{"id":2426,"date":"2019-10-28T14:27:56","date_gmt":"2019-10-28T21:27:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/traveltattler\/?p=2426"},"modified":"2019-10-28T14:27:56","modified_gmt":"2019-10-28T21:27:56","slug":"lansing-born-woman-lives-in-turkey-and-leads-tourists-there-too","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/traveltattler\/travel\/2426\/lansing-born-woman-lives-in-turkey-and-leads-tourists-there-too","title":{"rendered":"Lansing-Born Woman Lives in Turkey and Leads Tourists There Too"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Karen<\/a>

Karen Federko Sefer, born in Lansing, Michigan, on the Turkish Riviera. (Photo courtesy of Sea Song Tours)<\/p><\/div>\n

Turkey is in the news lately and not just because Thanksgiving is approaching. While Cromwell\u2019s Turkeyville is a popular tourist attraction just down I-69 near Marshall, Michigan,\u00a0the Republic of Turkey has become home for Karen Federko Sefer, who was born in Lansing, Michigan.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was born in Sparrow Hospital,” said Sefer, founder of Sea Song Tours, a\u00a0Virtuoso.com<\/a>\u00a0travel provider based in Istanbul. \u201cI went to Turkey, met my husband, and opened my business bringing travelers to Turkey for exploration and cruises.\u201d<\/p>\n

Turkey recently launched military operations in bordering northeastern Syria \u2013 far from Istanbul \u2013 but in June of 2016 Istanbul\u2019s Ataturk Airport endured a terror attack during which gunmen and bombers killed 45 people. Six months later, a gunman killed 39 people at a nightclub. Lansing\u2019s Patrick Anderson, of Anderson Economic Group, does business in Turkey. He was in the city during that Ortakoy neighborhood late-night attack and has returned to Istanbul since.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have recovered from the problems of the past. It is business as usual in Turkey,\u201d Sefer insisted. \u201cWe have a tremendous amount of people coming to Turkey. There are increases in the amount of tourists, particularly from the United States. Everybody feels safe and happy.\u201d<\/p>\n

The U.S. State Department, in terms of travel security, lists Turkey as \u201cLevel 2\u201d \u2013 meaning tourists and business travelers should exercise increased caution by sticking to locations frequented by Westerners; avoiding demonstrations; and staying in hotels with identifiable security measures – the type of lodging properties Sefer identifies and books for her clients.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur guides take travelers from the airport directly to their adventure,\u201d\u00a0Sefer explained.<\/p>\n

Istanbul and the Turkish Riviera have long been popular holiday destinations with Europeans. Travel for Britons, for instance, has not been restricted but travelers are advised to avoid Syrian border areas.<\/p>\n

Istanbul, formerly Constantinople, is historically rich. Half of the evocative city is in Europe while the other half lies, via ferries and bridges, across the Bosporus River. It\u2019s a secular country but the Muslim \u201ccall to prayer\u201d can be heard across the city multiple times each day.<\/p>\n

\u201cIstanbul is a dynamic, chaotic inspiring place where you can learn about and experience the Ottoman and Byzantine Empires. It\u2019s a beautiful city in which visitors can go into the neighborhoods to understand the culture and mingle with the locals. Their average age is 29,\u201d said Sefer, whose tour company enjoys special access to Istanbul\u2019s most intriguing and therefore popular sites such as the Blue Mosque, Cisterna Basilica, and Maiden\u2019s Tower. \u201cSea Song Tours can also open the Hagia Sophia at night. We can lead guests into the Topkapi Palace when it\u2019s usually closed. These are very personal \u2018wow\u2019 experiences.\u201d<\/p>\n

Istanbul\u2019s Turkish Bazaar and Spice Market are often used as Hollywood movie settings.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Turkish Bazaar an unbelievably lively and colorful place to go hunting for treasures. The 007 movie \u2018Skyfall\u2019 was filmed there and we can even take people up to the roof and show people where\u00a0James Bond\u00a0stood,\u201d said Sefer. Maiden\u2019s Tower featured prominently in the Bond film \u201cThe World is Not Enough\u201d and most of \u201cFrom Russia with Love\u201d was set in Istanbul, including the Cistern, which was also seen in \u201cInferno\u201d starring Tom Hanks. Liam Neeson\u2019s \u201cTaken 2\u201d was also filmed in, on and around the bazaar.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn other parts of Turkey you can float in a hot air balloon across the countryside or go down to Bodrum enjoy the crystal clear water of the Turquoise Coast on a yacht or a wooden boat which allows you to cruise along the coast and visit with locals in villages and see ruins,\u201d said Sefer, who admits history comes with luxury. \u201cThe Virgin Mary is said to have died outside of Ephesus and three Popes have been there. St Paul was born in Tarsus.\u201d<\/p>\n

Those interested in visiting Turkey for historical purposes or to experience the beach and boating experience can contact Sefer directly with questions via email at\u00a0Fedorko@Seasong.com\u00a0or she can be found via\u00a0Virtuoso.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Contact<\/em>\u00a0Travel Writer Michael Patrick Shiels at\u00a0MShiels@aol.com\u00a0\u00a0His radio program may be heard weekdays at\u00a0MiBigShow.com<\/a>\u00a0or in Lansing on WJIM am 1240\u00a0from 9-noon.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Turkey is in the news lately and not just because Thanksgiving is approaching. While Cromwell\u2019s Turkeyville is a popular tourist… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":43,"featured_media":2427,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[152684,568,4998,1023670],"class_list":["post-2426","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel","tag-istanbul","tag-turkey","tag-michael-patrick-shiels","tag-travel-turkey"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/traveltattler\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/34\/2019\/10\/unnamed-2.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/traveltattler\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2426","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/traveltattler\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/traveltattler\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/traveltattler\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/43"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/traveltattler\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2426"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/traveltattler\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2426\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2428,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/traveltattler\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2426\/revisions\/2428"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/traveltattler\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2427"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/traveltattler\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2426"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/traveltattler\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2426"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/traveltattler\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2426"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}