Büyükada

 On our third day in Istanbul, Andrea and I decided to take a trip out to Bueyuekada, the biggest of the Princes Islands. It was a rainy boat ride out from Istanbul, but the weather cleared up as soon as we got there. The feel of the island couldn't be more different than that of Istanbul.. there was no motorized traffic and the island had such a peaceful feel. Most of the streets were deserted and we were told this was because many of the wealthier people living in Istanbul have summer vacation homes on Bueyuekada that are still empty at this time of year.
Along our hike through the woods, we discovered a stray dog that followed us around the island for four hours.. so we named her Shadow. The island is such a great mix of little shops along the shore, beautiful mansions and gardens lining the streets, and stretches of lonely flower fields and forests. These are the last photos I'll post of Turkey, but if any of you are in Istanbul for week, this island is definitely worth seeing!

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