Farewell Israel, hello Turkey

Tour day 8 - 4th April

A transit day for us, as we farewelled Israel and said g’day to Turkey for a couple of days. It was a super early start, our alarm went off at 2.15am and our driver met us in the hotel lobby at 2.55am for the trip back to Ben Gurion airport. We had two flights with Pegasus, Turkey’s “digital” airline, whatever that means (probably Turkish for “budget”), the first to Istanbul, the second to Izmir on the coast of Turkey.

Security in Israel was tight, as we had expected, and we waited for an hour at the first (of several) security checks. One of our group was called to the security desk during this time to answer questions about the group - where were we all from, did we all know each other before, where had we been, where had we come from before Israel, did anyone ask us to take anything in our suitcases, did we pack for ourselves - no wonder they told us we would need to leave the hotel 4 hours before the flight departed!

A 3-hour transit stop in Istanbul allowed us to sample Turkish Starbucks, which wasn’t too bad, and at least they did soy and decaf. We sat for a while in the comfy seats, then it was on to Izmir. Flying above the clouds in the blue, blue sky is always lovely, but as we approached Izmir the clouds dispersed and we landed into bright sunshine.

A minor drama upon arrival, when our luggage didn’t appear at the baggage carousel for the flight we’d just been on. But suspiciously, ALL our baggage was missing, none of our small group of 7 had seen a suitcase. So we checked with airport staff, who informed us that we needed to go to the International baggage claim, even though we’d just landed on an internal/domestic flight. We were actually “transit passengers” and our luggage would be separated out. A long, long walk to the international area, and there, happily, were our 7 suitcases. Phew! Thanks Pegasus for not losing our luggage after all!

Izmir is on the coast but Adnan Menderes Havalimani airport is not, so we didn’t get to see the Aegean coast at first A new driver met us at Izmir airport, and we boarded the bus bound for Kusadasi, also on the coast. Out the bus window Turkey looked very pretty and green, the landscape of flat fields giving way to sudden mountains in the distance. We saw olive groves and pine plantations, fruit orchards and vegetable gardens. Our drive told us “tangerine”, and then there were roadside stalls laden with the lovely orange fruit.

Then it was up and over the mountains, and when we finally glimpsed the Aegean Sea it was worth the wait to see it sparkling before us. Beautiful.

We finally arrived at our hotel around 4pm, right on the harbour at Kusadasi. Tired from the early start, but still wanting to suck this whole experience dry, we set off for a walk around the town, which is very pretty and reminded me a little of the towns on the Amalfi Coast, especially the steep cobbled steps leading up between the houses. We went in search of one of the better-known Turkish baths, hoping to see if it might be something we could arrange for the following afternoon, but sadly it was closed. Asking a couple of locals, in broken English they explained that it’s too early in the season, and there is not enough demand. We would need to wait a month or so.

Never mind, the afternoon was mild and sunny and lovely for a walk, and we found locally made Turkish Delight, and a very friendly vendor who invited us to taste all the varieties.

Dinner was in the hotel restaurant on the 7th floor, overlooking the bay, where we met with the new tour group with whom we’ll be spending the next few days, as well as our Turkish tour guide Shibi, and enjoyed a Kusadasi sunset over the town.