Our latest blogs on our 'Round the World trip are posted including Thailand and Cambodia. The link is to our main blog site and the first blog is our usual 'country wrap up' style telling all we did and saw with lots of photos. But don't miss the 2 after that (written before that) by our boys (age 11) with a brief commentary on their experiences...very entertaining stuff.
We'll have the India blog up soon as well, but right now we're recovering from jet lag after traveling from India to Istanbul, Turkey.
Thanks for sharing your travel stories! I can't wait to hear about what you do in Istanbul as our family will be there for 2 days this summer and I am in the midst of planning what to do while there.
Lisa, Istanbul is amazing, we'll write much more later, but I strongly encourage you to increase the time you expect to spend there if at all possible. I was eagerly anticipating Turkey before we got here and it is far exceeding our expectations. One week is not nearly enough time and we're already planning what we'll do when we return...and we haven't even left yet!
I would love to spend more time in Istanbul but we have a 2 day stop there as part of a Mediterranean cruise. I fully expect that we will want to return after such a brief introduction. I'm debating right now whether, given our limited time, I should book a private tour guide for at least one of the days rather than try to see the city on our own. Do you have any views on whether a guide would be useful? Did you find Istanbul a difficult city to navigate on your own? We also will be in Ephesus - will you be spending any time there on your travels?
The city is doable on your own, but a guide definately enhances the experience and makes it faster to find things and get between spots. Our private guide had tickets for us so we never had to wait in the (sometimes long) queues to get tickets for the more popular attractions. I can give you our guide's information if you like, he's based outside of Istanbul and generally does tours around the country, but perhaps he's available--he's very nice, very good and I would highly recommend him as he is quite knowledgable too.
Thank you - I would definitely appreciate the guide info. I've been looking at a couple that are recommended on the cruisecritic website as well. I've been told by friends that Istanbul is quite easy to get around on your own but my gut feeling is that a guide will enhance the experience - in no small part because my kids are more likely to listen to a guide than they are to me and thus absorb a little more knowlege while there.
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All About the Extras
Sail & Sign Card
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