Turkey - 4/4 - i should log off

Cell Phones and SIM Cards

August 12, 2010 By Danny

People back in the States often ask us how we communicate and if we carry a cell phone. When we say yes, many people ask us what plan we’re on or if we have a satellite phone. The truth of the matter is that the way cell phone plans, phones, and companies operate in the US is different than in the rest of the world….and in the rest of the world, thankfully, it is much easier to travel internationally with a cell phone.

We carry a basic cell phone that has a SIM card slot. In the US, this type of phone is used by AT&T and T-Mobile. There is a SIM card and that card basically IS your phone number and your plan. The phones in the US, sold to you by these companies, are ‘locked’ to run exclusively on the network from which you purchased your phone.

All phones however, begin their lives ‘unlocked’ and it is a very simply matter to take your AT&T phone and unlock it. We did this at the start of our trip with a guy on the street in Guatemala after we learned that the Spanish word for the process (they have LOTS of used US phones in Guatemala) is ‘Flashar.’ It was easy, he pushed a few buttons on his special machine, and it was done. Not going to Guatemala soon? Here is how you do it online:

Go to the search engine of your choice. Search for something like ‘unlock my cell-phone’ and follow the on-screen instructions. Depending on what site you find you should pay somewhere around $5-$10 for this one time service. It is easy, and takes about 24 hours for the whole thing to work itself out. We recently did this when we took a newer cell phone with us to Turkey.

Once in another country it is merely a matter of purchasing a SIM card and popping it in the slot. We traveled through Europe (and then the US as well) with a German SIM card. This card worked everywhere we went and was actually cheaper to use in the US than had we purchased a new card from T-Mobile in the US proper. The German card cost ten Euro but came with that much in calling credit. The only annoying thing was that no one could call us. We now have a Turkish number on a Turkish SIM card which cost a bit more than the German one but we managed to purchase 1,000 SMS messages for about $7.

We have had local phone numbers in these two countries as well as Egypt, Israel, Sudan, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Malawi, South Africa, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Colombia, Guatemala & Honduras. We don’t use the phone much but when couchsurfing or trying to make any level of advanced plans it is a huge help. At its most basic level, when we find a taxi driver we like we can grab his number and use him again….something that has worked out in our favor on more than one occasion. When American’s travel overseas it is sometimes a nerve-wracking decision on how to call around and call home with the way our plans are structured, but if you just unlock your phone, or even an old one, things can become a lot easier.

A week in Istanbul

August 11, 2010 By Danny

Promise. We won’t start the song again…yet. When we landed in Istanbul we really did not know where to start despite repeated recommendations from family and friends. We had to find our travel mojo again, but there isn’t really a better place to find it than Constantinople. I mean Istanbul.

Searching for our mojo, we headed straight to the touristy neighborhood of Sultanhmet. While the swarms of cruise ship passengers aren’t exactly our modus operandi, incredible mosques, enormous bazaars and a palace with a rather long history are.

The Blue Mosque which (supposedly) is rivaled only by Mecca for its beauty in the Islamic world was as expected- incredible. I was shocked that I was allowed to enter as I was wearing shorts, while the women were all given drapes to cover their shoulders or legs. Photos were allowed inside but no shoes. The building was beautiful, but honestly it was a little weird being inside “touring” while there were men busy with prayer in front of us.

Just across the way from the Blue Mosque, passing by an Egyptian obelisk and lots of food vendors is the Hagia Sofia which dates from the time Istanbul was the capital of the Byzantine Empire. We’ve seen this byzantine religious artwork before and given the high admission price decided to skip, hey don’t judge. Instead we went just slightly further afield to Topkapi Palace. Used by nearly all of Istanbul/Constantinople’s rulers until the 19th Century, the palace is full of history and beautiful design. Despite all that, it was far from the best palace we would end up visiting.

The other palace, the one most people skip because it isn’t in that touristy neighborhood, is the one you must go and see. Topkapi Palace is great, filled brim to brim with Ottoman treasure and Islamic history, but if you want to see a palace fit for a Sultan, you need to go to Dolmabhace Palace just a 15 minute tram ride away. This palace has gifts from every corner of the earth: English lamps, Siberian Polar Bear rugs, American paintings, Chinese…china? simply everything. The staircase is made of crystal and one of the chandeliers is rumored to be the heaviest in the world. The palace was last used as a residence by Ataturk, the founder of modern Turkey (post WWI) and all the clocks inside are turned to the time of his death. Trust me, the place was a PALACE.

With the main sites out of the way, and our travel mojo slowly returning, we turned our attention to wandering. The Great Bazaar’s labyrinth did not frighten us, in fact we found it rather easy to navigate compared to some of the other market’s we’ve been in and thankfully we escaped out of there without losing so much as a nickel. We continued through a maze of streets, what seems to be today’s actual grand bazaar, to the spice market where we purchased a much needed pumice stone and….some ice cream.

Unfortunately it was ridiculously hot in Istanbul and with 100% humidity, we found ourselves sweating more than in the Sahara. After we headed up the coast to get our Uzbekistan visas (not exactly a typical tourist activity) we managed to take the boat—public transportation, mind you—back downtown. This counted as our very luxurious and relaxing Bosporus Cruise.

So what else did we do in Istanbul? We actually had a great time meeting up with couchsurfers, first at the weekly Istanbul meetup on the Asian side and then again further afield at a picnic on Prince’s Island. Istanbul has a ton to offer, spreads 100km wide, and is probably the most cosmopolitan city we’ve visited on this entire tour. We took our time and stopped for repeated doses of tea and fresh juice and even ate at an Ottoman restaurant (again with Couchsurfers) where we sat on the floor and enjoyed an elaborate mixed grill. We spent a full 5 days in Istanbul loved every second of it.

IF YOU GO:

Transportation: Ataturk airport is connected to the city by the fairly easy to use metro system. All services on the system (train, tram, and boat) use tokens but there are no transfers (say from train to tram). Most everything though is about 1.5TL ($1) so it is not too expensive.

Food: There is Donner Kebab on every corner and plenty of other treats. No need to eat in fancy restaurants.

Lodging: We stayed in the Sydney Hostel in Sultanahnet which was fine but nothing special. There are tons of options in the Sultanahnet neighborhood so feel free to shop around.

Istanbul, Constantinople?

August 9, 2010 By Jillian

Istanbul, Constantinople, Istanbul, Constantinople.

Istanbul is the only city in the world that straddles two continents. Seriously, you take the ferry from Europe to Asia in less than 20 minutes. Naturally it was the best place to start our final continent, Asia. Our plan is to travel generally east along the old silk road to China.

Besides being the crossroads of the world, the Ottoman’s ruled quite an empire from here, and it’s no wonder that at times we feel like we’re at the center of the world. Huge container ships run in and out of the cargo ports while cruise ships drop hundreds of passengers off for day trips in Istanbul. It’s a flurry of activity here, but also surprising orderly and quiet. Lost in the Grand Bazaar, well not lost but 1000 souvenir and carpet shops pretty much look the same, we ducked into a small alley. Seconds later we were transported to a tiny courtyard, silent except for the clicking and clacking of backgammon pieces. A table of older men looked up at me, smiled and went back to sipping their tea and playing their game. I melted back into the bazaar appreciating the seemingly intimate moment I had just had with Istanbul.

Istanbul it seems, is like that. Standing on the street trying to buy a ‘simit’, a bagel like bread covered with toasted sesame seeds, I was having difficulty understanding the vendor. Stepping right in, a man assisted us with the purchase and began to chit chat. Less than two minutes later we were invited into his carpet shop for tea. Expecting a hard sale inside, I was surprised to find myself sitting on a cushioned bench sipping black Turkish tea without the salesman in sight. Instead the owner, himself enjoying a tea began to discuss philosophy with us, the meaning of life and so on. Two hours later we walked out of the shop. That’s just the way things are.

Turkey is a secular Muslim country. Sounds like an oxymoron doesn’t it. Although being secular and Muslim at the same time can be a bit of a political challenge, Istanbul at least seems to be a city that walks the entire spectrum. In front of me in the ice cream line is a woman completely covered head to toe including a modesty veil on her face with a designer handbag slung over one shoulder. Only a small slit over her eyes belies the fact that there is a person inside all that fabric. Purchasing a cone is a woman in a tight, colorful outfit her hair covered in a designer silk scarf

IMGP5537

and sunglasses. Behind me is a Turkish woman in a rather revealing tank top, mini-skirt and high heels. Like I said, it spans the entire spectrum. This is a dynamic, welcoming city where everyone on either end of the spectrum and everywhere in between can feel welcome and comfortable.

Walking into a bar the other night we heard the evening call to prayer across the city. The mosques are not synchronized so at times it’s a cacophony of melodious Arabic. Never in any Muslim country to date have I been so aware of the irony of my surroundings and situation (alcohol is forbidden in Islam). Not to sound cliché, but it’s a juxtaposition between continents and worlds here.

Foodie Friday: Doner Kebab

August 6, 2010 By Jillian

One of our first Foodie Friday’s when we reached Arabia was that of shwarma. Meat roasting over an open flame mixed with wonderful veggies and served up on some version of bread. We’ve eaten this all over the place since but by the name of Doner Kebab in Germany and if we get to Greece, there it will be called a gyro. I’m writing about the Doner now not because it is so different but because it is the type of food, that almost perfectly describes Turkey’s place in the world, straddling two continents.

It was the Turks who brought this delicious dish to Germany (although we heard at least one German say that it was from Berlin). It is Istanbul that serves as the gateway between Europe and nearly everything else that mattered in the pre-Colombian world. The dish is as common in Munich as is pizza in New York.

As we embark on a journey through the silk road it is dishes like Doner that we expect to continue to surprise us the most. We certainly won’t write about most of them, but it is how each of these things is the same thing altered by similar cultures rather than different things created by different cultures. The very word for pizza is derived from the somewhat similar and equally familiar pita, a dish that is eaten in various forms to this day across the entire Levant, not just in Italy.

Just as the Turks of Central Asia brought Doner to Europe, they brought silk, spices, and technology from the east as well. Their relatives mixed with the nearby Persians and both mixed with the not too far off Arabs. We will see, taste, and enjoy bits and mixes of all of these things over the next few months on our way to China.

Cell Phones and SIM Cards

A week in Istanbul

Istanbul, Constantinople?

Foodie Friday: Doner Kebab

Recent Comments

Banking on the Road

Adventure Guides