My doubts increased at first when I tried putting in the booking code onto the Turkish Airlines website only to be told 'this reservbation has been cancelled'! Luckily I checked well before I was due to go so that Mr Savas, from Ispark, could rectify the problem.
Remebering my last visit I knew I had to have £10 to buy a visa at the Istanbul Airport, but by being quick off the plane there should be no queue, and business class would help that. The dya before I left I found out that I could get a visa electronically, but sadly I felt I had left it too late to try. A mistake, as I was later to find out.
Checking in on-line was reasonably straightforward and I suppose all airlines are pretty much the same. Sadly the plane looked full, with only one other empty seat in business class which was a bit of a shame. But it was an intercontental plane - a 777 - which meant lots of room.
I had a quick trip to Heathrow, just catching a circle line train at King's Cross without having to rush, which led to the same result at Paddington. Overall, 2 hours door-to-door. Having torn my boarding pass on the way, I got another printed out for me which turned out to be a good thing as they also gave me a pass to the fast track passport control desks.
The Star alliance lounge in terminal 3 is not quite as nice as the BA lounge - a little more cramped and the food selection not quite as good, but otherwise it was OK and at least the plane was going from a proper jetty and not via a bus, as BA flightls do. The sign came up 'baording' a bit earlier than I thought it would, about an hour before we were due to go, so I went to the gate only to find they were lying and there was another 20 minutes wait before boarding actually started.
It was a nice feeling to get on the plane and turn left and there certainly was plenty of room on board. A lie-flat seat with a footstool though no proper stowage, but also popwer and a large socktailcreen in the back of the seat ahead. Not too much of a problem having someone beside me, though, as it happens, that seat remained empty, along with almost half of the business class section - so much for the check in screen. It was a nice touch that they served drinks before take off - a flavourful raspberry (alcohol-free) cocktail.
Departure was about 15 minutes late and it made me wonder why they had hurried people to the plane. And it wasn't late passengers holding us up, it was loading baggage.
Service on board was generally very good and the food was better than BA by a conbsiderable margain. Lunch was a very good meze, followed by a choice of three main dishes (I had salmon and sea bass), a slad, desert and cheese. I had a choice of turkish or french wine so I chose the turkish sauvignon blanc,, which was also good. The crew were attentive and friendly, but with 4 crew four 14 passengers I think they should have been.
The announcements, though, were almost inaudible. Whether this was for the benefit of businesss class I would not know but if there had been a problem it might have mattered.
There was a wide range of entertainment, which I didn't use, but they also had wi-fi throughout the flight and power which was great.
Landing at Istanbul was not as easy as I remembered. Although I was first off the plane there was a 20 minute queue to get a visa. It’s a simple money making exercise – pass over your money and get a visa stamp, no questions asked. The another 25 minute wait to go through the ‘fast track’ passport control. Within the EU, even in the UK, I can usually be out in 10 to 15 minutes (famous last words, I hope not)
Ahmed Savas met me at the exit and we went out into a warm turkish evening – 28 or 29̊. Fortunately on this occasion our hotel was only about 3km away. Nevertheless it took 30 minutes to get there. No arrangements for this evening but I had dinner with Ilja Irmscher who I met last time I was in Istanbul. He is probably younger than me but looks and acts as an old man. His English is merely adequate so dinner was a bit of hard work until Ahment returned having picked up Giuliano Mingardo and another Dutchman, Jos van der something or other.
I get on well with Giuliano and Jos was also interesting as an econometrician and it was fun to talk to them. Sadly Ilja got a bit left out, partly because of his poor English but more because I can trade blows with economists (not that blows were needed) and can talk their language well. So we became more academic which is fun for me because I don’t do it too often. If I don’t take care it’s far too easy to be immersed in academia.
The evening ended a bit suddenly because Tom rang to say than Mum was not well. I had to act as a bit of an intermediary. Fran is not helping by alternating between panic and lack of interest.
Thursday morning we left the hotel just after none for the conference hall at the Inter-Traffic show. A bit bigger than two years ago but otherwise similar. I had two presentations in the morning which seemed to go well. Mr Gurbetji, the previous general manager has been replaced by Mr Cevik. Mr Gurbetji has gone on to have political aspirations which doesn’t surprise me. I met him at the coffee break and I think we both recognised a kindred spirit.
In the meantime I had a strange and formalised encounter with Mr Cevik. In his world we had to trade entourages and all I could offer was Giuliano, Jos and Ilja. Still I was clearly seen as the leader.
Giuliano, Jos and I went back to the hotel in the afternoon. None of us could really stomach another session of a Turkish conference with poor translation. I had a doze and then a beer before we set out for dinner.
Dinner was at Florya, a seaside resort on the edge of Istanbul. The restaurant was a very modern and minimalist building (with Victorian central European style fittings) with a fine balcony overlooking the Sea of Marmara. There was a formal launch of the Turkish Parking Association (good for them) and I gave a congratulatory speech. Once again Laurence was proved right in that I can make a passingly good speech with less than a minute’s notice. It was bland but had the right sentiment.
Friday dawned warm threatening hot and the two Dutchmen and I declared UDI and went to see the heart of Istanbul instead of going back to the conference. We went to Haigha Sofia but the queue was so long we didn’t go inside but walked through the grand bazaar instead. When I was last there 30 years ago it was still a living market but now it is just for tourists. The surrounding streets are better and more authentic. Still a nice building, a proto-mall if you like.
It was certainly hot as we walked over Galata Bridge then had a glass of fresh orange before taking the tram back to the hotel. Wednesday and Thursday evenings and this lunchtime we sat in the garden with two stray cats (there are cats everywhere in Istanbul) and it was so pleasant to be warm and outside. A bit like a hot summer’s day in England though it’s only May here.
Packed, Giuliano and.I (we had lost Jos at the Galata Bridge) headed back to the conference hall to say goodbye to Ahmet. We ended up sitting through another conference session and I handed out awards. But it was good to meet Tod Litman. Giuliano is to establish the academics group and Tod has offered Rachel Whitbred who chairs a new TRB sub committee on parking. Things are moving and I must ask Shaun his view.
Giuliano and I had taken the metro to the conference and had planned to go back and take it the final stop to the airport, but the Turks would not hear of it. So Ahmet took us to the airport. I couldn’t get Giuliano into the lounge so we had an interesting beer before he and I went our separate ways to London and Amsterdam.
The Turkish Airlines lounge is huge and better than BA even at T5 with chefs circulating with cheese and fruit and a hot meal available.
The flight back was an A321, narrow bodied compared to the 777 wide body. Not quite as much room but the seat was certainly better than BA short haul business class. Service was also not quite as good as on the way out, and once they had served dinner they basically forgot about us. I sat next to a director from Tesco, who drank like a fish and kept ringing the bell to ask for more.
An easy departure from the plane and a pick up from Brian saw me home by 11. Although we landed early, I wouldn’t have made it back before half past midnight on public transport unless I had been very lucky with connections at both Heathrow and Paddington.
