Day Three – I took an organized tour with She Tours. The tour is Two Continents – half day
afternoon tour – Did you know Turkey occupies two continents; Asia and
Europe? We took the Bosphorus Bridge to
the Asia side of Istanbul and visited the summer residence of Ottoman Sultans,
the Beylerbeyi Palace, magnificent gardens.
We also visited Camlica Hill, the highest point in Istanbul. At the top you can see panoramic views of
Istanbul and the Bosphorus but unfortunately it was pouring down rain when we
were there!
Day Four – We visited all the tourist hot spots like the Blue
Mosque, HippoDrome, Grand Covered Bazaar, and Topkapi Palace. All must see’s while you are in Istanbul!
We also found it very easy to use the underground and ferry
system while we were in Istanbul. With
all the street vendors, you can get a snack anywhere you go. The ekmek (bread) is wonderful.
Off to Paris …. The
flight on Turkish Airlines was great with all the amenities you could want in coach class.
Paris has always been my favorite place to visit in Europe
and it still is J ... The city of love.... what more can I say? I’m a
romantic at heart! We stayed at the Le
Meridian Etoile - great location and the largest hotel in Paris. After we settled into the hotel we spent the
reminder of the day on a riverboat trip down the Seine. Touring Paris on the Seine is a great way to
see many of the city’s monuments, historical buildings, and bridges. The banks of the Seine were full of people
picnicking and enjoying this beautiful city.
The next morning we took a tour of Paris and all the great
monuments. We spent the rest of the
afternoon at Montmartre. There was a
food and wine event that day so we made our way through the festival, trying
everything made in France. I also had a
crepe with Nutella, yummy. The Eiffel
Tower is amazing at night, a must see if you're in Paris!
The Eurostar then took us from Paris to London. We stayed at the Royal National Hotel. Not my first choice of hotel but it was
adequate for what we needed. Good location
to hop on the Tube and go throughout London.
The pizza place in this hotel is great.
The London eye gives you amazing views of the city and is great for
pictures. We did a walking tour in
London, which I loved, it is much better than being on a motor coach the entire
time. We visited the Tower of London,
Big Ben and Parliament, and Westminster Abbey.
We had lunch at a traditional English Pub, fish and chips was a great
choice. Try a hard cider while you’re in
London. We left right before the Queen’s
Jubilee weekend of celebration and the city was beautifully decorated. Everyone in London is getting ready for the
Olympics. This was a fantastic trip and I enjoyed it all!
