2012 New Year : Two Countries & Three Continents December 30, 2011-January 4, 2012

2012 New Year Street Party in the Rain, Istanbul, Turkey

Life is unpredictable and 2012 has indeed begun with many surprises. My original plan was to spend the New Year in Baku, Azerbaijan and fly to Doula, Cameroon via Istanbul and Casablanca on January 3.  As Azerbaijan refused to let me in following my excursion to Karabakh, I had to return to Tbilisi, Georgia and bought another ticket to fly to Istanbul. Then I changed my flight to Doula to January 4 in order to allow enough time to get a tourist visa for Ghana. All in all, I had a nice time in Istanbul and a fruitful stay in Morocco where I got my visa for Ghana.

Background

I left Hong Kong on November 27, 2011 and joined three tours to Iraq, the Caucasus and West Africa. My visit to Iraq, Armenia and Georgia went well. Though I was unable to visit Azerbaijan, my time was not wasted at all: I rendered assistance to May, who fell sick in Georgia, so that she could return to Hong Kong with the group.

Once my mission had been completed, I flew to Istanbul on December 30. For the next few days, I explored all possible ways to get a tourist visa for Ghana and filled my time with some sightseeing and visits to Turkish baths.

December 30 (Friday), 2011: Istanbul,Turkey

I arrived before 6am at the Sabiha Gokcen Airport located some 50km away from Istanbul on the Asian side. The traffic was so bad that the airport bus took an hour and a half to reach Taksim where I had to catch another taxi to my hotel near the Basilica Cistern.

My stay in Istanbul was marred by my staying in a horrible hotel on the Yerebatan Caddesi. The location is excellent but the property is run-down. There is no window in my tiny room and the hot water did not work. Water is leaking somewhere.  The owner is mean and grumbles
the whole day! I sent a formal complaint to the Hotels.com.

I noted from their website that there is a Hon Consul of Ghana in Istanbul. I spent over an hour without finding the place. With the assistance of a young Turkish lady who found the new phone number of the Consul, I called the Consul’s office. But I was told that the Consul did not handle applications from non-Turkish residents.

On my way back to Taksim, I saw a Royal Air Maroc office by chance. As there is a Ghanaian Embassy in Morocco, I decided to depart for Casablanca as soon as possible. To my surprise, the officer changed my ticket to January 1 without penalty.

Once my departure date had been fixed, I spent the remaining time enjoying myself. I went to the Gedikpasa Bath (built by architect Hayreddin in 1475). The place is nice and comfortable with two ladies doing the scrub and massage. The charge was only 55TL. Great value-for-money!In the evening, I saw the Sema Ritual performance at the old Sirkeci railway station. Sema is part of the inspiration of Mevalana Muhammed Celaleddin-i Rumi (1207-1273) as well as Turkish custom. I find the music from the 13^th century simple but powerful. I was amazed by the non-stop swirling/spinning of the three male dancers. I had to turn my eyes away from them. Otherwise, I might faint!

December 31 (New Year Eve), Saturday: Istanbul – Hereke – Istanbul

Haydarpasa Train Station

I brought a lovely silk Hereke carpet with the tree of life pattern on my first visit to Turkey in early 1990s. Hereke is a small fishing village which can be reached from the famous railway station Haydarpasa designed by the German in the early 20^th century. The journey takes less than an hour and a half.

I had a lovely time looking at the fresh fruits and vegetables in the local market. I did not visit the carpet museum as someone told me it was closed for renovation. But I had a most delicious New Year Eve lunch-cum-dinner with fish soup, an assortment of fish, a grilled sea beam, two glasses of local white wine and a dessert for only 35TL!

It started to rain in the late afternoon. I saw another dance performance by a dozen of young and most energetic dances at the Hodjapasha Cultural Centre (which is a restored 550 years old Turkish bath). The house was full and everyone had a good time enjoying the choreography and lively music. There was a belly dance performance by an attractive but skinny dancer. Her belly dance technique is fine but I prefer the performance by dancers with a belly!

Hereke

Colourful peppers

A museum

Happy fish man

It was cold and wet. The wind and rain did not deter me from going out just before midnight to watch fireworks and celebrations in the street. I went on foot to the Sultanahmet area which is full of bars, hotels and restaurants. Some young Turks and tourists were dancing and singing in the street. The atmosphere, I am afraid, is nothing compared with those in Hong Kong.

January 1, 2012 (Sunday): Istanbul, Turkey – Casablanca, Morocco

Kadirga haman

Before leaving Istanbul, I had a lovely time walking in the rain to see the quiet Sultanahmet. The Four Seasons Hotel located in a restored prison looks great. I love to stay in this district on my next visit.

I had my fourth Turkish bath at the Kadirga Hamam (since 1505) in a run-down neighbourhood in Sultanahmet. The lady section is simple but authentic. I was the only customer and paid 40TL for a scrub and massage. My back felt much better.

The flight to Casablanca took four hours. I then took a 40-minute train ride to the city centre and checked in the historical Transatlantic Hotel which was opened in 1920s.

January 2: Casablanca – Rabat – Casablanca

Rabat is only an hour away by train. I was told that embassies would be open. Hence I took the 8am train to Rabat and arrived at the Ghana Embassy before 9:30am.  Unfortunately it was closed.

Before returning to Casablanca, I walked around the old medina and revisted the Roman remains. I went to Royal Air Maroc and paid a penalty in order to change my departure for Doula to January 4 as this would give me more time to obtain a visa for Ghana.

When I arrived in Casablanca, I strolled along the old quarter, the Place of United Nations and the main avenues with many interesting art nouveaux buildings. But the place though busy, thriving with business, is messy and dirty.

January 3-4: Rabat

I took the 8am-train to Rabat with my suitcase and stayed in a hotel right by the train station. I went to the Embassy for the second time. The receptionist Ilham, a beautiful young lady, is helpful. Though they would not normally handle applications from non-Moroccans, she asked me to leave my application form, photos and trip itinerary with her and told me to call in the afternoon to see whether they could process my application. I tried to call without success.

The following morning, I returned to the Embassy for the third time in three days. I was interviewed by the Consul who understands my situation and is sympathetic. At 11am, I finally got my visa and returned to my hotel as the happiest person in the world!

Things went smoothly. I took the 4pm-train from Rabat to the Casablanca Airport. My flight departed on time at 8:20pm and I arrived in Doula, Cameroon around 2:30am (local time) after a five-hour flight!

Remarks

I had never thought of visiting Istanbul twice in December 2011. But it was fate that brought me back. My Turkish bath, the visit to Hereke and the two dance performances within two days were nice surprises. There is always so much to do and I am sure to return to Turkey for the sixth time!

I am a ‘can-do’ person and shall go wherever my fantasy takes me. I am glad to get my visa for Ghana in Morocco finally (I got my visa for Cameroon and Nigeria before leaving Hong Kong). As an intrepid traveller, I wish more countries could adopt the Australian visa modus operandi whereby one applies online and pays the fee. A visa number will be provided immediately and no paper/stamp on the passport is required. The immigration officer checks the computer record at the port of entry in Australia. The whole procedure is paper-less, most efficient and user-friendly.  If not, one should be allowed to apply for visas upon arrival. I have obtained my visa for Nepal, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Armenia in this way without problem.

I love Morocco and this is my third visit. I have not done much this time and hope to return one day.