OnTheRoad

I logged into my internet banking the other day and discovered, to my surprise, that the Australian Tax Office had just given me AU$900. I feared some sort of trap, but apparently they're just giving away money these days. As it's part of a stimulus package, intended to boost the Australian economy, should I feel guilty when I spend the money on beer in Istanbul?

Guess not :)

And we are indeed back in Istanbul, just over two years since I was last here. Inflation seems to be running rife, as hostels here cost more than hostels back in NZ (no, I'm not kidding - check HostelWorld if you doubt me)... I've had to overcome the tight fisted attitude that always sets in after extended time in cheap countries (e.g. Syria and Egypt) and managed to drag myself to the Topkapi Palace yesterday (which made me think of the delicious kebabs from Topkapi on Manchester Street). I'd been too cheap to do it last time around, coming from Bulgaria, but it was money well spent, despite the screaming hordes of schoolchildren yelling out "konichi wa" to June :) The collections of jewels and whatnot was almost as good as the Nation Jewel Museum in Tehran (you remember that one Mum?).

Of course, we're going to get to make the comparision directly soon enough. Again the plans have changed, and we applied for our Irani visas the day before yesterday. We're going to pick them up in Erzurum and catch up with some old friends on the way through. Hopefully we'll get to check out some new spots along the way - the north coast of Turkey, along the Black Sea, sounds somewhat like home - mountainous, green and wet - should be fun!

Syria has been, for me at least, good fun. I'm a little sick of castles and ruins though, and can do with a break from falafel and shawarma. I miss the coffee something wicked though; they call it Turkish coffee, but it's too goddamn expensive in Istanbul to drink the stuff. A shock to the system when you'd gradually cranked the daily income up to four or five cups. There was one day with a massive headache as the withdrawl set in, but it seems to have passed quickly and I can stagger through the day with the meagre support of the thin cup of Nescafe that comes with breakfast here.

Almost all of the Syrian photos are up now, go check them out. A few more will make it up over the next couple of days, so come on back, click on a few adverts, and help me to save that AU tax bonus for use in AU when I return ;)

Highlights of Syria: castles (especially, of course, Krak des Chevaliers), coffee (aaaaaaahhhhhh), minibusses, ruins (especially Rasafa). The hospitality was good, at times, but not quite what I had expected; Pakistan and Iran have them beaten hands down. Tourism seems to be really taking off there, and perhaps this is the root of the change.

Signing off now to go drink Starbucks. Yes, Starbucks. It's actually cheaper to get a coffee there than in the Sultanahmet region of Istanbul, even though it still costs more than a coffee in Christchurch. I miss you C1!