That’s it. Asia trip (with stopover in Istanbul on the way there and back) is done. A thoroughly enjoyable trip. Always felt safe. So much English spoken that we only learned a few basic phrases and relied on Google translate for the rest. 3 islands in the Philippines. 3 Islands in Indonesia. Singapore, Cambodia, and Vietnam. 10 weeks.
We spent a week in Istanbul about 15 years ago and had an amazing time. We made sure to learn some basic Turkish, but probably 75% of people we interacted with spoke English. It’s such an amazing city with decent public transit, great hospitality culture, and unparalleled history