20 August 2014

Aegean Adventure -3


                                                                               Day 8

                                                               Another day another port.

Nice huh.

Today we're in a different country.

Turkiye...

Bodrum castle

Our guide.

Right by the sea.

Nice courtyard.


An old chapel.

Ancient amphorae - 2000 + years.


Sunken treasure.

A carved cosmetics container- ancient Egypt.......Amazing.

View from the parapets.



Map of the different superpowers.


Higher up...

The harbour.

old flags and coat of arms.



This was found sunken near here.Look at the ingots. About 2 feet long. 2000+ years old.
Amazing.


Gold...

All these also 2000+ years old.

Nice stained glass.


Not a bad experience.

After some shopping its back...

Eat...

Then chill...

This time we were treated to a Turkish folk dance...


The guy in front looked so bored  ha ha ha


Colourfull though.



Then this...

Turkish belly dance.


Not too bad.

In the evening this boat was berthed next to us.

Malaysian flag.

In the evening the was a deck BBQ

Lots and lots of food.


Look at the surroundings.


ha ha ha

Huge prawns..




MMMmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Nice huh.

 This was before round 2 and dessert  ha ha ha


As the sun went down

Magical...


Then the party started.


Village people  ha ha ha

Of course there must be a Conga line dance  :-)

All this under the stars... Excellent .


Day 9

A new port

Kusadasi ,Turkey.


Floating hotel. All i see is long lines and crowds.


A good choice.


Ephesus...

Underground water and sewage pipes. 2000 years ago. Amazing

The floors are over the supports. hot water flows here and heats up the houses. 2000+ years ago. 
Bloody hell.

Amphitheatre 


The main road. 


Medical symbol.


This is the Gate of Hercules.

public toilets.


Concealed indoor pipes. Amazing

Houses of the rich.



Walls.

So cool. 


Mosaics on the floor.

Nice huh.


Posideon.

The jewel of Ephesus



The library.

After a earthquake and fire only the facade remained.

Huge.

Beautiful.

The roman agora.


Another amphitheatre. 


Seats 25,000 people


From here to a village for lunch. Old pickup...


Sirince village.

Village scene.


I really love these stained glass lights.


Nice huh.


lunch here.


Not too bad.

All the excursions were arranged by the ship.


Then a carpet making demonstration.



Silk.



Back and R&R


Day 10

Today we spend the full day at sea. 


Here we're crossing a place of legends. 


The Hellespont.

Europe on the left.

Asia on the right.



Troy is near here.

Today we chill...

In style  ............ ha ha ha

Dinner on the deck ,on the open seas. 

So cool.........

as the sun sets ...on our last day at sea...  :-(



Day 11

Gooooood morning Istanbul

breakfast with this sight...


The Blue Mosque.



The Bhosporus.

Aya Sofia.



After a sad goodbye to our ship we started our tour of Istanbul.
The hippodrome.

Huge base.




The Egyptian obelisks.



Blue Mosque. 
When the sultan comes you can't tell him to get down ,so the chain forces him to dismount and enter the holy place as a common man.

Huge.



Side entrance.

One of 6 minarets.


Huge interior.

Beautiful.


Ornate everywhere.,

Every corner is beautiful.


Huge dome.

Huge columns


Beautiful stained glass.


The prayer hall.

A last look...

Amazing.


Aya Sofia.

Blue Mosque.


Facing each other.

Memories.


Then we visit the Topkapi palace.



By the sea.

Huge grounds.

The main building.


More huge grounds.


Ornate.




Nice.


The treasury.

Overlooking the straits.


ornate everywhere


Nice cellings


Classy interior

Its a palace afterall...


So cool...


Honour guard from the Turkish military


Traditional costumes.

Then we visit the Grand Bazaar.

                    
                                                                                     Colourfull.


                                                                                Gold everywhere.


                                                                                   Turkish delights.

                                                                          Again these lights.


                                                                        A long day.....

                                                                             Back and R&R.


Day 12

Our last day
 
                                                       Today we see the Hagia Sofiya


                                                                     lots of people...


                                                                        Huge walls.


                                                                    Old and grand.

                                                               Worn by centuries of use.

                                                                          Huge...........


                                                                                 ...and amazing.



                                                                          Nice huh.




                                                Pantheon  ,St Peter's and this are all amazing

What an experience...



                                                                          Old frescoes.



                                                                     Roman ruins in the grounds.

                                                               Our last place to see is here.


                                                                       Creepy but so cool.

                                                                     Its got an interesting history.

                                                                         And these fish played a big part.


                                                                      So cool.



                                                  imagine coming here with only a torch in your hands



                                                                   A unique column

                                                                      The gorgons head.

                                                                 And the second head.

                                                              All this is built over the cistern. So cool

                                                   This has been an amazing trip. All that we've seen is to add to the list of memories and experiences in this life. Life is short .Things can happen anytime .We need to live it ,not just have a life. These are but chapters in my book .Go out there and experience everything.
                                                                       Live  !!!!!!!!!


                                                                   Cheers .