Final Numbers (and thanks for reading!)

Last day in Munich was spent in Museums and walking around the city.

I am now safely at home, did some grocery shopping and still trying to get comfortable in my apartment…

Here are the numbers behind my summer adventures:

Totals (in no order whatsoever):

2 ½ months away from NYC

10 weeks out of the United States

70 days of going, going, going nonstop 

46 days in Greece

45 days with ASCSA

63 days without friends or family (until Lisa met me in Munich!!)

2 continents (technically)

7 countries I visited

22 cities (or on a sea) I spent the night in

8 flights

6 types of currency (including USD)

4 ferries

8 trains

17 million hours on buses

19 AMAZING new people in my life

6 nights in a row in the same bed (Loring Hall) 

12 Greek beaches (I think it was actually 13)

6 languages (none that I can speak, many that I can read!)

37 nights without AC

23 hotels/hostels/dorms

3 days without any money or credit cards

4 -5 nights when “sleeping” meant 3 hours of sleep

61 days sharing a bathroom

31 days sharing a bedroom

1 million castles or palaces seen

18-23 times my NYC cab driver almost rear-ended someone on my ride home

2 days until work starts!!

70 days I was very happy with the decisions I’ve made in my lifeJ   

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and the Sound of Music

Well, Tuesday I headed 2 hours south of Munich to the town of Hohenschwangau.  The tour leader was slightly bizarre and it was like being led by the Crocodile Hunter, but like he was leading small children.  Anyway we went to the castle of Neuschwanstein, built by the ever so crazy Ludwig II.  Ludwig spent tons of money trying to build castles that were inspired by sets for the composer Wagner’s operas… that seems like a good use of time.  Ludwig, as a grown adult, liked to hide in the woods in the hills at the base of the Alps and have his staff try and find him.  Ludwig died under mysterious circumstances at the age of 40… spooooky.

Anyway, the castle… hiked up to the castle from the town and then we went over a bridge where you can get really good views from the castle.  The interior of the castle looks like it was based on a children’s book.  The castle itself was the inspiration for the castle at Disney World and is the castle from… CHITTY CHIITY BANG BANG!  One of the best yet most traumatizing movies EVER!!  The child collector is creeeeeeepy!  I think I saw the movie (rereleased in the theater) with my mom, sister and brother (but I think he was an infant and it may have been his first movie).

After the tour of the castle we hiked down a small gorge along the river that had some pretty cool waterfalls.

Wednesday… I decided I had to go to Austria!  This morning I headed to Salzburg, home to Mozart and The Von Trapps.  Now, let’s discuss some inaccuracies in the movie…. That scene, when they’re crossed into Switzerland to escape the Nazis… IT IS ON THE GERMAN SIDE OF THE ALPS!!  They went back into Nazi territory!!!  Well, that was just the beginning of the fallacies of the movie.  However, no one can prove that Maria wasn’t fond of brown paper packages tied up in strings, so at least that song still holds water….

We had lunch at the oldest restaurant in Europe (804 I believe).  Then, because it was on a hill and I like hills, I hiked up to the fortress.  I think I have developed a problem where if I see something on top of a hill I must hike up to it, despite the buses, carriages, trams, etc.  that could take me up there.

Tomorrow is my LAST DAY in Europe!!  Ahhhhhhhh!!  So I will be exploring Munich a bit.

Dachau...

Today I went to Dachau.  The site of the first Nazi concentration camp.  It opened in 1933 and was liberated April 29th, 1945.  The camp was a model for all other concentration camps and SS guards were trained there and then sent out to other camps.
I spent 5 1/2 hours there.  The museum is amazing and the site is pretty overwhelming.  So much so that I really have nothing to write.  If you want to know about it just ask me when you see me.

We Found Narnia!!!

The past three days have been spent with my lovely friend Lisa who currently lives in London.
On Friday I took a 6 hour train ride from Prague to Munich.  It was great until some lady came in the car with her dog and let him roam around freely, getting all sorts of dog hair all over me...
Anyway, arrived in Munich and headed to meet Lisa and the pension we're staying at.  It's a cute little place and each room has a bizarre assortment of furniture and decor.  Our breakfast gets delivered to our room each morning!!
Lisa and I walked around Munich and then went to see the glockenspiel in the square in Marienplatz.  Apparently the "big show" is during the day so not much happened when the clock struck 9pm...

Saturday we decided that we should probably have traditional Bavarian clothing, so we went to a tracht store (tracht is the word for the clothing) and we each left with a lovely new outfit.  Later we headed to Viktualienmarkt, which is a huge open air market in the center of Munich.  We grabbed truffle brie, manchengo, bread, grapes, chorizo and pata negra and sat and did some people watching.  For dinner we went to a restaurant in the neighborhood and the food was delicious!!

Sunday, slept in a bit and then decided today was the day to wear our tracht....

So, we put on our outfits and headed to a biergarten for lunch.  The outfits were quite comfortable.  During the previous days we had seen people out and about in tracht, today was not one of those days, but we clearly didn't care.  

On our way back from Narnia (we have no idea how they got this wardrobe into our room).

Then Lisa had to go back home:(  4 more days left for me in Germany!

Last Day in Praha (Prague)

Well, this morning I had to switch hotels because I decided to stay in Prague a day longer and my hotel was full.

Then I went to the train station to but my ticket to Munich for tomorrow.  It took 5 minutes and was so much more organized than Budapest!!

After the switch I headed to the Old Town Square and there it was… a Salvador Dali exhibit!!!  I love DALI.  So of course I had to go check it out.  There were some photos of Dali and some of his sketches as well.  He was a madman, but an awesome one at that!!

Then I did some shopping…

The next part of my day consisted of a tour of the old Jewish Quarters (Josefov) in Prague.   Some king forced them into a ghetto years ago and they were not allowed to build outside of that area.  As a result, the one cemetery in the area had to keep being rebuilt on itself for a total of about 200,000 bodies in an area much smaller than a NYC square block  (maybe about 1/8 the size of Union Square…).  Above ground there are roughly 12,000 grave markers, all right next to each other so some of them are unable to be read.   Hitler didn’t destroy any of the buildings in Josefev (although he did send the residents to death camps) because he wanted to turn the buildings and neighborhood into a museum to what he thought would be an extinct race (so bizarre). 

Next I headed out on a boat tour along the river.  The weather today has been a bit rainy, so I’m lucky I went up in the balloon yesterday because it was closed today!

For dinner I went to the oldest kosher restaurant in Prague and had some matzo ball soup and chicken.  It was delicious!

Tomorrow morning I’m on a train to Munich to finish off the last week of my tripL

I Love Prague!!

So, yesterday (Tuesday?)  I hiked up to the citadel of Gellert Hill and the view of Budapest was fabulous!  After that I headed to the post office to buy stamps and send postcards (otherwise my sister may prevent me from getting back into the country). 

View of Budapest (Buda on the left, Pest on the right)

Next stop was the train station so I could purchase a ticket for the 1:25 train to Prague.  I got there around noon (because in the states that would give you PLENTY of time).  This was a mistake… the system there was a mess and I ended up having to get on the 3:25 which would put me in Prague a little after 10 (female, traveling alone, at night… ugh.)

So I got on the train and proceeded to watch 2 episodes of the Dallas reboot.  Excellent choice.  Then I read and pondered the meaning of life.  I had a chance to view the Romanian, the Slovakian and then Czech countryside.  Well pulled into the train station close to 11 and then I went straight to my hotel and to bed!

Today (Wednesday… I think):  Breakfast in the hotel.  #1 requirement for my choosing a place to stay is that breakfast is included.  Other than the hostel in Brasov, I have not been let down (The Agora Hostel in Istanbul had an AMAZING breakfast!).  Then I ventured out.

I went on a tour of the old town square.  After that I went on a tour of the palace complex.  It consists of MANY buildings so the entire compound took 600 years to complete.  

Palace.

We also drove by the largest stadium IN THE WORLD!  It can hold up to 9 football fields.  Alas, the stadium has fallen into a state of disarray and is no longer really used.  As the bus I was on was driving around Prague I noticed a HUGE balloon hanging over the river and people were in it!  I decided “I must go there!!”  I got off the bus and had lunch along the river. 

Next.. the hunt for the balloon!!  I couldn’t see it in the sky so I had to get on the famous Charles Bridge to see if I could find it… There it was! 

Side Note:  EVERYWHERE you go you see images of King Wenceslas (you know, from the Christmas song).   Well, in the Christmas song they leave out the part where his brother murdered him.  End Side Note.

Back to the balloon.  40 meters in the air, run by two guys in swim trunks… sure, seems perfectly safe.  The view was AMAZING!!  Not a lot to say about it, other than it was well worth the money (I also lack a fear of heights… unless I’m having a vertigo attack, then it’s bad).

Shadow of the ballon I was in.

Charles Bridge from the balloon.

Me in the balloon!!

 Finally I headed back to the Old Town Hall to see the astronomical clock chime on the hour.  The clock was built in the 1400’s and is the oldest working astronomical clock in THE WORLD!!  There’s a creepy dancing skeleton who rings a bell and all sorts of more creepiness happens.

Tomorrow… last day in Prague… booooo.  

Brasov to Budapest Baby!

First off, shout out to my student blog follower JR and sorry if my tales of vampires kept you up at night!  

Well, it was an interesting evening last night, but let me start with Saturday, my last day in Brasov.  It rained.  A lot.  I went to the train station in the morning to purchase a ticket.  Then I walked around Brasov for a while, sat in the Piata and read when it wasn’t raining.  I wrote some postcards, realized I had no stamps…  I also checked out the fortification of the medieval city (towers and walls).  The guilds of a medieval town used to be responsible for manning a different tower. 

Finally after a long day I headed back to the hostel to get all of my stuff together and head to the train station.   The train finally came and I went to my assigned car and seat and put my bag down… WAIT… my BAG… SINGULAR?!?!?  I realized I was missing my laptop bag, with my laptop, my iPod, my Kindle and my other credit card.  Does anyone recall the OJ Simpson Hertz commercial where he goes flying through the airport?  That was me (yes, just compared myself to OJ Simpson… ).  I raced out to where I had been sitting a low and behold, the bag was still there and then the train whistle blew!  I ran back and jumped on the train!  The ride was 12 hours long.  12 hours.  Do you know how long that is?!?!  I amused myself by watching the new reboot of Dallas, doing some reading and listening to any music that would keep me awake.  I ended up with about 2-3 hours of sleep (Passport Control on the border of Romania and Hungary woke me up).

I arrived in Budapest at 9:30 am and took a cab to the hotel to drop off my stuff since check-in wasn’t until 4.  Well guess what?!?!  The only room that was ready for early check-in was mine!  I dropped my stuff off, changed the clothes I’d been wearing for 24 hours and tried to take a nap (nap didn’t happen, couldn’t sleep).  Then I decided to head to the one of Budapest’s thermal bath houses for a massage and some time in the thermal pools.  IT. WAS. AWESOME.  I went to the Gellert Bath House, which is huge!  It has an outdoor wave pool an indoor swimming pool, a sauna, and a steam room and thermal baths from a natural spring!  Good choice!  Spent a chunk of the day there, then went on a dinner cruise along the Danube River and got the chance to see the sunset over the Buda side of the city.  Then I went to bed!!

Monday… Went on a bus tour around the city.  I hate taking subways because you don’t get to see anything, so usually I’ll hop on a bus tour and do one loop to orient myself.  I did a lot today… can’t recall what though (I saw the Buda Palace).  I do know that it ended by going to see an orchestra perform some Mozart, Liszt, and Vivaldi at a church.  It was quite good!! 

Tomorrow I’m going to hike up Gellert Hill (named after a priest who came to convert people and was killed when pagans (potentially practicing witchcraft) pull him in a barrel with nails and rolled him down the hill) and then on a train for 5+ hours to Prague for 2-3 days!! 

No pics tonight, but I will probably put a WHOLE BUNCH up when I get back.

Today Was... Odd.

So this morning I went to the market and grabbed some items for lunch because we weren’t going to be stopping.

Hopped on a van with some other people from the hostel and headed to our first site…. Pelisor Castle, which belonged to some Romanian king.  The castle was beautiful on the interior and exterior (although we had to pay a fee to take pictures inside… so I decided against that). 

Pelisor: I set my camera to black/white/blue.

We got stuck in a loooong line of traffic (only one main road), so after that our driver decided to drive like a mad man.

After that we headed to Bran Castle, which is often referred to as “Dracula’s Castle”  for no real reason whatsoever.  All around the castle looks like a scene from EPCOT world and it was quite creepy.  The castle itself was NOT where a vampire would live!!  It was bright white on the outside and the interior walls were white as well. EPIC LET DOWN!!

"Secret Stairway"

NOT A CASTLE A VAMPIRE WOULD LIVE IN!!

         

After that we headed to Rasnovului Castle.  It was a walled fortress built during…. Some medieval time period (?). 

The fortifications were great and the view of the Carpathians from the top was fabulous. 

View from the top of the fortifications.

Then…. We walked further into the fortifications to see the remains of the town… once again… DISNEY ATTACKED!  Then, there was an old man dressed in what I can only describe as 18^th century Romanian garb, with a staff of some sort who kept marching out from some little room and saying “hello.”  Now, if I were in NYC I would assume this man was just off his rocker or trying to make some extra money a la The Naked Cowboy.  However, this place charges admission!!  Does this man pay admission each day to be crazy? Or does he work here?

Really, what is this man doing?!?!

Anyway, went back to the hostel and had some pretzel like thing stuffed with blueberry jam (DELICIOUS!!).  For dinner I had lamb chops in peasant sauce along with polenta. 

Tomorrow I need to go by my train ticket for my TWELEVE HOUR overnight train-ride to Budapest.  I was going to buy a sleeper car, but I know for a fact that I can sleep on a train overnight (thanks to a NYC/VA Beach journey), so I’ve downloaded some TV shows (the new Dallas, which I love!) and books. 

Goodnight!!

Some Portions of This Blog Were Not Safety Dad Approved….(Those things are highlighted)

Well, this morning I decided to go hike Mount Tampa.  However, the weather did not like this plan and it was raining when I woke up.  I slept a bit longer and then started reading Dracula!!

Mount Tampa (yes, that's a "Hollywood" sign).  I hiked up to the highest point above the "V."

The rain started to let up so I decided to stroll around town a bit and check out the trail.   There were a ton of people heading up the mountain so I went back to the hostel to grab my backpack and put on hiking shorts.

Well, I looked at the trail guide and it said that hike would take about an hour.  It also said that the area is know for black bears…I have lots of skills, defending myself against black bears is not one of them, but there were lots of people heading up to the trail!  Maybe I should have looked at the footwear of those people because none of them were hiking!  They all took the tram up! So now I’m on a trail (which is clearly marked so all is good) and I start playing a game every time I hear a noise called “Bear, Deer or Hiker?” Luckily “bear” was never an option.  The hike up was pretty easy since over Memorial Day Weekend my friend had made us hike up Devil’s Path in the Catskills.  The view along the hike was great and I stopped to take a picture half way up and then I saw my LEAST favorite sight.  Looking out into the valley I realized what was heading my way was a wall of rain and a thunderstorm!!  

AAAAAAAH!  Mountain on the left, THUNDERSTORM ON THE RIGHT!!

Now this happened to me last summer in the Grand Canyon and it was not fun.  Luckily here I had tree coverage, but I started to hike up faster.  I made it to the top in time and got some great pics before hopping on the tram back down as it started to rain. (JULIE, YOU MAY NOT WANT TO READ THE NEXT SENTENCE TO MY NEPHEW UNLESS YOU REALLY WANT TO EXPLAIN IT TO HIM)  Vlad the Impaler (aka Dracula) is said to have taken 40 merchants from Brasov up to the top of the mountain and impaled them on spikes to prove a point as he conquered the area.

Made it to the top!

Saxon town of Brasov (it's a cute town)

When I got down I did some more sightseeing (camera backpack has a rain cover) and saw the 

narrowest street in Europe, 

Narrowest street in Europe.  Trey, you're too tall to lay across it!!!

some old Saxon fortification walls and the “Black Church.”  The Austrians set fire to the outside of the church and so it looks black.  The inside however is nice and bright.  The church took over 100 years to be built.

"Black Church" is on the right.

At 6pm a few days a week they have a concert with their 4000 pipe orchestra.  One of the performances was today so I sat and listened to that, it was pretty cool.

Tonight’s going to be an early night because I have a long day tomorrow, including a trip to Bran where “Dracula’s Castle” is (not his castle, maaaaybe he spent the night there).

Transylvanian Stew Anyone?

Well, yesterday I took a flight from Istanbul to Bucharest, Romania.  It is my least favorite city ever.  EVER.  I was contemplating just staying in my hotel room, when a friend suggested that I go and check it out, that there had to be more to see in the city than the Peasant Museum.  That friend was WRONG.  The architecture is blah.  The one building that I may have wanted to see (the opera house) was being remodeled and the top of it looked like maybe it’d been hit by a WMD.

After an hour I returned to the hotel to have some dinner and do some laundry.  In the morning I got up to head of to the town of Brasov (pronounced Bra-shof) at the base of the Carpathian Mountains.  Guess what book takes place in the Carpathians?  DRACULA!  Guess what one of my four (yes four) favorite books is? Bram Stoker’s Dracula.   I went to the train station and went about trying to purchase a ticket and figure out the exact train schedule.  The line was ridiculously slow so I befriended an elderly woman (who spoke no English and I speak no Romanian) as we both just made exasperated faces about the line situation.  She became my best friend when she heard me say I was going Brasov because she was going there too.

I got on the right train, although needed some help with my luggage which is just packed all sorts of wrong and weighs more than my AMAZING 5 ¾ year old nephew Trey.  I took a brief nap and then read some during the 2 ½ hour ride and managed to get off at the right train station despite a lack of announcements or signage telling me where I was.  As I struggled to get my luggage down the stairs, many men walked by and did nothing (which is fine because I packed my own luggage, I should be able to carry it).  Then, out of no where two little old ladies offered to help me, I said no thank you and proceeded to make a mental list of things in the suitcase I need to ditch (this is the number one reason I never buy gifts).

Now, if I had been able to see Mt. Tampa I would have known I was in Brasov because there is a HUGE sign on the mountain that reads "Brasov" a la the sign in Hollywood.  Hmmm... guess where Kristen Stewart was seen cheating on R-Pat?  NEAR THE HOLLYWOOD SIGN, and they're in a movie series (worst ever made) about VAMPIRES... hmmmmm....

I made it to the hostel, which appears to be full of British and Australian men who are quite enthusiastic about the Olympics.   I started unpacking so I could figure out what to get rid off  (10 weeks of conditioner can now be consolidated to a smaller bottle, etc).  Eventually I went to dinner at Sergiana where I had Transylvanian Stew (sausage, pork neck in a cream and carrot sauce) with polenta.  It was quite delicious!

Not sure what the plan is for tomorrow.  Probably just going to explore (maybe hike the mountain that the town sits at the base of?) and reread Dracula!!!!!

I was in Europe, then Asia, then Europe again…

I have money again!!!  Thanks mom and dad!!  However, unlike yesterday, everything I did today actually accepted credit cards…..

This morning I headed off to a Turkish bath house.   The one I went to was called Çemberlitas Hamami.    The building was designed/constructed in the late 1500’s by Sinan who is considered to be one of the greatest architects of the Ottoman.  It was such a relaxing experience... there should be more massages in life!

After that I headed to the Grand Bazaar to see what that was all about.  It is one of the oldest and largest covered bazaars.  SENSORY OVERLOAD!  Pick something you want… they have it!!  Lots of “it.”  I left with nothing because I need nothing…

Next off to the Egyptian Spice Market!!  The building smelled delicious!  I ended up buying tons of apple tea and tons of Turkish saffron (yum yum yum!).  This means I get to infuse a ton of olive oil when I get home (more yum yum yum), oooh, and paella, I haven’t made paella in awhile!  The man at the spice market decided I was Spanish, which was GREAT!!  He didn’t try to push me into buying more stuff (because Spain’s economy ain’t so hot!).

After the spice market I headed down to the docks for a two hour cruise along the Bosphorous, which connects the Black Sea to the Sea of Marmara, thus making it a pretty important trade route.  The boat crisscrossed between the Asian and European side (although Izmir is in Asia… So I already covered that). The weather was great so the views we quite lovely.  When we docked I went to one of the seafood restaurants under the bridge (sounds sketchy, but it’s not) that connects old a new Istanbul.  I had kalamari and it was delicious!

BTW, in case I left this out, Ramadan is currently being observed by Muslims in Turkey (and then rest of the world). No eating from sunrise to sunset.  This tends to make street sales people quite angry and aggressive come midday.  Also, did I mention how much I LOVE Islamic culture?  It’s one of my favorite units to teach (I also love teaching religion)  and it has been so amazing to be in Muslim country and see so many beautiful mosques.  It’s also been interesting to see the variety of head/body coverings that women choose to wear.

I also realize that I really like traveling solo and staying in hostels.  It’s such a great way to meet a variety of people from all over the world.

I did a little shopping after that and then headed back to the hostel to repack for my flight to Bucharest, Romania tomorrow!!!

Istanbul was Constantinople…

      

(I've completely given up all conventions of grammar and spelling... deal with it.)

So, my last day in Izmir was focused on getting Citibank to send me money.  They didn’t, their customer service in the US was horrible (and you should have seen the look of shock from the people at the Citibank in Izmir over the incompetence they witnessed).   I will speak of Izmir later (once the trauma wears off).

Saturday morning I got in a cab with 49 Turkish Lira to head to the airport.  I got on the plane and this is why I LOVE Turkish Airlines:  it was an hour-long flight and they served a full meal (they did this a couple of days earlier on BOTH my flights).  The hostel I’m staying at in Istanbul was able to send a car to pick me up so I didn’t need cash.  When I got to the hostel the guy at the front desk loaned my 200 TL since I had no money… so nice!! 

The hostel is great (Agora in Sultanahment, Istanbul)!  It’s super clean, they have a great breakfast and a fabulous view of the water on their rooftop.  I’m staying in an 8 person dorm and it’s only $25/night.  They also have a handmade brochure that tells you where the sites are and what parts of the area to avoid or be careful in.

So yesterday after I got settled in I went for a walk and headed into the Blue Mosque.  It’s nicknamed the Blue Mosque because of all the blue tiles on the inside.  I had to be given a skirt because I was in shorts, and a scarf to cover my shoulders.  I also have to take my shoes off.  The building inside was absolutely beautiful!!  What an amazing feat of architecture!!  After that I wandered around for a bit, contemplated buying a sword, but then realized I had no money (and no need for a sword).

I went to bed and e-mailed my parents to have them send me moneyJ

This morning I headed out for a bus tour of Istanbul.  It was about 1 ½ hours and then I went to Dolmabache Palace.  I could tell you a lot about it… but, I kind of don’t want to.  I will tell you that Ataturk died here and that they won’t let you take any pictures of the inside…. Booooooo.   I did some more walking around then ended up back at the hostel to sit on the rooftop and write my blog while the sun sets over the Bosphorous!

Hopefully when I wake up tomorrow Western Union will have some cash so I can head of to Romania on Tuesday!!!

Izmir? Why'd You Go To Izmir?

(No pics b/c I’m tired again and my computer isn’t loading the pics)

Wednesday evening I arrived in Izmir, Turkey (map: http://www.pas.rochester.edu/~yildirim/turkey_general.htm) after a flight through Istanbul.  No luggage was lost (knock on wood).

I got in a cab and headed to my hotel in Konak.  Oh, wait, you may be wondering why I’m here.  My parents lived here for about a year so I decided to see where they lived!

I got in late so I just had dinner at the hotel and then went for a walk along the harbor.  I got to bed at a reasonable time and kind of got some sleep (my body has been conditioned to sleep in transit and then stay awake all night… bad).

I woke up this morning and had a delicious breakfast at the hotel and then let the adventure to the ancient site of Ephesus begin… oh, and what an adventure it was:

The hotel told me I could take the metro to the bus station and catch a bus.  I checked out the metro map and got into the station… only to find there are ZERO subway maps down there.  I then took it a few stops and got off to ask directions.  I was then directed by a security guy (oh, did I mention that they have wands to pat everyone down before you get on the train?) and he speaks no English and sends me to the buses below.  I go to the ticket window and show the man where I want to go; he points me to a local bus so I get on.  I’m on the bus for a while and am looking for a bus terminal, don’t see one.  Then we hit what looks like an industrial center and there are only men going to work in factories on the bus.  I ask a man if I’m going to the right place and I’ve clearly gone past it.  Then… all 20 men on the bus discuss how to get me to where I need to go (all in Turkish because not a one of them knows English).  They all get me out at the next stop and some of them hail a bus and make it stop in the middle of the road to let me on.  They also tell the driver where I need to go so he made sure I got off at the bus station.

Then I had to locate a dolmus (small mini bus) to take me to the town of Selcuk.  Navigated that with success and hopped on the dolmus.  I would have loved to watch the scenery go by on the hour-long drive, but once again, conditioned to sleep in transit.  I awoke at Selcuk, checked out the Ephesus Museum and then hopped aboard another dolmus to Ephesus (5km away).  The museum was so so.  Not labeled well at all.

The site was amazing (but still not as great as Delphi…) !!  I had done some research on the site in order to give myself some background knowledge so that was pretty helpful.  The site ( http://www.ephesus.us/ephesus/ephesus.htm ) was mainly excavated by the Austrians and they were out doing some digging today. The site was pretty huge so I was there for about 3 ½ hours.  A large chunk of what you can see at the main site is Roman, but they have found evidence dating back to the Bronze Age.  I took a walk down the Arcadiance, which originally went from the theater directly to the sea (the harbor has since filled in as a result of silt deposits).  Now, I walked all around the site, following the path and ended up on the side closest to what would have been a harbor.  There we ZERO signs, ropes or guards telling me I couldn’t walk on it.  It was weird that no one else was on it, but oh well.  After a little over a quarter of a mile I see the rope, and a sign… oops… they should have had one at the other end!

On the way home I once again slept and then when I arrived at the bus station I took a cab to my hotel.  Time for bed.

"I wish I'd done something else..."

So, I’m going to write two blogs today, one from yesterday and one since I arrived in Turkey last night, hope it all makes sense.

I’ve only ever made a handful of bad decisions (or “mistakes”) in my life.  I know, that sounds ridiculous, but it’s true.  I don’t actually believe mistakes exist.  I’ve never had a desire to erase something I’ve done and do it differently.  If I didn’t like the outcome of something I take what I’ve learned and apply that knowledge to similar situations in the future.  I never, ever regret doing something.  Why?

Well, each decision I have made has led me to where I am now.  It has led me to meet the people that currently make up my world (okay, maybe not my relatives…).  Looking at my friends I’ve made since adulthood and the people that have had the most impact on me (including my students) I can explain the major decision that I made in my life that led me to all of you.  Choosing JMU was the first once, then turning down UCONN for graduate school in order to work for the Close Up Foundation, which led to stumbling into LBLP, which led to…. Anyway here’s where I’m going with this:

Yesterday as everyone from the ASCSA Summer Session II was crying their eyes out and saying goodbye (which had started the evening before), I said to myself, “Wow, I wish I had done this program when I was younger.”  IMMEDIATELY I caught myself.  There is no way I wish I had done this at any other point in time.  While the program was absolutely fabulous it was the people that I had the chance to meet that really made the difference.  From distinguished professors, peers who can carry on intelligent conversations one second and then start laughing about ridiculous things the next second, people who ensured I had no sleep, and more people who made me laugh each day, they are what made this program for me and I am so grateful to have added new members to my chosen family of friends.

At midnight on Tuesday the group decided to do one last hike up Mt. Lykavittos (which is how we started) and the view was spectacular.  The next morning as we began saying our goodbyes the waterworks began.  I can’t really explain what happened between all of us over the past six weeks, nor could I do it justice such as others have been able to do.  Three of us split the cab to the airport yesterday and the tears continued.  There were clouds over Athens (which there had not been the whole 6 weeks), so we decided Zeus was sad to see us go.

I know I have made some lifelong friends and I am really grateful to have had the opportunity to make the decision to spend my summer the way I did.  

Yamas to excellent decision making.