrived in Belek, Siam hotel. A detailed review of the hotel here: http://www.turpravda.ua/tr/belek/Siam_Elegance_Hotel-h20773-r61472.html

The hotel is good, nice beach, territory, food, rooms. The only negative that you want to pay attention to is paid water at breakfast. I haven't seen this yet. Anyway! Another negative - no one met us. We go inside with things and do not know what to do. The uncle at the reception waved his hands in English invitingly, and I set an example for the rest - I gave him my passport. It turned out that we are all already painted. he gave out forms to fill out, keys and a guy who, for a dollar, took us to our destinations and smashed our luggage. Tip: if you are not met by a guide, immediately go to the reception and give your passport. They know what to do. An hour after check-in, the phone rang in the room. It was our guide Murat. He invited another hour later to a general gathering with yuppie cocktails to raise funds for excursions. As a result, hours of precious free time are wasted. The sea never touched.

Tip: settled - run to the sea! Check out from the hotel was early. Seems like 6:30. Respectively rise and breakfast. After waiting for all the latecomers, we set off. The bus is very comfortable. The driver is a super pro who is in love with his vehicle. There is water, cola, beer in the fridge. Plain water 1 dollar 2 bottles of 0.5 each, but our driver Murat also sold 3 per dollar!!! First stop in an hour and a half. Toilet, souvenirs, fresh juice. Expensive. Fresh - 3 dollars a glass. After another hour and a half stop in the mountains at the gas station. This place was advertised by the guide as a paradise with souvenirs, coffee, sweets, etc. at low prices. Don't believe. Paradise around only nature. Mountains, trout pond, air. Everything else - 2 or even 3. Almonds - 17 euros per kilo. We have in Fozzy - about 100 UAH. Count yourself. Separately, it is worth talking about our guide. A former military man, perhaps he did not immediately win over with his attitude towards us. But discipline is the most important thing in sightseeing tours, because everything is scheduled to the minute. I myself am very punctual, so his severity did not bother me. Along the way, Murat talked a lot about what we were about to see. The main thing is not to doze off, but to absorb information, which then combines with what you see into great impressions. After several hours of climbs, descents, mountains, pines, cypresses gave way to urban Turkish landscapes. We went to Konya. Killed, in a good sense of the word, the blue lane for cyclists in some settlements! At 12:00 we entered the wonderful museum-monastery of Mevlana. Here is the tomb of the Islamic philosopher, the founder of the Order of the Dancing Dervishes. In addition to light brown tourists, this holy place is visited by hundreds of Turks. Listen to the guide and enjoy the ancient artifacts. Everything is beautiful, elegant, crowded. In the women's toilet - the queue. There is a STATE souvenir shop in front of the exit from the museum. Expensive, but what you see here you will not find anywhere, except in duty free. State means quality. Right behind the exit there are a number of souvenir shops. It's not expensive here. I advise you to buy magnets and symbols of Konya here.

Next will be something else.

Then we returned to the buses and continued our way to the hotel in the city of Yurgup called Mustafa. It is worth saying a few words about additional excursions. Don't save. all excursions are interesting. Some are more than exciting. The low cost of our trip is due to sponsorship injections of leather-gold-carpet factories. The tour operator makes money on excursions. Therefore, if you do not buy them, the route becomes unprofitable and it is closed. We were offered: a balloon flight, an excursion to the underground city, a dervish show, a Turkish night folk show and a yacht in Antalya. All excursions are worth their money. Separately, it should be said about dinners. I always buy them. After a busy day, you don’t want to go looking for provisions. Even if you go to a locality to a restaurant, you will not be able to try as many local dishes at once as they offer in a hotel. We return to the Mustafa hotel. Nice hotel. A cool antediluvian elevator with doors that you need to open yourself. The elevator sometimes got stuck, so I went to the 3rd floor on foot. This is useful. The food is more than modest compared to Belek, but it is IMPOSSIBLE to stay hungry! Pleased with river trout and kebabs. The next day, in the morning, we went to the open-air museum in the city of Goreme. Thanks to the guide - we arrived earlier than almost everyone else.

The Japanese don't count.

If you have trouble with the dust of the centuries, take a gauze bandage or a handkerchief with you. All the splendor carved into the rocks is very fragile, because. the local rock is unstable. Therefore, crowds of tourists raise dust into the air. But for me, an asthmatic with experience, this circumstance did not cause any problems. The tour is very interesting. What I see and hear is amazing. Then we proceeded to several points for panoramic shooting of beauties. Here you can buy souvenirs and eat ice cream. Turks make great gelato with goat's milk. Vacation to the client is accompanied by a fun show. See here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j-_vjmHgzsE In the evening, the first extra was waiting for us. excursion - show of dervishes. 35 dollars. Being in Cappadocia and not seeing the dervish dance is incompatible. This closed, not poor organization simply beckons with its mysteries. The stories of the guide Murat about the dance itself, but rather about the ritual helped a lot to adequately perceive what was happening on the stage. All members are actors. Only one person was a real dervish, but this did not spoil the impression. After the dervishes - a night photo shoot near the "THREE BEAUTIES" - the most famous Cappadocian sculptures. I even bought socks with their image. The next morning is what I came to Cappadocia for. Flight in a hot air balloon. 215 dollars. Expensive, but worth it. We left at 5 am. Stop after 10 minutes. Coffee, cupcakes, toilet. Around the Germans, the French, the Japanese. Everyone is looking forward to it. Then some more dusty road and we are near our ball. Basket for 12 people. Instruction in English how to fall. I translated. Didn't have to fall. There are 5 compartments in the basket, one for the captain with gas cylinders, 4 for us. 1 hour 05 minutes of pure health! Sunrise, panoramas of the valley of love, 1800 meters above the ground. Upon landing, champagne and a flight certificate. Video here: http://www.youtube.com/user/dimzg1#p/ u/3/WRftndqimns

After breakfast, the third paid excursion to the underground city and Ihlara Canyon awaited us. Those who bought 5 excursions received 5 dinners for $50. If I did not go on an excursion, lunch was lost. Well, how can you not go to the underground city?!!! On the way we were surrounded by pumpkin fields. The population plants pumpkins for seeds. They are soaked in milk and dried in the sun. The taste is almost the same as our squash seeds, but you can buy a package for 2 dollars. I also advise you to take dried mulberries - white and black. This is an exclusive. Nice and tasty. You won't find it anywhere else. Underground city of Kaymakli. COOL! But not for the weak. The tunnels are low, sometimes 60 cm high. Excursion almost squatting with rest in more spacious halls. Feel like early Christians. But in front of the entrance there are cheap souvenirs and fresh juice. It was here that I bought a small figurine of a dervish made of sea foam - a white stone. Exclusive!!!

An hour and a half through the fields and we are near the wonderful Ihlara Canyon. This miracle of nature is difficult to describe in words. Like in America. Only within the walls are many ancient churches with frescoes. One is especially unique. Christ sits in a Turkish position. Pleasant leisurely excursion, nature, pistachio trees, river, coffee for $ 2 and paid toilet. In the evening after dinner, everyone went to drink raki and dance on the Turkish night, and I went to the city of Yurgup. I must say that after leaving the Mustafa hotel on the left across the road there is a stall with water 1 lira for 1.5 liters and wine for 20 lira. Turning to the right and passing through the bridge and further .. after 10 minutes you get to the center. A bunch of restaurants, souvenir shops, nuts, dried fruits, carpets, shops with paintings of dervishes. But I went in search of baklava. And found a local bakery. What you buy here is different from any baklava bought from us. bargaining is not appropriate. In the morning of the next day we left the famous city of Yurgup. The first thing that awaited us was a visit to a carpet factory. The factory is famous for filming a local soap opera here for 3 years!!! Carpets are great. I would buy, but there is nowhere to put them. Bargain. Minus 50% is the norm. Then the way back, check in at the gas station, where everything is expensive and visit the mosque. This is a copy of the Istanbul Blue Mosque. Very beautiful. There is even a Karan in Russian here. What is surprising is the tolerance of local worshipers towards us infidels. There is something to learn. In the evening, check in to the same Siam hotel. Fantastic dinner. Played live music. In the morning, a busy shopping day began. First gold, then leather. German prices. They take off 20% and they are happy. Bargain!!! Minus 50-70% EASY!!!

Pour whatever you want. At 15:00 we had a tour of Antalya with a boat trip. Antalya has changed in a year. As the guide said, the government smokes out the buildings, demolishes them and restores the historical appearance. The entire center is under police surveillance. There is nothing to fear. This was already the third tour of Antalya in my life, so I knew that everyone was galloping around Europe. Therefore, I managed to take pictures and even shop. You have a choice - listen to the guide or quickly run into a nearby shop and buy something. Fresh is the cheapest for all 7 days 1 dollar a glass. Then we went down to the port and sailed along the coast to the waterfall and back. Great! The captain is a pro. When we moored back, he was able to squeeze our boat into the tight space between the other two yachts. On the buzz was the next day - riding on the largest yacht. It costs 65 dollars. All inclusive. We left at 10:00, arrived at 16. A huge yacht for 300 people. In the summer, Russian DJ parties were held here. The owner is Turkish Van Dam, as the local aunt called him. Exactly - the spitting image of Van Dam. Only tall. On the upper deck there are soft sofas with pillows. There he lay on the sails. Beer, tea, coffee, ice cream, crayfish, wine, water are included. Imported swill for money. 10 dollar cocktail. Had lunch with fish, kebabs, salad, rice, fries, fruit. It is included in the price. Disco with foam. 2 swims in the open sea - near the waterfall and near the mouse island near Kemerorm. You could ride a motorboat to the waterfall for $10. Take a chance! Tickling sensations!!! This is a short summary of impressions. There was also a ceramic factory, where it was expensive, and textiles, where it was more expensive than in Fozzie, and many pleasant moments. Most importantly, I do not regret that I went.

And I advise everyone!

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