We enjoyed a cruise on one of the ferries which travel the Bosphorus strait, running from the Sea of Marmara to the Black Sea, disembarking at Rumeli Kavagli, a small fishing town right at the entrance to the Black Sea. After a superb seafood lunch in the sun at one of several seafood restaurants and a leisurely stroll around the village, we took the ferry back to the main port in Istanbul.

A second day excursion on another ferry took us to two of the Princes Islands about 20km southeast of the city in the Sea of Marmara. The largest island, Buyukada, with no cars (except for emergency vehicles), has pony carts instead. We took one to the start of a hillclimb up a cobbled road to a 1000-year old Greek church where we ate another delicious lunch, admiring the view of islands and sea. The island has many beautiful villas and mansions built by wealthy Istanbullus of Greek heritage. A brief stop on our return ferry ride at Heybeliada, another charming and peaceful island - again, no cars.