Istanbul was only the beginning of our Turkey adventure. After Istanbul we took a beautiful scenic drive to our next destination.
On this trip we had multiple days of long bus rides-sometimes nine or more hours. Twice we had song battles. Front of the bus versus the back. The rules were simple, the front of the bus would sing a song super loud, then the back would retaliate. I'm sure our bus driver loved us.
We made a stop at Assos. Paul was here once.
It had a beautiful view of the the Aegean Sea.
I swear I have more friends than just Gwen. We just happen to take every photo together.
To get to there we had to walk up a mountain (if I don't walk up at least one huge hill a day then something is off).
I felt like I was back in South America, especially with the roosters running around
We also went to the ancient town of Pergamon. Paul was here once.
This is the temple of Athena.
The Amphitheater. Once again, it looks like South America-think Machu Picchu.
Gwen, Phil, and I.
You can only stand and smile for so many pictures.
We had to take a tram up to the top of a mountain to get there
Inside the tram.It was a party.
Another one of our stops was Ephesus. Paul was here once.
Here we have the Professor Strathearn class in front of the library.
We have also been deemed the "loudest group the Jerusalem Center has ever seen". This was a problem while we were staying in hotels. Apparently we aren't the only people who stay in hotels. whoops.
Da da dun! I can't tell you how many times I looked at this photo as a child during sacrament meeting.
Fun Turkey Fact: There were stray cats and dogs everywhere. I don't know about the cats, but the government takes good care of the stray dogs, they even feed them. So well groomed big dogs just wander around the city. Makenzie would hate it.
A traditional Turkish lunch.
Just another ancient ruin that can be found on the side of the road. This was once a gymnasium, hence the poses.
The ruins of Sardis. Paul was probably here once.
We also made a stop in Troy. We found this horse was so comfortable we decided to ditch the buses and travel by Trojan horse.
While we were in Troy we walked around at night and found this bar where a band was warming up to play. Unfortunately, they were just doing sound checks and weren't going to play for a while so we continued on our way. We ended up at the McDonald's because we heard that they had Toblerone Mcflurrys, so of course we had to try them. They were a huge let down. Imagine vanilla ice-cream with minuscule pieces of chocolate in it.
This horse was actually the real prop they used in the movie "Troy" (with Brad Pitt and Orlando Bloom). They gave it to the city as a gift after the movie came out. So this huge thing is just sitting on the sidewalk there.
A field trip lecture in the rain.
We spent two of our nights in a beach resort on the Aegean Sea. We played Ghosts in the Graveyard on the sand and spent the rest of the night walking down the beach while looking at the stars. It was lovely.
We also went to Bursa . We went to a mosque there and their huge market place. A lot of the boys bought suits because they were so cheap. Once they got back on the bus we had them do a fashion show. We played music and they dramatically walked up and down the aisle with their new suit coats on.
Another stop made was Iznik, where the Nicean creed took place and where they have a ton of hand painted ceramic shops. Everything was beautiful and I wanted to buy it all. I have decided once again that I need a house so I can fill it with all the cool stuff over here.
Overall Turkey was amazing and so much fun. It is hugely underrated.