2nd & 3rd Göreme to Istanbul

After breakfast we headed back to the carpet shop. We were very glad we went back as they put out the carpet we had chosen the day before plus all the others from the same group. We had chosen a fine Turkmen carpet from Turkmenistan and a couple of woven grain sacks we could make into cushions. After seeing the rest of the carpets we decided on a larger one without the cushions. The photo does not do it justice but you get the idea. After our big purchase we walked up to the lookout that overlooks Göreme and the Rose mountains. again the picture does not show the depth of colour in the mountain. We had a lovely lunch of Gözleme on carpet and cushions, just like we hope to recreate back home. We boarded our final bus trip of this tour at 4pm headed for Ankara and our overnight train trip to Istanbul. David had a fall on the steps when we were changing platforms and by the time he righted himself the rest of the group had disappeared. We had a bit of a panic as we did not know what platform or train we were going on. We both took turns at checking the platform but still had no luck finding the group. One man told me the sleeper train left from platform 0ne (where we had come from) at 10.30pm, but we knew our train was to leave at 10pm. He asked to see our tickets but we didn't have them. David was starting to panic as we only had 15 minutes till the train left, this made Catriona panic as well. David found the dining car and asked some staff where the sleeper compartment was, eventually finding the group who had only just realised we were not there. It took a few minutes to calm down after boarding the train and we ended up playing cards and drinking vodka and raki in our cabin till 1am. We arrived at Haydarpasa station Istanbul at around 7am. We then had to board a ferry to cross the Sea of Marmara to the European side of Istanbul and our finishing point hotel. The whole group then set off for breakfast before saying our farewells. Chris and Sharon planned to take a Bosphorous cruise so we decided to join them. After a quick walk up and down the pier trying to find the public ferry we joined a tour that took us up the the Black Sea. We arrived at Anadolukavaği just after midday so we had fish for lunch at a little restaurant then wandered around the town before setting off back to Istanbul at 3pm. The cruise was very relaxing, and the views spectacular.

Ortaköy Mosque-Istanbul

Dolmabahçe Palace

After the cruise we all went to Misir Carsisi Mosque then the spice markets which was very colourful and crowded. We said goodbye to Sharon and Chris then walked a couple of blocks to our next accommodation - Marmara Guest house. Unfortunately our room wasn't ready, it is being refurbished and they had to install the lights - so for a couple of hours we sat upstairs on the roof terrace. What a fantastic location, views over the sea of Marmara and over to the Asian side of Istanbul. We passed a few hours up  there chatting with Sheldon on Skype and checking emails etc. We walked up past the Blue Mosque and Ayasofya to have dinner in a restaurant on Divanolu Caddesi. It was just before 9pm when we set off back to the guesthouse, walking through Sultanahmet square. We checked into our room, (we were the first to use this room, new bed and all, very comfortable) had showers and went to bed exhausted but happy.