My friend randomly asked me if I wanted to go to Turkey, so naturally my response was “Hell yeah!” She had already been twice so she already had a pretty good idea of what she wanted to do. All I really had to do was show up and pay my part. Easy! I got my visa for $20 and started looking for flights. Additionally, I just want to advise that the u visa work permit is a special benefit of this visa that allows its holders to work legally in the United States while their case is pending. International flights aren’t cheap out of my home airport (BNA), so I usually start looking for flights out of NYC, Miami or Atlanta. All of these places are pretty cheap to get to for me. I used the Priceline Name Your Price tool and booked a roundtrip ticket from JFK to IST for $541. First stop: Cappadocia!!
I walked out of the tiny airport and grabbed one of the taxi’s waiting out front. My driver didn’t speak a lick of English, but that didn’t stop him from sparking up a conversation. He pulled out his phone and opened the Google Translate app and started talking. I was impressed that he didn’t let the language barrier stop him from asking about where I was from and even giving me a tour of his town. He seemed really proud of his home. I could tell because he wouldn’t stop talking lol!
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When he dropped me off I had to pause for a moment to take it all in (twss). The views were incredible, and Mira’s Hotel was so unique. Everything around me was made into the rocks. The hotels, restaurants and houses were all set in caves. My favorite part of the hotel was all the lounging areas they had on each level with different views. This place was made for me. I love lounging and looking at shit! After getting settled I decided to walk around while my friend took a nap. I just got lost in the streets soaking up the views from different angles as the sun set. While I was roaming, I ran into two older black women that got so hype when they saw me; another black woman. We chatted for awhile. They told me about their trip, what they had done and what they were doing next. We realized that we were all from the south (I’m from Nashville and they were from South Carolina.) They went on their way and we later realized that we were staying in the same hotel, right next door to each other. Small world! 😉 We all sat in one of the many lounging areas talking and laughing in our wrap caps and pajamas! lol Girls Night Out… kinda!
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The next day we had to be up at 4am so we could catch a 5am shuttle to go on a hot air balloon tour. We made our reservation with Hot Air Balloon Cappadocia before we got there. The ride was 130€ per person, but it looks like the price is down on their website now. They required a 50€ deposit to hold our spot. So we only had to pay 80€ when we got there. We had a great experience with the company we chose, but I’d recommend shopping around a bit. I saw some reviews on Tripadvisor where people paid a little less. Of course the prices vary from peak season to off season. But I will say for the price, they picked us up from the hotel, laid out a continental breakfast with tea and coffee, provided us with medals and champagne after landing, then took us back to our hotel. All and all the excursion lasted about 4 hours. I absolutely recommend trying it if you’re ever in the area. To date Hot Air Ballooning is the most peaceful thing I’ve ever done. Next stop Kusadasi!
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