Istanbul'a hoş geldiniz!

Welcome to Istanbul!



Our overnight flight from Berlin to Istanbul on Sun Express may have been the worst flight either of us has ever taken. The seats were tiny (neither of us are very large people and we barely fit), they also were about as comfortable as sitting on a cement block and the flight was delayed due to lack of organization herding us onto the plane. Warning: DO NOT fly this airline no matter how cheap a flight you can find!

Anyways, we arrived in Istanbul around 8 in the morning, tired and frustrated from our flight. With not a clue how to get to our hostel we decided to try and find our way on our own…no map, no directions, no nothing. (In hindsight this was not the most brilliant idea.) We got on a one-hour bus that appeared to be taking us right where we needed to go, however, when the bus pulled into the station…the last stop…we finally figured out we were not in the right place. We found a cab driver, showed him our address and begged him to take us there. He laughed at us, telling us we were on the Asian side of Istanbul and needed to be on the European side (such a weird concept). So onto a ferry we went to take us across the Bosporus River.



We arrived on the European side…still lost…told which tram stop to get off at…still lost...helped by a stranger on the street…still lost…finally after walking up and down streets for about an hour and being helped by 5 different individuals, one man finally pointed us to our hostel…The Second Home Hostel.

Located in Sultanahmet, we were very close to many of Istanbul’s major
attractions including Topkapi Palace, Hagia Sofia, and the Blue Mosque etc. The hostel was completely booked, so Matt and I were taken to a separate building they owned that had individual apartments. We couldn’t believe how big our room was upon entering…we had a queen size bed, two sets of bunk beds, three closets and a large bathroom…my entire extended family could have stayed comfortably in this room. Exhausted…we both lay down on the bed to see if it was comfortable and passed out for a few hours.

We were quite startled when our nap was interrupted by a blaring voice coming from right outside our window…we soon realized it was one of the five daily calls to prayer…we also realized there was a mosque and a speaker pointing directly into our window. After a few times we were used to it…I actually came to enjoy it…though not when it sounded at 4AM.

Now awake, we headed off to see Istanbul. We walked up the street to Hagia Sofia and the Blue Mosque. There were hoards of people sitting in the outside gardens, entering the mosques to pray, trying to interest people in converting to Islam, and snapping photo after photo of these incredibly famous mosques.



The Sultan Ahmed Mosque, built between 1609 and 1616, is better known as the Blue Mosque due to the spectacular blue tiles embellishing the walls of the mosque. Matt and I attempted to enter the mosque through what appeared to be the main entrance, however, it was only for worshippers.



We found a long line of people behind the mosque waiting to enter the “tourist” entrance. We had to remove our shoes and I had to cover my head to be allowed to enter.



The main dome and a chandelier that hangs over the prayer area are truly incredible.



Starving after leaving the Mosque we walked down the street to an authentic Turkish looking restaurant, the Haan, for a snack. We sat on pillows around a very low table and enjoyed humus, a Turkish pancake filled with spinach, and the “Haan Pastry” which was fried pastry filled with the Haan special filling…vegetables and cheese! Two women sat in the front of the restaurant rolling and making the pancakes and cooking the lavash over a dome shaped oven.



After freshening up, we walked to the Beyoglu area of Istanbul across the Galata Bridge to the Galata Tower.



We were recommended by Nina, a friend of Charlie Johnstone’s who lives in Istanbul to eat dinner at a small fish restaurant called Balikcisi on Serdar-i Ekrem Sokak.



It was a hole in the wall but my was it good. We were told the best dish on the menu was the blue fish, which we both ordered. Having ate plenty of freshly caught bluefish in Duxbury, we were expecting a large chunk of fish, maybe a small fillet…however, I was quite shocked when I was served 4 tiny grilled fish, each no longer than my middle finger, complete with skin, the head, the tail, the bones…everything.



I hesitated before taking the first bite, contemplating sending the dish back for a bowl of pasta with pesto, but I decided to give it a try…when in Istanbul right?! It was delicious….the best bluefish I have ever tasted. Matt and I sat carefully peeling as much meat as possible off of the barely visible bones and eating ALL the skin. We thought we were doing a wonderful job until a couple at the table next to us ordered the same dish and began taking bites out of the fish…yes, they ate the whole thing! On our walk back from dinner we passed outdoor markets, pushy salesmen, street dancers, vendors and hundreds of fishermen.



Ready to go to bed but feeling lame since it seemed the entire city was out doing something we decided to go home, change and find a relaxing hookah bar. However, as we passed our hostel, the man at the front desk invited us upstairs to smoke the water pipe with two other girls from Denmark, a man from Australia and a woman from Austin, Texas. We all sat on the rooftop of the hostel talking about our travels and playing team backgammon!

The next morning we stopped at the Egyptian Spice Bazaar before heading off to Bebek, a wealthy village along the Bosporus River Nina suggested we visit. The Spice Bazaar was absolutely fantastic…ever sort of spice, nut, dried fruit, or treat could be found in every stall, piled on top of each other, trying to lure in the next innocent passerby by offering free samples and mint tea. Matt and I made it to the other end of the Bazaar without being hassled but were trapped at the stall before the exit and sucked into buying about $10 worth of pistachios!



We decided to take public transportation to Bebek…in retrospect this was a terrible idea…it took us about 3 hours to get there (instead of 30 minutes)…and probably would have cost the same as taking a taxi from our hostel…I think we took three trams, the subway, and then a taxi. But it was worth the trip! We tried to find a restaurant that Nina recommended us, however were unable to find it so we decided to walk along the waterfront up to Rumeli Hisari. She told us we would feel as though we were in Cape Town, and since neither of us has been to Cape Town, we took her word for it and hope to someday visit if it is truly like this.



We grabbed a bite to eat at a small restaurant right on the river. It was 3PM, yet the waiter asked us if we would like breakfast, confused we said no and ordered lunch. Not only did we stand out because we were not Turkish, but as our food was brought out we realized it was Sunday and you come to this restaurant to have brunch. People were practically laughing at us and looking at us as though we were from another planet!

Later that evening we went to another Turkish restaurant, Home Made, and enjoyed their cold meze platter. Meze is more of an eating experience than a type of dish. Meze typically includes cacik (yogurt with cucumber and mint), enginar (cooked artichoke), haydari (yogurt with roasted eggplant/aubergine and garlic) and yaprak sarma (vine leaves stuffed with rice, herbs and pine nuts. It also included tabbouleh and humus! I think I could eat Turkish food all day every day!



The next morning we headed off early to visit the opulent Topkapi Palace, one of the largest and oldest palaces in the world. It was the Imperial residence of Ottoman sultans for almost 400 years. Everything was ornate, from the Imperial Council Chamber and the Library of Ahmet III to the rich collection of imperial robes, kaftans, and uniforms worked in gold and silver thread.



But the most incredible sight is the Imperial Treasury…which showcases an incredible collection of precious stones, objects made of gold, silver, rubies, pearls, diamonds etc. The most fascinating pieces are the enormous gold and diamond candlesticks weighing 48kg each…or perhaps the Topkapi dagger featuring 3 enormous emeralds…or maybe the Kasikci (Spoonmaker’s )Diamond, a teardrop-shaped 86-carat rock surrounded by dozens of “smaller” stones. This is the fifth largest diamond in the world and named such because it was found at a rubbish dump and purchased by a street peddler for 5 spoons!



Next, we headed off to the Grand Bazaar to try and tackle as many of the 4000 shops and several kilometers of lanes this “covered city” as possible. We came across innumerable shops selling jewelry, silver, ceramics, knock-off designer everything, and antiques. The shopkeepers were all friendly but overly eager to sell you any of their goods! If the Grand Bazaar itself wasn’t exciting enough, the maze of more streets and shops surrounding it are even more interesting as that is where we saw all of the locals doing their shopping!



The next morning prior to our departure, we decided to ship a box home with all our warm clothes, things we no longer needed and some gifts. What we thought would be a simple task turned out to be quite complicated. To make a long story short the “shipping center” had no boxes, and maybe would have some in two weeks, so we ran from shop to shop trying to buy one. We finally found a man to sell us one, which had probably been used 19 times. Hopefully it will hold up on the 18 day journey it has to make it to Duxbury. Who knows when it will truly arrive! Well, we are off to Jordan and to the warm weather from here on out! Yay!

Stay thirsty my friends,

Lindsey and Matt

Willkommen in Deutschland

I know it has been a while since we have updated our blog. We had a major computer crash. We write a lot of our blogs, but save them because it takes us a while to upload the pictures before we post them. The computer crash left us with no choice but to re-boot the entire system. This means we lost music, some pictures, and our Germany, Istanbul, and Jordan blogs!! Therefore, you will be a getting a shorter version, but we will put in lots of pictures to make up for it.

So...Welcome to Germany!



Germany was a wild week. Lindsey and I made a last minute decision to meet her friend Hector in Munich, travel up through Germany together and separate in Berlin. We arrived in Munich the night before Hector was flying in. Hotels were hard to come by because of Oktoberfest. Our hotel was actually 20 miles outside the city in a small town called Friesing. That night we walked around the town and had dinner. I am glad we stayed in this town as it was our first time being away from the hustle and bustle of cities and tourism. It was a true Bavarian town. The town had one main shopping street, and we had dinner at an authentic Bavarian restaurant.



The next day we met up with Hector. It took us a while to settle in, but we eventually made it into Munich and headed straight for Oktoberfest. The place is literally like a huge carnival with rides, games, food, and giant beer tents. Each tent had a band in the middle with benches and tables that surrounded it. Oktoberfest is everything you think it would be, but even crazier.



Our first day there we arrived at 2PM, and were home by 9PM. None of us really recall how we made it 20 miles back to Friesing but we did. The second day we got a very slow start! We had lunch in Friesing, and did some shopping. We tried on some Bavarian clothes….. don’t we look great!!!



We then headed back to Munich for round 2. This time we got there later and all the tents were already rocking and rolling. We found a great tent and decided to stay in this 1 all night. When we walked in the band was playing, “We are the Champions.” The whole place was singing and dancing. The beers are enormous at Oktoberfest, but we needed to catch up. It only took 1, and we were ready to join the fun. We met some Germans who were very kind. The invited us to their table. Everyone stands on the seats the whole time. They taught us the drinking songs so we could join in. Oktoberfest was a wild experience. Unfortunately, this is all we saw of Munich. I guess we will have to return next year.



We decided to visit Dresden on our way up to Berlin. Lindsey had a family friend who invited us to stay at his apartment for the night. In my own words, Tim was the man! Not only was he inviting, friendly, and knowledgeable…. he was crazy. We were a little worn out from Oktoberfest, but Tim was ready to rock. He first showed us around the city, acting as our own personal tour guide. We then went to a Greek restaurant. Everything on the menu was 7.77 euro. The food was delicious. After dinner Tim drove us around the city. We walked into a club to see how the action was. Turns out it was too dead for Tim. Instead we relaxed at a very comfortable hookah bar.



The following day Tim left early for work, and we headed out to explore the town on our own. The city of Dresden was completely demolished in War World II. When I say completely, I mean the entire place was left as rubble. It was fascinating to see how it has been rebuilt over the years. One particularly interesting story was how they rebuilt the church. They took each piece of rubble and analyzed it to determine where it belonged. This is why the church looks the way it does. We also ventured inside and to the top of the church. From the top you had a great view of the entire city.



That afternoon we boarded a train to Berlin. We got to the city at night and immediately realized that Berlin was a very large city. We decided the best way to see the whole city was to hop on a tour bus. The tour buses were actually great. You pay a small fee and you can get on and off the bus all day long as it makes numerous stops around the city. I feel I learned a lot about Germany and their post war struggles while in Berlin. We saw the remaining segments of the Berlin Wall, the Reichstag, Check Point Charlie, and the Check Point Charlie Museum...and many more famous sights.







In the museum we learned about many of the crazy, creative, and daring ways people made it over the Berlin Wall and into Western Germany. Tim recommended we visit this museum saying he could spend 4 hours there, we thought he was crazy to spend that long in a museum, until we ended up staying for about 3 hours ourselves!

Overall, Germany was wild, exiting, moving, and educational. Lindsey and I said farewell to Hector late Friday night and heading off the airport to catch our 2:00AM flight to Istanbul. We are officially leaving the cold weather and should be in flip flops for the remainder of our trip!

Stay Thirsty My Friends,

Matt and Lindsey

Willkommen in Wien

Welcome to Vienna!



After a bus ride and two train rides that consumed over 24 hours, we made it to Vienna from Dubrovnik. Dubrovnik is not the easiest place to get in and out of. Lindsey and I were 2 weeks into our trip, but we already felt as if we had been traveling for months. Needless to say, it was great to see a familiar face. As our train pulled into Vienna, my Dad was waiting at the tracks to greet us!

After reuniting with the old man, the 3 of us were on the move. We arrived at our last minute apartment, did a little negotiating and got settled in. The first mission in Vienna was to find food. We walked into town, and found a nice place to grab a bite to eat right outside the Opera House. Right from the start you got the feeling that Vienna was a well polished city. Lindsey and I also noticed how willingly my Dad approached strangers for help. (Something we need to work on). There was a young man outside the restaurant dressed in a funny outfit, and my Dad asked what he was up to. Turns out he was selling Concert tickets. Now the show wasn’t being held in the State Opera House, but just down the road in the Hofburg Imperial Palace. Classical music is a staple in Viennese history….so we decided to go!







The concert ended up being really cool. It brought back memories of performing in high school. There was a full orchestra of 35 professional musicians, and 5 opera singers. The show was an introduction to classical music. They played a “potpourri” (as my dad would say) of Mozart, Strauss and Schubert.





Some parts of the show were a bit hokey, but the conductor got the audience involved which made for an entertaining show.



We were all exhausted and decided we would take it easy the first night to make for an eventful day tomorrow. On Wednesday we woke up to a beautiful day, and ventured off into town. Our first stop was the Karlskirce (St. Charles Church). The cathedral was under construction, but it offered us a special treat.




There was an elevator and very sketchy scaffolding that led to the top of the cathedral. This provided a brand new prospective to the many churches we have visited so far on our trip. It is truly incredible how they were able to build such massive buildings, and than decorate them with stunning frescoes.

Following the cathedral the three of us headed off to Shonbrunn Palace, the summer residence of the famous Hapsburg family. This palace was located a little outside of the city. I guess it was their getaway for the summer and trust me this was no little summer cottage on the cape. It was enormous.

It wasn’t the palace itself that was so impressive, but the outdoor garden and large hill/lawn that looked over the landscape.



It was a beautiful day so we decided to hike up the hill to see the Gloriette and take a look over everything. We have learned on our trip that when there is an opportunity to climb something you must do it! Once again, my dad did some negotiating with a small restaurant located on the palace grounds, and was able to buy a bottle of wine and crackers to go.

Despite numerous signs requiring visitors to stay off the lawn…which everyone abode by…we decided to take a short cut down the hill…after enjoying our early afternoon cocktails.
This was all my dad’s idea, something Lindsey and I would never have done. Though you can’t tell from the video, he did sing “The hills are alive” from the Sound of Music as he frolicked his way down.



The following day my dad departed for London…despite our efforts to get him to stay an extra day…and Lindsey and I headed off to the world famous Spanish Riding School located in the Hofburg Imperial Palace. The Spanish Riding School, founded in 1572, is the oldest riding school in the world where classic dressage still exists. It is named for its Lipizzin horses. Every day from 10AM to 12PM they perform morning exercises. The hall in which they performed seemed more like an opera house with incredible columns and a box for the royal family. The riders cantered in unison, brought the horses up on their hind legs, and did this one particular move that looked like the horse was tip toeing and holding a pose in between each step. It was amazing and impossible to describe. Youtube it! Taking pictures was "absolutely forbidden," but we were able to snap this one off.

After the Spanish riding school we walked along Graben (the old town) through the shopping areas. This area is considered one of the most beautiful streets in Europe. We then stopped in St. Stephen’s Cathedral which was located in the middle of the old town.. The sheer height of this cathedral and its gothic design made for an unforgettable sight. Unfortunately there was a mass going on so we couldn’t walk around inside, but this cathedral was flat out HUGE! In addition to its enormity, the roof was made up of 230,000 pattern tiles.

That evening, Lindsey and I met up with Julian...the son of one of Mr. Bates' college roommates and longtime friend who lives in Vienna. He showed us around his lovely home and showed us the other side of Vienna. We had a fun time...but made Lindsey and I came to realize sadly, we are not 18 anymore, we felt really old!

Lindsey and I decided to spend a couple extra days in Vienna. Don’t get me wrong, we loved this city, but we really just needed a couple days to relax since we had been on the go so much. We strolled around the city, and visited the flea market and the Naschmarkt. In preparation for cold weather in Germany (our next stop) I bought a sweater and Lindsey bought a scarf in the flea market. I finally did some successful bargaining! The Naschmarkt was a beautiful food market that stretched down the same road as the flea market. Lindsey and I stopped at a very exiting Mediterranean food stand. The women at the stand was the most enthusiastic and aggressive saleswomen I have ever seen. She force fed us falafel, humus, pita bread, olives, marinated garlic cloves, and cheese stuffed peppers. I honestly think we were full from all the samples she gave us, and before we even opened our mouths she was handing us a huge bag full of food and asking us for 15 euros. She was that good!



Well rested, and fed…. we prepared for our journey to Munich. I think Hvar is still number 1, but Vienna may be a close second.


Stay thirsty my friends,

Matt and Lindsey