“The sick man of Europe” (Description of the Ottoman Empire attributed to Tsar Nicholas I of Russia.)
This post continues the account of my trip to Bulgaria and Turkey, covering the journey to, and my time in, Istanbul.
Day 6 – Saturday 28th February 2026 – Burgas to Istanbul
A week before I departed on this trip I received a phone call to tell me that the bus that I had booked at 10:30am to take me from Burgas to Istanbul had been cancelled and that I had been rebooked on a bus departing at 07:00am. This was a bit annoying, as in Burgas I was due to have the one hotel breakfast of the trip, which I would now have to forego. However, the hotel arranged to provide me with a breakfast bag upon departure, which what it lacked in quality it made up for with quantity and its contents kept me going throughout my time in Turkey.
My hotel was only a short distance from Burgas South bus station, from where my bus was departing. Burgas South bus station is next to the railway station, where I had arrived the previous day. My ticket said that I should arrive 30 minutes before departure to allow time for loading luggage. I considered this unnecessary, as I knew the bus was coming from Varna and would not arrive much before its scheduled departure time, and I was travelling light, so there was no luggage of mine to put in the hold. The bus was due to depart from the same stand as buses to Sofia and Varna, and there were buses to both these destinations also due at about 7am, but all three would not be able to use the same stand. About five minutes before the bus was due to leave, a woman appeared among the passengers waiting at the stand calling out for those going to Istanbul. She said that our bus would be about five minutes late, and would pull in a bit away from the stand which was still occupied by a bus going to Sofia. She also ticked my name off on a list of passengers.
When the bus rolled in, everybody waiting got on board. I could see why they had cancelled the 10:30 departure, as the one I was now catching was far from full. The bus and its two drivers were Turkish and they communicated with the woman at the bus station in broken English about the passenger list that they needed for border control. Before setting off the driver came round offering a free muffin-like cake to everyone. As I was to discover in Turkey, every service seems to include something additional that you had not specifically requested. I added the cake to my breakfast bag from the hotel, which already contained two similar cakes.
The bus departed from the bus station at 07:15, 15 minutes late. It soon left behind the city streets of Burgas and headed out on the largely empty single-carriageway Bulgarian roads. After a while we started climbing into the hills that form the Bulgarian-Turkish border. The increasing altitude meant that there was now snow on the ground. The Bulgarian border control was relatively efficient. There was a small queue of cars ahead of us waiting to be processed. One of the drivers got off the bus and arranged for another checkpoint to be opened to process the bus passengers. The border guard spoke good English and seemed to be friendly, although this might just have been to see if I had a consistent story about my travels. She asked where I had arrived in Bulgaria, where I had been to, whether I had been to Bulgaria before and whether I had any friends in the country. Once processed we had to walk across the border to wait in a lay-by, while the bus was checked to ensure that there was nobody else on board. The bus then came to pick us up and drove the short distance to the Turkish border control.
There was a longer queue of cars waiting at the Turkish border, where there was a large statue of Atatürk to greet us. The driver had some difficulty getting the cars to move over so that the bus could join its correct lane. As at the Bulgarian border, everyone had to get off to go through Turkish passport control. At the Bulgarian border I was one of the first off the bus, which meant a long wait in the cold, so I held back a little this time. However, that did not work so well, as the queue of those waiting to have their passports checked moved very slowly. When it was my turn, I handed over my passport to the guard who spoke very little English, and had to face the camera to the side of his booth. He then asked me for my visa. Irish passport holders do not require a visa to enter Turkey, which I tried explaining to him, but he just kept repeating that I needed a visa. Eventually, I produced my British passport, which seemed to satisfy him and he processed that, but then bizarrely stamped my Irish passport. I am not sure if he was just totally incompetent or whether he was corrupt and looking for a bribe for the visa ‘fee’. (I later complained to the Irish Embassy in Ankara about his actions, as I was slightly worried that having processed my British passport, but stamped my Irish one, I might have problems leaving the country. The Irish Embassy confirmed that my passport was in order and that no visa was required.) Having survived that ordeal, I was still not allowed to re-board the bus. I had to walk with my bag to the customs shed and put my bag through an X-ray machine. When everyone was back on board, the bus drove a short distance further, where another Turkish official got on and checked everyone’s passport to make sure that they had a Turkish entry stamp in them.
The bus then descended from the hills and passed through the town of Kirklareli, before joining a dual carriageway, which it would take all the way to Istanbul. Turkey, not being in the EU, was outside my mobile phone’s normal roaming area. So, I was pleased that the e-SIM that I had bought connected once we started to move away from the border. (I had read that Turkey was trying to ban e-SIMs and that some people have had difficulty in connecting.) At a number of places on the road we passed police/army checkpoints, which seemed to be pulling cars over at random. We pulled off the dual carriageway to visit a roadside cafe, where we were told that we had a 15 minute break. During this time the bus received a wash.
The road became busier as we approached Istanbul and the bus called at Istanbul airport where a few people got off. It then continued on to Istanbul bus station. On the way we passed a number of construction lorries. A stone flew off one of these and caused a large crack in the bus’s windscreen, much to the annoyance of the driver. Driving into Istanbul, I was struck by how built up the city was miles from the centre, with no sign of green spaces anywhere. The massive bus station is some considerable way from the centre of the city, and seemed fairly run down. I knew that Otagar metro station was within the bus station, but when I got off the bus it was not obvious where it was, as there were no signs to it.
I eventually found the metro station and bought myself a reloadable card for use on Istanbul’s public transport, putting enough credit on it, I thought, to at least get me in to the centre of the city where my hotel was located. The metro map map indicated that I should take the M1 line to its terminus at Yenikapı (note that the Turkish alphabet has the letter i with and without a dot over it), and then change to the B2 line. When I got to Yenikapı, I followed the signs to the B2 line which led out through the ticket barriers. However, I could no longer see any further signs to the B2 line. This is because the B2 line is also called the Marmaray line and is operated by TCCD (Turkish Railways) rather than the Istanbul public transport authority. The Marmaray line goes across the Bosphorous in a tunnel, which was built with Japanese assistance at great expense. Because of this, a ride on the Marmaray line counts as a separate journey as far the pay-as-you-go card is concerned and it also costs more than travelling on the metro. I only discovered later that if you travel fewer than five stops on the line, you should seek out a refund terminal on exiting the station which gives some credit back to your card. Unfortunately, after I had finally worked out that B2 and Marmaray were the same, and went to enter the line, my card was rejected as not having enough credit. I had to find a machine to add some more, but when trying to do so my credit card was declined (presumably because I had used it for a similar contactless transaction a short time earlier).
Eventually I managed to get onto the Marmaray line and it brought me close to my hotel. I went to the building with a large sign above the door with the hotel’s name. However, when I tried checking in they had no record of me. I knew that I had a booking, as they had emailed me about it only the previous day. I then worked out that my hotel was actually next door, having an identical name apart from a soubriquet – but it had no prominent sign indicating its presence. While filling out the registration forms to check-in, I was given a glass of a sherbet-based drink. It was my intention just to go out exploring shortly afterwards. A few minutes after I got to my room, there was a knock on the door and a tray of mixed baklava was delivered, together with cutlery and a plate.
Before I came to Istanbul I had heard a lot about the Hagia Sophia, I decided to make it the first place I visited. The current structure was completed in 537 by Justinian I as the basilica of Constantinople. It remained a Christian church until the Ottomans took control of Constantinople in 1453, whereupon it became a mosque. It remained a mosque until 1935 when Atatürk decreed that it should become a museum, as part of the secularisation of the country. The current Turkish president, Recep Erdoğan, reversed this change and it became a mosque again in 2020. I knew that all the major tourist sites in Istanbul are very expensive to visit, as Turkey has recently started charging foreigners up to 20 times as much as locals. The Hagia Sophia was no exception. Because of the high inflation rate in Turkey, ticket prices are quoted in euros, but are converted back to Turkish lira when you pay. Also, because it is now a working mosque, non-Muslims are not allowed to enter the main body of the building on the ground floor, but are confined to the upper gallery. Unfortunately, during the time of my visit the Hagia Sophia was undergoing major structural repairs with scaffolding and supports both inside and outside. The internal supports, which appear to be holding up the roof, rather detracted from the views one could get from the gallery into the mosque below. Within the gallery there are still some Byzantine Christian murals on some of the walls.
It was noticeably colder in Istanbul than it had been in Bulgaria and in the evening it looked like rain was threatening. That, and the fact that I was tired from my long day, meant that I did not want to go too far for dinner, so I chose a well reviewed restaurant not far from my hotel. I am not sure why it had such good reviews, as I found the quality of the food rather poor. I started with hummus, which was somewhat thin and flavourless, followed by ‘lamb’ kebab, which gave all the appearance of being made of beef. However, as was the case for all the places I dined in Turkey, you were given complimentary meze and bread at the beginning of the meal, and Turkish tea and baklava at the end.
Day 7 – Sunday 1st March 2026 – Istanbul
I left my hotel and walked to the nearest tram stop. I caught a tram to the north passing over the stretch of water known as the Golden Horn on the Galata Bridge. The tram ran alongside the Bosphorous to its terminus at Kabataş. From there it was a short walk to the Dolmabahçe Palace, where I arrived shortly after it opened at 9am.
The Dolmabahçe Palace was constructed in the mid-19th century when the ruling Ottoman Sultanate decided to move from the Topkapi Palace in the old city. There are three separate parts of the palace that you can visit. The first, the Selamlık, contained the working offices of the Sultanate as well the very grand official reception rooms. These are so sumptuous that you can understand why the building of the Dolmabahçe Palace bankrupted the country, causing it to default on its international loans, and probably ultimately leading to the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. Particularly lavish are the Crystal Staircase and the Ceremonial Hall, the latter containing the largest crystal chandelier in the world.
A separate wing of the palace contains the Harem. This was the private quarters of the Sultan and where his wives and concubines lived. It was slightly less ostentatious than the main palace. After the abolition of the Ottoman Sultanate in 1922, Kemal Atatürk, the first president of Turkey, used the Harem as his own personal residence. The room in which he died has been left untouched and clock has been stopped at the time of his death.
The third part of the Dolmabahçe that you can visit is the former palace of the Crown Prince, which now serves as Istanbul’s main gallery of Turkish art, containing works up until the beginning of the 20th century. The more recent paintings were imitative of the western styles of their time.
When I had finished in the Dolmabahçe Palace after nearly four hours, I walked back along the side of the Bosphorous to the Kabataş ferry terminal. After some initial confusion about exactly where the ferry I was looking for departed from, I boarded one of the regular cross-Bosphorous ferries to Üsküdar. The journey only took about ten minutes, but when I got off the boat I was setting foot in Asia for the first time since I went to India in 1981. The Asian side of Istanbul seemed even more manically busy than the European side. There is a large mosque near the ferry terminal and parked nearby were a number of advertising vans plastered with pictures of Recep Erdoğan. I did not spend long on the Asian side and soon caught a Marmaray line train to cross back under the Bosphorous to Europe again.
My next visit was to the Basilica Cistern an underground reservoir near the Hagia Sophia. The Basilica Cistern was built during the reign of the Byzantine Emperor Justinian I in the 6th century. These days it is only partially filled with water and walkways have been installed allowing you walk across the water between the many pillars that support the structure. The area underground is enormous, the size of a large cathedral and testament to the skills of Byzantine engineering. The Basilica Cistern features in the James Bond film From Russia with Love, where it is supposedly part of the Soviet embassy.
Not far from the Basilica Cistern is the Blue Mosque (officially the Sultan Ahmed Mosque), completed in 1617. This is probably the most visually impressive of Istanbul’s many mosques. Unlike the Hagia Sophia it is free to enter and, despite being a functioning mosque, non-Muslims can enter the ground floor, but not at prayer times. Of course to do so, one has to remove one’s shoes. While not trying to gouge visitors for money, it does try to educate them about Islam, with presentations and booklets available should you wish to learn more. The Blue Mosque has recently been renovated and its interior is superb. There is also a large courtyard to one side of the domed structure.
That evening, although still cold, I ventured a little farther to find dinner, which was of much better quality than the one I had had the previous night. The complimentary meze of grilled aubergine and yoghurt, served with light fluffy bread was delicious. Given it was a cold evening, I had lentil soup to start, followed by an interesting tasty kebab. The meal concluded with complimentary baklava and Turkish tea.
Day 8 – Monday 2nd March 2026 – Istanbul
I had set set aside much of this day for a visit to the Topkapi Palace, the headquarters of the Ottoman Sultanate before it moved to the Dolmabahçe Palace in the mid-19th century. Construction of the Topkapi Palace began shortly after the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople in 1453, with bits being added right up until the Sultanate departed for the Dolmabahçe.
As it was only short walk from my hotel, it was easy to get there for its opening time of 9am. Upon entering the extensive grounds of the Topkapi Palace, I went first to the Harem – the private quarters of the Sultan and his family. The Harem alone contained more than 400 rooms, although not all are open to visitors. The living quarters of each group within the Harem was arranged around a courtyard and the layout of these reminded me of the Moorish Alhambra Palace in Granada. The biggest and most ornate room in the Harem was the Imperial Hall, which was retiled in the 18th century with tiles from Delft in the Netherlands.
Just outside the Harem is the Imperial Council, where meetings were normally presided over by the Grand Vizier. There is a grille on one wall of the Imperial Council, which allowed the Sultan to listen in on meetings and make interventions when he felt it was necessary.
Much of the rest of the Topkapi Palace consists of a series of pavilions which were used for a variety of official purposes, some of which now house exhibitions you can look round, including the Imperial Treasury and the Sacred Safekeeping rooms with their collections of priceless artefacts. At the far end of the palace there are pleasant terrace gardens with good views over the Bosphorous. The Palace kitchens occupied one side of the main courtyard and are also now used as a museum space.
Within the Topkapi Palace complex is the Hagia Irene, one of the earliest Byzantine churches in Istanbul, and one that, unusually, was never converted into a mosque. It was undergoing major structural repairs at the time of my visit, which made it difficult to see into the nave of the church.
After nearly five hours exploring the Topkapi Palace, it was time to move on. I went to the Grand Bazaar, near the Nuruosmaniye Mosque, which consists of several hundred shops in a maze of covered arcades. I though that I would see if I could pick up any presents here to bring back home. It may just be my British reserve, but I like to be left in peace when browsing, without being harassed as soon as you look at anything on display. I know you are supposed to haggle, but I would have been far more likely to buy something if I could have compared clearly marked prices. It would seem that I have not yet embraced the true spirit of the Orient.
Istanbul’s Archaeology Museum is open until 6pm, but with last admission at 5pm, and I thought that if I did not waste too much time getting there, I would have enough time to do it justice. Again the museum price was advertised in euros, but charged in Turkish lira. As well as my ticket I was given a slip of paper with information on how to download an audio guide to the museum onto your phone, and a small box. It was only when I looked at the box did I realise that it contained some Bluetooth earphones, which I did not need as I always carry my own. It was then only much later, when I did the sums, that I realised that the Turkish lira amount I had been charged was more than the advertised euro price and it appeared that I had been charged about another €8 for the earphones that I did not want. Despite this annoyance, I thought the Archaeology Museum and its audio guide were very good. It contains finds from all over western Anatolia. There is a lovely marble lion from the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus – it is a shame that the rest of the Mausoleum is now in the British Museum in London. Similarly, there is a lot about the various excavations of Troy – but most of the finds from there have ended up in Berlin. There are four ornately decorated marble sarcophogi from the royal necropolis in Sidon dating from the 4th century BC. Given that Sidon is in the Lebanon, which was once part of the Ottoman empire, the debate about ownership of archaeological finds is not straightforward.
That evening I went to a third different restaurant in Istanbul. Here I again had hummus to start with, followed by a kebab served on a bed of onions in yoghurt. There was also the usual complimentary baklava and Turkish tea to finish.
As I was going to bed that night the emergency alarms sounded in my hotel, but by the time that I had got dressed again and walked downstairs to the hotel’s entrance it had been determined that it was a false alarm.
Day 9 – Tuesday 3rd March 2026 – Istanbul to London
As I was due to be playing chess in London that evening, I thought that I would try to have a lie in, so that I would get up at a more reasonable London time (Istanbul is three hours ahead of London). However that aim was shattered when at 6am (i.e. 3am London time) there was a loud call to prayers from a nearby mosque, which I had not heard on my previous two mornings in the hotel. The call to prayers lasted for about half an hour, by which time I was wide awake and was unable to get back to sleep.
I thought that I would allow plenty of time to get to, and be processed through, Istanbul airport, given the idiosyncrasies of Istanbul transport and the difficulties that I had entering the country. There is a new metro line to the airport, which only opened recently, and I had no problems in getting there.
Istanbul airport is massive. It has now overtaken Heathrow as the largest airport in Europe, in terms of passenger numbers. I had to go through three sets of security before boarding: one to get into the airport (liquids allowed), one to go to departures (no liquids allowed, but you can refill your water bottle immediately afterwards), and one at the gate, where your bag is rummaged through and you are frisked and swabbed. I had no difficulties going through passport control. My Irish passport was stamped, by a completely silent border officer, on the same page as the entry stamp had been placed. I have no idea what may happen if in future I try to enter Turkey on my British passport, given that was processed (but not stamped) when I entered the country.
Boarding for my flight started early and we left on time. I was travelling with Turkish Airlines, who provided a meal during the flight. I also had a screen on the back of the seat in front of me, which allowed you to access various maps and cameras showing the external view from different parts of the plane. Normally, when travelling without such luxury of information, I try to track the plane’s position, altitude and speed using a couple of apps on my phone. These worked perfectly on the flight to Plovidiv, but on the way back from Istanbul they only started working once we were in western Europe. I wondered if this was because they rely on the same GPS technology as was being used by Iranian drones and that this had been turned off.
The plane landed at Heathrow 25 minutes early and there were no queues at all at passport control. So I was home in plenty of time to go out to the chess match I was playing in that evening. However, I think my brain had been left behind and I lost a game that I would have been expected to win, meaning that my team could only draw the match.
Conclusion
During my time in Turkey, I really only visited the main tourist spots – normally, I like to do more than that to get a feel for a country. My initial experience of dealing with a probably corrupt border official when trying to enter may have prejudiced my views, but Turkey does not feel particularly European. There seems to be a heavy police presence everywhere, which may be designed to provide reassurance, but at times felt oppressive. That said, it was fascinating to get an insight into the workings of a system of power that controlled a large part of Europe for 500 years.