Rainbow steps

We had a second day in Istanbul, and had several things remaining on our list. It's always good to subtly eavesdrop on other passenger's conversations, because you can learn a lot about what to see and do. If I didn't happen to hear another fellow traveler talking about all the flowers that were blooming around the Sultanahmet area, we might not have gone back there. As I mentioned before, it seemed like a totally different city from a month ago, and this was especially true of that area. 

The plantings were stunning.

This is a view of Hagia Sophia. I think it's best from the outside.

With 4 or more cruise ships in town, plus all the other visitors, this place was jammed with tour groups. Vendors were everywhere , trying to sweet talk us into stopping by their shops to look at carpets, ceramics, jewelry, etc. My favorite line was from one young man who said to me" I like your eyes. Are they natural? " That still makes me laugh...

I missed spring at home, so all these flowers really made me happy! 

Of course, the original tulips bulbs came from Turkey, and they are justifiably proud of them. 

I loved this old yellow building, though it looked like it needed a little tlc.

I decided that the theme of this post was COLOR! 

This was a fabulous wall outside of a shop that the fellow in the next photo was trying to get us into.

I agreed to come to his shop just so I could take his photo. Do you imagine he suspected that? Is that why he's giving that suspicious look? It was worth it! 

This was our old neighborhood where we first stayed. A month ago it was cold and felt like winter, with everyone( including us) bundled up. Now it was festooned with banners and looking quite festive, and spring like. 

We went back to our favorite restaurant, too and now it was open to the air. Our waiters remembered us, and as we were leaving we ran into our friend Emir from our hotel. It was like old home week! Of course we had to share a cup of tea with him. 

These are traditional shish kebabs found in many restaurants. Grilled to order, of course.

We had a variation on this for lunch.

Then it was time to get back to the ship before it left without us.

On the way we walked past all the nargile places that looked very fun- if it didn't involve smoking...of course there is tea drinking, or backgammon playing.

And finally, the rainbow stairs. The true story from a couple of years ago is that a man decided to liven up his neighborhood by painting the steps in rainbow colors. The city officials didn't like it, so came and painted them out. In protest, and solidarity, many others around town also painted their steps, so the officials eventually gave in. It looks so cheeful that I wish I had some steps to paint. 

A lot of weary people dragging back to the ship...

From Canakkale to Istanbul

We didn't know several months ago that we would end up going back to Istanbul twice, but we are happy to be here again! 

We weren't sure where we would be docking, but when we came into the city early in the morning and docked right near our old hotel I was thrilled! It is very centrally located, and we knew the neighborhood well. 

This was the early morning first view of Istanbul .

I wasn't sure there would be room for us with these other cruise ships already here. 

But somehow they managed to steer us in- or push and pull us...if you look really hard, in the foreground there is a dolphin jumping out of the water. Really! 

The city was like a different place than the one we left over a month ago. Suddenly there were banners and balloons everywhere and flowers are bursting into bloom. 

We went back to my favorite art supply store, Panter, to buy a small set of travel watercolors as my backup set seems to have disappeared.

The big stacks of lamb were just being prepared.

Later they would look like this

Except this one is chicken. 

By a rather roundabout way, we made our way to Ortakoy along the Bosphorus for lunch. It seemed that the popular favorite was definitely stuffed baked potatoes. Very big here in Turkey!

A nice young man let me take a photo of his.

As you can see, these things are huge! Fillings include cheese, hot dog slices, olives, something pink, etc etc. We passed on the potatoes, opting for something less- pototatoey. 

But it was equally colorful.

Those charred peppers are hot!

How cute is this dolphin phone booth? We have seen quite a few of the real thing on our cruise.

I don't even ( want to) know what this is, but these are all toppings for waffles, equally popular as baked potatoes.

This is my favorite photo of the day. It looks far more delicious to me than the waffle toppings.

It was all displayed on a little wooden cart, pushed through the back alleys of Karakoy by a little elderly fellow. 

Karakoy is our 'hood, and we don't mind too much hanging out with all the young Turkish hipsters.

This is a fun neighborhood, as I mentioned previously, filled with great little coffee shops and bakeries.

It was a nice place to sit in the sun before we walked back to our ship.

An iced coffee and cake probably cost as much as lunch...not cheap to hang out looking cool.

We were a bit shocked to turn down a street and see our ship looming ahead...

The thing between the buildings that looks like a white building with dots is our ship! We were glad to get back, though. 

On the high seas- thoughts on cruising

When I wrote last, we were just about to embark upon a new adventure aboard the Celebrity Constellation to Turkey and Greece. It was a beautiful day in Italy as we left the pier

 On board we noticed a large number of Aussies- and Kiwis a LOT! We weren't sure why that was but we know they are fun to be around, so that was good for us. Plus, the women especially are jazzy dressers, so it was fun for me to people watch as we discovered the ship. It wasn't long before we were told that they were on this cruise as a kind of pilgrimage to Gallipoli and Anzac cove, which were famous battle sites during WWI and the 100 th anniversary of these battles was being observed on April 25. Many had grandfathers and even great grandfathers who were involved in these battles or buried here. 

There were lectures and memorial services planned around this event, which was very interesting to us, as we really had no foreknowledge. Apparently the cruise had been promoted heavily in Australia as long as a couple of years ago. 

We spent our first two days just cruising, which Jim and I both loved. We really don't care where we are going...

It was fun to see Sicily from a different perspective .

Stromboli with a little cloud of steam loomed large in the distance.

As did another cruise ship. 

The second day we went through the Straights of Messina, which was a beautiful passage . Made me want to return to that part of Sicily. 

In my vast experience with cruising ( we have now been on two cruises !) these are some things I have observed:

Cruising is a very easy and relaxing way to travel.

Cruising is luxurious, but you have to be careful ' cause those luxuries can cost you! 

As Jim said, the cruise itself is kind of a loss leader and they make money on all the extras like drinks, spa services, etc, etc.

People are happy on cruises- really, what's not to enjoy? 

Most people on our cruise are our age or older, though there were some young couples and children. 

Like at an all -you-can- eat buffet, it is tempting to want to try to do, and eat everything. But you soon figure out that you need to be selective. 

There really is something for everyone, from educational lectures to glitzy shows to quiet nooks for reading. You can do whatever you choose or nothing at all. We spend a lot of time just looking at the sea. 

People who enjoy cruising have often been on many cruises -15 or twenty in as many for fewer years, so they are well traveled. Often they take back to back cruises, so are on ships for 20-30 days in a row! 

You don't need to buy shore excursions ahead of time from the cruise lines. They are usually much more expensive, too. If you are in touristed locations, there are usually several options for seeing the sights once you are ashore. 

It's nice to see people with mobility issues finding a way to still be able to travel. It gives me hope for the future. I know from personal experience that the staterooms that are wheelchair accessible are very large and commodious! We had booked an interior stateroom, but I mentioned ahead of time that it was our 40 th anniversary trip, and if an upgrade was available, we would be most appreciative. We felt extremely lucky to get this room.

I know lots of people who say they wouldn't like going on a cruise. I think these are the same people who say they wouldn't want to go on an organized tour. 

I say, don't knock it until you've tried it! 

But I digress...

There was limited access to ANZAC cove, but the ceremony at the cove was broadcast live in the theater starting at 5:30 am on the 25 th. I decided to go see a bit of it, since I was awake, and we all had our red poppies to wear, courtesy of the cruise line. This is a very solemn occasion and most people were wearing black, and many of the men were in suits. The theater was packed! 

After that they had a ceremony on board the ship at 7:30 which both Jim and I attended. 

By special permission, the cruise lines were able to cruise within one mile of the cove and stay there for a while, as a historian om board narrated what the landmarks were.

The service was short but meaningful.

That is a quick peek at the wreath they presented.

Then we made our way to the port of Kepez, outside of Canaacale.

And our two tugs which helped us moore sped away.

We got a taxi into town and enjoyed some Turkish delights .

Strawberries, of course, tiny plums and fresh almonds. 

These were so delicious, with a black olive filling. 

I thought these were raisin scones, but were told they had chicken filling. Hmm. 

These looked like the most delicious ice cream cones, but you couldn't tell one flavor from another. Cured of Turkish ice cream.

And we had to see the Trojan horse from the movie with Brad Pitt! 

Happy to be ashore, though we have really enjoyed our cruise.

Italian Rules of the Road

Jim and I amused ourselves on our last day in Italy by writing up what we have observed of Italian" rules of the road":

1 When the light changes, HONK!

2 If you hesitate, you lose the right of way.

3 Park wherever you want. double parking is fine, too.

4 Expect every motorcycle to split, or ride between the lanes of traffic- even if a tractor trailor is coming the other way.

5 Pass whenever you want. You may die in a head-on crash, but that is better than being stuck behind a slow driver.

5a Two cars can pass at once.

6 If the car in front of you slows down, tailgate -that driver just needs encouragement.

7 Never, ever use your turn signal, unless it is to signal the driver in front of you to get out of the way.

The trabocchi coast

I

On  a beautiful sunny Saturday we were planning to do a little sightseeing around Pescara and our hotel 

Host suggested several small towns to visit along the " trabocchi coast". This was a new word for us, but I sort of thought it might be a variation of trebuchet...turns out trabocchi are sort of fishing shacks set up on piers. He explained that when shepherds decided to vary their diet by adding fish, they had to figure out a way to do this without boats, which sadly, they lacked. 

They're kind of rickety looking structures, but they seem to serve the purpose...

This was a poster advertising a seminar to promote tourism along this part of the coast. 

And this is near where we had a delicious lunch with a view of the sea. We parked under the olive trees.

This was huge tubular pasta with a similar tomato shrimp sauce.

Jim ordered the ravioli with a whitefish filling. Both good. And very attractive, don't you think? The pasta that is, not us!

Another trabocchi near the restaurant..

The towns up in the hills were all charming, and each slightly different .

I prefer the really old buildings that have so much character.

But across the street are doors that are newly refurbished

So many of these small towns would have suffered much damage during WWII, and had to be rebuilt. 

It's hard to be surreptitious when taking photos, but I loved this conversation...

I would have loved to attend an event in this theatre from the 1920s , still in beautiful condition.

Mmm ,isn't this classic Italy? 

I could live here.

But it would be very quiet.

The views are great up there, though. Love that water! 

The beach was a bit rocky for laying on.

Oh my god, is my driver dead? Or just resting? 

I loved the beach for all the smooth, flat stones, good for skipping, and making cairns. Then back inland to see some more charming cities.

On to one more little hilly town, with a steep climb to the castle.

As you can see, my driver is still very much alive! 

Our knees are getting a bit tired though, from all this hill climbing. 

Time to head home .