Blog published with a one-year lag for obvious safety and privacy reasons.

I was hoping the Turkish airline plane would have flat seats for the flight from London (4hrs+), but that wasn’t the case :(
Anyway, they were still more comfortable than the BA planes, where they sell “business” for 3-4 times economy prices, but they’re literally the same seats; they just block the middle seat.

On the other hand, upon arrival an extremely comfortable van was waiting for us, so that made up for it.

There’s something so soothing about being driven around, just relaxing, looking out of the window, everyone busy running somewhere, but for once I’m not rushing.

At the hotel, we had one one-bedroom suite each booked, but since we both have high status with the hotel chain, they upgraded us to two bedrooms, two bathrooms each! Pretty much we took up a whole floor just the two of us.

For our first dinner, since we had been travelling the whole day, we chose a casual (but delicious and very “cultural experience”) spot nearby the hotel:

In the morning, before heading out to explore the city, and after many of my clothes were ruined by the hotel laundry service on a previous trip, I decided to save my lover’s money on laundry:

New profession unlocked, housekeeper:

My lover had arranged the most amazing tour for us with a private driver and a private guide: my favourite landmark was the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque.

Dinner that evening is an experience I will remember for a long time: Turk Fatīh Tutak, the only two Michelin star restaurants in Turkey.

And of course, no great dinner is complete without a tour of the kitchen.

Back to the hotel. How does the old saying go? Lady in the streets, …

We spent the next day soaking up the sun, relaxing by the pool(s), and enjoying a 3-hour treatment package that - of course - had to include a hammam ritual (they literally even scrubbed my butthole; they don’t mess around with the exfoliation here!!)

Dinner that night was at Neolokal (one Michelin star): delicious food and superb views of Istanbul's rooftops and magnificent mosques. My lover insisted we swapped seats so I could get the best view; I love a chivalrous gentleman.

How cool is it when breakfast buffets have a lot of local specialties together with the usual stuff!

Also pictured: his breakfast:

My lover was leaving that day, but the sweetheart he is, he had arranged another five days covered for me in that massive suite, plus an extremely generous dining and spa credit!
What can I say, I do love a treat!

So, since all my accommodation and food and spa had been taken care of for the foreseeable future, I decided to go spend my money on a boat for a private Istanbul tour on the water.

The next few days involved - yes, you guessed it - a lot of spa treatments.

This treatment specifically was really cool, on a sand bed and with Himalayan salt walls, even if the massage was softer than how I like it usually (thai/shiatsu/deep tissue are my fav!). The therapist at the end asked me why I booked it if it wasn’t my fav, and I said I wanted to see the salt walls room and the sand bed lol.
She must have thought I was weird. Anyway, everyone loves a good tipper, and she told me I’m amazing (in no way was her opinion of me influenced by money lol).

I think the lymphatic massage was actually good for my butt:

Next up, Bodrum!

And here comes in the second lover!
He too offered to cover a few days for a stay for me to relax prior to his arrival (I’m one lucky princess!)

He came to pick me up from where I was staying in Bodrum prior to his arrival and said there’s a nice view.

We then headed together to Amanruya, where we spent the next few days.

What a magical place this is: the turquoise Aegean laps Amanruya’s private pebble beach, while ancient pine forests scent the air. Resting amid olive groves and cypress trees on the Bodrum Peninsula’s serene north coast, this village-like resort is a secluded retreat offering an abundance of space and privacy.

After ten days of my lunch always consisting of either a tuna tartare, or yellowtail sashimi, or some kind of burrata, french fries, and any possible kind of chemical ‘truffle’ sauce (first world problems, I know! The 5* hotel life is tough but someone gotta do it), I wholeheartedly welcomed my lover’s idea of visiting the Karnas vineyards, which, together with being very pretty, served home-style food.