Happy Easter

After getting back from Cappadocia it was back to the real world of school...midterms. Midterms were run a little bit different than back at home. An entire week was devoted to just taking tests so no classes were held. Some would think we've learned Turkish already since they give directions for the tests in Turkish. Another strange thing was tests were also held on the weekends. I was lucky enough to have my midterm on Easter moved so I had the day off. Since Easter isn't celebrated in Turkey my friends and I planned our own celebration along with her birthday. We enjoyed a Lithuanian Easter celebration complete with delicious homemade cake, pasta salad, deviled eggs and dyed Easter eggs. Since we got lucky with beautiful weather so we picnicked outside. In Lithuania, after dying the Easter eggs they play at game to see who picked the strongest egg. You have two chances before you're out. I managed to pick the strongest egg which will bring me happiness for the next year. Finger crossed. The weather has finally gotten nice and I think the warm weather is here to stay!

Happy Birthday Ruta!

We've been making an effort to spend more time outside and doing all the things Istanbul has to offer. Barrie, Julia and I spend days just walking around the city. First stop was Istanbul Modern, which is a modern art museum. I found out I'm not one for modern art but it was cool to see and it had a great view of the Bosporus. Then we walked across the Galata Bridge, got some fish bread and walked around the Spice Bazaar. Days out like this lead to long days and not getting home till around 10. Travel here just takes forever. It takes on average around 2 to 2 and half hours to get into the city center and then same time to get home. Although it does take quite awhile it's always worth getting out of the house.

Galata Bridge

Where the fresh fish breads are cooked

Yumm 

One Sunday afternoon Martina and I went looking for a famous park in Florya. After a little bit of walking we found it! The grounds keepers were still getting it set up for the summer by planting flowers and trees but it was still nice. Little daisies covered the ground and the tuples had already started blooming. Then we walked towards to beach. It wasn't opened yet but there was a lifeguard tower so we're looking forward to going there when it's nice. We decided to talk and walk along the water to see what else we could find around here. We just happened to stumble upon another beautiful park filled with families and even a wedding party. The park was covered in tuples and other flowers. Inside of the park was a mini roadway for kids complete with stoplights.

Martina and I 

Practice for Turkish highways 

The third annual Fatih World Cup just started this month. I've come to realize it's a pretty big deal. After my class was cancelled I wandered into the opening ceremony. Inside the huge red curtains was blasting music, a stage, professional lights and a dj. The whole thing was packed! As it began there was cheering as men in suits walked down the center aisle. There were speakers and apparently Turkey's most famous soccer player was there to speak. There wasn't a single word spoken in English so I just clapped along with everyone else. Once the speakers were finished the lights started flashing and guys playing the drums started to drop down from the ceiling. Once they were on the ground the continued to play as the teams from each country ran in. I never knew this would be such a big deal. The cup last until the first week of May. All the Erasmus students are put on to the German team. Go Germany!

Glad I snapped a picture of him

Totally normal 

Zsolt actually scored!

Another day we spent a day walking between the two Bosporus bridges that lead to the Asian side and visiting a Rumeli Castle. The castle is sent in the middle of the city but once you get inside you fell like there's nothing around you. It's peaceful and quite, but be careful not to fall off of the stairs. You're allowed to climb the walls of the castle but the stairs are steep and don't' have railings. We figured it out and we ended up walking 6 miles that day. To reward ourselves we enjoyed waffles filled with fruit and lots of chocolate by the water. Then it was off to pick up Emily from the airport so she could spend a week in Istanbul with me!

Most peaceful place in Istanbul 

Super safe castle  

Rocks, Underground cities, picture breaks and Katy Perry

At the end of March Barrie, Lore and I (the not sick people from our group) headed out on an eight hour bus journey to Cappadocia! On the way there we passed the time by watching Modern Family and being forced to listen to the weekend mix with the lights on until two in the morning. Our first stop of the day was Salt Lake or Tuz Golu 7:00am. Who wouldn't be happy to get woken up to take pictures of a lake that early in the morning? Tuz Golu is the second largest lake in Turkey and one of the riches lakes in the world producing 300 thousand tons (60% of Turkey's total production) of salt each year between the months of July and August.

Rise and Shine! 

Salt block throughout the lake 

After stopping for a quick bite to eat it was off to the underground cities. They are said to be from as early as 5BC. So far 36 underground cities have been ground thorough Cappadocia. Since Cappadocia lies between two volcanoes the ground contains volcanic ash which makes it very easy to chip away to create these vast cities underground. The contain elaborate pathways and tunnels connecting all of the floors. These cities were created to protect the people of the area from invaders. They were able to go down into the cities for months at a time and were completely hidden to outsiders. We went inside the Underground City of Kaymakli. This city is the largest in Cappadocia. It covers 1.5 sq miles of land. Currently 8 stories have been excavated but it is said to have up to 14. Visitors to the site are only able to see about 10% of the city.

The hanging post inside of the meeting hall..Now that's the way to keep people in line 

One of the bigger hallways. Most of them you'd have to duck to go through.
Talk about claustrophobia!

Cappadocia is known for their wine. What's their secret you might ask? Pigeon poop. They have massive pigeon coops that are passed down between family members where they collect the feces to put on the vineyards as natural fertilization. I'll have to admit the wine wasn't too bad. We finally made it back to the hotel for some downtime. We amused ourselves with Cappadocian wine, free dinner and a turkcell hat. 

Where did had our wine tasting 

Posing with the pigeon coops 

Saturday was an early morning and a jammed back day of traveling around Cappadocia. Cappadocia has a rich Christianity history. There are more than 600 rock churches throughout Cappadocia.  Many Saints have passed through or came from the area such as St. Paul, St. Basil the Great, St. Gregory of Nysa and St. Greory of Nazianzus.  We open air museum which was once a monastery. There were many different churches carved inside the rocks. Many of them still contained original frescos depicting many important Christian events such as the Last Supper and Constantine proclaiming Christianity as the official religion.  Along with the churches, there were the living quarters of the monks. 

What's up ruins 

Getting ready for dinner 

Frescos inside of the churches 

This area is also know for their homemade pottery and this art is passed down through generations. We were abel to see first hand a Master Potter working and one of us even had a chance to try. Afterwards we  got the opportunity to look around at all of the pottery they have made to sell. The intricity of the detail was remarkable. On our way back to the hotel we were able to stop many places for "picture time". 

The Master Potter 

All of their handmade pottery 

Photo stop on the top of a mountain 

In the evening we went to experience a Turkish Night. There was traditional dancing, whirling Dervishes, and belly dancing. After the show it turned into a club were they had to turn off all of the lights to get us to leave. We continued our party on the bus to Katy Perry's classic Last Friday Night, The remix and Teenage Dream. 

Turkish dance? 

We love Cappadocia! 

6am came way to fast the next day but Lore and I got up and went on our balloon tour that we promised ourselves we would do before we left. We got a rolls and coffee which helped to wake us up before going up.  Balloons covered the valleys! Our balloon could fit 20 people and once everyone was in we were off! We went 1,400 meters above Cappadocia. We could see for miles! After landing they offered us champaign to celebrate our landing. (as if it's not normal to survive this?) Then it was time to get back on the bus for another 12 hours to Istanbul. 

The view from above

Early morning balloon rides 

It was a long weekend but it was so much fun! I got to meet so many great people and we planned when we would go to our first soccer match. So last weekend it finally happened I got to experience a Turkish soccer game. Galatasaray (from Istanbul) vs. Orduspor. Of course Galatasaray won 2-0. Every time they scored the crowd would go nuts! The whole stadium (which could hold 50,000 people) was filled with canting and screaming. There was a caged off area for the opposing team to make sure that if things got crazy they'd have some protection. I found out that at previous games if the crowd gets too crazy they restrict men from going to the next one and only women are allowed to enter. Once you get inside it's quite but getting inside is the challenge since all of the men still wait outside trying to get it. I've already started to learn the cheers so at the next game I can cheer along with the crowd. After the game we went to the Polish guy's house that we met in Cappadocia for a celebration party (which lasted until 8 in the morning). There was dancing, games and even limbo. I'm already planning on when to go to another game! 

Lore and I all set for the game!

The Stadium  

Barrie, Lore and I during the game 

Limbo at the after party

This is the last week before midterms start. I'm crossing my fingers for easy tests. We're planning on dying eggs and having bunch to celebrate Easter (after my final of course). I'm so excited for Em to come and visit! I can't wait to show her around where I've been living for the past two months. Then it's off to Athens and Santorini Island with Barrie for a weekend to see Andrea. I still can't believe I have less than two months left of my stay here in Istanbul. I can't wait to see what else Turkey has to offer!