After the 11-hour flight from New York to Istanbul, we were excited to begin our honeymoon adventure! First things first....After claiming our bags (which arrived along with us!) we stood in a short line in order to pay the $20 per person Turkish visa fee. Very easy to do. After paying for the visas, we then stood in the customs line, awaiting …

Today we hit the spice bazaar in the area of Eminonu. What an amazing place full of wonderful smells and colorful displays. We sampled olives, cheeses and Turkish Delight, which is basically all types of sweets. You can purchase coffee, tea and all sorts of spices to bring back home as gifts. The New Mosque is also here, another beautiful …

Today we explored the areas of Karakoy, on the opposite side of the Galata Bridge from Eminonu. The Bridge separates old Istanbul from modern Istanbul. The bridge was lined with fisherman, and underneath the bridge were restaurants serving fresh-caught fish. We walked over the bridge to find a fabulous fish market selling today's catch.

In the …

Since we didn't have to be on the ship until 4pm, we strolled over to visit the Topkopi Palace, now a museum. It is said to be one of the best examples of palaces from the Ottoman period. You could easily spend an entire afternoon here.

We walked back to our hotel and caught a taxi to the ship. The taxi dropped us off right at the Windstar …

Today we were at sea for the whole day, passing through the Dardanelles, a strait that connects the Sea of Marmara with the Aegean Sea. We explored the ship, relaxed, read and ate great food. The food on the Wind Surf was amazing, as was the customer service. The crew was there to assist you with anything you needed, and some we came to know on …

Today we arranged a shore excursion with Windstar to Ephesus, an ancient Greek city (and later, Roman city). We toured the terrace houses at one time owned by the city's elite. After Ephesus, we drove to the village of Sirince, a beautiful town located on a hilltop. The drive to Sirince boasted an array of olive, fig, pomegranate and mulberry …

Rhodes is full of magnificent medieval architecture and beautiful stone buildings. We walked from Old Town to New Town, strolling along the water. We had a relaxing day of exploring and lying on the beach. We also treated ourselves to some yogurt and honey ice cream!

In the evening, the Wind Surf put on a Greek dance performance and Joe and I …

Another beautiful day! The highlight of Bodrum is its Castle, which also houses the Museum of underwater Archeology. The views from the Bodrum Castle are fantastic and peacocks roam the grounds. The marina is full of gorgeous wooden gulets (boats) that are locally built.

This evening, we took advantage of the Wind Surf's marina, swimming off …

Beautiful Santorini. Some say the white buildings on the top of the island look like snow from a distance. This was one of our favorite spots during the entire cruise. There are three ways up to the top of the cliff where the town of Thira (Fira) awaits: Walk, take the cable car or ride a donkey. We chose the latter, of course! If you …