Istanbul, Turkey - 8/16/14

Istanbul…. Was interesting… I have to say on the trip I think it was my least favorite. The city was really big and dirty. The pollution around it is worse than when you fly into LA. 

Best photo i could take of the Blue Mosque. 

View of the European side of Istanbul from the bridge to the golden horn.

Istanbul is half in Asia and half in Europe.  We went and decided to get lost on our own in this city, which meant we aimlessly wandered around the Golden Horn which houses Topeki Palace, Hagia  Sophia and the often photographed Blue Mosque.

Random cool tree in the gardens near Topeki Palace

We only went into the Hagia Sophia on the trip since part of the Blue Mosque is closed because of unrest and there are religious events that happen on Fridays. (below are all photos of the Hagia Sophia)

I wanted to go into the underground Cistern which is a vast underground reservoir built by the Romans but we did not have any Turkish lira to pay for the tickets.  We did quickly go through the Grand Bazaar but there were just way too many people.

Grand Bazaar

My new home.

Well, after the long housing ordeal I am finally situated into my apartment. After a lengthy conversation with the landlord who didn't speak English at all yesterday I am now spending my first night in the new place.
Its a cute 6th floor, 4 bedroom apartment. Currently I am the only one here but will soon have another student from OSU and an Italian guy. Not sure who the last person will be.
It's nice and quite and a 1 minute walk to the tram station which is how I get to the university.
I'm still not unpacked but I managed to go to IKEA and buy some essentials. Will work on that unpacking tomorrow. :)

Kusadasi, Turkey - 8/14/2014

The second stop on our trip was to Kusadasi, Turkey that was my first time ever being in Asia. We ported in Kusadasi but were bused to a nearby ancient Roman village of Ephesus(Eff- uh – sis). Currently only 20% of the ancient village has been uncovered from the earth that has been covering it for hundreds of years.  We were able to tour the parts of the ancient city that have been uncovered such as the Largest Library in the Ancient Roman Empire and the largest roman Amphitheater that can seat 24, 000 people. 

You are able to walk down the original roman walkway ( the same one that Cleopatra once walked on when she vacationed there in a summer).

  Interestingly on that same walkway you can find the first signs of a prostitution.

Some of the other things you can see are the ancient living areas, the hospital, bathrooms, mosaics and  where they held official government like meetings. 

The next stop on our tour was to a carpet-making factory where Turkish rugs are made and sold.  We were given a lecture on how the rugs are made by the women of the nearby Turkish village. It is a lot of work taking 3-5 years for one rug to be completed depending on how intricate or if it is made of silk or cotton. The rugs were beautiful but one rug is about the cost of a terms tuition…. 

After the carpet tour we went to another village nearby called Sirince which is basically a small Turkish village up in the hills and all we really did here was taste some wine. 

WE MADE IT!

530 km driving, 14 cities, 5 countries, 5 hotels, 4 planes, 1 cruise ship and countless miles of walking... WE MADE IT TO MURCIA!

I know I still need to post all the blogs and pictures from the trip but I am still getting settled in... You will see them next week do not worry. I do have to share this week’s adventure involving driving... 

First, road signs in Europe are HORRIBLE if you can even find them. Secondly, 99% of the intersections in Spain are roundabouts with crisscrossing roads and stoplights every 10 feet. Thirdly... well I do not think street lines and blinkers mean anything. 

Originally, after Murcia, my mom and brother were supposed to drive to Madrid and fly home. Because of the insane driving situation and the fact you cannot even drive here unless you know the place, have a GPS, maybe a tour guide, 2 backseat drivers and maybe a flying car. Therefore, we returned the car early and bought them a train ticket. However, to the return the car we first had to fill it up with gas, diesel to be exact, at a gas station, which had no pumping instructions and a cashier who spoke no English. Mom and I looked like idiots...Oregon girls know nothing of this gas-pumping thing... Do not worry; we think we put the right fuel in it... 

Side note - Just bought a bag of the freshest fruit for like 2 euros and I am so happy that fruits and veggies are SO cheap here.

Athens, Greece - 8/13/2014

 The first stop on our cruise was to Piraeus, Greece. Piraeus is the port for Athens and is the largest in Greece because it is the main hub to the 220 inhabited Greek Isles. 

Our first stop in Athens was to the Acropolis, which is the most important ancient site in the Ancient world. The Acropolis houses many ruins such as the Amphitheater, temple of Athena and of course the Parthenon. There were a few others that you could see form the top.  

Odeon of Herodes Atticus

Mom's Favorite the Temple of Athena Nike (by the way "Nike" means Victory)

Mom and I at the Parthenon 

Parthenon

Temple of Olympian Zeus

Erechtheion

 After the Acropolis we made our was around the city we saw the…..

Old Olympic Stadium

and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and Parliament building with the Guards that walk supper funny…. did not get close enough to take a picture.

We saw many different places such as Ancient Roman Baths, many churches, Hadrian’s Arch and other ancient ruins in our drive through town. We stopped at a hotel for some lunch where we were served a traditional Greek meal with a lot of food that I enjoyed but cannot pronounce or remember what it was called…

After lunch we went on a Scenic coastal drive which was BEAUTIFUL (The bright blue Mediterranean coastal water is the most amazing thing in the world in my opinion) to the Temple of Poseidon which I think was my favorite.  The temple is quite far from the Athens downtown and is up on a hill that overlooks the ocean and some suburb villages of Athens. 

Temple of Poseidon

View from the Temple of Poseidon

The whole day was long and hot but the amazing things that I have to see were worth every minute of it. I have always dreamed of going to the Acropolis and seeing all the temples and ancient ruins that I have seen on TV and been so fascinated with. I am so happy that it finally came true. On the downside…. I was not very fond of the city of Athens itself though I think it is because I am still in love with Venice…. 

Pictures and posts are coming!

Sorry everyone, I have had a lack of internet and cooperation from my electronics. The posts are going to be a bit delayed but I wanted to make sure they were perfect and had lots of pictures.

Currently in Barcelona, España. Traveling to Lisbon, Portugal tomorrow, then back to España.

Bye for now.

Getting Lost in Venice... Literally

Yesterday was our last full day in Venice so we made the most out of it.  We all had fallen asleep the night before around 7 pm so we were up and eating breakfast by 730am. After that, we went and explored Piazza San Marco(right), which is a quick ½ block from our hotel. This square contains St. Marks Basilica (A.D. 830)(top center), the Doge’s Palace(top right) and Campanile bell tower(top left) (1946).  The Doge’s Palace has one of the only covered bridges in Venice which is called the Bridge of Sighs(left ). The bridge is the link between the palace and the Prison and has windows for prisoners to look out and see the last daylight they will ever see.

Our Hotel offered us a complementary trip to the neighboring island of Murano, which is famous for Murano Glass, which is, hand blown in one of the many factories. We hopped on a taxi and took a trip down the Grand Canal and onto the Venetian 1-5(left) out to the Island. 

We able to watch one of the artists create a few glass pieces which was quite mind blowing for me (I cannot even draw stick figures). He made a vase in about 5 minutes and a horse in about 2 minutes. We then toured the museum where we found 1000 of pieces of glass (By the way one shot glass was 450 euros, bought 50 of them… not.) 

After we returned to main land Venice, we went on an adventure. Venice is a mouse maze and getting lost is part of the experience, so we set out to get lost. Another fact about Venice, nothing is level. Avery building is crooked because Venice was built on Sediment from a river that is particularly solid. Venice has actually sunk about 9 inches and there are efforts underway to help and keep Venice from continuing to sink and flood.

We walked for about 2 hours before we sat down for lunch at one of the little restaurants and then decided to go full Italian. We had the traditional Sangria, Spritz to drink, Prosciutto, Melon, and Caprese Salad to munch on. 

After we ate lunch, we continued our journey until a thunderstorm rolled in. I have never seen so many umbrellas…. Vendors came out of nowhere and started to sell them and of course my mom “No we don’t need that we are from Oregon”.  After walking in circles and getting lost, we returned to the hotel-soaking wet but that was okay with us. 

Note that "Oregon" is written
on the right side of the van

After we dried off a bit and took a break, we went on another adventure to the cruise port, which is across the Grand Canal and the west side of Venice. That was a long walk but we finally found where the only cars are in Venice. They are only allowed to cross the bridge from the mainland and park in a garage. 

 For Dinner we went and found a whole and the wall place that serves AMAZING fresh pasta to go. you have to eat it right away to get the whole experience. Highly recommend Alfredo's Fresh Pasta To Go.

Here is a picture of St. Mark's square at night that i took before i was eaten alive by bugs. 

Well this is my last post for while we are off to get on the cruise, will be posting a lot when i get to Spain on the 23rd so be ready. Sorry it is a bit ugly . And Dad, here is more pictures as you requested.

Bon Voyage!