June & August 2008

A wonderful 5 nights in the old town of Nessebar on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast with Bed and breakfast, transfers, return airfare and Insurance.
4 Nights in Istanbul on bed & breakfast, a taxi ride away from the Blue Mosque, Saint Sophia, Topkapi Palace, Kariye Museum, Bosphorus and Grand Bazaar.

Cost of trip R12893-00 person sharing.  (please confirm prices with Travel Alive)

Come discover the best of the European summer relaxing at the Black Sea resort of Nessebar and exploring the mysteries of the Orient in Istanbul.

The reason why the churches were built:

After the ancient Greeks began to make their colonies on the North coast of the Black Sea (6^th – 3rd century B.C.) now known as - Ahtopol, Sozopol, Pomorie, Nessebar, Obzor, Balchik and others, a lot of high level people from the ancient Greeks, were traveling with their ships to trade with the local Thracian people or just to visit the new lands. A lot of them had different bone and skin diseases. They were surprised when they realized that they have been cured after bathing in these new beaches!

These visits continued during the Byzantine times as well and some of the richer merchants, who were visiting Nessebar and got cured, wanted to thank God for their healing by building a church. So it happens that in this small peninsula there are today the remains of more than 40 churches. 

Even during the most important battles between the new-established Bulgaria and Byzantium in 681 AD (when Byzantium had 75,000 soldiers and the Bulgarians only had 15,000 soldiers), the Byzantium Imperator thought that the outcome of the battle is clear. He left with his ship to Nessebar in order to bathe in the sea and get cured.

The Bulgarians attacked, crying that the Imperator is trying to escape, so the Byzantium soldiers got scared, believing that they have been left by their Imperator, and the Bulgarians won the battle!

Today the old part of town has regained its original romantic atmosphere: narrow cobblestone lanes, tiny squares, two-storied period houses with stone-built ground levels and wooden upper floors jutting above the streets and external staircases, gift shops, pubs, taverns and lovely flower gardens.

What to do: Everything is available here! Apart from the ancient buildings and historical monuments, there are quiet restaurants, fashionable cafes and discos. Bulgaria’s biggest beach resort Sunny Beach is 3km far, offering a lot of amusement and excellent night life.

A visit to Chicken Park is a must. This nice and cozy restaurant is situated in the center of the New town. It is the perfect place to relax after a long summer’s day. A hearty welcome by a team of professionals will take you to a different and unique gastronomy experience. The restaurant offers wonderful specialties from the traditional Bulgarian cuisine. A great selection of chicken and fish meals is the perfect choice for the day and a glass of Bulgarian wine, a must.

The cost of a taxi in Nessebar:

 It is normally between 0, 75 leva - 5, 00 leva per km, but everyone has the right to make his own price and if it is announced on the window of the taxi - then it is legal! This means that the clients could be charged 3 leva or even 20leva. for a drive from the centre to the hotel. The distance is no more than 1 or max 2 km. Clients should look out to get the best price.

The currency in Bulgaria is Leva and Euro. The exchange rate for 1 Euro is 1.95 Leva and can be exchanged at most banks of which the Post Bank is the best. The best option is to exchange Euros for Leva to pay for purchases, meals and drinks, to ensure no problem with change and exchange rates. Credit Cards can be used but cash is better. There are lots of ATM’s where debit cards can be used. Just contact your Bank in South Africa to ensure that you will be able to do so. Bulgarian banks use PIN codes with 4 digits.

Location: 20 km North of Bourgas with 2 Beaches, close to the new town. Long sandy beaches along the beautiful Black Sea Coast will provide you with endless fun and sea escapades. There is a regular transport connecting Bourgas, Pomorie, Nessebar and Sunny Beach. Similarly to other seaside resorts during the peak season, there are a lot of private taxis and minibuses at competitive prices as well. Besides regularly water transport to Bourgas, one can often hire local boatmen to visit nearby places in the bay.

Immortalized in art and literature in its antiquity, Istanbul today is a sprawling metropolis with almost 8 million people spread throughout the three major sections of the city. The old part of Istanbul is the old city of Byzantium which is surrounded by the original city walls on the one side, the Golden Horn on the other side and by the Sea of Marmara on the third side. The new modernized section built at the end of the 19^th century is the current business center of Istanbul. The final section is the Asian side, with its residential streets, separated from the European half by the Bosphorus.

Places to visit and enjoy:

Blue Mosque:

 Built between 1609 and 1616 by Mehmet Aga, it has 260 windows and 6 minarets forming an impressive skyline from the sea. Built as a complex consisting of a covered bazaar, a Turkish bath, a soup kitchen for the poor, as hospital, schools and later the tomb of Sultan Ahmet I, not all the structures have survived. The inside of the Blue Mosque is covered by more than 20,000 Iznik tiles. The floor is covered with carpets donated by believers.

Saint Sophia:

This church was built by Emperor Justinian in 532-537 AD. St. Sophia was then the largest church in the Christian world. It took 6 years to built and was reconstructed after the earthquake of 556, which ruined the dome. In 1453 Mehmet II conquered Istanbul converting the city and the church to Islam. Today, the beautiful Christian mosaics and Islamic calligraphy testify to the spiritual beauty and harmony of both religions.

Topkapi Palace:

Located on the peninsula that overlooks Golden Horn, the Bosphorus and the Sea of Marmara, the palace complex is surrounded by 3 miles of walls. It is the oldest and largest of the remaining palaces in the world. It was built for Sultan Mehmet II and completed in 1479 after 14 years of building. It has a series of open courtyards and the Harem with its 400 rooms, where the Sultan kept his wives, children, eunuchs and concubines in the beautiful captivity of its jeweled interior.

Bosphorus:

The strait which separates Asia from Europe, the shores of the Bosphorus are between a third of a mile and 2 miles apart and are lined with cafes, restaurants, taverns, Yali’s (residences) and several palaces. From Istanbul to the Black Sea the shoreline measures 19 miles in all. The view of the Bosphorus from any of these establishments is amazing with its traffic of freighters, fishing boats, water skiers, swimmers and flights of storks and eagles. Silently watching all this progress for centuries are the two stone fortresses, AnadoluHisari (1390) and RumeliHisari (1452).

Grand Bazaar:

One of the oldest covered market places in the world. The Grand Bazaar’s labyrinth of tunnels contains over 4000 shops where all kinds of carpets, trinkets, jewelry and clothes can be purchased. The Bazaar is located in Beyazit Square at the end of YeniceriCaddesi (Avenue of the Janissaries.

NOTE:

This trip includes return airfare from Johannesburg to Istanbul and back, transfers from Istanbul to Nessebar and back, Insurance and Accommodation in 3* Hotels with breakfast included.

Not included in this trip: Lunch and dinner, drinks and any purchases of a personal kind. No entrance fees to museums, churches etc., guides and organized excursions.

The Cost of Food, Drinks and meals:

1 Coffee, 1 Beer, 1 Coca Cola costs ± 2- 3 USD! The local dinner kebab (it is like a sandwich) is very nice and cost from 0.50 USD to 3 USD. A slice of Pizza ± 2-3 USD. There are dinners of beef and chicken

Excursions you can take: 

• A boat trip to the Asian coast (from 10 Euro p.p. to 40 Euro p.p. at the Harbor) A boat trip to the Prince's islands (20 - 40 Euro p.p.).   
• A trip along the Bosporus (from 20 - 40 Euro p.p.) 
•  A sightseeing trip of Istanbul (from 30 – 70 Euro p.p.) visiting the Byzantine Hippodrome, Blue Mosque or so called The Sultan Ahmed Mosque, Hagia Sophia (St Sophia church), Grand Bazaar (CapalaCharshi) and the Topkapi Palace - the former imperial residence of Ottoman Sultans.

 All the above prices are offered on spot and a price is something which is very changeable in Turkey, as bargaining is almost everywhere and for everything