We take a walk to Dolmabache Palace which is supposedly a "20 minute" walk from the port entrance. By the time we actually made it to the port entrance from our cabin, it became a 45 minute walk. And today was very hot!
We opted to only visit the palace and skip the harem. Once tickets were purchased, the grounds are open to walk around and are right on the edge of the Bosphorus and have a beautiful view. The palace interior is toured in small groups which are spaced accordingly takes 45 minutes. Our guide was very good and entertaining, and the palace was beautiful. Especially the large double staircase with crystal everywhere, the most impressive chandeliers, and highly decorative ceilings. Of all the palaces and castles we've visited I rate this #1, very impressive. Sadly no photos allowed inside so here's the outside only.
We walked back to the ship and boarded about midday. The walk had been so hot I went for a jump in the pool, after which we had poolside lunch and drinks. Even sitting in the shade it was getting too hot so I had to have another dip in the pool. As I write this I realise how funny this sounds, our usually informative blog has suddenly turned into a chronicle for us blobbing out! Such is life on a cruise ship I'm afraid.
The ship departed about 4pm, pulling sideways under its own thrusters but so smooth we didn't feel we were moving. The atmosphere on board was very festive with many people down the stern around the pool. The Royal Princess (only commissioned earlier this year) was parked behind us and many were on board waving us off.
Our cruise started overnight with a gentle 7-8 knots, intentionally going slow so we would have a scenic cruise through the Dardanelle Strait the following morning. We were going so slow, other ships were passing us, including the Royal Princess about 7:30pm. She was still in port when we left!
Also I just caught sunset on camera by chance, a glowing red ball through the distant haze.
We finished off the evening watching on-board entertainment. Actually better than expected and quite a lot of fun.
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