Kids were always free

Another welcome aspect of the broad love of children in Turkey is that for many attractions and modes of transport, children are admitted free. It took us a couple trips in the city to realize that children under 12 were readily permitted to just duck under turnstiles onto public transport and were not charged admission to places like the Basilica Cistern and Hagia Sophia. This was a welcome budget-stretcher for a family with three kids under age 12. We traveled by tram, train, bus, boat (ferry or vapur) and enjoyed each for the cost of the mommy and the daddy.

You see, stand-by or space available is free on the pocket book only when you don't wait a day or a night to get on to a plane. On our trip to Turkey, we waited 7 hours in O'hare airport which cost meals and then we were only able to get me and the twins on to Ankara once arriving and waiting in Munich. So, the night in Munich for the daddy and G#1 was an extra cost. They arrived safely the next day, but it wasn't free.

On the ride home however, the arrival at the Istanbul airport was wonderful because we checked into the Luftansa counter and the lady gave us all seat assignments. No waiting. The lunch before getting onto the plane was a bit pricey with a coke costing 5$, but once on, we were safely onto Frankfurt for a nights stay in order to catch the first plane home the next day. We did have a bit of a cost to take a taxi in Frankfurt that was an adventure, but the ride back to the airport was cost efficient and a lesson learned.

Once getting to the final plane, the gate agent walked up to the daddy and sadly explained that she didn't have 5 seats in economy for us all to sit together and because our twins were not the correct age yet to travel stand by in business class she had to plead with the Purser on the flight to let us on all together in business. The purser, God bless him and his life/offspring, let us fly home in business all sitting near each other. I praised him the whole trip home and made sure the kids were very helpful. And they were.