Trip to Vienna from Istanbul / İstanbul'dan Viyana Turu

Because of my job, I had to spend 2 weeks in Vienna. I haven't been there since 2010, and back then I had to stay 2 days in Vienna, so I was really excited to see the city again :) I already had some plans before I go which I didn't have a time to do last time :)

I flew there by Turkish Airlines, which I recommend everyone to do so, I think Turkish Airlines is one of the best airways in the world, with respectful crew, comfy seats and delicious foods! Awww I love the food :) Do&Co is the catering company of Turkish Airlines, and I think they're really good at that.

It took about 2,5 hours to get there (from take-off to landing). It was a peaceful flight. As soon as I got there, I took a cab went directly to my hotel. It took about 45 euros from airport to the hotel, my hotel was very close to the center of the city, it was on Mariahilfer street. The taxi driver was Turkish too, he was very polite.

By subway you can go almost every where at the center of the city, I mean to all touristic places. Because my hotel was very close (like one block away) to the subway station, I didn't have a hard time to travel through. My hotel gave me a pass card for the subway, so I could travel where ever I wanted and as much as I wanted, which was really cool :) If you're a tourist, it's really easy to travel in Vienna by subway.

Luckily the weather was really nice during my visit, I've been there at the end of March, the temperature was, let's say 18-20 Celsius. I'm gonna give you a list of things which you must do in the city:

1. Visit Schönbrunn castle, climb up to the hill

2. Go into the labyrinth in the garden of Schönbrunn (it was about 10 euros)

3. Visit Naschtmarkt on Saturday, and there is also a big flea bazaar there

4. Rent a bike from city bike stations, ride your bike around the city

5. See if there is a festival going on in Rothaus

6. Eat schnitzel in Figlmüller

7. Buy some Manner wafers

8. Taste wine in Grinzing

9. Visit natural history museum and art museum

10. Walk on Graben and Karntner streets, go inside Stephen's Cathedral

11. Go to opera/ballet in state opera house

12. Eat sacher torte in Demel pastry house

Schönbrunn Castle:

Labyrinth:

 Garden of Schönbrunn:

 Dinosaur leg in Natural History Museum:

 Bicycle tour:

Beautiful Gardens of Vienna:

 Stephan's Cathedral:

 Manner wafers:

 Figlmüller Schnitzel:

 State Opera House:

 Schönbrunn's Garden:

 Naschmarkt:

Have fun in your trip!

Jason Mraz Concert in İstanbul

This summer singers I loved the most are continuing to come to Turkey one after another, and I'm really enjoying it :)

 

On the 19th of July my dear Jason Mraz came to Turkey to give a concert on Life Park, İstanbul. Although it was during Ramadan (religious month when most of the muslims fast) the concert area was pretty full. The cheapest concert ticket was around 40 TL (around 23 USD) and I got that one :) It was supposed be starting at 19:00, but I guess it was not dark enough, so the concert started around 21:00.

 

He sang most of his popular songs, so I was really happy about that :) his band and vocals were amazing, I can say that. He didn't have much of a show, dancing or choreopraphy, but who cares :)

 

Oh! and he showed us how thoughtful and sensitive he is about environmental issues. He said that parks are our heritage which we'll leave our children (he's talking about the recent events happened in Gezi Park, İstanbul)... <3

 

 

 

 

Public Transportation in İstanbul

I've been in İstanbul for about 6 years and I've been using public transportation as a part of my job. So I can say that I have pretty much experience how to use the buses, subway etc.

Unlike the developed countries, subway remained limited in Turkey, it means you cannot go everywhere by using the subway. Following map shows possible transportation ways, for instance lines begin with M are the subway lines and T's are the tramway lines.

Most of the touristic places (such as Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque, Basilica Cistern, Grand Bazaar) are located around M2 (Taksim, Şişhane) and T1 (Karaköy, Eminönü, Gülhane, Sultanahmet, Çemberlitaş, Beyazıt) lines.

In order to get to the Anatolian side, you have to take the ferry from Eminönü to Kadıköy, from Karaköy to Kadıköy, from Kabataş to Kadıköy or from Beşiktaş to Kadıköy. Kadıköy is like the center of the Anatolian side.

If you'd like to visit the Prince Islands, you have to take the ferry from Kabataş or Kadıköy, with a 1,5 hour of journey.

There is also a bus system called metrobus which is not a subway. These buses go along the highway on a different path, so that you will not be disturbed by the traffic jam. Apart from that, there are also lots of bus lines which will take you to the corners of İstanbul. 

To be able to travel with buses, subway, tram, metrobus in İstanbul, you need to have "Akbil" which is a small electronic device (smart ticket). The refundable deposit is 6 Turkish Lira for it. Or you may buy one-time-pass cards to take the transportation.

Good luck on your trip, and feel free to ask any questions!!!

Alicia Keys Concert in Turkey

On the 2nd of July, the great vocal-singer Alicia Keys had a concert in Istanbul, Turkey. The weather was below seasonal normals, which was a good thing I guess, so that we didn't sweat and melt.

Normally the concert was planned to be held in Beşiktaş, but what I heard from a friend of mine who works in İKSV organisations (the association which organised this concert), they had to move the concert to Park Orman because of the recent events in Gezi Park, Taksim. I didn't have a problem with it, since we could go to the concert place by subway.

It had to start at 9 p.m., Alicia kept us waiting for about an hour. The audience was a little bit pissed off, they even shouted slogan "Everywhere Taksim, everywhere resistance!" in Turkish (you have to google it if you wanna know what it means). But when she showed up, everybody was cooled down.

The stage looked exactly the same like in the photo I downloaded. The dancers, her voice, the vocals and the band, the stage shows were really awesome.. She even played the piano during some of her songs. Most of her favorite songs were played, so we were really pleased. The weather was a little bit freezing later that night, we even wondered whether she was cold or not, 'cause she was wearing really thin clothes...

Anyways, we really had fun, I think everybody would agree with me :)

Taking the Toefl IBT Test in Turkey

More than 10 years have passed since I took the Toefl test last time. Back then, it was a computer based test too, I took that one in another country. So I didn't have any clue what it was like to take the test in Turkey.

 

I ordered the test through ets.org/toefl, I had to take it as soon as possible. I could manage to get a date approximately 3-4 weeks later, which was fair enough. The test place was very close to my house, so I was happy about it.

 

On the test date I was there for about an hour earlier. They gave me some papers to sign. Before I go to my seat, they checked my ID, took my photo holding a sign which I guess had my candidate number on it. Then I went to my seat, locked my personel stuff in my personel locker, which they give you the key of. Switched off my cell phone, put away my watch also into my locker. So I was set. They don't let you to keep your watch, but during the test they show you the time on your screen.

 

As soon as I sat, more people came into the class to take the test. There were about 25 seats, and I can say that most of them were full. You start your exam by controlling your head phones and microphones. You have to keep repeating a constant phrase as "describe the city you live in" to check whether your microphone works or not. In our class all of the people started the test at different times, that's why the ones who started earlier, had to hear the other people repeating the phrases. It was totally disturbing, I can say that the first 8 minutes I didn't understand anything at all from what I read, because the first section of the test was reading. So I advice you to book your test to an isolated test center, not to a one in the heart of the city. The desks were also so close to each other, I could sometimes hear what the person next to me said.

 

The test took about 4 hours, including the breaks. They let you have water with you during the test, which was a good thing. The air conditioning was working meanwhile and did not bother me. But you may want to have something warm with you just in case.

 

Fortunately I got the result I hoped to get. Wish you all luck in your exams!!!

A Guide to Turkish Coffee Fortune-Telling

After enjoying the taste of your Turkish coffee, the old fortune-telling ritual begins. Right after taking the last sip of your well-cooked coffee, the coffee plate must be closed on top of the cup. Put down the closed cup on a flat surface for it to cool off. Touch the cup from its top (I said top because it's placed upside down) in a certain period of time to check whether it's cooled off or not.

Once it's cool, you may wanna start looking inside the cup to see what's waiting for you :) I uploaded a picture for you to get an idea.

So this is my cup as you can see :) I drank my coffee and put the cup upside down on its plate. When it was ready I lifted the cup and here is the result.. From this part, it's up to your imagination. But there are some images which are symbols of things. For example:
- Horse / horse head: mean that your aim, wish, desire... what ever you call it will become true.
-Turtle: means that you will move your house or make any kind of difference in your house.
-Key: means that you'll buy something with a key... a car or a house.
-Ring: means you'll get engaged or married, or someone around you will.
-Small lines going to the edge of your cup: means you will travel, or set off on a journey, or someone close to you will, or you'll get a visitor.
-White paper: means you'll have news from government, maybe you'll get the job you applied to, or you'll get money from the government.
-Fish: means money :)

So you got the idea now, symbols are obvious, you just have to use your imagination and guess what symbols are telling to you.

When you are finished with the cup, take your plate, and pour what's left on it into your cup. You may wanna guess what the shapes on the plate are telling you..

Be sure to clean your cup and plate once the fortune telling is finished. It's believed that it's bad luck not to wash them..

Enjoy your coffee :)

Tour guide / tips for Istanbul!

When you mention Istanbul's name to a foreigner, he/she would think of a country from the dark ages, a place where the orcs from the middle-earth live in etc. It is very common behaviour, and they would be surprised how civilized the country actually is.. So here are some tips/advices before you want to visit this city!

• There are some places you must visit in Istanbul. These are: Topkapı Palace, Dolmabahçe Palace, Blue Mosque(Sultanahmet Camii in Turkish), Hagia Sofia, Yerebatan Cistern, Grand Bazaar, İstiklal Street, Taksim Square, Bosphorus, Princes' Islands, Rahmi Koç Museum, Galata Tower, Ortaköy, Kız Kulesi and so on.. You would be surprised how beautiful and full of history these places are..
• It's a low possibility for you to eat bad food in Turkey, you can find all sort of food from various world cuisines. And they would be stunningly cheap! Here are some famous restaurants where you can get tasty food: The Kebap, Karaköy Liman Restaurant, Ortaköy The House Cafe, Taksim Limonlu Bahçe, Cafe Krepen Taksim, Valonia Cafe Beşiktaş, Bambi Cafe Taksim. You should try "ıslak hamburger" which means wet hamburger in Taksim square, it's really tasty..
• Clothes are distinguishedly cheap and have good quality in Turkey. It's actually a textile exporting country, and they have their own brands. There are a lot of malls in İstanbul where you can get what you are looking for, so here are some of them: Cevahir Mall, Kanyon Mall, Safir Mall, Metrocity Mall, Nautilus Mall, İstinye Park, Profilo Mall etc. Carpets and leather are also distinctively cheap. Oh and don't forget to bargain.. :)
• Don't mind the street sellers, tallymen, or what ever you call them. Turkish people might be a little insistent on trying to sell you something, or get you into the restaurant where they serve etc. They would straightaway understand you're a tourist even if you don't talk to them. If you are not interested in buying souvenir or eating some food, just don't mind them and keep going..
• Turkish people would move heaven on earth if you ask them for help. They would die to help you, but just be careful before you trully trust some of them. Although most of them have good intentions, some of them might take advantage of you..

Enjoy your trip in Istanbul!