Ok, I only have a few minutes for a quick blog post! So here are the essentials:
I CLIMBED A MOUNTAIN! I am not kidding. I literally hiked up a mountain this weekend. Mt. Olympus, to be exact. It was the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. In fact, I can barely walk still because my legs hurt so bad. It was intense, but beautiful!!
It was a school field trip, so I was with about 40 other American study abroad students. We took a bus from Thessaloniki to the mountain (about 1 1/2 hour west). It took 3 hours to walk up to the refuge camp. It was HOT and a loooooooooong walk up. And that was the easy part! It was really cold up high. We stayed the night and woke up at 6 a.m. the next morning to begin our hike to the top. It took another 3 1/2 hours to get to the top. I was at the back the whole time. I had about 4 tour guides with me helping me the whole way, but I did it! It's about 10,000 feet to the top.
It was beautiful and amazing! I was definitely NOT in shape enough for this and probably should not have gone, but I did it! I honestly thought I wasn't going to make it, but the guides helped me a lot.
And as for today!!!!!! GUESS WHO'S HERE!!!!
I'm going to class in a few minutes, and I think Marc's plane just touched down in Thessaloniki. I'm going to meet him downtown after class! Tonight we're going to my favorite taverna and then tomorrow we leave for Athens!
Santorini, Nafplio, Athens, then hanging out in Thessaloniki for a while. Maybe I'll take him to Halkidiki beaches next week. :) I actually kind of planned things for us to do. I'm pretty amazed at my awesome planning skills.
I probably won't post again for a while! My internet in my apartment is broken and I won't be on campus for another week. I'm almost done here :( My last adventures will be the best though, I think.
I'll let you know.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
This is the end... (almost)
Now that my time here is winding down, I’m starting to look forward to things that are waiting for me at home. I can’t believe I have less than a month left. It’s all gone so fast! Now I’m trying to cram in all the stuff I wanted to do and put off until now. I’ve decided to dedicate this blog to the top 10 things I will miss about Greece and the top 10 things I definitely can’t wait to get away from:
Top 10 Things I Hate (in order of annoyance level):
10. Slow Internet- A minor inconvenience, but annoying all the same.
9. Pigeons- I just hate these birds!
8. Stray Animals- Not too bad, I usually just feel bad for them. They don’t scare me, but its #7 that becomes a real problem…
7. Dog/cat poop on sidewalks- Pretty self explanatory. Watch where you’re going in Greece, is my best advice.
6. Hot and crowded buses- B.O. to the max. Yuck. Also, getting crammed into a bus in that one spot where I always get hit by the doors. It’s super fun.
5. Shop hours- I can never go shopping here because stuff is never open. Not that I have any money to spend anyway, but I can’t even look!
4. Bed- This bed at my apartment is awful. It feels like I’m sleeping on a board most of the time. I’m going to need serious chiropractor help when I get home to re-correct MY SPINE.
3. Cars have the right-of-way- You pretty much always feel like you’re going to get run down.
2. Laundry- 2 washing machines for an entire building of 8 floors. You do the math. Also, it takes almost 2 hours to do 1 load of wash and we are only allowed to do the wash from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. then again from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. It SUCKS.
1. Not flushing toilet paper- Its strange how used to this you get after a while. But, it’s still pretty gross.
Top 10 Things I Love:
10. Kiosks- Little stands every block that sell drinks, bus tickets, snacks, basically little mini Super Americas! EVERYWHERE! I love them.
9. Convenience of buses- Even if they are a little crowded sometimes, they are really convenient and cheap. You can get anywhere in Thessaloniki on public transportation. It’s great.
8. FOOD- Refer to the “Taverna” section
7. Weather- It’s a little hot now, but it is BEAUTIFUL! Sunny everyday, gorgeous sunsets, and lovely walking weather at night.
*Sunset by the water in Thessaloniki
6. My new roommate and new friends- I’ve met some of the coolest people ever, and I can’t wait to roadtrip some day to see them again once we’re back in the states!
*The gang at Harry's Spot, one of our favorite hang outs!
5. Relaxed school- Wow, is it ever going to be hard to adjust back to life in Eau Claire after this semester. The professors are so laid back with assignments, and they even encourage skipping class to go travel! Traveling is just as important a learning experience as being here, is the typical attitude.
4. Being able to stay out late- Just not used to this sort of thing in Eau Claire. If you’re not 21, you have pretty limited options and most stuff closes by 11 p.m. Thrilling, really.
*Night in Thessaloniki, by the water
3. Tzatziki- YES, this needs its own category separate from food. That’s how much I love it! I will be making it frequently back home as well, if I can find good enough Greek yogurt in Wisconsin.
2. The people- Greek people have been so kind to me here. People will really go out of their way to help you!
1. The sea- I will be so sad to not live close by a sea once I leave. I love to walk down by the waterfront by my apartment, and the last 2 weekends I’ve spent the day at beaches in Halkidiki. Crystal clear water and sandy beaches… that’s the life for me!!
*Look at that clear water... beautiful!
*A beach 30 minutes away from Thessaloniki
And last but not least… Things I cannot wait to get back to!!
MY BED!!
TACOS JUANITA! SHANGHAI BISTRO! CHINA BUFFET! (Cheap greasy food for college students in general)
NIKO!! (my roommate’s cute little doggy!!)
MARC!
My new apartment
Having a car
A REAL oven and stove top
…and there’s probably some other stuff as well, but those are the big ones that I’ve been missing a lot while out here. I’ll get to see Marc in 7 DAYS though!!
Top 10 Things I Hate (in order of annoyance level):
10. Slow Internet- A minor inconvenience, but annoying all the same.
9. Pigeons- I just hate these birds!
8. Stray Animals- Not too bad, I usually just feel bad for them. They don’t scare me, but its #7 that becomes a real problem…
7. Dog/cat poop on sidewalks- Pretty self explanatory. Watch where you’re going in Greece, is my best advice.
6. Hot and crowded buses- B.O. to the max. Yuck. Also, getting crammed into a bus in that one spot where I always get hit by the doors. It’s super fun.
5. Shop hours- I can never go shopping here because stuff is never open. Not that I have any money to spend anyway, but I can’t even look!
4. Bed- This bed at my apartment is awful. It feels like I’m sleeping on a board most of the time. I’m going to need serious chiropractor help when I get home to re-correct MY SPINE.
3. Cars have the right-of-way- You pretty much always feel like you’re going to get run down.
2. Laundry- 2 washing machines for an entire building of 8 floors. You do the math. Also, it takes almost 2 hours to do 1 load of wash and we are only allowed to do the wash from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. then again from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. It SUCKS.
1. Not flushing toilet paper- Its strange how used to this you get after a while. But, it’s still pretty gross.
Top 10 Things I Love:
10. Kiosks- Little stands every block that sell drinks, bus tickets, snacks, basically little mini Super Americas! EVERYWHERE! I love them.
9. Convenience of buses- Even if they are a little crowded sometimes, they are really convenient and cheap. You can get anywhere in Thessaloniki on public transportation. It’s great.
8. FOOD- Refer to the “Taverna” section
7. Weather- It’s a little hot now, but it is BEAUTIFUL! Sunny everyday, gorgeous sunsets, and lovely walking weather at night.
*Sunset by the water in Thessaloniki
6. My new roommate and new friends- I’ve met some of the coolest people ever, and I can’t wait to roadtrip some day to see them again once we’re back in the states!
*The gang at Harry's Spot, one of our favorite hang outs!
5. Relaxed school- Wow, is it ever going to be hard to adjust back to life in Eau Claire after this semester. The professors are so laid back with assignments, and they even encourage skipping class to go travel! Traveling is just as important a learning experience as being here, is the typical attitude.
4. Being able to stay out late- Just not used to this sort of thing in Eau Claire. If you’re not 21, you have pretty limited options and most stuff closes by 11 p.m. Thrilling, really.
*Night in Thessaloniki, by the water
3. Tzatziki- YES, this needs its own category separate from food. That’s how much I love it! I will be making it frequently back home as well, if I can find good enough Greek yogurt in Wisconsin.
2. The people- Greek people have been so kind to me here. People will really go out of their way to help you!
1. The sea- I will be so sad to not live close by a sea once I leave. I love to walk down by the waterfront by my apartment, and the last 2 weekends I’ve spent the day at beaches in Halkidiki. Crystal clear water and sandy beaches… that’s the life for me!!
*Look at that clear water... beautiful!
*A beach 30 minutes away from Thessaloniki
And last but not least… Things I cannot wait to get back to!!
MY BED!!
TACOS JUANITA! SHANGHAI BISTRO! CHINA BUFFET! (Cheap greasy food for college students in general)
NIKO!! (my roommate’s cute little doggy!!)
MARC!
My new apartment
Having a car
A REAL oven and stove top
…and there’s probably some other stuff as well, but those are the big ones that I’ve been missing a lot while out here. I’ll get to see Marc in 7 DAYS though!!
Saturday, May 9, 2009
ΤΑΒΕΡΝΑ! (Taverna!)
My mother keeps asking me what exactly a taverna is, so I’ve decided to dedicate an entire blog posting about the Greek tavernas. To me, this is the real “Greek experience” and to travel to Greece without a visit to a taverna would be a crime! This is a place for food, drink, music, and the occasional dance. I feel that this is a brief glimpse of what the Greeks are all about- food and fun!
Every Greek city I’ve been to so far usually has their own little spot that’s filled with tavernas. Sometimes you can’t tell where one ends and another begins! This is because they are essentially outside restaurants. They arrange tables and chairs together in one spot for the guests to sit. There is always live music, our favorite taverna here in Thessaloniki has one guy singing with a guitar, and another guy playing the mandolin. Occasionally, guests can go up and sing for the taverna as well because they always play traditional Greek songs that most of the Greeks know. It’s as if an American went to a restaurant and we could sing some traditional American tunes that we all somehow know. There is usually a little gypsy boy that comes in and sings and plays the drum for the establishment and then asks for money afterwards. (I think he’s pretty good at the drums but his little kid singing voice always annoys me.) The people at the taverna always let him play. People also come in from the streets and try to sell things to customers as well. People selling roses and flowers to couples are rather frequent.
When you go to the taverna, you must go at night and stay for at least a few hours. This is not a rushed affair- you always need to take your time with your wine, and enjoy good conversation with friends. I feel that this is also very Greek. They really like to take their time with things, and eating is definitely one of those. For example, last night we went and tried to ask for the bill before midnight-and they just sent us more wine. That’s pretty typical. They will also NEVER kick you out or rush you (also very Greek). One of the first nights we went to the taverna, we stayed until 2 a.m. and they were cleaning up around us but not once did they ever ask us to leave, bring us our bill, or take food off of our table. You will always be left to finish at your own pace. You will never be brought your bill until you ask for it. Even then, it usually takes a while to get it.
The food you get at a taverna is probably comparable to bar food in the US, but it’s Greek so it’s always delicious. Often, you go with a large group and order a few appetizers and some meats and everybody shares off the plates. My favorites include fried zucchini, tzatziki (cucumber yogurt dipping sauce, I usually compare it to ranch dressing back home, not in taste but how it’s used), grilled feta, cheese stuffed beef, chicken breast, stuffed eggplant, and more that I can’t even think of right now. There is always fish and meat, plenty of feta, and salads.
And then there’s the wine. Our favorite place always serves free wine all night. It’s not the best wine in the world, it’s just the table or house wine of the place. Greek wine is a little different. Their best at the sweet red wines. I love it! Regular wine drinkers tend not to like the sweet wines, so I don’t recommend it for big red wine drinkers. You can get dry reds and whites which are just as good. They serve it to you in a little bronze liter pitcher that they make sure to refill immediately if it ever goes empty! Wine is a big part of Greek culture but getting drunk is NOT. To be drunk is to look like a fool, so that is one reason they take their time drinking.
People will sometimes dance at the taverna if they’re in the mood. I’ve seen lots of women get up and dance on the tables, or just dancing near the music is acceptable too. People like to clap and sing along and just all around have fun! I danced last night because there was this woman dancing near our table who kept trying to get us up to dance! It was fun.
So to those of you who will one day visit Greece (and I definitely recommend it, Greek people are the most wonderful people I’ve ever met and it’s just generally a beautiful country!) you must remember to go to a taverna. It won’t be hard to forget because if you’re out at night between 8 p.m. and 2 a.m. you will see and hear the tavernas nearby!
Every Greek city I’ve been to so far usually has their own little spot that’s filled with tavernas. Sometimes you can’t tell where one ends and another begins! This is because they are essentially outside restaurants. They arrange tables and chairs together in one spot for the guests to sit. There is always live music, our favorite taverna here in Thessaloniki has one guy singing with a guitar, and another guy playing the mandolin. Occasionally, guests can go up and sing for the taverna as well because they always play traditional Greek songs that most of the Greeks know. It’s as if an American went to a restaurant and we could sing some traditional American tunes that we all somehow know. There is usually a little gypsy boy that comes in and sings and plays the drum for the establishment and then asks for money afterwards. (I think he’s pretty good at the drums but his little kid singing voice always annoys me.) The people at the taverna always let him play. People also come in from the streets and try to sell things to customers as well. People selling roses and flowers to couples are rather frequent.
When you go to the taverna, you must go at night and stay for at least a few hours. This is not a rushed affair- you always need to take your time with your wine, and enjoy good conversation with friends. I feel that this is also very Greek. They really like to take their time with things, and eating is definitely one of those. For example, last night we went and tried to ask for the bill before midnight-and they just sent us more wine. That’s pretty typical. They will also NEVER kick you out or rush you (also very Greek). One of the first nights we went to the taverna, we stayed until 2 a.m. and they were cleaning up around us but not once did they ever ask us to leave, bring us our bill, or take food off of our table. You will always be left to finish at your own pace. You will never be brought your bill until you ask for it. Even then, it usually takes a while to get it.
The food you get at a taverna is probably comparable to bar food in the US, but it’s Greek so it’s always delicious. Often, you go with a large group and order a few appetizers and some meats and everybody shares off the plates. My favorites include fried zucchini, tzatziki (cucumber yogurt dipping sauce, I usually compare it to ranch dressing back home, not in taste but how it’s used), grilled feta, cheese stuffed beef, chicken breast, stuffed eggplant, and more that I can’t even think of right now. There is always fish and meat, plenty of feta, and salads.
And then there’s the wine. Our favorite place always serves free wine all night. It’s not the best wine in the world, it’s just the table or house wine of the place. Greek wine is a little different. Their best at the sweet red wines. I love it! Regular wine drinkers tend not to like the sweet wines, so I don’t recommend it for big red wine drinkers. You can get dry reds and whites which are just as good. They serve it to you in a little bronze liter pitcher that they make sure to refill immediately if it ever goes empty! Wine is a big part of Greek culture but getting drunk is NOT. To be drunk is to look like a fool, so that is one reason they take their time drinking.
People will sometimes dance at the taverna if they’re in the mood. I’ve seen lots of women get up and dance on the tables, or just dancing near the music is acceptable too. People like to clap and sing along and just all around have fun! I danced last night because there was this woman dancing near our table who kept trying to get us up to dance! It was fun.
So to those of you who will one day visit Greece (and I definitely recommend it, Greek people are the most wonderful people I’ve ever met and it’s just generally a beautiful country!) you must remember to go to a taverna. It won’t be hard to forget because if you’re out at night between 8 p.m. and 2 a.m. you will see and hear the tavernas nearby!
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Istanbul, Turkey!
Ok really, THIS weekend I'm going to lay around in my apartment and do nothing! I need some rest in good ol'Thessaloniki for real. I need a break from this paper I'm writing for history class. I haven't even started my econ paper... that will be a weekend thing too. This Greek environment has totally messed me up, I have 2 papers to write and I'm freaked out about it. How strange... this is not even near the amount of work I do back home and I even don't have that much compared to most people! I will need to get whipped back into shape pretty quickly once I return home. Eeeek!! But on a good note, I may actually be able to graduate in 4 years or possibly only 4 1.2. I'm really trying to avoid that 5th year if possible. I think my minor is going to be global studies. This is one that I've considered before, only now it looks incredibly doable! Yay!
Enough babbling, on to my adventures in Istanbul!
I planned to go on this trip before spring break even happened, so I've been looking forward to this for a while. I went with 5 other American girls including my roommate, another girl from the Boston area, and 3 other Eau Claire girls. We took a bus leaving on Thursday night at 10 p.m. It's about a 10 hour bus ride! But hey, the tickets were really cheap!! Our total cost roundtrip was about the price of a one-way on the trains. So needless to say, we were all pretty OK with the super long bus ride.
Got into Istanbul around 8 a.m. Friday morning. First things first, we need to find our hotel. All we had was the name of the hotel. We asked a tourist stand where it was and he told us to walk down the road we were on for about 10 minutes and it was on the right. Seems easy enough. Well, we starting walking. And kept walking. To make a REALLY LONG story short, we couldn't find it. We ended up using the internet at a different hotel and mapping it all out. Yeah, it was definitely not "on the right". It was down a super large hill and way up in a different direction.
But we found it! We stroll in about 10:00 and the guy at the front desk is really nice to us. Our room isn't ready yet, but they were still serving breakfast and he let us eat the breakfast and leave our bags at the counter until our room was ready. The breakfast wasn't great but it was free, every morning. So we filled up on as much free food as possible each day! I love being a college student sometimes... Dana also stole a large amount of tea bags from this place which I found to be hilarious and very suitable at the same time.
That first day we decided to walk around by the tourist stuff. It was really nice outside. Hot, actually. I was wearing long sleeves the whole trip for multiple purposes: 1. Avoid sunburn (which I did successfully) 2. Respect an Islamic culture and 3. Avoid attracting any more attention to myself than what my super pale skin already does. The first thing we did was go into a little Mosque that was near our hotel. They had some scarves for us to cover our heads when we first got in. It was a pretty neat experience for me. The whole culture in fact, was a pretty great experience for me. Growing up in Minnesota, I very rarely get to experience culture like this and at this scale. They did a call to prayer every day 5 times a day right on time. It was a little weird at first. Since at one point we were right by one of the largest mosques that do the call and it was really loud.
*In a mosque near our hotel
We spent some time at the palace. It was really pretty and had a fantastic view of the city! Later that night we saw whirling dervishes! It was so cool. I have a video of it that I'll try to post later. But anyways, we got into where the dance would happen and I got to sit on some pillows on the floor right in front. Then, there was about 30 minutes of music. It was really hard to stay awake at this point because I had been walking all day without any sleep the night before. They turned down the lights and starting this really soothing music... I think I may have fallen asleep a little bit, but so did many other people. After about 30 minutes, 3 men came out in their traditional dress and started to spin. The whirling dervish is a form of worship that is outlawed actually, but they do it for tourists nowadays because it's so popular. When it was over, one of the girls I was with didn't like it. "All they did was twirl around." "Yup, that's pretty much all they do." At any rate, it was amazing just to listen to the music and watch them come out in their outfits. Long white robes that when they spun so close to me on the floor, I actually got cold from the breeze!!
*View from the palace
The next day we saw the Cistern, the old underground water system for Istanbul. It looked pretty cool, but I couldn't tell you much about it. They had some columns that had Medusa's heads carved into the bottom and I still don't understand why. But it looked pretty cool and old, so I guess that's good.
*Underground water system. Columns holding it up
*Medusa Head
Then we went to the Blue Mosque. This is one of the biggest tourist attractions today. It was really neat. I learned that it is called the blue mosque because of the inside! Blue stain glass windows and tiles decorate the inside. It was rather magnificent. I actually feel bad going in there because it is still a mosque for worship for people who live there. They have a "fenced off" area for people to worship and on the other side is a massive amount of tourists walking around and taking photos. It feels disrespectful, but I guess they must be used to it at this point.
We sat on the floor along the wall and there were these 2 Turkish women who walked by us and started saying something and they pinched my cheeks and were petting Sara's blonde hair. They seemed rather amused at the site of us. It was funny and kind of cute. I don't think they've ever seen blondes and red heads up close before or something. We decided that it was cute when the old women did it, but probably not as cute had it been men trying to touch our faces!
Next up, the grand bizarre. I bought 2 scarves for myself. I don't really know why, actually. But I felt like I had to buy something since I was visiting a place where my currency is actually doing better AND everything is super cheap there already. I paid 15 Turkish Lira for 2 scarves, so maybe $5 per scarf US, maybe a little less. Yay for traveling to countries that aren't destroying the dollar!
This is where I should put in the little bit about intense verbal harrassement! These people have quite a different view on how to get someone into their store. We were called "Charlies Angels" once, which I thought was pretty funny. We also got "Spice Girls" MULTIPLE times. Didn't get that one, there was only 3 of us (we split into 3 groups to make our shopping easier). On the streets we got a lot of "Is there a beauty contest in town?" And just your average, hooting, whistling, "Pretty girls!", "I want to sleep with you", etc. on the streets. I would think it was mostly directed at the 2 blonde girls but I was probably pretty noticeable as well. It wasn't scary or anything, just incredibly annoying after a while.
The last day we walked to Asia. We crossed the bridge to the part of Istanbul that is technically in Asia minor, so that Megan could say that she's been to Asia! LOL thats not really why we did it, but it was fun. We just walked around and looked in some shops. We eventually had a really long lunch on a rooftop terrace that looked out over the sea! It was beautiful. Another tribute to the cheapness of this country for 6 people to eat, drink, AND have a hookah (I had to, it was Istanbul) the total bill came to 72 Lira... $46.
*Eau Claire girls in Asia!
I wish I could have written a better blog about this trip because it was honestly my favorite thing I've done so far here! But I gotta catch the bus in a few minutes and don't have time to elaborate. I'll just save the good stories for when I get home to the US!
And in other news, Marc is coming to visit me May 25th to June 4th!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Now I have to plan more adventures, and for cheap! This should be interesting...
Enough babbling, on to my adventures in Istanbul!
I planned to go on this trip before spring break even happened, so I've been looking forward to this for a while. I went with 5 other American girls including my roommate, another girl from the Boston area, and 3 other Eau Claire girls. We took a bus leaving on Thursday night at 10 p.m. It's about a 10 hour bus ride! But hey, the tickets were really cheap!! Our total cost roundtrip was about the price of a one-way on the trains. So needless to say, we were all pretty OK with the super long bus ride.
Got into Istanbul around 8 a.m. Friday morning. First things first, we need to find our hotel. All we had was the name of the hotel. We asked a tourist stand where it was and he told us to walk down the road we were on for about 10 minutes and it was on the right. Seems easy enough. Well, we starting walking. And kept walking. To make a REALLY LONG story short, we couldn't find it. We ended up using the internet at a different hotel and mapping it all out. Yeah, it was definitely not "on the right". It was down a super large hill and way up in a different direction.
But we found it! We stroll in about 10:00 and the guy at the front desk is really nice to us. Our room isn't ready yet, but they were still serving breakfast and he let us eat the breakfast and leave our bags at the counter until our room was ready. The breakfast wasn't great but it was free, every morning. So we filled up on as much free food as possible each day! I love being a college student sometimes... Dana also stole a large amount of tea bags from this place which I found to be hilarious and very suitable at the same time.
That first day we decided to walk around by the tourist stuff. It was really nice outside. Hot, actually. I was wearing long sleeves the whole trip for multiple purposes: 1. Avoid sunburn (which I did successfully) 2. Respect an Islamic culture and 3. Avoid attracting any more attention to myself than what my super pale skin already does. The first thing we did was go into a little Mosque that was near our hotel. They had some scarves for us to cover our heads when we first got in. It was a pretty neat experience for me. The whole culture in fact, was a pretty great experience for me. Growing up in Minnesota, I very rarely get to experience culture like this and at this scale. They did a call to prayer every day 5 times a day right on time. It was a little weird at first. Since at one point we were right by one of the largest mosques that do the call and it was really loud.
*In a mosque near our hotel
We spent some time at the palace. It was really pretty and had a fantastic view of the city! Later that night we saw whirling dervishes! It was so cool. I have a video of it that I'll try to post later. But anyways, we got into where the dance would happen and I got to sit on some pillows on the floor right in front. Then, there was about 30 minutes of music. It was really hard to stay awake at this point because I had been walking all day without any sleep the night before. They turned down the lights and starting this really soothing music... I think I may have fallen asleep a little bit, but so did many other people. After about 30 minutes, 3 men came out in their traditional dress and started to spin. The whirling dervish is a form of worship that is outlawed actually, but they do it for tourists nowadays because it's so popular. When it was over, one of the girls I was with didn't like it. "All they did was twirl around." "Yup, that's pretty much all they do." At any rate, it was amazing just to listen to the music and watch them come out in their outfits. Long white robes that when they spun so close to me on the floor, I actually got cold from the breeze!!
*View from the palace
The next day we saw the Cistern, the old underground water system for Istanbul. It looked pretty cool, but I couldn't tell you much about it. They had some columns that had Medusa's heads carved into the bottom and I still don't understand why. But it looked pretty cool and old, so I guess that's good.
*Underground water system. Columns holding it up
*Medusa Head
Then we went to the Blue Mosque. This is one of the biggest tourist attractions today. It was really neat. I learned that it is called the blue mosque because of the inside! Blue stain glass windows and tiles decorate the inside. It was rather magnificent. I actually feel bad going in there because it is still a mosque for worship for people who live there. They have a "fenced off" area for people to worship and on the other side is a massive amount of tourists walking around and taking photos. It feels disrespectful, but I guess they must be used to it at this point.
We sat on the floor along the wall and there were these 2 Turkish women who walked by us and started saying something and they pinched my cheeks and were petting Sara's blonde hair. They seemed rather amused at the site of us. It was funny and kind of cute. I don't think they've ever seen blondes and red heads up close before or something. We decided that it was cute when the old women did it, but probably not as cute had it been men trying to touch our faces!
Next up, the grand bizarre. I bought 2 scarves for myself. I don't really know why, actually. But I felt like I had to buy something since I was visiting a place where my currency is actually doing better AND everything is super cheap there already. I paid 15 Turkish Lira for 2 scarves, so maybe $5 per scarf US, maybe a little less. Yay for traveling to countries that aren't destroying the dollar!
This is where I should put in the little bit about intense verbal harrassement! These people have quite a different view on how to get someone into their store. We were called "Charlies Angels" once, which I thought was pretty funny. We also got "Spice Girls" MULTIPLE times. Didn't get that one, there was only 3 of us (we split into 3 groups to make our shopping easier). On the streets we got a lot of "Is there a beauty contest in town?" And just your average, hooting, whistling, "Pretty girls!", "I want to sleep with you", etc. on the streets. I would think it was mostly directed at the 2 blonde girls but I was probably pretty noticeable as well. It wasn't scary or anything, just incredibly annoying after a while.
The last day we walked to Asia. We crossed the bridge to the part of Istanbul that is technically in Asia minor, so that Megan could say that she's been to Asia! LOL thats not really why we did it, but it was fun. We just walked around and looked in some shops. We eventually had a really long lunch on a rooftop terrace that looked out over the sea! It was beautiful. Another tribute to the cheapness of this country for 6 people to eat, drink, AND have a hookah (I had to, it was Istanbul) the total bill came to 72 Lira... $46.
*Eau Claire girls in Asia!
I wish I could have written a better blog about this trip because it was honestly my favorite thing I've done so far here! But I gotta catch the bus in a few minutes and don't have time to elaborate. I'll just save the good stories for when I get home to the US!
And in other news, Marc is coming to visit me May 25th to June 4th!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Now I have to plan more adventures, and for cheap! This should be interesting...
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