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Turkey travel diary | 4 day family visit in Istanbul

11/10/2024 | Reageer

Hi everyone! In July I visited my youngest aunt in Istanbul for about 4 days. As some of you may not know, I am 75% Dutch and 25% Turkish from my father’s side. Unfortunately I don’t speak the language, but we always try to find our way with some German or Google Translate. A large part of my family (my father’s side) is Turkish (originally from the Trabzon – Black Sea region, back in the bloodline probably Russian descendants which is quite visible in the appearance within our family) and live in Turkey and Germany. During the trip I didn’t spend a lot of time creating content, and anyway I have always been very conscious in creating content. Sometimes I see friends/others who are so obsessed with creating content or deeply forcing certain photos/content that the entire trip passes them by, it takes up hours and also removes all attention from being in the now. Everyone has their own thing of course, but I think it is a shame when so much time and consciousness is lost in this way. That’s why I only posted everything from this trip afterwards.
Hi allemaal! In Juli ben ik op bezoek geweest bij mijn jongste tante in Istanbul voor zo’n 4 daagjes. Zoals sommigen wellicht niet weten, ben ik 75% Nederlands en 25% Turks van mijn vaders kant. Helaas spreek ik de taal niet, maar we proberen altijd onze weg te vinden met wat Duits of Google Translate. Een groot deel van mijn familie (mijn vaders kant) is Turks (oorspronkelijk uit de regio Trabzon – Zwarte Zee, terug in de bloedlijn waarschijnlijk Russische descendanten wat vrij zichtbaar is in het uiterlijk binnen onze familie) en wonen in Turkije en Duitsland.  Tijdens de reis heb ik niet heel veel tijd besteed aan het maken van content, en sowieso ben ik altijd al heel erg bewust in het maken van content. Soms zie ik vrienden/anderen die zo geobsedeerd zijn met content maken of het diep forceren van bepaalde foto’s/content dat de hele reis langs ze heen gaat, het uren opneemt en bovendien de hele aandacht van het in het nu zijn verwijderd. Iedereen zijn eigen ding natuurlijk, maar ik vind het erg zonde als op die manier zo veel tijd en bewustzijn verloren gaat. Daarom heb ik alles van deze reis pas achteraf gepost.

Day 1 – Amsterdam & Istanbul – 18-07-2024

Today started with crew tickets from Amsterdam to the new airport of Istanbul, well, at first once again the Dutch train network did not run, so I postponed leaving to a flight 3 hours after a super long wait at the station and in between I went home. I got a ticket quickly once I got to Amsterdam, so that was a great bonus. After a nice flight with the Turkish Airlines crew, from whom I got a super sweet card, my aunt was already waiting at the airport with a balloon and her car, to pick me up.

We started the evening with a walk through Fişekhane – a super nice and luxurious district that I had never visited before. Because almost everything was already closed, we went to eat Lahmacun and Cigköfte somewhere nearby.

Vandaag begon IPB vanaf Amsterdam naar de nieuwe luchthaven van Istanbul, althans, wederom reed NS niet, dus heb ik de vlucht 3 uur verlaat na super lang wachten op het station en ben ik tussendoor nog naar huis gegaan. Ik kreeg in Amsterdam al snel een ticket, dus dat was super mooi meegenomen. Na een leuke vlucht met de Turkish Airlines crew waar ik een super lieve kaart van kreeg, stond mijn tante al op de airport klaar met een ballon en haar auto, om me op te halen.

We begonnen de avond met een wandeling door Fişekhane – een super leuke en luxe wijk die ik nog nooit had bezocht. Omdat zo goed als alles al dicht ging, zijn we ergens in de buurt nog Lahmacun en Cigköfte gaan eten


Day 2 – Istanbul – 19-07-2024

Today was the day with the most activities. We went to a rooftop bar together for dinner – which was quite expensive, where we had delicious Pide with cheese (Definitely a tip in Turkey) We also took some pictures together. Even though Sonya and my father have different mothers – my father has a Dutch (my grandmother) mother and Sonya is Turkish, she definitely does not look or feel like my half aunt. To us in the family we see each other as full-fledged. My aunts and I definitely look alike, even though my aunts are fully Turkish and I am only a quarter. Can you believe we are 11 years apart?! Then we went to the colorful district of Balat – which was at the top of my list of places to visit in Istanbul. Balat is known for its many colors. In this area you can find cute shops, places to eat, cafes and photogenic places – if you want to take nice pictures, I definitely recommend that too. We also had some tea nearby. In the evening we had Mexican food in Fişekhane.
Vandaag was de dag met de meeste activiteiten. We zijn samen gaan eten bij een rooftopbar – die behoorlijk prijzig was, waar we heerlijke Pide met kaas zijn gaan eten (Zeker een tip in Turkije) We hebben ook wat foto’s gemaakt samen. Ondanks Sonya en mijn vader een andere moeder hebben – mijn vader een Nederlandse (mijn oma) moeder en Sonya een Turkse, lijkt en voelt ze absoluut niet als mijn half tante. Voor ons in de familie zien we elkaar als vol aan. Mijn tantes en ik lijken ook zeker op elkaar, ondanks mijn tantes volledig Turks zijn en ik maar kwart. Kun je geloven dat wij 11 jaar schelen?! Vervolgens zijn we naar de kleurrijke wijk Balat gegaan – wat ik bovenaan mijn lijstje van een Istanbul bezoek had staan. Balat staat bekend om zijn vele kleuren. Op deze plek kun je schattige winkeltjes vinden, eetplekjes, café’s en fotogenieke plekken – als je leuke foto’s wil maken, raad ik je dat ook zeker aan. Hier in de buurt hebben we ook nog even thee gedronken. In de avond aten we Mexicaans in Fişekhane.
Day 3 – Istanbul – 20-07-2024

We took it easy today. We had a big breakfast at my aunt’s apartment, and then headed out to Ortaköy. We took some pictures at this beautiful spot – because it’s a very famous and busy photo spot. Istanbul has become 250% more expensive (!) in some ways compared to when I was there in 2019, so keep in mind that it’s not as cheap as it used to be. Our iced coffee cost 7.80 per person! In this area we also ate a very large baked and stuffed potato – something you see a lot in Turkey. We ended the day with a girls night, where we ordered pizza and watched a movie at Sonya’s place.
Deze dag deden we het rustig aan. We ontbeten uitgebreid in het appartement van mijn tante, om daarna op pad te gaan naar Ortaköy. Op deze mooie plek hebben we wat foto’s gemaakt – omdat het een erg bekende en druk bezochte fotoplek is. Istanbul is in sommige opzichten 250% duurder geworden (!) vergeleken met toen ik er in 2019 was, dus houd er rekening mee dat het niet meer zo goedkoop is als het was. Onze ijs koffie kostte dan ook 7,80 per persoon! In deze wijk aten we ook nog een hele grote gepofte en gevulde aardappel – wat je veel ziet in Turkije. De dag sloten we af met een girls night, in waar we Pizza bestelde en film keken bij Sonya thuis.
Day 4 – Istanbul & Amsterdam – 21-07-2024

This was the last day of my short trip to Istanbul. Today we were too tired to really do anything, so we went for an extensive breakfast at The Vagonn Café in Ataköy for a delicious Turkish breakfast – this is also where the cover photo of this post was taken. I definitely recommend this nice place! Not long after our brunch, I took the bus to the airport – this went very smoothly and quickly. At the airport, I got a seat right away at the IPB check-in, and I was also really pampered on the Turkish Airlines flight.

Thank you for reading my mini travel diary! Below are some tips from both my trip in 2019 and 2024.

Dit was de laatste dag van mijn korte trip naar Istanbul. Vandaag waren we te moe om echt dingen te ondernemen, dus gingen we uitgebreid ontbijten bij The Vagonn Café in Ataköy voor een heerlijk Turks ontbijt – op deze plek is de omslagfoto van deze post ook genomen. Ik raad je deze leuke plek dan ook zeker aan! Niet lang na onze brunch, nam ik de bus naar de airport – dit is overigens heel soepel gegaan en snel. Op de airport kreeg ik bij de IPB check-in al direct een stoel, en ben de vlucht van Turkish airlines ook ontzettend in de watten gelegd.

Dank je wel voor het lezen van mijn mini reisdagboek! Onderstaand wat tips van zowel mijn reis in 2019 als 2024.



Istanbul tips

Food

– Börek
– Pide
– Cigköfte (Vegan)
– Köfte
– Dolma
– Lahmacun
– Pişmaniye
– Baklava

Area’s and sightseeing

– Balat
– Fişekhane
– Ortaköy
– Mask beach
– Galata (tower)
– Sultan Ahmed mosque
– Hagia Sopia

Restaurant’s/Cafe’s

– Mendell’s Chocolate
– The Vagonn Cafe
– Ranchero Fişekhane

Related posts:

Outfit | Metropol

Mexico travel diary (extra long) | one month solo in Mexico part 3

Outfit | Azul

Categorie: The Middle East, Travel, Turkey Tags: family visit, istanbul, travel, turkey, turkey travel

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✨ Growth looks different on everyone. I’m proud of mine. I’m 28 and not scared to admit it (part 3) 💭✨ It’s easy to curate perfection online — harder to admit what shaped you. This year, I’ve been more honest than ever. With others, and with myself. Some things still hurt. Some things still heal. But growth? Growth looks good on me. #NotScaredToAdmit #28AndEvolving #AuthenticityFirst #GrowthSeason #RealIsRare . . . . . #stewardess #flightattendant #cabincrew #missnetherlands #cabinattendant #elegant #missgrand #missgrandnetherlands #beautypageant #shertogenbosch #missnederland #missgrandinternational #missnetherlands
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Happy international flight attendant day ✈️ Some past pics from the last 1-3 out of 7 years 📸 (Disclaimer: All colleagues in the pictures have been asked permission for a social media post in the past)
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Happy international flight attendant day ✈️ Some past pics from the last 1-3 out of 7 years 📸 (Disclaimer: All colleagues in the pictures have been asked permission for a social media post in the past) . . . . #stewardess #flightattendant #transavia #transaviacrew #cabincrew #missnetherlands #cabinattendant #missgrand #missgrandnetherlands #beautypageant #shertogenbosch #missnederland #missgrandinternational #missnetherlands
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5 years of blogging mini video 2015-2020

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