The most correct comment
Well, what else could I write about Istanbul, a city in which it seemed that we had already climbed everything, well, just everything, but not, as it turned out, even walking along the trodden paths There is so much more to learn and see.
The flight began with a closed Duty free at Odessa Airport - what a surprise.
Odessa International Airport (IATA: ODS, ICAO: UKOO) is one of the largest airports in the country, a member of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), Airports Council International (ACI) Europe) and the Association of Airports of Ukraine. Passenger terminal, with a total capacity of more than one passenger every 10 seconds. The airport is designed to serve international and domestic flights. Over the past year, the airport's passenger traffic amounted to almost 1.5 million passengers. The airfield is equipped with the necessary air traffic control facilities and meets all key legal requirements for civil airfields in Ukraine.
And this is all with Duty free closed? !
It turned out that there was no cause for alarm - there was just a shift change, and other travelers have already written a lot about this, so before buying tickets and checking in for a flight, it is better to familiarize yourself with the schedule of the gas station, or rather the store at the airport.
GENERAL ASSESSMENT of the Airport, Odessa: we still love it, although there is no limit to perfection!
Therefore, having got to the international Istanbul airport, and having passed part of the standard for marathon runners from the gate upon disembarkation to customs control, running over Duty free open around the clock in the capitalist world, we calmed down a bit - we found a tourist balance: after all during the holidays, we want everything to be the way we want - after all, we all rest for ourselves, our relatives and our loved ones, therefore we believe that vacation wishes simply must be fulfilled (in full and on time).
Istanbul Havalimani International Airport or New or Third Airport is an airport in the Arnavutkö y district on the European side of Istanbul in Turkey. Located at a distance of 35 kilometers from the city center, it was opened on October 29.2018.
It was planned that it would become the largest in the world and be able to serve exactly as many passengers as 100 airports in Odessa, that is, behind this logic, we can say that Odessa is one of the first hundred largest airports in the world!
OVERALL SCORE of Sambul Airport: 5+ (EXCELLENT). If someone else is looking (in the search for how and what), then these people have definitely already found something and how and what and why and in general...
Recall that the journey of the savages assumes that we will get there, for example, by bus.
Knowing how to get to the bus stop, we were a little surprised by the change in bus stop numbers and bus lines that go to the very center of Istanbul. Right now the desired bus platform is the number 17 and the bus line is the number iST-20. The fare has not changed - 18 lire.
IMPORTANT: everyone knows what is better than asking the driver for a ticket, and he will most likely refuse, just buy Istanbulkart at Biletmatike right before boarding, but only for lira, which are either already left from the previous trip or by changing a little money in the exchanger.
The Istanbulkart card costs 6 lira and you can top it up immediately for the number of trips you need. Then this card can also be topped up through the same Biletmatic self-service machines. The screen menu can be selected from Chinese to English - everything is very simple. What is the beauty of the card: if you buy just, for example, a tram ticket, it will cost 4 lira, and in this case it will cost about 2.5 lira. And so on all types of municipal transport. The rest does not burn out and upon returning on the next trip, you can safely use it further (we already have two of them, it happened).
Two things are IMPORTANT: when we were there, the rate that we were offered directly at the airport - it was offered and bargained with us, and was not set for the current time - turned out to be 15 percent lower than it is for the current day. Therefore, you can not change much - only for travel.
And remember the rule: "A tourist who has not been deceived is not a tourist", so we don't get upset and have a rest - after all, this is our vacation, our airport, our Istanbul! Hooray!
Coming to Istanbul at 3 a. m. , as we say at home in Odessa, has its own something special: along the night street from the final bus stop to our hotel, we walked in splendid isolation, and did not wade through thickets of strong clasped hands of fearful to get lost in a city of 15 million tourists, there were no trams that you didn’t have to run away from or catch up with, and it wasn’t very hot - so they even saved on ice cream, but, probably, these are all the advantages of arriving at night in the most the height of deep sleep for any normal person…
Hotel Yeni hotel istanbul.
OVERALL RATING of Yeni hotel istanbul: 0.00 (FAKE).
What is Yeni hotel istanbul - this is the one with a rating from users of about 9 out of 10. But this is a fraud both in the description of the hotel on the Internet and in the content. Toilet in the hallway. Life runs all over. Shabby furniture, floor, walls and ceiling. Nightmare. Breakfast in the next building. And the price for accommodation is not free!
TIP: no one should ever settle here (if everything stays the way it is).
TIP number two: in the morning, after begging for breakfast in a neighboring building and swearing at the administrator in order to return the money, and not require us to pay for the full stay, look for another hotel. Any. Just not this one.
(This part of the story is dedicated to everyone who was in this hotel, and we hope that no one else is going to be there).
P. S. Already wanted to stop writing about the Yeni hotel istanbul, but decided to add, namely:
"There is a Spiderman and he is a fictional character. And there are shitty hotels. And this is a real fact. And we were in one of these…”.
Therefore, praise and separate respect to everyone who invented and maintains Google map. Having searched a little, we set off on the path through the streets of Istanbul on the navigator and found it!
Hotel Minel Hotel.
This hotel has a great location. It is literally opposite the entrance arch to Gulhane Park and the T1 tram stop of the same name. The hotel staff is very friendly. Our shift was generally from Kazakhstan, so it was not possible to practice our English with them - we communicated in the same language, in Russian.
We sincerely recommend this hotel, and not only because we have very warm memories of our stay in it, that is, we express not only our subjective assessment, but we want to give the hotel an objective assessment. Guys are great.
The hotel itself is designed to look like a library entrance or bookstore. The paint colors of the building and interior walls are well chosen. Rooms are clean with fresh linens. The air conditioner works and there is an uninterrupted supply of hot water. The mini-bar in the rooms (my friends and I occupied 2 rooms: one one-room and one two-room) is always full and replenished as the filling in it is spent.
NOTE: we just tried to persuade the administrator to take money from us for drinking water from the refrigerator in the rooms!
NUMBER:
Everything is neatly completed, there is nothing superfluous. Everything is clean. The spiral staircase does not tire. In general, everything is fine.
They cleaned, however, every other day, and not every one, and for some reason stubbornly did not take the left dollar for cleaning, but we left the uncollected kurushiki to the administrator upon check-out from the hotel.
VIEW FROM THE ROOM:
If possible, ask for a view of the mini-park, not the neighboring building. A small park is wrapped in greenery standing close to the hotel, probably firs, so there will be no need to turn on air conditioning in the room, but you can simply open the window for airing.
OVERALL RATE of the room: 4 (GOOD). The only negative is the video camera, which is located directly on the TV, and looking, by the way, at the bed. If someone does not like that they can peep, they also sealed the coven with a band-aid (we mean the camera, not the bed).
In front of the entrance to the hotel on the street there are several tables decorated in an inimitable Turkish style. There are several open-air cafes just around the corner.
The alley itself, along which there is a cafe/restaurant closest to the hotel, is illuminated in the evening with very original lanterns, which only improves the already excellent mood of the vacationers.
BREAKFASTS:
Breakfast is hearty. Everything is fresh. The choice is small, but hot dishes are prepared right in front of you in a small kitchen-studio in the hotel lobby. Everything is fine. We even helped clear the table.
OVERALL RATING of the hotel: 4+ (VERY GOOD).
The beginning of the journey is all standard. Egyptian or Grand Bazaar. Fruits. Freshly squeezed juices. Tea and coffee along the way. I was pleasantly surprised by the tram - there is air conditioning: we even drove one extra stop, we didn’t want to get off, after all, it was August, it was hot.
EGYPTIAN BAZAAR (MISIR CARSISI) - historical background: “Egyptian Bazaar, also known as the Egyptian Market, also known as the Spice Market, or Mysyr-charshysy, is a market located in the old part of Istanbul, in the Eminonu district, by the way, this is the second Stmbula's largest market after the Grand Bazaar. On the territory of the Egyptian market there are about 100 shops and there is everything or almost everything or almost everything. The market was built back in 1660 by Sultana Hatice Turhan (in the past she was Ukrainian Nadezhda), who was the concubine of Sultan Ibrahim I and the mother of the future Sultan Mehmed IV, and initially the market was part of the New Mosque complex.
GRAND BAZAAR (CAPALI CARASI) – historical background: “Grand Bazaar, aka Covered Bazaar, aka Covered Market, aka Kapali Carshi is one of the largest covered markets in the world, which is located in the Old part of Istanbul and covers an area of more than 30 thousand square meters and more than 4 thousand shops are located on 66 streets of the bazaar. More than half a million people visit it every day.
However, in order not to distract the reader with well-known facts about the indicated places of waste and not an abundance of financial resources, let's pay attention to the opportunity to have a bite to eat with an abundance of local flora and fauna along the Galata Bridge across the strait. More precisely, the restaurants are located on minus one floor of the bridge itself. Among the choice of dishes, we preferred marine species of fish and other marine creatures.
Restaurant barkers more or less courteous, not very Zukhwal, but without fawning and without going over to familiarity, will offer a choice from the presented either a standard tourist set of shawarma with fish (balyk ekmek), that is, not very expensive, or also within reason light seafood dinner.
As for fish sandwiches, the local name is Balik Ekmek. We ate with white bread and fried mackerel. Locals say that there are as many varieties of Balik Ekmek as there are residents of Istanbul. Of those that we managed to try in Istanbul, it was here that the most delicious Balik Ekmek seemed to us. It costs 6-7 lire and more.
In general, we recommend - tasty and inexpensive.
On the opposite side of the Old Town, on the right side immediately after the end of the Galata Bridge, there is a good cafe Muhallebicisi.
They have their own confectionery and they make delicious coffee.
We recommend not to pass by.
The price of coffee is 9 lira.
RATING OF THE COFFEE SHOP MURAT Muhallebicisi: 5+ (EXCELLENT).
If you go to the opposite side of the street, then after fighting off a million seagulls soaring in the air, you can save 20 minutes of your time not to walk to Taksim Square and Istiklal Street, and take the funicular up.
The name of the funicular is TUNELL, the fare is 2.5 Turkish Lira (pay with the same Istanbul card).
When boarding the cabin, you can get acquainted with the installation of the inner world of Istanbul, namely: the location of the funicular line and imagine the level of climbing up the mountain on it.
Istiklal Street:
Istiklal Street is one of the most popular pedestrian streets in Istanbul, located in the Beyoglu district. The street originates in Taksim Square and goes towards the Golden Horn Bay for about a quarter more than a kilometer. Istiklal Street has the shape of a boomerang, at the bend point of which is the Galatasaray Square with the Galatasaray Lyceum.
Well, this is the great Wikipedia, but what can a tourist say? What can be said? We must go and see.
If you are interested in shopping - there is such an opportunity: both branded stores and not so much. Discounts are always, for the holidays - more.
If there is an interest in the symbols of Istanbul, this is where the very red tram goes, which is stormed by everyone who wants to ride not only in it (inside), but also on it (that is, outside).
If there is any doubt that almost 3 million people visit the street on weekends, then there is an opportunity to check: go there, count the legs of people passing by you (aliens and other living creatures do not count) and divide for two (the error will be 2-3 tourists... ).
Back home the same way via the funicular, if you can make it before closing time. We didn't make it. But we walked up to the Galata Tower.
The Galata Tower (Galata Kulesi) is located in the European part of Istanbul on a high hill in the Galata district. It can be seen from almost all points of the central part of the city. The tower is 67 meters high, 9 meters in diameter, and 140 meters above sea level. The tower is one of the symbols of Istanbul.
There is a good coffee house near the Galata Tower. They drive some kind of surrogate from coffee beans - a very strong drink. According to bartender double Bob Marley, this drink helps tired tourists to get on foot back to the hotels.
Our opinion: it is better to look at the tower at night - the backlight is simply charming. And right there you can take a taxi - the cost to the center of Istanbul, that is, back across the bridge, will cost about 50 liras (we were ready to pay this amount even in euros - we were very tired and it was completely incomprehensible why shopping was a burden: sales and they just grabbed it, well, there were discounts, but how to carry everything back, like why did we buy so much and how to drag it all back to the hotel).
OVERALL TAXI RATING from Galata Tower: 4 (GOOD). You can take a taxi back and forth - it's not very expensive and you only live once!
So, 2 am, hotel, discussion of plans for tomorrow.
By three o'clock we decided to go to Princes' Islands.
Princes' Islands (Prens Adalari), they are also red islands (Kizil Adalar) or simply islands (Adalar). A group of nine islands off the coast of Istanbul, Turkey, in the Sea of Marmara. Administratively, they make up the Adalar district of the province of Istanbul.
Well, this is if it's dry according to the written word.
And if it is necessary or not necessary to be there, then the answer is obvious: to be unequivocal.
Firstly, the journey on the sea tram is not hot, and you can admire the panorama of the whole of Istanbul, stretching from the edge of the horizon to the other edge with skyscrapers rising into the sky in its center.
Secondly, look at local tourists, that is, domestic Turkish, which will be 99 percent with you.
And thirdly, how to be in Istanbul and not soak up the beaches of the Princes' Islands, while admiring the views of the sea and the greenery of the entire ridge of islands during a sea voyage on a sea tram, especially, at least as a souvenir that you will take with you is that during the journey we all become a little princes and princesses ourselves.
TIP: after buying a ticket, make your way ahead of the locals when landing. There won't be enough room for everyone on the boat! And even if you steadfastly fight back for your sitting places, there is still a high probability that they will practically sit down on your knees or stand in the aisle to you either in front or behind, we don’t know which is worse.
TIP number two: when buying return tickets, it is better to use VIP delivery. There are two options: one is a faster steamboat (they are yellow) or a high-speed motorboat in general, but there prices are much more expensive than a standard ticket.
TIP number in general: whoever wants to spend time on the Princes' Islands, so we can advise you to read the description of each island on your own, where there will be sea tram stops along the way.
We chose the last one, that is, the final stop, so that on the way back there were places and we could sit down. But along the way there will be islands that are almost completely covered with greenery and are actually more of a green park than an island in his understanding with beaches and shopping streets along the coast.
We draw your attention to the fact that any technical devices with internal combustion engines are prohibited on the islands, that is, you will not see mopeds and cars on the islands. There are electrical engineering and horse-drawn carts. Therefore, if you plan to walk around the island or go to the Beach, take a wagon, because it’s too far to go and the road goes through the hills all the time: up and down, up and down, but for some reason it feels like it’s always up.
We also draw your attention to the fact that you can order a carriage ride at once in both directions: there and back. Prices for services are posted next to the boarding queue. But there are prices for a round trip. But if you order, as if saving, and pay only for a one-way trip, then you will face two problems at once. The first is that the cost of the trip back will be more expensive than arriving, that is, you will overpay for the trip back. And the second - no one wants to take you back, they are all in a hurry somewhere or there are no places.
But it wasn't there, we stopped 4 crews and until we looked at everyone, choosing the cheapest one and haggling with it, we drove back. However, all the same, the trip was more expensive than paid to get here to the beach.
Beachon the island:
We also draw your attention to the fact that the understanding of the service and the very type of the beach among vacationers, and specifically among the guests, that is, you and I, may differ from the understanding of the level, that is, the quality of the services provided by the host, that is, beachgoers and service managers on the beaches of the Princes' Islands. True, we were not at all, maybe there is something better, but as we found out, there is only one opportunity to get to the beach - they are brought here, but you can’t get to the rest.
We did not like this beach.
Everything is somehow wrong: the beach is not the beach and the locker room in the toilet is something not very good and there is no service at all - no towels, no umbrellas. There were kayaks and inflatable circles - yes. The rest I do not want to comment at all. Especially the locker room - smells, incomprehensible liquid on the floor, the drain does not work, the door does not close...
A huge plus from visiting the beach of the island is the view of Istanbul. Very beautiful.
GENERAL RATING of the beach: 7-8 (you can walk, or you can not waste your energy).
By the way, why did we take a one-way carriage ride from the center of the island to the Beach? Because they planned to return back not on the steamer, on which they arrived from Istanbul, but on a separate mini-boat, also at almost the same price, but departing not from the final station of the island, but directly from the beach. But nothing happened. The wind picked up and the boat did not come. We were returned the money for the tickets and we went to look for a carriage back to the center of the island.
What you can see in the city before the arrival of the steamer back: you can just walk along the main street, try ice cream - there is a huge selection, and you can also walk along the piers and there can be a mini-bazaar.
IMPORTANT: the ascent from the central station into the interior of the island is quite steep and the asphalt surface is very slippery. Be careful!
At the bazaar you can buy fruits, hot pastries or meat. Buy roasted chestnuts or all sorts of sweets that abound in Istanbul shops. The prices are acceptable.
We also recommend that you sit down for a light or more substantial snack in any cafe on the street. The only difference from the cafes that are located directly on the embankment, and those that are just down the street, is that the prices differ. About 2 times. The quality of the products is identical. Maybe fast food will be more delicious in eateries.
We sat down at Sen Baliksi cafe.
OVERALL EVALUATION of cafe Sen Baliksi: 4+ (VERY GOOD). Price quality.
Returning back, if you do not have a view of the horizon, you can enjoy the sunset and the evening Istanbul when you enter its bay.
Night Istanbul.
We don't even know when to enjoy the views of Istanbul - day or night.
On this trip, given the early arrival at Istanbul Airport, it was very early. Even the janitors did not run aground, and a late return from a walk along Istiklal Street: well after midnight, we believe that Istanbul is more beautiful at night.
The central square of Istanbul between the Blue Mosque or Sultanahmet Mosque (Sultanahmet Camii) and Hagia Sophia - the Wisdom of God, Hagia Sophia of Constantinople, Hagia Sophia is amazingly illuminated just like Gulhane Park, in a pleasant haze descending on the city on a warm August night .
In addition to aesthetic pleasure and seeing the preparation of goodies in restaurants through the windows of the windows that (goodies) we bought while working up an appetite on the Princes' Islands, Istanbul also lures with pleasures for shoppers - we invariably took advantage of the offer, as well as other pleasures, namely: offering thermo-therapy, such as hammam, and all related services in the form of massages, scrubs and other pampering of the surface of the body.
We chose Hamam Sifа Hamami.
OVERALL RATING of Sifа Hamami: 4+ (VERY GOOD). The assessment was influenced by the location of the hammam (located 5 minutes from the Blue Mosque), the price of services (something around 30 euros in Turkish lira) and its history - it was founded already in 1777!
Naturally, having drunk, our appetite woke up, which, taking into account the constant consumption of food, has practically not fallen asleep over the past few days, so we decided to visit the advertised shawarma restaurant, namely the restaurant Ortaclar terraсe.
Well, what can I say: the portions are large and inexpensive, but as such there is no terrace and it is very uncomfortable in it - there is little space and everything is somehow unkempt.
You can go as an entertainment: there are TVs on the street broadcasting what is happening inside in all rooms of the restaurant and you can see the gluttony of those who make you wait in front of the entrance hungry.
Then you come closer and start guessing which of the participants in the TV show is already going to leave, call the restaurant administrator and go to eat.
OVERALL RATING of the Ortaclar terraсe restaurant: 3 (SATISFACTORY).
The rest on the day of returning home was spent in the calm bliss of walking around the center of Istanbul, since it was not very hot a few minutes from our hotel, especially in front of the entrance to the Blue Mosque there is a very beautifully decorated source of drinking water, which you can refresh yourself while escaping from the hot August air.
We decided to visit both the Blue Mosque and the Hagia Sophia on this trip.
Moreover, this time there was no that huge queue at the Hagia Sophia and we, having refused the services of a guide, passed almost instantly.
TIP: if you have a payment bank card with you, then you can skip the queue for entrance tickets, but simply buy them at self-service machines.
The beauty of the decoration of the temples of Istanbul is amazing.
We couldn't get enough of the beauty of the buildings themselves, nor the decorations inside.
Several hours flew by unnoticed.
There are also very cozy cafes around the central square where you can just drink tea from traditional Turkish glasses.
By the way, Turkish cups for tea are shaped like glass cups Armudu Armudu or Boomali - this is a type of national glasses, from which they drink quite strong black long leaf tea in Iran and Azerbaijan.
You can walk around the central square just by walking, seeing something new, unnoticed when repeatedly following in a race from store to store, following the unwritten rules of shopping.
And here, to our sincere amazement, if you look at the Blue Mosque, on the left side of it towards the strait there is a small observation deck and a narrow staircase down.
Showing not a hefty interest, we decided to go down and on the second flight of stairs we discovered an unknown corner of Istanbul, or rather a mini avenue with shops from souvenirs to natural fur products and, of course, jewelry shops.
It is rumored that these shops appeared as a result of tourist routes of movement, more precisely along the route of foreign tourists from Europe. Therefore, prices here are somewhat higher than, for example, at the Grand Bazaar, but we saw that the quality of, for example, jewelry here is quite high.
Well, how, having found the unknown in Istanbul, passing by, probably, more than one thousand times, taking into account previous trips, we could resist not buying ourselves some trifles as a keepsake in the form of rings, bracelets and earrings. Yes, just for memory. Couples three.
SUMMARY: everything is just fine!
Returning to the airport, we were once again struck by the monumentality of the building, which already makes an indelible impression when you are inside the airport.
The flight home did not take longer than from home, and now the weekend is over.
OVERALL EVALUATION of the trip: 5+ (SUPER).
That's it!
Thank you all!
IMPORTANT: the rating of the Holiday depends on the rating of the Review!
