Pictures of Rome

Pictures of Athens

The Remaining Travels

This is way overdue and I am not going to give the rest of my travels justice. After Istanbul we made our way to Athens with a side trip Agenia (where the best pistachios in the world are grown). Then after a most delectable journey in Athens. Our last stop was Rome where we met up with CJ, a friend from home. We went to Christmas Eve mass in the Vatican and experienced Rome the right way through the museums, food, and gelato. After long two weeks of traveling I made my way back to Glasgow to pack and clean up my room. I walked the streets of Glasgow for the last time and then hauled my bags to the main street to hail a taxi to the airport. After 26 hours of no sleep, a lot of movie watching and sitting down I made back home. Waiting at the airport was my whole family and hiding in the corner were some friends who gave me a nice surprise. I think that at this point I was pretty delirous. And now I am back at home, trying to get in the groove of things. It is pretty different walking around campus and seeing people that I know everywhere I go. It is like a high school reunion for the good and the bad. My journey has come to and end but another one will soon come....
The pictures of my travels do more justice than words, so that is what you get for a summary of my travels, pictures.

Istanbul pictures

December 14th- 17th

Istanbul, Turkey.

Everything that I am now writing is a reflection of my travels from the past two weeks.

Sitting on a plane back to home has given me plenty of time to think about the adventures that I have had and remember the highs and the lows.

Starting in Turkey. Exams and essays had occupied my mind before leaving, so I had no preconception of what Istanbul would be like minus only a few accounts from other people. Flying in to Istanbul you could see hundreds of mosques, some big and some small. The city lies on several hills breaking it up into its different sections. The Old City, where most of the tourists visit, the Downtown, which is more European than the rest of the city, and then the more Eastern part of the city. We departed London super early in the morning and arrived in Istanbul in the afternoon. We were able to take a shuttle from the airport directly to our hostel. The ride to the hostel reminded slightly of the my travels in India a couple of years ago. There was more infrastructure in Turkey than but the atmosphere and sounds of the city were similar to many cities in India.

The first part of the day that we were in Turkey I couldn’t stop thinking about what I got myself into. We walked around the Old City where we were staying. Just behind our hostel was a square that had access to an old Palace, Red Mosque and Blue Mosque. The Red Mosque is not really any longer in use for prayer but is now a museum. It used to be an Orthodox Church, then changed to a Catholic Cathedral, finally taking the role of a mosque until present when it was secularized. The Blue Mosque is still highly used and there are people praying most of the time in the mosque.
After a quick dinner we returned to the hostel for a rest since our sleep up to this point in the journey had been lacking.
After a cat nap we headed back out into the city to a restaurant/ bar that had a traditional Turkish band playing along with a Whirling Dervish. A Whirling Dervish is a religious dance. The dancer wears a white robe and has a tall black hat. They spin around rapidly until there cloak rises up. Depending on the skill of the dancer, the robes will be nearly parallel with their waist or resemble an upside down tea cup. This was pretty interesting to watch, the spectacle took place outside under a canopy with heater on the ceiling. Surprisingly Turkey was really pretty cold.
The second day we were in Istanbul we headed to the Grand Bazaar. Where they sell tapestries, lamps, phones, and anything that a household could possibly want. The Bazaar was overwhelming, there were people trying to get us to look into their little shops or just to stop and talk. Some of the store owners, most being men, were a little too forward for comfort. I think that the main part of their English was bad pick-up lines.
After the Bazaar we wandered around for awhile. Then we stopped by the Palace on our way home. I don't recall much of the history of the palace but there were beautiful tile mosaics in nearly every room in the palace. 
The Bazaar and palace were a lot of walking so we took a break sitting for near the fountain in the middle of the square people watching and enjoying the sun since we hadn't seen it in weeks in Scotland.
We headed back to the hostel for a short nap and  then off to dinner. After a good hearty meal, we went to watch the Whirling Dervishes. This time there were about six dancers and a band. It was very interesting.
The next day we went to the Red and Blue Mosque, underground Cistern that was constructed by the Romans, and some more wandering. The cistern was very interesting. The lighting was dim and there were many columns. The cistern used to hold and store water for the city in times of old. Apparently there are others that are in the city as well but this one is special because at the base of two columns are heads of Medusa. One head is turned sideways and the other is upside down. We went to the spice market and the National Archeological Museum as well. The Spice Market was just as overwhelming as the Grand Bazaar but maybe even more so since we went when it was dark. 
I know that it is silly but I think that I am still afraid of the dark maybe a little bit.
The last night that we were in Istanbul Sofia and I went to this restaurant that was probably target for tourist but we sat on floor cushions and enjoyed a nice cheese platter and some phenomenal apple tea. The one thing that you HAVE to try wile in Turkey is the Baklava and APPLE TEA!! After a nice snack we partook in the Turkish tradition of water pipe or commonly known as hooka. It is not a drug just flavored tobacco. It went quite nice with the apple tea.
Istanbul was nice wake up after finals. I have mixed feeling about Istanbul, I think that it is having a bit of identity crisis. It doesn't really know if it wants to be European or Asian. If I went back I would venture across the river and into the more modern side of Istanbul. Pictures to follow. On to the next city and country! 

December 11-13th Last Minute Preparations

The last of finals has come. A photography portfolio presentation on the 12th, that went really well. My graders and I came to the conclusion that I enjoy taking pictures of the overlooked people in society, the elderly and young. Many of the picture that I took from the semester had reoccurring themes like the pictures with natural frames and photos that tell a story beyond what meets the eye. After my presentation, back to the dungeon to study for my last final, art history. Saying that I felt slightly unprepared would be a fair statement. Waking up at the butt crack of dawn to do a little last minute studying, the day arrived which seemed to help. I think that the final went well. Tea and cake with two friends after the final and then off to pack for the trip of a life time. A few hours after my final on the 13th I set off to London and then the 14th off to Istanbul. Everything has happened so fast in the last couple of months. It seems like I have spent the semester counting down to important things. Ten days till my essay is due, two weeks until we are done with classes. One day till I set off to travel around. Why countdown? My time here in Glasgow has gone by so fast and now that I have less than two weeks left in Europe and three days in Glasgow. Maybe counting down has something to with being a math major, we appreciate numbers. As the countdown for my days in Europe slip by at an alarming rate the goodbyes pill up. The day I left to go to London, I had to say good bye to many friends that I have made here in Glasgow. Excited to travel but sad to be leaving friends behind, causes a mixture of feelings that leaves me unsure to what and how to feel. Until later, happy holidays!
To come: Istanbul, Athens, Rome, then back to Glasgow for a few short hours to pack then back to the midwest.

December 2nd-10th... Finals and Essay

Life has become consumed with writing a 4,000 word essay on the Scottish Enlightenment and the influence it had on Thomas Jefferson and the Declaration of Indpendence. One would think that this is an intriguing topic, however, after reading around 20 books from the library I now know more about my good, old friend TJ than his mother knew about him. I am a math major, never in my life have I had to nor cared to write a 14 page essay... In between attempting to write this dang paper, I attempt to revise for my two finals. I think that the only final I am looking forward to is my portfolio presentation for photography. It seems that the closer to the final the more procrastination plagues me. Prime example, tonight I did almost everything possible to not study for History of Art. Another great example, with in the last week I have been to two concerts, Mumford and Sons and the Black Keys. Also I made a trip down to England and visited Liverpool to see the Beatles museum. It was so interesting. I even walked by the bar that the Beatles started playing in. I have so many activities that I need to cram into the next couple of days.  In a matter of four days I will be finished with classes here in Scotland and I will be on a plane bound for London and then on to Turkey. The travels around Europe continue to Greece and then on to Rome and hopefully Pisa, where I can apply some of the valuable information that I have learned in Art History this term. It seems that procrastination and a lack of motivation is a disease that has been infecting all the students in university around the world. Maybe instead of working for the National Geographic I should try to discover a cure for it. Well, I should probably get back to pretending like I am doing some work or better yet go to sleep and dream of how much work I will accomplish tomorrow.

November 25th- DECEMBER 1st... Last week of classes

I know that the last couple of weeks I have been stressing how fast time has gone by, but it has. My classes here at Glasgow are finished. I guess this is the point that one would reflect over their time. I don't know what to say really. It seems like a blur. I know that I have learned a lot about art, photography and astronomy. But I think that I have learned the same amount about myself. Not only this semester have I been able to survive a school system that seems very impersonal and at one of the top universities in the world but I have survived situations that I could never have had in the States. I have mastered some of the most complicated subway systems in the world, ALONE and confidant. I have realized the not only in the small town USA that I am from there are ignorant people but all over the world there are people that will try to tell you things that are false. I have also been privileged enough to confirm my belief that happiness is universal. While my time here dwindles away in Scotland, the lessons in and out of the classroom that I have learned will remain with me for ages to come. I am happy to return to the small school that I came from but I will be very sad to leave behind the vibrant culture of Glasgow and Europe.
I used to never be a museum person but here I have learned to appreciate the works and work that goes into creating and maintaining a historical deposit. Here in Scotland I have been able to cross things off my bucket list at least once a month. What a life! This week I submitted two photos to the National Geographic photo contest. One from Paris that I took with my black and white film camera and one that I took on an adventure through the Highlands. I don't think that previous to my travels here I would have been willing to enter or would have I had anything so beautiful to enter.
Taking photos was not something that I enjoyed before, ask my dad. Hopefully the habit of documenting everything here will follow me home. I have two brothers that are growing up way too fast and they need some photos to help remember all their memories.
This reflection is coming a little early but the rest of my time here will be spent studying for horrendous exams and then traveling a small portion of the world. What adventures lie ahead! 

November 19th-24th.. Thanksgiving and stuff...ing

This is the second to last week of lectures! It feels like it is only the second week of lectures. Fortunately, I finished my essay for art history on the weekend so I won't have to worry about working on during Thanksgiving and I can spend some more time potentially studying for my astronomy exam... good intentions but not likely going to happen. Photography class went really well on Wednesday! Most of my pictures from Paris turned out, the ones of the Eiffel Tower at night weren't so good since it was so dark. But the other ones were really good. One of the pictures that I took was very similar to one that was on the National Geographic homepage for photo of the day, I bet the camera that the person used was digital even. I was so proud of myself when I saw how my picture turned out. This is the first Thanksgiving that I spent away from my family. I didn't think it was a big deal until I realized that if I wanted a pumpkin pie or Mom's sweet potatoes, I was going to have to make them myself. We celebrated with the people from out flat. Everyone was suppose to bring something. I made a chicken, didn't get a turkey in time, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, and a pumpkin pie. If I do say so myself, it was all delicious. It was a little frustrating that I had to go to lecture on Thanksgiving and that some people were pretty negative about the celebrations. My only response to the people that knocked the holiday is that if you don't know what it is about and have never participated in it then you have no right to say anything about it; of course I didn't say this to the people that were rude about Thanksgiving I just bit my tongue and cursed them under my breath. Other people were really excited to celebrate the holiday and were so interested that we watched a couple episodes of Friends where they celebrate Thanksgiving. Even though I had finished my paper early I didn't spend a lot of time studying for my astronomy exam, so after stuffing myself at dinner I had to get to work revising. The exam was Friday afternoon so I spent some time Friday morning studying. There were only a few that I wasn't positive about the answers. We will wait and see how it went. Next feat, a 14 page paper on the Scottish Enlightenment! I don't write essays, I am a math major. Looks like this coming week I will be spending a lot of time in the library.