I am making plans to travel to Turkey for a holiday.
It so happened that one of my friends traveled on the same package with the same travel agency last month. The feedback that I have received from her was:
-we may not like the cuisine served there (got a similar feedback from a friend who was there years ago)
-olive oil is used extensively in cooking and even in their salads
-lentil soups is served for every meal every day
As I am a picky eater, I did a search on the ingredients frequently used in Turkish cuisine and discovered from Wiki to expect eating these during the trip:
-lamb
-chicken
-beef
-fish
-rice
-eggplants
-green peppers
-onions
-garlic
-lentils
-beans
-zucchinis
-chickpeas
-tomatoes
My friend suggested that we bring medications for stomach ailments as, a few days after eating food there, some of them had bloated stomach and diarrhea. I did a research on it and discovered that it can happen if you are not used to eating oily food or food cooked with spices and herbs that can be a little spicy. Travellers with irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) should also be aware that legumes are gas-producing foods and lentils are recognized as part of the legume family. Which is possibly why drinking lentil soup daily can cause some travellers to have:
-diarrhea with abdominal pain or
-constipation and feeling bloated or
-a combination of diarrhea and constipation
These are the medications some my of friend's traveling mates had to take to relieve their stomach ailments:
-Smecta(dioctahedral smectite):
Anti diarrhea and oral rehydration for acute diarrhoea
-Ural Effervescent Powder:
Helps relieve that irritation by working to neutralise acidic urine in your bladder. Helps soothe mild cystitis symptoms within hours.
-Colodium(loperamide):
Relief of acute nonspecific diarrhoea & chronic diarrhoea associated with inflammatory bowel disease.
-Cetrizet Tablet:
Used to treat allergies associated with airways (allergic rhinitis) and Skin (urticaria).
-Stadeltine contains levocetirizine dihydrochloride
An antihistamine
-Eno:
Fast-acting effervescent fruit salts used as an antacid and reliever of bloatedness due to indigestion. Helps relief wind.
I checked with my pharmacist and he suggested that I take probiotics instead. So, I have decided to take his advise and bought OHMS Probiotics Gold as it can help resolve digestive issues and allergies. If you read this article from Dr Ben Kim you will see why I was so easily convinced. I will also bring some herbal medication for stomach ailments and nausea, since we will be on a cruise during our final trip back to Instanbul. Our tour guide advised us to bring any medications that we need as after reaching Istanbul, we will be traveling mostly to the outskirts and may have difficult locating a phamarcy.
If I do not the medication we need for our stomach ailemts, we can do this bowel massage when we are back at the hotel as it can relieve bowel dysfunction, like constipation or diarrhea.
I can also do this "I Love U" self massage treatment for pelvic abdominal pain and constipation while I am bathing.
I was also informed by another friend who had been there, that we will not enjoy the kind of food served at Canakkale. So, though kettle will be provided in hotels in Turkey, I will bring my multi-cooker along as I plan to bring some MREs (Meal, ready to eat). This is just in case we really don't like the food there or our stomach cannot handle them. I bought this unit from Igozo recently as they had a promotion running. It has an automatic turn off feature for safety which I like as I damaged the unit in my bike shop as I forgot to switch it off and it overheated.
However, it does not have a button for high or low heat option, which will be useful if I want to leave my food on the steam rack for a longer period.
-a 7 day forecast is 80%
-a 10 day forecast or longer is 50%
As we have visits to some mosques in Istanbul, I will need a headscarf and make sure that I wear modest, loose-fitting clothes that is not too sexy to look at.
Here is a check list of things we must do based on the suggestions from our Tour Guide, David, at SA Travel:
-check our Immigration Travel Status Check
-convert ringgit to Lira
-bring toileteries and an extra set of clothing in a hand carry bag as tour starts right after landing at airport
-bring swimming cap if we want to use the hot spring or thermal pools in hotels
-have on hand, USD250 (that will be about RM1,170.00) per person and jacket or coat for hot air balloon ride at Cappadocia
Baggage allowed on Turkish Airlines::
-check-in luggage maximum 2 pieces and their total weight must not exceed 30kg
-hand carry luggage only 1 piece in cabin size of 23x40x55cm and maximum weight of 8 kg
A portable electronic digital travel luggage scale like this will be handy to bring along.
These are optional:
-There will be wifi connection for internet access on the tour bus and in hotels but I rented ROAMING MAN pocket Wi-Fi which I can collect from the airport.
-apply for Big Pay card, a money app for better exchange rate over credit card
These are hotels we will be staying at:
Have I covered everything I need for the trip?
P/S Now my children will know the efforts I put into planning our holidays overseas with them.
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