Although we know we can't check into the ship until after 3:00, we figure we can check out of our hotel and leave our bags at the ship early and take off until check-in time. Were we WRONG! We showed up and were told we would have to 'wait'. Nobody (the only people there were passport control) could tell us when exactly we would be able to drop our bags, so we waited. And we waited. And we waited. This experience was made even more pleasant due to the fact that when we were first dropped off I needed to find a WC, and after 90 minutes my eyes were turning yellow! Finally, we were able to board, check bags and find a washroom! As my eyes returned to their original color a glass of Champagne comforted us.
Once we were free of bags, we hit the Besiktas soccer stadium for a couple of shirts. The service in shops in Turkey is over the top! Very friendly and right on top of you, yet not really off putting either. Chris makes friends speaking the universal language of soccer.
It has been very hot since we arrived in Istanbul and is hot again today - probably over 30.
We wander around Istanbul for the last time before boarding the Seven Seas Navigator - our home for the next 10 days. Our room is very big compared to other ship-board rooms we have stayed in. It is about 250 square feet - bigger than many land hotels we have been in! We have a bathroom with a separate shower and tub, a walk in closet, a king sized bed, a sitting area with a couch and a table and chairs and a balcony, bottle of Champagne on ice and a stocked mini bar - very nice. Departure is delayed a few hours because some passengers have not arrived, so we are able to go back into Istanbul after dinner.
There is a row a of Shisha bars very close to our ship where we share our last water pipe and try pistachio coffee. Had I known this delicious stuff existed earlier I would have drunk nothing else in Istanbul! It's more like hot chocolate than coffee - made with crushed pistachios and milk served in tiny espresso like cups. This place is great...great atmosphere (loads of people), men offering to sell fruit, yogurt and pistachios, backgammon and very friendly attentive staff.
Things I noticed about Istanbul...
1. very clean...after a day walking in sandals my feet are hardly dirty like they usually are in Europe
2. there are very few Turkish women visible...all workers we have seen (other than our chamber maid and hotel restaurant waitress) are men
3. public WCs are great...of course we have only been in tourist areas, but all but the one in the non-tourist place we ate lunch in have been fully equipped
4. street food is limited to corn on the cob (interesting), pretzels and ice cream
5. the Muslim call to prayer is pretty much ignored where we were - although this happens 5 times a day we only heard it in the afternoon and at night
6. no mater day or night I felt safe
7. I'd be happy to visit Ιstanbul again
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