Dublin Day 3

Right now I am at the airport with an hour to spare... Quite different than the norm.

Today was pretty cool, I walked several miles to the Modern Art Museum (which was weird) and an old jail (which was cool).

Unfortunately I didn't meet up with the guy from Google... He got sick. But, he did say he'd be in Madrid soon and wanted to grab a coffee.

I Miss Everyone!!!

Off to Scotland...

Dublin Day 2: Wicklow

Today I went to Wicklow, a small rural region an hour outside of Dublin. I took a tour bus there and was told all about the area. It was really green (as you'd expect Ireland to be) and it was really beautiful. My favorite part of the tour was when we had free time to hike around an old monastery near two gorgeous lakes.

Although it was pouring rain the whole time, me and a few others took the half hour hike to the second lake. I couldn't believe that there were actually a few people living out in this faraway land.

I met these two girls from New Jersey and Florida whom I later went pubbing with.

After I got back to the hospital, me and a bunch of Aussie chicks decided to hit up a pub. We didn't stay for too long, but it was fun. Afterwards, I went to a pub called the Temple Bar Vat House. There was a live Irish band, drunk old people, and lots of folk dancing! Such a great experience :)

And now I'm enjoying a fresh pint of Guinness that I poured straight from the tap!

Guinness Storehouse

Right now I'm touring the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin!

Joder!

I ran through the streets, through the metro, and through the airport. I made the flight, but think I might die of a heart attack! I'm having a big Irish Beer tonight! ;)

Last Day in Istanbul

The last day in Istanbul was pretty crazy. We walked around to see some parts of the city that we hadn't yet seen and bought our train and bus tickets to our next destination - for me, that was Sofia.

Ok, so as I said earlier, I got a Turkish bath! It was soooo weird, but a cultural experience none the less. Basically, you lay on a big hot marble stone in a sauna-like room until you are good and sweaty. Then, a big fat man takes you to a sink and sits you down (you are in a towel). Afterwards, he proceeds to scrub you with a rough cloth to rid your body of dead skin. Finally, they lather you up with soap and throw buckets of water on you until you are clean... NO HOMO! :)

Afterwards, Luiggi left for Greece so I had a few hours alone. I decided to eat a big slow-paced meal and then go to a Berber... A Barber.

At the Barber shop, I got a greatly needed haircut and a professional shave! It was soooo cool! Razor blades, hot shaving cream, and fire! Haha that's right, fire! He lit his scissors on fire and proceeded to quickly and painlessly burn the hair on the edge of my ear! I didn't even know I had any there...

Another great and I guess pampered day!

Turkish Bath

Check it out... I did it ;)

Turkey Day 4 - Ephesus

After a rough night's sleep, we were dropped off in the middle of nowhere with no clue where to go to next (we were still without vouchers or an agenda). But again, after 5 minutes, we were approached by a Turkish who held a sign with my name on it! How do they keep finding us?!

Anyways, the sightseeing was amazing! I truly felt like I was in Rome. We toured Roman and Byzantine ruins and saw the place where the Virgin Mary was believed to live after Jesus' crucifixion. At that particular site, we were confronted by an older man, Barney, who began discussing the meaning of life with us. It was very deep and insightful. I took away two things: 1) Love God above all else and treat your neighbor as you would treat yourself 2) You must be the change that you seek. Two great pieces of advice from the Irish man.

After the church, we were taken to a leather store who gave us our own private fashion show. Halfway through, I was brought backstage and given a wig and a leather jacket. Then, I was instructed to walk a beautiful model down the runway and model with her! Haha it was fun, but embarrassing!

The day ended on another night bus headed to Istanbul... This time, however, we were perfectly on time!

Turkey Day 3 - Cappadocia Day 2

Compared to the trains and buses, my queen sized bed at the cave hotel was paradise! I slept like a baby and woke up ready for a new adventure.

Our tour today was actually better than yesterday's. We started out with a hike in a place called Rose Valley which allowed us to see many cave dwellings along the rosy canyon. Afterwards, we were taken to the underground city of Cappadocia.

It was seriously one of the most impressive things I have ever seen. We were free to explore the underground city where thousands of people lived for hundreds of years. So cool!

The day ended quickly and it wasn't long before we were on another night bus and on our way to Ephesus...

Turkey Day 2 - Cappadocia

Shortly after hopping on the bus, we realized we had nothing; no voucher, no receipt... Nothing haha

We freaked out a bit, but decided it'd work out. So how were we supposed to know where to get off the bus without a ticket? We guessed and ended up in a small town near Cappadocia. The information office couldn't help us because we knew nothing, but he let us charge my phone in hopes that 1) it would work and 2) that the travel agent sent us an email with details. Neither happened... My phone kept crashing, as it had been since I got to Turkey, and we found no email. So, we were stuck. But, after a few more minutes, the phone at the info center rang and said a car would be coming for us. How they new where we were still remains a mystery...

The car took us to our cave hotel (very fitting since Cappadocia is famous for its array of ancient cave dwellings). From there we started our tour. On the tour we were shown various cave dwellings and cave churches from over 4,000 yeas ago! It was incredible. We were shown many breathtaking views and rock formations and taken to various local shops. We saw how ancient pottery was made and how Turkish carpets are made.

This fun and interesting day ended with a bottle of wine, hookah, and relaxation on our upper terrace where one can see a beautiful moonlit valley and hear Islamic prayers echoing throughout the canyons... Great day!

Turkey Day 1 - Istanbul and a Crazy Taxi

Looks like I took a ride on the Orient Express!

The first day in Istanbul was interesting to say the least. Upon arrival, we decided to book a bed at Harmony Hostel which was located 5 minutes from the train station and situated above a small carpet shop. We were greeted by a very friendly staff and given the common Turkish breakfast, boiled eggs, tomato, cucumbers, and cheese (not the most appetizing, but I guess it's healthy).

We spent about an hour socializing with a man from Kansas who one day decided to pack up his things and travel the world. Apparently he has been traveling for about two years now. Anyways, we decided to hit the road to see the sites...

We saw many tourist attractions; the two most amazing being the Hagia Sofia and the Blue Mosque. We even got to watch a prayer in the Blue Mosque. Normally tourists are kicked out, but we acted interested in the religion to enter and watch ;). It was really cool watch.

Me in front of the Hagia Sofia...

Hagia...

Me in front of the Hagia again...

One last view of the Hagia...

The Blue Mosque from afar...

The Blue Mosque again...

Outside of the Blue Mosque - I really like this picture!

Inside the Blue Mosque...

The backside of the Blue Mosque...

When evening came, we headed to the Gran Bazaar, a giant market place. I contemplated buying a Hookah, but didn't because I decided my lungs would thank me later.

After we left the Bazaar, we popped into a travel agency to inquire about the costs of renting a car, as we wanted to go to Cappadocia and Ephesus. He told us it wouldn't be worth it and quickly told us about an all inclusive tour package that would cost 500€. We started laughing and so he got serious and started hammering away at the calculator. He then proceeded to tell us that for 190€ we could do the whole three day and four night trip; but, he told us that the bus would leave in only an hour. After quick calculations in our heads, Luiggi and I figured that it'd be much cheaper than renting a car. So, we booked it and then literally booked it to the hostel to shower and gather our things.

As usual, we were pressed for time, so we had to run back to the travel agency (ten minutes away) to have him hold the bus. We called a cab who was instructed by the agent to hurry up, which he did because he drove like a madman- weaving in and out of cars and almost getting in a million accidents!

Upon arrival, the whole bus company was waving us to run to the bus that was literally backing out of its space. We flagged it down and stopped the bus. Everyone was laughing, but we made it!

We really have to stop being so late (although this time it wasn't our fault)...

Two more random photos from that day...

Underground Watershed...

Medusa holding up a pillar in the underground watershed...

Turkish Border - Giris

Just got my visa and passport stamp at the Turkish border!

My First Sleeper Car Ever!  It was so much more comfortable than a the buses!

Remember the Orient Express?

Sofia, Bulgaria

I could not understand one thing in Bulgaria... The written language was so crazy!

The pictures below are from my trip (sorry they took so long to upload!)

A very old church

Didn't expect these guys in Bulgaria

I really liked this statue - the gold and black contrasts are so incredible

The Wishing Egg!  I made a wish, but I can't tell you what I wished for ;)

I think my future houses will have Lion Statues

A very cool church... Luiggi and I watched a ceremony there.  Hearing the language was so interesting.  It is unlike anything I've ever heard...

An eye-opener as to how the rest of the world views Bush (A Stamp on a Park Bench)

We made it to the train right as the whistle was blowing! It literally started to move as soon as we jumped on. This time it wasn't our fault though, our bus got stuck in traffic, leaving us with 20 mins to run to the train station, buy tickets and food, and run to the train...

Anyways, after a rough nights sleep, we arrived in Sofia at 6am. We've spent a majority of the time wandering around the city asking people if they speak english and if they could help point us in the direction of various tourist locations. We've seen churches as old as the 4th century!

We will be getting on a train to Istanbul around 15:00 tonight... I'm really really excited! Oh and my phone is almost dead (so if you don't here from me mom and dad, I'm safe and don't worry)!

Transylvania and a Crazy Bus Ride

Today Luiggi and I woke up around 6:45 am to get an early start to our day because we only had until 16:00 to see Bran (Dracula's) Castle and get back to the train station...

Walkway Leading up to the Castle...

Inside Court

Spectacular Views!  The castle was built on a hill so that it could see its enemies coming from miles away...

Dracula's castle was pretty cool. There was a lot of history about the region of Transylvania inside; but, I enjoyed reading about vampires and the story of Dracula the most. Although it was a cool place, I couldn't help but wish that I were that at night and that it was more erie and vampire-like.

After we got back to Brasov, we visited a small museum that was kind of boring. Afterwards, we rushed back to the hostel to grab our bags and head to the train station where we were supposed to grab a train to Bucharest... BUT... The train was late and we needed to get to Bucharest before 8 so we could catch another train to Sofia, Bulgaria. So we scrambled and found a bus to Bucharest in the nick of time.

So far the bus ride has been crazy! We held it up so I could pull money out of the ATM. Then, we forgot to lock the back of the bus, so the bus driver had to stop and make sure nothing fell out. And just now, Luiggi's seat broke so he had to switch seats... I am pretty sure everyone is making fun of us in Romanian :)

Hopefully we make our train at 20:00 in Bucharest! The amazing race continues!

Brasov, Romania

BRASOV!!!

Brasov was a really good experience. Upon arriving at our hostel (at three in the morning), we were greeted by a friendly staff and a wide variety of travelers. There was a woman from Uruguay, two Australian guys, and a Norwegian hippie-like guy who is thinking about dodging the draft in his country. Apparently he just got called in for service. Anyways, after a night of hanging out and talking, I went to bed and got about four hours of sleep before heading out to see the city this morning.

The city was really beautiful. It looks medieval. There were several beautiful churches and scenic views so I'll have plenty of pictures to upload. For lunch we went to this Romanian restaurant where we ate Salmare (I think) which is pork covered in sour cabbage; a specialty here.

Tonight was spent looking for ways to get to Istanbul, we might have to take a train back to Bucharest, then to Sofia, and then on to Turkey. I'm hoping we find a cheap rental car place. It'd be much easier...

Adding Photos!  I think that this will help you understand how unique the city was...

The Church outside of our hostel...

The narrowest street in Brasov (String Street)

Me in the City Center

The Black Church

View of the City...

Different Views of the Black Church...

Me in an Old Cemetery!  Spooky!

A really cool white church inside of a cemetery...

Another Cemetery...

A Day In Bucharest

Today was a great day. Luiggi and I tried to wake up early, but couldn't because of our night out. At 13:00 we left the hostel and started wandering around the city. We had printed wikipedia articles about Bucharest, so we decided to go to a few places that were mentioned. First, we went to the Parliament Building. Apparently it is the largest building in Europe and the second largest in the world.

Afterwards we met some locals who proceeded to show us all of the rest of the tourist spots on our list. They were very nice people.

Bucharest was fun, but you can tell it is very poor. There is a lot of graffiti, homeless people, and stray dogs. A stray dog actually followed us for a few blocks, barking at us until we fed him some of the Kabob's we were eating.

Not the same dog as in our story... This one was actually nice

As you can see, there is a lot of poverty...

We did see a few interesting and entertaining things along the way.  The following pictures are kind of a recap of everything we saw in Bucharest:

I thought that this building looked like one of the castles after Tetris!

Probably one of the cooler things I have ever seen made out of plants :)

Statue of Vlad the Impaler - Getting us ready for Dracula's Castle in Transylvania!

And finally... This dog is a little too curious!

The day ended on a train to Brasov. We sat in a cabin with a junior figure skater from Romania. All in all, it was a good day...