haycoco: Istanbul

Istanbul felt like being caught in the middle of two different worlds. You encounter modern Europeans and countless tourists mixed with more traditional people wearing conservative dress.

We had been planning our trip for a year and about one month before we left, some of my best girlfriends decided to take their own trip to Turkey as well. I'm so glad our trips overlapped.

There are numerous sights to see in Istanbul and luckily they're all somewhat close to one another so we were able to walk to most of the sights. You really get heckled by the tour guides. Using a tour guide is helpful because you get the skip all the queues, but we did it on our own and the lines weren't long at all. One thing I found disappointing is that it seems locals don't like tourists very much. The taxi drivers took such advantage so be careful of that. We went to a Turkish restaurant called Venge that is frequented by locals, not tourists and they didn't seem too impressed by us. I'm not sure if that was because of the language barrier or what, but we didn't feel very welcome. Although, the food was delicious and the atmosphere was great.

We had considered taking a Bosphorus cruise, but in the end didn't end up going. I would take one of those if you have time.

I had heard from a few different people that a Turkish Bath was something that should be had while in Istanbul. I've had a few facials and massages in my day and this was nothing like that! This was the most unique spa experience I've ever had. When I was researching this, I came across a lot of North American hotel chains that have incredible spas, but the Cagaloglu Hamami stood out as the place that would be the most authentic...it certainly was! It's also apparently one of the 1000 things to do before you die. Full disclosure...you have to be very comfortable with nudity. My friend and I did the traditional bath and massage. I highly recommend this spa and the treatment I had.

Ayasofya

Blue Mosque

Gorgeous lobby flowers at the Four Seasons Sultanahmet (go to their rooftop patio for a drink, the views are stunning)

Poolside sheesha

Dinner at Zuma

The sightseeing keeners

The Basilica Cistern

The Grand Bazaar is a worthwhile experience. I wouldn't say the same for the Spice Market. I found it to be a smaller version of The Grand Bazaar. The Grand Bazaar is about 60 blocks in size and I think we covered maybe 20 of them (we were only there for about an hour). It is very easy to spend a lot of time and money there because most things that you can think of can be purchased there. The leather goods in particular stood out to me and things that you should buy there as well as things that are unique to Turkey, like towels. Also, there is every type of designer knock off imaginable, from shoes, to purses, to jewelry. I almost bought a purse, but figured that if I'm ever in a position to treat myself to the real thing, it won't mean anything so I withheld and am glad that I did. Keep in mind that there are multiple shops that carry similar items so be sure to browse before you purchase as the best quality items might not be what you come across first. As a person who loves to shop, I thought I was very good because we only bought a set of Turkish towels and I love them! PS don't forget to bargain!

Suada Club "an island between two continents" as they call it is the perfect spot to spend a hot day. You can spend the day poolside here if you like or just go to eat. There are so many different restaurants here to choose from. We had dinner at Suda Kebap. I highly recommended everything about this "island."