Where's Waldo? (Turkey)

Hi there. 

I'm a little ashamed it's been so long, and I haven't even finished the PCR trip!! So, I present to you, Istanbul:

Istanbul was by far our class's favorite city of the trip. The entire island of Cyprus was absolutely amazing, but when it came down to a single city, it seemed obvious to us all that there is something so special about Istanbul. Also, it's huge. Something like eight million people, not to mention the fact that it's one city located on two different continents (Europe and Asia). 

Of course, the cultural differences were fascinating. Mosques are dotted around the city so that it seemed as if one was always visible no matter where we were - such as from the roof of our hotel!

The Blue Mosque

Yes, just up the hill from our hotel was the famed Blue Mosque (which we went inside later). This gave us some beautiful views as well as some early morning wake-up-call-to-prayers. But even though we were sleep-deprived, cranky, and sick, those calls to prayer just added to the magic of Istanbul and could not damper our enthusiasm for the city.

As with our other locations, we had some really informative meetings, the most noteworthy being with the Patriarch of the Orthodox Church. This man is essentially the Pope for all the Orthodox Christians: the Russian Orthodox, Greek Orthodox, etc. And despite his busy schedule, he met with our class for a full half hour. Lefty told us to expect five minutes if we were lucky.

The Patriarch looks like Santa Claus.  Just sayin'.

We also had some free time in Istanbul, which meant: shopping opportunities! (Also, opportunities to bargain really hard yet still get ripped off because the merchant knows you're a silly American.)

The Spice Market

Eating baklava at the Spice Market. TJ's face says it all.

Ohhhhhh, Americanization. 

Kristina and I outside the Grand Bazaar.

Somehow, despite Lefty's guarantee that everyone would certainly get lost inside the enormous Grand Bazaar of Istanbul, my group of friends and fellow bargainers did not get lost. Kim the Navigator strikes again!

We also had a great time taking a river cruise up the Bosporus to... ASIA! 

As I mentioned earlier, we also got to tour the Blue Mosque, which was beautiful. Not so great: our tour guide, who incorrectly explained the history of Islam to us (despite being a native of Turkey himself) and treated us like we were five years old.

Oh, just seeing a photo of this tour guide brings up some painful memories...

The interior of the Blue Mosque

The problem was that the tour was not only of the Blue Mosque, but also included the Hagia Sofia - the former mosque that had previously been a cathedral. That may be all I know about the Hagia Sofia due to the fact that the guide scolded us, "This was a cathedral and then a mosque," every time anyone from our group gave the slightest hint of boredom. Then he would return to his detailed description of each material used in the construction of the Hagia Sofia and where it came from. Meanwhile, our feet were tired, and our souls were being slowly sucked out of us. (Yes, this is a first-world-problems exaggeration, but it felt like that. Really. It was never. going. to. end.)

While we could still smile, Gina, I, and Katrina enjoyed the first two minutes
of our Hagia Sofia tour.

 An example of this soul-crushing tour: Exhibit A

A wall.

 What may look to you as a boring, plaster-covered wall is really an earthquake. "Look at the earthquake!" our guide exclaimed, then proceeded to spend a full 20 minutes discussing this one unimpressive part of a quite impressive cathedral-mosque. What's most telling about our tour experience: Lefty didn't even come on the tour with us because he had "more important things to do," he explained, as he laughed evilly.

On a happier note, I celebrated my 21st birthday in the middle of our stay in Istanbul! It was a great time, and I got to spend it in an amazing location with some truly wonderful friends. And my antibiotics had worked their magic, so I was no longer sick and cranky!!

Laura's birthday card to me

I even got TWO birthday cakes!

One of my favorite pictures from the trip: I, too, am posing like a statue behind
this woman, but I fully enjoy the way she looks directly at the camera.

The view of the Blue Mosque from my hotel room.

And all of a sudden, it was time to leave. Our last night in Istanbul, Lefty took us into the city center to a Balkan music club on the top floor of a random building. The venue itself was a great location, the music was fun, and we were the only Americans there.

Or so we thought.

Kelly came up to me at one point and said, "Kim! I just met someone from California!" As one of the few true Californians on the trip, apparently it was my duty to go meet this guy. It turns out, he is from Newport Beach and had gone to UC Santa Cruz. Neat! What a coincidence, right?!

It gets better.

He asks me where I'm from, and I say, "Oh, a little town near Sacramento," to which he replies, "Oh, what, like Auburn?"

"What??? Yes, I'm from Auburn. Did Kelly tell you that?"

"No, I just know some people from there."

"WHO??!? I probably know them!"

He names off not one, not two, but three girls from my high school class, including one of my really good friends from middle school. 

It's a small world after all..... (You're welcome for getting that song stuck in your head."

So, with that as my last experience in Istanbul, we left the bar in order to nap before an early trip to the airport and ultimately, back to Washington, D.C. We experienced every kind of emotion during our three weeks in Cyprus, Greece, and Turkey, but despite all of the frustrations, it was an amazing experience that I would never be able to replicate no matter how hard I tried.

Laura's rendition of the Peace and Conflict Resolution trip, drawn during the most boring
and pointless meeting known to mankind.