Blog 3: A walk in the Park - Adana Central

Blog 3: A walk in the Park - Adana Central
Today is Saturday the 3^rd of November 2012. 

 Yesterday we just had a day of rest and a little walk so nothing much to report. But today we set off to the Optimum Shopping Centre by Central Park Adana.

I am wearing what I like to call my “Where’s Wally” shirt which is an old work shirt which I wear once on holidays to show my workmates back home how far it’s travelled and rub it in that I’m on holidays far away! J

We took the subway which is pretty new in Adana. We chose a brand new underground station to start our journey and found it devoid of people!? What a contrast! Above us, busy traffic and below quiet as a mouse, not a sole. I wanted to take a picture but the security stopped me.

Like anywhere in these parts, security guards or police are prevalent in most public places. It feels strange when we don’t have any security like this at home. 

Once we got on the train ironically it was pretty full. The train was also modern and clean.

The Optimum Shopping Centre

http://www.optimumoutlet.com/
https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&ll=36.992853,35.337589&spn=0.011586,0.016994&t=h&z=16&msid=200302479427406736865.0004a07ad84ffa6a2c530

Aim for the Hilton Hotel, a tall building that stands out because there nothing around it to compete, or aim for the Sabancı Merkez Camii (mosque) which apparently is the largest Mosque in all Turkey with a capacity of over 28,000 people!!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sabanc%C4%B1_Merkez_Camii

If you aim for these buildings you will find the The Optimum Shopping Centre which is a very new shopping centre on prime real estate overlooking the river with beautiful views of the magnificent Mosque and its equally magnificent gardens (all 52,600 square meters of gardens)

The 175 or so shops in this Shopping  Centre are modern and most of the well known chain stores. And this centre does have “free” clean toilets which is a bonus! (You frequently have to pay to use toilets in Turkey and they can be of mixed quality – If you don’t know how they work it can even be scary! lol )

In the shopping centre there is a large electronics store which I like and there is a mixture of American and Turkish fast-food outlets in the food court on the top floor.

This is a multi-story complex, food supermarkets down stairs, fashion, electronics and gift stores in the middle floors and games, a cinema and food court at the top (plenty for the teens on the top floor). There is even an ice skating ring which is nice to sit close too on hot days.

ATMs and all your needs are at this centre though don’t expect Turkish Bazar or street market prices here. It’s very western, you don’t bargain for goods here but they do have sales.

Like any major shopping centre in Turkey you have to pass through security first to get in (similar to airport security).

We ate at Hosta which was relatively inexpensive and ok. I won’t detail blog about it because it hit the hunger bug but not the delight bug. Nothing to write home about really. Fast food rarely is! I am lucky, I get to eat some home traditional Turkish cooking via my Mother-in-law and she is a great cook!

At the food court they do have a little play area for the little ones but it could have more and it did need a good clean from what I could see.

Otherwise it was all very nice.

CENTRAL PARK ADANA

After the shops we decided to skip the train and walk home via Central Park. This was very nice. When I mentioned the gardens were well maintained at Ataturk Park in my last blog, well they are magnificently maintained at Central Park, Adana. And there is a large playground to die for. No, again there is no soft fall, but it’s an adventureland to any kid and a credit to Adana! Fantastic!

Coming to the park we had to cross a very nice foot bridge, right next to AQUA LAND, a water themepark. We went to this place last time I was here and it was a lot of fun. Many slides and pools, however they don’t all operate at the same time and only during school holidays.

As we were about to walk over this bridge to Central Park 3 kids ran up to me saying something in Turkish, very excited by my camera. My wife translated that they were pleading for me to take their photo and so I did. They were totally adorable kids and I wish they could see the picture because it’s the picture of Turkeys youth, so innocent, and full of hope. I wish I could give these kids the world!

I will let my other pictures do most of the talking for this park this time but I need to say this park has so many aspects and personalities, water features, sculptures and flowers, you could spend a day exploring and my pictures to do not cover much.

There’s a few cafes within the park as-well. We went to one at the opposite end to the mosque (near a little market and McDonalds). This café was perfectly set on the river and nice for a “cay” tea. Tea is 1 lira but for a coke you can pay 4lira so stick to the tea because you don’t get a class or ice with your coke. Something I really expect for the price and on a hot day. It is nice place however to watch the ducks over the water at this café and they have many ducks and other animals wandering around to amuse the kids.

One of the great things in Central Park is the little train ride you can take which tours around the whole park. And it costs just 1 lira for adults and kids free. It’s really is a long ride and great value taking you past all the attractions. Well done Adana for this park!! First class!!

We noticed also many of the local dogs hanging around the park freely. There are literally hundreds of stray dogs in Adana, mostly around the lake, but they wander through the streets too. They are tagged by the government and monitored for movements, habbits I guess. This one below was very thirsty!!

Lastly before I finish I will drop a picture of graffiti we passed on the walk home. I do this because it was the only graffiti I saw in the city so far and at least it has talent. They could certainly teach our teens a thing or two back home where I come from. The teens I am in contact with only seem capable of ugly tags with no meaning. Where’s the talent gone??

That’s me signing off for the day.

Cheers

Andrew

Blog 2: First Adana tastes, 2012

Blog 2: First tastes in 2012

So this Blog starts on my 5^th trip here to Adana, in November 2012. I have explored many sites already in previous trips but will revisit them again this time as a little familiarity is nice. Unfortunately in Istanbul our little boy had an allergic reaction requiring us to go to emergency hospital upon our arrival in Adana but I will describe that later as it was a useful experience to convey to others not experienced with Turkish hospitals.

I will start this blog one the first day my son is better and we have a chance to explore. My wife and I set out today walk the streets leaving my son sleeping in the safe hands of his grandparents.

Day 1: My wife loves making her own jewellery and Adana is a wonderful source of authentic beads and materials for her hobby. We set off to walk into the middle of the markets district. On KURUKOPRU MAHALLESI 33036 Sokak (street)  Adana you will find a number of bead and material stores and the streets that surround you can get lost in the stores filled will a wide array of goods, clothing, authentic Turkish glasses and ordainments or all types and ofcourse the cheap knock offs. I won’t detail the blog on this as there are so many and really, I want to get to the food today! J Hungry!! J

Adana Kebab – This is the best type of Kebab you will eat in Turkey and is famous around the world. Don’t think of a Kebab as your traditional Kebab you get at your chain fast food store in Australia. Adana Kebab is a long strip of the most delicious lamb mince with a secret array of spices cooked perfectly over a coal fire and laid out over authentic Turkish bread and served with many salads and more layers of bread. You basically combine little slices of the lamb strips with all the salads of your choosing, squeezed lemon and wrap it all up Turkish bread provided and “LEZZETLI” DELISOUS!!

This day we set out to find a little inexpensive Kebab store we always go to only to be disappointed when we found a Fashion store has taken its place. We enquired with the shop owner next door and he recommended us a Adana Kebab store just around the corner which he said was even better and where all the locals go for good Kebab.

HACI SALiH – Kabab Ve Lahmacun Salonu – (address: Kurukopru Mah, Yeni Camii Yani 33019 Sk)

I am pleased to say he was right. It’s no wonder we missed it before, it is marked by a little black and white sign “ Kebapci Haci Salih” above a little white gate doorway that you could easily miss if you didn’t know it was there.

When you walk in you come in a medium size “saloon” room with practical but nice tables and chairs. Above is a canopy of pomegranate trees surrounded by high white tiled walls to make the feel like a little hideaway. Very nice really. You can also  sit inside in another room which hosts the coal oven that your food is prepared on. I found this feature added so much to the feel and atmosphere about the restaurant.

 

Make no mistake, HACI SALiH is not a fine dinning restaurant you pay a fortune meals and dining experience, but it’s not trying to be. It’s an inexpensive little restaurant that is neat and clean and we found it great, and perfect for what we were looking for.

The food: I love my salads and I give them a 9/10 for variety and taste. The mix was good, the spices right and there was more than we could eat. The Adana Kebab lamb strip was cooked and spiced just right and delicious. The service good, all though they did ask us “is there anything else you would like” whilst we had our mouths full, preventing an answer. Lol  

My wife ordered Ayran, the typical Turkish side drink at meals, which is a savoury yogurt drink (Half yogurt, half water and salt). I ordered the Coke because I have never quite taken to having a savoury drink as apposed to a sweet one with a meal. However, the ayran at this restraint I have to admit was quite refreshing and nice to the pallet.

http://www.topnews.in/clove-best-antioxidant-spice-2256625

Before you leave, refresh your mouth with a little cloves at the desk where you pay. (be sure to leave a little tip – not compulsory but customary) We rounded 24 lira to 25 etc. These little natural plant pieces have a strong peppermint type taste and will clean your mouth. Beware, they can be hot to the lips so crush a little with your teeth to get the effect (don’t swallow) and then throw the twig away.

We had 2 Adana Kebabs complete with salads, a Coke, 1 glass of Iran, the water complimentary, all for the low price of 24 Turkish lira, (Approximately $15 Australia) That’s excellent value!

Next stop was Ataturk Park Adana which is the place we arranged to meet up with my wife’s parents and our son. But before doing so we made a detour as it was hot today and we had need for refreshment. There is a little store which I knew from past trips that sell these amazing smoothies to die for!

MESUT CAFÉ – Inonu Cd (Street).

Besides the refreshing freshly squeezed pomegranate juice and a number of other unique drinks they have this super shake/ smoothie called ATOM. This is truly an ATOM BOMB as it’s meal in a glass or should I say glasses because you get 1 large glass and 2nd over flow smaller glass. The ATOM is filled with a host of natural ingredients and probably some ice-cream or yogurt.  

The result is a bit like a banana smoothie but so much more. It’s a meal fit for two but I admit, many a time indulging myself alone on this fantastic smoothie. A must try once in any trip to Adana. Be warned, it will fill you up so don’t do before any planned meal (or just after for that matter like us today! Omg so filled!! Lol )

Next stop – Attaturk Park

  

A beautiful park in the heart of Adana. Beautifully maintained gardens, many areas to sit and chat and enjoy the flowers and the surrounds. There is a exercise area with lots of exercise park equipment, statues of famous figures (Ataturk of course), water  fountains (some interactive for the kids or young at heart) a nice park Café to enjoy tea or enjoy a quiet game of “OKAY” and you can even interact with the pigeons and buy some seed to feed them.

   

It’s a big park so they have security wandering around to ensure your safety. It’s very safe of a day but I would think twice about walking through there of a night.

Right across the road (northern side – Not Ataturk Statue side), there is a playground for kids. This again set in gardens, consists of 4 slides, 2 sea saws and some swings.

These are not the OH&S friendly slides like swings we have back at home with the nice soft-fall at the base. You won’t find soft-fall here. This playground is more like a 1970’s or 1980’s playground in Australia, metal tall slides on to dirt, wooden swings an sea saws that lack rails. Yes they can be used and are fun, but you might want to catch your kids at the base of slide or go down with them to be on the safe side. My son enjoyed it but we had to supervise at all times.

That’s enough for today. Cheers Andrew

Aussie in Adana - Turkey

Blog 1: Aussie in Adana – My Turkish Blog

By Andrew Rowland

First let me say before I start the ground rules of my blog.

The opinions expressed here are just the opinions of an Aussie that regularly travels to Adana for reasons of Family and Fun.

I am not paid by any organisation and this certainly isn’t on behalf of any tourism body because from what I can see, it is hard to find any effective tourism body in Adana. My thoughts and reviews are honest, uncluttered by outside interests or sponsorships, however I might include some helpful links on this site to illustrate my thoughts.

This blog is purely a platform to diary my journey and to express help hints and tips about the wonderful city of Adana, a busy apartment city of some 1.6  million people.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adana

 Adana is an ancient city, fought over for thousands of years. It is a city of commercial and agricultural with wonderful fruit and vegetable street markets. It is a hidden jewel of culture, delicious foods, wonderful hidden street markets and surrounded by the most fascinating ancient history and archeological sites.

You won’t find Adana on the regular tourist trails as it’s not promoted as a tourism destination in Turkey though it certainly has much to offer.  If you know where to go and what to do, you’ll have a wonderful time exploring this city.

Since 2008 I have been regularly visiting Adana for months at a time to visit the family of my beautiful wife Aylin. Aylin will feature in many photos as I’m often behind the camera.

As an Aussie, ingrown with a spirit of adventure and I love to explore.

In Adana I have set out, often on foot to explore the city. Having in-laws here has set me with some advantage but there’s nothing better than finding things out for yourself also. And as there are not many foreigner’s here, I am treated by the locals very well, sometimes like a celebrity. It’s a nice feeling.

Let me set Context. My wife is Turkish “grown” (as they say) in Adana. We met in Istanbul in 2007 and married here in 2008. I am an Australian from NSW. We now have a wonderful little boy together, Michael, half Turkish, half Aussie. Michael is 3 and a half (latest update Nov 2013). So family friendly will also be noted in this blog.

Also I need to say I am no writer, just a typical Aussie male that love his sports, his food and to explore new things. So forgive the odd or even frequent mistake! I am no journalist so sorry to you readers that are! :-)

Enough Said