After we had eaten a bit, discussed family a bit, talked about the Kurds a bit, the uncle made a few sales pitches. If we bought this carpet and returned the one we had purchased he would charge us only Z, “don’t worry, is a great deal”. If we take both he could charge us less for the carpet, “don’t worry”. Finally after 2 hours of what really was fun, we settled on just the wall hanging we had. We were getting up to leave, when the uncle asked, “Which hotel are you staying. I drive you my personal car” We demur-ed, he insisted, we insisted, and he would not take no for an answer. He had his car and driver come around and we had a ride back to Sishane in a Mercedes 5 series and the uncle’s personal driver. He is not doing badly for himself at all!

That evening we went out to walk the town, had a beer and Raki, Turkey’s’ take on Ouzo.

The next morning we went out for cappuccino and a bit of last minute shopping for trinkets (talisman against the “evil eye” and such). To our amazement we walked opposite our typical direction and discovered we walked into Taksim square! We had taken the metro to Taksim square thinking it was far from “home”, and here we could simply walk there. Beyoglu is a small neighborhood and quite walkable.

We walked home from Taksim Square to pack. I had called Ali, the fellow who drove us from the airport, to ferry us to Karakoy, the cruise ship terminal. It fell to me to carry the luggage down the four flights of steep narrow steps to the street where Ali carried them to his car. Finding the Seabourn embarkation point was simple. A porter hauled our luggage to Seabourn’s handlers and we were off after passing though customs.

Seen from the pier, the Seabourn Odyssey looks huge. Aboard it feel intimate. There are 248 passengers and 300 crew. The ship is gorgeous, well maintained, and fun. I’ve read some very negative Seabourn reviews and I must conclude that some people are happiest complaining about everything.

We toured the ship and took some photos of Istanbul as we departed for Myrna Greece. Dinner abort ship was fabulous and we took our time savoring each bite. We ordered caramelized scallops on a bed of seasoned linguine, salad, white and red wine, and for desert soufflé. The waiter presented the soufflé to Ellen, cut a hole in the center with a spoon, and poured liquid chocolate into the soufflé.

We awoke this morning with the ship at sea. We will anchor at Myrna, Greece and take a tender ashore for our first excursion: a 4×4 tour of the island. Ellen and I will share driving. I had asked Pam, our travel agent, what she thinks would happen if I simply left the convoy to explore on my own. She said there was a lead and trailing car and that they would quickly corral me and herd me back to the convoy. She Said, “You don’t want to be “That Couple”, the ones who cause trouble, do you?” Well, No.

Ellen is at the salon at the moment. There is a weight/exercise room, a spa, a salon, a card room, reading room, three restaurants, a few Jacuzzi, a sauna, a pool, two putting greens, a shuffle board area, and plenty of deck verandas for lounging.

I will miss Istanbul. It was very lively and bustling. The next time we visit Italy, we will make a point of visiting Istanbul again. It’s a fairly short hop on Pegasus Air.

Ron