Saturday, September 25, 2010

The Turkey Diaries 2010: Bodrum - Overview

Second consecutive year of our summer holiday in Turkey....but a different destination. In 2009 it was İçmeler, which left a significant and lasting impression on us, and it was very clear that we would return to Turkey again some day.

However, we looked at other destinations for our 2010 summer holiday, but when these didn't work out, Turkey became an obvious alternative. But how about same country, different destination? I had been intrigued by Bodrum, which offered a mix of historical attractions and a party atmosphere. An interesting contradiction. After further research, it became very obvious that Bodrum would meet our needs.

Bodrum is situated on the Aegean Coast of south-west Turkey, and the Greek island of Kos is just an hour away by ferry. Bodrum's famous landmark is the Castle of St Peter, built in 1402 (pictured above) - a centrepiece which divides the seafront: on one end is the beach and on the other side is the marina.

I don't have too many negative things to say about Turkey, but the one thing which must be mentioned is the very long delay on entering the country, due to the visa system where everyone hands over a Bank of England £10 note and has the visa stamp placed in their passport. This can be an extremely slow process - and an unwelcome one after a long, tiring day - so patience is required!! And then there was the never-ending wait at baggage reclaim....oh stop moaning, you're on holiday :)

As we had a night flight to Bodrum on Monday 13th September, we didn't arrive till the early hours of Tuesday morning, therefore day 1 of this diary will be Tuesday.

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