Turkey > The Flight to Antalya

Marco and I arrive at Schiphol Airport more than three hours early. This weekend, there were warnings about long lines due to the end of the May holiday and staff shortages. When we get off the train, it seems manageable. Last weekend, lines already started forming outside the departure hall. The check-in counter for our Turkish Airlines flight to Antalya has just opened. We join the queue. Shortly after, we proceed with our boarding passes to baggage control. Here, there is quite a long line. Still, it takes no more than twenty minutes before we get through. This means we still have two hours before our flight departs. We order something to drink and a muffin. Around 1:30 pm, we head to gate E4. Our plane should depart in three-quarters of an hour. However, the plane is not there yet. In fact, the previous flight is still at the jet bridge. This will likely cause a delay. Fortunately, the plane at gate E4 departs quickly. Only around 2 pm, our original departure time, does the Turkish plane taxi in. The luggage is quickly unloaded and new bags loaded. Finally, flight TK7861 takes off about an hour late heading towards Turkey. It’s not very busy on board. At most a third of the seats are occupied. From Amsterdam, the plane heads towards Germany. Because of clear, cloudless weather, the route over the Netherlands is easy to follow. Around 7:30 pm local Turkish time, we enter Turkish airspace.

Turkey - The flight to Antalya

Exactly half an hour later, we land at Antalya Airport. Someone was supposed to meet us with a name sign for our rental car. We quickly send a message that we are delayed. They probably already noticed. We get a reply that it’s no problem. They ask us to report to Desk 76, in front of the airport building. With our luggage, we soon walk out of the airport building. Here is a long row of small counters. Each counter is numbered and barely one meter wide. Desk 76 is the very last one but is closed. We receive a message that someone will arrive in five minutes. This is correct. We quickly handle the paperwork for the rental car and set off. It is already dark. The navigation system leads us to Antalya city center. The route is not always clear. We drive a little out of the way. Our navigation is probably outdated. At the historic old town, it gets even less clear. The narrow streets around the hotel are car-free. But the hotel owner assured us we are allowed to drive there. Where the navigation says to turn, this is not permitted. We drive an extra loop. With help from Google Maps, we find the correct entrance. The barrier opens when we mention our hotel. We drive through the narrow streets of the old town. In some places, the streets are barely three meters wide. It’s special to drive here. At the hotel, the street is also narrow. We stop in the middle of the street. Fortunately, someone soon comes to show us the small parking lot. We park the car crosswise in front of other cars. To be safe, we leave our car key at reception. The Atelya Alt Hotel is housed in a three-hundred-year-old Ottoman mansion.

Turkey - The hotel in a narrow street in the old city

In the courtyard is a small pool and a terrace. “Here is your breakfast tomorrow,” we are told. The room is on the first floor. We drop off our bags and quickly head into town. We’re already hungry. It’s about ten o’clock now. Around the hotel are several dining places and bars. We are right in the nightlife district. We order a Turkish wrap and a Turkish bread sandwich. In the nightlife street, bars lie side by side. We end the evening with a beer on a terrace. Suddenly, we hear a loud bang. A girl falls hard on her face to the ground. A boy falls on top of her. Both seem quite drunk. The girl stays still on the street. Everything happens right next to our table. Fortunately, she starts moving again. Friends drag her to the side. We think the somewhat heavy boy unexpectedly jumped onto her back. Hopefully, she doesn’t suffer any serious injury from this hard fall. Around midnight, we check at the hotel about the Formula 1 results. It turns out the race is still ongoing. Over a beer, we hear on the radio that Max Verstappen has won the race. We don’t have any video.