1: Beauty and Chaos

19.10.2011 – 19.10.2011 sunny 15 °C

This chapter of Weary_Feet Treks the Globe is dedicated to Graeme and the whole Intrepid tour group who traveled with me thru Turkey working tirelessly to help me come up with my blog title. Thanks Gang!!

First day today, of an Appetite for Arabia. V early start this morning as I had to get going at 6am in order to get on my flight to Istanbul at 10am. Dragged myself out of bed and through the tube out to Heathrow and discovered an almost non existent wait thru security!!! The one morning I decide to allow that little bit extra time to go thru security and I find that there is no line up!!

So spent a couple of hours feeling sorry for myself (I’ve developed a cold) and drinking a cuppa til the plane departed. Non event flight with the only interesting thing to happen was that I watched half of a Pirates of the Carribean movie and half of a James Bond movie and slept thru the remainder of both!

Touched down in Istanbul to chaos and beauty. The drive from the airport was educational.. The Turks work on the assumption that you just ‘go’ when you are driving. Blinkers are optional and you definitely don’t wait for a gap you just assume the car behind you will make some room. The light is quite subdued and almost a light orangey colour. The minera rise up from next to the mosques pointing towards the heavens. Honestly, a beautiful site!

Arrived at my hotel to discover another of my tour group members checking in so we headed out for some tasty Turkish dinner (savoury pancakes eaten on the floor) and then an early night. Off to discover the Blue Mosque and the Aya Sofia tomorrow.. I just can’t wait!

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