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Safety First: Health & Security - Part 2

by Max on February 20, 2008

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In my previous post, I described some basic guidelines to stay healthy while enjoying the city.

Today, we’ll be focussing on how to survive in Istanbul’s traffic, what to do if you experience small or more serious discomforts and how to locate the Tourist Police.

A pharmacy (ezcane) in Istanbul

Cars rules in Istanbul

Streets are clogged all day, all year round and the cacophony of horns soon recedes from an unbearable din to background noise as you acclimatize. Turkey has a high rate of traffic accidents and a fair proportion of them involve pedestrians. The bad news is that the majority of accidents are blamed on these hapless pedestrians and unless you are knocked down while on a pedestrian crossing or pavement, you have no rights in the eyes of the law. Be careful when crossing the street. Even when the pedestrian traffic light turns green, never blindly start crossing the street immediately. Always wait a second or two longer, just in case. Don’t say I didn’t warn you!

Medical Attention - Small Discomforts

If you experience small discomforts (diarrhea, sour throat, cold) or are in need of medicines, you may want to drop by a pharmacy (eczane). Pharmacies are widely spread in Istanbul and very recognizable. Pharmacists in tourist areas often have a good knowledge of English, are well educated and are very eager to help you.

Medical Attention - More Serious Discomforts

If your condition cannot be treated by a pharmacist or needs the attention of a doctor, you have a few options. First of all there are the so called poliklinik’s. These are public hospitals. Expect long queues and basic facilities as they provide treatment almost for free. Another option is a visit to one of the private hospitals (see indent for three of them). These hospitals are very well equipped, their entrances can compete with those of 5-star hotels, their staff is fluent in one or more foreign languages, but unfortunately, they charge fees accordingly.

God forbid that you or one of your travel partners gets involved in an emergency situation, but if such an unfortunate event should happen, the ambulance will most likely take the victim to the Taksim İlk Yardım Hastanesi (Taksim First Aid Hospital), located across the German Hospital.

Private Hospitals

Alman Hastanesi (German Hospital)
Sıraselviler Caddesi No:119
Taksim
Tel: (0212) 293 21 50
http://almanhastanesi.com.tr/

Amerikan Hastanesi (American Hospital)
Güzelbahçe Sokak No:20
Nişantaşı
Tel: (0212) 444 37 77
http://www.amerikanhastanesi.com.tr/

Florence Nightingale Hastanesi (Florence Nightingale Hospital)
Abide-i Hürriyet Caddesi No:290
Sişli
Tel: (0212) 224 49 50
http://www.florence.com.tr/

Taksim İlk Yardım Hastanesi (Taksim First Aid Hospital)
Sıraselviler Caddesi No:1
Taksim
Tel: (0212) 252 43 00

Police station of the Tourist Police in Istanbul

Travel Insurance

Before travelling to Istanbul, check with your local health services whether they refund medical treatments received in Turkey. If this is not the case, I strongly recommend you to take an additional insurance for medical treatment and repatriation for the duration of your stay.

Tourist Police

The police are omnipresent in the streets of Istanbul. Unfortunately, most of them don’t speak English (or any other foreign language for that matter). To serve the thousands of tourists that visit the metropolitan every year, they created the Tourist Police. These officers speak one or two European languages. Their yellow police station is located in Sultanahmet, across the entrance of the Basilica Cistern.

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Safety First: Health & Security - Part 1

by Max on February 14, 2008

A city-trip to Istanbul doesn’t require any special vaccinations or health preparations, as long as you observe a few basic guidelines. The same applies to personal safety. Istanbul is as safe as any other major European city, if not safer. Visitors rarely become the victim of violence or theft, certainly when they stay away from suburbs, in particular those along the old city walls.

Health and security precautions in Istanbul

Useful Information
Emergency phone numbers:
Police: 155
Ambulance: 112
Tourist Police:
Yerebatan Caddesi 6, Sultanahmet. Tel: 527 45 03

Vaccinations

Although a city-trip to Istanbul doesn’t require any special vaccinations, most governments and travel agents will recommend you to be immune to Hepatitis A & B, Tetanus, Diphtheria, Polio and Typhus. It is probably even common sense to be protected against most of these diseases in your own country, so why not use this city-trip as an excuse to get it over with.

Basic Precautions

The main inconvenience tourists may experience while visiting Istanbul is diarrhea. According to my pharmacist here, this is usually caused by sudden exposure to hot weather and the consumption of more oily (and spicy) food than back home.
If you have a weak stomach and to reduce the risk of diarrhea, you can take some pills of Ercefuryl a few days before departure to get your intestines in optimal shape. While exploring the city avoid half-baked meat, pre-prepared food (especially sea-food sold on street-corners) and diary products (with the exception of yoghurt of course).
If you do get diarrhea, get a hold of the medicine Ercefuryl (to restore the intestine flora) and Immodium (to stop excessive visits to the bathroom). Do read their instructions carefully before usage! In the meanwhile, drink a lot of water (room temperature) or flat coke (without gas). For the time being, stay away from exotic or oily food and eat bread and yoghurt.

Erikli water bottleIt is not recommended to use water from the tap for drinking purposes. Although the water is clean, as a result of the filter process, it has a strange taste and smell to it. Bottles of mineral water are very cheap and on sale everywhere. There is no need to brush your teeth with mineral water though. It is also safe to consume ice-cubes in drinks since they are produced with mineral water.

Istanbul’s municipality puts in a big effort to reduce the amount of mosquitoes, and are very successful at it. You may even from time to time, especially in the evening, see small municipality trucks drive through the streets, spraying mosquito repellent products into the air. Nevertheless, it may be a good idea to bring repellent products (spray, lotion or gel) with you. Mosquito-bites are annoying but not dangerous.

Stray cats and dogs are common in the streets of Istanbul. Most of these animals will avoid contact with humans and are merely looking for food. Although they are rarely aggressive, you better don’t try to pet them. Trust me, I found out the hard way. In case you do get scratched by a cat, just clean out the wound with water and soap. On the other hand, if you get bitten by an animal, it’s wise to have a doctor examine it for rabies. A yellow tag on a dog’s ear means he has vaccinated.

Pickpocketing and Earthquakes

Turks are very honest people and will put in a big effort to return lost items to its owner. Therefore, if you loose something, go back to where you last had the object or visit the Tourist Police office. Of course, the crowded streets of Istanbul remain a small paradise for pickpockets. Do as the Turks do, and carry your wallet in the front pockets of your pants, wear your handbags within eyesight and carry back-packs the other way round.
In recent years, Istanbul has sporadically been the scene of terrorist attacks. Although small in size and number, be extra alert when visiting public markets and while passing trash-containers, since they have been targeted in the past.

Finally, as you may know, Istanbul is located in an earthquake-sensitive zone. As recent as 1999 it got hit hard by one, measuring 7,6 on the Richter scale. But don’t let this scare you. As a tourist, you’ll be travelling in areas surrounded by monuments that have withstood multiple earthquakes already. The subsoil of these areas is solid rock and therefore pretty earthquake resistant. As for hotels, the modern ones are all earthquake-proof as well.

Read more in: Safety First: Health & Security - Part 2

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