Ready, Set, Gooooo

Tomorrow, I will be flying here:

Yes, that would be TURKEY!

I have been here once before, on a freak trip (that one day, I will share some of these most beloved and comical travel stories that I have) with my friend Joni, in 2005. 

This is a bit how my Istanbul portion of the trip will go:

I will spend a good portion at what I think is the most beautiful building in the world (and probably one of the stinkiest, since everyone is required to remove their shoes).

The beautiful Blue Mosque

I will also be spending my time at these places:

Aya Sofia/Hagia Sofia

The cistern and just outside, where the Green Restaurant is that Joni and I ate at for uh...yes, I think it was EVERY meal. I am going to hunt down our cute old waiter. He's probably dead now though.

 

 Enjoying the Spice Market...MMM! Yummy!

Then I will probably spend some time at the Grand Bazzar in the cluster of people, getting told by random salesmen that I am an angel that fell from heaven, or maybe that I am a model, or that I am their next girlfriend. Those salesmen always have prize-winning pickup lines! It honestly doesn't get much better! You should honestly try it...good self esteem boost, but an even better ab work out for how hard you will laugh with some of the stuff these guys come up with. I'm not kidding! The BEST I've heard in my travels come straight out of this market!

And then, I think I will probably be just as exhausted, annoyed, and disappointed by the shopping spree. Two thumbs way down...maybe not this time though?!

You may also find me doing one of the following:

Sipping the amazing apple tea that is served after any and every meal (for free, too...most the time).

Staring at this beautiful calligraphy...LOVE this! It's so beautiful! One day I will learn Arabic, simply because I think it's such a beautifully written language!

Enjoying the Whirling Dervishes!

 Looking for this cute old man. I want to buy one of his hats and just stare at him! I love him! What a COOL old man. I want to know his story!

 Taking awkward photos with kids on their field trip? Is it because I am American and can speak English? The blonde hair? Or the fact that I stick out like a sore thumb in your country and can't speak Turkish, so you think I am hilarious!? 

I am not really sure what was even happening, other than the fact that I was at some random castle that I still can't begin to pronounce the name and was MAULED by these youngsters. They asked if they could get a picture with me...on my camera. Sure, why not!

Or you may be able to find Joni and I shooting our favorite places in Istanbul and possibly jumping into a few of our shots to make up for the lack of quality photos that we were in the last time around!

The only unfortunate part of this trip is, Joni and I will have to find a new form of entertainment, as we will not be accompanied by these jems, that we met at our hostel. 

As they will not be around, we will also be lacking "tic-tacs" (sorry that is an inside joke only for Joni) and some pretty hilarious stories provided by Naz. OMG! Hilarious! Who goes to India for a month and doesn't even see the F#%@ing Taj Mahal!?! That would be Naz. He went to India to find himself and found out that he is a pretty boring person!

However, when you are with Clog American, who knows what will be in store! :) I am just excited to get over there and be with my friends and be at the folk dance festivals!!