Istanbul (Not Constantinople)

We are on our last day in this city full of a wonderful mix of cultures. Istanbul is a transcontinental city, straddling the Bosphorus—one of the world's busiest waterways—in northwestern Turkey, between the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea. Its commercial and historical centre lies in Europe, while a third of its population lives in Asia. We were able to visit both European Turkey from Asian Turkey by taking a ferry across the Bosphorus, that blue ribbon of water separating the two sides for less than $4 round trip. 

Istanbul is Turkey's largest city and is constantly reinventing itself in a bid to become Europe's new capital of cool. Istanbul's Past and Future is the story of transformation of modern in Turkey from the last days of the Ottoman Empire through to the fledgling days of the republic, the nation's early aspirations of modernity and the resulting clash between values. Every where you look you see women still dressed in traditional garb, modern clothes with head scarves, and a small minority in full black burkas. Men seem to manage most of the businesses but in many shops women also work. Cats and dogs wander every where while being fed and watered by everyone. It does appear that there is a neutering program as many dogs had ear tags indicating being neutered. Didn't see the same with the cats and saw many intact tom cats.

But the citizens of Istanbul are very friendly a welcoming. Yes, we tourists are a main source of income for the city but it all is a sincere warmth. Many times we got lost an someone would stop and help us find where we wanted wanted to go even if they did not speak much English. Dick got a haircut and shave (something every man should try when visiting) and the barber asked me if I would like some tea while I waited. The haircut and shave was also an interesting experience to watch. Not only did Dick's hair get cut but his ears were waxed to remove his "wisdom hairs" as well as taming his unruly eyebrows. 

The transportation system is also modern and old. Modern light rail whisk commuters around the city while old tired looking but functional ferries transport you across the Bosphorus or up the Golden Horn. And it is very cheap to travel option for tourists.

We are now off to catch our tall ship and will stop in Troy on our way to Greece.

Entering the city from the Ataturk Airport

Not sure why this was below our hotel room window

Looking from European side to the Asian side of Istanbul

Dolmabahçe Palace

Galata Tower

Tile detail at Topkapi Palace

Blue Mosque interior

Very functional light rail

Ferry to the Asian side

Shoe shine stand and also does shoe repair

Blue Mosque segregation  

Spice Market-this doesn't even begin to capture the frenzy and multitude of people crowed in a small market space

When in Italy....

After living in California for almost 40 years I have almost forgotten what humidity is like but the last week in Salerno and Sorrento has been a harsh reminder. The temperatures have been mild, low 80's, but the humidity has been upwards to 85%. If we were meant to live in this sort of condition we would have kept our gills I say. But luckily we have aircon in our hotel and many of the restaurants use fans or are air conditioned. Still we have not been very adventuresome but we did go to Paestum, Amalfi, Il Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli, and Pompeii. Sometimes we went by ferry and other times by train. The train back from Paestum to Salerno was so crowded we had to stand/sit in the doorway and realized that there was only one exit door working in our coach and we hoped the functioning one would be on the exiting platform side. We were not alone in our concern as many of the italiani were also concerned. Luckily it was. 

Travelling by train in Italy can be an adventure for all the senses. Summer travel on the older trains can be a bit smelly when you pull into a station as the sewage is dumped directly on the tracks from the train restrooms. So lime is spread along the platform tracks. The lime helps to disinfect and to keep the odor down (good effort but not very effective). They do ask that you not use the restrooms while at the station but that rule is not often followed. 

In Italy there are several different types of trains some are state owned, some are regional, and some are private. Booking on the national train website,Trenitalia, is better than it was in the past but still is a frustrating process whether done in English or Italian. Now electronic tickets are issued which are pre-validated. That is a good thing as it can be difficult to find the little yellow stamping machine on the platform before you board. Not validating your ticket can cause a fine to be levied though you can use a pen and poke a hole in the ticket and initial and date it before the conductor comes by should you forget. This is Italy and rules are a bit uneven at times. The worst of all are the lack of elevators or ramps to get your luggage up and down to the platforms much less trying to get them on and off the coach before the train leaves the station.

Speaking of rules, drivers in Italy follow rules convenient for them and horn honking is required not only as a warning but just to say "Hi" when you see a friend passing in the other direction. They really are not trying to hit pedestrians even if it appears that way. Like walking in NYC or Boston, don't make eye contact and just walk across the street. If you don't you will never get to the other side.  

We try to use our elementary Italian when possible and sometimes it works but often the Italians will reply back in English. The use of Italian has allowed us to have some interesting conversations with the Italians (italiani) on many subjects. We have also had some conversation (English of course) with people from Australia (who condemned us for travelling) and so far only one other American couple. In fact we have not seen many Americans but instead lots of British and French tourist.  

We are now at the end of our Sorrento stay and will be heading for Istanbul (via Napoli airport) then catching our tall ship cruise back to Italy. For those who are curious where we will be sailing to there is an earlier post for the Star Clipper ports we will visit on this leg and later when we sail again from Malaga, Spain.

So here are a few photos of our trip so far:

Amalfi Cathedral

Along the Amalfi coast

Ferry to Salerno to Amalfi

War memorial outside of Salerno train station

Temple of Athena at Paestum

Ancient swimming pool

Temple of Hera and Temple of Neptune

Monastery high on a hill in Amalfi 

windsurfer in the Golfo di Salerno

Bowling?

Yes, there is a bowling alley in Sorrento

Uphill to Sant'Agata

Sant'Agata Chapel

And away we go, er okay let's start again

There are few friends who are aware of the chaos that Dick and I went through last week and a few have also experienced the same travel trauma though maybe not at the same level we did. Currently Dick is denying anything has happened. Funny, funny man. 

Waiting to board at SFO

Front view of Lufthansa A380

Not a great overview of the A380

So what am I referring to you ask. Well let's just say that you can replace a lost passport in 24 hrs in San Francisco. We were suppose to fly out on August 14th and arrive in Rome on the 15th but instead we arrived on 19th. And neither of us was ready for the level of humidity that we are currently experiencing.  And for those who have had Italian clients know that this is the state sanctioned vacation time for Italy so not all of the stores or restaurants are opened. The traffic is also very light but that doesn't mean that there aren't any tourists in town. Rome is rather full of large tour groups and many Italians are in those groups. 

So here we are back in Rome the eternal city for the fourth time and will be back again in October. Very little has changed since we were here 3 years ago-the streets are still littered, beggars are every where, and there is dog poop on the sidewalks but hey the pasta, pizza, wine, and other delicious food is still available. 

We usually take the first couple of days easy to get use to the time change but this time we are using the first 4 days to do that and get the rest of the stuff done that we would normally do in 7 days. With the humidity and the noisy young folks in the hostel across the street we are not getting the sleep we had hoped for but I feel better today which is a good thing as we have lots of ground to cover the next three days.   

But we did accomplish one thing that we have not been very successful during our other Rome trips and that was to get photos of Piazza Navona. The last two times the photos were taken but somehow got deleted off the computer. Even this time there were a few little issues but here they are: 

 Fontana del Moro

Fontana del Moro

Fontana del Moro

Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi

Fontana quattro fumi

Dove on top of the obelisk  at Fontana quattro fumi

Fontana del Nettuno

Fontana del Nettuno

Sant'Agnese in Agone

And of course to get back to our B&B we had to stop by the Pantheon to again and of course we got to see the large number of tour groups. Several groups were from a Disney cruise ship. Yes there is a port for Rome and it a bit out of the area but Cittavecchia is where the ships pull in a disgorge hundreds of passengers.

Hot and tired tourists

 And along the way we also stopped to admire the lovely colors and other architectural details fund all over this city.

Piazza della pilotta

Fontana dell'Acqua Felice

So tomorrow we head to Salerno to revisit Paestum where there are three large, well preserved Greek temples. Then we continue the Amalfi portion of our trip by ferry to Sorrento.

  

Star Clipper and how to follow our voyage

We will be sailing on the Star Clipper again this year and for those who like to follow our cruise here is a link that will give the ship's current location - marinetraffic.com


First cruise:

Saturday 06 September 2014 Istanbul, Turkey

Sunday 07 September 2014 Canakkale, Turkey

Monday 08 September 2014 Myrina, Limnos

Tuesday 09 September 2014 Monasteries On Mount Athos (Am Sail By) & Ouranopolis (Pm), Greece

Wednesday 10 September 2014 Skiathos, Greece

Thursday 11 September 2014 Skopelos, Greece

Friday 12 September 2014 Poros, Greece

Saturday 13 September 2014 Piraeus (Athens)

Sunday 14 September 2014 Mykonos, Greece

Monday 15 September 2014 Santorini, Greece

Tuesday 16 September 2014 At Sea

Wednesday 17 September 2014 Katakolon, Greece

Thursday 18 September 2014 Corfu, Greece

Friday 19 September 2014 Kotor, Montenegro

Saturday 20 September 2014 Dubrovnik, Croatia

Sunday 21 September 2014 Korcula, Croatia

Monday 22 September 2014 Hvar, Croatia

Tuesday 23 September 2014 Mali Losinj,

Wednesday 24 September 2014 Venice, Italy

After some rambling around Italy and Spain we reboard the Star Clipper for our second cruise:

Saturday 01 November 2014   Malaga, Spain

Sunday 02 November 2014   Tangier, Morocco

Monday 03 November 2014   At Sea

Tuesday 04 November 2014   Casablanca, Morocco

Wednesday 05 November 2014   Safi, Morocco (Optional Tour Marrakesh)

Thursday 06 November 2014   At Sea

Friday 07 November 2014   Arrecife, Lanzarote, Canary Islands - Spain

Saturday 08 November 2014   Las Palmas, Grand Canary Island - Spain

Travel - It's not a vacation but an adventure

The countdown has begun for the 2014 adventure, currently without a name, and the planning has taken a majority of my time. Well not really the planning but the the research for where to stay, to see, and how to get there. This can be a battle between what "I" need to do around the house/garden and all the distractions of travel planning like reading travel guides, blog posts, and reviews.

But while I am busy doing those things and a few more hair pulling tasks here are some travel thoughts and quotes.

“My only boast in travel is my effort.”  -Paul Theroux

"A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving." -Lao-Tzu

WORLD TRAVEL RULES

Backup Plan

Don’t plan or pack for every conceivable contingency but have a backup plan for money, travel, accommodations and lost gear / luggage.

Respect

Be kind, ingenuous, patient and respectful to all locals. You are the guest, follow and abide by all laws and way of life.

Pack Light

All your gear and luggage should be light enough for carry on for flights, trains, ferries, and buses. At most, 1 large bag and 1 small bag. Mobility is key. Other than clothing and other necessities, the following items are absolutely essential; Passport (or copy), cash, travel towel, loperamide, toilet paper, ziplock / plastic bag, toothbrush, debit / credit card and water + bottle.

Get Lost

Another word for vagabond is “wanderer”, getting lost (even intentionally) is part of the journey. Also a great way to find places no guide book can tell you about.

Minimalism

Buy and bring only the most essential things. Less clutter, more mobility. If it can’t fit on your person or current backpack, you don’t need it.

Explore

Travel is hardly about the known and the well beaten path. Its more about discovering what few have seen or know about.

Be Cool

Things will go wrong and the unexpected will happen, just chill and be cool. There’s a solution for every problem, don’t ever panic. Your just another human amongst other humans in another country.

Rest

Take 1 or 2 days off a week in your travels for some R&R. Sleep in, forget the map and itinerary. Your body and mind will thank you.

Sustenance

Travel can be exhausting, fuel your body properly. Have at least 2 full meals or 4 small meals daily. Always drink more water than you think you need.

Culture Shock

The purpose of travelling is exploration and experiencing the exotic. Culture shock should be embraced and it is a rare life event that should be looked forward to. Don’t let it scare you, there just fellow humans with a different way of life.

Become a Local

If possible live, eat and act like the locals do. Its part of the adventure experience. Stray from the heavy tourists zones to where the locals actually live, socialize with them.

Travel Slow

Be a turtle, not a rabbit – travel is a lifestyle, not a race. See what you can and not as much as you can. Take it all in with minimal scheduling and a flexible (or no) itinerary.

Expect Problems

Robberies, accidents, severe weather, sickness, loneliness, scams, cold / no showers, no electricity, no internet and delayed transportation. These are unavoidable issues a part of not just travel, but every day life. Don’t panic.

On Your Person

You should always travel light. But these essentials should be with you at all times; Passport (or copy), local cash, hidden cash stash and a debit / credit card.

Visas

Always research the current Visa regulations for the country you’re visiting well before arrival. Countries often have different regulations for different citizens as well as the method of entry. Keep track of expiration dates and any errors. Obtain visas here.

Say Yes

You travel the length of the world to experience what it has to offer. Say yes more often to people who invite you to places and go on wild adventures. Eat the unidentifiable foods, take intelligent risks and do try new things. Be yourself but a more open and brave self.

The Most Important Rule

Wherever you are in the world let each city and the people in it completely take you. Don’t just be a tourist but a temporary local. Move on, repeat.