Dolmabahçe Palace

 

Sultan's Gate of the Dolmabahçe Palace

I think we are inherently city people. Not that we dislike or not appreciate the country but we feel alive when returning to a big city! There was palpable sense of comfort in the whole family despite only returning to Istanbul briefly. 

We only had one site to see today and that was the Dolmabahçe Palace, built in 1856 by Sultan Abdülmecid I. It was built to try to emulate the luxury of the counterpart European monarchs as it was deemed that the the medieval Topkapı was lacking in style. The reality at the time was that the Ottoman Empire was in decline and funds were rapidly diminishing. Only 6 Sultans in total lived in the palace before Ataturk took over. 

We spent a good 2 hours within the Palace. There were many things that were utterly beautiful, in fact, more beautiful than in some European Palaces, but at times they were jarring. It was as though it was a Palace that wasn't sure of its identity, with Eastern and Western elements that sometimes worked but mostly felt forced. The Harem section felt completely out of place. In some ways, it was a little sad that they felt they had to be more European, and that this was the beginning of the end for the Ottoman Empire. Topkapi Palace definitely had more character despite being more "basic". 

No photos inside. We could only take photos of the exterior

Gardens just outside

Front of the Palace

Umm...how long is that selfie stick?!!?

The River Gate opening up to the Bosphorus

As seen from the River

Apparently not all rice were equal. Despite having rice as part of the Turkish meals we've had, it was NOT Asian style and so we finally succumbed to searching for an Asian restaurant. Luckily there was one only 300m down the road from our hotel. Like many Asian restaurants here, the offerings were pan Asian which made it difficult for the Asian food craving family to make a choice! Korean fried chicken?! Ramen?! Tantan noodles?! Bao?!? In the end, the sushi ended up being quite good. The rest was just passable. 

From here, the family had to briefly split up again. Mal and I were off to Rome to pick Jonah up, the rest would stay and enjoy Istanbul for another day before we all meet up in Barcelona for our cruise. Mr Husnu was there again to escort us to the airport. We asked him what his record for airport visits and he said 20! He once walked 15km just escorting guest and all just at the airport!

This would be a good time to mention New Faces, the company who organised our private tour. They were so responsive and helpful, and communication has been fantastic. We have loved our guides and drivers and would highly recommend New Faces for anyone considering visiting Turkey and Georgia. We found out today that they were the local operators for AMAwaterways

Ok let's go in. The sushi ended up being the best

Yes for Star Alliance Gold

And hurray for Turkish Airlines to have fast track everything!

Our flight to Rome was uneventful. Immigration was super speedy. However, the "priority" luggage came out last lol. The single most unpleasant thing happened next. Our private transfer came late, and the car reeked of some funky smoke. The 45 minute drive to our hotel was torture but we made it. Double Tree Rome Monti was lovely by first appearances. Our room was tiny but the bathroom was cool. We didn't quite make it to see Jonah, but we did get his dirty laundry courtesy of Heather. Welcome to Rome!