Jaffa

Let it go
Off to Jaffa this morning, for a quick stroll though the beautiful old town. It is from Jaffa that Tel Aviv was founded in the early 20th century, by a couple of Jewish families who moved out and planned their own settlement, which would become Tel Aviv. Jaffa is small, with a little old quarter […] Read More

Summertime slowness

Let it go
I slept in today, while Sue was up for getting a pedicure on Sheinkin Street in a little beauty parlor…. When I got up, I went over to the Dizengoff shopping mall to get tickets for the Rolling Stones who will be playing their first ever gig here on Wednesday. However, the queue was enormous […] Read More

Baffled in Jerusalem

Let it go
Today, we took the bus to Jerusalem. We only have this one day, as Susanne’s time is limited, but we wanted to maximize everything we could see. We’re both history geeks, Susanne being a real expert in British history (she can easily name the kings of England and Great Britain, explain the stories, feuds, heirs, traitors….) […] Read More

Bauhaus

Let it go
Of course we had to explore the Bauhaus architecture in Tel Aviv. After all, the city is famous for it. I had already done the audio tour prepared by the Bauhaus Center Tel Aviv two years ago, so this time we just bought a map and explored it a bit on our own. I love […] Read More

Beach days

Let it go
My friend Susanne from Brussels has arrived on Thursday. I know her for about ten years, and it’s fun to catch up, and enjoy Tel Aviv together. We first walked around the craft market and the Carmel street market, and got some cherries and a 4-kg-Melon, for the beach. The beach was our main destination […] Read More

Istanbul spending

Let it go
And here are the final figures of my budget in Istanbul. It was much cheaper than expected, even with the hick-up of the cancellation and rental of a new place after the little incident. Truth be told, the visit of my sister also contributed a lot to it, she not only paid a part of […] Read More

Summer heat

Let it go
Finally, I’m back in summer. After autumn in New Zealand, spring in Japan and some rain in Istanbul, it was about time. Istanbul had just started to become warmer (and humid) when I was about to leave. Stepping off the plane in Tel Aviv, even though in the evening, I felt I was back in […] Read More

IST to TLV

Let it go
Another city coming up, I feel like time speeds up more and more… I’m off to Tel Aviv now. Here are the stats: Flight 21 to Tel Aviv Date: 28/05/2014 Code: THY788 from IST to TLV Airline: Turkish Airlines Plane: Airbus 343 Distance flown: 800 Miles Duration: 1h40 We had a bit of delay, as a passenger […] Read More

Yummy Kadiköy

Let it go
On the last day in Istanbul I decided to make it over to Kadiköy on the Asian shore. It’s supposed to have a great market on Tuesdays, although I did not make it there in the end. They have moved the market further from the ferry, so I just strolled through the Balik Pazari, the […] Read More

Underground (and over water)

Let it go
Istanbul’s public transport system is developing faster than they can print the maps. My books are useless when it comes to the metro/tram system. The otherwise greatly informative and amusing Gebrauchsanweisung Istanbul (Istanbul Manual) published in 2010 lists one (!) metro line in operation…. The maps in several apps for my phone are helplessly out of […] Read More

Golden Gate

Let it go
It turns out, not only San Francisco has a Golden Gate. Istanbul does, too. I wanted to make a walk along and on top of the city walls, the part that has been reconstructed… so I headed to the train station and hopped on a train in this direction (more on that adventure later) and […] Read More

Çukurcuma

Let it go
I think I landed in one of the most beautiful, buzzing, yet calm and relaxed neighborhoods in Istanbul. Çukurcuma is a little neighborhood in the Beyoğlu district in Istanbul, formerly known under its greek name of Pera, and has everything you could wish for… The little street down from my apartment alone has a hotel, several […] Read More