This weekly wrap-up covers our journey from October 20 to 26. We spent the entire week traveling through Turkey: We flew from Istanbul to Izmir on Monday and spent a few days in Selçuk to explore Ephesus. On Thursday, we took a bus from Selçuk to Bodrum for a relaxing few days at an all-inclusive beach resort to celebrate our five-year wedding anniversary. (Fancy!)
Favorite thing we ate: On our last full day in Istanbul, Jonathan ordered the köfte (Turkish meatballs) at Mivan Restaurant, which came with a nice assortment of side dishes [pictured above left]. Megan particularly enjoyed the dinner we had at Ejder Restaurant in Selçuk, especially the lamb “casserole” [above right].
Favorite thing we drank: We continued to enjoy drinking way too much Turkish tea this week. 🙂
Favorite thing we did: Of course we both enjoyed some R&R in Bodrum, but before arriving at the beach resort, Jonathan loved touring the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul [above left]. We paid for a guided tour, which we highly recommend; we got to skip the (huge) line at the ticket office and learned so much about the history of the building. The educational signage inside is fairly minimal, so the guide definitely added value. Megan enjoyed exploring the ruins of Ephesus, especially the Library of Celsus [above right].
Biggest splurge: During our last afternoon in Istanbul (on Sunday), we decided to treat ourselves at a Turkish bath. We chose Suleymaniye Hamam because it’s co-ed (most baths in Istanbul are separated by sex). The hammam experience cost 260 TRY per person, which was about $90 USD total.
Best deal: You might have expected to see “all-inclusive beach resort” in our biggest splurge category, but guess what? We finally used some of our credit card points, which means our four-night stay at Salmakis Beach Resort & Spa cost a grand total of 175 TRY ($30.53 USD). I was expecting to have to pay some fees or taxes, but we didn’t have to pay a dime for our actual stay. The money we did spend was all on tips for hotel staff and a hot shave for Jonathan at the resort’s barber. And the best part? The resort barely put a dent in the credit card points we’ve accumulated—we’re thinking we need to utilize them more often. 😉
What we’re reading: Jonathan spent his beach reading alternating between fantasy fiction (The Dragon Republic) and nonfiction (Becoming a Supple Leopard). Megan read Murder on the Orient Express (her first Agatha Christie!) and Ask Again, Yes by Mary Beth Keane (highly recommend!). She started Birds Without Wings by Louis de Bernières, a sprawling WWI historical fiction novel set in the Ottoman Empire (mostly western Turkey). She also listened to The Bastard of Istanbul by Elif Shafak, perhaps Turkey’s best-known female author, which features an Armenian-American woman and her Turkish step-cousin.
Total walking distance: 21.77 miles (We only hit 5 miles one day this week. Fail! Megan didn’t wear her Fitbit at the resort because it isn’t waterproof, but let’s be real—we weren’t covering much distance anyway.)
Up next: Our plan was to visit Lebanon after Turkey, but we’re going to wait and see what happens with the demonstrations. (The demonstrations are peaceful and we don’t necessarily feel it would be unsafe to visit, but many major roads are blocked by protesters, so it doesn’t seem like the best conditions to explore a new country.) Instead, we’ll be heading to Jordan while we continue to monitor the situation in Lebanon.
Featured image: Shops with lovely floor mosaics on Curetes Street in Ephesus, Turkey
