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It was the end of October so not high season. I suspect it is busy all year except in the depths of winter.

It was just a little scary!

Filmed with a DJI Pocket 2. Took just over 30 minutes to get into the Blue Mosque but as I said get there early and you shouldn't have to wait too long. The queue for Hagia Sophia took over an hour but you might not have to queue there now as they have introduced a whopping €25 entry fee and restricted the areas you can visit. At this point in time all the other mosques are still free to enter but I wonder for how long? Probably a good idea to seek out some of the lesser known mosques which can be just as beautiful.

You need an ‘Istanbulkart’ for all public transport which can be purchased at any metro station and most tram stops (not the heritage tram). There is a ‘tourist’ card which gives all day travel but it can be expensive if you are only taking a few trips. You purchase the card first from a machine for 50 TL (about £1.20) and then place it on the machine to load with as much credit as you want. Each journey costs 17.7 TL (about 45p). Once purchased you just tap the card on the machine on the tram as you enter (hear the beeps in the video!). You can use the same card for up to 5 people, just put on enough credit and tap for each person. Bear in mind that not all of the machines accept credits cards, especially at the smaller tram stops, so you might be better off getting some Turkish Lira. The card is valid on all transport - trams, buses, funicular and ferries. Finally you can use the machines to check how much credit you have left before boarding and top up if needed.

The buses in Santorini are pretty good but try to be the first one off the ship to avoid the crowds.

It's likely that we'll find ourselves in Kusadasi on another cruise at some point so I'll check out Sirence. Thanks for the suggestion.

Just takes a little research. The most difficult part is finding exactly where the bus departs in Kusadasi, they don't seem to have actual bus stops in Turkey!

Thanks for watching!

Thanks so much!!

Thanks for your appreciation. Having been on all three of those I'd say Ambassador was the best. I much prefer the smaller ships which give you a closer feel of being on the ocean. One thing I didn't like about Iona is that almost all of the open deck areas are glassed in whereas on the smaller ships you can lean over the rails to watch the sea and the scenery. You get more more of a sense of adventure. The food on Ambassador, both in the MDR and buffet was considerably better than Iona although there is not so much choice in speciality dining. Nothing wrong with Iona (we are going on her again in November) but I still prefer the smaller ships. At the end of the day it all comes down to cost for me. I'll go on any cruise that's a bargain!

All mosques are free entry, just need to take off your shoues!

@oldcodgerwithacamera thanks for the info!!! We enjoy the videos. When is next wildlife adventure?

@@Jonathan_and_Tammie Was hoping for this year but it probably won't be until August next year.

@oldcodgerwithacamera Bummer that you have to wait so long for the next adventure. We are looking forward to our next camping trip to the Olympic Penisula next month... hopefully will get lucky and see some whales or Orcas. Definately will get our share of birds and visit the temperate rainforest. Looks like Hagia Sophia is now charging foreigners 25 E per person for entry!

How much r the ferries?

Thank you! Cheers!

Many thanks, much appreciated.

It's a lovely place which we have now been to twice. Next time we'll head further inland.

Wow, thank you!

Thanks! We were hoping to go back to the Kruger this year but couldn't quite afford it so next year, probably August, we will be back.

There's a lot more choice in Joburg so more chance of getting a good deal. Not sure what the cost of flying to Upington is but driving there has got to be cheaper although you then have to factor in a couple of days extra hire to get there. I think time and convenience is the major factor in such a decision.

Many thanks, much appreciated.

Thanks! We were ready to go at 7:30 am and headed down as soon as the announcement was made around 7:45 am. The queue for the cable car was not bad and we were on within 15 minutes. I suspect that an hour or so later there would have been a much longer wait as there was another ship in. The wait later in the day to come back down was over an hour.

Thanks! Details of how I film are in this video ruclips.net/video/S5rRS-pt4Bw/видео.html

Thanks. From dung beetle to elephant they are all fascinating!

The list includes all animals/birds we saw on the trip not just those. Sometimes the sightings are too short to get the camera out and honey badgers run quite fast!

Many thanks! There's another series following this one called Kruger in Summer and we hope to go back to film a (final?) series but it looks like it will not be until late 2025. Hang on in there!

@@oldcodgerwithacamera yes looking forward to that and then the Kalahari

Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for watching.

@@oldcodgerwithacamera No problem.

Thanks, hopefully it was helpful.

@@oldcodgerwithacamera so what types of food does the buffet have

Yes there's a full buffet selection for breakfast in the MDR or you can choose table service if you want something like Eggs Benedict or an omelette. Either way the waiters will serve you tea or coffee. I assume that the same applies for lunch although we never ate lunch in the MDR.

You're welcome! Thanks for watching!

Many thanks for your kind words. We have stayed at tamboti before but before I started making videos. I agree that it is a great bush experience although the last time we stayed it was almost unbearable! Temperature outside was in the high 30's and inside the tent it was well above 40° making it imposible to sleep. The bedsheets were literally soaking wet by morning!

@oldcodgerwithacamera Totally understandable. It is exactly for that reason why we always go to Tamboti in the winter 😂

We have stayed there before, see my reply to your other comment.

Many thanks. There's always something to see in the Kruger even when it's raining!

@oldcodgerwithacamera so nice and relaxing. I've had your videos on the TV all day today in the background while working on my laptop.. 😊 My husband came in to watch as well at lunch time. Are you from the UK?

Between the Border Hotel and Upington stick to the main N roads and avoid the R roads which look shorter but are often gravel and will take longer. Within the park there are only four roads so you will be travelling up and down them a lot. From Twee Rivieren the Aoub road which heads roughly west to Mata Mata and the Nossob road which heads north. Two dune roads connect these, the Short Dune road and the Long Dune road. The dune roads are great fun to drive but the wildlife is more scarce on them apart from Steinbok which are plentiful. North of Nossob you should go up to Polentswa but any further north is more of an adventure rather than wildlife spotting. We drove up to Union’s End and beyond Polentswa we saw virtually nothing, not even Oryx! There are no roads to avoid although you probably won’t want to do the dune roads more than once. Almost all the wildlife is along the Aoub and Nossob roads. If you are at the camps don’t forget to check out the waterholes at Twee Rivieren, Nossob and Mata Mata in the evenings. Waterholes in the park are hit and miss but always worth visiting. Some are dry so not worth it but you’ll discover which ones to avoid once you get there. Pleased you have booked the Border Hotel!

Thank you very much 🙏🏻 for your good advice. We definitely can use this when traveling to Kgalagadi.

Yes, it's an old ship but you can always get the 'luxury extras' on Regent Seven Seas or Seabourne for three times the price.

Thank you!

That's interesting! I'm sure it has had some improvements but I guess there is only so much you can do with a makeover on a ship.

Many thanks. So glad you appreciate it.

Many thanks for watching. The secret to being able to afford a month in the Kruger is to retire! Although we only have our state pensions we no longer have a mortgage and are bettter off than when we were working. Add to that that we don't drink (much!) don't go out to restaurants, don't get takeaways or coffee out and scrimp and save wherever we can and we end up with enough for a month in he Kruger most years!

Must be great fun on a motorbike. Would love to do that but it's been over 50 years since I last rode a bike!

Many thanks for watching. I do hope you get to the Kruger one day.

@@oldcodgerwithacamera I’ll definitely be making time this year.

Many thanks for your appreciation especially of the effort it takes to produce these videos. October and November are probably the best time for sightings as the bush will be quite sparse and the migrant birds will be arriving. Agree about the rhinos, it was quite shocking to see them freshly dehorned but what I didn't realise until later is that the horns grow back and once they get rounded off a bit they don't look as bad. I guess though, at some point, they will have to be dehorned again. Have a great trip.

Many thanks. The music is from Epidemic Sound.

So he's not afraid of the big cats and wild dogs then?

​@@oldcodgerwithacamerahe was once afraid of lions and his eyes were like 😳😂

Well that makes an old man very proud! Thank you!

When we first went to the Kruger back in 2017 we took a private guided tour and the first thing the guide did when we reached the Kruger was to let down the tires so we've been doing it ever since. We usually drop the pressure to 1.6 bar which makes the ride on some of the corrugated roads a little softer. Because the speed limit is 50kph on the tar roads it doesn't make much difference on those roads. It doesn't really matter whether you have a 4x4, in fact we have never hired a 4x4 even in the Kgalagadi. To be honest you don't really need to drop the pressure in the Kruger but it does make a difference when you hit badly corrugated roads. Hope you have a great time later this year, it looks like our next trip will now be next year. Thanks for watching he videos.

Once again thanks for watching and commenting. Have you began the next series yet?

Thanks again. The idea was to let the viewer experience what we experienced and I'm glad you think it works.

Many thanks.

Many thanks. They are definitedly aware of you watching them!