27 May 2009, Istanbul, Turkey

In most cities things quiet down during the night, but Istanbul, together with New York and Hong Kong never seems to slow down. I was expected that the traffic on the river would come to a standstill during the night, apart from the thru traffic in the Bosporus but not at all. Maybe the total count of the local ferries went down but the river looked as busy at 11 pm in the evening as it had been at 3 pm. yesterday when we arrived. The big-a-boate- mentioned yesterday arrived indeed and thus there were three cruise ships in port today. Ranging from the very big Costa liner with 2500 via the Prinsendam of 800 to the very small Minerva with less than 300 guests on board.

Apart from the fact that Istanbul is safe to explore on foot by your self, it is a great port for shore excursions. The Ottoman Empire and the Roman Empire before have left such a rich heritage that even a week of intensive sightseeing would not even scratch the surface. Most of our guests were indeed up and away on shore excursions although quite a few were tempted by the souks and the good shopping that is available. For the shopping, it is not only the guests who take advantage of Istanbul, so does the crew. Officially or privately. If you are looking for something that is made in Turkey, either because it originates here or if it is made here under license, the prices are good to very good. If it has been made outside Turkey then the prices can be very high due to import taxes and then it is better to steer clear.

I ordered for the bridge officers heavy duty coats as we are going to the Arctic in July, the chief officer bits and pieces for carpentry projects and the engine room all sorts of bits and pieces that brings a part of machinery back to life again. You know, when you order spare parts, there is always that one O-ring missing………..One of my pet projects is that I want to have lights on the gangway at night. In the old day’s light bulbs, nowadays flexible tube lights (also called Tivoli lights) which have the additional advantage that the rain has no effect on them. We had the tube lights on board but not sufficient connectors and so the Chief Electrician went ashore to get extra connectors, for a very cheap price. Much better than we would ever have been able to do via our normal procurement system. The gangway now has it lights, its carpet, its little trees and a tent for shading and we can now properly welcome the guests (back) on board.

Overview of the Bosporus. At Kandili it is the most narrow point of the transit, and we come close enough to the shore that we can see what is for dinner in the restaurants. Diagram courtesy of Turkish Pilots.

Most of the guests were back onboard by dinner time, but a few, who had been here before and knew their favorite places only made it back just before sailing time. I was planning to pull out as fast as I could so it would not be that late for the guests to see the Bosporus by night, but as sod’s law would have it, there was just a stream of ships coming down the strait and thus we had to wait for 20 minutes. However the wait was worthwhile and with wind still weather, a rising moon and no clouds, the Bosporus was beautiful. We were regaled with fire works at several places which made me wonder; why throw parties mid week ?. However the pilot explained that tomorrow the next draft for the Turkish army started and Istanbul was giving their sons a rousing farewell before they would be under arms for the next 18 months.

It took just over an hour before the pilot left and by 00.30 in the morning we were in the open waters of the Black Sea. Tomorrow will be a quiet sea day where everybody can relax and recover from the sights of Istanbul and then we visit the Turkish port of Trabzon in the Eastern corner of the Black Sea. The good weather is holding so things are looking well for the coming days.