An Extraordinary Trip to Istanbul- Vishal’s Thrillophilia Review
‘It’s been two years and we haven’t gone on a proper vacation’, my wife remarked during a casual Saturday dinner while discussing travel stories with our friends. This sparked a thought in me…
I never had a shortage of official trips to new cities and countries. However, the elation of discovering new places with my wife was something I kept missing out on all my work trips.
My wife, an extraordinary woman, always has a knack for making me smile in any circumstance. So when I realised it was my chance to make her smile, I gave her a surprise by planning a trip to Turkey with Thrillophilia.
Culture, cuisine and cruise in Istanbul
I love exploring places that are known for their food. So, when my trip planner with Thrillophilia explained that we could start my trip with a nice cruise dinner on the Bosphorus River, I was excited to the core.
It was a perfect mix of sightseeing and local culinary experience. While my wife kept on clicking numerous pictures, I tasted almost every dish on the buffet. The Turkish kebabs won my heart and my wife enjoyed the folk music and live performances.
My wife is a history scholar. So, while planning this surprise trip, I especially tried to add historical attractions to our itinerary with the thought that she might like touring them.
That is why, after having a sumptuous breakfast at our hotel, I hurried us to start with the full-day sightseeing tour in Istanbul. I was very excited, and she thought I was acting strange as she had no idea about the itinerary.
Our tour guide was so fantastic that we never felt as if we were travelling to a new country.
‘It feels like we have been transported into another era’, my wife remarked while visiting the museums and palaces in Turkey. Historical exhibitions like the imperial porcelain collection, and the Iznik tiles at Topkapi Palace, both were phenomenal. We discovered the grandeur of Byzantine architecture and art at Hagia Sophia along with the obelisks and statues at the Hippodrome.
The next places on our itinerary were the Blue Mosque and Grand Bazaar. While exploring these places along with my wife and hearing about the stories from her, I felt this sudden itch to leave behind my job and become a full-time historian.
Later on, we went shopping for some Turkish shawls, coffee and spices in the Grand Bazar. Then, we called it a day with a delicious dinner at a local restaurant in Istanbul, relishing on Baklava and dolmas.
Spectacular scenery of Cappadocia
‘Cappadocia is where fairytale dreams come to life’.
Out of so many places that I have discovered throughout my life, Cappadocia certainly tops the list of my favourites. Its fairy chimneys, rock houses and underground cities were something I had seen for the first time in reality, and they totally blew my breath away.
We had kept a full day dedicated to sightseeing in Cappadocia as we didn't want to miss out on anything. We also explored the underground city near the modern town of Derinkuyu which used to be a home for more than 2 lakh people once.
‘‘Imagine living underground and away from the sight of the world. Gosh, I will trade my life for that kind of life’’, our tour guide remarked with a gleeful smile.
He also showed us the Ihlara Valley which is known for its rock-cut churches and the picturesque village of Belisirma. Its dramatic gorges stood tall against the azure sky as the eagles soared high above. The scenery left both of us mesmerised. Truly, the charm of Cappadocia was amazing.
Amazing explorations in Antalya
When I had proposed to my wife, back in my college days, I had gifted her a card with verses from the Persian mystic Rumi. As a surprise to my wife, I decided to include The Mevlâna Museum in Antalya which is dedicated to Rumi. Visiting this place with my wife was like destiny re-enforcing our love for each other.
As she got out of the car in front of the museum, she froze in awe. Her eyes gleamed and the ends of her lips twitched. I knew immediately that she had gotten too emotional, in a good way.
After this romantic rendezvous, we had many adventurous explorations in Antalya. With the meticulous planning by trip planners of Thrillophilia, we got to see the Lower and Upper Düden waterfalls by cable car and wander through the bustling streets of Antalya. We also got to treat our taste buds gorging on Turkish Kofte and Pilaf with a view of the Mediterranean in Antalya.
In addition to the cultural explorations, I wanted to add some funk to the trip by adding some unique adventure experiences. Therefore, I decided to add the Antalya Land of Legend Night Show to our itinerary for Turkey. This is a state-of-the-art theme park which is also called Turkey’s Disneyland. We really loved the boat parade and the gondola rides in the artificial river here.
Our trip which spanned 10 days in Turkey gave us memories to cherish for a lifetime.
“Thanks for making this trip so memorable. It made me forget the drought of travel of the last couple of years”, my wife remarked while we shared a cup of cappuccino at the Dalaman Airport. As we were homebound on our plane for Mumbai, I looked at the fridge magnet that had ‘Istanbul’ carved on it. I looked at my wife and she seemed happy.
With a heart full of gratitude, I realised that our adventures in Turkey will forever remain etched in our hearts!
Read more: Thrillophilia Turkey Reviews