A fairly historic day in Space History today as the Space Shuttle Endeavour takes its last “flight” around Los Angeles today. Â Apparently the pilots of the jumbo jet were given free reign to tool around California today with a loose flight plan, including two swoops around the Santa Monica area. Â Guess what that means? Â Prime rooftop viewing platform! Â Here are my pics from this amazing afternoon:
You can start to make out the real shapes of the shuttle as well as the F-18s21-Sep-2012 11:50, Canon Canon PowerShot ELPH 500 HS, 5.8, 18.8mm, 0.002 sec, ISO 100
Such a great shot and I can't believe how close it was to our rooftop21-Sep-2012 11:51, Canon Canon PowerShot ELPH 500 HS, 5.8, 18.8mm, 0.002 sec, ISO 100
This is the second loop around Venice and Santa Monica after the shuttle did a low flyby of LAX21-Sep-2012 12:01, Canon Canon PowerShot ELPH 500 HS, 5.0, 12.056mm, 0.001 sec, ISO 100
It's headed off towards Griffith Park and Hollywood at this point21-Sep-2012 12:03, Canon Canon PowerShot ELPH 500 HS, 5.0, 11.381mm, 0.002 sec, ISO 100
Hi – I’m Hobie’s trusty living room couch and have been a treasured part of his living room family since 2009. Â He’s taken great care of me but apparently he is looking for something in a different style. Â Is there anything wrong with me? Â Nope. Â He’s just fickle and wants a new look. Â P’shaw. Â I’d love to find a new home though, so if you or someone you know is looking for a great sectional couch, please let Hobie know. Â He’s asking $400 for me and honestly, that’s a great price.
Hobie doesn’t have a delivery service though so I’d definitely need a ride to my new home. Â Obviously I’m coming with all the brown pillows because they’re part of me and Hobie can’t have them. Â So there!
Our first port o’ call! It was exciting to explore a place that neither of us had ever been to before – especially as that place was Greece. It had always been one of my favored destinations and one that I hadn’t yet been to, so to not only finally make it there but while on this ridiculously luxurious ship – pure bliss. In the morning, we awoke to the ship still moving yet outside there were scattered little Greek islands. They weren’t islands that make you think beautiful and unspoiled – more like the volcanic remnants of what used to be there, which is in fact the case. Santorini as it is today is basically the remnants of what used to be a huge island that blew up in a giant volcano. Now it’s an archipelago – many think that this was actually the basis of the legend of Atlantis.
Anyway, Santorini is what many people would think of in terms of a Greek Isle….at least in terms of the countryside and bleached-white architecture situated on dramatic cliffs with stunning Med views. As the Equinox approached the city of Fira on the coast of Santorini, it became clear that what looked like white-topped cliffs was not due to geology but the city itself. It clings on the side of these massive cliffs and as you’ll see in the later pics of this post, it ends up affording the town an unbelievable view of the water. Simply breathtaking. There is actually no harbor big enough for a ship our size, not to mention the fact that Santorini is a very popular cruise ship destination. Hence, Equinox docked out in the water and we were taken ashore by multiple skiffs. This was our first excursion experience and it was almost nerve-wracking to get assigned your tour group number and anxiously await your number to be called. It finally happened though and after a quick jaunt to the shore, we met our guide (a very beautiful Greek woman – you can see her in the photos if you pay attention) and were ushered on to our bus.
Arrival into Santorini
When we woke up the next morning, we were in the middle of the Greek Isles!
As we got around this island, you could start to see the other cruise ships
All of them headed where we were: Santorini, Greece
One day we’ll come back in a yacht, too!
All that white topping? Those are the towns. Yeah, they built up high.
You go to the Equinox Theater to get your excursion sticker so you know where to go
This is us in our Tender (boat) that took us to shore in Santorini
The bus immediately went up the scariest fucking switchback road I think I’ve ever been on. As I mentioned, there are ridiculous cliffs around the entire island so to actually see the interior of the island, you have to ascend the cliffs. UGH. It was nauseating how high we ended up going and seeing how high above even those massive cruise ships we were. That torture blessedly ended and we ended up driving across the island and through many volcanic-soil-based orchards and vineyards. The landscape, at least up there, reminded me a lot of Southern California, besides the volcanic part. Our first stop was to the highest point of the island which afforded us views of the entire Santorini. It was a beautiful and HOT day, so the views were spectacular.
Bus Ride Up to the Highest Point
That’s our ship way back there while beautiful white Greece architecture is in front
We boarded a bus and started up a road that went up….
….and up…..
….and up…..
…and UP….to the point where it was scary to look over as the bus was huge…
…and the road was tiny…..ugh…still have flashbacks.
Volcanic soil is great for growing things, as long as they’re planted low
As you can see, we ended up driving to to the top of the island
It afforded us a dramatic view of nearly the entire island.
Larry at our first stop on the bus
I got some snaggle-toothed model guy to take our picture
I’m trying to replicate the Hobie-falling picture from the Azores…
..but it doesn’t work so well when you can see my legs.
Not a fan of heights is Larry
That way
So if you want to fly here too
Kinda misty that day due to the humidity
We schlepped up some steps to where there is a monastery and a better view
Had to walk urgently to get back to the buses
The second and longest stop was in one of the more ancient cities of Santorini, Pyrgos. This is basically the city you imagine when you think of Greek Isles. The stunning white architecture with pops of blue here and there led to all of us in the group being slack-jawed at the beauty. Our guide took us on a walking tour through it and while it was extremely beautiful (you can see the pics – I didn’t choose that top photo above for no reason) it was muthafuckin’ hot. Holy god it was hot. So glad I had a hat and we brought water as otherwise your ass was going to pass out. Don’t mind me though – it was totally worth it. We were taken to where the old fortress had once been and saw its ruins along with all these gorgeous little step-filled corridors. Sigh….it was so beautiful. Could totally imagine going back there just to vacation and chill the fuck out.
City of Pyrgos
Went to the town of Pyrgos for our second stop and for a walking tour
Was pretty much the idyllic, prototypical white-walled Greek town you imagine
Beautiful blue skies contrast amazingly against the buildings
Lots of neat, meandering narrow passageways through the village
It was hot, and very nice in the shade
Had to wear my hat a lot this trip – blazing sun is no friend to bald spots
That’s our Greek tour guide, standing in front of the entry to the walled part of the original Pyrgos
Yeah, it was spectacular. Just hot and humid as hell.
That mountaintop is where we just had been.
Remnants of the original castle wall
Sweaty and ready for some Greek mezos and wine!
The blue and white colors here are no lie. It was that beautiful. One of my fave pics.
It was hot and we did lots of steps. But it was worth it to see the view.
I told you, I was sweaty.
I think you can see our ship way in the background
The rest of our tour group. In there is Amy, who would become our best friend on the cruise.
How awesome would that hotel be????
Enjoying our first excursion
A cafe just down the block from a shop where a HOT Greek man was…think John Stamos..but hotter
Some yellow
Ah, Pyrgos
This excursion wasn’t JUST a visit of Santorini – we also got some authentic Greek food for lunch! We went to this great little restaurant with a beautiful view and met some new people for the first time the entire trip. There were some great couples that we ended up seeing frequently over the cruise, but this excursion was very fortuitous as we ended up meeting Amy at lunch. Larry & I were kind of the chatty ones at the table and over some topics, it was clear we got along fabulously with Amy. Trying not to be too awkward about it, we ended up asking Amy if she wanted to hang out again during the trip. We definitely ended up doing so many times – I think even that night we did as we went to our first cruise ship show and met up with her afterwards to play craps. That’s when we found out she’s in the advertising industry too! Small world. Back to the story though, it was a great lunch and I ate most of the food, surprisingly.
Lunchtime
Our next stop was at a restaurant where we got to have lots of good snacks…and wine
While eating, a weird humidity-caused cloud rolled in. I started thinking about The Mist
Larry, with Amy over on the right. We bonded over lunch.
More Greek volcanic vineyards
It was then time to head to our last stop, the city of Fira. This was the city you could see from the cruise ship and is basically the other city you’d think of when you think of the Greek Isles: the one that has the ridiculously gorgeous view of the Mediterranean. Le sigh. It was mesmerizing to just stare out from any of the myriad walls, balconies, or alcoves and just gaze out. By this time, the sun was down a bit and the afternoon was growing long, so it wasn’t as terribly hot. Our tour was also over at this point and our guide gave us our “return tickets” which earned us passage on the Suspended Tramway back down to the docks. Let me just say….I loved Santorini, but this last part nearly ruined the excursion. Basically, that tramway is one of two ways you can actually get back down to the water where the skiffs await to return you to the ship. We were told that you could also walk the stairs down the cliffs. I won’t claim that I am super athletic or the opposite, but I envisioned either falling or suffering from muscle pain due to thousands of stairs down. Plus, we had been warned that the path reeks since donkeys are also going up and down those in case you want a ride. So after grabbing an ice cream up top to cool off, we went for the Tram. As did all the other thousands of people there. Like I said way before, Santorini is a huge cruise ship destination and there are many more tour groups than just from your ship. We ended up having to wait about an hour to finally get on the Tram, all while roasting in the sun since there wasn’t any cover. Long afternoon. Yet finally, we got on the tram, I momentarily freaked out as I HATE those kinds of trams especially when you’re that high up, and got back to the skiff and then the ship.
City of Fira
Our last stop was getting dropped off at Fira
It’s the city jaw-droppingly on the coast
Looks like something out of Lord of the Rings, to be honest
Hard not to be happy when you’re in paradise
Santorini was once a single island, but it’s volcanic, so there’s now an archipelago
That island in the center is the former center of the island
Again…how awesome would it be to stay at that hotel???
Our ship’s on the left
Could easily come back here
Had some time to wander the streets for souvenirs and our first Greek gelato
Had to wait in an ungodly line for the cable car down
There were burros too, if you wanted to ride them on the steps
In the cable car station
It kinda looks like the edge of the world there…and it sorta is
It’s quite a steep drop as the cable car heads down the cliff
And here’s the view of Fira from the cable car
That’s just jaw-dropping
We could have walked the path down…but honestly, glad we didn’t.
It’s 660 steps and frankly, who needs that?
On the ground now…our ship is on the right
Don’t mess with the Equinox. It’s huge.
Looking back up the cliffs towards the town of Fira
The quaint little harbor area where our tenders went. You can see the road our bus drove up earlier.
Once back on the ship, the captain mentioned that the Greek sunset at Santorini was not to be missed. So after changing and showering, Larry & I rushed up to the deck, used our fantastic drink passes and welcomed the gorgeous Greek sunset with some fine cocktails. It is nice to be on vacation!
A Greek Sunset
Back on the ship, you can see the walking path etched into the cliff
Our first Greek sunset approached, and as the Captain had told us, it was spectacular
Our weather was freaking wonderful
Sunset
Perfect time for a drink
Right, Larry?
Cruise Ship central over here
Enjoying the pool instead of going onshore was definitely the choice made by many
The Birthplace of Western Civilization! The Parthenon! The Acropolis! Needless to say, I was extremely excited to see Athens. Along with the Hagia Sophia, The Parthenon was another building I’ve imagined visiting my entire life and this trip was going to help me fulfill that check box. SWEET.
The morning of our arrival in Athens, we woke up already there. It was interesting to find ourselves already in a brand new place and really not have a clue where we were. At the time, I didn’t think you could see Ancient Athens from where we were – I discovered I was wrong, after getting back from our excursion. The port for Athens is known as Piraeus and it would be like driving from Long Beach to Downtown LA in terms of comparable distances. The first order of business was a bus ride along the Piraeus coastline along with commentary from our tour guide, who knew the ins and outs of Athens, that’s for sure. I couldn’t tell you much at all about what I saw writing about it nearly a year later. Luckily I’ve captioned most photos as applicable.
The approach to Athens clearly indicates that it’s basically just another big city, much like you’d see in the U.S. or in most parts of Europe. It’s not particularly picturesque and kinda pedestrian, if you permit my blase attitude. Only when you get close to the ancient areas do you start to see the “money shots” if you will. Once in the downtown area about 45-60 minutes later, you can start looking out the window and having your mind blown. The ancient quarter is awesome. The Acropolis is truly a sight to see, and can be seen from miles away, as it is a big hill crowned with ancient historical buildings. Throughout the rest of the city are scattered other majestic sights, like ancient Olympic stadiums, ruins of temples, amphitheaters, other historical hills….you could probably spend another day enjoying the sights. At a leisurely pace. Beyond that, Athens is a typical bigger-than-medium dirty city. Nothing wrong with that, but it kind of clashes with the other island-ic parts of Greece where it’s quaint and staggeringly gorgeous (see Santorini and Mykonos).
Leaving Piraeus for Athens
After getting driven around the ancient part of the city, our walking tour of the Acropolis began. As it also did for THOUSANDS of people. It’s not surprising this is a hugely popular place to go. Yet when it’s balls hot outside, the last thing you want to do is be crammed with every other foreigner and move at a snails pace. Alas, that is the price to pay to experience the divine. 🙂 You basically queue up in a long crowded line up the steps of the Acropolis, funneling through a central ancient gate that then opens up on the expanse of the Acropolis proper. It’s a fantastic view though, as you go ever higher and get an ever better view of Athens.
Climbing the Acropolis
Our tour group at the foot of the Acropolis
You ascend a hill through lots of olive trees
This is the remains of the Odeon, which at one point used to have a roof
Larry & the Odeon; the extreme closeup because of the sheer number of people on the path
On the hill behind the Odeon is the Philopappos temple
Looking up at the Acropolis walls
The Temple of Athena Nike from below, which is on the Acropolis as well
Lots of people want to see the Acropolis. Lots.
The main staircase that leads up into the Acropolis
From the stairs, you can see the whole of Athens
The Propylaea, the unfinished and ruined gateway to the Acropolis
All throughout many of the Greek monument areas, there were dogs wandering about
Looking towards the Philopappos again
The Temple of Athena Nike again, next to the gateway
Temple of Athena Nike
Looking down the entry steps
Me
The view through the Propylaea as you enter the Acropolis
Impressive still after all these years
But yeah, once you get through that gate, that’s when it was all worth it….as there’s the mother-bleepin’ PARTHENON. It really is staggering and impressive and not-at-all disappointing. It is sad to see the condition it’s in, but if you read up on the history of the building (which is entertainingly told in “The Secret Lives of Buildings”), it’s amazing there’s anything left of it all, what with all the explosions that have taken place in it. Larry & I walked around the site, taking it all in. At least up here there is room to breathe even if it’s still crowded. Yet it was really really hot that day (go figure, it’s hot in early September in the Med!). We only had so much time and then it was time to rejoin the group bus, as we then were headed to the “tourist” quarter called the Plaka.
The One and Only Parthenon!!!
But there’s what everyone comes for: the Parthenon
Looking back towards the entryway to the Acropolis
Us, the Parthenon, the crowds, and the heat
The Parthenon is constanly being preserved as it is constantly deteriorating
Once a temple to Athena, then a church, a mosque, and also a weapons storehouse
Unfortunately when the Turks made it an armory, the British shelled it and blew up all the ammo within
A better view of the Odeon
The ruins of the Sanctuary of Asclepius
Better view of Philopappos
It was always deteriorating, but the Turkish ammo blast took out the entire midsection
Ah, traveling in Greece
Still, there’s a lot to see, but the Greeks have wisely taken artistic elements and stored them
That’s the Theater of Dionysus, and the New Acropolis Museum behind it
Here you can see just how much was destroyed
The rear of the Parthenon
Closeup of the facade – whatever original art was there is stored in the New Acropolis museum
These are replicas if visible at all. The Museum is amazing as it places the art where it would be
Read up on the architectural tricks the Greeks used to make the Parthenon look perfect
It was made with skewed proportions so upon looking at it from the front, it didn’t get smaller
Lawrence is impressed
More Athens views, including an art student
Constantly getting preserved
The Erechtheum, another ancient Greek temple.
This was built by Phidias, who also built the Parthenon
Athena’s gift of an olive tree and Poseidon’s of salt water are all indicated here
Athena’s gift was chosen and hence she won the city’s loyalty
Looking towards the entryway again
The female “columns” are called the Caryatids. The originals are in the museum.
Looks like Greek graffiti to me
The view as you leave the Acropolis
Larry told me all about extra virgin olive oil, vs virgin olive oil, vs just oil
Lots of crowds and lots of heat
Strangely enough, the cover of Madonna’s album Erotica was on a tile here
As well as here
The Olympics Stadium
The Acropolis from afar while in our bus
Those temples in the foreground are Zeus’ temple
The Panathiniaiko stadium used in the ancient AND modern Olympics
Quite impressive still; entirely made of marble.
The Plaka district is the both the ancient section and the tourist section
At the Plaka district, we were given a few hours on our own to just explore the area and buy souvenirs/crap. It was also up to us to get some food, so Larry & I wandered into the heart of the Plaka ville and found a Greek restaurant to indulge in some touristy samplings of Greek food. At that point, we were ravenous and the food and Greek beer were AMAZING. After getting a bit of energy restored, I had wanted to visit the New Acropolis Museum. The museum is brilliantly designed as it is built on top of ancient ruins where the old Plaka city used to be…but what’s cool is that the museum is literally propped above the ruins, and the floors are glass so you can look down and see where there are excavations occurring. The museum is also situated at the foot of the Acropolis and aligned the same way as the Parthenon. Why is that neat? Because the museum has all the original remaining sidings of the Parthenon in order to better preserve them. Basically, you’re seeing fake friezes on the Parthenon structure as there’s little way to protect them out in the open effectively without shutting the Parthenon down. So you get to see the structure and a fairly idealized form of the remains, but the real stuff is in the museum. It’s a great way to see all sorts of Greek antiquities, but don’t take a picture inside there! NOT ALLOWED, as I found out. Oops. Lots of great stuff to see there, and it’s air-conditioned. Hallelujah. Also very interesting are the many scale models of the Acropolis throughout the last few thousand years, through it’s initial construction, it’s transition into different purposes and religions, and how it came to look the way it does now.
Plaka and the New Acropolis Museum
While there, we found a Greek restaurant and scarfed down some typical Greek gyros food
Plenty of souvenirs for everyone!
That’s the Acropolis above
An idea of what the district looked like fully intact
Thought it was cool to see the Hotel Byron!
The path to the New Acropolis Museum
The New Acropolis Museum, which is pretty amazing
It’s built above the ruins of the ancient city, which is pretty cool.
Acropolis in medieval times, around 1500 AD
Model of the entirety of Athens in ancient times
Model of Acropolis around 480 BC
The Acropolis around 1200 BC
The museum has glass floors throughout letting you see the ruins below
I was very happy to have finally visited the Acropolis for myself. It’s a very worthwhile thing to see and experience – I would like to have visited other spots throughout Athens, but honestly, I don’t feel like I missed out on too much. Maybe one day we’ll be able to swing back through there. After our free time was up, we jumped back on the bus and drove the much quicker highway route back to our gigantic ship. It fairly quickly took off at that point, and from our room we could watch the whole process unfold as the ship un-docked. There were some hot dock workers to look at too…that wasn’t bad at all.
Back at Equinox
After a drive back through Athens to the port city of Piraeus, we were back
It truly is an enormous vessel
The view from our stateroom
Looking back towards the Acropolis from our ship
If you look hard, to the right of that light pole you can see the Acropolis
Watching the ship disembark from the port
The view from our Outcast table in the dining room
Larry did like the food, I just take worst-timing pictures ever
One thing about our cruise experience itself that was a bit frustrating at first was the dining experience. No one ever showed up to our 8-person table! Ever. So we were the lepers, apparently. It wasn’t this night, but I think maybe the next when they finally sat us at a 4-person square table that 2 people could sit at and not look stupid. We didn’t eat every night at the main dining room, but let me tell you, the food there was fantastic. The waiters, servers, and sommelier were amazing. A very great experience, that is for sure, once we finally got our own table. I think it’s just that people now have different options, including other restaurants throughout the ship, along with a Flex Eating thing that sells out immediately long before the ship sails, in which it’s like a restaurant and you can eat just with your party. I think a lot of people don’t like the idea of having to eat with the same people every night, especially if you end up hating them. Ah well….their loss, as Larry & I are AWESOME dinner conversationalists.
As I mortifyingly admitted yesterday, there are quite a few pics from our epic trip last year around the Mediterranean. I’ve decided to work backwards. As I slowly but surely get all the picture pages up from that trip, I’ll continue to update the list of pages with links. Messy, but it will have to do since this is going to be put up in all sorts of random order!
Anyway, I just started writing this paragraph and remembered that I had written a LOT of stuff during the cruise itself, especially during those days at sea. But then I remembered I had written them on my old iPad, which I had recently wiped in order to give to Harv. D’oh! But then, I remembered that Apple awesomely backs up your data when you connect it to your computer. And then I remembered that I built my new iPad from my old iPad’s image… After remembering which app I used to type in my trip journal (aNote – a pretty great app for purposes like travel diaries, btw) I nervously opened it up and BAM! there were my notes…I had forgotten that I’d only written up the days from Rome, but honestly, that’s a relief too. Those were action-packed days!!!
What all that means is that I’m stuck remembering the rest of the cruise – luckily I took shittons of pictures, so when in doubt, I can lean on the pictures to tell the story. So, where was I? Oh, yeah, ISTANBUL!
Our ship, the Equinox, had docked in Istanbul before most everyone woke up, as when we finally did get up, we looked out the balcony directly on to the Istanbul cityscape. Sho’ nuff, this was definitely Istanbul. Mosques everywhere, but also still quite a city. From our room, we were facing the wrong way to really see any of the historic center stuff you associate in your mind with Istanbul, namely the Hagia Sophia or Blue Mosque. The ship was spending two full days here in the city, and Larry & I had booked a two-day excursion. I was RIDICULOUSLY excited to come here. It’s always amazing to think of the history here in what was once Constantinople. It’s also the only city that straddles two continents. Plus, the Hagia Sophia. I mean, seriously. Once we got sorted into our travel group, we found out that our itinerary for today was to mainly visit the insane (in a good way) markets, including the Spice Market and the Grand Bazaar, along with visiting Topkapi Palace, finally ending with a boat cruise on the Bosphorous.
Arrival in Istanbul
View of Istanbul from our stateroom
The welcoming Janissary band outside the ship
First up was Topkapi Palace. It’s where the sultans made their home, back before Turkey stopped having a sultan. It’s now preserved as a museum, storing quite a few interesting artifiacts, including many ridiculously gorgeous jewels, portraits of all the sultans, some quite impressive religious artifiacts (including allegedly Moses’ staff….Larry & I both had strong doubts about the authenticity of it, and even after asking our affable and knowledgeable tour guide, she couldn’t confirm but informed us that most have strong beliefs that it is) and a gorgeous view of the Golden Horn and Bosphorous, the bodies of water that surround and cut through Istanbul.
Topkapi Palace
The entrance to Topkapi palace
Topkapi Palace was the home of the Ottoman Sultans for over 400 years
Lots of pretty courtyards within
The Gate of Salutation, leading to the Second courtyard
The Tower of Justice
The Tower of Justice again
The Imperial Council building
The First Chamber of the Imperial Council
Gorgeous interiors of the Imperial Council
The porch outside the Imperial Divan
Feeling imperious
The treasury buildings, where you can see ridiculous collections of jewels
The Audience Chamber
View of the Bosphorous from Topkapi with me
The Topkapi palace lies on the far eastern end of the old district of Istanbul
Outside the Holy Relics area, where Moses’ staff allegedly is
Larry and the Library of Sultan Ahmed III
This building houses all the Sultan’s portraits
After the Topkapi Palace, we went to the Cistern, a Roman construction built underground and where in ancient times the city would store its water. It is still being preserved for historical reasons and because it is awesome. You walk down some stairs like you’re heading into a basement, and then there you are in this dramatically lit, massive underground chamber like out of a dream. It’s filled with a little bit of water that fish swim in – it’s also very cool there especially considering it’s fucking hot as balls up top in September. It’s incredible to think that not only was this built 1500 years ago, it still stands and there’s a city built up above it.
Exploring the Cistern and area
The Hagia Sophia, although we didn’t see the inside till the next day
Our bus passed by it on the way to the Cisterns and it was just too amazing not to photo
This is what you see upon entering the Cistern
The Cistern is a remnant of Roman engineering when Constantinople was the eastern capital
They basically built a roof over the valley and stored water there for use
Now it’s literally a cool place to visit
The dramatic lighting definitely makes the tour
The Medusa column bases. This one is sideways, meant to diffuse her power
The other Medusa column is inverted, again to diffuse her stone power
There are fish down in the water
There’s even a cafe down there
From the Cistern, we hopped back in our bus and went to the Spice Market. I’m sure I’d seen this before on the Amazing Race, and it’s definitely an attraction that doesn’t disappoint. It’s wall-to-wall people with tons of vendors selling textiles, spices (duh), trinkets and souvenirs, food, jewelry….basically everything you’d imagine. Larry went to the tour-guide recommended spice stall (Aladdin’s – for reals) and picked up some Turkish Delight (candy that would kill me what with all the nut-based shit in it) and pistachios (for snacking). After walking through it a bit, we ended up in a textile store and bought some “Turkish-looking” pillowcases and a table runner. The tour guide had warned us that engaging vendors at all means you’re interested, even if you say no. She was not wrong. They’re persistent and I bet we probably could have made an even better deal for ourselves.
The Spice Market
Back up on the ground, this is the area around the Spice Market
The New Mosque is right there in front and the Spice Market is to the right
Looking into the Spice Market
The Aladdin No. 6 store, where our guide recommended we get stuff
Probably shady, but whatever. Larry got some Turkish Delight there.
Just like the Amazing Race!
Larry is confused…
Eventually you can reach an outdoor portion
Aww…
This is the open square near the New Mosque and Spice Market
The New Mosque – note there’s only two minarets.
That big mosque in the distance is the Blue Mosque, one of the more famous
In the distance is the Galata Tower
The Spice Market entrance
The New Mosque again
It was time for lunch at this point, and we ended up at a restaurant that served up lots of Turkish flavor, including kabob, a pate thing, and even now, I can’t remember it all, neither can Larry. But it was all mostly good. This lunch we ended up meeting some of our other fellow cruise passengers as we were seated at large, communal tables. I remember a few couples, one in which the woman was very nice but her husband was standoffish, a very nice married couple from Ireland who we would occasionally run into throughout the rest of the trip, and I think a German couple who were polite but again a little reserved. Good food though.
After lunch, our big bus somehow navigated the seemingly-small small streets of Istanbul to drop us off at the Grand Bazaar. The Spice Market was big and chaotic, but this place is just massive. MASSIVE. If you ever play Assassin’s Creed: Revelations, you’ll get kind of an inkling of how big and meandering the corridors of this ancient mall are. It’s so easy to get turned around inside. Everything looks the same after a while as the vendors pretty much all start repeating after a while. There’s only so much crap that can be sold. By this point, Larry & I had satisfied our curiosity factor and after getting turned around a few times and seemingly lost, we finally found our exit and went outside. It was even hotter than balls than it was earlier, so we found a somewhat shady spot to sit in and wait until the group was scheduled to meet up again. It had been a long day so far, and the heat on top of it is exhausting. ÂI was really looking forward to the final stop on the itinerary for the day, the boat cruise. I just hoped we didn’t pass out.
The Grand Bazaar
A view of the Blue Mosque while heading to lunch
We didn’t go there till the next day too
It was amazing how the bus could take these little street corners
In the afternoon, we headed to the Grand Bazaar
Rug merchants on the sidewalk
Crowded crowded crowded
Just one of the entrances to the Grand Bazaar
Far bigger than the Spice Market and much easier to get lost in
We wandered around a lot, one time finding this Turkish flag display
So yeah – the boat cruise on the Bosphorous, leaving from the Golden Horn. Istanbul has a little inlet harbor that is called the Golden Horn, because obviously that is where a huge amount of their trade would come through. The Golden Horn is an inlet off of the Bosphorous, the main body of water that cuts through Istanbul and is the path from the Black Sea to the Sea of Marmara/the Mediterranean. The cruise was wonderful, as it went along a route on both coasts of the city, as it is a city that is cut in half by the Bosphorous and gives Istanbul coasts in both Europe and Asia. It also happens to be that some of the world’s most valuable real estate (along the lines of Bel Air and such) is along those shores, since there’s mega oil money and Russians there. If you’ve ever seen the James Bond movie, The World is Not Enough, we went by not only Electra’s Istanbul house (which is right along the shore), also her evil lighthouse/submarine lair, a very quaint little place called Lenore’s Tower. In other words, it was awesome.
Boat Cruising on the Bosphorous
The end of the day was spent on a Bosphorous boat cruise
Don’t know this boat’s purpose, but it’s cute
The boat in front isn’t our ship – the big mutha in the background is
There’s our Equinox
The Dolmabahce Mosque
Super expensive hotels along the Bosphorous
Apparently this strip of land is as expensive as Beverly Hills or Bel Air
The 1st Bosphorous Bridge, built in the 1970s, and spans Europe and Asia
A swimming club on its own little island in the middle of the Bosphorous
This is a castle called Rumeli Hisarutsu
This is the 2nd Bosphorous Bridge built in the late 1980s
Elektra King’s residence from James Bond’s “The World Is Not Enough”
This is all looking at the Asian side of Turkey
Beylerbeyi Palace on the Asian side
A view towards the Old section of Istanbul with all the well-known mosques
The Maiden’s Tower, dating back 2500 years ago. Crazy
If you remember, this tower was also in The World is Not Enough.
After the cruise, it was finally time to go back to the ship and crash. Seriously, that was a long ass day. But basically, completely amazing at the same time. I fell in love with Istanbul and could easily imagine going back to visit again, perhaps after knocking out some of the other places Larry & I would like to visit. But I didn’t have to say goodbye to the city just yet, as we had Day 2 the next day!
Back on the Equinox
Back on board the ship and drinking
Nothing ever changes
Night shots of Istanbul
Hagia Sophia in the middle, Blue Mosque on the right
That’s Topkapi Palace on the left
Instead of going into town, enjoyed the sights from our ship
