Day 52, 25 August 2012, Cruise on the Bosphorus, Lunch at a fishing village -From the time we first arrived in Istanbul, we were assaulted on all fronts with offers of a cruise on the Bosphorus. To not do so would be like missing a cruise on Sydney Harbour. Being completely over group travel at this stage, we explored all our options and end up heading to the public ferry pier at Eminonu - for a mere 25 lira each - about $13, we bought a return trip up the Bosphorus, via palaces, castles and cruise ships to end up on the Asia side of Turkey (having been on the European side of Turkey until now). En route we enjoyed turkish coffee, a bag of chips and a soft drink - but the foodie highlight was experienced at the Kamlica stop (pictured) - World famous (well Istanbul-famous) for it's fresh luscious yoghurt, one of the crew ran off and came back with tray after tray of yoghurt pots. We set to chopping up the fresh peaches we'd bought with us, added some walnuts and feasted away. The final stop on the outgoing leg was the tiny village of Anadolu Kavagi - I suspect it would be just as sleepy and relaxed without tourists being dropped off every couple of hours, but I'm sure it makes the local economy hum. We shopped and I found an unusual agate ring for a few dollars. Because competition amongst the seafood restaurants is fierce, a set menu of freshly grilled fish, mussels on a stick and calamari, plus the freshest, lushest salad we've had in two months was only 20 lira. And we shared one serve - unbelievable to have a waterfront seafood lunch for only $10 for two. Really pushing the money boat out now, we moved to a new destination for a coffee icecream and then on to a bakery for a turkish coffee and a massive coconut cookie. We are the "one between two" demons by this point in the trip. Around 4 pm the ferry arrived to shuttle us back to Istanbul and we saw the monuments from the other side of the boat this time - including close up views of Rumeli Castle... (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rumelihisarı). We intensely enjoyed our public ferry experience - ploughing at a steady clip on a large ship on the Bosphorus is definitely the way to go - it was on the return trip that we noticed the small private ferries bobbing around in a very alarming fashion as they endeavoured to get their clients closer to the shore to see outstanding sights such as Beylerbeyi Palace... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beylerbeyi_Palace). To avoid almost certain seasickness, I can certainly stay on the big boat in the middle of the river! In any event, a good day was had by all - off to our favourite restaurant for a fresh orange juice and a meal of Turkish appetisers for dinner.