Happy July! Time for a Recap!

I was bored because I have hours before my flight to Greece and the Courtyard Istanbul International Airport hotel (yeah it's a mouthfull) has free internet in the lobby so I decided to get on and write.

First of all my mom left to make her plane home in the middle of the night and I woke up feeling like a scared -year-old in a giant bed, in a giant room, all alone. What a loser! I'm really sad she left; we had a great time albeit with some travel ups and downs. To commemorate our experience I thought I'd write a blog that sums up my travels so far.

First of all, boy did mOcean luck out! You may or may not have noticed that I've being posting pictures in my mOcean T-shirt on their Facebook page www.facebook.com/moceanla. For those of you who don't know I worked there before leaving on my Europe trip and I really really miss everyone. So I just wanted to give a shoutout to all the mOceanites!

Next I think I will go ahead and write some more hate-blog about Alitalia and the Milan Linate airport. Yes, I am TWO WEEKS into my trip and do those idiots have any idea where my bag is? NO! I'm pretty much over it although I'm going have some trouble when I come home in two months to a completely empty underwear drawer. Sigh. I strongly recommend two things from this experience: 1) No matter how long you are traveling for just pack a carry-on. No you do not need that third dress - TRUST ME. You will like it a lot less when you have NOTHING. 2) Avoid Milan airport and Alitalia within an inch of your life. The Milan airport lost and found literally doesn't have a phone number so you can't reach them no matter how much you wheel and deal with other departments. You literally have to show up at the Milan airport in order to speak to one of them. As for Alitalia? They are REALLY good at sending meaningless telelexs to the lost baggage department that are completely ignored. Do they step up more than that? No, because once you've booked your ticket they don't give a shit about you.

Ahh I feel better. Now to rip apart my hotels. The Hotel La Colonnina was amazing. Our room, our beds, our shower, our terrace, all amazing. Selene (sorry if I'm spelling that wrong) is hands down the best hotel staffer that I have ever meet in my 26 years of traveling to over 16 different countries. If you are looking for someone to run your company fly to Monterosso and pick her up regardless of the price tag. She will make you rich. She is pleasant, smart, and will do EVERYTHING in her power to help you - including offering up her own mother to stop at the courier service to look for our bags.

Next, the Esans Hotel had the second most amazing hotel staff and I include all of them in this but especially Engin who tireless helped us in our bag search, made sure we were always stuffed with Turkish tea, and that our stay in Istanbul was full of adventure. I highly recommend this hotel although their beds could be softer and their blinds thicker.

As for the Local Cave House hotel, they are luckily it is made from stone or some angry guest is going to burn it down. The owner (Harun I think?) was terrible and his sidekick was scary (for those of you who have been reading along, yes, I refer to Creepy Guy). It was one of the worst run hotels I've ever seen since the disaster hotel in Thailand. They forgot us at the airport (you HAVE to have an airport pickup from Kayseri or you are spending the night there), they forgot our 4am wakeup call for our hot air balloon ride (I still sympathize for the people riding next to me in the balloon who had to smell my morning breath), and later I found out they'd charged us TWICE was everyone else paid for the same balloon. NEVER STAY THERE.

Since Harun's hotel was so awful (I should call it the Horror Hotel instead) we booked everything else in Cappadocia through Rose Tours. You have to haggle with them to get the best price but they are a very reliable tour company with great guides. A small shoutout to Mehmet here - give him a raise and a day off, he rocks!

Moving on to Pamukkale, we have the Melrose House Hotel, which was by far the prettiest, most relaxing hotel so far. I arrived in tears thanks to the angry airport man and my knight in shining armour, Selami, came to my rescue. He was a great host and the hotel was fabulous. One small note here is that they only clean the room every other day unless you specifically ask so keep that in mind. Otherwise, the rooms were very high quality for the price, the location was a little far but walkable to the sites, and we even got a bonus terrace! I would definitely stay here again.

And finally we have the Courtyard Marriot which had by far the softest bed in Turkey (finally!) and free internet although I miss my free breakfast. It was also the most expensive but eh that was expected. Mom is a sneaker and stole the Marriot points but she did have to be at the airport at 3am so I forgave her.

To wrap up, I'll leave you with my overall travel thoughts. I've been traveling Europe for two weeks now and I am hardly satiated even after all the trials I've been put through. Traveling really is in my blood. As Steinbeck would say, "Once a bum always a bum." How true that is. I've been excited by how close my mom and I got on this stint of my trip. I've also found that human beings really can get through anything if you have the right attitude. True losing your bag isn't even in the ballpark of losing a pet, a house or a parent, but losing your bag does strip you of any comfort. You don't realize how much of a comfort your bag is (filled with the clothes, products and memories you know) until it's lost to you. But I've found that living off the land ("hording hotel bathroom products") can be exciting! And you feel like a true travel with only a backpack on your back. If ever you want to truly test yourself I dare you to travel with three outfits and only what the hotel provides in the way of toiletries. It's a whole new way to travel.

And with that I'm off to enjoy the luxurious pool provided by this establishment to see if there is any skin left to burn. See you in Greece!

Last Days in Istanbul

June 23, 2011

Today we had very little agenda for once which was nice. We did wake up super early to visit the Basilica Cistern which was completely unnecessary since everyone sticks to a walkway so it's not like they will be in the way of your picture. Yes, I'll admit that I was excited to see it ever since Ally from the Bachelorette had a date there. I'm a loser - whatever.

It was haunting both because of the low lighting and the classical music they had playing. At the back of the Cistern are two columns with carvings of the head of Medusa at the base. We learned that the reason her head is upside down is so that she will not turn you to stone when you look at her. The Cistern was built in 527 and can hold up to 100,000 tons of water. In the Byzantine Period the Cistern met the water needs of the Sultan's palace and a good portion of the city but now it is just for display. I orginally thought that this would be my favorite attraction but the Harem still leads the pack.

After the Cistern, we began walking towards the spice market in an attempt to actually make it there today. Of course we made it about two feet before my mom dragged me into another ceramic shop. This one turned out to be pretty cool because instead of being a dealer's shop, the actual artist was selling - the store name is Firca. He told us all about his family's work including a table of cups, saucers and bowls with actual gold painted on them. One cup and saucer would be about $200 U.S. dollars. They were beautiful. My mom ended up buying a bowl with elephants and we left.


A couple stores down I found some bejeweled slippers that were light blue leather. I bought them for half the price that the slipper guy from yesterday was asking for his. Booyah. I'm sure I will wear them twice before they get a hole but I felt like a Turkish Dorothy in my sparkle shoes. Maybe ıf I click my heels together my bags wıill show up!

Finally we made it to the spice bazaar which is inside a long L-shaped building right next to the Yeni Mosque. It was extremely busy. The spice market is slightly less touristy than the Grand Bazaar but they sell many of the same things...in addition to spices obviously. At one of the spice shops we purchased dried apricots, pomegranate tea, saffron (which is hugely expensive in the U.S.), lemon-flavored pistachios, dried ginger, Turkish coffee and a bottle of Turkish Viagra (as a joke present for my aunt I promise). From there we ended up buying more scarfs of course and tried a street meat sandwich.



We decided to take the route past the Grand Bazaar to return back to the hotel because I'd seen a bag I really liked there and I wanted to get it. We accidentally found ourselves in the local market area that was packed full of Turkish people shopping. Suddenly the prices were a lot cheaper! But the fashion was terrible.

By the time we got to the Grand Bazaar we'd walked a mile up hill and stopped for a coffee. I had an iced coffee which they served in a tall glass with a metal straw. It was so icy and chocolatey! As we sat at the table we observed two Turkish women looking at necklaces at the stall nearby. One of them asked me to try on the different necklaces because they were shopping for a gift and their friend had similar coloring to me. I modeled the necklaces while we chatted. Next thing I know I find a necklace and a bracelet I really like! For those of you who don't know I always buy a bracelet in each country I travel to as a memento of the trip. And I got my necklace for cheaper than the Turkish women which made me proud. We found out later that the women bought the sugar holder from our cafe table! Apparently everything in Turkey is for sale - just name your price!

The next 30 minutes were spent trolling the Bazaar, which is enormous, ın search of the bag. It's yellow with hand-stitched designs on it. It is the only yellow bag I've seen in Istanbul which made it that much more special. We finally found the store and I snagged one.

On the way back to the hotel (we were exhausted) we ran into the owner of the restaurant, Aloran, who I'd promised we'd stop by so we ended up having drinks and Lavash bread. Lavash bread is the most popular bread in many Middle Eastern countries but it is traditionally made flat or wrapped around kebab. This Lavash was cooked so that it resembled a gigantic bread bubble with sesame seeds on top. Just imagine the air bubbles that you sometimes see in pizza crust and times the size by 1,000. I ate it with hummus and some local Efes beer which I'm a huge fan of.


We came back to the hotel, showered, admired our new stuff and then went to dinner because we didn't know what else to do. We went to the Star Cafe because they have hookah which I felt I had to do while in Turkey. My mom doesn't smoke though so it was a bit of an undertaking but the mint strawberry flavor was tasty. We then decided to order the Testi Topkapi after watching how they make it. Basically they put the meat, potato, onion and pepper in an earthenware jug and put it over a small fire at your table. Once it heats to a certain temperature they slice open the jug and pour out the steaming sauce. Then they turn the jug upside down and the bottom of the jug pops off and shatters on the ground. They bring it back to the table and pour the rest of the dish into the bowl to complete it.



We spent the next few hours chatting and then came back to the hotel to get to bed early since we are taking the Bosphorus cruise first thing in the morning.


June 24, 2011

Today we woke up early for our half-day trip with IBO Tours down the Bosphorus river. There were only a handful of people on our boat which was really nice. We didn't feel packed in. The first stop on the cruise was a small town whose name isn't important because it was a super lame town. Half of it wasn't even open. I recommend just getting a spot on the water and having some coffee during your "free time."

The next stop was far cooler - Beylerbeyi Sarayi or "Palace." This was the summer home of the Sultan of Turkey during the Ottoman Empire period. It's a little ridiculous since their regular home was just down the river. You'd think you'd pick somewhere were a change of scenery for a summer getaway. Our guide's name was Apo and he was very dynamic and extremely knowledgable. He told us that the Sultan who had the palace built (there are two other palaces) used over 16 tons of gold and silver on the decorations alone. It was this over indulgence that partially led to the revolution in the first place because eventually the army wasn't being paid because the Sultan spent so much money on parties and palaces. So they overthrew him.

Back before these palaces were built, the Sultan lived in Topkapi Palace among the people. He knew what they were saying and how they felt which made him a better ruler. But in the 18th century, sultans wanted to "modernize" and be more like western Europe causing them to build more ostentatious palaces away from the "commoners." This led to a large disconnect between ruler and the people and later led to revolution.

The palace was absolutely incredible and very opulent. Apo also explained that the purpose of this palace was to entertain so there are only waiting rooms, a reception and a few guest rooms. He pointed out that the giant cabinets in the halls held beds. The Turkish people sleep on the ground because it is better for your body and also eat on the ground with one knee pressed into their stomach to discourage overeating. It was honestly fascinating. Some of the rooms were paneled in wood because they were the rooms where the Sultan held secret gatherings. The wood prevented the echo of voices from wafting to the wrong ears.

Apo also told us that unlike medieval Europe where the eldest son ascended the throne in Ottoman Turkey the Sultan would select the best candidate from all of his sons. It didn't matter which wife, or how old, he would simply pick who he felt was most competent for the job. The crazy thing is that once that boy was chosen he either had to kill ALL of his brothers or banish them from the country. This was meant to maintain loyalty to the chosen Sultan by removing the competition. He also had to kill them by strangulation or poison because royal blood cannot be spilled.

He explained that Beylerbeyi Palace was last used by the Ataturk who led the war for Turkish independence. If the Turkish police overhear you saying anything negative about him you risk getting thrown in jail. Apo explained that the three most important things in Turkey are the system, the Ataturk, and the Republic. However, he did mention that the Ataturk had many secrets and people are starting to question his private life. He didn't have any real examples to give though.

You could definitely see the Ataturk's influence on Turkey. All the clocks in the palace are set to 9:05 because that is the time when the Ataturk died. The flag of Turkey was also changed to the current flag due to the Ataturk's 1920 revolution. The crescent and the start date back to the early tribes that practiced shamanism and prayed to the Sky God. The red backgrounf of the flag represents the blood spilled to free Turkey. Pretty crazy.

The next stop on the tour was Rumeli Fortress at the northern end of the Bosphorus were it narrows to its thinnest point before filtering into the Black Sea. Not much to tell here other than that it was built in 1452 in only four months (which is absolutely ridiculous) by a Sultan who was trying to conquer Istanbul. It was a very strategic position as it prevented boats from entering the Bosphorus. This fortress reminded me a lot of the Great Wall in China. Giant smoothed steps leading higher and higher to gorgeous views of the water. Beware the wind and the lack of railing though! Many people get vertigo on the way back down because the staircases are very narrow, built into the side of the rock walls, and provide zero in the way of a guard rail to keep you from falling. That didn't stop two idiot girls from doing jumping pictures at the top. I left before I had to watch one of them plunge to their death.

The fortress was the last stop on tour for us and there was a minibus waiting to take us back to the hotel. We decided to have the minibus drop us off at Dolmabahce Palace which was the true home of the Sultan when he wasn't kicking it at Beylerbeyi. Dolmabahce takes two and a half hours to go through, you have to go with a guided tour and it costs 20 Lira total to see the Semilik (administrative section) and the Harem (the Sultan's family quarters). If you get there after 3pm though you have to pick one or the other so we went with the Semilik. It was pretty much a bigger version of Beylerbeyi except there was way more amazing paintings of Arabian horses, war, and ships lost at sea. Also the finale of the tour was the Ceremonial Hall which in my opinion easily rivals the Sistine Chapel. It was the most awe-inspiring architecture and decoration I've ever seen complete with a 4.5 ton chandelier of silver crystal that has over 10,000 pieces and takes 3 months to clean completely.

We were extremely tired so we walked to the tram and took it back to Esans. The tram is super easy to use; you just put in 1.75 Lira and hit the button to receive your red coin. Drop the coin in the slot and enter the tramway area. Then just check what color line you need and jump on!

After showering, we decided to be picky about the restaurant for our last night in Istanbul. We ended up on a fun little street with lots of activity. The first restaurant we almost ended up at seemed shady and I'm pretty sure they tried to give us the special American menu so we bailed and walked farther down the street.

We finally went with Rumeli Cafe and sat up on the rooftop. We made friends with one of the waiters, Lufti, who told us all about being Muslim. He said that weddings are always on Friday, Saturday and Sunday and usually take place at the house of one of the family. Friday and Saturday are for partying and Sunday is the ceremony. He also explained that the reason we don't see people praying in the street every time there is a call to prayer is because the only time you really need to go to the mosque is on Fridays for the noon prayer. The other prayer times can be done wherever is most convenient. For dinner I had Ali Nazık Kebabı which is grilled mince meat with eggplant and yogurt. It was sooo good even though it didn't look super appetizing.

He ended up hanging out with us long after we paid the bill and finished our wine. We asked him where he was headed next and he said shisha around the corner. I gave my mom my best set of pleading eyes and she agreed to go. The shisha place was just up the street. We had apple shisha and played three games of backgammon before my mom insisted we go because she'd fallen asleep three times at the table. I sadly didn't win a single game. He was so fast that I couldn't even keep up with his moves. Dead tired we headed back to the hotel to pack and prepare for our flight tomorrow to Cappadocia.



June 25, 2011

We jumped in the taxi at 11:15am to make our 2:15pm flight on Turkish Airlines. The airplane was extremely comfortable and we arrived without a problem. However, our hotel, the Local Cave House, had completely forgotten to send our pickup car. The Kayseri airport is an hour driving from Gerome, the town we were staying in so we were in effect - screwed. I crumpled to the ground in exhaustion at yet another trial in the trip and told my mom she had to deal with it this time; i just didn't have it in me. She worked with this super polite tour guide who said he didn't have any room in his van but he worked it out so that we could catch a ride with a different van. Luckily, it actually took us to our hotel.

The hotel was absolutely adorable at first glance. The 7-9 rooms (I forget how many) are cut into the rock face of the mountain with a shining, clean pool at the base. There is even a little shisha lounge off to the side. We were greeted with Turkish tea and lots of tour options. The main guy was nice but seemed a little shady and his sidekick was totally creepy. Mom and I have literally started to call him, Creepy Guy. I keep expecting to open the window drapes and see his face staring in.

We ended up booking a hot air balloon ride for the next morning for 160 Euro each. We were told this was an amazing price and a very reputable company. We asked for a 4am wakeup call and then went out to find some food. We had dinner at a restaurant called Manzana that was amazing. It had a great view of "downtown" Gerome and a precious little black cat that we kept feeding steak and salmon to. She was really hungry; it's kinda of sad. My mom's steak with wine sauce was sooo good though which was very surprising!

It was getting pretty late so we headed back to the hotel so get a few hours of sleep before our hot air balloon ride tomorrow. So far my general opinion is the town is super cute but pretty sleepy. I'm already glad we are only spending a few days here.

Arrivederci Italia; Merhaba Turkey!

June 19, 2011

Today was Mom's day to be depressed. The lack of clothes is really wearing. I feel like I've spent a significant amount of time at the Internet cafe figuring out our bags. The courier service is closed today (of course) and we leave on the train to Milan at 6:55am tomorrow so we won't get them before we leave for Turkey.

We were both feeling pretty lazy have the serious hiking we did yesterday and the weather was AMAZING so we just wandered around town. We found a store on the waterfront where I found a pair of shorts, a blouse and a tank top that should hold me over for another few days. They were actually pretty cute! Maybe I should rename this blog "How to Survive Europe with a school backpack." I felt a lot better after having a third outfit so with a little more pep in my step we jumped on the train to Riomaggiore.

As an aside, I mentioned in an earlier entry about the Cinque Terra card and how you can only get up to two days. Well today was our third day and I'd realized something. When you first buy the card they tell you you MUST it is stamped at the yellow ticket machine. It stamps the date and time on the card. It is this date and time they use to determine when you first started using the card. Well Mom and I had never bothered to get ours stamped so I realized if we got it stamped today then they wouldn't be any wiser. So that's what we did right before boarding the train.

Riomaggiore turned out to be WAY cooler than I'd originally thought (you might remember the nasty beef egg thing I ordered at the restaurant there). I'd realized that on our previous visit we had completely missed the best part of the town, the Marina. I wasn't surprised to find we missed the Marina as the only access to it is a dark staircase that looks like a service entrance.

After going through the tunnel from the train station most people turn left into the light and see the upper part of town. Instead of turning left out of the tunnel look in front of you for a dark staircase. Yup, that's it. On the other side of the staircase we were greeted by a stormy, rugged coast, waves crashing against the wall of rocks that protects the town from the ocean. This area of the town feels like the last remaining stronghold of an empire. In other words - AWESOME.


I headed straight to the water's edge and turned for my mom to take my picture. Right as she aimed the lense, a giant wave took out my left side. Yes, I was soaked. And she was laughing so hard tears came to her eyes. I slicked back the left half of my hair, Two-Face style, and we contined to the other side of the Marina where I got some great shots of the town nestled in the rocks. This one is definitely climbing the ranks of favorite city.

The plan was to head to Vernazza to hike the last remaining part of the trail left, Vernazza to Corniglia, but my flipflops were making my feet bleed so we had to take a detour back to Monterosso. We were amazed by the crush of people that met us at the train station. Where did they all come from!? We were elbowed from all sides but had learned to stand our ground. I would recommend avoiding weekends if you ever come here though. So much more relaxed and empty during the week.

Back in Monterosso, we stopped at the same restaurant where we'd had dinner the night before and I purchased a speck and brie sandwich to-go that was delicious. Mom was getting more and more depressed so we decided to skip the hike and just relax at the hotel. We spent the next few hours tanning on our lovely terrace. A room with a terrace is a little extra but let me tell you it was WELL worth it. I finally feel a little bit like I'm on vacation! The warm weather definitely cheered my mom's mood (doesn't a tan always make you feel better?) so I convinced her that she had to do the hike. Afterall hiking the entire Cinque Terra is on her life bucket list. Can't stop now!

So we headed for Vernazza. The town was bathed in the soft light of the afternoon sun which transformed it into a golden city. I left mom at the base of the trail we hiked yesterday and ran up it a mile to the outlook where we'd taken photos before. I couldn't resist retaking the pictures with the town looking like this. The raging sea made it look even more romantic.


When I returned I found my mom lurking near the Blue Marlin. She is postitive that this is the same bar that she and my dad had come to when they visited the Cinque Terra almost fifteen years ago. The bartender at the time apparently looked like a carbon copy of Dad and she was determined to find him. Instead we found an old man, the owner, who continuously molested my mom until I finally said I'd take a picture of the two of them if he would let her leave. He literally grabbed at her to take the picture. EW!

After this nonsense we prepared ourselves and began the hike from Vernazza to Corniglia. Just outside of Vernazza we came across a bar on the right side of the trail that had a patio built into the side of the mountain with a gorgeous view of the Vernazza and the ocean. We were more than tempted to bail on the hike and stay to down some beers and watch the sunset.


But the bucket list drove us on. This trail was unlike the tourist-ridden trail of steep stairs from the day before. Not that there weren't a bunch of stairs...but this trail was more wooded. I felt like I had entered the forest where Sleeping Beauty is hidden. I kept waiting for singing rabbits to start seranading me from the bushes. It takes an average person about one hour to hike this trail making it shorter than Monterosso to Vernazza.


After trekking along the coast, we came around a corner (I love how they put amazing places just around a corner) and saw Corniglia set out on the mountain cliff in front of us. It looked like a storyboard castle, strong and solemn atop the bluffs, but also colorful and inviting. I swear it needs to be made into a jigsaw puzzle that shows the town, the bluffs and the angry ocean below. The water around the bluff was a poisonous green with a fiery white froth. But the mountain easily took its abuse. We passed through miles of vineyards and old rock walls into the town.


By now it was very late in the day, close to 8pm, and we had to pack and print our tickets so we headed straight to the train and got the opportunity to ride on a brand new train called Arenaway. I need to look up the company to learn more but from what I could tell its a first class train complete with tables and computer outlets. I think you can even order food. I'll have to get back to you on this.


After another visit to the Internet cafe, we showered and went to Tortuga Restaurant which is situated near the castle tower in Monterosso. It was the best food we've had yet - sea bass with pine nuts and tomatoes, green noodles with bolognese and creme brulee with a bottle of Brunello di Montalcino to wash it down.


Our table looked out over the ocean and the sound of glasses and silverware tinkling was no match to the overpowering roar of the ocean below. Such a romantic dinner with Mom! The couple sitting next to us was super friendly and from Bristol so we had a chat about the Royal Wedding and our thoughts on Kate and Camilla. Our server's name was Denny who said it had been very busy and it was his second job of the day. He took a little while to warm up but we finally got him to relax.

Feeling drunk and truly content for the first time on the trip we soaked in our last moments of the Cinque Terra as we silently returned to our hotel to pack and prepare for our long travel day tomorrow.

June 20, 2011

We woke up first thing this morning and boarded our 6:55am train for Milan. I was so tired that we almost slept through our stop. Upon arrival at the airport, we spoke to Barbara at the Lost and Found who spent a lot of time reaching the courier and getting our bags in order. Apparently they should meet us in Turkey in a few days. By the way if you ever lose your bags and need to get back into baggage claim you CAN go through the area that says NO ENTRY as long as you have the lost baggage claim form and your passport.

We went through security where the man was nice enough to let Mom keep her pesto after hearing our lost bags sob sorry. Unfortunately, to get from Milan to Istanbul for less than a couple grand we had to go through London which is only completely out of the way. However, the trip must be getting better because once we reached Heathrow airport there was a litte cafe with amazing salami and goat cheese sandwiches. Maybe I was just hungry. The guy working the counter reminded me of the soup Nazi from Seinfeld. We stood at the counter waiting to give our order when he informed us that we were standing at the pick-up counter. We moved about three feet to the left and suddenly we were in the order line. Our mistake.

Finally we boarded the plane from London to Istanbul and sat next to a Scottish man that sells airport parts to airlines. He was immensely interesting and told us that we needed to visit Syria specifically Palmera and Damascus. Palmera is where the many ancient trade routes collide and Syria also boasts the cave where Cain supposedly slain Abel. The Bible come to life - that's cool! We also met a woman getting off the plane whose carry on luggage has the coolest tag - "Pretty sure this isn't your bag." She said she bought the tag from a website called Pamela Barsky. I took a look at the site and she sells some fun travel stuff.

We landed at 11:15pm and voila our airport pick up was right there! We got to the Esans Hotel which is super cute and a little ridiculous. The wallpaper is white with a turquoise leaf-like pattern that is glittery. Yes, like they dipped the entire thing in glitter and then pasted it on the wall. My mom also felt the need to turn the air conditioner down to subzero so my toes are freezing as I write this. It is 1:10am so I am going to head to bed but look forward to my new entries in a new place - Turkey!