Istanbul (II)

 A few more photos taken in Istanbul last week.. The picture below was taken from the Galata tower, where we had a beautiful view over the city. It took us a while to figure out how to get to all of the places we wanted to see, because the public transportation system was so different than any other European city I've been to. The buses ran rarely, so we took taxis from the place we were staying many times, which was about as a cheap as a bus fare when split between three people. Over the week we were there we saw the Hagia Sofia, the Blue Mosque, the Grand and Egyptian Bazaar, the Princes Islands, and countless beautiful neighborhoods and markets, which I loved even more than the tourist attractions, because the culture was so apparent. Still, there is so much more to see and I would love to come back someday, especially since I now know so many nice people that live there.

Istanbul

 Just a few photos I took during the week I stayed in Istanbul. I had a great time traveling with my friend Andrea and Istanbul was probably the most unique city I've seen to date. Every morning we awoke at 5am to the Azan (the Islamic call to prayer) from the mosque right next door to where we were staying. We walked through the richest and the poorest neighborhoods, went inside churches and mosques. It was crazy seeing so many places in the same city that you would never expect to find together. It was also my first time couchsurfing, which was an amazing experience. Our hosts, Okan and Buket, were so nice and took the time to show us around the city on the weekend and show us places that we would never have been able to find in a toubook. We had Turkish dinners together in the evening and went out dancing at night. I'll try to post some more photos tomorrow!
Also, you guys might have noticed that I made some changes to the blog's layout. What do you think? xx

Easter Sunday

 I only had one day to get into the Easter spirit after returning from Istanbul, but I managed to bake a batch of easter cookies (a perfect excuse to use up all of the Christmas sprinkles) and spend Easter Sunday with the family. My aunt baked a beautiful Osterlamm and Osterzopf while my grandparents hid easter eggs in the yard. What did you do for Easter?

Frühlingserwachen

 These are a few shots I've taken in Munich over the past couple of weeks. It's so hard to believe how fast spring came! Last night I laid out at the River and grilled and drank with friends until late into the night (April swimming and bonfires are unheard of in Minnesota.) Tomorrow I'm off to hike in the alps for the day and enjoy this beautiful weather. What have you all been up to this spring?