Turkey, the other, other white meat.

We flew from London to Istanbul and arrived to a much warmer and humid climate.

Our hotel had a great roof-top garden with a view of numerous mosques and the Bosporus.

We could see the ship traffic on it's way in/out of the Black Sea. This is southern Russia's main seaport for goods coming in and oil going out.









Next morning we were off at 6:30 Am (yikes) for a 2-day tour of Gallipoli and the ancient city of Troy.

Galippoli is best known for the failed invasion of the ANZAC (Austrian and New Zealand Army Corps) during WW1. In 1915, Australian and New Zealand soldiers formed part of an Allied expedition that set out to capture the Gallipoli Peninsula to open the way to the Black Sea for the Allied navies. The objective was to capture Constantinople, the capital of the Ottoman Empire, which was an ally of Germany during the war.

The city of Troy is well-known for the Trojan war, Helen of Troy and the Trojan Horse. In Greek mythology, the Trojan War was waged against the city of Troy by the Greeks after Paris of Troy took Helen from her husband Menelaus, king of Sparta. The war is one of the most important events in Greek mythology and has been narrated through many works of Greek literature, most notably through Homer's Iliad.

The 5-hour drive back to Istanbul landed us back into the middle of a huge celebration for the opening of the city's new soccer stadium that lasted into the night....and our hotel was just across the street.

Louise took the package tour of Istanbul while Lynne and I went off on our own to see the sites. Here's a view of Taksim Square. Site of many protests and a few bombings....yikes !

Next day we wondered through the famous Süleymaniye Mosque. The construction work began in 1550 and the mosque was finished in just 8 years.

Here's a shot from my drone.

At the four corners of the courtyard are the four minarets, a number only allowable to mosques endowed by a sultan.

And a look inside.  In case you are wondering, I did not see any radicalization going on.

We all went for a tour of the spice market. 

Nothing like shopping when your suitcase is already over weight :-)

Get 2, they're small.

  

One of these will make a nice gift.

That's it for now......

Cruising the Bosporus

Istanbul is a city with feet in Europe and Asia. The Straits of Bosporus separate the East from the West sides of the city.













There are several bridges across the straits but most folks use the hundreds of ferries that operate each day.

During the flight into Istanbul, we all updated ourselves on local issues. The airlines were kind enough to provide reference materials......

The straits are also a very busy commercial sea lane between the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. It's a narrow channel for these large ships, so the system is one-way north-bound for 12 hours and then changes to the other way for the next 12 hours. This also helps the ferry traffic to coordinate their crossings, they only need to look one-way for the big boats.

The people like to fish for sardines and mackerel from the seawall.

The most expensive water-view real estate is on the Asian side, they can look back over the water to the main part of Istanbul.

The Bosporus is also a great backdrop for pictures. Check out the brides...

Here's a view of the Bosporus from our hotel room. You can see the new soccer stadium.

See you next time.....

1st Stop, England

The internet on the ship was not good enough to do a blog, so I will need to catch up over the next few days.

I have always want to see Windsor Castle and meet the queen. Did the former, still waiting on the latter. 

Windsor was an overnight stop on our way to Istanbul.  

Lynne and Louise enjoyed the tour of the Windsor Castle. 

This is the Queen's favorite residence. Along with Windsor, she spends time at Buckingham Palace and, in the summer, Scotland's Balmoral Castlle. 

The Queen's Guard is always available to protect the old girl.

The weather started off cold and windy with a little rain, but improved after a late afternoon visit to the 2 Brewers Pub.

Near Windsor is the area of Runnymede. This is where the Magna Carta was signed. Here. are the chairs in the middle of the field where the people meet with King John. It's actually an art installation called "the Jurors". The Jurors was commissioned by Surrey County Council and the National Trust to mark the 800th anniversary of the sealing of Magna Carta. The sculptor Hew Locke created 12 bronze chairs each of which is decorated with symbols of past and present struggles for freedom, equality and the rule of law.

Until next time......

Fixin' to Get Ready

It's t-minus 2-days and we are working through a check list of "to-do's" before we fly to London, a brief stop-over on our way to Istanbul.

Here's the trip plan for phase 1 of 2....The UniWorld River Cruise

On the trip; Lynne, our friend Louise and me. From Istanbul we fly to Bucharest. After a few day of sightseeing, it's on to our floating hotel, Uniworld's River Princess. We will follow a path forged by crusaders, kings and conquerors through Hungary, Serbia, Croatia, Romania, Bulgaria and Turkey. We hope to be immersed the cultures and flavors of the lower Danube region.  From exotic Istanbul to Budapest, we hope to discover the best that these revitalized nations of Eastern Europe have to offer.

After the cruise, we will forge on into Phase 2 : Poland and the Czech Republic. More to follow on that.