Top Turkey Adventures

Turkey is amazing!!! I had no idea how much was there!
-Turkey is the world's best kept secret! Who knew it was so absolutely beautiful? Well, apparently a lot of people since Instanbul is a city of over 20 million with 8 million tourists every year.  But it's still the world's best kept secret.
- Be careful what food you eat in Turkey. It's sketchy. The watermelon is the absolute best I've ever had though!
- Ugur the Tour Guide (to properly pronounce "Ugur," just take the "T" off "Tour") gave our bus Turkish dancing lessons. He loved that we are sisters and laugh really loud. He would walk up behind me and simply say "Hahaha" and wait for me to laugh!
- Liz and I were given separation orders and restricted from sitting next to each other on the bus for the last half of the week by Ugur. It was traumatizing but probably healthy for everyone else.
- We stayed in some legit hotels! When we asked our director how long it would take to get to the beach from one hotel, he answered with "four seconds." That was a bit of an exaggeration. It only took two. Dance party on the beach? Oh yes!
- The sites were phenomenal! We'll get pictures up soon, but the history and architecture involving these sites was absolutely incredible. Until then, just go Google Hagia Sophia, Basilica Cistern and the Blue Mosque so you'll know what I'm talking about. Exquisite!
-It IS possible to meet someone, break up with your previous boyfriend/girlfriend, date and be officially engaged (proposal and all) within THREE WEEKS of arriving at the center. We have proof.
-It's possible to learn Turkish dancing on a tour bus. Just be careful to not throw in any American moves.
-We saw one of the most gorgeous sunsets I have ever seen across the Aegan Sea outside of our hotel one night! You know those sunsets that even pictures can't even begin to grasp? It was beyond that.
-Turkish Delight is nothing like I ever imagined! It's good, but definitely a different experience than I expected. There are various different kinds, but we tried some jelly-sort of kind with powdered sugar around the outside.
-Traveling to places that Paul taught at is quite the experience, it totally changes the way I read those epistles once I know more of the whole story.
-I know know how the Greeks felt when they climbed into the Trojan horse.
-The scenery on ferry rides and boat rides from Europe to Asia is beautiful.  I felt like I spent those precious hours just living in a movie. The model shoot we took might have helped with that....
-86 carat diamonds are rather large.  And they are worth a lot, so be careful what you throw away cause you might find some pretty large gems.
-Shopping in Turkey yields successful rewards.  I never would have guessed that I could buy so much with only $15.
-Last but not least: bus rides are wonderful.  Nothing brings a group of 42 college students together in every possible way like living on a bus for seven days! :)