Bozcaada – Heaven or Hell

Photo by Ferhan Talib

Only a year ago, I stepped on this island for the first time and it made believe in “love at first sight.” Even on the ferry going from Geyikli Yukyeri Port to Bozcaada I had a huge smile on my face, like I already knew that I was going to fell in love with this island.

It was early June, when my friends and I arrived on the island, and the season had not yet started. I believe that the peaceful and serene atmosphere of the island was one of the main reasons why I fell in love with Bozcaada.

I’ve visited Bozcaada many times since my first visit during the crowded (by “crowded,” I mean packed) seasons, which were not as delightful as off-season days, but still there is always a secluded beach or café to find even during the most crowded times of the year.

Bozcaada was one of Turkey’s best kept secrets until the 2010s, but today it is one the most popular destinations for romantic couples and families looking for a quite place away from daily city life.

How couldn’t it be? Bozcaada produces its own wine and gets the most delicious seafood from its bays. It could be one of the best destinations for those who like to wine & dine…

Bozcaada is also great for swimming if you are interested in ice-cold water. Ayazma is the most well-known beach on the island, but that also means it is the most crowded.


If you’re looking to be a bit more isolated you can always try Tuzburnu, Poyrazland, Igdelik and Akvaryum. Even in the city centre you could have a lovely day swimming in the back sea by the historical castle.

During the season you can travel around the island by minibuses.

But, for me, walking in the city centre’s narrow streets, which are surrounded by the old houses of the island, is more intriguing than anything else.

When you spend the day walking around the lovely houses of the island, or have coffee in the hidden gardens of the island’s lovely cafes, you’ll be ready to see the wonderful sunset.

The most popular way to watch the sunset while you are on the island is to go to the Polente Lighthouse, just in front of the windmills.

But my choice would be enjoying the sunset by the sea (you can always find a captain willing to take you to enjoy that view). But whether you watch the sunset by Polente Lighthouse or on a little boat floating in the sea - do not forget to take a bottle of local wine with you.

Bozcaada is best for romantic couples and families with kids because there not many options if you are interested in a heavy night life. There are a few bars where you can enjoy a few drinks before or after dinner, but the music ends by midnight. That means you can go to bed early in order to wake up early for the best breakfast in town.


Rengigül Konukevi’s breakfast is sensational with its 45 different kinds of homemade jams. If you ever visit Bozcaada, do not go back without enjoying this experience. Reservation is a must.

For me Bozcaada is heaven, but remember, it has the potential to become a hell if you ever decide to visit the island during Bayram holidays, where thirty thousand people trying to survive on 1500-2000 people populated island.

Good to know:
- From Istanbul to Bozcaada is 6 hours by car, 10 hours by bus.
- Geyikli Yukyeri Port is 50 km away from Çanakkale, you can fly to Çanakkale from Istanbul
- Make sure you check the Geyikli-Bozcaada ferry schedule, it differs from winter to summer
- Try to avoid coming to Bozcaada on Saturdays, and leaving Bozcaada on Sundays during summer season, or be prepared to wait in a ferry queue for at least a few hours
- Make dinner and breakfast reservations even before coming to the island - better to be safe than sorry
- Special tip for romantic couples: Bozcaada is even more romantic when you visit the island on autumn and spring… (Ferhan Talib/Hurriyet Daily News)

National Geographic team visiting Turkey

The magazine’s committee members visit the eastern provinces of Kars and Iğdır. AA photo

National Geographic, one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational institutions in the world, has decided to shoot more documentaries about Turkey.

“National Geographic has decided to organize its annual donors’ trip to Turkey next year and to shoot more documentaries about Turkey,” said Çağan Şekercioglu, the head of the North Nature Association and a lecturer at Utah University’s Department of Biology.

National Geographic magazine’s committee members recently visited the eastern Anatolian provinces of Kars and Iğdır under a program organized by Şekercioglu.

He said people extending financial and other support to National Geographic would participate in the visit, which is expected to take place in the fall of 2013.

East Anatolia will be included in the program, as well as Istanbul, Cappadocia and the Mediterranean, Şekercioglu said. He said he hoped National Geographic would assume a significant role in promotion of eastern Anatolia. (WASHINGTON - Anatolia News Agency)

Top 10 guide to Çukurcuma, Istanbul

Istanbul's antiques district, Çukurcuma, is now home to novelist Orhan Pamuk's new Museum of Innocence – explore its winding streets with our top 10 guide to its shops, cafes and restaurants

Know a great place in Çukurcuma? Add it to the comments below

Orhan Pamuk's Museum of Innocence in Istanbul

Museum of Innocence
This wine-red 19th-century townhouse has become part-museum, part-art installation, part-novel brought to life. Pamuk conceived the project as he was writing the novel of the same name and he's filled 83 wooden boxes with collected and commissioned works of art relating to each chapter – items the characters would have seen, worn, or owned over the last decades of the 20th century when the novel is set. But it's not just a study of obsession and the mementos of a doomed love affair between the novel's protagonists. With the aid of cutting-edge technology blurring fiction and documentary, it's a chronicle of Istanbul at a time of great cultural changed. Click through our picture gallery of the museum here.
• Çukurcuma Caddesi, Dalgiç Çikmazi 2, +90 212 252 9738, masumiyetmuzesi.org, open Tuesday-Thursday, Saturday and Sunday 10am-6pm, Friday 10am-9pm, entrance 25TL (about £8.50) for adults, £3.50 for students

As the sign says, this bric-a-brac emporium is aimed at "the slightly deranged collector seeking identifiable memories'', and it's a sensory overload for even the most seasoned forager. With stock spilling out on to the pavement it's clear that the owner of this extraordinary shop, A. Karaca Borar, is a consummate collector. In the house-cum-shop's bathroom, you might find a marble Ottoman washbasin next to a mass of rubber ducks. Vintage clothes are stacked alongside collections of toys, plastic gnomes, wooden hands and other miscellany. If you can't find it here, it probably doesn't exist.
• Faikpaşa Caddesi 6/1, +90 212 252 2527, fleaworks.com, open daily 11am-6pm (closed 13-17 June), prices from around £3.50

A La Turca
A visit to Erkal Aksoy's A La Turca kilim house is like wandering around a delightful ethnographic museum – with price tags. A hoarders' heaven, this beautiful four-storey townhouse is filled with his global finds, displayed with the know-how of a skilled interior designer. There's plenty to covet if you can afford it and it's worth exploring even if you can't: the colourful, tightly woven antique kilims, rolled up and stored on bookshelves, the Ottoman embroidery draped over a chair (which is also for sale) and countless decorative objects. Don't forget to head down into the basement for stacks of green-glazed Tokat pottery.
• Faikpaşa Caddesi 4, +90 212 245 2933, alaturcahouse.com, open Monday-Saturday 10.30am-7.30pm and by appointment, prices on request

Hall Istanbul
New-Zealand born interior designer, Christopher Hall, has been living in Istanbul for the past 12 years. His eponymous shop – open since 2003 – mixes antiques with his own contemporary designs. He works in stone, iron, steel, glass, linen, cotton, wool and wood and is inspired by the wares of the neighbouring junk shops, the influence of the city and Islamic form. You'll find some of his bronze and marble furniture in this chic showroom, along with more portable objets d'art, lighting, ceramics and textiles. Most pieces are beyond the pocket of the average visitor but a few small decorative objects start from around £30.
• Faikpaşa Caddesi, +90 212 292 9590, hallistanbul.com, open Monday 2pm-7pm, Tuesday-Saturday 10am-7pm

Leyla Seyhanli
This wardrobe-sized boutique is piled floor to ceiling with an eccentric collection of vintage clothes, hats and hat boxes, handbags, wall hangings and embroidered textiles. A good rummage will reveal Ottoman-era silk pillowcases hand sewn with gilded thread, embroidered linen towels and Anatolian velvet table cloths, ornate traditional kaftans, turn-of-the-century silk blouses and 1950s taffeta party dresses. Always the genuine article, it's become a popular stop for collectors and Seyhanli also lends costumes and accessories to the Turkish film industry.
• Altipatlar Sokak 6, +90 212 293 7410, open Monday-Saturday 10.30am-6.30pm, prices range from around £30 to £160

Leila Butik
Virtually everything in this small, whitewashed boutique is a quirky, fun, one-off design. Different designers supply the store with everything from fascinators to ornately decorated heels, cute little prom dresses to hand-printed T-shirts, crazily patterned tights and leggings to customised straw hats. It also stocks jewellery from Anatolian-influenced crocheted necklaces to plastic brooches and, for men, vintage sunglasses and unique trilbies.
• Hayriye Caddesi 18, +90 212 245 3365, leilabutik.com, open Monday-Saturday 11am-8.30pm, prices from around £5

Holy Coffee
With its sofas, armchairs, bookshelves and art-covered walls, a Holy Coffee break is like stepping into someone's living room. Just a year old, it's become the cafe of choice for locals, ex-pats and visitors thanks to its relaxed vibe and its hands-on Turkish owner, Arzu, who is more than happy to offer her tips on the city. The smell of freshly baked cakes and biscuits wafts from the kitchen, and soups, sandwiches and salads are also on offer. Drink the homemade bitter lemonade alfresco on a hot day – the coffee is excellent too.
• Hacioğlu Sokak 1B, +90 212 243 6869, Holy Coffee's facebook page, open Monday-Saturday 10am-8pm

Cukurcuma Köftecisi
Traditional Turkish fare is served at this family-run lunch venue next door to Holy Coffee, complete with wooden tables and chairs and walls adorned with kitsch art and portraits of Atatürk. It's a paradise for carnivores, with all manner of köfte (meatballs) and şiş (skewers) sizzling on the grill, served with a carb overload of chips and Turkish pilaf rice. But there are also daily specials such as soups, stews and freshly made salads. Fridays and Saturdays are fry days, when you can sample the sublime courgette, aubergine and cauliflower fritters.
• Hacioğlu Sokak 1A, +90 212 245 0833, cukurcumakoftecisi.com, open Monday to Saturday for lunch and dinner

Münferit
Award-winning interior design duo, Seyhan Özdemir and Sefer Cağlar – better known as Autoban – gave Münferit a retro feel with marble-top tables, smoked-glass mirrors and wood panelling. But the vintage aesthetic belies a menu filled with thoroughly modern meze, such as black couscous topped with sprigs of grilled calamari, baby octopus skewers and, for dessert, the irresistible sage ice-cream with plum sauce. Wash it down with some thrice-distilled Beylerbeyi Raki, Turkey's potent anise-flavoured spirit produced by the owner's family, or one of the inventive martinis and mojitos. On balmy evenings, you can dine alfresco on the terrace before it's transformed into a dance space.
• Yeni Carşi Caddesi 19, +90 212 252 5067, munferit.com.tr, open daily 7pm-2am, main courses around £14

House Hotel Galatsaray
The first hotel project from the owners of Istanbul's trendy House Café chain has turned a dilapidated 19th-century building into a design buff's dream with help from Autoban. Spread over four floors, the 20 rooms combine old-world charm with innovative design – lofty ceilings, ornate plasterwork and polished parquet floors, with sleek, custom-made furniture and rainforest shower cubicles in the middle of the bedroom. The top-floor lounge bar, with its open fire, large brown Chesterfields and panoramic views is the perfect place to relax post-sightseeing.
• Firuzağa Mahallesi, Bostanbaşi Caddesi 19, +90 212 252 0422, thehousehotel.com/the-house-hotel-galatasaray, from €139 for a deluxe suite on a B&B basis. If you prefer the idea of an apartment, studios with The House Apart start from €80 per night and one-bedroom apartments start from €100, including two breakfasts at The House Café on Istiklal Caddesi (Sarah Gilbert-Guardian)

Arab tourists’ interest in Turkey increases, say tourism officials

Officials of tourism agencies from Arab countries visit the Black Sea provinces of Kastamou and Sinop, and explain the reason why Arabs choose to come to Turkey.

Similarity between Turkish and Arab cuisine is one of the most significant factors for Arab tourists choosing Turkey as their holiday destination, according to officials from Arab tourism agencies, who visited Kastamonu and Sinop

Officials from tourism agencies from Arab countries, have spoken about why their citizens chose to come to Turkey for holidays. Among the most important factors they detailed were the food, the shared history, the natural beauty, and religious similarities between Turkey and their home countries.

The officials from Oman, Kuwait, Qatar Saudi Arabia, Dubai and Abu Dhabi visited touristic and historical places in the Black Sea provinces of Sinop and Kastamonu over the weekend. The Western Black Sea Promotional Tour was organized with the cooperation of Turkish Airlines (THY), the Kastamonu Confederation (Kas-Kon), and the Turkish-Middle East Tourism Council Agencies.

Nasım Syed from Kuwait said his citizens chose to come to Turkey with their family since it was a Muslim country like Kuwait and so also used halal food. “Turkey is a Muslim country. At the same time, it attracts our citizens because the roots of the Ottoman Empire are on this land, and the Ottoman Empire protected and governed Arab countries in the past. Halal food and tasty dishes are other reasons for them to come to Turkey. Its weather is nice, too.”

Oman’s Samiri al-Ajmi said that there were very beautiful places in Kastamonu. “The city has a natural beauty.” He said the first thing that came to his mind about Turkey was that it was a good country for tourism, adding, “It has been said that the green areas in Turkey do not exist in any other place. I saw it when I came here. The fact that it is between the East and the West, Asia and Europe is very important in terms of tourism.”

Interest increasing every year

Sree Kumar, a travel agency official from Abu Dhabi, said his agency organized tours to Turkey two or three times a year, and that they had been working with Turkey for 15 years. “People’s interest in Turkey is increasing every year.”

Kumar said there were many people in Abu Dhabi who wished to visit Turkey. “Tours are organized particularly to Istanbul, Yalova and Bursa. Trips on the Bosphorus, historical areas and touristic venues draw the attention of our people. Its history is also particularly attractive.” He added that the opening of a new airport would encourage further tourism in Kastamonu.

Saudi Arabian Muhammet Nasır said Turkey’s natural beauty had also drawn the attention of Arab tourists. “Turkey is a beautiful country, and it does not require a visa. This is what first attracts us. We also have the same religion, and this is why our citizens want to come to Turkey so much,” Nasır said.

Bhauna Singh from Dubai said the reason why Dubai’s people came to Turkey was the hospitality of Turkish people and their smiling faces. He added that Dubai’s tourists generally liked to visit multi-cultural places, and so Turkey fits the bill. (KASTAMONU – Anatolia News Agency)

Experiencing ‘heaven and hell’ during a travel to Turkey’s southern province

Heaven and Hell in the southern province of Mersin’s Silifke are two enormous caves. It is about a 15-minute hike down to the enormous entrance of the cave and during the walk down you are surrounded by bushes and trees.

If you are near Silifke, a town in the southern province of Mersin, just ask the locals where Kız Kalesi is. Traveling around here will take more than just one day as there is so much to see

Have you ever visited “Cennet ve Cehennem” (Heaven and Hell) in Turkey? Well, I can recommend you go there. It is very nice. Maybe it is not exactly what you thought heaven and hell would be, but it comes close to it. If you are near Silifke, a town in the southern province of Mersin, just ask the people where Kız Kalesi is. Traveling around here will take more than just one day; there is so much to see. In Silifke, where you can find a beautiful little castle called Kız Kalesi on a small island just off shore, it is as if time stood still.

Unfortunately, tourism has also left its mark on this beautiful area. Everywhere hotels are being built, some of them even on top of ancient places. It is there where you can find Heaven and Hell. It takes a while to go down into Heaven, and if your physical condition is not very good I would not recommend you go down to Heaven because then heaven, and especially the way back up to mother earth, might turn into hell.

After a nice ride along the coast you will see the signs for Heaven and Hell. It is easy to find it, just follow these signs. After a turn from the highway you end up on a narrow road. This road leads to a place that I really love very much. The road was still the way I remembered it. Twenty years ago I visited Heaven and Hell, and the only thing that had changed was more houses alongside the road and signs that mentioned that you can have breakfast or lunch here. After a short ride I arrived at Heaven and Hell, and I was again in shock by the ugliness of the building that was made to facilitate visitors and where they sell the tickets.

Heaven and Hell are two enormous caves and it is here that you visit heaven on earth. The road to Hell is a bit more complicated, and unfortunately it is impossible to end up in Hell because there is no path that leads you to the bottom of this cave.

This time of year is the best time to visit the cave because one or two months later it will be too hot to walk around over there but at the same time heaven is also nice to visit during summertime because the temperature in the cave is many degrees colder than the outside temperature.

It is about a 15-minute hike down to the enormous entrance of the cave and during your walk down you are surrounded by bushes and trees. The sound of birds is all around you and it is very difficult to distinguish where the birds are since the sound echoes around in this enormous hole. Just before you arrive at the entrance of the cave you can walk around in a little chapel made many, many years ago. It must be Byzantine, and I often wonder about the dedication and determination of those religious people because they made their churches and monasteries at the most impossible places.

Temperature stable the whole year

Finally I was there in the cave. It is so nice and cool there; the whole year round temperatures in the cave are more or less the same. The further you walk into the cave, the darker it gets. Unfortunately for me, but understandably, it was impossible to go until the end of the cave. At a certain point a barrier was made and, a bit disappointed, I went back to the entrance of the cave. Enjoying the scenery for a while finally the moment was there to start my way back to the “normal” world. I did not want to leave this heavenly place; it was so peaceful here.

The 455 steps upwards turned into hell. When I finally arrived at the entrance the sun was burning like hell, as if it wanted to say, “You have visited Heaven, now deal with real life again.”
(Wilco van Herpen MERSİN - Hürriyet Daily News)

Four unmissable day trips from London

Oxford University, with its spectacular architecture and gardens, is a major tourist attraction. (Doug McKinlay/LPI)

If you need a break from London after a week of hectic sightseeing, England’s compactness means there are many day trips on the doorstep of the capital. From the dreaming spires of Oxford to sophisticated, sexy Brighton, from upper crust Windsor and Eton to classy Bath, you can easily hop on a train or bus to a range of real gems.

Oxford
The Victorian poet Matthew Arnold called Oxford “that sweet city with her dreaming spires”. For visitors, the superb architecture and unique atmosphere of the university – made up of more than three dozen colleges and synonymous with academic excellence – and their courtyards and gardens remain major attractions.

The town dates back to the early 12th Century, having developed from an earlier Saxon village, and has been responsible for educating some 26 British prime ministers, including Margaret Thatcher, Tony Blair and David Cameron.

Best sight: Pitt Rivers Museum is an Aladdin’s cave of explorers’ booty spread over three floors, crammed with fascinating items like blowpipes, magic charms, voodoo dolls and shrunken heads from the Caribbean, Africa and the Pacific.

Best place to eat: The Jericho Tavern is a chilled out venue with big leather sofas, a large beer garden and a live-music venue upstairs (supposedly Radiohead played their first gig here). This old coaching inn just outside the city gates in the trendy Jericho district is also an excellent gastropub.

Best place to drink: Turf Tavern is hidden away down a narrow alleyway off Holywell Street. This tiny medieval pub is one of the town’s best-loved, and bills itself as “an education in intoxication”. Home to real ales and student antics, it is always packed and is one of the few pubs in Oxford with plenty of outdoor seating.

Getting there and away: Oxford Tube and Oxford Express buses depart every 10 to 30 minutes from London’s Victoria coach station and the journey takes about one hour 40 minutes. There are two trains per hour from London’s Paddington station, with a journey time of around an hour.

Brighton
With its large student population, the country’s biggest gay scene outside London, and working-class families down for a jolly, this city by the sea caters to everyone. It offers atmospheric cafes, excellent restaurants, old-style beach seafood huts and a good-for-a-laugh amusement pier.

The town’s character dates from the 1780s, when the dissolute, music loving Prince Regent (the future King George IV) built his outrageous summer palace, the Royal Pavilion, here as a venue for lavish parties by the sea. And that charmingly seedy “great-place-for-a-dirty-weekend” vibe lasted throughout the gang-ridden 1930s of Graham Greene’s novel Brighton Rock and the mods versus-rockers rivalry of the 1950s and ‘60s.

Best sight: The Royal Pavilion Palace , Brighton’s primary attraction, is an extraordinary folly – Indian palace on the outside and over-the-top chinoiserie within. The first pavilion, built in 1787, was a classical villa. It was not until the early 19th Century, when Asian things were all the rage, that the current confection began to take shape under the direction of John Nash, architect of Regent’s Park and its surrounding crescents. The entire over-the-top edifice, which Queen Victoria sold to the town in 1850 (apparently she found Brighton “far too crowded”), is not to be missed.

Best place to eat: Family-owned restaurant Sam’s of Brighton in easternmost Kemp Town is well worth the journey for its innovative take on dishes like roast breast of guinea fowl and braised Southdowns lamb. Brunch is served from 10 am on the weekend.

Best place to drink: The Basketmakers Arms Pub, which has eight ales on tap, is probably the best traditional pub in Brighton, located in the North Laine district, southeast of the train station. Food (like fish of the day and Mexican chilli) is way above average and served daily from noon to 8:30 pm (7 pm on Saturday, 6 pm on Sunday).

Getting there and away: National Express runs hourly buses from Victoria coach station (two hours). There are about 40 fast trains each day from London’s Victoria station (slightly less than an hour), and slower ones from Blackfriars, London Bridge and King’s Cross.

Windsor and Eton
With its romantic architecture and superb state rooms, Windsor Castle is one of Britain’s premier tourist attractions and, since it is so close to central London and easily accessible by rail and road, it crawls with tourists in all seasons. If possible, avoid visiting on weekends and during the peak months of July and August when the queues to get into Queen Elizabeth’s humble abode are at their longest.

If you cannot avoid these periods and need a respite from the crowds, cross the pedestrian Windsor Bridge over the Thames and head for Eton, which by comparison it is far quieter. And while it, too, is a one-trick pony in the form of the world’s most prestigious boys’ school, its pedestrianised centre is lined with antique shops and art galleries.

Best sight: British monarchs have inhabited Windsor Castle for more than 900 years. It is also well known to be the Queen’s favourite residence and the place she calls home after returning from her work “week” (now just Tuesday to Thursday) at the “office” (Buckingham Palace). A disastrous fire in 1992 nearly wiped out this incredible piece of English cultural heritage, but luckily damage , though severe, was limited. A £37 million pound restoration, completed in 1997, returned the state apartments to their former glory.

Best place to eat: Just beyond the bridge in Eton is one of the area’s finest restaurants. Terracotta tiling and a sunny courtyard garden lend Gilbey’s a Continental cafe air, but the understated decor and menu are indisputably British.

Best place to drink: The Two Brewers pub, a17th-century inn perched on the edge of Windsor Great Park and the Long Walk is close to the castle’s tradesmen’s entrance and supposedly frequented by staff from the castle. It is a quaint and cosy place, with dim lighting, obituaries for castle footmen and royal photographs with irreverent captions hanging on the wall. It does great pub food too.

Getting there and away: Green Line buses 701 and 702 link Victoria coach station with Windsor at least hourly every day (65 minutes). Trains from Waterloo station go to Windsor Riverside station every 30 minutes, or hourly on Sunday (55 minutes). Trains from Paddington go via Slough to Eton and Windsor Central station.

Bath
This delightful city of honey-coloured stone has always been renowned for its architecture, especially its fine Georgian terraces. Nowadays though, it is celebrated in equal measure for its association with the novelist Jane Austen – not so much for her actual works but for the films based on them. Sometimes it seems the crowds just cannot get enough.

Best sight: Ever since the Romans arrived in Bath, life has revolved around the three natural springs that bubble up near Bath Abbey. The 2,000-year-old baths, today part of the Roman Baths Museum, form one of the best-preserved ancient Roman spas in the world.

Best place to eat: The appropriately named restaurant Circus on the western edge of the Circus is a favourite place in Bath. The food, prepared by chef/owner Alison Golden, is excellent and beautifully presented, the welcome is warm, and you can choose to eat on the ground floor overlooking a small courtyard or in the intimate cellar dining room.

Best place to drink: The Star Inn retains its original 19th-century bar fittings and is the brewery tap for Bath-based Abbey Ales. Some ales are served straight from the barrel into traditional jugs, and you can ask for a pinch of snuff in the “smaller bar”.

Getting there and away: National Express buses links London’s Victoria coach station with Bath up to 10 times a day (around three and a half hours). There are direct trains from London, Paddington and Waterloo stations at least hourly (two and a half hours). (Source: bbc.com)