Thank you...

to the many friends and family who made this journey around the world possible.

This last post on Turkey is long overdue, but forgive me. Internet was scarce after India, and Srin and I remain homeless and hunting in The District since settling back in the US of A.  I have found little time to muster up the energy to keep up with my blogging, but never fear-I vow to resume releasing the jumble of thoughts into verbose literary prose from this moment forward. I mean, a girl's gotta have priorities.

I hope you enjoyed following us around the world. It was great knowing so many of you read about it and checked in on us and our safety. We are wholly indebted to our friends and families for making this trip possible for us.

Thank you to our parents for the love and support of raising us to enjoy the company of those different from us. It was invaluable on a trip like this and certainly the inspiration to embark on such a journey.

Thank you to my parents for giving us the gift of a beautiful wedding. Your money was well spent-it was exactly as I imagined. Thank you to my in-laws for the generous honeymoon gift, which provided us with irreplaceable memories. To Bhik, D, and P-thank you for making sure my house was taken care of. You have no idea how much that meant to me.  In particular, thank you to Bhik, who took an entire day off of work to drive to Houston just to be sure closing went without a hitch. Of family, it is often expected - such acts of generosity.  But of friends, it is not always certain.  Thank you to Laurie, Brini, and everyone who assisted them in making sure my stuff was moved into storage before my house sale closed.  To our many friends and families who gave extremely generous wedding gifts, thank you.  These opportunities, memories, and pictures are because of you.  Lastly, thank you to our colleagues for allowing us to leave for three months and more importantly to come back to a secure job.

Call it history...call it mystery...

Our last stop was a diversion around Egypt, which was our original destination purposely chosen to end this worldwide trek.  Unfortunately, though, we just were not comfortable going in naivete and worrying our families back home.  And seeing as how the world decided to start dropping bombs over neighboring Libya, we probably made the best decision.  After much discussion and debate over the best place to visit in lieu thereof, Srin was eventually convinced by my need to see Turkey.  It was not the beautiful weather Cairo boasted, but Turkiye did not disappoint in history, mythology, religious wonders, and aesthetically pleasing sights. 

We began our travels in Istanbul, and let's just say that we visited THREE continents in a time span of about 12 hours.  That's right.  THREE.  We flew from Africa to Europe and then ferried over to Asia.  Confused?  Well, Istanbul boasts being the only city that spans two continents as it is split between the two by the Bosphorous Sea.  In fact, most think Turkey is Eastern Europe, but in fact, it is mostly (97% or something) in Asia.  And by Asia, of course, we mean the Middle Eastern section of Asia.  Convoluted, I know. 

In Istanbul, we visited beautiful mosques, learned about Islamic customs, and even witnessed the small Christian population praying in a Greek Orthodox church.  And get this-the patriarch (the Greek Orthodox equivalent of the Pope in ways) actually is in TURKEY!  It goes back to the Ottoman days, and they don't want him to leave because he is one of the few lasting Ottoman legacies.  Gosh, we learned so much that I fear I will not be able to remember it all to share here.  For one, I could not believe I was in modern day Constantinople.  I mean-that's something I learned in history. It's like the Byzantine Empire.  I was surrounded by all of this history, and all I could think was that when my kids learn about this era in school, I must bring them to Turkey. 

For the rest of Turkey, I decided just to post a bunch of pictures and tell you the rest in captions.  Of course, the verbosity in me couldn't just leave it to captions...Now it is just a blog post separated by pictures!  Enjoy the end of our trip around the world!

Since we were planning this new leg of the trip whilst traveling the world, we had to rely on sporadic internet availability and some luck. I emailed ten travel agencies when we decided Egypt was a no-go and based on what little research we could muster, we chose a company. They picked us up from the airport and brought us to their offices in the Sultanahmet area.  We confirmed the itinerary and we were off on our Turkish adventure!  Here we are in front of the ever famous Sultanahmet Mosque, which is more popularly called the Blue Mosque for its adornment of blue Iznik Turkish tiles on the walls.

Here's Srin in front of a Turkish flag by the Topkapi Palace, which was commissioned after the fall of Constantinople in 1453 to be the official residence of the sultans (Muslim rulers) until 1853.  For 400 years, it was the educational, administrative, and cultural center of the Ottoman empire.  Like many countries we traveled, I observed that Turkey took great pride in themselves.  Turkish people are proud to be...well Turkish.  The flag embraced homes, buildings, and stores alike.

Perhaps one of the most famous structures in the city is this thrice ruined-and-rebuilt church called Ayasofya (Hagia Sophia).  It was built as a church in the 500s, declared a mosque in the 1400s, and then named as a museum in the 1900s.  Through its tumultuous history, it remained a picturesque representation of the Byzantine empire with its massive dome and architectural beauty.

This was one of my favorite pictures-one of the few I am proud of because there was little light and no tripod.  It is of the Basilica Cistern, which is basically an underground water palace.  It was commissioned during the Byzantine period (6th century) to provide water to the palaces and other buildings of Constantinople. 

Recognize this face?  Don't stare too hard.  It's MEDUSA! According to mythical legends, Medusa was one of the terrifying female creatures of Greek Mythology called Gorgons. Medusa, with her hair of snakes, could turn anyone who looked at her into stone.  Therefore, she was used to protect great buildings. 

We also visited the Roman Hippodrome (which is no more, by the way.  It has been replaced by a sidewalk.  Surely there is some law that says you can no longer list things as a tourist site if your government decides it is only now worthy of being a sidwalk.  Right?), the St.Sophia Museum, the Million stone, the Tomb of Sultan Mahmud,  and an ancient Ottoman cemetery before concluding the day at the Grand Bazaar.  The Grand Bazaar is exactly as the name suggests:  a huge collection of stores-high end and local alike.  It's a bit overwhelming at first but after the travelling we did, nothing phased us!

The next day in Istanbul was spent seeing more Mosques (something like India almost-temple after temple after temple...but somehow you still want to see them all) and other city highlights like the City Walls (which were one of my favorite as this is how cities used to protect themselves before guns and such), the Chora Church, Pierre Loti Hill, the Eyup Mosque, and the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate.  We regrettably took a Bosphorus Cruise, which would have been beautiful on a non-cold and non-rainy day before ending our tour at the Spice Bazaar below.

 The colors were beautiful!

And I became obsessive about my baklava!  I had it every single day pretty much.

After Istanbul, we decided to tour the western border of Turkey, which it shares with Greece.  Here we are at ANZAC Cove (Australian and New Zeland Army Corps), which was one of the sites of an important battle during WWI known as the Gallipolli War.  For Australians, it is a rite of passage-something that everyone does before they die.  For me, it was amazing to see and learn about world history in person.  I am one of those nerdy ones... 

From Istanbul, we took a bus to Ecebat/Cannakale to begin our tour.

 

 Lone Pine Cemetary, which is an Australian memorial for those who lost their lives in Gallipolli.

 These are real and untouched trenches dug up during the war.  I could have survived...See.

 From there, we continued south to Troy, the ancient city of much debate.  It was made famous by Homer's Iliad and for years, archaelogists debated whether it was myth or not.  In the 1860s, German archaeologists excavated ruins, using the descriptions in Homer's tales to find the exact location of this city.  It was amazing to see!  The coolest thing about Troy is that it was rebuilt at least nine times-on top of each other!  So over the centuries, the city moved only a bit and thus the excavations found concentric circles of city walls. 

 We saw so many ruins of ancient cities.  It's tough to decipher between mythology and history in a world like this.  And, did you also think Troy was in Greece?  Admit it...

 Some of the best kept (and restored) ruins were the theaters.  Grand shows took place in amphitheaters such as this one and in fact, the ruins in Efes (see below) now even has modern day shows in it!  Elton John performed recently! 

 Another picture that I was a little bit proud of...Ruins through ruins...

We then headed to Pergamum, which was the center of learning and the arts in ancient times.  This is part of what remains of the library, which once contained 200,000 books!  Also, I think this is a snazzy pic...

 We then traveled to Efes (Ephesus) and Kusadasi for a couple of nights.  The first side trip was to Pammukale, which boasts these calcium-rich travertines and penned its name Cotton Castle.  To be honest, it was totally not worth doing.

 I loved Turkey for taking pictures.  These were ruins in the city of Efes, which is probably the most well preserved ancient city excavated in Turkey.  It was the religious center of the area at that time.  In fact, they claim that after Jesus was crucified, Mary went there to live out her life.  We visited the House of the Virgin Mary, where Srin tried to bargain for Holy Water and since the market owner was having nothing of it, a nice presumably Christian tourist decided if the man wanted holy water, 1 Turkish Lira shouldn't keep him from it.

The library in Efes, which was the third largest in the ancient world after Alexandria (Egypt) and Pergamum.

 Here is Srin using an ancient toilet in Efes...

I was so excited about going to Efes because although I didn't get to see the pyramids as one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, I was going to replace it with the Temple of Artemis (Diana).  How cool.  One wonder for another.  It appeased my anger with Egypt.  Only come to find out, it was torn down and used for parts to build the Ayasofya and other Christian buildings.  Tell me.  How do you just break down something that is ...what I don't know...thousands of years old?

One of the most famous things in Turkey is their darn carpet trade. You see, Turkey, I am not interested in buying your carpets even if you must insist.  Though some of the shop owners were fine, most were pushy and it was just uncomfortable.  In fact, on our first day in Istanbul, we were approached by a local who asked if we needed help.  Against our better judgement (and because we are just too nice), we asked where to pick up the metro.  And thus began our warped carpet-jewelry-buying experience. He kept saying "Don't be afraid.  We are hospitable people. Us Turks. Hospitable." and before I knew it, we found ourselves in this man's store drinking apple tea.  We had warned him before going in that we did not want to buy anything and it was like a supernatural force made us enter his store.  Before I knew it, we had politely declined which stirred his hospitality into vehement anger.  And how dare we leave without finishing our tea.  It was fun.  Nonetheless, I later learned about the silk-making process which was super cool.  Above are the cocoons of raw silk from silkworms.

The raw silk. Notice it is coarser than what you associate with silk.

After much treatment, it becomes this wonderful thread we all love and pay uber amounts for.

 A sample of their carpets. I mean if I were an older Indian Ba or something, I may want one.  But really, I just don't.  Thanks though

Seriously...

Must it come to the point where your passenger has to tell you to "Please don't text while we are moving.  It scares me."?

Because, let me tell you, if I catch you repeatedly taking your eyes off the road (for 55 solid seconds once!) to text someone who can (and should) wait until you are no longer with me, then I will.  Thank-you-very-much.

But I may get all pansy-like and say thank you one too many times coupled with nerve-racking divulsion as to why accidents have always been a life long fear...

But tell you, I will! 

Lions, Cheetahs, and Giraffes...OH MY!

I SO regret not travelling with my zoom VR lens. For this very moment. What was I thinking? Just because I was travelling around the world and did not want the hassle. Stupid, stupid, stupid me. Thus, any zoomed in pics (and lower-quality-looking) are from our point and shoot.

We have just travelled around South and Central Kenya, going on game drives for a real life safari. Masai Mara is the famous game reserve here, which is essentially the Kenyan side of the Serengheti (in bordering Tanzania). Here, they have what they call the Big 5 because to kill those animals one must exert special effort and be courageous. They are the rhinocerous, elephant, lion, leopard, and the buffalo.

And WOW. To see a cheetah in the wild. That was a sleek and memorable sight. She (I think it was a she because of the air of royalty with which she stepped.) was beautiful. And we saw oh so much more. The wildebeest (whose migration by the millions in July-September from nearby Serengheti makes Masai Mara famous), the giraffe, the topi, the hyena, the wharthog, the Thompson gazelle, the waterbuck, the cape buffalo, the eland, the baboon, the impala, the lion, the zebra, the crocodile, and the rare sighting of a black rhinoceros (only 47 remain in Masai).

We also took time to visit a Masai village. Kenya has 42 distinct tribes, and one of the famous ones is the Masai. They are known for never straying from their traditional way of living no matter the land on which they call home. We were greeted by the Chief's sons, and Wilson gave us our tour. Their village has 200 people among only 6 families, with 6 different entrances. Each family has an entrance at which they bury their dead. The village has a medicine man and a midwife for medical care. In fact, the two most common diseases that they must treat are malaria and upset stomach. For that, they use a special tree. The bark is stripped and soaked in water, and the solution is a malaria treatment. The leaves are spicy (we even tasted them) and can be used for stomach issues. The best part? You know how we often talk about the Kenyans and their white teeth, sans Western dental care? Well, they chew on a special tree bark.

The Masai women build the homes while the men build the fences once setting out to create a new village. The homes last about 10 years, whereupon they must settle somewhere else. The reason is that as it rains, the women mix cow dung and water to create a cement-like paste to cover the roof. Over time, the roofs weigh down the home, and their lifespan comes to an end at ten years. The women later return to collect the wood (which forms the structural component) for fire. Oh yeah, speaking of fire. The Masai create fire using friction and wood-a soft and strong wood. They spin the long stick using their hands until the hay begins to smoke and catches fire. We decided Srin has not proven his Masai warrior-ness yet though.

One of the most fascinating traditions is the becoming of a warrior for the men and the skill that must be proven before one can marry. A Masai boy must kill a lion! And numerous men have died doing it. It is in this way that he shows he can take care of himself and his family. The ceremony is extravagant, and he comes through, if victorious, with the tail on a stick and the men following will bare other body parts of the lion as well.

If marriage is the next step, the family must pay a dowry of sorts. In Masai culture, money is in the form of cow ownership. To ask how many cows one has is like asking how rich one is in the West. To marry, it will cost the family around 10 cows. When they need to buy goods, they sell their cows in special Masai markets. And to invest their money, they buy cows. Dressed in their traditional color of red, the Masai were a welcoming host and to learn of their culture was one of my favorite parts of my African trip.

We then travelled to a city about 6 hours away called Nakaru, home to a lake bearing its same name with thousands of pink flamingos, pelicans, white rhinos, a plethora of baboons, and tree climbing lions!

First, the baboons. Those punks are such troublemakers. Five weeks ago, they set fire to the forest, burning acres of it down. Stupid baboons. Now the lions. We were disappointed to not see a leopard, which is apparently more likely to be sighted here than in Masai but really luck manages it all. In fact, we didn't see many animals at all in our two game drives in the national park, save for those silly baboons. But, on our way out, we ran into a pride of tree lions crossing the street to climb...yes a tree! The lions in Masai cannot climb trees (generally, only the leopard can in the cat family). But this is a different species that was born in Tanzania. It was a cool sight.

A real life safari. I think all families should do one. It's hands on learning at any age. And, one of my most shocking moments was entering Nairobi. There is so much talk about it being unsafe and whatnot. But, I felt comfortable the moment I got here. And once you leave Nairobi, it is tourist land. Safety is NOT a concern. And in Nairobi, just use your head. Common sense tells you not to pull money out of your wallet by the wad, don't wear your diamond engagement ring, and just be aware. It is no different than any other place I have traveled. Sure, luck dictates. So I am sure you know someone who knows someone who heard from their uncle about how he got robbed. But, I am pretty sure walking in NYC could give you a similar story.

Isn't this just how you picture Africa, with giraffes lining the horizon?

Other things about Africa. The Kenyans are a good looking population. Seriously. And well dressed. You know how in general people say the Brits are not blessed aesthetically. Well, the Kenyans are. Beautiful, white teeth bared all in earnest, heartwarming laughs. They are happy with a great sense of humor. Also, Kenya is so clean. I was pleasantly surprised to breathe clean air and see no garbage. Oh gosh. How could I forget to tell you about the 5 kgs of weight we must have put on at the safari lodges. First off, they are gorgeous lodges. Secondly, the food was in sheer abundance. And, they are so aware of vegetarianism. They keep the meat separate, and when they say the soup is vegetarian, it means they also do not use meat stock. In fact, at the Lion Hill Lodge in Nakuru, we were introduced to the vegetarian chef in case we needed anything else. If only other countries would get on board. It was fantastic to be able to eat so well!  Lastly, we attempted to do a tour of Nairobi, only to be hindered by the worst traffic we have ever been through.  Due to a comedy of errors (like the Masai Market apparently being closed), we only saw one thing but it was totally worth it!  It is called the Bomas of Kenya, where they show you dances from the 42 different Kenyan tribes.  It was SO cool.

All in all, I hope people forget their pre-conceived notions about safety, etc and just GO TO AFRICA! Well, at least Kenya. So much of Africa is well traveled and tourism (as sad and wonderful as it is) has shaped up much of the continent.

Stepping in two different countries at one time.  Tanzania on the left and Kenya on the right!

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Location:All Over Kenya

We are back!

Back on American soil. Feels great. More blogging soon!


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Location:The US of A

Actually Turkiye...

We don't care to buy any carpets. Double knot or not. Yes, we get it. "Our" country (India) does single stitch. No good...I get it. But we still do not want to buy a carpet or rug or whatever.

Apparently that is the big market here...carpet.

I prefer me some yummy baklava. Gobble gobble.

We are in Turkey and cannot believe the history in front of us. From 3000 B.C. forward to WWI. It may be freakin' freezin' but the sights are great. I owe you two countries on this blog: Kenya and Turkey. Apparently blogspot has been deemed incredibly block-worthy as Turkey has made my blog unreachable. I am posting using my app which still won't let me post pics. And no way am I telling you about my safari and 30th century B.C. history without the work of my fab Nikon. So you will have to wait until I get home for the conclusion of my around the world Odyssey. Pun intended.

In the meantime, we cannot believe in three days time we will be States-bound. Ahh home.

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Location:Turkiye

Her Majesty...

Sagamartha-Goddess of the Sky.  Mount Everest in all her glory.  We maintained a journal that I will publish after this to anyone interested.  We had a most fabulous guide if you are also interested.  His rates are spectacular for what you get.  We had a most "out of our element" time, pushing ourselves in ways we had never done.  

 The Himalayas...My Nikon found its heaven.

Enjoying the view of Ama Dablam...

 Ahhh...Base Camp.  Finally.  We greet you.

 Look at that horrific weather...Most people go to Everest Base Camp in April and May when Expeditions (those crazy enough to climb the thing) set up camp.  But I chose not to...partially because of the timing of my travels.  But it all worked out because the trail was ours to enjoy almost entirely on our own.

The beauty herself.... (the back peak)...

Summitting  Kala Patthar. At 5545 meters (18,192 feet), it was our highest ascent.  It is the peak from which the view of Everest is most grand.  Everyone who does Base Camp also climbs Kala Patthar since you cannot see Everest from Base Camp itself due to its own geography.

 Hooray!  We are heading home!