After a spontaneous morning decision, based mostly on the logic that group things will be cheaper, I went with the huge ESN group to see.... the Hagia Sophia, Sultanahmet, Basilica Cistern, and Topkapi palace.

I know, you are thinking so much history at one time? What could you possibly be thinking? My morning brain clearly had some issues today. Either way, I loaded up and went down to what has been the most visited sites in the world for thousands of years.

I ended up only going into the Sultanahmet ( commonly known as the Blue Mosque), Where incredibly huge. The sheer size of the place is absurd. It's got domes on domes on domes. However, I think the thing I liked about it most the ancient wall paper. The entire wall had was plated with beautiful symmetric tiles, Each a defined space, but none repeating creating a chaotic yet peaceful feeling. all the paint was of course blue.

It is still a active mosque, so the women all had to cover there heads, while everyone had to take off their shoes. I didn't mind, as the carpet was quite cozy around my toesies.


Eating of course is always a treat here. The food is fantastic compared to the many bland (yet filling) courses we adore in America. However, all the socializing had me quite tired and I headed Home after about an hour of enjoying some sun time with our Greek friend Clio.

For how nice and sunny the day was, tonight was quite dreary, but was made better by the always comfortable home of Selcuk, where we watched a movie and enjoyed eachothers prescence. Very yavas yavas

Now I am sitting at home enjoying the guilty pleasure of Taylor Swift. Of course I only listen the stuff before she become a power hungry mongrel of the music industry trademarking phrases like "This Sick Beat" and moving all her songs off of spotify in "Artistic Protest". Blah

It has been a over a week since I got here..... Wow

Good weather in Istanbul is quite "BAZAAR" indeed.

 Seeing a blue sky has jumpstarted the past two days for our motley crew of eager explorers... which is now pretty much in european majority and we don't hate it. Yesterday we hit up Taksim and entered some glorious, new, coffee shops. They were called "Starbucks"...never heard of it before... but for some reason their smallest size was a tall. 

We then took the tram to the Grand Bazaar to do some knickknack shopping with full intentions of negotiating prices to at least half price like that of Canal Street shopping in NYC. I decided to take 10TL out of my pocket as the highest price that I would pay for a nifty genie lamp and I succeeded in making the buy from an original 20TL price. SCORE!  

 Traveling as a big group through the maze-like configuration of the bazaar was a struggle to say the least but luckily we all made it out alive! #ya. The supposed-to-be simple way home became the hick-up of our day. On our way home to Hisarustu, we hopped on the wrong bus and ended up an hour north of our campus next to the fishiest of fish markets. Mmmmhmmm... nothing like nice rotten sardines to ruin my appetite for the next 24 hrs. After figuring out our mistake, we finally leapt on to the correct bus and Iris had the pleasure of sitting next to this tired woman on the bus (see pic to the right). She was a good sport about it though! and through much deliberation, did not disturb the woman napping next to her. Later on in the night, we attended a very american beer bong tournament where nearly every american lost...I am very embarrassed by this and am still getting over the loss as I write this sentence. Although, Durant and I lost to very respectable opponents from Australia and Greece. Post-pong our trusty roommate Selçuk brought us to a greasy spoon restaurant for some late night munchy food. This nice meal turned into a Rosetta Stone Turkish lesson with phrases such as "I am drunk" and "What is the wifi password?" Two sentences with entirely new levels of importance once you are abroad. 



Today I was so blessed that my roommates were willing to come to the not-so-fun international police station with me to obtain a necessary document for my residence permit. I quickly obtained what I was in search of then suddenly we were graced with the presence of an Iggy Azalea lookalike. So...therefore.. If it wasn't for my incompetency in saving necessary documents, we would not have seen the Iggy impersonator decked out in a velvet jumpsuit. (baby blue for the win)

Since we were in the neighborhood (casual), we decided to hit up the Sultanahmet neighborhood, which is home to the highly acclaimed Blue Mosque (inside is pictured above), and Hagia Sophia Mosque (outside is pictured below). Both mosques are incredible and even in the Blue Mosque we were given the pleasure of carrying our shoes in thin plastic bags....Therefore, the entire inside smelled like stinky feet, but that was in the back of the mind while we took in the amazing mosaics and 17th century stain-glass windows. 

We did not go into the Hagia Sophia today just so we could save that sight for another time! We were advised to dedicate 5-7 hours to the massive mosque. Truly amazing that something so beautiful was constructed in year 537 ad. 

After our sight seeing enriched afternoon, we decided to make some grub with our new friends Chris and Lorenzo, who are both on exchange here as well. It always seems like I am blogging about meeting people over food..oh well...get over it. After opening one bottle of wine... we decided to open another... and one more... to accompany our watching of Quentin Tarentino's infamous Kill Bill. Crazy how you can be attending a building so foreign to you one minute and then just hours later, watching a movie that makes you feel like you are at home (I'm not saying that Kill Bill is what I think about on the daily.. but you get my drift..). Tomorrow we embark on our 12 hour bus ride journey to Cappadocia for the weekend!!!!! We are so excited and you will see some super crazy blog pics once we get back to civilization. To keep you entertained for the time being, here is a picture of the lovely Karolina taking a little wine induced nap during a Kill Bill murder scene. Our little angel. Peace love apple sauce -ko 

day 7 + 8: *insert clever bazaar/bizarre pun here*

it was finally beautiful outside yesterday so we decided to head to Taksim for a little stroll and trip to the Grand Bazaar with some new friends. doorknob got left behind because he slept in late so that's completely his own fault and I take 0 responsibility. but he was sorely missed for the first part of our day.... I suppose

it rained lightly for about an hour once we got to Taksim after an hour-long bus ride so we took shelter in an extremely fancy Starbucks located 2 shops down from another fancy Starbucks...... ah, the sweet sweet smell of Home

After strolling around for a bit, and purchasing some postcards, we decided to eat lunch at a local restaurant that was on the more expensive side but totally worth it! I forget the name of the place lol sorry I'm the worst at this blogging thing

then we headed over to the Grand Bazaar to meet up with some other people and although it was a bit confusing at first to find them sans communication, we ended up together. the bazaar itself is pretty crazy, and at first expensive, but if you play your cards right, you can walk away with a beautiful print for just 10 lira, dropped down from 85. I should have bought it when I had the chance but I'm sure this isn't our last trip to the bazaar!

getting home from the Grand Bazaar was quite the adventure. took us one metro, two buses, and two long hours.... *side eye* but we made it back safe! Kyle cooked up a huge ass pot of pesto pasta which we scarfed down quickly so that we could head over to To Stage for beer pong with the other exchange students... I didn't win so I brought great shame to my country but neither did Karolina, Kyle, or Durant, so it's F I N E

selcuk also joined us at the bar and he was a big HIT amongst the locals! he also took us (emily, durant, kyle, emily's roomie) to a restaurant afterward and made us order a hot dog thing stuffed with questionable meat and pickles....... and then we passed out at around 2 am : - )

I didn't take a lot of good pictures today / I'm lazy and don't want to upload any / but we went to the Blue Mosque today and it was absolutely stunning. I feel like this won't be my last time there either so there will be more on that later (or on durant, kyle, karolina's posts). Anyway, after the blue mosque, we came home and cooked up a nice dinner with new friends Lorenzo and Chris..... and watched Kill Bill over bottles of shitty wine.... I loved every minute

BYE

This is so Bazaar

Today I woke up late and in a tizzy of figuring out what we would be doing. A message from Kyle told me that we would be leaving from the bus stop in... 2 minutes. Great.

I jumped into my jeans, ran out, and got to the bus stop. After 25 minutes of waiting, I decided my friends had left me. 

Feeling slightly dejected, I messaged another friend Iris, a wonderful dutch girl, and made plans to go to the Grand Bazaar. In the meantime, I walked back to my flat and ate breakfast with My flatmate Berk and his girlfriend. We talked about music and did some needed bonding. He wants me to go to something called magic break which the current impression is quite crazy. 

In an act of fate,  I ran into the crew in front of the grand place and got a delicious lamb dorum. walking through the Bazaar was a wonderful mix of colors and smells. Tea men carrying trays to other sellers, lots of turkish delight, exotic spices, and the smell of meet sizzling on a grill. The bright blues, turquoises, contrasted with reds and deep greens established in geometric patterns unique to the region. The many lanterns give an interesting feel of eastern that reminds you that Istanbul is such a cross roads of cultures. 

Crew love is growing strong and I see many more dinners and breakfasts coming up. I will have to learn how to grocery shop. Cheers

The Chronicles of Palace Life: Days 4 and 5

Ok so I'm feeling guilty about not posting. My contribution this week is more on the educational side of things so our readers, when quizzed about one of Istanbul's most famous sites, can spew off facts like a local. We visited the Dolmabahce Palace yesterday which took 13 years to build and was finished in 1856. A number of sultans lived in the palace from this period starting with the majestic Sultan Abdülmecid I, who believed that his current residence was not quite suited to his needs. As a result, he bankrupted the already faltering Ottomon Empire. It cost roughly 1.5 billion dollars which is the equivalent of five million Ottomon mecidiye gold coins. Classic Abdülmecid! Between 1856 and 1922, a total of six sultans lived there ending with the first president of the Republic of Turkey, the revered Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. My handy dandy eyewitness travel guidebook claims that all the clocks in the palace are set to 9:05, the time that Atatürk died on November 10, 1938. He died in the palace so you can sometimes hear him running through the grand halls (one is plated with 90 kilos of gold) and sliding down the banisters of the crystal staircases. The palace is 45,000 square meters and has 68 toilets. I’ll let that sink in for a minute (nothing like a pun or two to keep this history lesson lively). The most significant part of the tour for me was when the guide mentioned that the architects and designers employed Rococo style elements. Consequently, I spent the rest of the tour singing Arcade Fire’s “Rococo” in my head.

Enough boring stuff! Tomorrow we play beer pong with the ESN group. 'Murica!

days 5 + 6: baklava is my sweetest downfall

Hello friends...... another day..... another slightly interesting blog post from yours truly. Istanbul is beginning to feel more and more like home which is really nice because it's such an extremely unique kind of place (in the best way obviously)... but I was worried about not getting used to it this quickly. however, it does remind me in many ways of India, which I'm used to already, so adjusting hasn't been too difficult! there's lots of crazy driving, kind strangers, and the experience of being surrounded by a new and beautiful language. so right up my alley, eh

yesterday we woke up and had a nice breakfast together and then met up with durant to walk over to Dolmabahce palace. it ended up being a little further than expected so we hopped on a bus (it's incredible how we figured out the bus system so quickly without wi-fi. I mean, we only know one route, but that's good enough tbh) and met up with the rest of our exchange group at the gates, stopping at a cafe to drink some tea and have a light lunch

the palace itself was extremely beautiful. we weren't allowed to take pictures inside (although we did attempt to sneak a few only to be told off by the guards) but hanging out with the other exchange students was NICE! they're all extremely friendly and interesting and getting to know these new people has been one of the best parts of study abroad honestly

fun tip! if you want to become popular and make friends quickly, get a selfie stick. people will literally flock to your side and never leave.....

after the palace, we decided to come home and cook a meal (save some money u know) with michelle and our roommate, selcuk. and by 'we cooked' I mean karolina, selcuk, and michelle cooked..... sorry not really... they made a lovely lentil soup that reminded me of one I used to eat at my family's favorite Middle eastern restaurant when I was younger, and vegetable noodles. our roommate even made us a warm brownie-like dessert with hazelnuts and raisins that was so heavenly. and then we all watched an old movie about killer roommates that really made us feel comfortable and at home with each other.... ha ha ha... we noticed that kyle has glasses similar to the killer so me and karolina are just gonna casually lock our doors every night.... stay out Ortman you're not wanted here

we headed to bed fairly early but woke up to a cloudy and rainy day this morning. Typical istanbul, always foiling our plans. But we had class registration at 10 am so we huddled in the living room, furiously emailing professors and begging them to let us into their classes. the selection is surprisingly limited for the spring semester and from what we were expecting but things are falling into place slowly but surely! I have 2 classes with my bff Durant and am simply thrilled to learn all about differentiating equations with him. A true joy

We then had a traditional turkish breakfast at home (a nice spread of cheese, honey, butter, jam, bread, eggs....), watched I Love You Man, and then ventured out into the world for lunch with Emily. it was delicious and the first time I tried meat in Turkey. i have to admit, it tasted much better than the chicken in the states. More soft, more flavorful. then we headed home and Kyle and I just relaxed while Karolina went on a run and found herself caught in a terrible rainstorm (lightning and all haha loser)...... stressed about classes a bit more..... also little fun fact for you....Kyle likes to sing along to every song dramatically so I had to put him in the silent corner for a bit....

that's all for today, folks! catch you on the flippy flop
prateebs

"It's 9:05 in the morning...Conversation got boring"

 We have collectively decided to make this blog an every other day sort of thing..so here goes nothing! Yesterday we went to the palace of Dolmabahçe with a quaint group of exchange students. Actually. That's a huge lie. If you scroll down, you will see that a group of approximately 60 walked through Dolmabahçe, which served as the main administrative center of the Ottoman Empire from 1856 to 1922 (thanks Wikipedia!). Also, fun fact!!!! All the clocks in the palace were set to the time Mustafa Kemal Atatürk died, which was 9:05am. A very sad fun fact, but a fact nonetheless. Yesterday, my last and shameful US CVS purchase came in handy...
THE SELFIE STICK. I do not care if people think it is obnoxious because you cannot tell me that you would not utilize your arm for selfies if it was 4 feet long and retractable. It truly worked wonders amongst the eager and deliriously
tired group of Americans, Europeans, Asians, and Australians. I know that at least 4 continents were in attendance.
   

 Durant timed the photo perfectly with a leap in the back next to our scarf engulfed friend Michelle. We were beyond tired at the end of the day as you can see in the picture of Karol with the tea she made, so we stayed home and watched a movie about killer roommates to relax the mind...Of course the main character had glasses that resembled mine so Karol and Prat now lock their doors in the apartment when I'm home (oh well).. 

Today the weather was sad and dreary so we sat around and watched Katy Perry's halftime show (bring out the dancing...sharks?). The highlight was when we ventured to the appliance store to buy Pratibha a hair straightener ("A must" she said). 

After eating hummus for dinner we kept the homicidal theme going and watched anothermurder movie, "Se7en." We are mentally okay I promise. 

Karol is now trying to make Prat and I look bad so she decided to break out Turkish literature as her activity for the night. Studious but BORING if you ask me. Tomorrow we have to meet with our Turkish academic advisors so hopefully I won't need to buy Rosetta Stone on the way there. Wish me luck. Until Wednesday -KO