I think I may be allergic to Istanbul

Either that or I have the oddest cold ever. I seem to have been getting progressively worst since I got here, ending in waking up this morning at 4am feeling like totally crap. My head felt full of cotton, my throat felt like I'd run it through a cheese grater and my nose was starting to run. Total ick... I sucked it up and headed up for breakfast and then out for the Istanbul tour.

Thank heavens I had seen much of what was on the tour yesterday because I don't remember much.... I could probably tell you where we went but all those great stories and inside scoops that the tour guide tells you, I totally missed out on.

I do remember lunch because I thought I order beef and I got mutton... which resulted in a lunch of three pieces of bread and a orange juice. The orange juice was a small fortune but really good.

We then headed for turkish tea and turkish coffee and hooka. I was not feeling up for any of it so I watch as my tour mates coughed their way through the hooka and drank down their hot beverages.

We then headed through the Grand Bazaar and the Spice Market. We stopped briefly at the spice market for Turkish Delight which was really tasty! I didn't buy any because I didn't want to lug it around the rest of Turkey! I hope to pick some up right before I leave. I did spot out of the corner of my eye this uniquely named spice...

We then got on the ferry and headed over the the Asian side of Turkey. I decided to not take anti-nausea meds because 1) the ferry ride was only 10 minutes and 2) I was feeling so crappy I figured puking over the side was not that much of a step down. Sad, I know.

I arrive safely (and puke free) but my sunglasses spontaneously broke (seriously cruddy day today!) Luckily, the tour guide had some medical tape and they are "fixed", I look ridiculous but at least I can still use my (prescription) sunglasses for the rest of the vaca.

From there we got in a van and from from 3pm to 10pm we drove to Ankara. We stopped ever two hours and at the first stop I finally started to feel better, like a haze lifting (hence the reason I think I'm allergic to Istanbul! Maybe it's all the cats in the city, they are everywhere.) I'm still not 100% but I'm significantly better than this morning.

We then stopped at the sketchiest truck stop for dinner. Everything looked like it had been there for a looooong time. So in the hopes of starving off hunger until we got to Ankara, I split a meatball platter with one of my tour mates and agreed to grab some dinner when we got there. I didn't eat much because the meatballs were not cooked although way through.

So by the time I got to Ankara, I had basically had 6 pieces of white bread for lunch and dinner. The dinner bread had honey and butter. This seriously can't go on, I can not survive on bread alone.

I'm trying desperately to put a positive spin on the day and I have come up with two things... 1) Our hotel room has a bath tub!! and 2) Seriously, it can only go up from here.

 

Posted with Blogsy