Turkey Trot - Getting This Turkey Home

Turkey Trot - Overview
Turkey Trot - First Class
Turkey Trot - Are We There Yet?
Turkey Trot - Ephesus
Turkey Trot - Mary's House and Basilica of St. John
Turkey Trot - Swissotel Efes
Turkey Trot - Taking the Bus and Priene
Turkey Trot - Putting on the Ritz
Turkey Trot - The Blue Mosque
Turkey Trot - Topkapı Palace
Turkey Trot - Hagia Sophia
Turkey Trot - Carpets and Grand Bazaar
Turkey Trot - Dolmabahçe Palace and Taksim Square
Turkey Trot - Bosphorus Cruise
Turkey Trot - Turning Blu
Turkey Trot - Getting This Turkey Home

This is a very long post but it's the last one for this trip....

C and D were flying back to the US on British Airways and American Airlines and their flight left much earlier than mine, so they left early and I got to sleep an extra couple of hours.  Of course, I paid for it on the other end of the trip as I got home much later at night but I got to experience the Turkish Airlines Flagship Lounge as well as the reputed excellent service and catering aboard their planes.

A representative from Sea Song picked me up at the hotel and escorted me through the airport as far as he could, which was through the initial bag scan, the counter service and right up to the Turkish TSA equivalent.  The folks at Sea Song were fantastic and I'd highly recommend them if you'd like to visit Turkey.

Turkey Trot - Turning Blu

Turkey Trot - Overview
Turkey Trot - First Class
Turkey Trot - Are We There Yet?
Turkey Trot - Ephesus
Turkey Trot - Mary's House and Basilica of St. John
Turkey Trot - Swissotel Efes
Turkey Trot - Taking the Bus and Priene
Turkey Trot - Putting on the Ritz
Turkey Trot - The Blue Mosque
Turkey Trot - Topkapı Palace
Turkey Trot - Hagia Sophia
Turkey Trot - Carpets and Grand Bazaar
Turkey Trot - Dolmabahçe Palace and Taksim Square
Turkey Trot - Bosphorus Cruise
Turkey Trot - Turning Blu
Turkey Trot - Getting This Turkey Home

As I mentioned in the previous post, we moved from the Ritz-Carlton (paid with Marriott points) to the Radisson Blu Bosphorus.  I'd actually purchased the points for the Radisson at a discount so while the room wasn't free, when split amongst the three of us, the price was very nice.

The hotel was right on the Strait and both the restaurant and the lounge had outdoor seating areas.  Like with the Swissotel Efes, the smokers and ashtrays outside were a reminder that some people still enjoy the habit.

Our room was actually quite spacious compared to the Ritz.  It was a connecting room and we were able to put the rollaway right in front of the connecting door which left each of us with plenty of space to get in and out of our beds without stepping on each other.

Radisson Blu Bosphorus Bedding

We had a lovely view of an alley which really didn't matter as we didn't spend much time in the room anyway.

Turkey Trot - Bosphorus Cruise

Turkey Trot - Overview
Turkey Trot - First Class
Turkey Trot - Are We There Yet?
Turkey Trot - Ephesus
Turkey Trot - Mary's House and Basilica of St. John
Turkey Trot - Swissotel Efes
Turkey Trot - Taking the Bus and Priene
Turkey Trot - Putting on the Ritz
Turkey Trot - The Blue Mosque
Turkey Trot - Topkapı Palace
Turkey Trot - Hagia Sophia
Turkey Trot - Carpets and Grand Bazaar
Turkey Trot - Dolmabahçe Palace and Taksim Square
Turkey Trot - Bosphorus Cruise
Turkey Trot - Turning Blu
Turkey Trot - Getting This Turkey Home

Our three nights at the Ritz were done and it was time to move to our final hotel for the trip, the Radisson Blu Bosphorus.  P and our driver came to pick us up and transfer us to our new hotel. Though the simple route would have been to drive down the the hill and along the Bosphorus until we reached the hotel, traffic was such a mess that we ended up taking a longer, but ultimately faster route.

As the hotel's name suggests, it's right on the waterfront and even has a small dock.  After a quick lunch and setting our luggage in our room, we boarded our private yacht (never thought I'd say that!) for a tour of the Bosphorus Strait.

Yes, that's my yacht. Why do you ask?