Nov 28 - Up early and stuff our faces in the breakfast room. No competition today, the Iranian tourists have vanished. Quickly grab a taxi and to the Van airport, a tiny place with four gates. As I fully expected, however, the security is high, with a baggage x-ray before even getting to the ticket counter.
I bought this flight from Turkish Airlines but the plane is an Anadolujet. It takes about 2 hours to fly across the country, east to west.
Disembark at Sabiha Gokcen International Airport (SAW), which is at the far east end of the Istanbul metropolis, on the Asian side. It is much smaller than IST. Get our pre-arranged shuttle for the long ride through traffic back to Fatih.
Check into our faithful Fatih ‘home’, the Old City Hotel. Eat at our standard cheap local restaurant, and I go to get a haircut. The rest of the day is dealing with work and visa applications for further down the road.
Türkiye III