This just in Re Turkey

[buggins0402]

And our advisory still hasn't changed! If it didn't say "still valid April 9, 2016" I'd think I was looking at a cached page!

 

 

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From the consulate website...you can see it is the most recent post:

 

http://istanbul.usconsulate.gov/mobile//citizen_messages.html

[chefestelle]

Sorry, I'm in Canada. Either they think we're dispensable or invincible. Not sure which

 

 

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[Buskerbythesea]

Happy Trailer, thank you for sharing and you are not scaremongering. Turkey is in a very precarious political state at the moment. We should all be vigilant when deciding if the risks are worth busing to (densely crowded) sites in Ephesus which is only one-hour away from Izmir. Antalya, 4 hours to the East. Smack in the middle of some very strong warnings of unrest. This is not to be taken lightly. Again, we continue to see what HAL decides and then each passenger can decide if they want to get off the ship or not.

 

I would suggest, that all Americans register with STEP https://step.state.gov/step/ I use them all the time and travel extensively throughout the world on business and pleasure. They will, as one travels, keep one informed of warnings and alerts via Email or text and its a good way to let the American Embassies throughout the world know you're in their coutry, in the very unlikely event anything happens. Not only terrorist attacks (so rare) but natural disasters as well ie: Earthquakes etc. Vacationers most often forget that s*** happens sometimes.

 

Interestingly, this morning as I was registering our travel plans on STEP, when I submitted Kusadasi, a warning page came up indicating that all Jews and Americans avoid any travel to Turkey. This was a first. These warnings seem to be everywhere and in all my years of travel, I have not seen such warnings disseminated from every resource. It will be each individual's decision. My partner is also Jewish, thus we are considering just making it a wonderful day on the ship, should HAL continue to visit the port. It certainly not going to ruin our cruise.

 

Looking forward to the cruise on the 18th! Happy and Safe Sailing everybody!

Edited April 9, 2016 by Buskerbythesea

[kelleherdl]

I haven't cancelled our 'best of Ephesus' excursion for Kusadasi yet. We will still have time once we board next Monday. While sxxx can happen anytime / anywhere we prefer not to unnecessarily up the odds. Biblical sites are a priority for us, but in these uncertain times safety unfortunately is a consideration.

 

Dennis

[Buskerbythesea]

I couldn't agree more Dennis.

 

Richard