Hostile Cab Drivers,Helpful Locals and Mark Twain

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We all have stories to tell of hostile cab drivers whether NYC, Hong Kong or ISTANBUL.  My girlfriend and I decided to head directly to the Grand Bazaar and we asked the concierge how much a cab would cost from the hotel to the Bazaar.  He said pay no more than 20 Turkish lira (1.44 lira to the dollar).  We verify with our driver that it will be MAXIMUM 20 lira.  16 lira it cost.  After having fun getting lost in the maze of the Bazaar, we head outside to get a cab.  The first cab driver:  we got in the cab, asked to verify the price, 20 EURO!  When we said no, he backed up at lightening speed so as not to lose his place in line, and shooed us out.  Next cab driver:no.  Next: no.  Next: no.  Finally I see a policeman and ask for his help.  Would he really help?  He also verified that we should pay no more than 20 lira.  He asked 3 other cabs and they all said no.  He finally shouted to a cab driver driving in the opposite direction to take us.  He did at 16 lira.  We quickly learned to only get cabs at hotels or restaurants.  We had a great seafood meal at Sur Balik on the Bosporus. Yes, there are Starbucks but no commemorative Istanbul coffee mugs.  Drat!  Read more...

I'll Give You 12 Camels for Your Wife

I'm reading Mark Twain's The Innocents Abroad. I can see your heads going back and forth asking "is she crazy?" But let me tell ya, his descriptions of London, Paris, Italy, Morocco, Turkey etc, could still be used in guide books today. There is one section that had me laughing out loud. My husband came up to the library to see what I was laughing about. Mark Twain and his "group" had discerned that guides get "off" on making Americans oooh and aaahh. So, he and his buddies deliberately try not to show any enthusiasm. When the unsuspecting Genoan guide shows them something written by Christopher Columbus, they ask, "who is that?" And "why is he so important?" And, "is he still alive?" "No". Then, "how did he die?" "Measles?" "Are his parents still alive?" Keep in mind, The Innocents Abroad  was written in 1867. Columbus? 1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue...They had the poor guide so flummoxed, he kept trying harder and harder to get them to squeal in ecstasy. And they called every guide, every guide no matter where they were, Ferguson. Maybe this is where the term "ugly American" began. I'm enjoying the book tremendously. He brings up many topics that I, as a traveler, have pondered. For example, all throughout Europe, Northern Africa and the British Isles one can see magnificent, towering cathedrals and castles and fortresses that are gilded with gold and silver with swords and crowns glittering with precious stones. But I, as did Twain, question how could the "powers that be" that had these churches etc built, gild the churches etc while their parishioners were living in abject poverty (and in many cases, still do)? And, they themselves living an elite life? Just something to ponder.  Read about my travels to Tahiti and Istanbul...