getting there.
You know the problem with Turkey? You have to get there. Turkey is far you guys. People always ask me how much trips cost, so I’m just going to come out and say it. I paid 194 € round trip, SunExpress, but booked thru Condor, round trip, nonstop, Frankfurt to Istanbul. Sure, you can get there cheaper, but not during holiday time, which is precisely what is was during Germany (thus my long vacation time).
First, we had to go to Frankfurt, which is only an hour train ride from Karlsruhe. The train also costs 38 € which is redonkulous, but luckily I have a BahnCard 50 (more info) that reduces the price of all trains in Germany by 50 percent. My friend Simon was in Frankfurt rowing in some dragon boat ordeal, so we decided to go early and say hi and check out the city since gasp! I had never been to Frankfurt before. Our flight was at 8 p.m. so we had some time to kill.
We had preplanned exactly what tram to take to the airport and bid adieu to Simon and his colleagues in a timely fashion. After a couple free cocktails courtesy of our old friend and new ones, we had forgotten how to redirect ourselves back to the train station and time was a tickin’. Naturally, we did what any sane human being would do and…. hitchhiked to the main station. The gentleman was lovely and we made our tram, so that’s really all that matters.
Except it’s not – because we got on the wrong tram. After about 15 minutes, I realized aloud that we should probably be at the airport right now. Someone overheard and informed us we were on the wrong train. We ended up having to take a cab from whatever incorrect Frankfurt suburb we found ourselves in, adding another 25 € to the tab. This is one of those things that if we wanted to be on that plane, we had to bite the bullet. I think my biggest arbitrary fear is missing a flight, so I wasn’t going to miss this one.
3 hours later, we landed at Istanbul Sabiha-Goçken. Something you should know if you are going to Istanbul: there are two airports, SAW and IST. IST is a lot closer to the city. We had to ride a bus for over an hour to get to the city center, and then had to sit in traffic another hour only for the bus driver to tell us he can’t drive any further and to get off the bus. We finally arrived at our hostel at 3 a.m. We landed at 11 p.m. MIZZZ I tell you!
But Istanbul was worth it… more to come…
Frankfurt am Main
packed super light
me, Simon, Lauren
Made the plane, boarding pass in hand.
SunExpress FRA > SAW
excited to be Turkey bound… and on the plane!
Just your standard 2:30 a.m. traffic in Istanbul, the city that actually does not sleep.
i would have lost it big time and had a mental breakdown. mad ups to you! and i need to go there but will heed the airport suggestion!
the booze helped the would-be-paranoia, can’t lie
Oh my gosh!! I can’t believe you guys had so many problems! I would have been hardcore stressing. Glad you made it, though!!
What a trip! So glad you guys made it! Can’t wait to read more!
what is it with bus drivers and their ability to tell you to get off the bus?! has happened to me before too… SO glad you had fun in Turkey! traveling sometimes sucks, but at least you have a good story ; )
Those crazy bus drivers. We were so confused too because it was all in Turkish but everyone else was getting off in basically the Time Square of Istanbul and we finally found someone to tell us what was happening.
getting on the wrong tram or bus is the worst! but at least you made it
what an adventure for you!
It seems like you had quite the ordeal trying to get to Turkey…but at least it makes a great story!
I completely understand your fear of missing a plane! which always results in me getting to airports like 5 hours too early. In all fairness, I’m used to the Atlanta airport which is the busiest in the US, so you do actually have to be there a few hours early. But after years of wasting time in Germany airports, I’ve realized about one hour earlier will do.
adventures are fun (if not a little bit stressful) but they always seem to burn a hole in your wallet!
Ha it is so true – I’m always at the airport too early. We got to our tiny one in Baden-Baden 2 hrs early once and felt so ridiculous
Wow, sounds like it was pretty stressful getting there! Glad you guys made it okay though
Thank you for stopping by my blog! So glad you did because it led me to yours, which I LOVE! I’ve always wanted to be an au pair, so it is awesome to read your blog & follow your travels!
Au Pair life is definitely a trip in itself! What a year it has been