Program 394: Istanbul Street Food; Karneval in the Rhineland and Balkans; More Holy Land Travels

Get tips for eating well on the cheap in Istanbul, where street vendors and inexpensive cafeterias offer great local food amid the city’s vibrant street life. Then hear about the Karneval street parties that have livened up Germany’s Rhineland for centuries, and the pre-Lenten festivities that kick off spring in Croatia and Slovenia. Plus, listen in as listeners share impressions from their visits to the Holy Land.

• Lale Aran, proprietor of SRM Travel in Istanbul
• Fabian Rueger, German tour guide
• Marijan Kriskovic, tour guide based in Ljubljana, Slovenia
• Ben Curtis, author of "A Traveller's History of Croatia"  (Interlink Publishing)

• Lale Sürmen Aran’s tour company in Turkey, SRM Travel, includes guided tours of Istanbul.
• Lale posts updates on Facebook.  She also co-authors the Rick Steves guidebook to Istanbul.
• Travelers discuss the pros and cons of the Pudding Shop cafeteria in Istanbul. 
• Fabian Rueger describes growing up in West Berlin before the fall of the wall in an online interview with Rick.
• The most famous Carnival festivities in Croatia are in Rijecki.  
• You can view the Rick Steves' Holy Land one-hour special online, and on public TV stations in the USA.
• Caller Carole talks about visiting the Christian reconciliation organization near Bethlehem called "Tent of Nations."