Istanbul, Turkey

Outside Hagia Sophia (the FIRST solely Christian church). We're both gross from a 10 hour bus ride. I was STARVING (seriously, I thought my stomach was gonna eat itself) but for some reason Joyce wasn't... maybe she's become accustomed to the greek tradition of no breakfast???

Grand Bazaar - crazy shopping!!! LOADS of fake stuff. Its the kind of place you have to barter at, which I STINK at doing =)

Inside the Patriarchate - apparently where the Pope-like person of Istanbul lives...

Dino with our tea (turkish, orange, apple) at the super sweet outdoor cafe we stumbled upon...everyone plays backgammon in greece and turkey. I sort of learned but I stink... =/

Joyce with the MASSIVE PITA @ Emek Saray (our FIRST Turkish meal) Seriously, isn't that thing ginormous!? It's like as big as she is!!!

I love this picture of Istanbul... =) In front of the University of Istanbul.

What else? We visited the Sultanahmetiblue (Blue) Mosque, ate a TON of Karisak Tost (toast with Turkish salami type stuff and cheese... SOO GOOD!), and went to the Hippodrome where we saw the obelisk of Theodosius, the serpentine column, and the German Fountain of Wilhelm II. We also crossed the Galata Bridge where tons of older guys stand and fish for these itty bitty fish that look pretty unappetizing and we were able to RANDOMLY attend this leather fashion show which was... interesting??? On an entirely separate note, turkish delights are AWESOME and turkish baklava is better than greek baklava (they're less honey-y and more nutty).

All in all the trip to Istanbul was really good =). I wish I'd researched a little more ahead of time but it worked out well. Besides, I think I really needed a break where I could just sit back and soak everything in without feeling pressured to see everything for a change.

Insanely tired...
Hannah =)

Thessaloniki, Greece + JOYCE!!! =)

So apparently the garbage people went on strike...

Joyce and me by a buncha OLD rocks

B-E-A-UUUTIFUL!!!

Joyce with a gyro (officially pronounced gyeee-ro)

Dino, Me, Joyce, outside the Rotunda (made in the THIRD century)

the monstrosity they call crepes in greece. strawberry, banana, nutella.... yummmm =)

Joyce and I sat on this Old Walls that protected Greece and watched the sunset... ahhh, so romantic! haha =)

What else? Visiting Thessaloníki's patron saint's church (St. Domitrius), the MESMERIZING water (sorry no pic, but pics really don't do it justice), our 10 euro ALL YOU CAN eat greek meal, our homemade kimbap dinner, ble pizza and dessert, trekking all the way up the old walls, admiring the Rotunda, Kamera arch, gyro's from The Best (really, that's what its called!) all the stray dogs, and most importantly, the CRAZY BLUE SKIES!!!!

But I gotta say, none of the stuff above compared to seeing the amazing JOYCE B. OH!!!! =) Thanks Joyce for an AWESOME week!!!!

Missing everyone mucho...
Hannah =)

Tower of London

On the way, we witnessed a protest against the Scientology center around my school. Notice the V for Vendetta masks?

The Chapel inside the Tower of London... the light shining through made it really pretty, especially since it was a dreary day.

Juliet and Me in one of the prisoner towers... =)

In front of one of the prettiest cannons I've ever seen... not that I've seen that many...

Juliet pointing at the ravens (in the black cage). Legend has it that if there are any less than 6 ravens kept in the Tower of London, the fortress and monarchy will fall. Its actually a royal decree to have 7 ravens at all times.

White Tower (foreground: holds the Royal Armouries collection) and Waterloo Block (background: home to the Crown Jewels)

Sorry there isn't an actual picture of the entire fortress but the thing is simply too big! The fortress is made of up over twenty towers in addition to several mounts, memorials, and other sites. My entire day flew by exploring everything. Its actually a bit creepy to walk around the towers people were held prisoners in and reading their etchings into the walls. Not to mention seeing replications of the torture devices they used on people. Its quite amazing to see this historic place so well preserved and in the midst contemporary London. I think that's actually one of my favorite things about being here, seeing the juxtaposition (haha... SAT word) of history and modern culture everywhere.

School is OVER in less than a week.... crazy.

Extra... GIFT
Remember this???

-H