Istanbul to Nicosia - Day 20 - Tuesday 16th September 2025 - Balkan-Georgia Trip - Day 20/34 - City 15/21 - country 10/11
- eusts6
- Nov 7, 2025
- 3 min read
Updated: Nov 10, 2025
We woke up in our tiny hotel room, packed, showered, and then went back to the luxurious Agatha Christie hotel, but unfortunately, the prices were also luxurious for just a buffet. No matter how good the food claims to be, a buffet ruins it for me. We did find a nearby place which was small and cozy, and we had a nice breakfast which always includes tea, but ordered coffee too as I need coffee in the morning.
We picked up our bags at the hotel and ordered a taxi to Taksim to catch the shuttle bus to Sabiha Gökçen, Istanbul's second airport. The driver was pretty insistent on bringing us all the way until I figured out it was Atatürk Airport he was thinking of. He dropped us off at Taksim, where there was pure chaos as people scrambled with heavy suitcases. No timetable, just wait for the bus to fill and off...
Check-in was not an issue, but I overspent, being terrified that I would get a fine. At least I could check in the bags with no problem. After passport control, I bought a simit, nuts, and a sandwich for 17 euros! Of course, we were on time, but our flight was delayed.
The flight took us from Istanbul, nestled between the Black Sea and the Aegean Sea, across desert-like terrain and brown, scorched mountains. I enjoyed the view with a red wine—second-rate French wine, mind you. We left mainland Turkey, flying briefly over the sea and quite spectacularly over the Kyrenia/Beşparmak mountain range, where the clouds stopped. As we descended, we saw a huge Turkish Cypriot flag painted on the side of the mountain. I felt very excited as I had never been here, but the rest of my family had.
Once we landed, we had to x-ray our bags and get our passports checked, but we had to wait ages outside again in pure chaos and 37°C heat for the minibus. Everyone seemed surprised we were staying in Northern Cyprus. The guys working for the company were milling about, talking on mobile phones the whole time. Finally, when the bus arrived, which was filled to capacity and beyond, we met a Bosnian professor and his wife. While we spoke to Slobodan and his wife, they balanced suitcases high at the back of the minibus! By the time we left, even some people were standing.
The journey into the city was absolutely spectacular, with mountains to the north and a golden sunset to the west. Once again, the huge flag painted on the mountain was clearly visible in the golden sunshine.
The sun had basically faded behind the horizon as we were dropped off at the rather run-down bus station, which reminded me of a station anywhere in Bosnia!
It was about a 20-minute walk from the bus station to the place we were staying. The first thing we noticed was that the traffic drives on the left, being a former British colony.
Everything looked very tropical and kind of what I imagine the Middle East to look like, and actually, it is technically the Middle East. It was more or less dark when we arrived at our destination, still warm even though the sun had gone, and nice potted plants, some in plastic jerry cans, decorated the streets. I called the number on the door, and a woman with a clipped London accent answered and promptly sent a guy on a moped with a pin machine so we could check in.
We dropped our bags and went off to find a little supermarket for our evening meal. The food we bought from these humble and friendly supermarkets was really good quality and tasty too. The white cheese was excellent, but the bread was lacking. I sipped a cold Efes beer in the communal kitchen; it was actually 35°C still.
#Cyprus #Nicosia #NorthCyprus #Turkey #Istanbul #Kıbrıs #Lefkoşa #KuzeyKıbrıs #Türkiye #İstanbul #Κύπρος #Λευκωσία #ΒόρειαΚύπρος #Τουρκία #Κωνσταντινούπολη #PegasusAirlines #ΤαξίδιστηνΚύπρο #ΑνακάλυψετηνΚωνσταντινούπολη #ΝησιωτικόΤαξίδι
In a word #Kıbrıs
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