Day 5 - Izmir

Our original plan was to take the IDO ferry from Yenikapi terminal to Bandirma, where it connects to an express train to Izmir. All in all, it was supposed to take a total of 9 hours. We would have cruised the Marmara Sea and saw a lot of the Turkish countryside, but alas, the travel agent we spoke to was a douche. He told us the we would be able to just walk on to the ferry with no problems...when we checked the day of departure, it was full. My mistake for taking the word of someone else. Lesson learned. Instead, we purchased 2 tickets to Izmir courtesy of Turkish Airlines. What a great flight! A quick trip, a fresh healthy in flight meal and enough room to stretch my 6'3" frame. Air Canada has nothing on Turkish Air.

We arrived at Adnan Menderes Airport and were whisked away in a Taksi (Turkish) to our Pensiyon called the Vatan Otel. When we pulled up to the first Vatan Otel, my pulse drastically increased!! Thank the travel gods, it was the wrong one! A few blocks down the road our driver decried that this was the proper hostel. There we were met by a parrot named Vatan and his owner, who looked similarly like his 30 year old feathered friend, right down to the hair!!

We checked in and traipsed upstairs. Our room was clean and comfortable, but definitely not
the 4 Seasons, who wants that pampering anyways?! After cleaning up we decided to check out the vast building, complete with 2 restaurants, a computer room and a lovely garden terrace located in the back away from the scorching 35 degree sun. We enjoyed some complimentary refreshments and reflected on our stay in Istanbul.

Izmir, though beautiful, was a place we expected to pass through, but we decided to seek out Efes at a local eatery. After meandering down a beautiful back street surrounded by merchants, fresh fruit vendors and Ivy covered corner shops, we popped out beside Basmane Gir (station). I remembered that the reason I picked the pensiyon was it's proximity to the train station. Having learned my lesson, we ducked inside and purchased 2 tickets to Selcuk, our next destination, for a mere 11 Turkish lira ($6)!! We were set for the next day, so we decided to celebrate with some mezes at the pensiyon's annexed eatery. After struggling with our poor Turkish, they understood what we wanted and smiles immediately flashed across their faces.Triumphantly they paraded dish after dish of Turkish salads and Russian breads to our table, followed by Efes after Efes (the best Turkish beer!). We thanked them in Turkish and told them how full we were and how delicious it was, the cook even came out to receive his accolades!! We paid the bill and promptly retired to our room, bellies full and the sounds of the late night festivities filtering through our window. Ahhhh the Turks...