NCL Jade Cruise Review - March 27th - April 6th 2013

[kikki21]

Lovely review! Great photos & nice details. I've been enjoying it - like going back on vacay again :) something I'm already planning on!

 

Can't wait for more!

 

Thanks

 

Thank you, it's still coming! Can't believe I am still on Day 5.... we are planning a cruise for next year in June and maybe squeeze one in beforehand! :rolleyes:

I will give it a good go anyway, have you booked yours yet?

[kikki21]

 

Pulling into the port of Izmir, another lovely day ahead!

 

 

My crazy dog mate at the port, was very friendly and cute and had everyone laughing when he went to lie down on the red carpet!

 

 

Docked up in Izmir.

 

 

Welcome to Ephesus - there are quite a few cats around the site and according to our guide, they are all looked after and neutered and like to pose lol! :D

[kikki21]

I can't really get sick of Ephesus, even after 5 visits!

 

 

I do think it's an amazing site and still only 20% that has been excavated.

Just a shame there are sooooooo many people who visit, but I am one of them!

 

 

 

Backgammon marble slab.

 

 

A figure of Nike - yes the one that inspired the sports brand name!

 

 

Walking down to the Celcus library.

 

 

Temple building - attributed to Hadrian.

[kikki21]

 

Very regal looking cat! :)

 

 

Checking us all out!

 

 

Mosiac floor just before the Terrace Houses.

 

 

Some of the buildings still have amazing details carved in marble remaining.

 

 

So after we had gone this far into the site, it was time to enter the Terrace Houses.

If you are thinking of going to visit Ephesus, then pay the extra to view these houses which used to be owned by rich merchants. It shows that they were wealthy people.

There are only 6 houses that they have excavated, looks like more remain to be uncovered.

[kikki21]

 

These houses were big and grand as per the window size and the amount of work involved in clearing out the silt as per one uncovered window and one still covered in comparison.

 

 

Huge room, lots of marble was used within the houses.

 

 

The walls are covered with frescos.

 

 

 

There are also plenty of stunning mosiacs too.

 

[kikki21]

 

Probably the most stunning mosiac there and it's under glass!

 

 

Mosiacs and frescos.

 

Let's hope the next time we come back to Ephesus, that more houses have been discovered.

[travelmom83]

I'm loving your review. I'm going on the Jade next year and my husband and I are really looking forward to it.

[kikki21]

So after the cool of the Terrace Houses, it was back to the heat of the day, I am sure it is hotter in Ephesus than being on the coast since it's in a valley.

 

 

Standing outside the Celcus Library.

 

 

Even though it has been partially restored, it's still an impressive building.

 

 

More views of the Library - which was the 3rd most important in the Ancient World.

 

 

The walk down to what would have been the port in Ephesus, you would have a 6 mile walk now to get to the beach!

 

 

The very impressive theatre at Ephesus - can see it from quite a way back from the road.

So that concluded our visit to Ephesus and we were all ready for lunch!

[AquamarineBreeze]

Thank you, it's still coming! Can't believe I am still on Day 5.... we are planning a cruise for next year in June and maybe squeeze one in beforehand! :rolleyes:

I will give it a good go anyway, have you booked yours yet?

 

Have fun planning for your next cruise... And hopefully fitting in another one too! It never hurts to try;)

Late summer, Greek Isles seems to be the next cruise for me :):) any tips? Lmk

Really any ports are fine with me - just want to be at sea.

 

Looking forward to the next part of your review!

[kikki21]

Have fun planning for your next cruise... And hopefully fitting in another one too! It never hurts to try;)

Late summer, Greek Isles seems to be the next cruise for me :):) any tips? Lmk

Really any ports are fine with me - just want to be at sea.

 

Looking forward to the next part of your review!

 

If I can find a cruise as cheap as this one was then that's the cruise I'd want to be doing this year... the Jade from Venice doing the Greek isles is a good cruise.... for me, I love Santorini and Mykonos but also Dubrovnik in Croatia is lovely - let's face it, a cruise is a cruise! :)

[kikki21]

Our tour included lunch and it was a very tasty lunch too including salads, stuffed peppers, meatballs, chicken kebab and the very addictive cheese stuffed pastries - totally yummy!

I recognised the place we had lunch in, it was at the handicraft centre I had visited last time from Kusadasi which yes included the carpet demo.

 

What impressed me was that the Turkish carpet sellers had actually listened to what people had been saying to them over the years that the carpets are genuinely lovely but don't suit western style houses so yes they now make more modern carpets!

 

These carpets are not cheap but they are handmade and one of our group did buy a carpet.

Our guide was very honest and told us that if anyone bought something at the centre then her company do get commission. Respect for her for saying that.

 

Our guide was quite keen to take us elsewhere after our lunch but I think the general consensus was to get back to Izmir to have a look round.

 

Not sure why the Jade docks at Izmir as Kusadasi is a/ closer to Ephesus and b/ much prettier than Izmir - maybe someone knows the answer to that one!

[AquamarineBreeze]

If I can find a cruise as cheap as this one was then that's the cruise I'd want to be doing this year... the Jade from Venice doing the Greek isles is a good cruise.... for me, I love Santorini and Mykonos but also Dubrovnik in Croatia is lovely - let's face it, a cruise is a cruise! :)

 

That's right :):):)

 

The next few Saturdays in May I'll have to deal with just 'seeing' the ship from a distance while I'm in Venice - torture!

[kikki21]

 

Cheese stuffed pastries - highly addictive!

 

 

Stuffed peppers.

 

 

Chicken kebab, rice and spicy meatball. Really enjoyed our Turkish lunch and in fact all the food we had in Turkey was very tasty!

 

 

In the handicraft centre with a lot of carpets!

 

 

Driving through the town of Selcuk which is the nearest place to Ephesus and the castle that guards the town. In fact, there appear to be a few castles in this region.

 

 

Another castle seen on the road back to Izmir.

[kikki21]

Our guide told us to keep on walking to the right of the port and we would come to the massive promenade and we did! There were lots of people out enjoying a walk and a drink in the many cafes lining the promenade.

There was even an outdoor gym!

 

 

It was quite a warm day so we did the same as the locals and sat down to have a cold drink!

 

 

We came across the Candy Floss man lol! :D Bless him, he was very friendly!

 

 

Waiting for us in Izmir!

[kikki21]

All too soon, it was time for sailaway and the next adventure!

 

 

Views of the promenade from the Jade at sailaway.

 

 

We watched the pilot get off the Jade - it didn't seem a very complicated path from the harbour!

One of our CC party on our Turkey trips then told us that they had seen dolphins in the water after this - I did watch the sea for quite a while after but saw nothing - gutted! :(

 

 

Bye bye to Turkey - but see you again tomorrow. It's a shame that the ship traverses the Dardanelles at night as I guess that would be great to see but we were excited getting ready to eat tonight as tomorrow we would be in Istanbul and more importantly, we didn't have to get up early! :D

[kikki21]

As it was Easter Sunday, we had a really nice dinner in the MDR, there was an Easter display at the front of the MDR but I didn't take a picture of that!

 

 

I had the sweetcorn parfait to start which was different, pretty tasty.

 

 

The Mr has the Prawn and Vegetable provencal thing lol.... it was tasty as well and we shared a salad to start too.

 

 

He had the chicken and surf dish for his main which he really enjoyed as the hollandaise sauce worked really well with all the things on his plate.

 

 

I had the prime rib of beef which was delicious, probably one of the best meals I had on board the Jade.

 

 

I had the chocolate hazlenut rice mousse dessert which was very nice. I know the desserts get slated on NCL but this one was very nice indeed!

 

 

The Mr has the citrus cheesecake with a strawberry centre which again he enjoyed!

 

I guess we spent the rest of the night donating to the casino and having a few drinks and enjoying the fact that we were not docking in Istanbul till 1pm!

[ChattTenn]

kikki21

 

Thanks for taking time to post the review and pictures.

 

We will be with Norwegian cruise / Jade for the first time in October 2013. Your pictures are so much helps for this upcoming cruise.

Edited April 27, 2013 by ChattTenn

[Calm Blue Ocean]

Great review! Love the pictures! Can't wait to read more!

[kikki21]

Thank you for all the lovely comments about the review so far, here's the next installment!

We had a nice lie in and had breakfast in the MDR for a change, it was good to be waited on instead of the scrum at breakfast in the buffet!

 

I had some gorgeous eggs benedict and some cinnamon raisin french toast, totally yummy! That in effect was brunch as I was sure we would need to save some room for our dinner tonight in Istanbul and indeed brunch was the way to go!

 

I had never visited Istanbul and neither had the Mr so it was a new experience for both of us. We were already well on the approach before midday and I was keeping my binos trained in from our balcony.

 

Sailing into Istanbul met all my expectations, it was quite spectacular and how you keep your nerve sailing in amongst all the boat traffic being the captain of a huge ship, I don't know!:D

 

We left Istanbul wanting more and furthermore it's a very easy city to navigate around so I wouldn't hestitate to DIY next time.

But because it was our first time, we were booked on 2 private half day tours.

The first tour today would take in the Topkapi Palace and the Grand Bazaar.

Tomorrow's morning tour would take in the Hagia Sophia, the Hippodrome and the Blue Mosque.

 

The rest of the time was our free time and we really enjoyed it. :)

Have a lot of pictures to show so just waiting for Photobucket to upload!

[kikki21]

 

One of the first sights was seeing the MSC Lirica leaving Istanbul, we had not seen that many other cruise ships on this cruise other than a Costa ship in Katakolon and passing HAL's Rotterdam in Messina.

 

 

Sailing past the Mosques of Istanbul.

 

 

The Hagia Sophia from the sea.

 

 

Bosphorus boat traffic, the Golden Horn and the Galata Tower.

[kikki21]

Got to say again but the sail into Istanbul was very enjoyable!

 

 

Our group met up with out tour guide outside the ship and it was time to explore!

Once again, we had a very comfortable mini van and you need that whilst the traffic in Istanbul is soooo busy.... I would suggest that the tram is used when you need to get about!

Outside the Topkapi Palace walls.

 

 

Entering into the main gate.

 

 

The Sultan's bed chamber where he lived, slept, ate etc.

 

Our tour didn't take us into the Harem but we did tour some of the Ottoman treasures on display such as the Topkapi daggar and the Spoonmaker's Diamond but no photos are allowed in that area.

 

 

The inner courtyard areas.... it was very busy at the Palace.

 

 

The views from the Terraces were lovely, seeing the Bosphorus Bridge and the European and Asian sides of the city.

 

 

Whilst you were in the Palace, all you could smell was hyacinths, really strong smelling ones at that!

[kikki21]

 

An ornamental fountain in the palace.

 

 

Arty skies shot.... we were in the sun and the Asian side was in the clouds!

 

 

We were given a bit of free time in the Grand Bazaar... you can't really do a tour in here as it is too big and too busy... we only went down the main bit for about 20 mins, enough time to buy some of the delicious Turkish nuts. These are either peanuts or pistachios covered in honey and roasted sesame seeds. Very addictive! :)

 

 

Gate No 1 of the Grand Bazaar.

 

Turkish shop cat!

[kikki21]

After our little trip in the Grand Bazaar, it was time to return to the Jade and get ready for our night out on the town!

 

 

Sunset over Istnabul.

 

We had a bit of chill time in between and we had already booked a table at Sarnic, the underground cistern restaurant. We figured out where it was and that we would get there via tram.

We set off a bit early so we could explore a bit more of Sultanahmet.

 

 

Me ready for our night out!

 

 

2 well known places. Apparently the Pudding Shop used to be a hippy hangout place in the 60/70's and the place next door is very well known for kebabs!

 

 

It was very pretty at night as the mosques and fountain are lit up and the fountain changes colour too!

[kikki21]

I had heard about the Sarnic on these boards and on Trip Advisor. We wanted to eat at a romantic place at night so this was recommended.

It's at the back of the Hagia Sophia, up a cobbled street (don't wear high heels ladies! ;))

 

 

The restaurant is in an undergound cistern that is very old.... it was converted into a restaurant and several hotels on the street were converted back into hotels... it caused some controversy as buildings were knocked down but the restoration was a success.

 

 

The restaurant is mainly lit by candles so it is very atmospheric and romantic.

 

We ordered some typically Turkish food.

 

We had a plate of cold mezes to start, they all tasted good, even though we didn't know what we were eating! :p

 

 

For our main course, both of us ordered the shish kofte kebab, which came with rice, chips AND pitta bread! The sauce was a bit spicy but very tasty.

[kikki21]

 

For pudding - we shared a Turkish rice pudding/creme caramel mash up, it's served cold but it is really delicious (Not going to share another one next time lol! :p)

 

 

By the enormous fire place in the Sarnic.

 

 

What you see of the restaurant when you come in from the balcony.

 

We enjoyed our meal at the Sarnic... it wasn't cheap and it wasn't fine dining but the food was tasty. I think it's a place where you pay more for the history and atmosphere rather than the food and enjoy the experience!

 

 

Waiting for the tram back to the Jade. They run every 5 minutes or so.

 

 

We got back to the Jade and took a few pics.... the Bosphorus Bridge is all lit up at night and also changes colour, they seem to like that in Istanbul!