Middle East Trip
In and around Middle East
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Our overland trip from Istanbul down to Cairo was amazing. We did so much I was just going to write about the highlights, but so much of it was highlights that the list has grown really long. Before I begin the saga here’s a bit about the tour.
As it was an overland trip so we travelled in a big yellow truck, it stuck out miles away and we even saw it from 2000m above. There were 24 seats in the back and the sides consisted of canvas and plastic which most of the time were rolled up. It also had a ‘beach’, double bed sized mattress area where you could stick you head out the front of the truck and watch the view. We had tour leader, Claire and a truck (not a bus) driver Kristy, both legendary at their jobs. Most days began with packing up, having breakfast (often eggs) and then hitting the road or visiting a sight. The majority of the time we started about 9am although one morning was 3am.
Route taken and entries by Real Traveler Marc & Rose
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1
Istanbul - before the trip
We arrived at Ataturk Airport in Istanbul round 1.30am and found a shuttle company to take us to the hostel for 50YTL, we discovered the next morni... Continue reading »
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2
Ruins of Troy
From what I’d heard from others I wasn’t expecting to think much of Troy, but I enjoyed it. It was great seeing where Homer set his drama; unfortunate... Continue reading » -
3
Gallipoli
After seeing all the movies and studying it in school it was different to what I’d expected. ANZAC Cove looked so pretty with sparkling blue sea an... Continue reading »
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4
Ephesus
Ephesus had a lot more actually standing, than Tory. We had the funniest guide, very passionate about his job. He was going a thousand miles an hour,... Continue reading » -
5
Travertines at Pamukkale
The travertines were white calcium formations similar to our pink and white terraces. It was another stinking hot day so we didn’t bother with the Rom... Continue reading » -
6
Boat Crusing & Paragliding at Oludeniz
Oludeniz was stiflingly hot and the lagoon looked very enticing with its clear blue seas, but the water was like a tepid bath so wasn’t much reprie... Continue reading »
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7
Saklikent Gorge
Saklikents a beautiful place. There’s a backdrop of vertical cliffs dropping off in plains with a river sneaking out through a crack in the ro... Continue reading »
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8
Olympos
It was really hot the day we went to Olympos so we spent the after relaxing in the tree houses.
That evening after waiting for the Turks... Continue reading »
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9
Caravanseri at Sultanhani
At Sunltanhani we stopped to visit the caravanseri. A caravanserai was a fort on the Silk Route where the caravans stopped for supplies and trading. Continue reading » -
10
Byzantine Churchs in the Ihlara Valley
We really enjoyed the Ihlara valley, especially because we could go off discovering by ourselves. The valley was step and narrow gorge cut into volcan... Continue reading » -
11
Hot air ballooning over Cappadocia
We had a 4.30am start in order to get us to the take off position in time to catch the right winds. It took awhile to get the balloons unpacked and ge... Continue reading » -
12
Underground City, Pasabag & Turkish Night
In the afternoon we went to Derinkuyu, an underground city where Christians hid out from their enemies. They were a labyrinth of tunnels at least 8... Continue reading »
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13
Goreme Open Air Museum
We went to visit the Goreme Open Air Museum and checked out several rock cut churches with well-preserved frescos. Unfortunately a couple of the ones... Continue reading » -
14
Aleppo
We had an interesting time in the markets in Aleppo over our backgammon pieces. We had been told that if they were real camel bone they wouldn’t burn,... Continue reading » -
15
Crac des Chevaliers Crusader Castle
Crac is the most complete Crusader castle still standing and was the headquarters of the Hospitaller Knights during the Crusades. It was great actuall... Continue reading » -
16
Ancient Ruins of Palmyra
Our campsite at Palmyra was fantastic. Were camped in the middle of a necropolis (Valley of the Dead). There were tower tombs everywhere and we could... Continue reading » -
17
Damascus
We had a couple of days in Damascus, but we preferred our nice camping ground with green grass to the dirty, smelly city. We went into visit the Umayy... Continue reading » -
18
Mt Nebo & The Dead Sea
We visited the church built on the spot where Moses first saw the promised land. I have no idea how he could tell it was flowing with milk and hone... Continue reading »
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19
Petra
We got up early to beat the heat and the tourists and arrived there just before 7am. We quickly made our way up the winding siq to get shots of the tr... Continue reading » -
20
Wadi Rum
In the desert at Wadi Rum we went for a jeep safari. We visited the remains of Laurence of Arabia’s house, a fresh water spring, a canyon, a rock... Continue reading » -
21
Ferry to Egypt
This wasn’t a highlight of the trip but can’t go with out begin mentioned. We caught the ferry overnight from Aquaba (Jordan) to Nuwebia (Egypt). Marc... Continue reading » -
22
Dahab
Dahab was a great chance to relax for a few days. Rose did an introductory dive course, it was incredible. It was such a surreal experience... Continue reading » -
23
Mount Sinai
We spent the night camped out on Mt Sinai so we could watch the sun rise. We caught camels up as Rose’s knees were bothering her, camel ridings is a l... Continue reading » -
24
Aswan
In Aswan we went on a boat ride to explore Elephantine and the Botanical Islands. We also went for dinner at a house in a traditional Nubian village. Continue reading » -
25
Abu Simbel
We had to be up by 3am to make the police convoy down to Abu Simbel. Abu Simbel is huge temples carved into the hillside by Ramses II in honour of him... Continue reading » -
26
Felucca Trip
We spent two days on feluccas cruising down the Nile, it was awesome. We loved just cruising down the Nile, jumping overboard whenever we felt like a... Continue reading » -
27
Kom Ombo & Edfu Temples
On the way back to Luxor after the felucca trip we stopped to visit Kom Ombo & Edfu temples. Kom Ombo had suffered a lot of damage over the years... Continue reading » -
28
Luxor, West Bank & Karnak Temple
After another early start we made our way over to the Valley of the Kings where we checked out 3 tombs, one was King Tut’s. After a steep descent u... Continue reading »
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29
Giza & Cairo
After the tiring overnight train ride to Cairo we set off the visit the only one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World left standing, the pyramids... Continue reading »
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