Cruise Life

Cruising has really changed considerably since I was little. We used to cruise quite often when I lived my parent’s life. This industry has turned into quite the institution. What a cash cow. We boarded the ship and now everything is connected to that room card you receive before getting on. It is the only form of currency accepted anywhere on board, no worry about tipping for service…whether it’s good, bad, etc.. $10/person/day is automatically added to your bill and 15% is automatically added to bar tabs so you need not worry. What transpires is interesting. There is an abundance of waiters available to serve drinks and take any orders but no one available to take up dirty dishes and glasses (in the dining rooms). Bartenders are a bit better.
Freestyle cruising means no set times for dinner but unless you make reservations in advance (and there is a wait for any specialty restaurant) you must eat at the buffet, which on this ship happened to be very good. Many restaurants have a surcharge and what used to be included is now an added expense. In all, it really hasn’t been bad. We have good company and I haven’t made a to do list since we came on board. My freckles are starting to connect and I just may have a bit of a tan when we get home.

So far we’ve visited two ancient sites. Ephesus in Turkey (founded around 300 BC and had a population of 200,000) and the Acropolis in Athens. We opted for the tour in both ports since the sites were a considerable distance away and although it was very hot, we really enjoyed both. We are not big “tour” fans, but in both these places it paid off.

Here are some pics of both.

On to the Cruise

We are on our way to the ship. Thank you to the wonderful staff at the Hotel Niles for the great tips, funny maps and always making us laugh.

The Bosphorus Ferry

I’ve realized I don’t like to do the Japanese tourist thing of running from sight to sight, taking pictures and going on to the next. I have decided I like to sit in a spot. A lot happens when you sit in a spot. Today we took the Bosphorus Ferry, the government ferry not a private one (12 Turkish Lire r/t) where servers walk around selling tea, coffee and those delicious sesame breads. We got after an hour and 15 min. in Sariyer (before the end). After walking for about 30 minutes we went to a restaurant on the water for lunch. We had 3 hours before we could catch the ferry going back.

We chose the café with lower prices posted on the board outside. The place next door had table cloths and wine glasses on the tables and we were surprised when our host told us to go next door to select our fresh catch of the day. I asked if they were the same restaurants and our host said no, but to sit there is double the price for the same meal. People came and went and we watched the fishermen delivering their fish to the local restaurants. To our amusement many cats, one pregnant, attempted to steal the fish as they came in. The waiters alternated between chasing them away and throwing them the smaller fish on the side. The cats were occasionally successful in their attempts at thievery as well as getting those fish thrown to them on the sly.

This tour on the Bosphorus is not one to be missed. The palaces along the way, the beautiful homes with incredible views on both sides, living here must be nice.

Sunday Afternoon

We heard the thing to do here on a Sunday is to go Ortakoy. There is a “women’s market” and you must try the “jacket potato”. This is a baked potato topped with a mound of interesting toppings. The bazaar had mostly jewelry and a few crafts. This is really a beautiful spot on the Bosphorus that had a little mosque too. We sat at one of the cafes on the main square and 15 minutes later spotted my parents and uncles. We had planned to meet them on the cruise ship and this was quite a remarkable encounter considering how vast this city is. It is strange how things transpire here, the cab drivers can’t find the address we show them, people don’t understand us when we ask for directions, the streets are not clearly marked yet we always seem to end up right where we intended to go. Must be good karma. Needless to say, we had a great day together.

The Cats Have it Good Here

We love cat friendly cities and there are more cats here than anywhere we have ever been. It may have something to do with being on the water and those cats are everywhere…on the roofs, under the table, though we haven’t seen any praying in the mosques. This was a day for mosques. We were determined to get to each one, the Blue Mosque and the Suleymaniye while they were open(they are closed for prayer). This is the first time we’ve been in a Moslem country. The Adhan or call to prayer is broadcast 5 times a day from the speakers on the minaret. We are staying in an area with many mosques. The American family from DC we hung out with on occasion on the “roof” informed us that it is not an echo we hear but that different mosques are not synchronized and therefore we hear it all going off at once. The sound is really quite moving.

Take off your shoes, put them in plastic bags, and borrow one of the shawls hanging outside if your head and shoulders are not covered. The Blue Mosque is breathtaking. The tiles and colors are incredible. The women have a separate section to pray behind a screen in the back. A woman making silk carpets on the street invited me for a quick lesson on how to double knot the thread and cut. What skill and workmanship goes into making these rugs.

We headed to the fish market on foot where we saw some kids playing soccer. You know Raf, we had to stop and watch, they were so cute. The cats were out in full force, when we got to the fish market, they were waiting for the boats to come in with the catch of the day and some kids were swimming in their underpants, posing for our camera. After a look around and no business in the restaurants except busses of Japanese tourists, we headed to the Suleymaniye Mosque for a bite on the property (the original kitchens of the mosque in a beautiful courtyard) for another delicious meal. This is the largest mosque here and we practically had it to ourselves. Not too many tourists so we could really enjoy it in quiet.


No dinner but we found a cool bar and hung out for a night cap. Went to sleep to the sound of cats in heat.

Istanbul Day Two

Amazing day. It is so beautiful out. Breezy and sunny. We walked the whole old city. Our hotel has the greatest staff that are so willing to give us suggestions and Seda at the front desk draws what she calls "funny little maps" for us so we can be sure not to get lost. After a breakfast of yogurt, cucumbers, tomatoes, cheese, olives and various homemade breads and sweets we headed off on foot for the Basilica Cistern. Of course everyone wants to know where we’re from, how many kids we have and they speak EVERY language. Afterwards it’s the mandatory…”Come have a coffee of tea in my carpet shop. Just look of course, don’t need to buy…today.” We’ve tried just about every language we know how to say hello in and they speak it all. When I said “konichawa” the salesman broke out in fluent Japanese. So our standard answer has become, “Planet Earth” which confuses the hustlers long enough for us to make a quick getaway.

The Cistern is wild. Under ground and built in 532. It supplied water for the palace and when the Ottomans invaded they did not know of its existence. There are fish swimming around and water dripping from the roof.

Around the corner is the Hagia Sophia. It is under construction but nevertheless quite beautiful, the supreme church of Byzantine empire. The mosaics are breathtaking.
We couldn’t enter the Blue Mosque because is was noon and prayer time People were washing their feet outside, We then walked from there to the Topkapi Palace home of the sultans. The layout reminded us of the Forbidden City in Beijing with it many layers. The Harem was particularly interesting, another beautiful jail, and the tales of conniving concubines even more interesting.

On to the Spice Market. Uh oh … food. I want everything! The spices, olives, cheeses, Turkish Delight and lots of souvenirs much less expensive than the Grand Bazaar. Many locals shop here and we plan to go back. The pounds I gained looking at the food came off on the walk uphill to the hotel. Off to dinner…

Cocktails at 360. First through the metal detector, then on to the lovely terrace. It’s a bit touristy but the views are so beautiful and food seems reasonably priced. Drinks however cost more than the meals. Pashminas are handed out to help with the chill and men as well as women were wearing them. Nice touch! This is a new area of town for us. It is quite modern compared to where we are staying.

We walked a few streets up to a restaurant called Leb-I Derya in the Richmond Hotel. Food was good and view was magnificent once again. This city is so beautiful at night, We stopped at the desk to ask for a cab and we heard the desk clerk say on the phone “you are speaking Spanish…I don’t speak Spanish”. Raf took the wake-up call for six AM and relayed the message to the clerk.

Istanbul Day One

So we’re in Istanbul. It’s 4:35 AM and both of us have been up since 3. At least we can listen to the call to prayer from the Mosque. We arrived yesterday afternoon, and it was raining so we had a walk around the Grand Bazaar. Didn’t buy anything yet (we decided to explore without wallets so we wouldn’t be tempted to come home with 3 carpets, a few lamps and another hookah) but will have to come back and use some of those bargaining techniques before we leave. All hotels and many restaurants have rooftop gardens, cafes, bars etc and ours is no different. It is really nice up there and we were able to enjoy an aperitif while surfing the net and watching the sunset, before heading out to the restaurant. Develi restaurant overlooks the sea. The food was delicious and we were so caught up in the thrill of trying new things that we ordered the raw, spicy meatballs, an eggplant dish and one with ground walnuts just for starters. We also enjoyed the local Raki, which is similar to Pernod and served with water as well.

Istanbul Here We Come

FInally vacation once again and we promised we'd write. It's been an exciting, productive, but tiring school year and we are ready for some serious fun! Check back with us next week when we join you from Turkey and begin our next adventure.