Our cruise on the Bosphorus River was such a wonderful way to relax. This was another one of those experiences where I had no idea what it would look like, so that was especially wonderful. Everything was surprising. The bright blue waters, the wind, and the beautiful skyline reminded me in a way of the San Francisco Bay. Earlier in the day we'd gone to see the Dolmabace Palace (shown here) which was a palace built in the mid-1800s by an Ottoman sultan. Though they had other pleasure palaces in Istanbul, this sultan wanted one in the "modern, European" style. It cost the equivalent of $1.5 billion in today's dollars. It was occupied from the 1850s to the end of the caliphate in the 1920s. It has more than 285 rooms, 46 halls, and 68 toilets. It just went on and on and on. It's easily the largest palace in Turkey. We were not allowed to take photos inside the place, but you can get an idea of the curious blend of Ottoman, Baroque, Rococo, and Neoclassical styles that this monstrous place contains. The harem area had eight interconnected apartments for the wives of the sultan, for his favourites and concubines, and for his mother, each with its own bathroom. Overdone" does not adequately describe it. Once outside, there are classically-laid out gardens and fountains to stroll through. My mind was filled with images of what it must've been like to live there a century earlier...
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Cruising along the Bosphorus was especially relaxing after all the site-seeing we'd been doing. It was pretty fascinating to see all the fancy, luxurious homes along the shore. Many had yachts and piers, and in the beautiful summer weather, it seemed like the perfect place to be. Liza said, "Kay, it looks like Tiburon!" which was quite true, except that it extended for what seemed like miles and miles of homes. We pulled to the shore and had a wonderful lunch outdoors. Perfect.
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