My Last summer vacations | by @event-horizon

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^{Disclaimer: All pictures are mine. No one is allowed to resuse them in any way.}

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Ever since I read Jannat kay Pattay, I became infatuated with Turkey. I read that novel during my university days. At that time, visiting a place abroad seemed not only difficult but also impossible.

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>>> Six years later >>>

It was the summer of 2019, my husband came back home and told me that he was going to Baku - Azerbaijan for an official trip for two weeks, and after that, he had one week's holiday that he could spend in Turkey. He asked me to join him there. I couldn't believe my ears that I have been given a chance to visit my favorite place out of nowhere.

He had already got his official passport but I had never been out of the country so I had to apply for it. Not only mine but also my son's (at that time, we had only Muhammad).

After a month's struggle, we got our passports and visas. With that husband set off to Baku, I was alone with my 2-year-old son for 15 days. I had nothing to do except plan the trip. We didn't hire a travel agent, I made the itinerary all by myself.

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The Night of Departure

We were living in Karachi at that time. I booked a direct flight from Karachi to Istanbul because I had a two-year-old with me and no husband to help out. I couldn't have managed the stopovers of transit flights alone. It was a six-hour flight and the departure was at 5:00 am. That meant I was awake all night. Although, I used to live near the airport as it was the international flight and the anxiety of traveling alone abroad for the first time, took over me and I left as early as I could. I got free all the airport screening in less than an hour and had to wait patiently for the airplane. Thank God, Muhammad was in good mood.

^{Airport mode}

Finally, at 5:00 am, we boarded the plane and the journey began. By that time, the sun had also arisen. So we were served breakfast by the flight crew. It was Turkish Airline so the menu was accordingly. I liked a few items and others were just ok. After that Muhammad and I slept and woke up 5 hours later. I was still sleepy but I forced myself awake because the landing was near and I didn't want to miss the view of Istanbul from above.

^{Aerial View of Istanbul}

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Stinky Arrival in Istanbul

I was so engrossed watching out of the window that I completely forgot about Muhammad. Only when I smelled something stinky, I checked him and wanted to hit my head somewhere because his diaper was leaked and his clothes were a total mess. It was landing time so I couldn't get up and take him to the toilet. I had to patiently wait for the plane to land. Once it did, I immediately took him to the toilet and wiped him clean, and changed his clothes. It took me ages to tidy him up as there was no space to move.

After the stinky arrival in Istanbul, we finally made it out of the airport. I took a bus to Sultanahmet Cami. It was an hour-long bus ride. When we reached there, I had to find our hotel. My Internet wasn't set up yet and natives didn't know English. Luckily, I had the papers printed for hotel booking. There was a map on it, I showed it to several natives on each turn and they guided me to the hotel. It was few blocks away but took me ages to locate it.

When I checked in to the hotel and got settled into the room, only then the reality set in - I was alone with my 2-year-old son in an unknown country, thousands of miles away from home. Husband hadn't arrived yet from Baku. After spending 3 hours impatiently, finally, he arrived. Only then I was able to breathe and the excitement set in.

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Sultan Ahmet Square

We were so tired and jet-lagged that didn't want to do anything but as we had only a few days for the trip, we decided to make the most of it. We got ready to explore the Sultan Ahmet Square restaurants in hopes of a good dinner. We just walked and admired the beautiful place. I finally breathed in the fresh and clean air of the city. The square is the number one tourist attraction of Istanbul so it was cramped with hundreds of tourists. It is on the European side of Istanbul as well. After exploring and planning our day, we found a place for dinner. I had high expectations from Turkish food but my Pakistani palate felt bland. (no offense meant to Turkish friends)

After dinner, we were so tired so went back to the hotel.

The next morning, we visited Blue Mosque, Basilica Cistern, Hagia Sophia, Topkapi Palace, Dolambache Palace, Bosphorus.

^{Hagia Sophia}

^{Interior of Blue Mosque}

^{Basilica Cistern - used to be an underground water storage}

If you have read Dan's Brown novel Origin then Basilica Cistern might interest you the most.

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Visit to Prince's Islands

Later that day, we went to Pendik (district) , a place on the Asian side of Istanbul. We had a hotel booking there for the night. We selected that hotel and room very thoughtfully. There was Sea of Marmara outside. We booked a room with a sea view. Spent the whole evening, sitting near the shoreline. There was a recreational park for children and many places to eat.
I liked that place so much that I can't describe in words. If I have to spend the rest of my life in that country, I would have chosen that area. I love places near sea. Such places have different sense of tranquility.

Pendik sahil	View from hotel room

The next morning, we had the most lavish breakfast at the hotel. We are foodies so we thoroughly enjoyed it. After that, we took a train to Kartal ferry station and set off to Buyukada Island - the biggest island among the seven Prince's islands.

^{Kartal ferry station}

The ferry ride was an extremely memorable experience. It took us 45 minutes to reach the island. If you have read Jannat kay Pattay then you must have dreamed of this Island. As described in the book, that place was heaven on Earth. It was so so beautiful. The only transport in that area were carriages or bicycles. So that island was pollution-free. The houses there were so pretty that you wouldn't want to blink your eyes in case you miss something. The view of the sea on every other corner made the place look like a fairytale. We spent the entire day there and just didn't want to leave.

^{Glimpse of Buyukada Island}

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Flight to Antalya

We had a flight to Antalya that night, so we came back to our hotel at Pendik and got ready for the airport. It was an hour-long flight. Late in the night, we reached Antalya. It was a slightly warmer city than Istanbul. We stayed in Kalesi there. It was an old town full of historic places and near to Konyalti Beach.

The next morning, we had a yummy Turkish breakfast at our B&B then we headed to Duden Waterfalls. It was a caved waterfall. The entire place was very beautiful. The pictures couldn't do justice.

^{Duden Waterfalls}

Then we headed off to the Mall of Antalya. Had lunch there and did some shopping.

Then we went to visit Larach Beach. It is a very beautiful place. We enjoyed the sunset there.

^{Lara Beach}

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Day Visit to Pamukkale

The next day, we took a bus to Denizli. It was a 3 hours bus ride. We reached there around noon and had lunch. Then we had to go on a hike to Pamukkale.

Pamukkale is a town in western Turkey known for the mineral-rich thermal waters flowing down white travertine terraces on a nearby hillside. It neighbors Hierapolis, an ancient Roman spa city founded around 190 B.C. Ruins there include a well-preserved theater and a necropolis with sarcophagi that stretch for 2km. The Antique Pool is famous for its submerged Roman columns, the result of an earthquake. ― Google

^Pamukkale

I have never seen anything like Pamukkale. I can't describe it in words and the pictures couldn't do justice to the place as well.

It was another memorable visit.

We came back to Antalya, late in the night and had a flight back to Istanbul at 5 in the morning. By that time, my nerves were breaking along with my legs. We were so so tired and sleep-deprived. But couldn't afford to miss the flight.

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Flight back to Istanbul and then back to Karachi

We arrived in Istanbul early in the morning. Spent the day in Grand Bazar and Spice Bazar. After lunch, we checked some more places that we missed earlier. Then when we couldn't do further physical activity, we went to the airport and slept there on the comfy couches till the flight time.

The flight was at night time again. But this time, I was a little relaxed as my husband was with us. He took care of Muhammad and I slept off the entire flight.

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I have tried hard to summarize the trip. I could have written ten posts on it but it's for the contest so had to sum it up in one post. After this trip, I haven't had any summer vacation due to the pandemic.

Tagging @aniqamashkoor, @mahnoor11, @hibbanoor

Thank you @janemorane for this interesting contest.

Kind Regards,

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