Turkey, the basics of our trip and getting there
This trip was, unusual for us, a group tour. We were lucky enough to latch onto a group of nurses, both military and civilian, who were going to Istanbul for 4 days, and then on a bus tour of western Anatolia. It was not inexpensive but a welcome change, at least for me, to have someone else make all the arrangements for airport transfers, hotels, meals, etc.
We had to leave on Friday very early, well before dawn, so we drove up to Frankfurt the night before and spent the night at the Carat hotel by the airport. This is the place that Lufthansa staff stay, so we thought we'd be well served. And yes, everything was great: the room, where we left our car, the ride to the airport in the morning. They even made breakfast for us early in the morning before we left.
Friday a.m., our group was delivered to the airport at 5:30 a.m., where we met the rest of the people from Frankfurt (another group was coming from Münich; we met them in Instanbul) and settled in for some early morning people watching. We decided the man in front of us at security was Chinese: he wore long pants gathered at the cuff and stuffed into socks, overlarge floppy slippers, a straw hat with a wide brim and rounded crown, a Jack Wolfskin jacket and carried a small bright pink backpack.
We flew Turkish Airlines for about 4 hours to Instanbul, receiving a full Turkish breakfast on the plane with a METAL KNIFE. I literally can't remember the last time I had a metal knife on a plane. Pre 9-11 for sure. The food included: steamed spinach and bell peppers, Feta filo pastry, grilled ham sandwich (crusts removed), sliced cucumbers and tomatoes, olives, a slice of cheese and a piece of cake with plums on top.
On the way to our hotel, the Taksim Metropark Hotel close by Taksim Square in the new part of the city, we heard the standard tourist spiel about the city and the interesting places we were driven past. We also heard that the word "politics" in Turkish is literally translated as "Byzantine games." I guess the Byzantines were known for their tricky politics!
EDIT: The Taksim Metro is about 50 yards from Sunday's suicide bomber. eep (to borrow a phrase from a friend) ....