EuroCruise 2010: Carpets &The Grand Bazaar in Istanbul

Gooood Morning Istanbul!

After a long day of trekking Istanbul's delectable sights and spices, I woke up to a breakfast of fresh cherries from Turkey. Super sweet, and readily accessible at our ship's Buffet line.

Day 2 in Istanbul isn't as long as the entire day... but it did involve a lot of walking... and shopping. Clearly, ToT is NOT a morning person.

EuroCruise 2010: Istanbul's Spice Bazaar is Spicyyy

 

Next stop in the Istanbul tour is every Filipino's wet dream: Shopping! For spices, that is.

Located at Cami Meydani Sok, it's close to the exterior walls of the Blue Mosque and the Hagia Sophia Museum. It's one of the must-visit places in Istanbul. Why?

It's the hub for exotic spices and other ethnic culinary delights.

EuroCruise 2010: Food Finding in Istanbul

Back in Istanbul after visiting all the important mosques and palaces in the Old City, which is both an Asian and European city. After all the sight-seeing, everyone was a bit hungry, but didn't have the luxury of time to sit down for a proper lunch. I was on the hunt for the next best thing that Istanbul is known for:

Kebab!

EuroCruise 2010: Istanbul is an Eyeful

After our sunny stop in Mykonos, Greece, our cruise on the Celebrity Equinox ventured to a different country to visit what is consistently rated as one of the most beautiful and enchanting cities in the world... Rich in history and a unique atmosphere, it will definitely take your breath, and attention span, away.

Catch an eyeful of Istanbul, the original Constantinople.

 From the view on our cruise ship, it felt as exotic as stepping into a spice market, literally because Turkey is a single country situated in two continents. Istanbul is the only city in the world  located on 2 continents. It's the nearest Asian city to Europe, and the nearest European city to Asia.

Last (Meat) Supper at Cyma

Lately there's all this talk about giving up, sacrificing, and letting go. It could be in the literal or symbolic sense; it is Lent after all. It doesn't really matter. Giving something up is always hard to do., especially if you've grown quite fond and attached to it. Yet many people seem to believe that you gain a lot more when you let go of a few.  I'm not so sure which boat of thought I'm paddling on.

I've been giving this a lot of thought, and now I'm ready to commit. Beginning today, Ash Wednesday, I am giving up meat for Lent. Yes, frightened readers, ToT is going pescetarian. For 40 days, at least. That includes beef (bye bye wagyu burger), chicken (sayonara Chicken Joy), pork (NO! I'm going to be in Cebu today, no Lechon!?) and... the motherload, lamb. Nooo...

Thing is, I thought Ash Wednesday fell on the 22nd, next week. I get a memo earlier, and what? Ash Wednesday mass already? HA!? I'm not ready! I planned this entire 3 day meat-travaganza as a despedida before I go semi-veggie and now I was left with a few hours before midnight.

I acted fast. An sms circulated amongst the fam, that I must have my last hurrah before I turn grass-nibbler. I also picked the restaurant which, if called for, would also be my go-to place to have my last meal ever.