We had a refreshing started morning since we had a nice rest the previous day. Our plan for the final day would be visiting the Miniaturk, Galata tower and experince the 'hamam'! After breakfast we left the hotel at 1035 am and took a cab to the Miniaturk. The trip took 30 mins, and I managed to grab some pics of the Valens Aqueduct that hubby kept talking about.
The sweet & cute face of Erica
The macho lil' Ehsan with the sunglass on the forehead
The Valens Aqueduct
The forty fountains water supply system was the greatest ancient construction in Istanbul. It was originally 1 km long but today only 800 m of it has remained and had on its line 33 aqueducts including the Maglova, the Guzelce and the Pasha Aqueduct. These aqueducts formed a long water supply line that brought water to Istanbul thru the Belgrade Woods.
We had a nice taxi ride as Istanbul had so many things to look at! By 11, we reached the Miniaturk park and there was also a group of kindergarten children making the trip too. After taking a few snaps and getting the tickets, we headed to walked around the park.
Miniaturk was a great experience - and great fun as we looked at historical building replicas which was no larger than Ehsan! Like most of the sites we went, Mom and Dad had enjoyed the most! Hahahahaa!!
Miniaturk was a great experience - and great fun as we looked at historical building replicas which was no larger than Ehsan! Like most of the sites we went, Mom and Dad had enjoyed the most! Hahahahaa!!
I was so proud to look at the group of kindi kids that arrived with us. When the teacher lead them for the tour, some of the kids managed to name the building without looking at the singage. Perhaps they had been tought in the early age - I was impressed. After an hour we dropped by at the cafetaria as Erica started to feel hungry. We shared a hot dog before continuing our walking.
We spent nearly 3 hours in the park but I felt it is not enough. We had to stop since Ehsan was getting cranky - maybe he is too small to appreciate the park. Oh well! Apa pun I had fun. We took loads of pictures but it will take a long entry just to talk about them!
Hubby & kids - entrance of the park
The view of the Miniatruk Park
Parliement Building - opened to service in 1961
Haci Bektas-i Veli Complex - tomb of Bektasi in Nevsehir
Pamukkale -Cotton castle
Kayseri Doner Vault a.k.a Shah Cihan Hatun Vault
Konya Thin Minaret Medrese -College for studying the Hadiths
Haseki Hurrem Hamami - Turkish Bath
Sogukcesme Street - Street with historical Istanbul houses
Ahmet III Fountain
The Big Post Office
Kucuksu Pavillion - was used by Ataturk for government reception
Haydarpasa Train Station
Ciragan Palace - now serves as one of the finest hotel in Istanbul
Rumeli Fortress - was bulit to stop any support coming for the Byzantines up to Bosphorus
Ataturk International Airport
Suleymaniye Mosque
Sivas Gok (Sky) Medrese - original name was Sahibiye Medrese
Selcuk Isa Bey Mosque - one of the oldest and most imposing works of Turkish architecture
The Great Mosque of Diyabakir - known as the 5th Harem-i Serif of the Islamic World
Ishak Pasa Palace
T.C Ziraat Bank Museum
Fairy Chimney - formations by the natural erosion of the volcanic tufa
The Mostar Bridge - Known as the largest arch bridge in the world. This is not in Turkey of course!
The tomb of Master Sinan - the most well known Turkish architect
Aspendos Amphitheatre - 15,000 audience capacity
To give Ehsan some exitement, we gave him the chance to sail a ferry. It was actually a coin machine boat but to make sure mama get the chance to walk and stop him from getting bored, we just let him be. It worked!
Ehsan berlagak macam Captain and Sailors
We left the park at 2.00 pm and headed to Galata Tower. Ehsan was so tired that he slept on the way to the tower. It was easy for us to handle him while he was sleeping - just put him in the stroller and have a nice walk!
So tired.....
Galata Tower or Galata Kulesi
Galata tower is one of the oldest tower in the world. It is 61 m tall. The Genoeses built this tower as part of the defense walls in the region. But then during the Ottoman empire, the tower was used as a prison, warehouse, lighthouse and fire observing tower. It was nice to walk at the balcony and look at the view of Bosphorus, Golden Horn and Sea of Marmara. We took turns to go up and take in the panoramic view.
We then had a late lunch beneath the Galata Bridge. There are a lot of restaurants under the bridge. And while you are having your meal you also can see lots of locals are fishing from the top of the bridge. Most of the restaurants offer seafood dishes to the customer. We had ikan bakar (which was tasteless), butter prawn and fried squid. It was not as good in Malaysia, but it was better than having kebabs everyday.
The restaurant
After an hour of lunch we headed back by tram. But we squeezed another visit to a nearby souvenir shop to buy last minute presents for our relatives. We finished everything at nearly 6.00 p.m.
Us at the Istanblue Shop
Since it will be our last night in Istanbul we both had agreed to experience new things - for our memories, so we decided to try the 'hamam', or the Turkish Bath. Hubby let me go first, and he would be looking after the kids while I was away.
I went for the bath at 6.30 p.m and the session lasted for an hour. It was definitely a new experience for me - and I was shocked for life going thru it!! I guess I need not explain what went on inside but my only advise if you want to try the hamam for yourself ; wear your 'undergarments'!! hahaha.
I went to buy dinner on the way back and we had the dinner in our hotel room. It was a nice day indeed!
The place I had 'hamam'
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