Shipboard Shots

I continue to go back through photographs from last summer’s Mediterranean cruise. Today, I’m going to share a few that were taken on board the ship, the Seven Seas Mariner. The first pictures were taken near the end of our cruise, as we entered the Bosporus and prepared to dock at our port of disembarkation, Istanbul. I begin with a picture of a harbour pilot boarding our ship to guide it to its berth.

Not long afterward, we approached our berth and prepared for docking. I got the next picture of fellow passengers on the top deck taking it all in. The ship’s stern is facing ashore as we were manoeuvred into position, offering a great view of the Sultanahmet district of the city.

We spent much of the time on our trip ashore, visiting the ports of call. As such, we didn’t partake of many of the onboard attractions and activities, including the pool deck. So, I didn’t swim in the pool, lounge in the sun or people-watch on the sun deck. I did have a few brews, though at the outdoor bar. I also took a few pictures naturally, including this one of the perfectly arranged loungers on the sun deck. I took the photograph quite early, before the sunbathers disrupted the perfect order of the chaises and their neatly arrayed towels.

A favourite location on the ship was a rear deck with great views astern and close proximity to a bar. I took several pictures here and I’m including one today that I particularly like, the ship’s wake as it glided through the azure waters of the Aegean Sea. This was the only time on our cruise when we spent an entire day at sea without a shore excursion. A welcome rest and a nice change of pace.

One of the great pleasures of our trip was the balcony off our suite. I enjoyed looking out first thing in the morning to see what kind of day awaited us. I was never disappointed, virtually no rain for the duration of our cruise. The next picture I’m going to show is one of the balcony itself, taken early in the morning, with the sun’s rays turning the white painted surfaces a golden yellow. I particularly like the sky in this picture and the light on the balcony railing.

One morning, shortly after berthing in Kusadasi, Turkey, we returned from breakfast to find our balcony view completely obscured by another cruise ship, the Crown Princess. It had docked in the berth across the wharf from us during our absence. The Crown Princess is a much larger ship and there was no way to see around it or over it. It’s dominating presence did however create an interesting photo opportunity, a view in itself.

The greatest appeal of our balcony was the sunrises and sunsets I was able to see and photograph. I have many, as you might imagine and today I’m including a few favourites as a slide show to conclude this post. There isn’t much to say about them, other than to state the obvious. I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves.