Photos - Amacerto Istanbul to Vienna (May 2013)

[cruisingmad]

Here’s a link to the slideshow I created for the Balkan river cruise on the Amacerto, Istanbul to Vienna, beginning May 29, 2013.

 

 

https://picasaweb.google.com/115520979706388828246/56AmacertoBlackSea52913?authkey=Gv1sRgCMz1urXYh6r6cg

 

You can view a photo at a time by pressing the “slideshow” button on the upper left hand corner of the website, and once the slideshow begins, you may adjust the timing between the photos using the navigation buttons at the bottom of the screen.

 

 

 

Sergio

[Cary Cruiser]

Very nice. Thank you for sharing. The spice and candy vendors look very similar to what I've seen in Israel. The Amacerto looks like a beautiful ship, and it seems like you had a great time. Belgrade looks like a very modern and clean city. Who woulda thunk.

Edited June 20, 2013 by Cary Cruiser

[cruisingmad]

Very nice. Thank you for sharing. The spice and candy vendors look very similar to what I've seen in Israel. The Amacerto looks like a beautiful ship, and it seems like you had a great time.

Thanks! The Amacerto is a beautiful ship, and a great crew to boot! This was my third AMA cruise and I'm very happy with them, although I have not cruised with other river lines at this point.

 

 

Sergio

[pully8]

lovely pictures thank you.

[cruisingmad]

lovely pictures thank you.

Thanks!

 

Sergio

[Keith1010]

Thank you for sharing these.

 

Keith

[cruisingmad]

Thank you for sharing these.

 

Keith

No problem, Keith. I enjoy taking photos during my trips and then creating a "memory" slideshow.

 

Sergio

[remydiva]

Here’s a link to the slideshow I created for the Balkan river cruise on the Amacerto, Istanbul to Vienna, beginning May 29, 2013.

 

 

https://picasaweb.google.com/115520979706388828246/56AmacertoBlackSea52913?authkey=Gv1sRgCMz1urXYh6r6cg

 

You can view a photo at a time by pressing the “slideshow” button on the upper left hand corner of the website, and once the slideshow begins, you may adjust the timing between the photos using the navigation buttons at the bottom of the screen.

 

 

 

Sergio

Great pics and brought back memories of my trips to Istanbul, Budapest and Vienna this past year...except you saw flowers (none in Jan...who knew! :D)

 

what camera did you use as you got way closer with your zoom to Lippizzan horses than my camera did.

thanks for the post!

[KirkNC]

Great pictures, thanks!

[suspaul]

Fantastic photos, thanks so much for sharing and letting us travel with you virtually!

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

[cruisingmad]

Great pics and brought back memories of my trips to Istanbul, Budapest and Vienna this past year...except you saw flowers (none in Jan...who knew! :D)

 

what camera did you use as you got way closer with your zoom to Lippizzan horses than my camera did.

thanks for the post!

Thanks! I use a point-and-shoot Panasonic Lumix LX5, nothing fancy. The "secret" of the horse was walking INTO the courtyard and snapping the photo. Several people were doing it until one of the carekeepers chased us away. After that, careful cropping... Even though it's a simple point-and-shoot, the sensor resolution in the LX5 is excellent and allows me to crop photos judiciously when I want to.

 

I'm glad it brought back memories for you! :)

 

 

Sergio

[cruisingmad]

Fantastic photos, thanks so much for sharing and letting us travel with you virtually!

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

Thanks a lot, Suspaul, and also KirkNC! I appreciate your comments.

 

 

Sergio

[YoungDubFan]

Thanks for sharing. This itinerary is on my list of trips I want to take in the future.

[Familygoboston]

Sergio, thanks for sharing your photos. We are taking the same itinerary on AMAPrima soon (in reverse) and I like to see the photos to get an idea of what things are on the included tours.

 

I have a question for you about your Istanbul tour. Were your photos from one of the included tours with AMA or were you touring on your own? I'm wondering what to expect with the AMA Istanbul City tour because we have extra days in Istanbul and are hiring a guide to take us around for a couple of days in addition to the AMA tour. (We are flying from Bucharest after our cruise so won't be busing to Plovdiv) Since it's likely we will take the AMA tour AFTER our free days in Istanbul, I'd like to get an idea of what to have our guide do that we might not be seeing with AMA.

 

Any thoughts? Thanks again for your photos!

[cruisingmad]

Sergio, thanks for sharing your photos. We are taking the same itinerary on AMAPrima soon (in reverse) and I like to see the photos to get an idea of what things are on the included tours.

 

I have a question for you about your Istanbul tour. Were your photos from one of the included tours with AMA or were you touring on your own? I'm wondering what to expect with the AMA Istanbul City tour because we have extra days in Istanbul and are hiring a guide to take us around for a couple of days in addition to the AMA tour. (We are flying from Bucharest after our cruise so won't be busing to Plovdiv) Since it's likely we will take the AMA tour AFTER our free days in Istanbul, I'd like to get an idea of what to have our guide do that we might not be seeing with AMA.

 

Any thoughts? Thanks again for your photos!

I'm glad that you enjoyed the photos and that they were helpful. I also search for photos and blogs about my travel destinations as part of my research. The preparation for a trip, I find, is very enjoyable and an important part of traveling.

 

Regarding your question, my photos reflect MOSTLY the AMA tours, except for one time that I went on my own to visit the Galata Tower and the surroundings while the group visited the Topkapi Palace (which I had visited on a prior trip).

 

I also went one night on my own to attend the Whirling Dervishes ceremony, something that I had always wanted to do. It was a very interesting experience, although some people may find it boring.

 

As a side note, THAT night marked the beginning of the riots, and it was an "adventure" getting back to my hotel... I felt tear gas for the first time in my life... NOT a good experience.

 

If you will have a private tour in Istanbul for a couple of days, my guess is that the AMA tours will not add much to your plans, except for perhaps the Bosphorus cruise. I would suggest that you take advantage of the AMA tours when they are offered, and that you use your private guide to COMPLEMENT the tours. You might want to work with your private guide in advance to make sure that he/she can take you to other places in Istanbul and surroundings (it's a fascinating city), or perhaps allow you extra time in places in which you are particularly interested.

 

BTW, I just came back from a cruise on the AMA Prima (Tulip Time). It's a wonderful ship/boat, the staff was outstanding, and the food was awesome. It was a very hectic itinerary, but I enjoyed it tremendously.

 

Sergio

Edited April 27, 2014 by cruisingmad

[Familygoboston]

Thanks!! That's very helpful! We've got a great guide our TA has used before and had great responses from the clients she sent out with them. We arrive in Istanbul on 9/30. We have that afternoon and evening open...haven't decided what to do yet:confused: but I'm still researching!

 

AMA can't tell us if there would be enough people also flying (vs the bus) to run a City Tour on 10/1. Also, my DH is a rather avid amateur photographer and we would like complete control of the itinerary and to spend more time in the very early morning on or above the streets of Sultanahmet when the lighting is good. So our plan now is:

 

Oct 1 tour Istikal St with several stops at the guides preferred coffee and dessert spots as well as the Pera museum. (I have a recent interest in Orientalist paintings, and there are some good ones there!) Then we will take a Bosporus cruise and set our feet on the Asian side. I'm still working out where exactly, though we may just leave it up to the guide. The most important thing for us is to actually set foot on the continent (it's number 6 for us and we have Antarctica planned for 2016/17, so even though we will go on other Asian trips in the future, we wanted to call Antarctica officially #7;))

 

 

Oct 2 The rest of the AMA pax arrive and would likely have the 1/2 day City Tour, but since we wish to get started early, so instead we will do a complete tour of Sultanhmet with our guide starting close to dawn. We hope to fit in the Galata tower too.

 

 

Oct 3 AMA will offer that tour of Topkapi Palace, that you mentioned, and we will rejoin our AMA friends for that, and maybe take another (the optional AMA tour) cruise down the Bosporus. We don't want that to be our only Bosporus cruise because from your photos it appears the AMA group doesn't dock and set foot in Asia. Can you confirm that?

 

We fly home the 4th.

 

While we were on Enchantment of the Seas recently, the headwaiter was from Turkey and insisted I contact her Istanbul based sister for advice...which I did and she's been very helpful with suggestions!:D But I'm leaving it to our guide to suggest those out of the way, unique places like you mention...that's one of the benefits of having the guide.

 

Incredibly, Istanbul is an amazingly reasonable place to hire a private guide and car...our 1 and 1/2 day tour includes all transport including the car and driver, entrances, a few snacks and lunches for less than 300 pp. So that's 100 dollars a day for private guiding with car and driver. I find that among the most reasonable in the world where we have traveled and therefore well worth it, even if it means skipping one already included AMA tour. I know in most places in Europe, guiding at that level would be close to 1000 for the day. Given the "change-y nature" of Turkey right now, and the experience you had last summer, it also gives me a measure of comfort to have a local guide who can have an ear to the ground should things start happening and know how to keep us safe, rather than go on our own.

 

We will be paying off our cruise in just a few weeks and will have the opportunity to sign up for the various signature tours, so I'm trying to get everything in order before then, so I will have a good idea of what I'd like to sign up for. Also, I am with you...planning is part of the fun of travel for me...I often arrive in a new place with a pretty good "map in my head" for where we are and culturally, what to expect there...I find it really deepens the experience!:D Thanks for sharing your photos and answering (my endless:rolleyes:) questions!!

[cruisingmad]

Thanks!! That's very helpful! We've got a great guide our TA has used before and had great responses from the clients she sent out with them. We arrive in Istanbul on 9/30. We have that afternoon and evening open...haven't decided what to do yet:confused: but I'm still researching!

 

AMA can't tell us if there would be enough people also flying (vs the bus) to run a City Tour on 10/1. Also, my DH is a rather avid amateur photographer and we would like complete control of the itinerary and to spend more time in the very early morning on or above the streets of Sultanahmet when the lighting is good. So our plan now is:

 

Oct 1 tour Istikal St with several stops at the guides preferred coffee and dessert spots as well as the Pera museum. (I have a recent interest in Orientalist paintings, and there are some good ones there!) Then we will take a Bosporus cruise and set our feet on the Asian side. I'm still working out where exactly, though we may just leave it up to the guide. The most important thing for us is to actually set foot on the continent (it's number 6 for us and we have Antarctica planned for 2016/17, so even though we will go on other Asian trips in the future, we wanted to call Antarctica officially #7;))

 

 

Oct 2 The rest of the AMA pax arrive and would likely have the 1/2 day City Tour, but since we wish to get started early, so instead we will do a complete tour of Sultanhmet with our guide starting close to dawn. We hope to fit in the Galata tower too.

 

 

Oct 3 AMA will offer that tour of Topkapi Palace, that you mentioned, and we will rejoin our AMA friends for that, and maybe take another (the optional AMA tour) cruise down the Bosporus. We don't want that to be our only Bosporus cruise because from your photos it appears the AMA group doesn't dock and set foot in Asia. Can you confirm that?

 

We fly home the 4th.

 

While we were on Enchantment of the Seas recently, the headwaiter was from Turkey and insisted I contact her Istanbul based sister for advice...which I did and she's been very helpful with suggestions!:D But I'm leaving it to our guide to suggest those out of the way, unique places like you mention...that's one of the benefits of having the guide.

 

Incredibly, Istanbul is an amazingly reasonable place to hire a private guide and car...our 1 and 1/2 day tour includes all transport including the car and driver, entrances, a few snacks and lunches for less than 300 pp. So that's 100 dollars a day for private guiding with car and driver. I find that among the most reasonable in the world where we have traveled and therefore well worth it, even if it means skipping one already included AMA tour. I know in most places in Europe, guiding at that level would be close to 1000 for the day. Given the "change-y nature" of Turkey right now, and the experience you had last summer, it also gives me a measure of comfort to have a local guide who can have an ear to the ground should things start happening and know how to keep us safe, rather than go on our own.

 

We will be paying off our cruise in just a few weeks and will have the opportunity to sign up for the various signature tours, so I'm trying to get everything in order before then, so I will have a good idea of what I'd like to sign up for. Also, I am with you...planning is part of the fun of travel for me...I often arrive in a new place with a pretty good "map in my head" for where we are and culturally, what to expect there...I find it really deepens the experience!:D Thanks for sharing your photos and answering (my endless:rolleyes:) questions!!

You're approaching your trip as I would. If I ever return to Istanbul I'll consider hiring a private guide, since you suggest that the prices are not that outrageous. Usually I would tend to do it by myself, and like your husband, I also like to take photos when I travel, so I understand his concern with early morning, etc.

 

As I remember, our Bosphorus cruise did NOT dock in Asia, but I think it was because of the political situation at the time. I had been anticipating eating one of those stuffed potatoes that I had read about at one of the stops (along with other goodies), so I was disappointed. You may be luckier in your itinerary.

 

Don't hesitate to ask other questions if they come to mind. The Basilica Cystern is also interesting and worth visiting.

 

Sergio

[Familygoboston]

You're approaching your trip as I would. If I ever return to Istanbul I'll consider hiring a private guide, since you suggest that the prices are not that outrageous. Usually I would tend to do it by myself, and like your husband, I also like to take photos when I travel, so I understand his concern with early morning, etc.

 

As I remember, our Bosphorus cruise did NOT dock in Asia, but I think it was because of the political situation at the time. I had been anticipating eating one of those stuffed potatoes that I had read about at one of the stops (along with other goodies), so I was disappointed. You may be luckier in your itinerary.

 

Don't hesitate to ask other questions if they come to mind. The Basilica Cystern is also interesting and worth visiting.

 

Sergio

Yes, your picture of the Cistern was amazing! One of my favorites of yours! Our private guide is recommending that we arrive there right at 9 am for opening after shooting around Sultanahmet in the AM. So this would be our first stop, hoping, as you did, to catch the place empty! After that he has plans to get us into all the major monuments and mosques in that area...probably not a bad idea since it could still be warm in Oct by midday, though I hope it will be comfortable.

 

 

Related to that, do you mind telling me what the women in your group felt comfortable wearing? I know we will get coverings in the mosques, but I want to be super sensitive even around town. I have long travel pants and some lightweight long sweaters that cover the back end that I wear when "city" traveling generally, but I'm wondering if I should go with a long skirt instead? You might be the wrong person to ask if you didn't travel with ladies yourself, but I thought I'd ask. I know that Istanbul is still pretty cosmopolitan, but what a local might get away with wearing might be perceived as more disrespectful from an American.

 

Yes, things are a bit scary at times in places where things are changing, but again, hoping our guide will know if it's not a good idea to stop, or where it would be safest to do so. I will also check with Trip Advisor for the latest just before we leave, they are often quite good at giving you a "real time" picture of what's happening in specific neighborhoods.

 

I think things have settled a bit in Istanbul recently, clearly the tourism industry relies on things being settled. Tourism in Egypt just collapsed for a while and I'm sure it's devastating economically.:( It's happening now in the Ukraine, friends waiting to take a cruise in the Baltics soon do not know if their itinerary will change. We can only hope, be street smart and take advice of the experts! But I wouldn't want to stop traveling just to play it "safe", we are more careful with our kids. When traveling to Africa with 3 young teens, I specifically said no to Zimbabwea at the time...I might have gone had we not been traveling with the kids, but with them, we felt safer in Zambia and Botswana at that time. It's always a tough call, and I know my MIL, would prefer we take up crochet or tap dancing instead of travel, but we love to travel:p

 

Thanks again for your perspective!

[remydiva]

Yes, your picture of the Cistern was amazing! One of my favorites of yours! Our private guide is recommending that we arrive there right at 9 am for opening after shooting around Sultanahmet in the AM. So this would be our first stop, hoping, as you did, to catch the place empty! After that he has plans to get us into all the major monuments and mosques in that area...probably not a bad idea since it could still be warm in Oct by midday, though I hope it will be comfortable.

 

 

Related to that, do you mind telling me what the women in your group felt comfortable wearing? I know we will get coverings in the mosques, but I want to be super sensitive even around town. I have long travel pants and some lightweight long sweaters that cover the back end that I wear when "city" traveling generally, but I'm wondering if I should go with a long skirt instead? You might be the wrong person to ask if you didn't travel with ladies yourself, but I thought I'd ask. I know that Istanbul is still pretty cosmopolitan, but what a local might get away with wearing might be perceived as more disrespectful from an American.

 

Yes, things are a bit scary at times in places where things are changing, but again, hoping our guide will know if it's not a good idea to stop, or where it would be safest to do so. I will also check with Trip Advisor for the latest just before we leave, they are often quite good at giving you a "real time" picture of what's happening in specific neighborhoods.

 

I think things have settled a bit in Istanbul recently, clearly the tourism industry relies on things being settled. Tourism in Egypt just collapsed for a while and I'm sure it's devastating economically.:( It's happening now in the Ukraine, friends waiting to take a cruise in the Baltics soon do not know if their itinerary will change. We can only hope, be street smart and take advice of the experts! But I wouldn't want to stop traveling just to play it "safe", we are more careful with our kids. When traveling to Africa with 3 young teens, I specifically said no to Zimbabwea at the time...I might have gone had we not been traveling with the kids, but with them, we felt safer in Zambia and Botswana at that time. It's always a tough call, and I know my MIL, would prefer we take up crochet or tap dancing instead of travel, but we love to travel:p

 

Thanks again for your perspective!

 

I wore a long somewhat loose skirt when i was in there in early Sept. I felt it was a comfortable safe bet..covered me up , was easy to walk in and was cool. Took a pashmina for a coverup for shoulders etc. easy to pack, easy to wear.

 

Beautiful city. Enjoy.

[cruisingmad]

Related to that, do you mind telling me what the women in your group felt comfortable wearing? I know we will get coverings in the mosques, but I want to be super sensitive even around town.

Hopefully others will give you more specific suggestions, but I think that the weather in October will probably influence your choice of clothing. Avoid bare shoulders and back, and be ready all the time to remove your shoes (that goes for men also). No shorts, of course. Sorry I can't be more specific.

 

I'm also booked for a Baltic cruise this July, with an overnight stay in St. Petersburg and a regular stop in Tallinn (Estonia). I'm hoping that there won't be any itinerary changes, but situations like these are unpredictable, if you are a student of History. In St. Petersburg I've arranged with a Russian tour company (SPB) to be part of their two-day excursion, and I'm hoping that they will know what to do, as well as take care of the visa requirements.

 

 

Sergio

[remydiva]

Hopefully others will give you more specific suggestions, but I think that the weather in October will probably influence your choice of clothing. Avoid bare shoulders and back, and be ready all the time to remove your shoes (that goes for men also). No shorts, of course. Sorry I can't be more specific.

 

I'm also booked for a Baltic cruise this July, with an overnight stay in St. Petersburg and a regular stop in Tallinn (Estonia). I'm hoping that there won't be any itinerary changes, but situations like these are unpredictable, if you are a student of History. In St. Petersburg I've arranged with a Russian tour company (SPB) to be part of their two-day excursion, and I'm hoping that they will know what to do, as well as take care of the visa requirements.

 

 

Sergio

 

A tip for men is to take the cargo pants with the zip off legs. Hubby got two pair at costco for $20 each. When in the mosque, he wore the legs. When outside, he zipped off legs and folded neatly and out in one of the cargo pockets. Worked great for mosques and churches.

 

Re SPB in STB, EXCELLENT company and many friends and others here on CC have nothing but rave reviews. They plan full days worth of excursions with the

Ability to be flexible for traffic and the needs and wishes of the group.

[cruisingmad]

Re SPB in STB, EXCELLENT company and many friends and others here on CC have nothing but rave reviews. They plan full days worth of excursions with the

Ability to be flexible for traffic and the needs and wishes of the group.

That's good to know, Remydiva... I looked at other tour operators, but SPB "hooked" me. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the itinerary will not change.

 

Sergio

[H2Otstr]

 

Related to that, do you mind telling me what the women in your group felt comfortable wearing? I know we will get coverings in the mosques, but I want to be super sensitive even around town. I have long travel pants and some lightweight long sweaters that cover the back end that I wear when "city" traveling generally, but I'm wondering if I should go with a long skirt instead? You might be the wrong person to ask if you didn't travel with ladies yourself, but I thought I'd ask. I know that Istanbul is still pretty cosmopolitan, but what a local might get away with wearing might be perceived as more disrespectful from an American.

 

 

 

I was on the same trip with Sergio. I wore the same thing in Istanbul that I wear for any of my trips. My pants were mostly capris and tops were short sleeved type. I did bring a scarf for my head when we visited the mosques. A skirt is not necessary unless you feel more comfortable in one.

Edited April 27, 2014 by H2Otstr

[Familygoboston]

I wore a long somewhat loose skirt when i was in there in early Sept. I felt it was a comfortable safe bet..covered me up , was easy to walk in and was cool. Took a pashmina for a coverup for shoulders etc. easy to pack, easy to wear.

 

Beautiful city. Enjoy.

 

Thank you, I do have a convertible dress/skirt and think I will bring that, as it is a very long (to the ankle) skirt when worn as such. I also take a pashmina everywhere- table cloth, beach blanket, nap blankie, wrap for the plane, dresses up plain old for a night on the town, wore it once to avoid no seem bugs coming at me on a boat ride at duck in the Okavango delta! One of my go to pieces :D

 

My DH has those convertibles and that's good advice for the mosques if it's hot.

 

Hopefully others will give you more specific suggestions, but I think that the weather in October will probably influence your choice of clothing. Avoid bare shoulders and back, and be ready all the time to remove your shoes (that goes for men also). No shorts, of course. Sorry I can't be more specific.

 

I'm also booked for a Baltic cruise this July, with an overnight stay in St. Petersburg and a regular stop in Tallinn (Estonia). I'm hoping that there won't be any itinerary changes, but situations like these are unpredictable, if you are a student of History. In St. Petersburg I've arranged with a Russian tour company (SPB) to be part of their two-day excursion, and I'm hoping that they will know what to do, as well as take care of the visa requirements.

 

 

Sergio

 

That trip sounds great, doesn't sound like you are near any of the hot spots, how it goes off without a hitch. Thanks for the advice!

[Familygoboston]

 

Related to that, do you mind telling me what the women in your group felt comfortable wearing? I know we will get coverings in the mosques, but I want to be super sensitive even around town. I have long travel pants and some lightweight long sweaters that cover the back end that I wear when "city" traveling generally, but I'm wondering if I should go with a long skirt instead? You might be the wrong person to ask if you didn't travel with ladies yourself, but I thought I'd ask. I know that Istanbul is still pretty cosmopolitan, but what a local might get away with wearing might be perceived as more disrespectful from an American.

 

 

 

I was on the same trip with Sergio. I wore the same thing in Istanbul that I wear for any of my trips. My pants were mostly capris and tops were short sleeved type. I did bring a scarf for my head when we visited the mosques. A skirt is not necessary unless you feel more comfortable in one.

 

Thanks Sharon! I'm of an age that unless I'm doing an athletic event I don't tool around in shorts anymore ;) I have Columbia convertible Capri to long pants that I love; they tour all day and then dress up at night. Good to know they would be ok too. I tend to wear a lot of sleeveless so I have been picking up some nice easy to travel tunics and shirts with short sleeves or 3/4 sleeves.

 

Anyway, sorry Sergio, to hijack your thread and turn it into a thread about threads ;)