Merry Monday

Today was just a happy day I have to say.

With that, all I could think about was what I am missing since Turkey... 

and here is the list:

Southside Festival

Slovenia and Lichtenstein

Budapest

Bratislava

Ukraine

Rome

Cappadocia 

Riga

Oslo

Stockholm

Warsaw

Krakow

daunting! But these will all be covered, not to mention the trip when my friend Christina was here in Europe. We traveled to Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Brussels and Luxemburg. Luxemburg was just on a whim, too!

Southside is on there because it was my first music festival. It is a big deal. 

Let's begin.

It all began June 22-23, 2012...

So Kaitlin and I bought the tickets thinking we would be able to do the festival right, camping and all. We were sooo wrong! Kaitlin ended up having to dogsit AND work. It got to be a little nuts each day, but we figured it out. We ended up renting a car and driving the hour and half there and back to see bands in action. The first night we didn't leave until 2am, if I remember correctly?

There were certain bands we wanted to see, but had to limit our choices since we would only be there early evening after Kaitlin got off of work. First up was Florence and the Machine. This is where we met a friend who tagged along with us the rest of the time we were there. Poor girl, I don't remember her name!

  

There we were rocking out to Florence, who was dancing around barefoot and belting out her songs, when all of a sudden, someone throws something up and into the air and it hits Kaitlin! Bottle, bottle cap, who knows! Goodness, no causalities, but bottles down please. 

 

We were supposed to see City and Colour next, however, they never made it. So as we waited we went with our new friends to check out their campsite and burn some time until the KOOKS.

Oh, those English guys. They did a great job! They were lively and upbeat and a ton of people were singing along,

"But ooh la, she was such a good girl to me."

  This would be Sir Luke Pritchard... Hello there...

Then everyone needs a snack, and there is only one snack stand you should stampede to, Handbrotzeit. AHH. This ooey gooey goodness has no competition. Bread packed with ham and cheese and baked to perfection. They also had ones with mushrooms and maybe one other choice. I couldn't finish mine because it was just too much ooey gooey goodness. If you ever see this sign or hear the words Handbrotzeit, stop what your doing and grab one. 

It is life changing.

Then, the moment I have been waiting for.

MUMFORD AND SONS.

Glorious. 
If you like their CD, then you will have no words for when you hear them live. IT WAS AMAZING. Think of their CD and then imagine that times 100. Can you imagine that? Can you?

I don't know if this clip will even do it justice, but I will try and show you. Also, I was on someone's shoulders, hence, the massive amounts of movement.

 

The last two bands we saw perform were Justice and Boy. Justice I wasn't the hugest fan, but Kaitlin wanted to see them, so we did. Boy, which is actually two girls, had a small tent and not a big stage, but since they are from Germany the tent was packed the brim. Apparently, too packed that people decided they need more space and started to climb up :) If you don't recognize the band name Boy, maybe you know their song, "Little Numbers"? 

So that was our two days jammed into one explanation! Had a great time even though we didn't get to camp, but this year, hopefully, will be different. One can only hope. 

Southside 2013 Here I Come

Exeter and Katy

Due to pushing aside my writing time, it has been quite awhile since I have last updated, and as usual, I have left you hanging with an unfulfilled promise, but now I tell you I will take the time to update. (Now I have to hold myself to this :) )

Since London...

Exeter

I met up with Katy in Exeter and we toured the surrounding area, which is where her family is from. Pretty sweet. 

 
 We hung out with her family and enjoyed a nice dinner full of laughter and shenanigans. Small town, so as we looked for a pub afterwards everything was closing down... I want to say it was around 10:30, which isn't too late, but yet, it is a small, small town in Topsham! I was only there for the weekend. Short trip, however, the next weekend, my birthday weekend, I would meet Katy in ROMA!

I LOVE LONDON.

I only wanted this title so that I could play this song for you...

 

you REALLY didn't have to watch the whole thing, and I hope you didn't waste your time.

On the off chance you enjoyed it, then great. I only like the part "I love London." This is true, I do, however, this past weekend I only spent a night in London. I spent the majority (a whole day and a half) in Topsham, a suburb of Exeter and in the county of Devon. 

All that information was completely necessary. 

Straight after work I hustled home via my bike, aka "my car."  I wasn't completely packed and empty the first backpack choice because it proved to be too small. You never know what you might need in two days...so I busted out the bigger 21 Liter backpack. At this point I didn't even know what I was grabbing but I was picking up whatever I could think of and stuffing it into the backpack. Luckily I didn't chose anything too hideous. As usual, I forgot the thing of things you NEVER should forget: shower shoes!  

Easy flight, train into London and then a quick ride on the tube brought me to Borough High Street searching for St. Christopher's Inn, the Village. This would be my hostel. The directions on the website were clearing explained and I even wrote them down. Okay so everything was fine, right? No..no.. I am down at the bottom of the tube with two options in front of me: East or West. Do I take the East exit or West exit when my directions say south. I go West, taking the stairs. I step into the brisk air thinking, "Map, next time map, map, map!" Lucky me St. Christopher's is a big hostel and  very well-known that the local map of the area near the crosswalk had it labeled... Still I walk down the wrong street. As you may have noticed my sense of direction is a bit off. 

This is only to help you. Map and shower shoes. This is all you need to know. 

Honestly, not much to say about my stay in London because I only spent the night. HOWEVER, however there is just a tad bit of information you might want to hear. Humorous I might add...  

I booked the 14 bed dormitory. It was the cheapest option, so why not. I walk into room nine and literally throw myself on the bed. I just needed to close my eyes for three seconds, but I can feel it. Someone is staring at me. This older guy with a big fro is staring at me from under his covers, "Hello," I say and start to put my things in order. Whew, I'm thirsty and head to the bar downstairs not giving this guy another look. "A pint of water, please!" I ask the bartender. Probably the only person in there asking for water. Guzzle down the H2O and head back upstairs. I decide I will take a nap and maybe venture into this pub or the one down the street. Ha, my nap was me passing out. But before I did I walk in to my room only to find my "friend" in a very interesting position. He looked like he was posing in an underwear ad...

After I came back from the shower he asked if I wanted to get a beer! No I just had water I replied and 20 minutes later the guy returns with two waters. One for him and one for me. Thanks. To give him credit his English was barely there. The last thing was when he poked my arm with a "Good morning!" I quickly packed my bags, ate breakfast, and booked it out of there.  

So this was my night in London. Topsham tomorrow folks, tomorrowish.
And then there will be pictures!

Paperback.

Just the books I'm reading.

Olympos, Turkey.

If you go to Turkey, then you'll never want to leave.

Instead, I will go again.

First weekend in July, my sister and I ventured to Asia (Yes, depending on what part of Turkey you are in, then you may step from Europe to Asia). We started our trip in the southern part of Turkey, Olympus. During this trip we never felt rushed. We had enough time to relax and enjoy the area we were in and take advantage of the awesome activities they had to offer. We stayed at Kadir's Top Tree House

 

If you ended in this part of town...STAY HERE. The staff, the atmosphere, the food, the rooms are fantastic, energetic and something to experience. On of our "musts" was staying in a tree house. This is what we did. 

Breakfast and dinner were provided each day and they prepared quite the spread. I ate so much when I was there. Always had salads and cheese and just very Turkish and delicious. That explains a lot I know :)

Breakfast had the best omelets, which had mushrooms in them...and I don't even like mushrooms!

Kadir's Top Tree House had different excursions for their guests, and we took full advantage of this. During the time we visited there weren't many people there or people there up to doing fun things. We did meet this one couple who became our partners. We collaborated on what "fun things" we should do since some of the activities required more than two people. 

The List of the FUN Things:

Chimaera

The Flames

 

 Hiking up the stairs and paths through Bey Mountains Coastal National Park, leads you to the Chimaera. These are random flames bursting through the earth and are part of a Turkish legend. According to the legend the flames are the breath of a monster. A monster who is part goat, lion and dragon. The flames are actually gas emissions, but I like the breath of a monster better. 

 

Scuba Diving

 

This is our scuba group! 

We went the whole day on the boat taking our time and just enjoying the day, each-other's company and of course TURKISH TEA! This was our first time diving not in a pool. We saw fish and little sting rays. It took a moment to be calm and get used to the breathing. The water... SO COLD! Even with a wetsuit on. The other guys had booties and hoods. I wanted one! 

Paragliding

 

I faced my fear of heights and took a running jump off the side of a mountain. 

 

 I am so glad I did it. Honestly, the "safari" up the side of the mountain was more nerve-racking then jumping off the side of the mountain. Being 200 meters off the ground was surprisingly relaxing. I took in the scenery and was blown away. The beauty underneath my feet was truly unreal. Then as we were nearing our decent I turned my head around to Denis and took him I am ready for "some action!" Which means little quick turns and more of a adrenaline rush. A great way to end the unbelievable ride.

Rock Climbing

 

With professional gear and REAL rock climbing shoes will scaled the side of the cliff. On the other side overlooked the Olympos beach.  This is the first time not being on a climbing wall. Now our of all the activities, this was our favorite. This adrenaline rush was like no other. I had fear and determination running through my veins. We also were the only ones who took this activity so the instructors let us climb two different routes. Normally this is down behind the hostel, however, we were lucky that they were climbing at the beach. 

Kayaking and Deep Water Soloing

These pictures are on a disposable camera. I have yet to develop them, but when I do I assure you YOU will be the first to see them!

I don't know how I convinced myself to jump 8 meters off the side of a cliff into the water. Of course the second (YES I did it a second time) time I over thought everything and did everything I was told not to do. I ended up smacking the water is a back-flop finale. Everyone was cringing and laughing at the same time when I came up for air. The sound of the smack echoed.

Kayaking. Gosh my arms were burning after the two hours. I am pretty sure we were gone for two hours. However, since there were only three of us our guide took us through a special cave. There were stalagmites there were "hundreds" of years old.  We were crouching and crawling through this mini cave. I wish we had pictures to show you!

 The Beach

 

After a long day we ventured to the Olympos beach right down the road. The water was crystal clear and not so chilly. We bought floaties!  The rocks just hurt the feet when trying to find the right spot for our towels.

 Next... Istanbul!

Sand and Surf.

Lisbon, check!

 

Now off to Sagres! Four hours in a bus would lead us to our next adventure. We ended up going during a hot spell, 70ish degrees weather, which was nice since recently there it was super chilly! We were ready for the beach and...

SURFING.

This would be my first attempt at surfing, but Kaitlin had tried previously while living in Santa Barbra. I was extremely excited, but without a doubt nervous. I didn't want to suck at it. No lie, this was my main concern was. 

Our hostel was laid back and packed with Norwegians. They were awesome! They were taking a year off to "find themselves" at this school in Norway while snowboarding, skiing, hiking, surfing and pushing their limits everyday. Sign me up! I wish I could do this...

Instead, I am learning Norwegian. 

Surfing. Gosh, my arms were so sore at the end of the day. Constantly doing push-ups on the board is tiring. I did stand up on the first try. This motivated me. However, I have a tendency to just go, go, go and our instructor was like, "chill, just feel the waves don't rush the waves." So true. The moment I closed my eyes and just felt the pull of the tide and the rush of the ocean I was able to collect my thoughts, let go and just ride the wave. Addicting. 

 

TOURING THE STREETS OF LISBON

Lisbon reminds me of London, the colors of London, very gray and drab almost, but you can see the remnants of the vibrant city it once was from the chipped and old tiles lining the walls of most buildings. Don't let this fool you, Lisbon still remains vibrant through its culture and their people. Best piece of advice I could give anyone traveling to Lisbon: Take advantage of the public transportation. It is truly an experience all on its own. From watching people wave down buses to waiting for the trams, we were able to partake in the commotion as a "local." 

 

 This post has been put on the back burner...sorry Lisbon. And so much has happened since this trip. Gosh, where have my typing fingers gone?!

The good stuff. When in Lisbon there is one essential place that cannot go unvisited. 

Belem Pastries! 

This place was the highlight of the trip in Lisbon. 

BUT REALLY THE HIGHLIGHT OF PORTUGAL...

next post.

Tina, don't hate me.