Hello Young Adventurers!

Locations Visited: Istanbul, Turkey. Cappadocia, Turkey

Languages Spoken: Turkish

Words Learned: Hello- merhaba.  Thank You- teşekkür ederim

Phase 2 of the journey is about to begin, and I hope y’all are ready for it!  This leg marks my official step out of Europe in the one country and city in the world that splits between two continents- Istanbul, Turkey.  It was the perfect stepping stone to say goodbye to the familiarity of Western Culture and step into a literal world of unknowns for me.  Unknown cultures, unknown customs, unknown sights just waiting to be explored.  

Turkey is a country that is divided between the continents of Europe and Asia by the Bosporus Strait which cut right through the city of Istanbul.  Once called Constantinople, Istanbul has been the seat of many empires of the Ancient World, particularly the Romans and the Ottomans.  I’m going to be honest, I knew very little of Turkey before arriving, and I chose to come here in order to meet back up with Marie and her friend Kristen so we could explore another country together.  I would be lying if I didn’t say I was nervous to be leaving the comfort of Western Europe, and you know what?  Those nerves didn’t last long.  This city and country are incredible- lively, vibrant, and filled with new cultures to experience!  Buckle up and let’s dive on in!

Istanbul, Turkey

Busy bustling streets, the sound of the Islamic call to prayer soaring across the city 5 times a day, the smell of spices filling the air.  Almost everything about this city was new to me, and for the first time in my life, I was in the minority as I walked the streets of Turkey.  Founded back around 660 BCE as Byzantion, the city later was renamed Constantinople in 330 CE and became a major capitol in the world over the next sixteen centuries for groups such as the Romans and Ottomans.

***Side Note: Flying here was a blast, by the way. I got super lucky with a plane that had Harry Potter AND a window seat! I got to stretch out and enjoy the final Harry Potter movie while watching the German Alps roll by.

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Like every major city of the world, there were quite a few “must-see’s” that I headed out to see.  The first was The Blue Mosque (or Sultan Ahmed Mosque).  Still actively used as a mosque, this particular one its specially known for the beautiful blue tiling inside which gave it it’s nickname.  It also is special for having 6 minarets, a privilege only shared with one other mosque in Istanbul in all of the world, with only the seven minaret mosque in Mecca having more.  I had never had the opportunity to go inside a mosque before, so I was quite excited to learn more about a faith that I was more unfamiliar with, and pay my respects to an important site.  Check it out below- what do you notice?

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Isn’t it beautiful?  My next stop was the Hagia Sophia, which was right across the park from the Blue Mosque.  This building is equally as remarkable.  Originally built as a catholic church by the Roman Empire, the Hagia Sophia was burned down twice throughout history, eventually being converted into a mosque after the Ottomans took over power.  Nowadays, the Hagia Sophia is a museum, containing elements from both it’s Catholic and Islamic pasts.  We went and explored inside, noticing the Catholic mosaics sharing space with the Islamic writings.

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We also found our way to explore the Topkapi Palace where the Sultans used to take residence.  This place is absolutely beautiful.  There were beautiful mosaics and tile works, ancient rooms with elegant carpets and tapestries.  The entire palace felt so exotic with it’s palm trees and almost tropical appearance inside compared to the non-stop hustle of the city outside the walls.  No one lives in the palace anymore, and unfortunately there were places that I couldn’t take photos in.  Check it out, though!

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From the walls of the palace, you can even look across the water into Asia!  How cool is that?!  

Marie and I eventually found our way across the water to the Asian side. We didn’t stay long- it was really cold!

I also found time to also visit the Archeology Museum here in Istanbul, and I had it almost completely to myself! There were lots of pieces on Turkish history as well as ancient Egyptian! Unfortunately, I couldn’t take lots of photos.

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Cappadocia, Turkey

This place looks like a different planet.  Marie, Kristen, and I were so excited to get to come here and celebrate the New Year together.  We were extra excited because we were going to get to ride a Hot Air Balloon at sunrise on New Years Day!  This region of Turkey is famous for the hundreds of hot air balloons that can be seen soaring over the rocky landscape every morning when the weather is good enough.  We were also excited because we were going to get to spend the next few nights IN A CAVE!

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What we didn’t expect when we arrived was for everything to be covered in SNOW!  We found ourselves in a wintery wonderland when we took our day trip the next day.  The trip started with a visit to a giant underground city.  The Romans used to use these underground cities during war time.  They were basically perfectly protected from outsiders.  The hallways between floors were so small we had to almost crawl to move through, but each room was surprisingly large!  At times, up to 3,000 people could be in one of these underground cities at a time, too.  That blew me away, because just the 10 of us felt crowded in any one room.

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We next headed out to get lunch following an icy walk through a gorge.  The views were beautiful, and we stopped to build a snowman, make snow angels, and have a small snowball fight!  Our lunch was delicious and warm, and then we made our way back to the van.

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We were supposed to head to a giant monastery that’s carved into the side of a mountain, but unfortunately the ice was too bad for us to make it.  Our driver took us to view an old, extinct volcanic crater that’s now filled with water to crate a really beautiful lake, especially in the snow!

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Our final stop was a gem store that sold special stones found here in Turkey.  Turquoise, a blue stone that is used in jewelry across the world, is commonly mined from here.  But the real star was a stone I had never heard of, zultanite.  It’s name sounds like some futuristic space stone, but it’s actually even cooler than that.  This stone is only mined here in Turkey, and it actually CHANGES color in different lights.  I’m not talking about like a mood ring, or something that.  This stone completely changes it’s color depending on the light.  It goes from purple, to green, pink, and even amber.  I took a video of it in action, check it out.  I actually don’t really understand it, even still, but I do know that I love it.

Unfortunately, the next morning, we were unable to do our hot air balloon ride.  The wind was too rough to fly the balloon, so we instead decided to let ourselves sleep in and rest.  To say we were disappointed would be an understatement, but we had no control over what happened.  We weren’t going to let it ruin our day, even if it’s why we flew out to Cappadocia for in the first place.  Sometimes things happen for a reason, and so we rested a bit before heading into the small town to explore a bit.  We ended up having so much fun looking through all the local shops, admiring all the handmade items in each one.  The town itself is also just so pretty, and unlike anywhere I have ever seen before.  After another delicious dinner (Y’all… the food here in Turkey is AMAZING!!!), we headed back to get some sleep before catching our plane back to Istanbul in the morning.

Back to Istanbul!

We explored more of the sites and bazaars on our last day in Istanbul.  Bazaars are giant shopping areas filled with small stands selling handmade items, clothing, spices, and really anything you could ever hope to find.  The thing is, most items don’t have a set price, though.  You have to be confident and barter, or try to get a cheaper price, with the salespeople.  They’re filled with life and energy, and we all found some really cool items while exploring.  One that we all loved were the Turkish “Evil Eyes,” which when hung up in your house or carried around, can ward off evil spirits and protect you from bad luck!  They’re hung up outside most stores and even inside most homes here.  Something about it is just so cool, so I got one for my backpack to help protect me for the rest of my journey!

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Turkey was amazing, y’all.  I fell in love with my time here, and definitely am going to come back.  Although we were disappointed that we never got to ride the hot air balloon, it just gives me an excuse to come back one day in the summer and see it when it’s not covered in snow!  Hopefully the weather will be better then, too!  

My next stop is basically THE country I’ve dreamt of seeing since I was a child.  Known for its famous river, mummies, pyramids, and incredible history, I’ve written more papers than I can count about over my life.  IF you haven’t guessed it by now, I’m on my way to EGYPT next, and I start in the city of Cairo.  I can’t tell you how excited I am to see the Great Pyramids and Sphinx for myself.  I’ll go find some camels for us and see you when you get here!  Until then,

Have Courage, & Be Kind,

Mr. Weavil