Nathan's Insights

World Traveller: 7 Continents, 90 Countries, 871 Days Overseas

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  • World Trip 2023: Day 37 – Istanbul, Türkiye

    Istanbul, Türkiye – Topkapi Palace

    Sunday 04 June 2023
    Highlights: Listening to Türkiye and Syria Earthquake fundraising concert, Exploring Topkapi Palace, recovering (slowly)

    After a good nights sleep I was finally feeling a lot better and I had the confidence to enjoy the buffet breakfast that I paid for with this booking. My system hasn’t fully stablished but it is getting there.

    During the morning I caught up on some much needed sleep and then listened and watched a Türkiye and Syria Earthquake fundraising concert back in Melbourne organised by a good friend and talented musican in Arzu. It was a bit surreal being in Türkiye listening to a fundraising concert in Melbourne for this very country.

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  • World Trip 2023: The Five Stans of the Silk Road Tour Review

    Charyn Canyon, Kazakhstan – Tour Day 8

    Tour Title: The Five Stans of the Silk Road
    Tour Company: G Adventures
    Tour Leaders: IIyas (days 1 to 9), Rustam (days 9 to 22), Eziz (days 22 to 26)
    Cities Visited:
    1 Kyrgyzstan – Bishkek, Chong-Kemin, Song Kul, Tamga, Karakol
    2 Kazakhstan – Saty Village, Almaty
    3 Tajikistan – Dushanbe, Gazza Village, Khŭjand
    4 Uzbekistan – Tashkent, Samarkand, Nurata, Kyzylkum Desert, Bukhara, Khiva
    5 Turkmenistan – Dashoguz, Darvaza, Ashgabat
    Countries Visited: Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan
    Dates: 09 May 2023 to 03 June 2023 (Duration 26 days)
    Tour Type: Classic – Tour Itinerary (PDF)
    Journal Entries

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  • World Trip 2023: Day 36 – Ashgabat to Istanbul, Türkiye

    Istanbul, Türkiye – Sultan Ahmed Mosque (Blue Mosque)

    Saturday 03 June 2023
    Highlights: Surviving overnight flight, early check in, exploring the Sultan Ahmed Mosque (Blue Mosque)

    With some trepidation and still feeling unwell I joined our group at 00:30 for the transfer to the airport for my international flight to Istanbul. It was a real struggle to get to the airport and not to throw up until after I was checked in and past security.

    Ashgabat, Turkmenistan- International Airport Terminal in the form of an eagle
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  • World Trip 2023: Day 35 – Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

    Nisa, Turkmenistan

    Friday 02 June 2023
    Highlights: Monument of Neutrality, Indoor Ferris wheel, Old Nisa, Gurbansoltan Eje Memorial and Turkmenbashi Mosque, Halk Hakydasy Memorial Complex, National Museum of Turkmenistan, Independence Monument, Food poisoning

    The last full day of the Five Stans tour before my flight back to Türkiye at 3.30 am tomorrow. Today we our small group would explore the marble city of Ashgabat in more detail building on last night’s exploration.

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  • Flight Review – TK323 Ashgabat to Istanbul

    Turkish Airlines
    Date: 03 June 2023
    Gate: 102
    Seat: 6B (Economy Class Seat)
    Plane: Airbus A321neo
    Boarded: 02:45 (early)
    Pushback: 03:21 (Scheduled 03:30)
    Arrived: 05:10 (Scheduled 05:20)
    Duration: 3 hour 49 minutes
    Distance: 2,555 kms

    This flight was from Ashgabat International Airport to Istanbul International Airport.

    Note: I was very unwell before this flight, vomiting from food poisoning but was better by the time of the flight. As a result I did observe as much as I would normally do.

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