For those who missed Part One of my journal on my travels in Türkiye and Greece, here’s a quick recap.

The journey started off on the wrong foot with some troublesome travel arrangements, but this was quickly made up for by the pleasant company of my fellow travelers. I neglected to mention in Part One a charming couple from Albay — Mr. B and Ms. T. Ms. T, by the way, has taken on the role of the troupe’s master selfie taker and number one souvenir shopper. There was also, of course, the excitement of arriving in a metropolis that geographically and culturally bridges Europe and Asia.

I’m speaking of Istanbul, a name that conjures images of multicolored spices and scents, syrupy sweet baklavas, grand temples, calls for midday prayers by imams from towering minarets, bearded sultans, sultry doe-eyed princesses, and svelte belly dancers with their mesmerizing gyrations.

The ancient name of Istanbul is Byzantium, renamed Constantinople in 330 AD after Constantine the Great, who was captivated by this city that was the heart and soul of the Byzantine Empire. The empire once ruled the Western cultural and religious civilization centered around the Mediterranean, which was part of the Eastern Roman Empire.

Istanbul is divided by the Bosphorus Strait, our first stop—a snaking waterway that connects the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara and uniquely serves as the boundary between Europe and Asia.

A must-do here is a cruise, which is exactly what our hardy group did. The highlight? A photo of yours truly dressed as a medieval Ottoman sultan while our ship sailed over the not-so-blue waters of the Bosphorus, allowing us to catch glimpses of both Asia and Europe with every turn of the head.

This was followed by a hearty lunch at a seafood restaurant with views of the boats passing by, beneath the Bosphorus Bridge, officially known as the 15th July Martyrs Bridge, the oldest and longest of the three suspension bridges.

Next on our whirlwind tour was the majestic Blue Mosque, also known as the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, built between 1609 and 1617. It dwarfs the equally impressive Hagia Sophia and is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

With several ladies in our group, an irresistible next stop was the enormous Spice Bazaar, offering an endless variety of spices, dried chilies, Turkish sweets, and coffee. Eager as I was, I couldn’t resist sampling the honey-flavored baklava and other Turkish sweets, despite being a prime candidate for diabetes. I justified buying these confections as perfect “pasalubongs” (souvenirs), only to later discover that Turkish sweets are available at numerous stops on our journey! Lesson learned.

Istanbul is divided by the Bosphorus Strait, our first stop — a snaking waterway that connects the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara and uniquely serves as the boundary between Europe and Asia.