Up at 5:30 on Friday morning we were ready and downstairs waiting for our ride to the airport well before 6. We checked out and the hotel provided us with breakfast care packages, which we ate while waiting. We also talked to the concierge for a bit, who was surprised to find that both Glen and I are older than him (he’s 32 and looks older). He also asked us separately if we were married; we said yes but he didn’t ask where our wives were.
The van picked us up then picked up a bunch of other people along the way, hurtling through quiet country streets to Nevsehir Airport. Glen noticed that there were no hot air balloons in the sky. Considering the weather yesterday and, when we got to the airport, the rain clouds in the distance it probably wasn’t a surprise. We were lucky to have been able to go.
No hassles at the very small airport, and then we were on the plane and winging our way in a half-full plane to Istanbul. When we landed in Istanbul we were able to check in for our flight to Malta later that afternoon, which left us a good four and a half hours to go into Istanbul to check it out.
A Quick Look at Istanbul
We got out of the airport and got into a cab. I told him to put the meter on and off we went. While in Turkey, I’ve picked up about four words: merhaba (hello), su (water), tavuk (chicken), and ‘sow’ (thanks). Merhaba has been very helpful in at least getting people on the right side when we first meet, the problem being that after that I draw a blank with anything that follows, which has been frequent.
The waiters at the restaurant at the hotel…people in shops/restaurants…and then taxi drivers. Anyway, our taxi driver was friendly enough and drove like a madmen through Istanbul towards Sultanahmet (Blue Mosque) in about half an hour. The streets are lined with what look like election posters for Erdogan and when I asked, the taxi driver said that yes, it was Erdogan. We’ve since got a travel warning from the Australian government saying that elections are taking place soon (therefore, beware).
We were dropped at one of the obelisks, saw another obelisk and then tried to get into the mosque…only to find it was closed for prayers until 2:30. We couldn’t get in, and it was only about 11am at that stage. We wandered around the outside, saw the Sultan’s tomb from the outside, took our photos and wandered towards Hagia Sofia, which also looked closed.
I have a feeling that with it being the end of Ramadan, there was a holiday going on. There were still loads of people around. Despite the dire warnings on the Australian government travel website, I felt very safe in Istanbul (or blissfully unaware). According to yesterday’s guide, Australians don’t come anymore because we’re all too scared. It hasn’t stopped other nationalities though, especially the Japanese and Chinese.
Istanbul is also beautiful and not what I expect. The mosques, which are plentiful and puncture the skyscape frequently, are stunning.
We wandered towards Kapali Carsi only to be foiled. The website said it was meant to be open but again, perhaps because it’s a holiday, it was closed. Shame. No wandering past thousands of stalls for us (which really would have been interesting to see). We grabbed some food, wandered around a bit more then decided it was too hot, we’d had enough and would go back to the airport.
Taxi Troubles
We found a taxi and I asked for the meter but we all got in before we agreed. We went around the corner, he still hadn’t turned on the meter, so I asked again and he said some bullshit about the traffic on the freeway and that the ride would cost €20 (about 110 Turkish Lira). Bugger that for a joke. I told him to pull over. He dropped the price to 80 I think. I said 60, it went up to 70. I should have said no and got out because there were plenty of taxis around the place, but we settled on 70. I fumed the whole way because of the injustice of it (the different in price is negligible really, but it’s the principle of the thing, darling).
When we got to the airport, I gave him a hundred lira note (it was all I had), expecting there to be trouble. He took the note and held up 20 in return. I said no and demanded the other 10, which he reluctantly handed over. Again, I’m going to sound like a tosser because of the price but I can’t stand being taken for a ride (unless the price is reasonably and agreed upon first). You can see why people choose Uber.
We had plenty of time to spare before our flight to Malta. We bought some shirts, went to the lounge, showered, had a massage from the masseuse walking around (according to her, I’m the more stressed out of Glen and I, a fact I was well aware of haha), and then boarded our two-and-a-half-hour flight to Malta (all with a raging headache and no pills to kill it).
Landing in Malta
We very quickly got through passport control and collected our luggage, then pre-bought our taxi ride from the airport to Sliema, where we were staying in an AirBnB. The system is quite interesting in that you pre-book your taxi travel around the islands and the prices are fixed. Make things a bit easier (and more relaxed after the culture shock of Turkish and Israeli taxis).
Initial impressions of Malta was that it was a bit Greek, very Mediterranean, crazy drivers, and narrow streets in the towns. It was also warm and I really liked it.
We checked into our accommodation, a two-bedroom apartment that’s close enough to the action but far enough away that it’s not vile. We dumped our luggage and, as we had a couple of hours before my sister, Donna, landed from London, we went grocery shopping.
This gave us a chance to walk along the bay, stopping to ogle the water polo team playing in the pool nearby. I took my time but Glen was stressed and wanted to buy food. I would have been quite happy to stay and have a drink.
The grocery store was small but had enough stuff for us to make chicken salad for dinner, and get a few things for breakfast (as well as drinks). We got back, started prepping, and then Paul, a friend from Perth, rocked up (also staying on the island but for longer than us), with his friend Florent from Belgium.
Donna arrived shortly after. We caught up, drank, and ate, then about at eleven or so called it a night.
Travels with Dan 
What do you say, eh?