We’re currently back in Italy and since we had a little downtime, thought we would write a post devoted to a handful of random topics that we haven’t had the chance to cover yet. We call it our “half-way through Europe post”…that’s right we’ve really been here for 2 ½ months and have less than two months to go.
European Stereotypes:
After two months in Europe we’re nowhere near experts on the continent, but we think we’ve been able to confirm a few stereotypes of Europe…
· French cheese is really quite stinky (and tasty)
· Switzerland is as beautiful as everyone says (and ridiculously expensive)
· Germans really do drink a lot of beer and eat a lot of sausages (both of which are extremely delicious)
· Italians are awful drivers…and so are the Bulgarians
Nicest People:
The Irish have been by far the most friendly, helpful people we’ve come across on our travels through Europe. Most of the people we met would go out of their way to ensure we were enjoying their country. They were more than happy to point us in the right direction, recommend a nice pub, or just chat.
Most Overrated Destination:
Dubrovnik, Croatia – We wrote about this before, but this is the definition of a place completely ruined by tourists. Some places (Paris, Rome, etc) can handle piles of tourists, while others cannot. Dubrovnik’s once spectacular, walled old-city has now become filled with cheap souvenir shops and bad tourist restaurants. The streets are swarming with travelers fresh off the cruise ships. All the charm we imagined the city had about 10 years ago was long gone. We have found plenty of other charming, authentic seaside villages we’d recommend in a heartbeat over Dubrovnik.
Most Underrated Destination:
Slovenia – During our extensive research we did for this trip (reading countless travel guides, magazine articles, etc), we never came across anything mentioning Slovenia. So far, it’s been our favorite country in Europe. It has a little of everything: an adventurous mountain town, a capital full of history and interesting architecture, and one of those charming, authentic seaside villages we mentioned above.
Surprisingly Enjoyable Pastime:
European Grocery Shopping – Since embarking on our trip we have always enjoyed checking out the grocery stores and markets in foreign countries. It’s a great way to get a feel for a region’s cuisine, to discover what foods are important to the locals, and see how they compare to the US. The fresh fruit and vegetable markets in Asia were great and the supermarkets of France and Germany have been superb, but our favorite place to buy groceries has been Italy. Their grocery stores take shopping to a whole new level. Their cheese selection would put any specialty cheese shop in the US to shame. There are literally 100’s of different kinds of dried and/or cured meats for sale. You can buy entire, whole cured legs of pork. Looking for fish, squid, octopus, clams, or mussels? No problem, they have them all and more. We literally spend hours just wandering through their aisles, mesmerized by all of the choices. (Which one of the 20 kinds of fresh mozzarella should we try today? Who knew there were 30 different kinds of salami?)
Expensive Europe:
We never cease to be amazed at just how expensive things are throughout Europe. It doesn’t matter if we’re in France or Serbia, we’re shocked at just how much more things cost than back in the US. It doesn’t help that the dollar is weak, and getting weaker, against the Euro. (The dollar has lost about 5% of its value versus the Euro in the two months we’ve been here.) Even without the bad exchange rate, things would still be expensive.
WWOOFing:
For the next week we’ll be volunteering on a farm here in Italy through an organization called World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF). We’re definitely looking forward to staying in one place for awhile, experiencing rural Italian culture, and getting our hands dirty.
Oct 25, 2009
Oct 19, 2009
Ireland
Sorry for the long lapse between posts. For some reason this past week we’ve been avoiding the task of writing a blog like it’s the plague. It’s probably because Rachel’s parents are here with us and we’ve been trying to just relax with them. Or maybe all of the Guinness we’ve been consuming is making us lazy. Either way, writing this just sounded like too much of a chore.
It’s been a slow work in progress over the last few days, with Rachel starting the post and Dustin finishing it. Anyway, we’re finally motivated enough today to finish it up (and Dustin’s mom has been bugging us for an update) so here we go…
Our Ireland journey kicked off in Dublin. We spent a few days checking out the city and, of course, heading to the Guinness Brewery. Much to my Dad and Dustin’s dismay I was never a huge fan of Guinness back home, but that has now changed. Maybe it’s the quaint little villages, charming pubs, or the lure of the countryside, but the Guinness just seems to taste better here. Even Dustin and my parents, all self-proclaimed “beer connoisseurs”, insist that the Guinness really does taste better in Ireland.
Rachel and her parents enjoying their first Guinness in Ireland:
The bartenders at all of the pubs have perfected the art of a perfect pour and take great pride in serving a beautiful pint of Guinness. Dustin and my parents decided to make it a point to have one pint of Guinness (usually more) a day during our entire time here…their excuse is that it’s the best way to mingle with the locals and learn more about their culture. Thanks to one friendly bartender, Dustin has even mastered the art of pouring a “proud pint.” He insisted on pouring all of our pints while staying at our hotel in Doolin.
Dustin working on his "proud pint" form:
Believe it or not, we haven’t spent all of our time drinking Guinness inside pubs. Over the last week and a half we have managed to make a loop through the bottom half of Ireland. We’ve visited some charming villages and completed a couple of the great scenic drives both through green rolling hills and along rugged coastlines. We’ve listened to plenty of lively Irish music and explored the ancient ruins of countless castles and churches.
The Cliffs of Moher:
As we’ve been driving the coastal route we have always been on the lookout for places to surf. Although we didn’t want to deal with the hassle and expense of hauling our surfboards from Italy to Ireland, we were still hoping to get a few surf sessions in while here. With the high cost of board and wetsuit rentals and the surprisingly good surf we found, we’re wishing we would’ve hauled our boards here after all.
Our first sign of surfable waves was at a beautiful stretch of beach on the southwestern edge of the country near the village of Dingle. Although the waves weren’t great, we couldn’t resist the chance to get in the water. We had fun playing around in the waist high beach break and managed to get a handful of decent waves each. We were just stoked to get any waves at all…the last time we surfed (not counting Dustin’s river surfing in Munich) was five months ago in Bali. The frigid water here was a far cry from the warm, wetsuit free waters of Padang Bay, Bali but we’ll take what we can get.
Feeling somewhat satisfied we worked our way north and stumbled upon even better surf a few days later. (Just in time for Rachel’s birthday.) We surfed until we were both frozen from the cold water and then stayed out a little longer until our arms just didn’t work anymore. The waves were not the biggest or the best of the trip, but the laidback vibe (there were only 8-10 other people in the water and the locals were friendly and even interested in what we thought of their wave) and great scenery (rolling green hills, a quaint little village, and even the ruins of a castle overlooking the break) made for one of the best surf sessions of the trip.
Heading out for Rachel's birthday surf session:
After our surf we headed straight to the sauna to warm up and then enjoyed a great lunch. It certainly made for a birthday to remember for Rachel. (Right up there with the time I took her pheasant hunting on her birthday...I’m sure you’ve all heard that story a few times.)
More Ireland surf:
We’ve had a great time in Ireland with Rachel’s folks…the scenery is spectacular, the locals are friendly, and Guinness is always on tap.
It’s been a slow work in progress over the last few days, with Rachel starting the post and Dustin finishing it. Anyway, we’re finally motivated enough today to finish it up (and Dustin’s mom has been bugging us for an update) so here we go…
Our Ireland journey kicked off in Dublin. We spent a few days checking out the city and, of course, heading to the Guinness Brewery. Much to my Dad and Dustin’s dismay I was never a huge fan of Guinness back home, but that has now changed. Maybe it’s the quaint little villages, charming pubs, or the lure of the countryside, but the Guinness just seems to taste better here. Even Dustin and my parents, all self-proclaimed “beer connoisseurs”, insist that the Guinness really does taste better in Ireland.
Rachel and her parents enjoying their first Guinness in Ireland:
The bartenders at all of the pubs have perfected the art of a perfect pour and take great pride in serving a beautiful pint of Guinness. Dustin and my parents decided to make it a point to have one pint of Guinness (usually more) a day during our entire time here…their excuse is that it’s the best way to mingle with the locals and learn more about their culture. Thanks to one friendly bartender, Dustin has even mastered the art of pouring a “proud pint.” He insisted on pouring all of our pints while staying at our hotel in Doolin.
Dustin working on his "proud pint" form:
Believe it or not, we haven’t spent all of our time drinking Guinness inside pubs. Over the last week and a half we have managed to make a loop through the bottom half of Ireland. We’ve visited some charming villages and completed a couple of the great scenic drives both through green rolling hills and along rugged coastlines. We’ve listened to plenty of lively Irish music and explored the ancient ruins of countless castles and churches.
Dingle Harbor:
The Cliffs of Moher:
As we’ve been driving the coastal route we have always been on the lookout for places to surf. Although we didn’t want to deal with the hassle and expense of hauling our surfboards from Italy to Ireland, we were still hoping to get a few surf sessions in while here. With the high cost of board and wetsuit rentals and the surprisingly good surf we found, we’re wishing we would’ve hauled our boards here after all.
Our first sign of surfable waves was at a beautiful stretch of beach on the southwestern edge of the country near the village of Dingle. Although the waves weren’t great, we couldn’t resist the chance to get in the water. We had fun playing around in the waist high beach break and managed to get a handful of decent waves each. We were just stoked to get any waves at all…the last time we surfed (not counting Dustin’s river surfing in Munich) was five months ago in Bali. The frigid water here was a far cry from the warm, wetsuit free waters of Padang Bay, Bali but we’ll take what we can get.
Feeling somewhat satisfied we worked our way north and stumbled upon even better surf a few days later. (Just in time for Rachel’s birthday.) We surfed until we were both frozen from the cold water and then stayed out a little longer until our arms just didn’t work anymore. The waves were not the biggest or the best of the trip, but the laidback vibe (there were only 8-10 other people in the water and the locals were friendly and even interested in what we thought of their wave) and great scenery (rolling green hills, a quaint little village, and even the ruins of a castle overlooking the break) made for one of the best surf sessions of the trip.
Heading out for Rachel's birthday surf session:
After our surf we headed straight to the sauna to warm up and then enjoyed a great lunch. It certainly made for a birthday to remember for Rachel. (Right up there with the time I took her pheasant hunting on her birthday...I’m sure you’ve all heard that story a few times.)
More Ireland surf:
We stumbled upon this place, Ireland's premire big wave spot, where they routinely get 60+ foot waves during the winter. It was much more managable on this day. If we would've had more time (the tide was rising fast and the nearest board rental was a long way away) Dustin would've been tempted to paddle out....Rachel didn't want to have anything to do with the climb down the 600 ft vertical cliff, the paddle out through the rocks, or the 15+ foot surf.
We’ve had a great time in Ireland with Rachel’s folks…the scenery is spectacular, the locals are friendly, and Guinness is always on tap.
Oct 8, 2009
Our Travels Through Southern Italy
After arriving into the port town of Bari, Italy, via ferry from Greece, we headed straight to the small town of Castelmezzano in southern Italy. We had read one brief article on the place and it sounded like a perfect little village to relax in for a few days. Well...we ended up taking a wrong turn on the way there and found ourselves on the next mountain over, in the charming village of Pietrapertosa.
After leaving Pietrapertosa, we drove along the scenic (but overrated) Amalfi coast before heading to Rome.
We spent three days exploring the captivating city of Rome. Full of history, not a skyscraper in sight, ancient ruins everywhere you look, and superb cuisine made Rome one of our favorite big European cities. And since we're exhausted from all the sightseeing, we'll let the pictures speak for themselves...
The Roman Colosseum, built in 72 AD:
The view from outside the Colosseum...ancient ruins everywhere you look:
In St. Peter's Square, outside St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City:
The impressive columns surrounding St. Peter's Square:
After leaving Pietrapertosa, we drove along the scenic (but overrated) Amalfi coast before heading to Rome.
We spent three days exploring the captivating city of Rome. Full of history, not a skyscraper in sight, ancient ruins everywhere you look, and superb cuisine made Rome one of our favorite big European cities. And since we're exhausted from all the sightseeing, we'll let the pictures speak for themselves...
The Roman Colosseum, built in 72 AD:
The view from outside the Colosseum...ancient ruins everywhere you look:
In St. Peter's Square, outside St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City:
The impressive columns surrounding St. Peter's Square:
The inside of St. Peter's:
Michelangelo's "Pieta" in St. Peter's, sculpted when he was 24 years old:
"The Deliverance of St. Peter" painted by Raphael:
Our favorite painting on the ceiling of Stanze di Raphael, the Pope's former apartment in the Vatican Museum:
Michelangelo's "Last Judgment" in the Sistine Chapel:
Michelangelo's "Pieta" in St. Peter's, sculpted when he was 24 years old:"The Deliverance of St. Peter" painted by Raphael:
Our favorite painting on the ceiling of Stanze di Raphael, the Pope's former apartment in the Vatican Museum:
Michelangelo's "Last Judgment" in the Sistine Chapel:
Trevi Fountain, a "new" addition to Rome's sights built in 1732:
That's it for Rome. Tomorrow we're taking a break from Italy to fly to Dublin to meet up with Rachel's parents. We'll spend two weeks in Ireland with them before returning to Italy.
Oct 2, 2009
Not Your Typical Greece
So…we didn’t make it out to the famous Greek Islands that are pictured on all of the Greek tourist guides. It was mostly due to time constraints and the fact that we didn’t want to deal with the hassle (and expense) of ferrying our van out there. Who knows, maybe we’ll visit the islands someday the way they were meant to be seen, by sail. However, we did manage to see a less touristy, and probably more authentic, side of Greece.
We ended up spending a few days in a little fishing village located on a small peninsula in northern Greece. The town was so small we couldn’t even locate it on the map, let alone tell you the name, but it did manage to provide an escape from feeling like we should be running around trying to see everything. We parked our van on the beach, enjoyed daily swims in the Aegean Sea, ate freshly grilled sardines, and drank the local wine. With zero tourist attractions and nothing to do in town, it was a nice break to have nothing to do but relax. 
After a few days of doing absolutely nothing and loving it, we found our next hideaway a couple of hours west in a town nestled on a lake flanked by mountains. Our most adventurous under-taking consisted of walking along the promenade searching out the bakery with the best Greek pastry desserts.
With Dustin hoping to get a little fishing in before we left Greece, we went in search of a very remote river that was rumored to hold trout. The river was supposed to be great for fly fishing, but everyone we talked to warned us that it was next to impossible to find…..it sounded like a fun challenge to us. After driving for several hours up and over two mountains on a very narrow, curvy road we ended up in a tiny, picturesque mountain village. 
With our hopes of finding the river fading, we decided to take a quick break to stretch our legs in town. As soon as we opened the van doors we were overwhelmed with the smell of freshly baked gingerbread cookies. We followed our noses to a small bakery run by a very sweet Greek lady that didn’t speak a word of English. After a few gestures, and lots of smiling and pointing, we walked out with a big box of cookies.
Deciding we should get a little bite to eat before we dug into our dessert, we walked into the one open restaurant to see what we could find. Again, the owner did not speak a word of English. (Notice a theme here? Not a single one of the 8 or 10 people we talked to in this town spoke any English at all.) Since we couldn’t communicate verbally, she showed us some tomatoes, cheese, and potatoes. With no menus in sight, and no one else in the restaurant for us to point to their plates and say “We’ll have that”, we just nodded and said okay to whatever it was she would make with those ingredients.
We picked a table with a view and sat down having no idea what to expect. Little did we know that by agreeing to those three ingredients we were going to get way more than the little snack we were looking for. She first brought us plates of cheese, yogurt mixed with herbs, and bread. A nice start and it would’ve been more than enough. Then came a traditional Greek salad and fried potatoes. That was followed up with a huge “Sarikopita” (filo dough stuffed with cheese and then fried). Just when we thought we were going to burst, she brought out a heaping plate of grilled goat chops. We literally had a smorgasbord of food. The food was absolutely fantastic and we felt bad not eating it, so we proceeded to do our best to devour every last morsel. We gave it a valiant effort and managed to shovel most of it into our stuffed bellies except for a few fried potatoes.
We ended up spending a few days in a little fishing village located on a small peninsula in northern Greece. The town was so small we couldn’t even locate it on the map, let alone tell you the name, but it did manage to provide an escape from feeling like we should be running around trying to see everything. We parked our van on the beach, enjoyed daily swims in the Aegean Sea, ate freshly grilled sardines, and drank the local wine. With zero tourist attractions and nothing to do in town, it was a nice break to have nothing to do but relax.
Not a bad view from our bedroom:
After a few days of doing absolutely nothing and loving it, we found our next hideaway a couple of hours west in a town nestled on a lake flanked by mountains. Our most adventurous under-taking consisted of walking along the promenade searching out the bakery with the best Greek pastry desserts.
With Dustin hoping to get a little fishing in before we left Greece, we went in search of a very remote river that was rumored to hold trout. The river was supposed to be great for fly fishing, but everyone we talked to warned us that it was next to impossible to find…..it sounded like a fun challenge to us. After driving for several hours up and over two mountains on a very narrow, curvy road we ended up in a tiny, picturesque mountain village.
Pramanta, Greece:
With our hopes of finding the river fading, we decided to take a quick break to stretch our legs in town. As soon as we opened the van doors we were overwhelmed with the smell of freshly baked gingerbread cookies. We followed our noses to a small bakery run by a very sweet Greek lady that didn’t speak a word of English. After a few gestures, and lots of smiling and pointing, we walked out with a big box of cookies.
Deciding we should get a little bite to eat before we dug into our dessert, we walked into the one open restaurant to see what we could find. Again, the owner did not speak a word of English. (Notice a theme here? Not a single one of the 8 or 10 people we talked to in this town spoke any English at all.) Since we couldn’t communicate verbally, she showed us some tomatoes, cheese, and potatoes. With no menus in sight, and no one else in the restaurant for us to point to their plates and say “We’ll have that”, we just nodded and said okay to whatever it was she would make with those ingredients.
We picked a table with a view and sat down having no idea what to expect. Little did we know that by agreeing to those three ingredients we were going to get way more than the little snack we were looking for. She first brought us plates of cheese, yogurt mixed with herbs, and bread. A nice start and it would’ve been more than enough. Then came a traditional Greek salad and fried potatoes. That was followed up with a huge “Sarikopita” (filo dough stuffed with cheese and then fried). Just when we thought we were going to burst, she brought out a heaping plate of grilled goat chops. We literally had a smorgasbord of food. The food was absolutely fantastic and we felt bad not eating it, so we proceeded to do our best to devour every last morsel. We gave it a valiant effort and managed to shovel most of it into our stuffed bellies except for a few fried potatoes.
And this was just the start of it:
We finally did end up finding the river, and it was as beautiful as expected. Unfortunately with only an hour before dark, and a ferry to catch in the morning, Dustin had just enough time to discover how great of a river he had missed. Maybe next time…
We finally did end up finding the river, and it was as beautiful as expected. Unfortunately with only an hour before dark, and a ferry to catch in the morning, Dustin had just enough time to discover how great of a river he had missed. Maybe next time…
Nice river, but no daylight left for fishing:
It probably wasn’t the typical Greek experience, but it was exactly what we needed.
It probably wasn’t the typical Greek experience, but it was exactly what we needed.
Sep 28, 2009
The Turkish Experience
Here are our thoughts on some of our more interesting experiences in Istanbul, Turkey…
Driving in Istanbul:
The roads and driving conditions have slowly been deteriorating as we’ve headed east. They didn’t get any better once we arrived in Istanbul…driving there was chaotic, to say the least. As we entered the city the main freeway slowly turned into complete mayhem. The traffic lines disappeared, cars drove literally wherever they felt like, and traffic laws apparently did not exist. We could now see why the guidebooks said driving into the city was not recommended. None of the road signs matched anything on our maps so we made more than a few wrong turns trying to get to the town center. The one nice thing about the lack of law and order was if you went the wrong way you could always just back up into oncoming traffic or make that U-turn across four lanes. We tried both of these a few times and somehow managed to survive.
Sleeping in Istanbul:
Camping, or even safe parking, in the city is pretty much non-existent so we broke down and got a hotel for a few nights. We had no desire to camp way outside the city and make the drive into town a part of our daily experience. It turns out getting the room was an experience in itself…we got a good deal at a very “unique” place. Everything in the room was black or white. The walls and bedspread were zebra print and the drapes were metallic silver. This place definitely had character. Anyway, what the hotel lacked in décor they made up for in their location. Since they were located in the heart of Istanbul’s Old Town it was easy to walk to everything and avoid the hair-raising commute.
The Turkish Bath, Rachel’s Take:
After a couple of days exploring the city on foot, we decided an authentic Turkish bath would be a great way to the end the day. After checking a few out, we ended up at Gedikpasa Hamam which has been around since 1475. Upon entering the baths we were immediately separated. Dustin went his way and I went mine. I quickly changed into my swimsuit and headed into the hamam only to discover everyone else was naked. It was a funny thing, but I felt out of place in my swimsuit and it just confirmed that I didn’t know what I was getting myself into. I quickly made a beeline for the safety of the sauna. My attendant kept trying to get me out of the sauna, but I insisted I could take the heat much longer than she thought. Yes, you really get an attendant, which is a Turkish man or woman (women for women & men for men) who attend to you during your bathing experience. My Turkish attendant did not speak English but I could tell she wanted me out of the sauna when she literally came in and pulled me out. Next, she decided to pour cold water over my head and have me lie down on the warm, marble stone platform. After laying on the stone for awhile it was time to exfoliate. Exfoliate she did! Several layers of skin came off during this process, which I guess was a good thing since I got the thumbs up sign when I had dead skin covering my body. Finally, the exciting part…your attendant soaps you up so you’re covered from head to toe in bubbles! I felt like a little kid again playing in a bubble bath. I admit it was a little odd having a stranger wash me but it was all part of the Turkish experience.
The Turkish Bath, Dustin’s Take:
Have you ever wondered if something could be both disgusting and relaxing at the same time? Well, that’s what the Turkish Hamam (Bath) experience was. We went to an authentic place in the heart of Old Istanbul that was built in the year 1475. Think about that for a second, it was built over 500 years ago…this place was around before Columbus set sail for America. From the looks of it, a lot of the building hasn’t changed since then either.
First the relaxing parts: Laying flat on your back while staring up at the ceiling in the hamam was a very relaxing, almost surreal experience. (The heart of the Turkish Bath is a large room with domed ceilings full of interesting designs and a raised, heated marble platform in the middle that you lay on….kind of like a big, fancy steam room.) It was quite an experience to lay there and realize that guys have been doing the same thing here for 500 years. The sauna was also nice and relaxing.
The not so relaxing parts: The place stunk, although I guess anywhere that has had sweaty guys in it for 500 years isn’t going to smell great. Also, getting rubbed down by a large, hairy, half-naked Turkish guy isn’t my idea of relaxing. We’re talking exfoliating, massaging, and getting soaped up by a 300 lb version of Borat…it wouldn’t be my first choice of evening activities.
Call to Prayer:
One interesting thing we’ve noticed while traveling in Muslim countries is the “call to prayer”. Throughout the Muslim world they have a call to prayer five times a day. The prayer is blasted over loudspeakers throughout the city. The five times vary by day, almost like an ocean’s tides. During the prayer time, which lasts about an hour, the mosques would be closed to visitors and you’d even see streets blocked off with the entire area covered by people praying. Of course, a couple of the calls to prayer would occur during the middle of the night which means you’d be awakened at all hours by this loud song/prayer.
The Blue Mosque:
The Blue Mosque, built in the early 1600’s, is probably Istanbul’s most popular, and certainly most recognizable, sight. Upon entering we were surprised to see many similarities between the mosque and Christian churches…stained glass windows, painted ceilings, and intricate carvings made it feel like any other Christian church. The only difference was that there are no pews in a mosque-just open floor-and we were walking around barefoot-no shoes are allowed inside.
The Grand Bazaar:
Hoping to find some great bargains we headed to the Grand Bazaar, supposedly the largest covered market in the world. After all of the great markets we visited in Africa and the SE Asia countries -Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia-we were hoping to find more of the same here. We could not have been more wrong. The Grand Bazaar was filled with nice, but way overpriced leather goods, ceramics, clothes, rugs, and just about anything else you could want. The one thing everything had in common was it was very expensive, costing more than you’d pay just about anywhere in the US or the rest of Europe. Even the obvious name-brand knockoffs were expensive. Needless to say, after fighting the crowds through the market and being shocked over and over by the ridiculous prices, we quickly got out of there.
That's it for Turkey...Greece is up next!
Driving in Istanbul:
The roads and driving conditions have slowly been deteriorating as we’ve headed east. They didn’t get any better once we arrived in Istanbul…driving there was chaotic, to say the least. As we entered the city the main freeway slowly turned into complete mayhem. The traffic lines disappeared, cars drove literally wherever they felt like, and traffic laws apparently did not exist. We could now see why the guidebooks said driving into the city was not recommended. None of the road signs matched anything on our maps so we made more than a few wrong turns trying to get to the town center. The one nice thing about the lack of law and order was if you went the wrong way you could always just back up into oncoming traffic or make that U-turn across four lanes. We tried both of these a few times and somehow managed to survive.
Sleeping in Istanbul:
Camping, or even safe parking, in the city is pretty much non-existent so we broke down and got a hotel for a few nights. We had no desire to camp way outside the city and make the drive into town a part of our daily experience. It turns out getting the room was an experience in itself…we got a good deal at a very “unique” place. Everything in the room was black or white. The walls and bedspread were zebra print and the drapes were metallic silver. This place definitely had character. Anyway, what the hotel lacked in décor they made up for in their location. Since they were located in the heart of Istanbul’s Old Town it was easy to walk to everything and avoid the hair-raising commute.
The Turkish Bath, Rachel’s Take:
After a couple of days exploring the city on foot, we decided an authentic Turkish bath would be a great way to the end the day. After checking a few out, we ended up at Gedikpasa Hamam which has been around since 1475. Upon entering the baths we were immediately separated. Dustin went his way and I went mine. I quickly changed into my swimsuit and headed into the hamam only to discover everyone else was naked. It was a funny thing, but I felt out of place in my swimsuit and it just confirmed that I didn’t know what I was getting myself into. I quickly made a beeline for the safety of the sauna. My attendant kept trying to get me out of the sauna, but I insisted I could take the heat much longer than she thought. Yes, you really get an attendant, which is a Turkish man or woman (women for women & men for men) who attend to you during your bathing experience. My Turkish attendant did not speak English but I could tell she wanted me out of the sauna when she literally came in and pulled me out. Next, she decided to pour cold water over my head and have me lie down on the warm, marble stone platform. After laying on the stone for awhile it was time to exfoliate. Exfoliate she did! Several layers of skin came off during this process, which I guess was a good thing since I got the thumbs up sign when I had dead skin covering my body. Finally, the exciting part…your attendant soaps you up so you’re covered from head to toe in bubbles! I felt like a little kid again playing in a bubble bath. I admit it was a little odd having a stranger wash me but it was all part of the Turkish experience.
The Turkish Bath, Dustin’s Take:
Have you ever wondered if something could be both disgusting and relaxing at the same time? Well, that’s what the Turkish Hamam (Bath) experience was. We went to an authentic place in the heart of Old Istanbul that was built in the year 1475. Think about that for a second, it was built over 500 years ago…this place was around before Columbus set sail for America. From the looks of it, a lot of the building hasn’t changed since then either.
First the relaxing parts: Laying flat on your back while staring up at the ceiling in the hamam was a very relaxing, almost surreal experience. (The heart of the Turkish Bath is a large room with domed ceilings full of interesting designs and a raised, heated marble platform in the middle that you lay on….kind of like a big, fancy steam room.) It was quite an experience to lay there and realize that guys have been doing the same thing here for 500 years. The sauna was also nice and relaxing.
The not so relaxing parts: The place stunk, although I guess anywhere that has had sweaty guys in it for 500 years isn’t going to smell great. Also, getting rubbed down by a large, hairy, half-naked Turkish guy isn’t my idea of relaxing. We’re talking exfoliating, massaging, and getting soaped up by a 300 lb version of Borat…it wouldn’t be my first choice of evening activities.
Call to Prayer:
One interesting thing we’ve noticed while traveling in Muslim countries is the “call to prayer”. Throughout the Muslim world they have a call to prayer five times a day. The prayer is blasted over loudspeakers throughout the city. The five times vary by day, almost like an ocean’s tides. During the prayer time, which lasts about an hour, the mosques would be closed to visitors and you’d even see streets blocked off with the entire area covered by people praying. Of course, a couple of the calls to prayer would occur during the middle of the night which means you’d be awakened at all hours by this loud song/prayer.
The Blue Mosque:
The Blue Mosque, built in the early 1600’s, is probably Istanbul’s most popular, and certainly most recognizable, sight. Upon entering we were surprised to see many similarities between the mosque and Christian churches…stained glass windows, painted ceilings, and intricate carvings made it feel like any other Christian church. The only difference was that there are no pews in a mosque-just open floor-and we were walking around barefoot-no shoes are allowed inside.
The Grand Bazaar:
Hoping to find some great bargains we headed to the Grand Bazaar, supposedly the largest covered market in the world. After all of the great markets we visited in Africa and the SE Asia countries -Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia-we were hoping to find more of the same here. We could not have been more wrong. The Grand Bazaar was filled with nice, but way overpriced leather goods, ceramics, clothes, rugs, and just about anything else you could want. The one thing everything had in common was it was very expensive, costing more than you’d pay just about anywhere in the US or the rest of Europe. Even the obvious name-brand knockoffs were expensive. Needless to say, after fighting the crowds through the market and being shocked over and over by the ridiculous prices, we quickly got out of there.
That's it for Turkey...Greece is up next!
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