Cappadocia

Posted on November 15, 2017 by The Traveller

The whispers in the morning

Woke me up

Of me sleeping light

I helplessly sigh

Even though I have time

I quickly walked up

Of seeing the hot air balloons

On the mountain side

Sound of my heart beat

Travelled thr morning light

Of me leading myself

Finding for a good site

The sun unwillingly woke up

And birds flying up high

Of hundreds balloons floating

What a beautiful sight

Ankara

Posted on November 4, 2017 by The Traveller

I took the midnight bus from Cappadocia to Ankara. I though I could save the cost for a night hotel stay and sleep in the bus instead. However, I just couldn’t get a good sleep in the bus. When I reached Ankara at 7am, the hotel was kind enough to let me check-in. Till then I managed to sleep for a few hours.

Ankara is the Capital of Turkey but there aren’t many attractions. I only stayed there for a day and took the bus back to Istanbul the next afternoon.

Istanbul 伊斯坦布尔

Posted on October 22, 2017 by The Traveller

There is a fire burning in my heart,
I have to cool it before I could start.
There is an excitement growing within me,
I have to stop it before I am not me.

First arrival in Istanbul got me so excited to see such a beautiful place. The Topkapi Palace, Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia Museum and Basilica Cistern are just within minutes of walk from the place I was staying. The Tram station is also nearby. Actually I walked most of the time instead of taking the tram.

Yes! I joined the free walking tour.

Met up with the local people.

There are armed soldiers and military vehicles around the tourists area.

This is the train station.

You could take a boat ride.

The place where I stayed provides good breakfast.

The local food

Pamukkale

Posted on October 17, 2017 by The Traveller

From Canakkale I took a bus to Pamukkale for S$38. This was a long and tiring 8 hours ride and the bus stopped in Denizli instead. At the bus terminal, I approached a policeman to ask for direction and finally I landed up in a small and cosy hotel for S$31 a room with buffet breakfast. The next morning I took the mini bus (S$1.58) to Pamukkale. When I got off the bus, someone from a nearby travel agency approached me asking whether I would like to join a day tour of Pamukkale for S$54. I told him I would consider about that.

After about 10 minutes of walk, another man approached me asking me to join his tour for S$36, which is one third cheaper that the earlier approach.

His group had 2 Canadians, 2 Indians, one Korean and 2 Singaporeans. Without second thought, I joined in the tour.

Later I found out that the middle age Singaporean couple is a pilot and a teacher.

I also met 3 young Malay Singaporeans while waiting for the tour. I think we have the Singaporean identity as when we look at each other, we know that we are from Singapore.

Pamukkale means Cotton Castle in Turkish. It is a natural site for hot springs. This is a rather small place but it has some remarkable spots, such as the Roman Spa and Roman Theatre. Though the ancient Roman bath has collapsed but the structures are still there. This is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Canakkale and Troy

Posted on October 5, 2017 by The Traveller

From Istanbul I took a 46 seater air-con coach to Canakkale for S$27. This is an interesting 6 hours trip where we were served a few rounds of drinks and biscuits in the coach by a uniform attendant pushing a small foldable trolley. It’s like the service in the plane. Very impressive!

Upon reaching the habour, the coach just drove into a ferry without us getting down. In fact there were 3 coaches and other vehicles in the ferry. It took about 30 minutes to cross the sea. I heard that they are going to build a bridge so that the coach could drive across to Canakkale. This might take some years.

I stayed 3 days and 2 nights in Canakkale. From the city, I took the mini bus to the ancient city of Troy. The bus fare is S$2.70 and the entrance fee to Troy is S$11.25. This is a must visit place in Turkey but there is physically nothing much to see except the wooden horse and stones. Spending an hour is more than enough. I will suggest that you watch the movie Troy and read something about the place so you will appreciate the visit more.

Turkey 土耳其

Posted on October 3, 2017 by The Traveller

太阳在天空呼唤, 欢迎到这里游玩.
我正在路边迷茫,谁愿成我的旅伴.
太阳可是在加班, 阳光照耀在路上.
从六至晚七时半, 向外来游客诉玩.
太阳你真是麻烦, 快召月亮来接档.
星星你也快出来, 有你路已足够亮.
我要向太阳告狀, 这几天你可好狂.
把我晒成了肉干, 这可没什么好玩.
我请水神来帮忙,下点雨给我清凉.
等候海风快到来, 为我指出一方向.
这几天我在路上, 从白天走到傍晚.
初到这神秘地方, 也不能说太冤枉.
然而这是土耳其, 拥有神奇的力量.
心中充满了希望, 感觉到人间天堂.
这次土耳其之行的经历也太丰富了!

Share with all on some of the pictures I have taken during my trip to Turkey. Turkey is a big country and you can spend more than a month travelling around but I only stayed there for 12 days. From Istanbul I took the coach to Canakkale, Pamukkale, Cappadocia, Ankara and back to Istanbul, with stops of a few days in each place. The weather was very hot when I was there in August. The days were long and I was almost “burnt to death”. This made me wrote something about the sun.

Welcome to My World of Travel

The Traveller's Stories

Tag Archives: Turkey