Istanbul Diary

Date of visit: 12th June 2011 - 19th June 2011

Istanbul may not be the capital of Turkey (the capital is Ankara) but it is surely one of the most beautiful cities in the world. We found the city to be an amazing mix of the old and the new. It is also a city where the new infrastructure supports the old monuments. The transport system is excellent especially the tram system.

Let us talk about one thing at a time:

1) Transport:

Probably the most important thing of all. Being able to move around Istanbul is absolutely critical as each part of the city has its own flavour. Even though most of the must-do places are clustered in the Sultanahmet area you will need to negotiate the local transport system if you want a fuller experience.

Looking towards Sultanahmet Square - on Yeniceriler Street

- Get down to the IETT office in Karkoy Square (in the Karkoy Funicular Station) or the IETT travel shop east of Galatta Bridge and get an IstanbulKart (Oyster card like travel card). Akbil system is finished and you will have to buy an IstanbulKart. Each card costs 10YTL (non-refundable) and then you can top-up at machines or kiosks (lots of them around). Remember one IstanbulKart can be used by more than one person but you will get the discounted rates only once per use (it is a strange system!).

Looking towards Karkoy Square and the Galatta Bridge

- Otherwise you can get yourself some Jeton tokens. Each token is valid for a single entry and exit and costs 1.78YTL. Jetonmatik machines are there at almost every station.

- Another option is a mavi (blue) travel-card which is like a normal unlimited-travel, fixed-period card. It is available at the IETT travelshop in Karkoy Square.

The ferry for the Asian shore at Eminou - heading for Harem

Crossing the Bosphorous on the ferry

- Trams are amazing for travelling around and they connect to all major sights including Dolmabache Palace and Sultanahmet (which includes the big 3 of Topkapi Palace, Blue Mosque and Aya Sofya). The only problem is they are usually very crowded but the service is frequent and the trams tend to travel in pairs. Therefore many times the tram in front is jam packed but if you wait 5 minutes the tram behind it will come and it will be a lot less crowded.

- Take the local ferries to cross the Bosphorous, you can use your IstanbulKart on them.

- Try and avoid taking taxis. They are expensive and most will not want to take you by the meter.

- One easy (and cheap) way of getting to the airport for your return flight is to book yourself on a bus. If you give your hotel address they will pick you up from the hotel itself. The ticket costs 11YTL per head and the coaches leave quite frequently. You can buy the ticket from a kiosk in front of the AyaSofya (near the Exit).

2) Being a Tourist:

Being a tourist in Istanbul you will need to relay on bottled water, soft-drinks and eateries (unless you have the option to cook your own food!). One good thing about Istanbul is that water is cheaper than coke. 1.5 ltr of water costs 1YTL and a 300ml can of coke costs 1.5YTL. In fact the good thing is that coke and other soft drinks can be insanely expensive which encourages you to drink water. Which is good because my first tip is about water.

- Drink lots of water! You will be doing a lot of walking around in the city and it can get very hot and humid there. Keep a big bottle of water with you and keep yourself hydrated. Drink only bottled water.

- The main touristy areas are VERY safe. Police personnel are seen everywhere and there are regular police patrols, especially in the core areas. Just take the basic precautions and all should be well.

- It is better to take the excellent audio guides at Aya Sofya and Topkapi palace than a guide as both these places are quite big and should be done at your own pace. The audio guides give good coverage of the building and are very cheap. Remember to take a photo-id (any card with a photograph of yourself will do) as they will require you to deposit it before they give you the audio guide. Prices: Aya Sofya - 10YTL, Topkapi - 10YTL for Harem OR Palace, 20 YTL for both.

- If you don't like to get into needless conversations with shopkeepers trying to get your custom (especially in the Grand Bazaar and Spice Bazaar) then learn how to say 'No, Thank you' in Turkish or just quickly give them a smile and a wave. A common way to start a conversation is by asking you which country are you from, if you tell them they will say something nice about the country which will be swiftly followed by a 'special country price' for you.

- A note about currency. Even though the official currency of Turkey is the New Turkish Lira (YTL) almost all the main places in Istanbul (including shops in Grand Bazaar) will accept (and often give out the price) in Euros. Dollar and Pounds are equally well received. My advice would be to stick to YTL (makes sure you are not dependent on the shopkeeper's ad-hoc exchange rate).

ATM machines in the touristy areas give out money in YTL, Euro and Dollars.

- In our opinion (me and Mrs.) Topkapi Palace is a must do (both Harem and Administrative area). Dolmabache palace do the main area but the Harem can be skipped as you get a good flavor of the decor while visiting the main area. Also the main area guided tour passes through the Harem so you can take a quick look around.

3) Food:

Istanbul is a city famous for its kebabs (or kebaps) and obviously the world famous 'Turkish Delights'. The variety, cost and quality of food is quite variable. A simple chicken doner wrap (really tasty) in the Sultanahmet area (the touristy part of the city) can cost around 5YTL. But head about 2 kms west-wards towards Beyazit - Istanbul University the cost goes down to 3.5YTL.

- Remember, in the restaurants and 'self-serve' cafeterias, ALWAYS ask the price before you order anything. While in most restaurants and cafes the price along with a photograph of the main dishes are displayed clearly, some places can be really sneaky about it. Especially in the Sultanahmet area. Prices tend to change with the weather and the face of the person buying.

- Also many times in the self-serve cafeterias the person serving at the food counter may try and force items on your plate (especially if you are buying a salad platter). Also the restaurant owners are found standing outside trying to get customers. Most are good natured and will indulge in harmless banter but some can really get aggressive.

- When buying a kebab, if it says 'meat' always find out what kind of meat it is. There meat usually means a mix of lamb and beef. If you are not a beef-eater make sure you order a dish that says lamb or chicken. Most eating joints in the core areas will understand if you tell them that you want no beef or if you want only vegetarian food.

- Eat at Simit Sarayi. It is the Turkish version of Starbucks and the food is EXCELLENT and the staff understand English. Simit Sarayi shops are everywhere and the baked stuff they sell is quite tasty. I would recommend the spinach rose puff and the cheese puff. Turkish coffee they serve here is quite good as well. It is not cheap but it is also not expensive. In other words it is a good place to stop, whether it is for an evening snack and coffee or a heavy breakfast.

- The local Turkish chai (tea) and Apple tea are really good as well for giving you that kick at the end of the day.

4) Bosphorous Cruise:

There are several options here. Many operators offer a short 1.5 hours cruise but I would suggest doing the longer 5 hour tour. It costs 25YTL and it is well worth every Lira. The full cruise takes you almost to the Black Sea (double the distance of the shorter cruise) and has an added benefit of giving you a two hour stopover at Anadolu Kavagi (Asian shore), which is towards the northern end of the Bosphorous.

There is a very picturesque castle there. The castle is about 1.5 kms away from where the boat docks. The climb up to the castle is a bit stiff but can be easily done in the 2 hour window with enough time left for a quick lunch by the dockside once you are back (don't eat before setting out for the castle!). There are excellent views of the Black Sea and both the Asian and European sides as well as the Bosphorous, from the castle. The road up to the castle also gives good views of the village and the city of Istanbul in the distance.

5) Leander's Tower (Maiden's Tower):

Leander's Tower is a must-do attraction. Boats go from both the Asian as well as the European side and cost 5YTL per head. On the Asian side take the boat from the landing near the Harem ferry station. On the European side take the boat from the landing near Dolmabache Palace.

I would recommend having a coffee at the coffee-shop on top of Leander's tower.

Activia Yogurt: Not suitable for vegetarians?

When I was in 5th standard we had a story in our English reader titled 'Look before you eat'.
The moral of the story was, you guessed it, to always look before you eat.

But in this modern age of packaged processed food there is no knowing what you might find if you do look at the printed stuff on the packaging before you eat it. It could be something funny or something scary.

So here goes my personal 'look before you eat' story. The other day while shopping I saw a rhubarb yogurt from Activia. Now we have all seen the yummy looking ads they show on TV, so I said to myself (being a good little consumer), why not try it!
Later that evening, after finishing dinner, I sat down with my Activia rhubarb yogurt in front of the TV. Maybe I was getting bored with what was on the telly or it was god guiding my hands, but I happened to look down at the yogurt pot in my hand (as yet unopened) and saw loads of stuff written in fine print.
That got me curious so I decided to read what it said.. and the funny thing was the first thing that caught my eye was a warning: Not suitable for vegetarians (see pic).

Now that made me even more curious, I mean what could be there in rhubarb yogurt that made it not suitable for vegetarians?
So I went through the list of ingredients and one word leaped out (see pic): Cochineal.

Now that didn't sound chemical, didn't sound fruity, didn't sound meaty. The word cochineal sounded just plain alien. Something about it set of my 'research instincts' and I opened up Google on my phone (Google is our friend!) to find out what exactly is this cochineal stuff.

The result was anything but boring!
As per Wikipedia: "The cochineal (/kɒtʃɨˈniːl/ koch-i-neel or /ˈkɒtʃɨniːl/ KOCH-i-neel; Dactylopius coccus) is a scale insect in the suborder Sternorrhyncha, from which the crimson-coloured dye carmine is derived"

In other words the Activia rhubarb yogurt contains a dye that is extracted from insects. Thus making it unsuitable for vegetarians (?) where as us non-veggies are not expected to be bothered by insect-origin ingredients. Hell, isn't a chicken a really really large and feathered insect?

;)

P.S.: Not all Activia stuff is 'not suitable for vegetarians'. Their strawberry one is 'suitable for vegetraians'. From now on those three words are going to be my guide whenver I try new products.

Source Code

Guys will know what reaction one can get when you suggest a sci-fi movie to our girlfriends/wives/sisters/female friends. The amount of bribing, begging and pleading required to convince females to watch a sci-fi movie is sometimes amazing. But Source Code is a movie for the masses. It is not a heavy machinegun fire filled sci-fi romp that it sounds like. In fact it is a very smooth movie with both a romantic twist as well as an intelligent storyline (girls how many rom-coms can boast of both?). At the same time, believe it or not, it explores the nature and meaning of 'death' and the quantum nature of reality. So it is a sci-fi rom-com thriller with an intelligent base for the story. The movie starts of at the deep end (like all thrillers should) and the plot is laid out bit by bit in every scene. Watching this movie is kind of like peeling an onion and many people will find it simlar to Vantage point but a whole lot less confusing. The basic storyline is simple: a bomb on the train, hero has to locate the bomb and the bomber. Then comes the first big twist: the hero has just 8 minutes to achieve that. From there on it is just one layer after another. Go watch this movie even if the trailor or the title made you think yaawn not another time-travel sci-fi thriller with explosions and stupid twists. The only complaint I have about this movie is that short-cuts are taken with the location of the bomb and the bomber. This has been done, obviously, to fit the timescale. It would be impossible for the hero to search a double decker commuter train with around 400 passengers in 8 minutes. Thus the reason for taking a short-cut! But all that aside, the movie is quite good and I rate it as a must see! :)

My pilgrimage to the Jet Airways Office..

Jet Airways are really good at customer service. So good in fact, that they want you to come to their office and sample their customer service first hand, where as other ‘stupid’ airlines believe in getting the work done over the phone!

This was when we had to postpone the return leg of our journey (as we had one change free). So we called them up and got the booking changed (which was rather efficient, I must admit!).

Then came the surprise. They asked us to come to their city office (in Rajiv Chowk, New Delhi) or the one at the International Airport (a good 1 hrs. drive one way) to physically get the e-ticket changed.

Not only that they also asked us to bring the old e-ticket and a copy of the passports (for identification purposes, as if our identities had changed somehow!). I asked the person that why can’t you e-mail us a copy of the new e-ticket (duh! E-mail  -  E-ticket!) but he said sorry that cannot be done.

So thus began the great pilgrimage to the Jet Airways office.

As we had LOADS of time for random forced journeys (I mean we ARE on our holiday!), we chose the city office thinking it would be easier to get it done there.

So there we presented ourselves at 4pm (by the way office closes SHARP at 5.30pm) only to find the small office (for a BIG airline the front office was the size of a small cozy coffee-shop) full of people. At the desk were two partially trained office staff handling a queue of about twenty-five people.

Let me digress and describe their business process (or the lack thereof).

So the agent sitting on the front desk will physically get-up to give certain documents to the cashier (and a normal transaction would require couple of such trips). Then there would be a small conference at the credit card machine where they would discuss the best way of processing a particular credit card (while people were standing – including me and thinking DAMN this is slower than a government office!).

Then out of the back office there appeared two more agents and the processing got a little quicker (thank god at least they had a token system for the waiting people!). After about 40 minutes of standing around our turn finally came.

Moving to the desk I discovered to my horror that out of the three female staff members two had French manicured nails and were typing with just two fingers! Only one staff member had her nails down to normal length and using both hands to touch type.

So imagine the frustration of watching the lady input the passport details for both me and my wife using just two fingers.

The typing took so long that I almost got hypnotized watching those two manicured fingers click-clacking on the keyboard.

Then she looked up, smiled and said ‘You can collect the tickets from the cashier’. I went to the cashier expecting old fashioned tickets (you know the ones with that red carbon coating and all those magical codes).

But the cashier just handed me two printouts of the new e-tickets. That is what you call ‘irony’.