Doner Kebab

Our trip to Istanbul, Turkey was amazing. I didn't really know what to expect on the trip...and the weekend far surpassed any of my expectations. The city was full of historical sites and bustling with people. The weather was nice, mostly sunny and not cold. The exchange rate was favorable and there were many exotic goods for sale. Our hostel was cool and had a rooftop terrace bar which served cheap beer and had free breakfast each morning. What more could you want?! But the best thing about the trip was the people. Almost everyone we came across was nice, funny, and very cool.

The shot 11/17/2008:

Here is a doner stand near Taksim Square, a very cool pedestrian area in Istanbul. Doner kebab is a popular Turkish fast-food that I've found all across Europe. Basically, meat is shaved off of that meat cylander and put in a pita or tortilla with lettuce, tomato, etc. and sauce. I was first introduced to doners in Berlin last summer at the legendary Chausse Grill. In each city the receipe varies a little bit (ie: in some places french fries are included in the doner). I think my best doner one I got in Barcelona, Spain (followed closely by Berlin, and then Turkey)...the worst was in Galway, Ireland. Yuck.

Lillehammer

The shot 10/11/2008: No-way. I am working on a fantastic summary/reflection on my weekend in Norway...but for now, here's a picture of non-snowy Lillehammer.

Norway

The shot 10/7/2008: After quite an interesting journey to Norway this weekend, we finally got back to town today around lunchtime. I am pretty exhausted...it seems like we were on trains or busses or being rained on the whole weekend. All-in-all it was a good trip though and will provide for lots of good material.

A major plus over the weekend was going into internet cafes and seeing everyone's comments and watching the homepage counter jump from 22 on Thursday to over 300 today. I have some more tricks up my sleeve so keep checking back when you're killing time on the internet.

But for now I am going to concentrate on getting my first full night's sleep in 6 days. I humbly submit to you today's moneyshot, which I took on Sunday in Lillehammer, Norway. Lillehammer was the site of the 1994 Winter Olympics...but as you can see here, skiing weather is a still a few weeks away.

Cliff Moher

The shot 10/5/08: I'm not sure if he's pretending to fall off the Cliffs of Moher, or if he's wanting to eat the sign...
I wonder if anyone ever named their kid Cliff Moher, just to be funny...

Skillz

The shot 10/3/2008: I have not yet found any leprechauns or pots of gold in Ireland, but I have developed curious "walking on water" skills. Here, I am aided by the magical waters of Lough Leane in the Killarney National Park.

Palma de Mallorca

The shot(s) 10/1/2008: This is where I was on Monday morning of the 5th week of school back home.

Irish Weekend

It was a busy weekend of travel around Ireland. Here are a couple of pics hot off the press...

On Friday we took a bus to Galway which is on the west coast of Ireland and known for its traditional Irish music.

The next day, Andrew and I took a bus tour through the Burren and to the Cliffs of Moher.

The Poulnabrone portal tomb is one of the best preserved megalithic tombs in Ireland. It was built during the New Stone Age, around 4,000 BC, give or take a few years. The unique rocky landscape is characteristic of The Burren, which has more than 90 megalithic tombs.

The Cliffs of Moher are a stunning part of the western coastline, where the Irish country side abruptly drops off several hundred feet to the Atlantic Ocean below. The weather was very gray and dreary, but the site was still one of the most awesome things I've seen. The Cliffs of Moher is one of Ireland's top tourist destinations and, as this picture demonstrates, draws many people who do not like to obey posted signs.

After a relaxing Sunday, we traveled on Monday to the southwestern town of Killarney. We rented bikes and rode around town and the Killarney National Park.

Ross Castle was built sometime in the late 15th century, by the O'Donoghue family who ruled the Killarney area at the time. Lough Leane is in the foreground, some Irish mountains are in the background.

The shot 9/30/2008: Here, Andrew puts on a wool sweater jacket he bought in Killarney. He arrived in Ireland without a coat or sweater and complained quite loudly about being cold for two weeks. Each time, I suggested he go to T.K. Maxx (yes, the Irish version of T.J. Maxx) and buy a cheap jacket for 15 euro...that way he could keep warm and shut up.

Each time he scoffed at the suggestion and said his jacket was being shipped from the U.S. and he didn't want to spend the money. Thus he spent the first two weeks in Ireland cold and complaining loudly in my ear. The package with his U.S. jacket finally arrived here on Saturday. So, using classic Andrew logic, he promptly went out the next day and bought a brand new jacket for much more than 15 euros. This is today's moneyshot because it proves that I was right for two weeks and he was wrong. This is sort of a "you-had-to-be-there" thing, but just rest assured that I was right...