Ark of Barut, or for the first time in Turkey
“A subtle scent of sage floats around the room. A bouquet of spices from the shores of the Aegean Sea was presented to us by Alena, a guest relation of the Barut B Suites hotel by profession and a fairy in essence…”. This is how I wanted to start my story about our week in Turkey. Alas, we are already in Nikolaev, and a bouquet of sage, along with our suitcase and all things and gifts, is still resting in Antalya. . . Lucky! But first things first.
Turkey became the second country where I decided to take my mother with a brand new biometric passport. Everyone goes to Europe, and we are only mastering the well-trodden routes of post-Soviet vacationers. Friends strongly recommended Kemer - “it’s like in the Crimea, only cooler! ”, But my mother’s memories of Yalta and Batumi pebbles are not the most pleasant: it’s hard for an elderly person to get out of the water on a pebble beach.
Travel agents offered everything. Moreover, according to the law of meanness, all hotels with the so-called "sand and pebble beaches" and a kilometer from the sea. I, as a person responsible for a tamed mother, read with horror nightmarish reviews about each of the proposed options and at the same time gained tourist-Turkish experience.
The first impression is that for the inhabitants of the former USSR, Turkey has become an all-Union dacha. Moreover, according to the principle: a favorite dacha is someone else's dacha. The people on the sites are indignant that the gardener does not understand pure Russian; that there was no canned beer in the hammam; that the hotel did not provide decent animation for the six-month-old infant; that the wine was not served chilled enough with the ravioli.
Realizing the whole abyss of my tourist illiteracy and unpretentiousness that went out of fashion, I began to comb the sites with a vengeance. And, lo and behold, I accidentally found a hotel about which there were no bad reviews. There were reviews. There were no bad ones. The reason for the high rating of the hotel was obviously simple - the hotel accepted Ukrainian and Russian tourists for the first year, experienced Russian-speaking travel experts had not yet had time to reveal all the secret shortcomings of the newcomer. But the description of the hotel suited me, and even more - the sincere admiration of tourists from the clean, sandy (hooray! ) Beach.
A screenshot of the hotel page was sent via viber to a travel agent, from the tour operator Joyne up they instantly received confirmation of the hotel for mid-September, then they decided on the date of departure, and mom was faced with the fact of spending a vacation in Turkey. The remaining days I continued to replenish the baggage of knowledge of a potential tourist. By the way, some stories of travelers on the Turpravda website really suggested ideas for independent excursions.
It’s not very easy for mom to walk, so I emailed the hotel in advance and received confirmation from Alena (the same fairy Alena) that our wishes for the room (quietness and a low floor, we don’t like the first one) will be taken into account in advance.
The way to the hotel was prepared very clearly by the tour operator. We were simply passed from hand to hand - a transfer from Nikolaev (dirty Neoplan, but they immediately brought us to the airport); a plane from Odessa (two long queues for check-in + pretentious VIPs at a separate counter with two Joynap guides); the cleanest comfortable bus with a guide on the way to the hotel. The guide handed us over to Alena. We've arrived.
Barut B Suites, Evrenseki village, Side, Antalya. It’s not clear with the stars: on Ukrainian sites and booking 5, on Russian 4. According to the standards of hotel categorization - 5, according to the standards of some of our tourists - once on the first line and are not greeted with champagne - fi4. A compact hotel of a well-known Turkish chain, designed for Scandinavians. 254 two-room apartments from 40 to 45 sq. m. every. The room has a living room with two sofas and a bedroom with two beds pushed together, a huge balcony, central air conditioning, plasma, a free safe, a spacious shower room, comfortable furniture. Excellent double-glazed windows - the sound is jammed tightly. Air conditioners are brought out in every room, terribly fastidious - when you open a window or a balcony door, they automatically turn off, it’s good that not both at once.
A feature of Barut B Suites is the kitchens in the rooms. Full well-equipped kitchens with extractor hoods, large refrigerators and microwaves. A complete set of dishes from a frying pan to a corkscrew. Well, the Scandinavians didn't like Turkish cuisine, they cooked it themselves, freaks. The hotel has four holiday concepts - from simple accommodation to "all inclusive". Without "ultra". In my opinion, no one cooked, everyone ate in the restaurant, the kitchens were bored. Two-chamber refrigerators served as "mini-bars". Free and replenished daily.
Another feature is that the buildings are built in such a way that fifteen balconies come out on each side. There is no feeling of a beehive. Everyone has different views - on neighboring hotels, across the river, on a banana grove, on flower beds, on glades, on tangerine-orange gardens, on palm trees, on a pool, on the sea. The inhabitants of the first floors had open spacious terraces with green fences instead of balconies. Convenient - I sat at a table in the open air, swam in the pool, returned to my room without entering the building.
We were settled on the second floor of building B. In fact, taking into account the zero level, it was already the third floor, but from the side of the lobby and the restaurant - the second. But the hotel has a lot of elevators, so mom had no problems. From the balcony - a view of the flower garden and orange trees. What you need! Thank you fairy Alena! They ringed with gray bracelets, gave out two key cards and a card for settlements on the territory of the hotel (shop, spa, hairdresser, laundry). Everything, rest!
Four pools - the main one with a gentle entrance to the water (mom is delighted! ), a children's pool, a toddler pool under an awning and a pool with slides. It seems that there are a lot of children, but there was not much noise and squealing. Lots of sun loungers and umbrellas, there were always empty seats. Drinks bar where you can additionally borrow unlimited water bottles. Delicious ice cream almost all day long.
Turks are terrible people, they can feed you to death. Cooked in the hotel restaurant a lot, varied and delicious. Everyone could find something to their taste - from French fries loved by the Germans to whole fried turkey. I enjoyed oriental spicy food, cheeses and olives. Mom took her soul for the sweetest watermelons. The desserts were amazing. For kids - a separate table with unbreakable dishes and the ability to independently create an author's hamburger.
At level zero there was also a coffee shop with cakes, but it was almost always empty - everyone ate at the main restaurant. Although many by the pool were crunching chips - a reflex, probably.
Very friendly and attentive. At our airport, a wheel in a suitcase flew off - they fixed it in ten minutes. Special thanks to the amazing person Alena. Truly sincerely, she tries to help the guests of the hotel, prompt, tell, explain. Thanks her. She also gave me and my mother a bouquet of fragrant sage from the shores of the Aegean Sea. Just. From the heart.
For some, rest would seem boring - there are no discos until the morning, no drunken fights, no cool parties. The international composition of the guests got along well in the ark of Barut. There are a lot of families with small children in the hotel, so closer to eleven in the evening, ti-shi-na reigns. And this is great! And it’s also very cool to look at half past six in the morning from the balcony at the thin crescent, listening to the distant song of the muezzin in the transparent morning air and understand that this is exactly the quintessence of Turkey.
The hotel is on the second line, but walking to the sea even with a mother's step is five minutes at most. A chariot scurried from the neighboring hotel, the driver of which, in the midst of the midday heat, kindly offered to give me and my mother a lift to Barut. Just like that too. From the heart.
Between the hotels and the beach, the pride of Evrenseki is the promenade. Three paths with benches, sports grounds spread in the greenery of palm trees and oleanders from river to river. In the morning, there is a free attraction on the bridge - tourists feed turtles with rolls. A dozen turtles, no less. Each turtle is half a meter in diameter. Hearty, you see, the Turks have rolls. Nearby, locals catch fish similar to trout. At sunset, people barrage along the promenade and along the dam separating the sea and the river. At the dam, boats, boats and "pirate" three-deck sailboats sway. Sea. Graphics of masts against the backdrop of sunset. Mountains in the distance. Palm trees around. Lepota!
And, of course, His Majesty, the Beach. A wide strip of pure sand. Clear water with small fish. No rocks, pebbles, pits, algae, jellyfish, sea urchins or sharks. There is nothing to complain about. What a difference in Koblevo: Belarusians, raking a meter-long layer of compacted algae, bitterly said that they had come from their swamp to Koblevo. Evrenseki has only water and sand. And a cloudless sky in bright parachutes. An ideal beach for children and the elderly.
The sea is gentle, you don’t want to leave it, the water is salty and perfectly holds even beginner swimmers. My mother, who has been a hatchet swimmer all her life, even managed to swim ten meters. On the shore there are recreational areas. We had umbrellas and sun loungers, arranged correctly, no one interferes with anyone. The playground was obviously losing to the sea, but there were hot fights on the volleyball court. A kind Turkish animator constantly arranged actual confrontations like "Ukraine" - "Russia". Beach bar with drinks, ice cream and the opportunity to dine without leaving the sea.
Tired of resting in the style of seals, I insisted on an excursion program. A sightseeing tour of Side from a hotel guide cost $40 per face. From the reviews of Turpravda, I already knew that 60% of the time would be spent on shoe shopping. Plus, my mother, alas, cannot run after a guide. Thanks to the stories of experienced people, we organized a tour in Side ourselves.
While waiting for transport at the bus stop, we saw such a scene. A group of German tourists tried to figure out how to get to Manavgat. An elderly seller, seeing their confusion, abandoned the goods, ran across two lanes of a busy highway and emotionally explained the route to the Germans. Just. From the heart.
Dolmush (Turkish air-conditioned clean minibus) took us to Side bus station in 15 minutes for 7 Turkish lira for two. On the way - the cycle "hotels-bazaars-hotels".
From the bus station in Side in the sun, a leisurely walk-photo session past the ancient ruins. Free. The ancient part of Side is what the Turks have left from the hordes of ancient tourists. Instead of a pool - the ruins of the Nymphaeum fountain, instead of a yoga platform - an agora, the amphitheater retained its function without transformations. On the way back, by the way, for 2 lira in five minutes we drove past all this antiquity on a special bus that carries tourists from the gates of the ancient city to the bus station. Extremely merciful towards lathered tourists. Like freshly squeezed pomegranate juice, it perfectly tones.
Side Peninsula - tiny shopping streets, traditional fierce bargaining, restaurants immersed in flowers, a wonderful embankment with a magnificent panorama of Greater Side. In general, a classic seaside town.
We got back on dolmush. Choosing a bus is simple - a list of hotels is attached to the side windows, drivers are well versed in hotels. The feeling that they can determine exactly where you need to be dropped off by the color of the bracelet. In total, the tour cost us 16 Turkish liras ($5) for two. Hello Joyne Apu!
Hotel exotic tour - Turkish shopping. Bargaining is ruthless and uncompromising. Sellers ingeniously fool tourists, juggling numbers at a fantastic speed, converting currency better than the Ukrainian National Bank. Gifts are bought, adrenaline will be thrown out, pleasures are the sea.
In general, my mother's acquaintance with the Turkish service was a success. Comparison with the Crimean, Zheleznoport, Carpathian-Transcarpathian, Odessa, Ochakiv and Koblev resorts, especially in terms of infrastructure and attitude towards guests, ended in a crushing victory for the Turks.
On a cool Turkish night, we regretfully handed over the keys to the room, boarded the bus, and, accompanied by a guide, went to Antalya airport.
And everything would be fine if at the very end of our journey there was not a big tar spoon called Windrose Airlines...
Flight 2912 Antalya-Odessa with Joynap tourists was delayed for an hour. We flew to Odessa normally, passport control slipped through quickly. But in the baggage claim hall, the Odessa circus began. Two tiny baggage belts were spitting out baggage at the same time for two mixed flights. Hustle, screams, nerves, confusion - we are in Odessa!
The saddest thing began after the tapes stopped, and about fifty Antalya tourists were left without their suitcases. The official version is that the Turks refueled the plane, and passenger luggage was thrown out of the plane in Antalya like ballast. So Windrose Airlines solved the problem of flying a flight to Odessa. Just. Without a soul.
It’s a pity that they didn’t weigh the passengers, my mother and I are not small girls, we could sunbathe for another day in Antalya. And so only our suitcase, fragrant with Alyona's sage, is sunbathing. While waiting, sir.
For two hours, a hundred people independently filled out paperwork for the return of cargo in an empty hall of the new Odessa terminal. Not a single chair. The representative of Windrose promptly fled from the angry tourists, who were ready to smash the precious contents of duty-free packages on his head for lack of an alternative weapon. There were no representatives of Joint Up in Odessa. Thank you for two buses waiting for all the victims. Hungry people devastated the market in Koblevo. Our journey from the hotel to Nikolaev took 12 hours.
We are lucky. At the Kherson bus in the middle of the bridge in Nikolaev, a wheel flew off on the go. There were no accidents, but we realized that it was one of the Kherson residents who was cursed by an unknown Turkish grandmother. Probably bargained too much.
Probably, in order to appreciate the good, there must be some bad. Thanks to the airline for the negative. The brighter will be remembered the positive of a great holiday in Turkey. The Ark of Barut received new guests on board. Mom is learning amazing Turkish recipes in the kitchen.
