hey, everyone!
haven't updated in a while, and i'm in computer class at school right now, so i figured i'd give a quick update regarding a few upcoming things:
1.) regarding recent...um, events... I have found a host family (actually, Rotary found it, but still.) and i'll be moving there next week. Until then, I'm staying at the rotary president's house. I like it there, and I hope my next family will be just as nice :D
2.) EUROTOUUUUR!!! :D I'll be leaving in 9 days for the Eurotour (if i go), but sadly, the price keeps growing faster than my nails. and that's pretty fast. so hopefully i'll go, but i really don't like spending that much money. i won't have shopping money :-SS =)) but it'll be great to see all of the sights and all of the exchange students again :D
3.) speaking of the exchange students, they all came to valcea last weekend. it was AMAZING :D that's all i can say about that ;)) i miss them soo much.
that's it for now, more later <3
joi, 7 mai 2009
duminică, 19 aprilie 2009
TURCIA !!
As I am writing this, it is currently 15:51 on 19 April 2009. I have slept 16 hours last night, and really wish I would have actually kept a diary during this trip, since it is really hurting my brain to try and remember all of the details of this amazing trip. By far, this was the BEST Rotary trip EVER, and definitely the most memorable. The thing about us exchange students is that we’re like one huge family, and when we get together, there’s no stopping us. We don’t sleep, we don’t just sit in the hotel, we go out and LIVE. Here’s the account of our most recent trip to Turkey. We lived it to the fullest.
Joi, 9 Aprilie 2009:
Ramnicu Valcea - Bucuresti - Constanta
Woke up: 6:15am
Left Valcea fairly early in the morning. I’m thinking around 8am, but I’m not so sure anymore. Took a bus with Tete, Paula, and Renan. We took the bus to Bucharest, where we met Renan’s host brother and ex-host brother. They took us all to another autogara in Bucharest, and the drive from one autogara to the other took about one hour due to the heavy traffic in Bucharest.
At the other autogara, we met all of the other exchange students at, where else? McDonald’s! (Typical American, I know.) After sitting and talking at the McDonald’s for a few hours, a driver finally came from Constanta to pick us up. Apparently the driver got lost trying to find the huuuge autogara (something that still amazes me), so we had a rather long and difficult walk along the streets of Bucharest with our big suitcases. Finally, we triumphantly arrived at the short bus!! And so began our route to Constanta.
Arriving in Constanta, we all met our “host families” for the few nights that we’d be staying in Constanta. Megan and I got placed with an absolutely WONDERFUL family who instantly made us feel right at home. We went back to the house, left our bags, ate dinner, and went out for a walk past the beach and through the city with our host mom. We stopped at a family friend’s house, who just happened to be hosting Bruno, and hung out there with Bruno and his host brother (who looks just how I always imagined Edward Cullen would look, no lie hahaha) for a few hours. After that, we went to the supermarket with our host mom to buy some food for the trip the next day (our host mom was also coming to Turkey) and then we went out to a bar called Doors with the other exchange students. Afterwards, we went back to Bruno’s host house where our host mom waited for us and hung out again there for a while, then we went back to our house.
Went to bed: 2:30am
Joi, 9 Aprilie 2009:
Ramnicu Valcea - Bucuresti - Constanta
Woke up: 6:15am
Left Valcea fairly early in the morning. I’m thinking around 8am, but I’m not so sure anymore. Took a bus with Tete, Paula, and Renan. We took the bus to Bucharest, where we met Renan’s host brother and ex-host brother. They took us all to another autogara in Bucharest, and the drive from one autogara to the other took about one hour due to the heavy traffic in Bucharest.
At the other autogara, we met all of the other exchange students at, where else? McDonald’s! (Typical American, I know.) After sitting and talking at the McDonald’s for a few hours, a driver finally came from Constanta to pick us up. Apparently the driver got lost trying to find the huuuge autogara (something that still amazes me), so we had a rather long and difficult walk along the streets of Bucharest with our big suitcases. Finally, we triumphantly arrived at the short bus!! And so began our route to Constanta.
Arriving in Constanta, we all met our “host families” for the few nights that we’d be staying in Constanta. Megan and I got placed with an absolutely WONDERFUL family who instantly made us feel right at home. We went back to the house, left our bags, ate dinner, and went out for a walk past the beach and through the city with our host mom. We stopped at a family friend’s house, who just happened to be hosting Bruno, and hung out there with Bruno and his host brother (who looks just how I always imagined Edward Cullen would look, no lie hahaha) for a few hours. After that, we went to the supermarket with our host mom to buy some food for the trip the next day (our host mom was also coming to Turkey) and then we went out to a bar called Doors with the other exchange students. Afterwards, we went back to Bruno’s host house where our host mom waited for us and hung out again there for a while, then we went back to our house.
Went to bed: 2:30am
Vineri, 10 Aprilie 2009:
Constanta - Canakkale (600 km)
Woke up: 5:00am
Met the exchange students and Rotary and Rotaract Clubs of Constanta at the sports complex, where we all boarded the bus with tired eyes. Along with us were various Romanians and a Norwegian man who also came on the tour. (We did not know them, but some of them soon became good friends.)
We traveled through Bulgaria and finally arrived in Canakkale at about 9pm, after quite a long trip. Crossing the border from Europe to Asia was the most interesting part. We took a ferry boat with our bus on it. How in the world that boat held our huge bus, I still have no idea.
Arriving in Canakkale, everyone was extremely tired. I was the only one who wanted to go out, and Megan and I were both hungry, so armed with just a heavy room key, I stepped outside and got my first taste of Turkey.
IT WAS AMAZING.
Went to bed: 2am
Constanta - Canakkale (600 km)
Woke up: 5:00am
Met the exchange students and Rotary and Rotaract Clubs of Constanta at the sports complex, where we all boarded the bus with tired eyes. Along with us were various Romanians and a Norwegian man who also came on the tour. (We did not know them, but some of them soon became good friends.)
We traveled through Bulgaria and finally arrived in Canakkale at about 9pm, after quite a long trip. Crossing the border from Europe to Asia was the most interesting part. We took a ferry boat with our bus on it. How in the world that boat held our huge bus, I still have no idea.
Arriving in Canakkale, everyone was extremely tired. I was the only one who wanted to go out, and Megan and I were both hungry, so armed with just a heavy room key, I stepped outside and got my first taste of Turkey.
IT WAS AMAZING.
Went to bed: 2am
Sambata, 11 Aprilie 2009:
Canakkale - Kusadasi (420 km)
Woke up: 7am
I’m almost positive we actually left Canakkale at around 8am, and along the route we made our first stop at Troy.
Yes, the Troy with the giant wooden horse and the battle. I never even realized that place really existed until I saw it. The first thing we saw there, of course, was the big wooden horse. Sure, it wasn’t the original, but it was still really cool. We all got to climb inside it and take pictures. Inside the wooden horse, we met a group of students from Bucharest also touring Turkey for the week. It was pretty cool J After the wooden horse, we walked around the ruins of the city of Troy itself, which were breathtaking, but were nothing compared to the other sights we were about tosee.
Then it was back on the bus, a stop for lunch at a good Turkish restaurant, then back on the bus again.
Our final stop along the road was at the Turkish Acropolis, which was by far the most BEAUTIFUL sight. You see all of these pictures of Roman ruins and such, but you can never even begin to imagine what they look like until you’re standing there looking right at them. This was the day that I decided to forget low salaries and to become an Archaeologist. I could have spent the rest of my life just sitting there gaping. Also at the Turkish ruins, there were some markets with traditional Turkish items. The shop owners were all so friendly (and they spoke English and Romanian!) and I received both a pin and a bracelet/necklace with the good-luck Turkish eye symbol thing. (Ha, I forget the real name of it.) Also here, I bought my mom a handmade Turkish carpet bag (which I am tempted to steal tehe.) [This is the part in my writing where I realize how awful my English has become, by the way.]
After another long road, we finally arrived at our hotel in Kusadasi, which was definitely my favorite hotel that we stayed in. Some of the exchange students went immediately to the pool, but me, Paula, and Megan hung out in the lobby for a while. Megan went to bed, and Paula and I went to the disco in the hotel with some of the Rotaract people. We really had to use the bathroom at some point, and found these nice Roman bathrooms with buckets everywhere. It looked a little strange, but hey, it was modeled after the classic Roman style, so we assumed that the little buckets were for peeing. Well, we did what we had to do and left. We later discovered that the little buckets were for throwing hot water on yourself. The actual bathroom was down the hall. Oops…
After that, the Rotaract people decided to go to the pool. They jumped in the pool, but then a worker from the hotel said that the pool was closed. We begged and pleaded for him to let us in, and finally he said that we couldn’t let us in, but he would take us to the beach near the hotel. So we (plus a few more exchange students) all followed him to the beach. It was freeeezing there, but a few people got in anyway. I had my bathing suit on and got in to about my ankles, but it was way too cold, so I got out. It was then that Renan decided that I needed to go for a real swim. He literally dragged me in the water til it was up to my knees, but I refused to go any farther, since my flip flops were stuck in the sand anyway. Then Alex from Rotaract came in and simply picked me up, ran to where the water was deep, and threw me in. This is how I went swimming in the Black Sea at 2am.
Once we were all freezing enough, we went back to the hotel and hung out in the lobby/rooms for a while until almost everyone felt sick (that serves them right for swimming in that cold water!) and then we all went to bed.
Went to bed: 4am
Canakkale - Kusadasi (420 km)
Woke up: 7am
I’m almost positive we actually left Canakkale at around 8am, and along the route we made our first stop at Troy.
Yes, the Troy with the giant wooden horse and the battle. I never even realized that place really existed until I saw it. The first thing we saw there, of course, was the big wooden horse. Sure, it wasn’t the original, but it was still really cool. We all got to climb inside it and take pictures. Inside the wooden horse, we met a group of students from Bucharest also touring Turkey for the week. It was pretty cool J After the wooden horse, we walked around the ruins of the city of Troy itself, which were breathtaking, but were nothing compared to the other sights we were about tosee.
Then it was back on the bus, a stop for lunch at a good Turkish restaurant, then back on the bus again.
Our final stop along the road was at the Turkish Acropolis, which was by far the most BEAUTIFUL sight. You see all of these pictures of Roman ruins and such, but you can never even begin to imagine what they look like until you’re standing there looking right at them. This was the day that I decided to forget low salaries and to become an Archaeologist. I could have spent the rest of my life just sitting there gaping. Also at the Turkish ruins, there were some markets with traditional Turkish items. The shop owners were all so friendly (and they spoke English and Romanian!) and I received both a pin and a bracelet/necklace with the good-luck Turkish eye symbol thing. (Ha, I forget the real name of it.) Also here, I bought my mom a handmade Turkish carpet bag (which I am tempted to steal tehe.) [This is the part in my writing where I realize how awful my English has become, by the way.]
After another long road, we finally arrived at our hotel in Kusadasi, which was definitely my favorite hotel that we stayed in. Some of the exchange students went immediately to the pool, but me, Paula, and Megan hung out in the lobby for a while. Megan went to bed, and Paula and I went to the disco in the hotel with some of the Rotaract people. We really had to use the bathroom at some point, and found these nice Roman bathrooms with buckets everywhere. It looked a little strange, but hey, it was modeled after the classic Roman style, so we assumed that the little buckets were for peeing. Well, we did what we had to do and left. We later discovered that the little buckets were for throwing hot water on yourself. The actual bathroom was down the hall. Oops…
After that, the Rotaract people decided to go to the pool. They jumped in the pool, but then a worker from the hotel said that the pool was closed. We begged and pleaded for him to let us in, and finally he said that we couldn’t let us in, but he would take us to the beach near the hotel. So we (plus a few more exchange students) all followed him to the beach. It was freeeezing there, but a few people got in anyway. I had my bathing suit on and got in to about my ankles, but it was way too cold, so I got out. It was then that Renan decided that I needed to go for a real swim. He literally dragged me in the water til it was up to my knees, but I refused to go any farther, since my flip flops were stuck in the sand anyway. Then Alex from Rotaract came in and simply picked me up, ran to where the water was deep, and threw me in. This is how I went swimming in the Black Sea at 2am.
Once we were all freezing enough, we went back to the hotel and hung out in the lobby/rooms for a while until almost everyone felt sick (that serves them right for swimming in that cold water!) and then we all went to bed.
Went to bed: 4am
Duminica, 12 Aprilie 2009:
Kusadasi
Woke up: 12:30pm
This was a free day, and the tours for the day were optional. Since I lacked the money, I had no option but to stay at the hotel. Which was good, because it turned out to be one of my favorite days.
Paula had slept in my room the night before, and we both woke up at the exact same time, with the same exact craving for the beach. So we rolled out of bed, threw on our bathing suits, grabbed our towels, and headed out in search of food, since we had missed the continental breakfast.
About 2km from the hotel, we stumbled across a very tiny market in a small town near the hotel. The old man who owned the market was very nice, which encouraged us to buy many bags of chips from him. We took our chips and sleepily headed toward the beach.
The beach was rather nasty in most parts, but only because of the fact that it had some kind of sea wood stuff instead of sand. About 1km down the beach, we found a verrrry nice spot near a different hotel. Of course, we weren’t sure if we could sit there, so we asked some kind of young looking buys running a sort of surf shop if we could sit there. They said yes. But when we started receiving some rather mean looks from a man who kind of looked like a manager, we became uneasy. I went up and asked him if we were allowed to sit there, and in fractured English, he told me NO.
So Paula and I headed back toward the way we came and found a less nice, but still sandy, part of the beach. We ate our chips and Paula kept calling a dog who was walking with his young Turkish owner up and down the beach. About 20 minutes later, the dog’s owner came up and started calling Paula in the same way she was calling the dog. He didn’t speak English well at all, but sort of tried to explain something about his house and his dog and he’d be right back. So Paula and I just sat there confused and nodding our heads. Well, he came back, and just sat with us. Didn’t even say anything. It was pretty awkward.
Trying to fill the awkward silence, Paula and I decided to try and brush up on our Turkish skills (which actually, we don’t have any.)
I asked the boy, “How do you say ‘hi’ in Turkish?”
To which he replied “O.K.”
So this time, Paula tried:
“In English, you say ‘hello.’ In Portuguese, you say ‘oi.’ In Turkish, you say…”
And this time, I think we made a bit of success.
Oh wait, nevermind. The answer was still:
“O.K.”
But we’re not ones to give up easily. Oh, no, we kept trying. My turn this time:
“English, ‘hi.’ Portuguese, ‘oi.’ Turkish… [and I pointed to the boy.]”
“O.K.”
Finally, all hope was lost. Paula and I looked at each other, looked at the boy, smiled friendly, and told him:
“O.K.”
The boy later began talking to some Turkish guys standing on a nearby balcony. When he threw water on Paula, we decided enough was enough. We got up and walked away. The boy followed us, and as we went our separate ways, he turned to me, said something like “You come. Alone. Here. 8.”
To which I responded, “O.K.”
I never showed up at 8.
Paula and I went back to the hotel pool, where a Turkish employee tried to convince us why we should spend 30 euro on a hot marble massage located in the Roman Baths that we had peed in the night before. Obviously, we turned down that offer.
Bored with the indoor pool, we went to the outdoor one to tan, then back to the room to hang out for a little. Then Megan and Ju came back from the tour of the day and we all rested a little in the room. Then Paula and I went back to the market a little and I enjoyed myself taking pictures of more cats and annoying Paula, then it was back to the hotel disco. Who did we run into that night? No other than the Bucharest students! So we partied with them a little, then me, Paula, Flavia and Carina (two Romanian girls also on the tour), and Razvan (a boy from Bucharest) took another night trip to the beach. We sat on the same beach where Paula and I were earlier and just talked for a few hours, then we went back to the hotel and to sleep.
Went to bed: 4am
Luni, 13 Aprilie 2009:
Kusadasi - Pamukkale (180 km)
Woke up: 8am
The road wasn’t so long for once, and we stopped along the way at the Hieropolis. Gorgeous, of course, but were still nothing compared to the Acropolis. However, it was very cool to be able to tell where everything used to be. I loved imagining the ancient Romans going down the very stairs that I was walking on, and my favorite place was the ruins of the old stadium. You could really tell it was a stadium, and again, I realized just how much I want to be an Archaeologist.
Then it was back on the bus for us. At least for about an hour. Then we made another stop at Priene (google it.) It’s basically a bunch of gorrrrgeous mineral baths located on the side of a mountain. Of course, I still had no money to go, so I just waited outside, but I got to see everyone else’s pictures. It looked like it was really pretty. While waiting, I walked around a bit with Megan and Flavia, and there were some shops there, so we also walked around the shops. (We also saw our Bucharest friends again!) Then I remembered that Pamukkale was Alex (my friend from America, also from Rotary 7390, who is staying in Turkey) lives in Pamukkale and that I was going to hang out with him. So I borrowed a shop owner’s phone and called him, and he said that he lived in walking distance and would be there shortly. However, everyone else got back and the bus was leaving before he got there, and there was no way for me to get ahold of him, so I left feeling very guilty.
We went to a store where everything was made of cotton, which is apparently a very big tourist attraction, but I thought it kinda looked like an overpriced Wal-Mart.
Then we went back to the hotel. The hotel was amazing, and all of the students went to the pool, but I still felt bad about making Alex walk to Priene and not being there, so I just sat in the room with Paula. Then I finally figured out how to work the room phone and called him, and he said that he was back out with his friends, and that if he could come to the hotel, he’d just show up, but if he didn’t show up, then he couldn’t come. So I felt a little better that he wasn’t mad, but I still wanted to see my friend from America, and it really sounded like that wasn’t going to happen.
About 20 minutes later, Paula and I were dancing around the room on the beds singing “So What,” when Megan and Tete came in the room saying they had a surprise for me. I assumed Tete wanted her iPod charged, but then Alex walked into the room haha. So began the party!
We were all starving, and 7:30 (dinnertime) slowly rolled around. After dinner, me and Megan went out around the city/town with Alex for about 45 minutes, then back to the hotel. We met with the other exchange students, partied in the room, and around 1:30am, I was dead-tired. Most of the other exchange students went out to the park, but I ended up going to sleep.
Apparently when Megan tried to get back in the room at 2am, Alex and I were completely knocked-out and didn’t hear the door, so she had to get a hotel worker to let her in. This was one of the first complaints that we heard about us made the next day. Oops.
Went to bed: 1:30am
Kusadasi
Woke up: 12:30pm
This was a free day, and the tours for the day were optional. Since I lacked the money, I had no option but to stay at the hotel. Which was good, because it turned out to be one of my favorite days.
Paula had slept in my room the night before, and we both woke up at the exact same time, with the same exact craving for the beach. So we rolled out of bed, threw on our bathing suits, grabbed our towels, and headed out in search of food, since we had missed the continental breakfast.
About 2km from the hotel, we stumbled across a very tiny market in a small town near the hotel. The old man who owned the market was very nice, which encouraged us to buy many bags of chips from him. We took our chips and sleepily headed toward the beach.
The beach was rather nasty in most parts, but only because of the fact that it had some kind of sea wood stuff instead of sand. About 1km down the beach, we found a verrrry nice spot near a different hotel. Of course, we weren’t sure if we could sit there, so we asked some kind of young looking buys running a sort of surf shop if we could sit there. They said yes. But when we started receiving some rather mean looks from a man who kind of looked like a manager, we became uneasy. I went up and asked him if we were allowed to sit there, and in fractured English, he told me NO.
So Paula and I headed back toward the way we came and found a less nice, but still sandy, part of the beach. We ate our chips and Paula kept calling a dog who was walking with his young Turkish owner up and down the beach. About 20 minutes later, the dog’s owner came up and started calling Paula in the same way she was calling the dog. He didn’t speak English well at all, but sort of tried to explain something about his house and his dog and he’d be right back. So Paula and I just sat there confused and nodding our heads. Well, he came back, and just sat with us. Didn’t even say anything. It was pretty awkward.
Trying to fill the awkward silence, Paula and I decided to try and brush up on our Turkish skills (which actually, we don’t have any.)
I asked the boy, “How do you say ‘hi’ in Turkish?”
To which he replied “O.K.”
So this time, Paula tried:
“In English, you say ‘hello.’ In Portuguese, you say ‘oi.’ In Turkish, you say…”
And this time, I think we made a bit of success.
Oh wait, nevermind. The answer was still:
“O.K.”
But we’re not ones to give up easily. Oh, no, we kept trying. My turn this time:
“English, ‘hi.’ Portuguese, ‘oi.’ Turkish… [and I pointed to the boy.]”
“O.K.”
Finally, all hope was lost. Paula and I looked at each other, looked at the boy, smiled friendly, and told him:
“O.K.”
The boy later began talking to some Turkish guys standing on a nearby balcony. When he threw water on Paula, we decided enough was enough. We got up and walked away. The boy followed us, and as we went our separate ways, he turned to me, said something like “You come. Alone. Here. 8.”
To which I responded, “O.K.”
I never showed up at 8.
Paula and I went back to the hotel pool, where a Turkish employee tried to convince us why we should spend 30 euro on a hot marble massage located in the Roman Baths that we had peed in the night before. Obviously, we turned down that offer.
Bored with the indoor pool, we went to the outdoor one to tan, then back to the room to hang out for a little. Then Megan and Ju came back from the tour of the day and we all rested a little in the room. Then Paula and I went back to the market a little and I enjoyed myself taking pictures of more cats and annoying Paula, then it was back to the hotel disco. Who did we run into that night? No other than the Bucharest students! So we partied with them a little, then me, Paula, Flavia and Carina (two Romanian girls also on the tour), and Razvan (a boy from Bucharest) took another night trip to the beach. We sat on the same beach where Paula and I were earlier and just talked for a few hours, then we went back to the hotel and to sleep.
Went to bed: 4am
Luni, 13 Aprilie 2009:
Kusadasi - Pamukkale (180 km)
Woke up: 8am
The road wasn’t so long for once, and we stopped along the way at the Hieropolis. Gorgeous, of course, but were still nothing compared to the Acropolis. However, it was very cool to be able to tell where everything used to be. I loved imagining the ancient Romans going down the very stairs that I was walking on, and my favorite place was the ruins of the old stadium. You could really tell it was a stadium, and again, I realized just how much I want to be an Archaeologist.
Then it was back on the bus for us. At least for about an hour. Then we made another stop at Priene (google it.) It’s basically a bunch of gorrrrgeous mineral baths located on the side of a mountain. Of course, I still had no money to go, so I just waited outside, but I got to see everyone else’s pictures. It looked like it was really pretty. While waiting, I walked around a bit with Megan and Flavia, and there were some shops there, so we also walked around the shops. (We also saw our Bucharest friends again!) Then I remembered that Pamukkale was Alex (my friend from America, also from Rotary 7390, who is staying in Turkey) lives in Pamukkale and that I was going to hang out with him. So I borrowed a shop owner’s phone and called him, and he said that he lived in walking distance and would be there shortly. However, everyone else got back and the bus was leaving before he got there, and there was no way for me to get ahold of him, so I left feeling very guilty.
We went to a store where everything was made of cotton, which is apparently a very big tourist attraction, but I thought it kinda looked like an overpriced Wal-Mart.
Then we went back to the hotel. The hotel was amazing, and all of the students went to the pool, but I still felt bad about making Alex walk to Priene and not being there, so I just sat in the room with Paula. Then I finally figured out how to work the room phone and called him, and he said that he was back out with his friends, and that if he could come to the hotel, he’d just show up, but if he didn’t show up, then he couldn’t come. So I felt a little better that he wasn’t mad, but I still wanted to see my friend from America, and it really sounded like that wasn’t going to happen.
About 20 minutes later, Paula and I were dancing around the room on the beds singing “So What,” when Megan and Tete came in the room saying they had a surprise for me. I assumed Tete wanted her iPod charged, but then Alex walked into the room haha. So began the party!
We were all starving, and 7:30 (dinnertime) slowly rolled around. After dinner, me and Megan went out around the city/town with Alex for about 45 minutes, then back to the hotel. We met with the other exchange students, partied in the room, and around 1:30am, I was dead-tired. Most of the other exchange students went out to the park, but I ended up going to sleep.
Apparently when Megan tried to get back in the room at 2am, Alex and I were completely knocked-out and didn’t hear the door, so she had to get a hotel worker to let her in. This was one of the first complaints that we heard about us made the next day. Oops.
Went to bed: 1:30am
Marti, 14 Aprilie 2009:
Pamukkale - Istanbul (670 km)
Woke up: 7am
Alex left around 7:30, and Megan and I wolfed down our breakfasts and left for the bus at 8am. We sat and listened while an old, rather mean lady complained about us being too loud and “partying on the staircase.” I have no idea where this was coming from haha.
The bus actually left around 8:30am, and I think we arrived in Istanbul around 10pm, but I’m not positive.
We put our things in our room, and lacking a real meal, Megan and I headed down to our “free hotel dinner.” Of course, this was just assuming it was free. After we got our appetizers, we saw the menu and realized that it wasn’t free. After a short panic-session, we got over it, ate, didn’t order anything else, and asked to leave. The server insisted that we have some tea, which we weren’t sure was free, but hesitantly accepted. I don’t like tea, but Megan drank mine, and apparently it was verrry good! Thank goodness the tea was free, but in the time that we were contemplating our “free meal” and how in the world we were going to pay for it, the other exchange students had gone out in the city without us.
So at around 12:30, we had finally managed to pay for our meal, and Megan and I went out for a walk. Even though it was dark outside, my first impression of Istanbul was lasting: IT WAS BEAUTIFUL.
Went to bed: 2am
Miercuri, 15 Aprilie 2009:
Istanbul
Woke up: 7:15am
Today was a day of tours (and we passed our Bucharest friends on one of them!), starting with Topkapi Palace. It was gorgeous, but most of the tour was outside, and it was freeeezing. After that we went to St. Sofia’s Cathedral, which is one of the world’s largest churches, then to the Blue Mosque (one of the 7 Wonders of the World.) All of these places were wonderful and it was almost hard to believe that we were really seeing them, and that it was not just a dream.
After this, we got lunch, then went to Dolmabahce Palace, which again, I couldn’t afford. So I waited for the others outside with Paula and Megan. We stared at the motionless, blank-expressioned guard and tried our hardest to make him laugh. Then from inside the palace came maaaany guards. We didn’t really notice them, and we were just playing around on our own. Megan stuck her finger in my face randomly, and I tried to bite it, and apparently the new line of guards saw, and the expression on some of their faces turned from monotonity to laughter. Apparently we looked crazy, but WE DID IT! WE MADE THEM LAUGH (sorta!)
Once we got over the fact that we did the impossible, I saw a boy walk up while his friends took his picture with the Brazilian flag. I said, “Hey, Paula, is he Brazilian?” And she yelled to him in Portuguese and he walked over to us with his 2 friends. We began talking and found out that they were also Rotary exchange students, but that they were staying in Istanbul for a year. It was the boy from Brazil, a boy from Mexico, and a girl from Mexico. We got the boy’s phone number and made plans to meet the next day, then had to leave.
Our next stop was a short cruise on the Bosfor. Kinda pricy (much to my dismay), but definitely worth it. It was super cold, but the sights left me breathless.
We went back to the hotel after this, then all of us exchange students went out for pizza, then to a Turkish bar. Megan ended up feeling sick, so she and I went back to the hotel room and watched my home videos for a while, went down to the lobby to use the free wireless internet, then finally crashed in our room.
Went to bed: 1am
Pamukkale - Istanbul (670 km)
Woke up: 7am
Alex left around 7:30, and Megan and I wolfed down our breakfasts and left for the bus at 8am. We sat and listened while an old, rather mean lady complained about us being too loud and “partying on the staircase.” I have no idea where this was coming from haha.
The bus actually left around 8:30am, and I think we arrived in Istanbul around 10pm, but I’m not positive.
We put our things in our room, and lacking a real meal, Megan and I headed down to our “free hotel dinner.” Of course, this was just assuming it was free. After we got our appetizers, we saw the menu and realized that it wasn’t free. After a short panic-session, we got over it, ate, didn’t order anything else, and asked to leave. The server insisted that we have some tea, which we weren’t sure was free, but hesitantly accepted. I don’t like tea, but Megan drank mine, and apparently it was verrry good! Thank goodness the tea was free, but in the time that we were contemplating our “free meal” and how in the world we were going to pay for it, the other exchange students had gone out in the city without us.
So at around 12:30, we had finally managed to pay for our meal, and Megan and I went out for a walk. Even though it was dark outside, my first impression of Istanbul was lasting: IT WAS BEAUTIFUL.
Went to bed: 2am
Miercuri, 15 Aprilie 2009:
Istanbul
Woke up: 7:15am
Today was a day of tours (and we passed our Bucharest friends on one of them!), starting with Topkapi Palace. It was gorgeous, but most of the tour was outside, and it was freeeezing. After that we went to St. Sofia’s Cathedral, which is one of the world’s largest churches, then to the Blue Mosque (one of the 7 Wonders of the World.) All of these places were wonderful and it was almost hard to believe that we were really seeing them, and that it was not just a dream.
After this, we got lunch, then went to Dolmabahce Palace, which again, I couldn’t afford. So I waited for the others outside with Paula and Megan. We stared at the motionless, blank-expressioned guard and tried our hardest to make him laugh. Then from inside the palace came maaaany guards. We didn’t really notice them, and we were just playing around on our own. Megan stuck her finger in my face randomly, and I tried to bite it, and apparently the new line of guards saw, and the expression on some of their faces turned from monotonity to laughter. Apparently we looked crazy, but WE DID IT! WE MADE THEM LAUGH (sorta!)
Once we got over the fact that we did the impossible, I saw a boy walk up while his friends took his picture with the Brazilian flag. I said, “Hey, Paula, is he Brazilian?” And she yelled to him in Portuguese and he walked over to us with his 2 friends. We began talking and found out that they were also Rotary exchange students, but that they were staying in Istanbul for a year. It was the boy from Brazil, a boy from Mexico, and a girl from Mexico. We got the boy’s phone number and made plans to meet the next day, then had to leave.
Our next stop was a short cruise on the Bosfor. Kinda pricy (much to my dismay), but definitely worth it. It was super cold, but the sights left me breathless.
We went back to the hotel after this, then all of us exchange students went out for pizza, then to a Turkish bar. Megan ended up feeling sick, so she and I went back to the hotel room and watched my home videos for a while, went down to the lobby to use the free wireless internet, then finally crashed in our room.
Went to bed: 1am
Joi, 16 Aprilie 2009:
Istanbul
Woke up: 9:30am
Today was a free day, so we got to sleep in (for once!) and then went to enjoy our continental breakfast. (Hey, at least the breakfast was free here!)
Paula called the boy and they decided that we’d all meet at 12:30 outside St. Sofia’s. Megan and I misunderstood what Paula said, so we weren’t ready when all of the exchange students came to our room and told us to come ‘cause we’re all leaving. We just told them to go without us and that we’d meet them at St. Sofia’s.
Megan and I went out at around 11:15am and planned on having time to find me a pair of sunglasses and to enjoy some Starbucks, since it was right near St. Sofia’s. Well I got my sunglasses (about $7.00!!) and we headed toward where we thought was the Cathedral. Apparently we were wrong, and we kinda got lost. Due to the fact that almost everyone in Istanbul knows some English, we managed to find our way, but since it was about 5 or 6 km from the hotel, we didn’t have time for Starbucks. Darn.
After meeting everyone, we headed to the Grand Bazaar. It was AWESOME!! I found a Harley Davidson Istanbul shirt that my dad would LOVE, so I got that. I also got a bracelet with the lucky eye for my sister, which I really hope she likes, ‘cause it’s super pretty. The girl from Mexico didn’t come this day, and after being at the Bazaar for a few minutes, a different boy from Mexico showed up. So there were the 2 boys from yesterday, a different one, and 8 Romanian exchange students all there. They took us into a shop where most of the Romanian students bought cheap Nargila (aka, water pipes) which I still think is kinda funny, seeing everyone picking out which pipe they wanted to take back to Brazil haha.
After the Bazaar, we took a cable-car-type-thing back to the hotel, where we dropped off our bags, then went to a nearby restaurant to eat kebabs.
Once we had stuffed ourselves to our limits, we began our Metro adventure to a distant part of Istanbul. Armed with cameras, we arrived and took maaany pictures in the street. Thus disabling us (again!) from getting Starbucks, but hey, I had an interesting near-death experience with a cable-car-thing!
Once everyone had their fair share of photos, we went to a roof bar, which was beautiful. We stayed and talked and laughed for a few hours, and when it got dark, we went back outside.
Once again on the very same cobblestone street, Megan, Paula, and I were talking about drama and about life in general, and about how much of a family we all are. We formed a sort of circle, in a way, I guess it was a “group hug,” and just let all of our feelings go. We talked about how close we’ve all become, how much we’ve changed this year, how much we’ve been through, and just everything, and it kinda all hit me at once. I realized that I only have a little over two months left, then it’s all over. I won’t be on the EuroTour, so I won’t see them again. After I leave, I won’t see my Romanian friends again. This whole life that I know and have gotten used to, this whole side of me, these memoried, they’re all going to be GONE. And once again, I’m going to be right back where I started: the small town of York, PA.
And then it happened. The lights around me just started spinning and the reflection on the slick cobblestone street burned my eyes. I tried to swallow the lump in my throat and it just didn’t work.
I burst into tears just then. I wanted to freeze time forever. Things here are just too perfect to end. [As I’m writing this now, I’m fighting so hard to swallow the lump growing in my throat.]
Everyone began hugging me, and we all reflected on everything that we’ve been through together. And about how much of a family we’ve become. Then the rain literally just started pouring out of nowhere. [Agh, stupid lump. I couldn’t swallow it… That’s the thing-- I can’t think about leaving. It never fails, I ALWAYS start crying.]
Then we all realized that we were standing in the middle of the street in Istanbul, hugging and crying. That it was 9:30 at night. And that it was pouring rain and we had another Metro to catch. So we just held hands, laughed, and started running as fast as we could.
Being in that moment with my best friends, I realized that there’s nothing better than living in the moment, having family and friends to love you, and being completely happy, but that time is constantly passing, and when the time comes for change, you just have to accept it and run. Run like the wind.
Went to bed: 12:30pm
Vineri, 17 Aprilie 2009:
Istanbul - Constanta
Woke up: 6:15am
Another day of the bus. No tours this time, though. Just a veeery long bus ride. And a lot of hunger.
Arrived in Constanta at around 9pm, ate dinner with our host mom, then at around 11:15pm, went out one last time with the exchange students. We all went to a bar and talked, and I thought. A lot. At around 1am, Megan and I were tired, so we left.
Went to bed: 2:30am
Sambata, 18 Aprilie 2009:
Constanta - Bucuresti - Ramnicu Valcea
Woke up: 8am
Woke up, packed our bags, and had one last meal with our host family. The family’s driver took us to the autogara, where we met with the other exchange students, said goodbye to Constanta, and boarded a bus to Bucharest.
We waited at the same McDonald’s in Bucharest, since we all had to leave at different times. At 3pm, me, Paula, Tete, and Renan took a microbus to the other autogara and got on a bus to Ramnicu Valcea. This was when the lack of sleep finally hit me.
Back in Valcea, it was all I could do not to burst into tears again. I couldn’t believe that this was my last Rotary trip. However, it was perfect. I couldn’t have asked for a better week. I said goodbye to the others, happy that I’d at least get to see them again, and took a deep breath and stepped into a taxi. On the way home, I can’t really remember much. Just that the driver kept trying to make conversation and I couldn’t because I just kept thinking. That’s the thing about us exchange students. As Megan put it, “Our emotions change so easily, and they’re so extreme. One minute we’re really happy, and the next minute, we’re crying.” At this moment, I couldn’t decide which one I was. I missed Turkey so badly, missed the other students, and just didn’t want to leave this place ever, but at the same time, I was soooo happy to have had this whole experience in my life.
I arrived home and attempted to talk to my host family. After about 20 minutes, they sent me to bed. Apparently I looked like a zombie.
Went to bed: 7:30pm
Woke up (the next day): 11:30am
Istanbul
Woke up: 9:30am
Today was a free day, so we got to sleep in (for once!) and then went to enjoy our continental breakfast. (Hey, at least the breakfast was free here!)
Paula called the boy and they decided that we’d all meet at 12:30 outside St. Sofia’s. Megan and I misunderstood what Paula said, so we weren’t ready when all of the exchange students came to our room and told us to come ‘cause we’re all leaving. We just told them to go without us and that we’d meet them at St. Sofia’s.
Megan and I went out at around 11:15am and planned on having time to find me a pair of sunglasses and to enjoy some Starbucks, since it was right near St. Sofia’s. Well I got my sunglasses (about $7.00!!) and we headed toward where we thought was the Cathedral. Apparently we were wrong, and we kinda got lost. Due to the fact that almost everyone in Istanbul knows some English, we managed to find our way, but since it was about 5 or 6 km from the hotel, we didn’t have time for Starbucks. Darn.
After meeting everyone, we headed to the Grand Bazaar. It was AWESOME!! I found a Harley Davidson Istanbul shirt that my dad would LOVE, so I got that. I also got a bracelet with the lucky eye for my sister, which I really hope she likes, ‘cause it’s super pretty. The girl from Mexico didn’t come this day, and after being at the Bazaar for a few minutes, a different boy from Mexico showed up. So there were the 2 boys from yesterday, a different one, and 8 Romanian exchange students all there. They took us into a shop where most of the Romanian students bought cheap Nargila (aka, water pipes) which I still think is kinda funny, seeing everyone picking out which pipe they wanted to take back to Brazil haha.
After the Bazaar, we took a cable-car-type-thing back to the hotel, where we dropped off our bags, then went to a nearby restaurant to eat kebabs.
Once we had stuffed ourselves to our limits, we began our Metro adventure to a distant part of Istanbul. Armed with cameras, we arrived and took maaany pictures in the street. Thus disabling us (again!) from getting Starbucks, but hey, I had an interesting near-death experience with a cable-car-thing!
Once everyone had their fair share of photos, we went to a roof bar, which was beautiful. We stayed and talked and laughed for a few hours, and when it got dark, we went back outside.
Once again on the very same cobblestone street, Megan, Paula, and I were talking about drama and about life in general, and about how much of a family we all are. We formed a sort of circle, in a way, I guess it was a “group hug,” and just let all of our feelings go. We talked about how close we’ve all become, how much we’ve changed this year, how much we’ve been through, and just everything, and it kinda all hit me at once. I realized that I only have a little over two months left, then it’s all over. I won’t be on the EuroTour, so I won’t see them again. After I leave, I won’t see my Romanian friends again. This whole life that I know and have gotten used to, this whole side of me, these memoried, they’re all going to be GONE. And once again, I’m going to be right back where I started: the small town of York, PA.
And then it happened. The lights around me just started spinning and the reflection on the slick cobblestone street burned my eyes. I tried to swallow the lump in my throat and it just didn’t work.
I burst into tears just then. I wanted to freeze time forever. Things here are just too perfect to end. [As I’m writing this now, I’m fighting so hard to swallow the lump growing in my throat.]
Everyone began hugging me, and we all reflected on everything that we’ve been through together. And about how much of a family we’ve become. Then the rain literally just started pouring out of nowhere. [Agh, stupid lump. I couldn’t swallow it… That’s the thing-- I can’t think about leaving. It never fails, I ALWAYS start crying.]
Then we all realized that we were standing in the middle of the street in Istanbul, hugging and crying. That it was 9:30 at night. And that it was pouring rain and we had another Metro to catch. So we just held hands, laughed, and started running as fast as we could.
Being in that moment with my best friends, I realized that there’s nothing better than living in the moment, having family and friends to love you, and being completely happy, but that time is constantly passing, and when the time comes for change, you just have to accept it and run. Run like the wind.
Went to bed: 12:30pm
Vineri, 17 Aprilie 2009:
Istanbul - Constanta
Woke up: 6:15am
Another day of the bus. No tours this time, though. Just a veeery long bus ride. And a lot of hunger.
Arrived in Constanta at around 9pm, ate dinner with our host mom, then at around 11:15pm, went out one last time with the exchange students. We all went to a bar and talked, and I thought. A lot. At around 1am, Megan and I were tired, so we left.
Went to bed: 2:30am
Sambata, 18 Aprilie 2009:
Constanta - Bucuresti - Ramnicu Valcea
Woke up: 8am
Woke up, packed our bags, and had one last meal with our host family. The family’s driver took us to the autogara, where we met with the other exchange students, said goodbye to Constanta, and boarded a bus to Bucharest.
We waited at the same McDonald’s in Bucharest, since we all had to leave at different times. At 3pm, me, Paula, Tete, and Renan took a microbus to the other autogara and got on a bus to Ramnicu Valcea. This was when the lack of sleep finally hit me.
Back in Valcea, it was all I could do not to burst into tears again. I couldn’t believe that this was my last Rotary trip. However, it was perfect. I couldn’t have asked for a better week. I said goodbye to the others, happy that I’d at least get to see them again, and took a deep breath and stepped into a taxi. On the way home, I can’t really remember much. Just that the driver kept trying to make conversation and I couldn’t because I just kept thinking. That’s the thing about us exchange students. As Megan put it, “Our emotions change so easily, and they’re so extreme. One minute we’re really happy, and the next minute, we’re crying.” At this moment, I couldn’t decide which one I was. I missed Turkey so badly, missed the other students, and just didn’t want to leave this place ever, but at the same time, I was soooo happy to have had this whole experience in my life.
I arrived home and attempted to talk to my host family. After about 20 minutes, they sent me to bed. Apparently I looked like a zombie.
Went to bed: 7:30pm
Woke up (the next day): 11:30am
sâmbătă, 14 februarie 2009
Is it so hard to figure out how to post a video on facebook?
It appears so.
So here it is, Mom. Your "other" didn't skype, and felt bad, so she made this!
I'm proud of my work.
So here it is, Mom. Your "other" didn't skype, and felt bad, so she made this!
I'm proud of my work.
vineri, 13 februarie 2009
Time Flies.
So i realize that it is now mid-february, and that i have been here about 6 months, and that i am just now starting this, but i saw Em's blog and thought it was a really good idea. Thanks, Em! ;))
I would first like to apologize to all of you whom I have promised to email or call and stuff for not keeping my promise. I'm realllly sorry, but you know how it is. Life is exciting and you're busy learning a language, making new friends and family, going to a new school, etc. and you get completely caught up in that, so by the time you actually have the chance to sit down and write an email, you nearly pass out on the keyboard. No lie, I actually feel like I'm going to do that right now. And after 2 hours or so of sleep last night, I'm going to take a 30 minute nap, shower, and then go out AGAIN!
TIME FLIES.
I find it hard to believe that I've been here for 6 months already. I've met so many amazing people and done so many things, that sometimes I don't even think it's real. It's like, all of last year, all I thought about was Romania! Romania! Romania! And then I came here and it turned out to be better than anything I ever imagined. I literally came here with nothing, and built myself a whole new me. I've been through a lot of hard (and really hard) times, I've had great memories, I've made amazing friends, and my current host family is wonderful. I've learned a new language (still a work in progress, but hey! who's judging?), started at a new school, changed statically, and have decided that almost nothing could make me happier than spending the rest of my life (or at least my college years) in Bucharest. I can't believe that my year is half over already, when it feels like it has just begun.
I would first like to apologize to all of you whom I have promised to email or call and stuff for not keeping my promise. I'm realllly sorry, but you know how it is. Life is exciting and you're busy learning a language, making new friends and family, going to a new school, etc. and you get completely caught up in that, so by the time you actually have the chance to sit down and write an email, you nearly pass out on the keyboard. No lie, I actually feel like I'm going to do that right now. And after 2 hours or so of sleep last night, I'm going to take a 30 minute nap, shower, and then go out AGAIN!
TIME FLIES.
I find it hard to believe that I've been here for 6 months already. I've met so many amazing people and done so many things, that sometimes I don't even think it's real. It's like, all of last year, all I thought about was Romania! Romania! Romania! And then I came here and it turned out to be better than anything I ever imagined. I literally came here with nothing, and built myself a whole new me. I've been through a lot of hard (and really hard) times, I've had great memories, I've made amazing friends, and my current host family is wonderful. I've learned a new language (still a work in progress, but hey! who's judging?), started at a new school, changed statically, and have decided that almost nothing could make me happier than spending the rest of my life (or at least my college years) in Bucharest. I can't believe that my year is half over already, when it feels like it has just begun.
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