Our Travels in Finland

After enduring the cold weather of Budapest, travelling alone for two weeks in Greece and not seeing Matt for three months, I was really ready for the cold weather and the wonderful company I would meet in Helsinki. Matt had already arrived and met me at the airport. I was so excited to see him and be in a new city! I was also very ready to stay at the Scandic Continental Helsinki hotel, with drinkable tap water, consistently running hot water, a sauna and a gormet breakfast every morning. It was a fabulous hotel. While Matt has been to Finland many t

imes (and studied abroad at the Helsinki School of Economics when getting his MBA) and has relatives that live there, this was my first time to any of th

e Nordic coutntries. I was excited to see a new part of the world and to experi

ence a country who's standard of living is as high as that of the US.

Many people questioned our decision to visit Finland in the winter, but for us it was a matter of timing (since I was already in Europe) and the opportunity to see a different side of the country. Helsinki is the capital and the largest city in Finland. The actual Finnish name of Finland is Soumi, but the Finns prefer the name

 Finland. The most significant historical event of Finland was the Finnish Civil War of 1918 which resulted as part of the national and social

 turmoil caused by WWI. During WWII the Soviets bombed parts of the city but fortunately Helsinki escaped large-scale destruction that many other cities in Europe under bombi

ng of similar scale suffered. One thing I like about the Finns is that they are one with nature. They love to do activities outdoors (I saw people jogging in the cold and dark!), they have cute cottages on lakes and go about their everyday lives despite the snow and cold dreary 

weather. The Finns also invented the sauna. The sauna is a big deal in Finland. Most families have a sauna in their home and use them year-round. Families use

 them together as a fun and relaxing activity. The Finns are also much more liberal about nudity than Americans and when using the sauna you use it nude. I felt a little out of place using the sauna at our hotel with my swimsuit, so I ditched it after the first time in order to experience the real thing:) It was quite liberating. Men and women use separate saunas.

Matt's relatives Anu and Siaha took us around to other parts of Finland including the quant, historical town of Porvoo. Porvoo has little shops and a beautiful church. We stopped for an afternoon drink in the msot adorable tea house I have ever seen. I felt like I was in a doll house. Anu also took us to visit several of her friends who live around the greater Helsinki area. It was neat to visit with them and see how they live. The Finns are highly educated and very intelligent. Many of them are well traveled. They spoke best English I had heard in Eur

ope; practically everyone I spoke to was fluent or almost fluent. I heard side conversations in English everywhere I went. No one turns their head to stare when they hear English coming out of your mouth. It was very nice to be a foreigner but not really feel like one. In developing countries, the level and proficiency of English is correlated to the level of education of the person, whereas in Finland everyone from the bus driver to the waiter speaks English. This 

is a big difference that I noticed between a developed country like Finland and other developing countries I have visited. Although the US and Finland have domcratic electoral systems, many Finns do not believe that the US has a truly free and fair domcratic system due to the way our electoral system is set up. In Finland voters votes are directly counted. I was having this conversation with Anu and it was the first time that someone had told me they did not believe the US has a truly domcratic voting system. I found myself quite taken aback and offended. But Matt, Aun and I discussed the differences if democratic voting systmes and pro and cons of each. I realized that democracy means different things to different people and countries and that different democratic systems can be equally successful. (As a correction, the US is actually a Republic and not a Democracy – my well-read and intelligent friend Jeff pointed this out and corrected me.) Also, Finland like the other Nordic coutnries has a scoialist economic sys

tem. You can bet that made for some intersting converations. While to the eye it would seem that the socialist system has worked very well in Finland due to the high standard of living and relative happiness of the Finns, it still remains the case that Finns pay extremely high taxes and many people choose to feed off the governemnt system due to incentives. If someone can live great by living off governemnt benefits, then why work when 60-70% of your paycheck is taken away in taxes? Because of the tremendously high taxes many wealthy people actually register their residence outside of Finland in order to avoid paying taxes. Because of the tax structure in place many of the weathy either find ways to legally avoid paying taxes (so Finland misses out on capturing a lot of potential revenue) and those that do pay taxes help people who choose to live off a system of free benefits instead of work. Indirectly through this economic system, the Finns feel that the government can better and more efficiently spend their money that they can themselves. Of course Finland is a country of 5 million people versus the US of 300 million so that also is a factor. The level of pay is also higher in the US than it is in Finland.

One day we went to Soumenlinna, a sea fortress built on six islands in the Baltic Sea. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site. It was built by the Swedes in 1748 when Finland was part of the Swedish kingdom to protect against Russian expansionism. We walked around the 

fortress and I slipped on wet rocks while trying to touch the Baltic (so that I could say I touched the Baltic). It had beautiful, expansive views of the sea extending all the way to Sweden. Of course we did all the major siteseeing in Helsinki as well. One of our more memorable adventures was spending the day at Anu's cottage on a lake in the woods. We bundled up and walked through the woods looking for mushrooms and then heated up the sauna. Part of the sauna tradition is to jump in the lake while using the sauna and to smack yourself or get smacked with a particular type of tree branch that makes a nice scent. We decided to recreate this Finnish tradition as best we could. In the freezing cold and dark, I got as mentally prepared as possible while Matt stood ready with the camera. Naked, I ran out of the sauna straight onto the dock and dipped myself in the lake which was about 35 degrees. To say the water was cold is an understatement. IT WAS FREEZING AND I WAS NAKED IN THE WOODS!!! But of course its all part of the experience:) We also went on a day trip to Tallinn, Estonia (please see posting) and it was amazing!

Needless to say, Matt and I had an amazing and romantic vacation which was just what w

e needed after so long apart. Matt and I travel well together and we enjoy travel that is full of excitement, intrigue, culture and intellectual conversation. I look forward to more 

travels with Matt and to experiencing more of the Nordic countries in the future. 

Tallinn, Estonia

Our day trip to Tallinn was a great chance to experience a new city, see some more great sites and get into the Christmas spirit. Tallinn is about a 1.5hr boat ride from Helsinki and is the capital of Estonia. I almost got sea sick on the ride over and it was awful. We spent our day in the older, more famous part of the city known as Old Town. Old Town is a medieval town that is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

After WWII Estonia was occupied by the Soviet Union in 1940 and later occupied by Nazi Germany from 1941-44. After the Nazi retreat, it was occupied again by the Soviets in 1944. Although extensively bombed by Soviet air forces during the end of WWII, much of the medieval Old Town still retains its charm. With the fall of Communism and the Soviet Union, Estonia became an independent democratic state. Tallinn has developed a successful IT sector and some people refer to Tallinn as a sort of Silicon Valley of the Baltic Sea. Skype is one of the best-known Tallinn IT start-ups.

This was my first time on old Soviet territory. We had a great time walking around the town, seeing the sites and ducking into stores full of unique trinkets and gifts. We also wen

t to a 

great lookout point that had views of the Old Town against the backdrop of the high rises of the newer part of the city. I heard people speaking Russian everywhere as there is a very large part of the Estonian population that are ethnic Russians. Tallinn is a wonderful city to v

isit if you're into war history or just enjoy visiting a beautiful and intriguing city tha

t is not often visited by many Americans or other travelers to Europe for that matter. 

My Day in Budapest

Despite spending only one day in Budapest I am making a post about my day in the fabulous city. Like I mentioned before, Budapest rivals Istanbul for the most beautifully stunning city I have seen. The history, culture, romance and excitement of Budapest gave me my first taste of that part of the world and has left me longing to experience more of Central and Eastern Europe.

Budapest is the capital city of Hungary. As the largest city of the country, it serves as the political, cultural, industrial and transportation center and is considered an important hub

in Central Europe. The Danube river splits the city into two parts; Buda on the West and Pest (pronounced "Pesht") on the East. Following nearly 150 years of Ottoman Empire rule, Buda and Pest became a unified city in 1873 and embarked on a period of growth and prosperity. Budapest was the focal

 point of the Hungarian Revolution in 1848, the Hungarian Soviet Republic of 1919, Operation Panzerfaust in 1944 (when Germany installed a pro-German government in Hungary to keep the country from surrendering to the Russians and to continue fighting with the Germans), t

he Battle of Budapest in 1945 and the Revolution of 1956 (a revolt against the Stalinist government and its Soviet-imposed policies). Budapest is widely regarded as one of the most beautiful cities in Europe and has several World Heritage sites.

 I discovered a great bookstore in Athens where I spent an afternoon researching and planning my day in Budapest. I didn't want to pay the 30euros for the travel book so I just sat there and jotted down notes. I had to 1) familiarize myself with the geographical layout of Budapest 

so I would be able to orient myself, 2) figure out how to get from the airport to downtown and back and 3)find a guided walking tour that I could take. I usually never do guided tours because 

I like the excitement and challenge of figuring things out on my own, but I decided that this would be the best option given I only had about 5 hours of sightseeing time and wanted to see as much as possible. I also discovered that while Hungary is in the EU, they still use their own currency, the Forint. Given all my cash was in euros I had to figure out approximate pri

ces of things, the euro/forint exchange rate and how much I would need to cover me for one day (plus a couple USD worth of forints to take home). EU countries that don't use the euro are a little cheaper than countries that do use the euro, but in general that price gap is quickly disappearing.

I arrived in Budapest at 6:30am - that's right 6:30AM. I had a 5:30am flight out of Athens and to make that flight I got up at 2am to

make it to the airport. Travel days always make me a little nervous because of the logistics involved, the timing of things and making sure I feel safe in the wee morning hours. I was so unprepared for the weather. Athens felt like the tropics when I stepped off the plane that blistery cold morning in Budapest. In a matter of one hour I had gone from 65-66 degrees to below freezing temperatures. It was a shock to my system. But nevertheless, I felt the energy and excitement of discovering a new city. The sun w

as just rising over the horizon when I stepped off the plane into the cold and a young guy in front of me, clearly sharing my excitement, yelled into the air and to himself "welcome to Hungary!!". And I thought to myself with a nod and a smile yes, welcome Kathleen to Hungary!!!

OK, euros changed into forints, luggage checked in for the day, I was ready to figure out how to get into downtown. Fortunately most of the signs were in English and directions were fairly straightforward. I hopped a bus and

 then the subway. It was interesting riding the subway during the morning rush hour. I don't know if it was the cold weather or what, but the mood of the people was very down and depressing. I wasn't expecting any sort of super excitement on the subway, but everyone just seemed very solemn, no one was talking and people avoided eye contact (reminds me of riding the subway in NYC). I had made a reservation to do a walking tour but was unable to find and meet up with the tour guide at the designated spot and time. Disappointed, I ended up taking a guided bus tour which turned out to be a blessing in disguise because it was so cold I could barely stand outside for more than 5 minutes until my face started stinging and my body started going numb. I saw all the major sites and was able to get off and on the bus as I pleased to go around and take pictures and explore. My favorite sites were the Gellert Hill where I took stunning pictures of Buda and Pest straddling the Danube and the Buda Castle. The Buda Castle is a world heritage site and is the historical castle of the Hungarian kings in Budapest. (I've been seeing a lot of castles on my travels for some reason!) The castle is surrounded by medieval, baroque and 19th century houses and public buildings. My mom told me that I should eat Hungarian goulash if possible. Goulash is a Hungarian dish, a stew or soup made of beef, red onions, vegetables and spices. So mid-afternoon I set out to find an authentic Hungarian restaurant. I had some wonderful goulash with gnocchi dumplings followed by a Hungarian coffee to top off the eating experience. Hearty and delicious. Another eye-popping site was St. Stephen's Basilica. It took 54 years to b

uild and the neoclassical architectural style is beautiful. I literally gasped at the beauty and magnificence of the church. Many of the buildings I passed by had roofs that had been destroyed during WWII but had subsequently been rebuilt. At times I felt almost embarrassed that I did not know much of the history of the city or the significance of the monuments or buildings. Like Istanbul and Athens, history truly comes alive in Budapest.

5 hours of sightseeing was not nearly enough time to really experience the city or see any other part of Hungary so I do plan to return some day in oder to gain a better sense and understanding of the Hungarian people, the culture and the

history. Budapest is a must-see for anyone's Central European travel list. 

Amazing Athens

Visiting the City of Athens has definitely been a highlight of my Greece travels. I have done so much in the last five days that there is just not enough room to talk about all the adventures and experiences. Athens is a hip and trendy international European city; like Istanbul, its where modern meets the past andwhere history truly comes alive. From the trendy cafes to the breathtaking archeo

logical sites – Athens is a “must see” for everyone’s travel list.

 Highlights of my time in Athens:

 The Changing of the Guard of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in front of  the Parliament building. I had literally just arrived in downtown Athens from the airport and saw a large crowd gathering with security all around. I was just in time to watch the formal event, complete with a marching band, marching soldiers and lots of photographers. The change only takes place on Sunday between 10am – 12noon and it’s a neat event to watch.

A stroll through the National Gardens. The National Gardens is like the Central Park of Athens. It was a lovely experience to walk through the grounds during fall. All the trees were so beautiful in all their fall colors and the weather was crisp

and cool. Very relaxingafter a long travel day.

Visiting the Acropolis. I was the fifth person there in the morning as soon as the gates opened so I could have the place to myself and get some great “unobstructed” photos. By the time I was leaving all the tour groups were streaming in and that’s when I knew it was time to leave. The Acropolis is the symbol of Athens. It is a huge rock in the middle of the city and the monuments on it date back to the prehistoric era and antiquity. The grandeur and beauty of the Parthenon (the most famous and largest monument on the Acropolis and the monument featured in all the pictures of the Acropolis) is unlike anything I have ever experienced. The Parthenon is a temple that was built for the Godess Athena. The Acropolis gives you a 360 degree view of the city of Athens. Visiting this site is truly a once in a lifetime experience.

The National Archeological Museum. This museum ranks among the leading archeological museums in the world and is a great opportunity to explore Greece’s history. I saw many interesting exhibits and statues including a cute one named “The Thinker” from 3300 BC. Also interesting was the exhibit of housewares from 2300 BC….they incl

uded tweezers, a huge safety pin and frying pans. I remember these artifacts because they are exactly the things we still use today. It interesting to know that the things these people invented are still used today in the same way and for the same purpose.

Day trip to Cape Suinion. For a new adventure outside if the city, I hopped a bus and rode it for two hours all along the beautiful coastline of the Saronic Gulf  lining Attica. Attica is the name of the greater mainland area of Greece; Athens is located in Attica. Suinion is the southern most tip of Attica where the famous Temple of Poseidon is located. The temple is on a cliff overlooking the Saronic Gulf in the Mediterranean. The day I went there the weather was about 70 degrees and sunny. I enjoyed the views for a while, contemplated life and laughed at the natural beauty of the world. It was simply spectacular.

 My timing for events at the Parliament building was very good. One day I was strolling around the city during morning rush hour when again I noticed large crowds in front of the Parliament. I arrived just in time to see the Chinese President Hu Jin Tao (sp?) arriving to meet with the Greek Presid

ent. There was massive security everywhere but  I tried my best to get some photos of the action. I saw Hu but I don’t know if he saw me. In any case it was neat to see the meeting of two heads of state.

 I was very sad to hear about the terrorist attacks in Mumbai. I was in that exact location during my trip to India this last spring and I feel very fortunate to have had such a safe and successful trip there given that Mumbai (and all of India) continues to be a target of extremely horrible terrorist attacks.

 Ok, now its off to Helsinki! But first I have an all day layover in Budapest. I did some research on Budapest while in Athens and my plan is to figure out how to take public transportation to downtown Pest, go on a 3.5hr walking tour around Pest and Buda and then take public transportation back to the airport. Hungary does not use the Euro and is one hour ahead of Greece and Finland time, so amongst all the other logistics of the day I have to keep the time difference in mind, change just enough Euros into Forints for the day and learn some quick Hungarian asap. I read that hardly anyone speaks English, no signs are in English and was also highly advised not to take a cab because they are complete scams. I survived almost three months in Turkey so I think I could handle one day in Budapest. Wow, too much traveling as I’m starting to confuse time zones, flight time departures and arrivals, currencies and languages! (I kept accidentally speaking Turkish words my first two days in Greece.) 

Lesvos Island, Greece

My second island hop was to Lesvos, which means Lesbian and is known for its 11 million olive trees that cling to its rugged hills and it’s Ouzo, which is known as the best in the world. Half the ouzo sold in the world is produced in Lesvos. I made my base in Mytilini, the main port town that stays busy year round.

 Mytilini is a beautiful town, dotted with churches, 19^th century mansions and interesting

museums. It also has some of the best boutique shops I ever been to. All the little goodies remind me of all the cute things sold at Anthropologie, except these are straight from the makers themselves. I just had to get a couple things for my apt. J

 I made a day trip across the island to the town of Molyvos. Molyvos is adorable with its narrow cobbled lanes, stone houses and charming boutique shops. The town is essentially built into

 a hill overlooking the Aegean Sea and crowned at the very top with a Byzantine-Genoese castle. I made the steep climb to the top and was rewarded with sweeping views of the town and the sea and Turkey shimmering in the horizon. On another day, I took a bus to the nearby village of Varia to visit two museums that housed the work of a famous Greek painter Theophilos. My favorite though was the museum that housed collections of paintings by Picasso and Matisse – they were great and it was oh so enjoyable to contemplate these artworks in a unique museum so far off the beaten path. Every time I do an activity, I ask if there is a student d

iscount. The woman at the first museum let me in for free since I was a student, but when I asked about student discounts at the second one the woman said there is only discounts for students in the EU. I was so annoyed with that because I know she pulled that discriminatory rule right out of her ass on the spot. People are so like that in Greece and Turkey – if its allowed or they can get away with it then they will make up their own rules according to the present situation. It completely bothers me because I think it’s so unfair. But the concept of fairness is a much more strongly held belief in America, where as I’ve found myself in several situations (especially in Turkey) where fairness doesn’t even come into consideration. I just have to accept the cost of the unfairness (whether that be monetary or otherwise) or been seen as “that American that is always complaining about things”.

 The highlight of my stay on Lesvos was visiting the Byzantine castle in Mytilini. I got there in the morning and had the entire castle to myself – it was amazing! The guy at the ticket booth was obviously bored so he gave me a personal tour of the castle. It was at the top of the town and overlooked the sea and Turkey in the distance. My personal tour guide also gave me a glossy coffee-table book about the history of the castle and on my way out offe

red me some fresh Greek desert that his wife had made. Perfect!

 Greek food is amazing. I have had the most wonderful time sampling mezedhes (small dishes) and various types of salads. To celebrate my last day on Lesvos, I went to this wonderful little restaurant called O Diavlos. It had the most adorable little menu all in Greek so I just told the restaurant owner to bring me something delicious – and he did. I sat there and enjoyed t

he wonderful atmosphere of the busy restaurant while listening to romantic

 Greek music and reading my new book that I had just bought on Love and Philosophy (those who know me know I never read books on the philosophy of love but what the hec

k I was in Greece and the mood struck me). The whole scene was so romantic and charming I had to just laugh at it all as I took another sip of my red wine.

 Next stop: Athens. I decided to pay the 88euros for a comfortable 50min plane ride rather than the 25euros for a grueling 13hr ferry ride. I plan to do all the grand sightseeing (don’t worry

 Uncle Paul I’ve got that picture of me in front of the Parthenon coming) and I somehow need to find my way to a bookstore that has some travel books (in English of course) on Budapest since I’ll be there for a day on a layover to Helsinki. More dispatches coming soon!

Chios Island, Greece

Thanks to everyone for all the email responses and hellos! I thought I would send you another update on my adventures so you all can live vicariously through my travels. As I mentioned previously I had a very easy time getting to the island of Chios from Turkey. One of my last images of Turkey was a huge, beautiful wind farm off the coast of the Aegean Sea. I had only seen wind farms in pictures before and I always thought they had a very unique and attractive look about them. It was really a cool sight to see a real wind farm so close up – it went for miles over green rolling hills. The wind towers were so huge and as I passed it on the bus I was captivated by the way all the hundreds of white, tall towers held their huge, long fans all turning so peacefully, creating energy from almost nothing.

 The Greek island of Chios is one of Greece’s most unique. It has excellent Greek food, beautiful beaches (although not in use this time of year), authentic villages, and endless opportun

ities for solitude on miles of beautiful coastline. Since this is the off-season and the beach towns are essentially closed down, I spent time enjoying the food, the medieval villages and the beautiful coastline.

 I spent a day walking through the villages of Thimiana, Mega Limionas, Agia Aerimioni and the beach town of Karfas. All of them were so beautiful. The first three were towns with cobblestone streets lined with orange and lemon trees. I was walking through Thimiana when a cute little old grandpa man pulled up next to me and asked, “Mega Limionas?” and when I nodded that yes, that’s where I was going, he gestured for me to get in his car. I did bec

ause the old man was totally and completely harmless. Chios pretty much has all old, very nice Greek people living on it. Several people have told me that hitchhiking is an excellent way 

to get around Chios. I still NEVER hitch hike, but this grandpa was too cute to pass up. Anyway, he had the most romantic Greek music blasting out of his little car and was singing to the music the whole time. He spoke no English, but when I told him I was from America his eyes lit up and a huge smile came across his face and he said, “Oh! Obama good! Bush bad.” And then he went back to singing along to his Greek music. Its such a laid back and peaceful lifestyle that all these people live here. Anyway, after my 10 min drive with grandpa, I walked through the rest of the towns which all overlooked the Aegean Sea. All the houses and building were so cute with their white paint and blue trim. Some of them had many light colors with all the beautiful trees and vines, etc. All the villages were so adorable I was laughing the whole time at just how darn adorable these neighborhoods were. And the homes, stores and churches had stunning views of the sea. These were the types of towns where people retire to and live out the rest of their lives quietly and stress free.

 The following day I went to the medieval villages of Pyrgi and Mesta. Pyrgi

 is the cutest village I have ever seen in my life. It is truly an eye-opener. It has vaulted, narrow streets that pass through buildings with facades decorated with intricate grey and white patterns, some geometric and some based on flowers leaves and animals. The technique used is called xysta and involves coating the walls with a mixture of cement and black volcanic sand and then scraping off parts with the bent prong of a fork to create the design. I sat and had a coffee at a café. I was so shocked at the fluency of the owners’ English that I started laughing. (I guess I just wasn’t expecting anyone to be speaking any English in some far off Greek village) I told him why I was laughing and he said he used to live in Queens NY for 20 years before 9/11. After 9/11 he decided he had enough of that NY life and moved back to his hometown. Needless to say, we had some interesting conversation before I moved on to the town of Mesta.

 Mesta is a medieval village in southern Chios. It is literally a village built into acastle surrounded by a

fortress. Again, it was so adorable I had to start laughing. Mesta is claimed as one of the most unique experiences you can have anywhere in all of Greece. It features appealing stone alleyways that are intertwined with flowers and intricate balconies and is completely enclosed by thick defensive walls. It is car free. The town was built in the 14^{th century by the island’s Genoese overlords, to keep pirates and would-be invaders out. It’s a great example of medieval defensive architecture featuring a double set of walls, four gates and a pentagonal structure. The area around Mesta is also the only place in the world where the mastic tree grows. Mastic is used to make gum and other products. I foolishly thought that the Masticulture Ecotourism Company based there would still be giving tours, but they weren’t since it was the off-season. I went there anyway and met the owner Vasillis. He and his wife are young (in their early 30’s) and moved from the hectic life of Athens to start cultivating their} own mastic tree farm and start their ecotourism company. Vasillis was so nice. He spent a couple hours with me and gave me a private tour of the village, introduced me to the town locals (on two separate occasions we chatted with the locals over wine and cheese and fresh-picked mandarins) and showed me the mastic tree farms. I knew I would miss the last bus back to Chios Town so I stayed the night there. The next morning I had to catch the 6:40am bus and it was still very dark at that time. I ended up getting lost trying to find my way out because all the stone alleyways kept leading around corners to dead ends. I was running around the cobblestone alleyways lost for a good 10-15mins before I had to stop and calm myself down so I could actually find my way out of the maze! And in the dark I started laughing and thought, “Am I actually lost in a medieval castle village right now?!”  It was a scene straight out of the movies.

 Tonight I am heading on a 4:30am ferry to the island of Lesvos. 4:30am is rough even for a morning person like me, but it’s the only time the ferry comes in the off-season. Traveling in Greece in the off-season is all about trade-offs. There is not as much action, the beaches are closed and the ferry schedules are sporadic, but you get more unique and authentic opportunities when you’re one of the only tourists around. My private (and free) tour of Mesta and

 the mastic trees with Vasillis is one example. I guess my random encounter with singing grandpa is another. Locals also approach you more as a traveler looking for authentic experiences instead of a tourist looking for the beach. I’ll see what off-season trade-offs await me in Lesvos. 

Parting Thoughts: Turkey

This is likely my last post from Turkey. Like all good things, they must come to an end. I’ve enjoyed my experience here and it was certainly not what I expected. Actually, I had no idea what to expect coming here. Before I got here I only knew a little about Turkey and I thought this is going to be great! – not thinking about all the challenges I would face. Here are some of my parting thoughts and takeaways:

Challenges
While the academic challenge was close to nothing (when I get back to UW I have to get used to colleagues and professors actually expecting something from me), the cultural challenge was huge. Because I had never lived in a foreign country before (especially a developing one), I hadn’t really thought about the mental and emotional challenge of trying to set up a new life and integrate into society even if it was only for a short period of time. Of course things would have been a lot easier if I would have had the support of a middleman of sorts (the university) but they of course completely failed at their job to do so. As I’ve mentioned before the language barrier was by far the largest barrier to overcome. Despite the little Turkish I learned and the helpful Turks who do speak English, I’ve essentially lived here as a mute, illiterate person. And while that may sound funny, it is truly no laughing matter when you’re actually living it.

But I learned to embrace the daily challenges that I faced. My thinking was ok, so I’m in an uncomfortable, unknown or frustrating situation. So what?! There are so many worse situations to be in like being homeless or in jail or fearing for my life. So no, the fact that I am mad, frustrated or annoyed over something while living in a country as beautiful as intriguing as Turkey can’t really be that bad. And usually those types of thoughts help to put things in better perspective for me.

Perspective
Greater perspective is one of the bigger things I have gained here. To be able to see things from another person’s point of view is a very valuable life skill. I have sat and had conversations here and in New York with people from all over the world. And through these conversations I have gained much deeper understanding and insights into current world trends and conflicts. I have learned a lot more about politics and economics. And through these conversations I have been able to more clearly shape my own beliefs, values and principles. And in some conversations I have felt very embarrassed and extremely proud of my home country.

Freedom of Speech
The more I travel and converse with non-Americans, the more I am able to clearly separate the things I love and hate about my own country. One thing I love is the ideals that the USA was founded on, mainly freedom of speech and true democracy. The idea that I can openly criticize, question, challenge or debate any idea or any person for the purpose of creating change, advancing new ideas or seeking the truth is a tremendously sacred human right. As an American I have this right and the belief of this right is not only deeply engrained in our society, it’s written in the Constitution. And this individual right has shaped who I am and given me the opportunity to live a life that is free, truthful and happy. I had to live in a country where this right only partially exists to realize its fundamental significance to human beings. In Turkey, insulting “Turkishness” is a crime. The idea of questioning or debating someone’s ideas or positions for the purpose of developing better ideas, seeking the truth or advancing the potential of mankind does not exist here. And I believe the existence of these rights and beliefs is what pushes the US forward and the non-existence of these is what holds back Turkey and many other countries around the world.

Democracy
Watching the presidential election from another country gave me a tremendous sense of pride for the US and the importance and significance of our democracy. Although I am personally doubtful of Obama’s economic and fiscal policies, it made me so happy to read in the news that that the presidential candidate that received the majority votes was free and fairly elected and that the loosing presidential candidate called to concede defeat and offer congratulations and also that the current president in office called to offer a congratulations and to assist with the leadership transition. That this democratic election can fairly take place and power can peacefully be transferred without protests, riots, power struggles or the intervention of another country is a tremendously great thing. I love that the US sets the example for the world when it comes to democratic rule, democratic elections and peaceful transitions of power and leadership. And then I think about places like Zimbabwe and Myanmar. If you’re not familiar with at least a brief, high-level overview of the current political situations (not to mention economic) in those countries then you should be reading more world news. The more I travel the more I realize the US does not posses all the answers to the world’s problems (although some Americans would like to think so), but at least our country has created political and economic institutions that have been successful and can serve as models for other countries to study, learn from or emulate.

Being World Wise
I love traveling. It gives me the opportunity to meet new people, try new things and learn more about myself. Traveling forces me to accept uncertain situations, embrace change and adapt to my environment. These are valuable skills for me to use in my personal life as well as my career. I’m very happy with my decision to leave Seattle for a while and spend time in New York and Turkey. Despite all the logistical and financial planning, the experience has been more than worth it and had made my life very happy and fulfilling. It’s truly a satisfying feeling of accomplishment.

My adventures are not done yet though! Next mission: Greece. Tomorrow I am flying from Istanbul to Izmir and taking a bus from Izmir to the beach town of Cesme. From Cesme I’ll take a ferry to the Greek Island of Chios. I’ll be in Greece for about two weeks and so I’ll try to send out a couple dispatches from there. Then on the 28th I am flying from Athens to Helsinki (via a crazy 12hr layover in Budapest at which I will try to pack in some adventure there) and meeting up with Matt!!! We plan to battle the cold Nordic weather with hot chocolate and Finnish saunas….but more to come on that later!

Ataturk, the Turkish Republic and the PKK

This post is mostly dedicated to Ataturk and his important significance in Turkey. But first I’ll give an update on my little day adventure to the The Princess Islands. Seeing as I was here for the founding of the Turkish Republic holiday on October 29^th, I thought I would celebrate by visiting the Princess Islands out in the Sea of Marmara in between the European and Asian sides of Istanbul.

 First off it took 4 hours to get there because the traffic in Istanbul is horrendous and the public transportation system is completely inefficient here. If Istanbul had an efficient transportation system, I’m estimating it would take 1 hour to get to the islands. This was what I had to do to get from my apartment to the islands: get on a minibus from my house to Sariyer, transfer to another minibus to the start of the subway and ride the subway its whole length (a whopping 6 stops), transfer to a different underground tram type thing that takes me to the water, then hop on the above ground tram to take me to another part of Istanbul where most of the ferries leave. I then had to take a ferry to the Asian side and wait an hour to transfer to another ferry that was actually headed to the islands. So from apartment to islands took 4 hours. Ugh.

 Anyway, the Princess Islands of Istanbul are like the San Juan Islands of Washington. They are a group of islands with no cars allowed. The only way to get around is b

y foot, bike or horse drawn carriage. There are cute homes that people use in the summertime. I just wanted to visit a couple of them and check out the great views of the Asian side of Istanbul and the Sea of Marmara. Then on my way back home I got stuck on the Asian side because the Bosphorus was closed (they actually closed it!!!) for the fireworks and laser light show over the Bosphorus celebrating the founding of the Turkish Republic. October 29 is the equivalent of the 4^th of July, except that Turkey did not declare independence from any other country; it was the date the country of Turkey was officially founded by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk out of the ruins of the Ottoman Empire’s collapse after WW1. So it’s a HUGE deal for Turkey and for the remembrance of their influential leader Ataturk. I had a prime view right on the Bosphorus of the firework show and the laser light show. The firework show was exactly like all the fireworks shows over Lake Union and Elliot Bay. But the laser and strobe light show was unlike anything I had ever seen. The entire stretch of the Bosphorus was covered with hundreds of spotlights, laser lights and colored strobe lights that were positioned on the ground and also from the two bridges that connect the European and Asian sides. There was also Turkish-European techno-trance music blasting everywhere for miles. Imagine the entire stretch of Lake Washington covered with spot lights and laser lights like its one big party on the waterin the dark that goes for miles. It was such an incredible visual site!

 Ataturk and the Turkish Republic

So, back to Ataturk. Ataturk was the powerful leader that came to power after the collapse of the all might

y Ottoman Empire based in Istanbul. Ataturk assumed the presidency of the newly created secular republic. His real name was Mustafa Kemal, and he later took on the name Ataturk, which literally means “Father Turk”. After the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, Turkey had many problems. It was Ataturk’s vision to see Turkey take its place among the modern, developed countries of Europe. At the time (1920’s), Turkey was impoverished and devastated after years of war, so a firm and strong leader was needed. Ataturk set up the institutions of democracy while never allowing any opposition to impede him. His ultimate motivation for his authoritarian style was the betterment of his people. One aspect of his vision was that the Turkish state be solely Turkish. In creating this national unity and identity, he denied a cultural existence to the Kurds and since then they have fought their sepratist struggle (see below).

 Ataturk’s drive for modernization was unwavering, giving the Turkish state a makeover on micro and macro levels. Turkey adopted the Georgian calendar to bring it in line with the West rather than the Middle East, standardized the Turkish language (to make it more officially Turkish) and told Turks to have last names. By the time of hi

s death in 1938, Ataturk had lived up to his name, having been the pre-imminent figure in the creation of the nation state and having dragged Turkey into the modern era by a combination of inspiration, ruthlessness and incredible vision. The praise of Ataturk continues to this day and when I first got here I was stunned and fascinated by Turkey’s devotion to this person. It is very visually obvious. Westerners are unused to this type of devotion and praise to absolute figures of authority and so it was weird for me. Any perceived insult to Ataturk is considered not only highly offensive but is also illegal. You can also be punished for “insulting Turkishness”. It was immediately obvious to me that Turks are very nationalistic – I have seen the Turkish flag displayed so much. Having nationalistic pride can be a good 

thing and a bad thing. One consequence of a strong national identity it is that it causes people to discriminate against minority groups (the Kurds) and it makes people not as accepting of people from other countries or ethnic backgrounds. The discrimination is very pervasive and very sad and has caused a lot of problems for Turkey.

 The Kurds and the PKK

Turkey has a significant Kurdish minority of roughly 14 million. They live in the eastern and southeastern regions of Turkey. They are not integrated into mainstream Turkish society. Virtually all Turkish Kurds are Muslims and while they look physically similar to the Turks, they have a separate language, culture and family traditions. When the modern Turkey was created, the Kurds were not guaranteed rights as a minority group, unlike the Christians, Jews and Armenians. Until recently the Turkish government refused to even recognize the existence of the Kurds, calling them “Mountain Turks”. Even today no one is allowed identify themselves as Kurdish nor can they be identified as Kurdish on their identity cards. In  1984 the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (the PKK) was formed. This organization is still to this day demanding and fighting for a separate state. They have been deemed a terrorist group (although I don’t know what countries exactly recognize them as a terrorist group). In 1999 a ceasefire between Turkey and the PKK was called but in 2004 it was broken and fighting has been going on ever since in the southeast. Some say the best hope for change lies in Turkey’s hopes to join the EU. The EU champions the rights of cultural and ethnic minorities and people hope that the path to EU membership will force Turkey to recognize and integrate the Kurds.

 Now hopefully when you read about PKK fighting in Turkey and Iraq, you will have the background to better understand some of the conflicts in the Middle East…..

Fran You're The Best!

My friend Fran from my MBA program at UW came to visit me this last weekend from her exchange program in Madrid, Spain. Fran was here from Thursday until Sunday and I tried to pack in as much fun and adventure as possible.

 

We spent roughly two and a half days in Istanbul and went on an overnight trip to the city of Bursa. Bursa is about 4 hours away from Istanbul (more long bus rides of course). It’s Turkey’s 4^th largest city and its very historical and cultural. It hardly has any tourists and I was hoping that would work in our favor in terms of having more authentic experiences and better value….turns out I was right!

 The hostel we stayed in was the only known hostel that had a somewhat decent review online. The hostel had no website and I should have taken a clue from that. When we arrived we were 

greeted my an old but friendly Turkish woman who spoke no English. She also smelled terribly and had dirty hands that made me think she had beendigging in dirt, but friendly nonetheless. I’ve stayed in terrible places before, but this one ranks near the top for most ghetto places I’ve stayed at. It had a shared bathroom with a squat toilet that was completely nasty and the showerhead literally dripped out cold water. I knew hot water was not going to be accessible because the old lady kept repeating “problem, hot water, Bursa…problem, hot water, Bursa….problem, hot water, Bursa” and so on. But what I think she was trying to tell us was that starting from a certain period at night until a certain time in the morning there is no running water in Bursa because when I tried to brush my teeth the next morning there was no running water.

 Accepting the reality that we were staying in an awful place, Fran and I set out to eat some good Turkish food and see some sights. We headed back to our hostel later that evening to drop some things off and met a nice man by the name of Ahmet. Ahmet is a friend of the couple that runs the hostel and he was 1)very friendly (and spoke English) and 2) clearly had nothing to do on a Saturday night. He ended up taking us around town to a teahouse where anyone from the community can come and play traditional Turkish music on the house instruments. After that we went to visit the cultural center that used to be a madrassa in a previous life. Then he took us to dinner at a great restaurant famous for its kebap dinners. I wasn’t even hun

gry but Ahmet ordered us out own plated full of kebap meat. It was overwhelming to be eating an entire plate of meat at 9pm but I did anyway because I didn’t want to be rude. After that we went to another part of town where there was a FREE performance of …………., the traditional Turkish dancing. The shows are put on nightly for the Bursa community and we were one of the only tourists there. It was such a great, authentic show because it was put on for the enjoyment of the community and not for tourists in order to make money. I felt a little out of place when the entire place starting chanting/praying afterwards, but I just enjoyed it as a very unique event not many tourists get to experience.

 Since there was no running water in our hostel and we wanted to experience the hamam (Turkish Bath) we got up at 6am the next morning and went to the neighboring area of Cikerge where they have hamams and mineral baths. I’ve wanted to experience a hamam since I arrived in Turkey. No one there spoke English and we weren’t sure how far we should strip down our clothes or really even what to do. It was a little funny, weird and awkward all at the same time. We soaked in a hot tub of mineral water before we were called out by two women who were going to give us our bath and massage. I was lead to another room where the woman pointed to the doctor style bed that I was to lay on. I then proceeded to get my entire body scrubbed with a sandpaper-like scrubber by this strong, brute Turkish woman who would partially grunt when she wanted me to turn over. It was very painful but I got over the initial shock of the sandpaper on my body after about 10mins. Then she lathered my entire body from head to toe in soap (using a regular soap bar! – I only use shower gel at home) and then gave me a painful massage where she pulled and twisted my body parts until every muscle was stretched and every joint was cracked. I then rinsed off and felt so awake and refreshed!! We hopped on a bus back to the bus station just in time to make our 9am bus ride back to IstanbulJ

 

Fran, you’re a great friend and make a great travel partner! I look forward to more travel adventures with you in the future!

Turkish Norms and Culture

Wow, I clearly had no idea what I was signing up for when I chose to do my exchange program in Turkey. I think it was a combination of seeking adventure and being naive that brought me here. 

Turkish norms and culture are very different from the U.S. For starters, the U.S. is a very developed, westernized country and Turkey is a developing, trying-to-be-westernized country. Also, the U.S. is a highly individualistic country and Turkey is a collective society. Just these differences alone have huge implications and make daily life for me challenging because differences come out in even the smallest of events. 

The language barrier is by far the thing that makes living here difficult. By not being able to read or speak Turkish, I am essentially illiterate. Living independently and trying to accomplish mundane tasks when you cannot read or speak the language is a tremendous challenge. For example, I went to the grocery store the other day and made the mistake of not taking my Turkish phrase book with me. I needed a shopping cart but did not know where they were so I did hand signals with a guy for about 5mins before he realized what I wanted. I usually make pasta because the foods sold in grocery stores are very different from the U.S. so I make pasta often because that's a food that I actually recognize and know how to make (and don't need to be able to read the cooking instructions on the back). I do my food shopping by examining packaging and looking at pictures. Yogurt milk is very popular here and it is packaged exactly like milk so I accidentally bought yogurt milk instead of milk. The next morning I had it with cereal and was convinced I had bought sour milk until I looked up the words for milk and yogurt milk and realized I bought the wrong thing. I didn't want to waste food so I ended up eating the cereal with sour yogurt milk. I obviously quickly learned the Turkish word for milk. 

Turkey and the US are very different in the way people think about things and the way things are done here. The ideas of discipline and structure are not part of Turkish culture. So the idea that someone would create a schedule, stick to it and successfully accomplish what was supposed to be done just doesn't exist here. The reason this doesn't happen is because if a person doesn't stick to the schedule or do what they were supposed to do, there is no one to hold them accountable and the person never feels that it was important anyway. The ideas of accountability and responsibility are completely absent here. This was very difficult for me to grasp when I first started school here because I actually assumed that the people in the administrative offices at school would actually do what they told me they were going to do. I realized I was making assumptions that people feel a sense of responsibility to get my request done; they don't. I was also making the assumption that people enjoy their jobs and are self-motivated to work; they aren't. These were assumptions I had brought with me from the U.S.

People think and operate in completely different ways than they do in the U.S. When someone tells me they are going to do something I just assume that its not going to be done or it will take on average 5 days longer than they originally said it would be completed. There is no trust in transactions between people and so I still wonder to this day how this society manages to operate when the idea of trust does not exist? All the things I've mentioned is part of the reason why things in society either don't operate or they operate with much lower standards for quality and time than they do in the U.S. There is tremendous bureaucracy and inefficiency in the way pretty much everything is done here. From the bus system, to the school registration process to the way people think. It is completely engrained in society.

Since I am a person that thinks logically and tries to do things in an efficient manner, life was very frustrating, stressful and confusing for me during my first month. I can only laugh now at the difficult adjustment I went through and be proud at how much I have adapted. I am way lazier than I am in the U.S. and I don't have the ambition and drive that I do when I am at home. Its not that I want to be this way, its that in order for me to live successfully in this society I have to be this way or I will find myself unhappy all the time if I try to think and operate as if I'm in the U.S.

I have talked to some students here who have done exchange programs in the U.S. or western European countries and some of them loved it and some of them hated it. For those that hated it, they said they did not like all the rules and all the structure and the fact that people were punctual. They said they felt like they had to be a machine and they're not a machine; they're human!

Ephesus and Afrodesias

Ephesus is the best preserved classical city in the eastern Mediterranean and is the place to get a feel for what life was like in Roman times. Ancient Ephesus was a great trading city and a center for the cult of Cybele, the Anatolian fertility goddess. When the Romans took over and made it the province of Asia, Ephesus became the Roman provincial capital.

 Ephesus is a huge tourist place and so we had to deal with tons of old people on tour buses. The entrance fee was outrageously expensive and I got really annoyed wh

en

after waiting in line for 20 mins, the guy selling postcards in the street starts leading some tourists to the front of the line telling them that its ok to cut!! Like selling postcards gave the guy some sort of authority to do that. There was no official person monitoring the line and the Turkish people that were cut in front of didn’t even say anything! 

I was annoyed but not surprised. In general, the idea of queing and first-come-first-served is one of those foreign “western” concepts of  "order" that don't work in Turkey as they say here. There are hardly ever lines for anything, usually everyone just crowds around and pushes their way to the front. I hate it.

 Afrodesias is one of Turkey’s finest archaeological sites. I really liked it because it was less overrun with coach pa

rties compared to Ephesus (mainly because its in the middle of the desert in the middle of nowhere). By the 3^rd century AD Afrodesias was the capital of the Roman province of Caria with a population of 15,000. Under the Byzantine empire the city was changed dramatically and temples were turned into churches. The stadium was definitely the coolest thing there. 

Izmir

Last week Turkey had a week long Muslim religious holiday, Bayram, to celebrate the end of Ramazan. Ramazan lasted the whole month of September and its where Muslim people fast for 30 days. School was of course closed for the holiday so I went with my friends Marisa and KG to the city of Izmir and we stayed at the house of our Turkish friend, Basar (pronounced Bashar). He is also a student at Koc. We orginially wanted to go on a tour of the Black Sea coast region, but we started planning too late and so all the tours were booked.

 Izmir is the third largest city in Turkey (pop. 2.6 mil.) and is the second biggest port city behind Istanbul. Its right on the Agean Sea, but its very much like the port of Seattle – with beautiful waterfront but no beaches or anything like that. We took a 9 hour overnight bus from Istanbul to Izmir and then took another bus for 45 mins to the part of town that Basar’s parents house is located. I was excited to stay with a Turkish family to see what Turkish home life is like. His parents were so welcoming and every morning his mom made a huge traditional Turkish breakfast (bread, cheese, honey, tomato, cucumber, olives, peppers, jam and tea) and a huge Turkish dinner. I’m not for sure, but I would consider Basar’s family to be middle class by Turkish standards. His parents do not speak English so there was a lot of face and hand gesturing and smiling going on all week.

 Basar had to translate any verbal conversation that took place.

 We spent the first day walking around Izmir and doing the typical things: bazaar browsing and having Turkish coffee and chai at cafés. The next day we got up early and took the bus to the main bus station and got on a 1.5 hour bus ride inland to the city of Selcuk. From Selcuk we caught another bus to the preserved classical city of Ephesus (see related post). After spending most of the day there we caught a bus back to Selcuk and caught another bus to the neighboring village of Sirince (pronounced siringe). Sirince is up in the hills and the housing is very pretty. We only had time to walk around for a bit and have dinner there before catching the bus back to Selcuk and then catching another bus back to Izmir.

 On Wednesday we again woke up early and caught the bus to the bus station and got on a 3.5 hour bus ride to the southwestern towns of Denizli and Pamukkale. Although those towns are talked up as a place to visit, we found them completely boring. So we sat and had chai and watched the sunset. We stayed the night in Pamukkale in a cute hostel where I went to bed at 8pm because I was feeling sick. Probably from all the bus riding. The next day Mehmet’s “uncle” (Mehmet is the hostel owner and he referred to his older friend as hi

s uncle) drove us in his little car to another great archeaoligcal site, Afrodesias (see related post). It was a 1.5 hour car ride in sweltering heat in the middle of the desert. We paid Mehmet’s uncle a good amount of money to take us out there and Afrodesias is in the middle of nowhere so private car or tour bus is really the only way to get there. Mehmet’s uncle drank chai and waited for the two hours we were at the site. He then drove us back to the bus station in Denizli where I bargained and pitted bus companies against eachother to give us cheap tickets home. I consider myself to be an above average haggler. I enjoy itJ Another 3.5 hour bus ride back to Izmir.

By the time Friday rolled around I was exhausted. We did some more sightseeing in Izmir and I made the mistake of wearing flip flops. It was raining all day long and I ended up stubbing my toe and now I think its either broken or sprained. It does not look pretty. Friday night I left on the 9 hour overnight bus ride back to Istanbul with a swollen toe. A 9 hour bus ride is very rough, but tickets to fly to Izmir were way too expensive for the holiday, especially on a student budget. I spend an enormous amount of t

ime on buses. Buses are the main mode of transportation around Turkey. On our bus was a family that I believe was moving to Izmir because they had literally all their belongings with them. I saw boxes of toys, dishes, bedding, appliances, etc. It was insane! There’s no luggage restrictions on buses here.

 Travelling is exhausting and very logistically difficult in Turkey. I would definitely not recommend traveling through Turkey for anyone who has not had prior travel experience in developing countries (unless you hire a tour group to do everything for you). Now I’m back in Istanbul and its back to school again I guess.