Tag Archives: Travel

Türkiye Trip October 2022

by in Rachel Barnard and tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

 

Hotel Locations in Turkey: $2426 for 13 nights and we spent an extra 2 nights locally in my partner’s mom’s custom-built apartment in Istanbul

• $1117 for 4 nights ($279/night) = Rixos Pera Hotel Istanbul
· 5-star hotel
· The hotel had a useful concierge service that helped get us reservations at the rooftop bar/restaurant, a hookah lounge to watch the soccer game on Sunday night, and a ride to the airport early in the morning when we left
· The bathroom smelled like old pipes/sewer

• $468 for 2 nights ($234/night) = Kapadokya hill hotel and spa
· 5-star hotel
· The room had no windows as we stayed underground in a cave room
· We were able to check in early and use their spa/hamam that same day
· We utilized their concierge service to book the hot air balloon experience and the VIP tour we took
· Our bathroom had a spa tub


• $472 for 3 nights ($157/night) = Ecclesia hotel Ölüdeniz
· 5-star hotel
· Spa tub in the room (not in the bathroom)
· I accidentally let the cat in the room when I left the door open for two minutes
· It rained hard one night and we lost our AC for the night


• $131 for 1 night = Doubletree Istanbul hotel
· 5-star hotel
· Walkable to the soccer stadium for the game


• $81 for 1 night = Gaziantep Şirehan hotel
· 5-star hotel
· The “non-smoking hotel” where people smoked in the rooms and it traveled into our room
· We left after one night because the smoke was overwhelming, the AC didn’t work well, and the Wi-Fi kept disconnecting to the point where it wasn’t functional


• $157 for 2 nights ($79/night) = Hilton Gaziantep
· 3-star hotel
· The best AC of them all!

 

Travel and Transportation!

~30 hours in planes (12-hour trip to Istanbul) – $1283 with seats selected in advance for the international flight + $375 for the three domestic flights
We took the bus, the subway, taxis, and Uber, as well as plenty of walking!
My favorite mode of transportation: the subway because it was comfortable and we could sit but also Taxis/Uber because we didn’t have to walk uphill!

20.15 TL/ Liter is $4.09/gallon

 

 

The food
• My favorite savory – Içli Köfte (Turkish Stuffed Meatball) that is either fried (shown below) or boiled


• Best desserts – katmer from Katmerci Zekeriya Usta and baklava from Baklavaci Zeki İnal


• Food to try: Lahmacun (Turkish pizza)


• Popular street food: simit (priced at 5 Turkish Lira = $0.27) and is sold from street carts. Simit used to be priced around 2 – 3 TL before inflation


• Another Favorite Savory: paçanga böreği = deep fried mix roll from the Hill Hotel Restaurant in kapadokya


• Another Favorite Savory – hotel buffet Syrnike (Russian pancake I think and not even Turkish food)


• And Another Favorite food item – Tavuk Göğsü from Sütiş Restaurant = Turkish milk pudding made with shredded chicken breast

Eating/Restaurants
• Ayran (yogurt drink) is popular, especially with meat dishes/kabobs, and is sometimes made in-house by blending up yogurt, water, and salt


• You finish your meal at most restaurants with a free cup of tea (sugar optional)
• You get a hand wipe post-meal at most restaurants as well


• A lot of restaurants use beautiful and intricately patterned copper as their dishware

• Bayramoğlu Döner – popular and best Döner with a line waiting at the door for a table

 

 

Experiences


• Fenerbaçe game – The security confiscated my chapstick. Nearly everyone was smoking (especially since it was such a tight game). The tickets for our section (what few of them were left when we were buying) were $40/each. We were not able to purchase the seats right next to each other but we were able to sit next to each other regardless as people often move around a little bit within their section.

• Paragliding – Babadag Mountain is one of the highest commercial launch sites in the world for paragliding! The take-off site for paragliding over Oludeniz Beach starts at a height of about 6,500 feet, The standard weight limit for Paragliding in Oludeniz is 110kg ( 242.5lbs


• Hot air balloon ride – 250 euros each. The average cost of a shared hot air balloon ride in Seattle, Washington, is $300. Our concierge was able to make a reservation the day before after calling 10 different agencies and he told us that there are over 100 different companies. Each balloon accommodates up to 20 passengers and our balloon had a mix of people from Colombia, Brazil, Sudan, and a few other countries. The ride lasts around 40-60 minutes. The balloon can only go up and down and directionally is pushed by the wind. The takeoff point will change depending on the wind and we were not airborne by sunrise partially due to the last-minute takeoff location confirmation. We landed on the road – after being dragged by rope out of an area with trees because again there is no steering.

 
• Rooftop bar with infinity pool and sitting pool – one of the loveliest rooftop bars I’ve been up to even though it was only the third story of the hotel

• Hamam as well as spa/massage

We visited The Cağaloğlu hamam which was constructed in 1741 and is the last hamam to be built after a long period during the Ottoman Empire. There is a women’s section and a men’s section (which is where you walk into upon entering the hamam). We visited the hamam in the Hill Hotel and Spa twice and had a ‘couples’ hamam. We also tried out the hamam spa at the Ecclesia hotel Ölüdeniz – the most ‘touristy’ version of hamam and though my partner and I both went at the same time, there was only one attendant so we were in the same room while the other was getting bathed.

We spent $86 for the “After Work” package for two and $81 for the “Best of Asia” package for two at the Hill Hotel and Spa. We spent $100 for the classic hamam that included a massage for two at the Ecclesia hotel Ölüdeniz. We spent $194.81 each for the “Sultan Mahmud The First” package at the Cağaloğlu hamam

 

Cultural sites


• Gaziantep – castle


• VIP local tour – underground city kaymakli

• VIP local tour – pottery demo at kapadokya ceramic

• VIP local tour – göreme open-air museum

• VIP local tour – fairy chimney lookout point

• VIP local tour – imagination lookout – devrent vadisi


• Grand Bazaar Istanbul


• Hagia Sophia (we didn’t go inside because the line was too long)


• Galata Tower


• Basilica Cistern

 

 

Museums

• 25 December Gaziantep Defense Heroism Panorama and Museum


• Gaziantep Zeugma Museum of Culture and Congress Center – remains of zeugma with lots of mosaics


• Madam Tussauds


• Miniaturk (I thought this was mini golf)

 

 

Misc


• Turkey is known for their street cats!


• There are also street dogs

 

True Cost – Mexico City for 10 days in 2020

by in Rachel Barnard and tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

We touched down Friday night and I’ve been itching to fully record and go through all the expenses from our trip to Mexico City. Our first two expenses were the majority of our travel costs, i.e. plane tickets and housing. We found a lovely AirBnB in Roma Norte and we bought plane tickets from Seatac to Mexico City (MEX) for $940 each (I went with my partner and SO). The plane ride there was overnight and left at 10PM. We scored the row to ourselves (as did most of the other flyers on this less-than-full flight). They even gave us food a few hours in! Arriving early, we were initially wondering what to do prior to checking into our AirBnB but our host graciously let us check in 6 hours early and we took a much needed nap!

Surprising things:

  • The altitude is no joke! I could feel it in the shallow breaths that didn’t quite have as much oxygen as I wanted (almost like asthma) and how difficult it was to walk up stairs without becoming short of breath. I’m very glad we didn’t schedule our Teotihuacan trip until several days into our stay.
  • The traffic – if you are within a mile of your destination – driving might not be faster and Ubers don’t turn on their air-conditioning (opening the windows doesn’t create much of a breeze when you’re not moving that fast). There are lots of ride share bikes and some ride share scooters available but we decided not to stress about it and just walk. There was always traffic and it just got worse during ‘rush hour’.
  • The more popular restaurants were crowded all the time! Contramar, a fancier seafood restaurant, was always busy, even if it was 3PM!
  • Most of the time we ate at smaller places and they wanted us to pay after we were done eating. Sometimes it was confusing knowing how to order, where to stand in line or even if there was a line, and how to pay!
  • Most of the people who live and work in Mexico City don’t make a lot of money and their rent is surprisingly high! Our Merced tour guide told us that rent is oftentimes as much as a month’s pay (Mex$8,000) for a single bedroom. He told us that tips make up 30% of his take home pay. Tips are not obligatory in Mexico City, but after hearing this, I went from happily tipping nothing or 10% to 15% at every restaurant (and 20% at the fanciest/most attentive restaurant we ate at).

What I really loved about Mexico City:

  • How affordable it was for us
  • Being able to communicate almost all the time with the Spanish I know (rather rusty from not using for 10 years)
  • Being able to walk everywhere (so many little shops, cafes, and restaurants really close to us)

Recommend places to eat and what to get:

  • The Secret Donut Society – such a cool experience. The donut was just okay, but figuring out how to order and find your donut was rather exciting
  • Mog sushi (for a change of pace get some sushi – our favorite that we tried was the Spicy Maguro roll)
  • La Güera Tortas de Chilaquiles (all the sandwiches tasted the same to me but if you order the “bomba” I think it’s a combination sandwich)
  • 5 Hermanos in La Merced (Aisle 9) and get the Longaniza tacos!
  • Moles Dona Balbi in La Merced (close to door 5) has amazing Almond mole and other moles
  • La Gruta for the atmosphere and the Ensalada La Gruta
  • El Vilsito – the gringa tacos are amazing! Don’t forget the avocado salsa and limes.
  • Santa Clara (chain ice cream shops) has amazing ice cream (avoid pistachio)
  • Contramar has amazing tortas (appetizer) and queso flan that is divine!
  • Vips (for late night munching this chain has you covered)
  • El Cardenal has amazing mole
  • Tacos Joven – the adobo taco was amazing!
  • Agua y Sal – we absolutely loved everything we ate here, but especially the plancha frutos del mar

Prior to leaving the states, my partner took out $200 USD worth of pesos just in case and we got a decent exchange rate. Our plan was to use my Charles Schwab account to pull out pesos at a local ATM (they claim no foreign ATM fees for withdrawals in Mexico and indeed I have already received the fee back from my first withdrawal last month).

I pulled out $11.04 USD =Mex$200  on 2/26 the first day, $158.45 USD =Mex$3,000 on Saturday 2/29, and $25.03 USD =Mex$400 on Thursday 3/5
Prior to leaving the states, we bought some peanuts and drinks at the airport = $12.14

The total the two of us spent together was: ~$3100
AirBnB: $715 USD
Airplane Tickets: $1150 USD
Transportation: Mex$2,469.50 ($120 USD) + $25 USD
Food and groceries: $12.14 (Airport Snacks) + Mex$12,891.50 ($626.49 USD)
Entertainment: $190.78 USD (La Merced) + Mex$5,357 ($260.33 USD)
Bathrooms: Mex$25
Misc (gifts, etc): Mex$410

Here is the list of most everything we did and everything we bought with our Mex$ cash and credit cards:

2/26 Wednesday:

  • The secret donut society. #5 Mex$50 cash
  • El Pescadito Taqueria. Tacos de camaron, tacochango, que-sotote, quesadilla, Agua natural. Mex$198 visa Rachel CC ($10.39 USD)
  • Panaderia: mocha donut and lemon cookie donut Mex$16 cash
  • Bosque de Chapultepec
  • Street fruit Mex$35 cash
  • Groceries Mex$76 cash
  • Mog sushi Mex$1017.50 visa Jon CC
  • El Moro Churrerria: Hot chocolate, chocolate bar gift, red velvet seasonal churro, regular churros Mex$173 visa Rachel CC ($9.08 USD)

Uber Mex$134.20 ($7.07 USD)
Uber Mex$37.34 ($1.81 USD)
Uber Mex$46.94

2/27 Thursday

  1. La Güera Tortas de Chilaquiles Mex$230 cash 5 sandwiches (each type of sandwich)
  2. Street vendor: Hamburguesa de piña y hamburguesas de piña y queso Mex$96 cash
  3. Street vendor Churros. 3 regular and one filled with chocolate Mex$26 cash
  4. Corn esquite from street vendor Mex$20 cash
  5. Bares y Pulques Los Insurgentes: Pulque mango y pulque de la casa con smokey and sweet mezcal shots Mex$340 cash

Uber Mex$45 ($2.48 USD)
Uber Mex$37.33
Uber Mex$37.34
Uber Mex$47.26

2/28 Friday

  1. La Merced tour Jon paid in advance $190.78 USD

1. Tacos McTeo. Carne enchilada tacos with cactus, onion and fries.  Location: In the banquetón (the large food hall that runs the perimeter of the market), near Aisle 16.
2. Fried Tamal. Location: Banquetón, between Aisle 14 & 15.
3. 5 Hermanos. Tasty tacos de suadero. Location: Banquetón, at Aisle 9.
4. Moles Dona Balbi. Mole tasting. Location: close to door 5
5. Señora Edith’s Pre-hispanic Ingredients. Chapulines, jumiles and more. Location: Nave Mayor (main fruit and vegetable building), between Aisle 12 & 15.
6. Tacos de Cabeza (Beef Head Tacos!). Location: Outside the Nave Mayor, in the road that runs between the market and the meat section.
7. El Pollo. Quesadillas de Huitlacoche. Location: In the center of the market Aisle.
8.Taquería Arandas. Tacos de cabeza. Location: Calle de Bolívar 15, Centro Histórico
9. Here we finished up with a refreshing drink.

  1. Farmacia Mex$113.50 visa Rachel CC ($5.84 USD)
  2. Mercado San Juan vanilla bottle and vanilla beans Mex$320 cash
  3. Lucha libre Mex$400 cash
  4. Lucha libre bebidas Mex$300 cash
  5. Lucha libre Mex$8 cash propina
  6. Lucha libre Mex$10 baño propina
  7. El Vilsito tacos Mex$400 cash con propina: 2 gringa, 2 milanesa, 2 al pastor con queso, 1 al pastor, 2 pollo con queso, Coca Cola

Uber Mex$55.53
Uber Mex$84.88
Uber Mex$60.13
Uber Mex$58.57

2/29 Saturday

  1. Maxidona 4 filled donuts Mex$134 cash
  2. Prepared mango from street vendor Mex$20 cash
  3. Pizzeria Cancino Cibeles – large Margharita pizza Mex$288 visa Rachel CC ($14.81 USD)
  4. Pizza tip Mex$20 cash
  5. Santa Clara Ice cream double cones: taro and triple chocolate; lemon and spicy mango Mex$210 visa Rachel CC ($10.80 USD)
  6. Cinépolis movie Invisible Man Mex$167 visa Jon CC
  7. Cheddar popcorn and sprite Mex$109 cash

Uber: $162.59 ($8.33 USD)

Uber Mex$171.85

3/1 Sunday

  1. La Otilia GF cafe/bakery Mex$240 visa Rachel CC ($12.34 USD)
  2. Agua Mex$10 cash
  3. Contramar Restaurant: tortas de Atun y calamari, witch fish, pescado a la talla, pan de queso, lemonade, orange refresher, passionfruit water Mex$1634 after tip visa Rachel CC ($84.03 USD)
  4. Turibus Mex$360 cash

3/2 Monday

  1. Bus tickets to archaeological zone round trip Mex$208 cash
  2. Entrance to Teotihuacán Mex$160 cash
  3. Bathroom tip Mex$5 cash
  4. Sparkling lime water Mex$20
  5. La gruta Mex$1525 Jon CC
  6. Cold water Mex$25 cash
  7. Water Mex$14 cash
  8. Chai tea Mex$50 cash Guell cafe
  9. 5:30-6:30pm intermediate pole class free
  10. Vips Mex$657 Rachel CC ($34.31 USD)
  11. Casa de Toño Mex$85 Jon CC
  12. Oxxo 2 waters, apple soda, 2 toilet papers Mex$64.50 cash

Uber Mex$37.34
Uber Mex$165.04
Uber Mex$47.49
Uber Mex$102.41

3/3 Tuesday

    1. Banana flan Mex$26 cash
    2. Pays coranado Mex$276 Rachel CC ($14.39 USD)
    3. En dharma massages 60 minutes with 30 minutes cupping Mex$2800 Rachel CC ($146.22 USD) Mex$500 cash tip
    4. Sabe: Salad of the day, bolognaise, manzanita soda, agua del día Mex$299 Rachel CC ($15.34 USD)
    5. Contramar coconut flan and cheese flan Mex$300 cash
    6. Doble ice creams Santa Clara: pistachio and macadamia; triple chocolate and coffee Mex$206 Rachel CC ($10.74 USD)
    7. Mex$151 cash Taqueria Los Cocuyos: longaniza x2, sesos, cabeza, cachete, Coca Cola
    8. We checked out El Zocalo y Miralto on top of torre Latinoamérica and the cathedral near the zócalo and walked around inside the house of tiles

Uber Mex$37.34
Uber Mex$36.99
Uber Mex$71.82
Uber Mex$42.11


3/4 Wednesday

      1. Zócalo baño Mex$10 cash
      2. Turibus purple line Mex$320 Rachel CC ($16.41 USD)
      3. El cardenal : mole tradicional de pollo, 4 tacos longaniza, 2 flan de queso, limonada x2, naranjado. Mex$742 Rachel CC ($38.69 USD)
      4. Mex$55 cash oxxo waters +small items
      5. Turibus sur verde (already paid)
      6. Hot chocolate and mocha from street vendor Mex$90 cash
      7. Dorilotes 2x from a street vendor Mex$100 cash

Uber Mex$70.85
Uber Mex78.25
Uber Mex$116.65
Uber Mex$59.45
Uber Mex$134.68

3/5 Thursday

      1. Tamales Doña Emi Atole de cereza de manzana y chocolate Mex$45 cash
      2. Tacos Joven- Tacos: adobo, chicharrón, carne con mole verde, papas refritas Mex$76 cash
      3. La Pipope, Taro y refresco manzanita Mex$70 Rachel CC ($3.59 USD)
      4. Museo de chocolate entrance fee Mex$150 cash
      5. Museo de chocolate hot chocolate with milk, hot chocolate with Chile, natural chocolate cacao cake, Mika cake Mex$163 Rachel CC ($8.36 USD)
      6. Museo de cero y museo de Ripley Mex$500 Rachel CC ($26.07 USD)
      7. Oxxo aguas y más bebidas Mex$97 cash
      8. Finca santa Veracruz Cibeles ensalada Cam Mex$56 cash
      9. Agua y Sal Mex$1730 Rachel CC ($88.74 USD)

Uber Mex$38.53
Uber Mex$60.38
Uber Mex$59.03

3/6 Friday

      1. Sabe near our Airbnb $205 cash machaca con huevo y avocado toast
      2. Vanilla extract at the airport $90 cash

Uber Mex$124.21

Los Angeles Trip, Impressions, $$ spent

by in For the Love of Donuts, Local Eats, Local Events, Rachel Barnard and tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Last week I went to Los Angeles with my partner. He was attending E3. While he was away during the day at the convention, I went out and found donuts, took a dance class, and was part of a studio audience for LMAD.  I spent a total of ~$613. My SO paid for the plane tickets and the AirBnB where we stayed. I rented the car and bought all the donuts! Here is the breakdown of my costs and what we did each day…

Los Angeles, California trip 6/10 – 6/14

Monday:
Picked up rental car – $193
In n Out at 11AM Double Double burgers with fries animal style
Picked up E3 badge
Parking Garage $2 N. LA
Donatsu –  Royal Dragon yeast donut $5 cash including the tip.
Lyft to City Hall to go to the observation deck which was free! $5.80 for the Lyft
AirBnB check in after 4PM less than 3 miles from E3
Drove to Santa Barbara and Cold Spring Tavern, split the bill – $65
Stopped for gas – $40 to fill the tank
Stopped at Ralph’s for snacks and waters

First day thoughts. LA traffic is crazy! Pedestrians, bikers, and drivers alike make crazy poor decisions regarding the usage of the road. People will stop in the middle of the road and put on flashers whenever they feel like it. If you want to make a left turn (most of them are unprotected left turns) you have to wait for the light to turn yellow and then at least two cars running the red light from oncoming traffic before you can make your left turn. This was the hottest day! The rental car process was the simplest I’ve ever been through and I would actually recommend Midway Car Rental (just make sure you get directions for getting to the offsite rental car site).

Tuesday:
Dropped SO off at E3
California Donuts – got a glazed, cream filled, and lemon filled. Donuts were $1 each and I gave $1 tip! Donuts were average – $4
Bath and Body Works and Staples to print my studio audience ticket – $1 printing, $8 bath bomb
4:15 – 5:25 BeSpun Int Upside Down Pole Tricks $35
Big Al’s Pizzeria – got Supreme and BBQ Chicken Large pizzas for takeaway – $48
Ate at Elysian Park and then climbed to the swing and lookout at the top of a hill
Stopped at CVS

I took a pole class at BeSpun. Unfortunately the air conditioning was broken! The class started out slow and then ramped up quickly. I loved the combo we did and we were allowed to take video at the end of class and I was able to dance the combo at this time. Neat little studio NW of Downtown.

Wednesday:
Dropped of SO at E3
Picked up half dozen special donuts from Crafted Donuts – $15 – these were meh
Picked up toilet paper, water, and peaches from Ralph’s nearby – $4.63
Worked at home
8:30 Benihana reservation $80.74
Parked across the street $3.50

Our AirBnB provided 2/3 a roll of toilet paper for our 4.5 day stay… So we had to get some more SMH. I was surprised that with our reservation at Benihana, we weren’t sat until 9:15PM. I’ve never had to wait that long with a reservation. I was ecstatic to find cheap parking across the street, especially since we were parked there for nearly 3 hours.

Thursday:
Dropped off SO at E3
Kettle Glazed Doughnuts $11.75 – decent donuts
Let’s Make a Deal showing 11AM (check in at 10:30AM), rented a cop costume – $25, you can look up the show at a later date with the date 6/13/19 and the code 11030
Picked up SO from E3
Leo’s Tacos $30 cash
Dunkin’ $16.47

LMAD was such a cool experience! I went there prepared to not be in costume and just watch but go so hyped up by the enthusiastic staff and other participants that I wanted to participate. I rented a costume (a cop because I’m a donut enthusiast) and worked really hard to be extroverted so that I would be chosen as a contestant but sadly I was not. It was super fun, regardless, and a little exhausting to smile for over two hours and be energetic for that long. I would definitely do this again if I go back to LA. I arrived around 10AM and drove off the lot around 3:45 so it was an all day event! My favorite part: if I didn’t rent a costume it would have been completely free to participate!

Friday:
AirBNB checkout 12PM
Parked at 2100 Ocean Front Walk, Venice, CA 90291 $9 for parking (the most we paid)
Muscle Beach being renovated so it wasn’t open 😦 We walked along the boardwalk
Drove to Sidecar Doughnuts and Coffee (gluten-friendly, huckleberry, vanilla glazed) $10.75
Drove to CVS for last minute supplies
Drove to the airport
Picked up In n Out for SO $8.81
Midway Car Rental drop off 4:00PM

I was sad that muscle beach was being renovated but there was a slick little outdoor acrobatic gym? It had two ropes to climb, a balance beam, two rings, and some pull-up bars.

Places I still want to go:

  • the Upside Down House
  • The Last Bookstore
  • Donut Friend
  • Eaton Canyon Falls
  • Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook
  • SKS Donut & Croissant
  • The Manufactory
  • Angels Flight Railway
  • Birdies Fried Chicken and Donuts