~ 10 days in Turki (final) ~

I'm gonna share with u some (important/interesting) info about my Turki trip. this is gonna b d last entry for my Turki trip... berzaman nk perabihkan, hahahaha.

 

Money (duit)

currency used in Turkey is Turkish Lira (TL) but USD and EURO are also accepted. I brought USD & Lira with me (more USD than Lira actually). where to get Lira in KL? not all money changer sells Lira.yg i tau, the money changer in Midvalley & Ampang Park ada jual/beli Lira. disbbkn there's not many source to change to Turkish Lira in KL, some money changer operator sells it (a lil bit') higher than necessary. once u r in Turkey, u can go to d money changer, change ur USD to Lira. important tips from our guide, don't change ur money on Sundays. kita xnk rugi cz losing on d exchange.

Currency exchange

when we were there, 1 TL = RM1.60 (lbh kurg).

What to buy with 1TL?

1TL can b used to pay to toilet/restroom operator. other than that, I got 4 postcards for 1TL.

Food

for Malaysians who r used to spicy food, bring ur own chilli/hot sauce. I bw chilli flakes with me tp once there, I think it's actually not necessary. at every tmpt mkn that we went, they usually hv chilli flakes ready on d table. I bw jugak sos Nandos (beli Hot Peri-Peri Sauce kt Giant) ms g Turkey & I ate it when there's chicken in d menu. nk mkn ayam dgn chilli flakes mcm x cukp pedas je. I hv in my group yg bw McD's packet chilli sauce in d trip. ni bgs bila bab kalo mkn & nk bercicah sos cili (in our case, nk mkn sotong gorg tepung). bring small packs of biscuits if u r d kind of person like me yg sng lapar when in cold, hehehe. otherwise, can just buy jajan when u stop for toilet break/solat/mkn.

Weather

we were in Turkey when it's Spring time (end of March to early Apr). temperature changes in different parts of Turkey. sometimes it's 13 Celcius or 11 Celcius. other days, it can be 17 Celcius. depending on how well your body cope with the low temperature, wear comfy clothings.

Clothings

frankly, i'm not very comfortable when it's cold. smtimes can get a lil' miserable mentally, hahaha. so, I brought tshirts byk2 for d 10 days trip. and also long sleeves & inner. jacket I bw 1 je (sbbtu gmbr I sume dgn jacket yg sama, hahaha) and sweater (just d thin one) ada sehelai gk. konsep I to keep myself warm adalah dgn wearing layers. on most days during d trip, I wore 3 layers of baju at once. bila pki jacket skali, then it's 4 layers already =) wear comfortable shoes, seelok2nye yg xde high heels. kalo byk brjln, xde la lenguh. raincoat...ermmm.... I dnt see any use of it. ms trip aritu hujan skjp je & xlbt pn, tu pn 1 day tu jelah, hari2 len sume cerah. selipar...ermmm...I ada bw 1pasang, tp gna ms nk g mkn kt hotel je. lps chck in hotel, hntr beg dlm bilik, tukar fr kasut to selipar (kasihan kakiku seharian tertutup) sbb nk turun g mkn.

Solat

ada yg sggst I bw selipar with me ms naik bus cz bila stop utk solat kt msjd, dh tukar pki selipar siap2 utk g wudhu (kasut tggl dlm bus). tp I ended with lap kaki dgn tissue lps wudhu, then pki stoking & kasut blk to walk to d mosque. tmpt wudhu sllnye in different building/place than d main building of d mosque (not like in Malaysia yg tmpt wudhu dlm msjd itself). xpelah, dh amik wudhu', doa la semoga setiap lgkh to enter d praying hall akn menghapuskn dosa2 yg ada =) Subuh adalah around 4lbh tp kul5.15 or 5.30 can pray dh. I wasn't aware of d timing for Zohor, Asar sbb everyday guide yg akn ckp dh boleh smyg. as for Magrib & Isya', once dh chck in hotel, br buat jamak ta'khir. or kalo stop for Mgrb kt msjd, buat je jamak taqdim.

Souvenirs

u can get souvenirs such as fridge magnet, table runner, shawls (silk or tak), bookmark, keychain, ceramic items, apple tea, Turkish delight, baklava, etc2. if u r only going to Istanbul, Spice Bazaar & Grand Bazaar r d two popular bazaars to shop. we didn't get much time in Spice Bazaar, so I don't really know how to compare d price of similar things sold at Grand Bazaar. kalo u jmp pe yg u berkenan kt Spice Bazaar & dgn limited time yg u ada, risau xjmp d same thing at Grand Bazaar, so beli jelah bila dh jmp kt Spice Bazaar tu. tp kalo de byk lg masa kt Istanbul, boleh la repeat byk2 kali masuk Spice Bazaar & Grand Bazaar... tinggal larat kaki nk jln/x jelah, hehehehe. important, Grand Bazaar x bkk on Sundays. suggstn, kalo nk bw blk baklava to Malaysia, beli la ms dh dkt nk blk M'sia. my experience, air ros yg gna dlm resipi baklava I x meleleh ms nk bw blk. ada yg beli ms awl2 trip, trpksa buang cz dh meleleh2 air dlm kotak baklava.

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I think those r some useful info that I hope will guide u guys who r planning a trip to Turkey. if u hv any info to ask, do leave ur question in d comment & I'll reply to it (if I hv d answer). so, sesapa yg dh cnfirm nk g Turkey soon, enjoy ur trip =)

.bye.

~ 10 days in Turki (Pt.10) ~

~ 9th day ~

(and 10th day as well)

 

it's our last day in Turki. sobsobsob...sedeyyy... huhuhuhu. I'm enjoying my time in Turki & enjoying my new friends. we started our day as usual after breakfast. first, we headed to the famous Grand Bazaar in Istanbul. (note: Grand Bazaar x bkk on Sunday. we were there on Monday). it's not very far from our hotel, so we just walked. sbnrnye xtau nk ckp jauh/x. mbe jauh tp x terasa sbb sebok sgt potpetpotpet sepjg jln dgn kenkwn&sebok bergmbr.

 

~ me, my friends & d places we passed by to Grand Bazaar ~

 

dari berjln kaki tu, kitrg masuk kt bhgn yg ada jual2 buku. dh mcm bookfair pn ada jugak gayanye. x jauh frm tmpt org jual buku2 tu, then tadaaaaa.... tu dia dpn mata Gate 7 to enter d Grand Bazaar. our guide gv instructions on d time that we should meet again at the same spot. so igt.... kt mna kita masuk, kt ctu la kuar blk. lpstu bertebaran la kitrg memulakn misi mencari brg apa2 yg ptt lg. we only hv 8.45 am 'til 11 am... not enough time =(

 

seeloknye last minit shopping dgn limited time cenggini kita dh set siap2 dlm kpale apa lg yg nk beli & dnt get influenced by ayat2 manis si peniaga kt cni. bknnya apa, ko ada 2jamsuku je & Grand Bazaar ni besor, tak dan la kalo sume brg nk tgk & br nk decide nk beli apa. kalo masuk Grand Bazaar ni pagi2 cm kitrg, bgs sbb org stil xrmi. kedai pn br bkk. nk memilih brg rs cmfrtble la sket sbb xyh nk sesak2 dgn org rmi. kalo ptg, cnfirm jd cm kt Spice Bazaar d day b4.

 

~ tshirts, keychains, wind chimes, shawls, brg ceramic, lampu2, leather products, bags, table runner... u name it ~ 

 

 

~ see those plastic bags I carried, sikit je brg I beli fr d Grand Bazaar ~

 

2 hours and 15 minutes later, we waited outside Gate 7 of & walked to our bus. pegi berlenggang, so boleh jln kaki. blk dh de plstk beg brg2, so kna naik bus, hahaha. once we reached d hotel, it's time for final packing and to bring our bags to d lobby. beg drpd nipis jd tebal aftr 10 days. ada yg dr 1, jd 2. kt lobby hotel ada penimbang. so masing2 dok menimbang beg masing2 sbb takut overweight. kalo overweight, kna tumpang dgn brg org len.

 

for final Zohor (and Asar) prayer, we walked to a mosque nearby d hotel. it was not yet Zohor time, so we took d opportunity to sit in d mosque and wait. ada ceramah kt dlm msjd ms tu tp sbb xpaham ustaz tu ckp bhs Turki, kita dok diam2 baik2 je ye dlm msjd =) smpt amik gmbr interior sket, hehehe...sket jelah tpnye. sket as in 2 je.

 

~ outside & inside ~

 

dh semua2 settle solat, semua2 jln sesame blk hotel & wait for d bus. we had our final lunch together b4 d guide send us to airport. for our lunch, we went to Neden Urfa restaurant and had kebab. as usual, kita ada starter yakni lentil soup & roti & gabungan tomato&timun&bwg, plus distime ada cm air asam yg cicah dgn ikan bakar tu (anyways, itu sedap) lpstu main course dpt kebab & nasi. fuuhhhhh.... I can say that it was d best meal ever for me. Nasi dia rs cm nasi goreng, sedaaaaap sgt smpi x amik gmbr, hahaha.

 

finally for dessert, kita ada surprise surprise!!! it was d birthday of our fren d day before (6 April) & guide telah dgn baik hati bought a birthday cake for her on this last day. nk potg cake ms bday semlm mcm xsempat sbb aktiviti packed. we decided that it's best if d guide join d cake cutting skali bcz his bday was on 1 of d days masa dia bw kitrg berjln2 ni. dh la xde org bg adiah kt dia ms bday dia, dia pulak baik hati belikan kek utk my fren. so kasihan if x celebrate sesame.

 

 

then, it was time for group photo. sedih bcz of 2 reasons: 1)sbb dh nk blk, 2)sbb de grp mmber yg dh balik cz their flight was in d afternoon. so, diorg xde dlm gmbr, huhuhuhuhu...

 

 

finally it was time to say goodbye. kt airport after dh settle2 chck in bag semua, we said our goodbye to our guide. rs cm terharu. dia tgg smpi la kitrg sume dh lps d immigration gate. yg kitrg ni, kt dlm tu borak2 lg mcm2.... citer mcm xabis2, hahahaha. our flight to Doha was at 7.30 pm and once landed at Doha, we had to quickly catch our plane to KL. transit time was short, distance from aeroplane nk masuk building to transfer to another gate pn jauh. dh lps chck in for flight to KL, naik bus lg skali to d aeroplane pn jauh. serious rs cm Amazing Race. nk g toilet pn x smpt weh, huhuhuhh.

 

we arrived at KLIA d next day at around 2.10pm (this was our 10th day). br la npk masing2 dh letih ms ni. I couldn't get much sleep on d flight so mmg mengalu2kn waktu utk tidor, hahahaha.

 

it was indeed a very special holiday for me. I'm grateful that I got to know these good people. I'm grateful that I got to see beautiful places in Turki. I'm grateful that I got to hv different experience in a different land. sooo looking forward for another holiday like this. even though I've completed d story of d activities for my 10days Turki trip, i'll share in another post some tips or other useful info ya.

 

.enjoy your holidays.



~ 10 days in Turki (Pt.9) ~

~ 8th day ~

(*entry trlbh pjg sbb byk gmbr2)

dh nk habis dh rupanye kesah journey to Turkey. tp I stil haven't completed d story for d last two days of d trip. so, let's continue...

 

we went to 1 leather boutique in Istanbul. seriously, I had soooooo much fun there, hahaha. we pretended to be Heidi Klum, Nina Garcia & d other famous people in fashion industry as we watched the fashion show on d runway. yepppp....fashion show. glamer gitu!!!! after that, we listened to a briefing from d host with regards to their products. then came d time to try and buy =) ni samaada ko rambang mata & nk beli semua, or u become just like me... trying those that I think nice, bergaya dpn cermin, take photos of myself with d jacket, give it back to the salesperson & try another one & bergaya dpn cermin, take photos, give it back to d salesperson & d cycle continues. hahahahahahahah...don't b surprised. sila la sila tgk betapa byk aku try.

 

~ 1st look... same jacket with different styling ~

~ 2nd & 3rd look ~

~ 4th look...u can wear d same jacket inside out ~ 

~ 5th and 6th look ~

 

all these trying and posing and taking photos and changing to new jacket and so on were made possible with d help from these two people... mereka tidak forcing I to buy & penyabar sgt layan I yg asyik brtukar2 jacket & posing tanpa beli walau sehelai. rs guilty... huhuhuhu. tp nk buat cmne, kn. di dunia reality, blom tntu leh berangan nk pki bj2 leather yg cntk cmni. I rs cm Cinderella cntk kjp kt sini (cuma aku xde glass shoes je, hahaha)

 

~ thanks to these 2 gentlemen (gmbr kanan, I dh brtukar jd Cinderella yg asal after 12midnite, huhu) ~

next, we went to Topkapi Palace. it was a sunday, so there's a big crowd there. but according to d guide, itu bkn la big crowd pn. pffft. d entrance fee was TL25. some things are not allowed to be brought along with u while u r inside. so, u can just leave it at d security (at d main entrance) and collect it back before u leave.

 

 

take note, no photos allowed inside d museum. thus, d reason y I only took pictures at d compound. if u r wondering, inside d museum u can find mcm2 brg sejarah Islam, cnthnye tapak kaki Rasulullah, pedang yg Rasulullah dan beberapa sahabat gunakan, pakaian Fatimah az-Zahra, etc2. we didn't spend a lot of time here as we had to go to our nx destination - Hagia Sophia.

 

from Topkapi, we walked to Hagia Sophia. the entrance fee is also TL25. this historical place used to be a church, then it became a mosque, and now it's a museum. when we were there, there's some construction work being done inside.

 

 

 

it's soooo beautiful inside. ada sections tu yg cat dh terkopek2 dh tp d remaining pictures on the wall still jugak cantik. mcm gmbr kt atas yg belah kanan.

 

take note, the queue to get the ticket for both Topkapi and Hagia Sophia is quite long. same goes when u want to enter these places. our guide has bought the tickets to these places earlier, so we don't need to queue anymore. jimat la sket masa. otherwise, it could take about 1hour to get the ticket, according to our guide.

 

after Hagia Sophia, we went to hv our lunch as it's already time to eat. npknye cm from 1 place to another tu xde la jauh, so we just walked to the restaurant. after lunch, we went to pray Zohr (and Asr) at the Blue Mosque.

 

Subhanallah. again this is another nice place to go when u r at Istanbul. and it's more special for me when I got to pray inside. I didn't get much time to tour inside d Blue Mosque after I've completed performing solat. but I managed to capture some pictures.

 

~ (l-r): inside the Blue Mosque, outside b4 wudhu', outside after wudhu' & inside after praying ~

 

the Spice Bazaar was our next destination. we were given only 1hour to complete our shopping. huhuhu... kalo bg 1jam, mna cukupppp nk bershopping. walaupun nma tmpt ni Spice Bazaar, tp yg dijual bkn spices je. u can get souvenirs, shawls, baklava, Turkish delight, tea, and many many more interesting things at the Spice Bazaar. I managed to get baklava for my officemates and Alhamdulillah, it's nice + not too sweet =) we reached there in d afternoon (around 3.30 p.m) and d place was too crowded. nk g survey brg kt kedai yg jauh2 sket pn xleh sbb de 1jam je & sesak sgt. so kalo sesapa nk g Spice Bazaar ni, i think d best time would b pagi la kot utk mengelakkn bersesak2. beware of pickpockets ye.

 

~ Spice Bazaar ~

 

and then, it's time for d Bosphorus Cruise (yeay!!!). this is an opportunity for me (us) to see both the Europe and Asia sides. it was cold tp I cuba utk tak rs tekanan mental sbb kesejukan, huhuhuhu. bot yg kitrg naik tu ada serve minuman panas, tp kna request&byr. bila dh kesejukan smpi nk beku kt belah atas ni, leh la turun ke belah bwh bot to request for hot drink. I bought hot nescafe (TL3).

 

~ with frens...I'm excited!!! (*yeahhh, kesejukan smpi agk miserable sbnrnye) ~

 

 

 

 

last activity for the day, bergambar di taman bunga =) it was nearly 7pm by d time we completed the cruise. agak bergegas ke tmn bunga (naik bus) sbb hari dh nak gelap. tp stil managed to bergmbr2 & kagum dgn bunga tulips yg mcm2 kaler. fuuhhhh, cntkkkkk sgt!!!!

 

 

d next day would b our last day in Turki. sedih pulak dh. blk je from berjln2 ni, g dinner & kms2 brg kt hotel. bersggh2 wt krja packing2 sbb dh beli mcm2 dr day 1. kna kosongkn sket beg sbb d final day, we are going to do our last shopping. that and d rest in d next entry.

 

.bye for now.