So it's been a while...

My last post was the day after my birthday, so it has been about a week and a half. I'M SORRY! I know you all are just dying to hear from me. I hope you know it's nothing personal. It's not that I don't like updating you and I don't miss everyone back home, it's just that I'm so busy having fun and taking exams and whatnot. I did not mean to neglect my blogging duties!
So since I posted last, I have done the following incredible things:

1. I went to Amsterdam. You all have heard about Amsterdam and know about it's reputation. Needless to say it was quite a change from Istanbul. Lots of bicycles, very few cars, and everyone spoke English. There's other stuff too... plenty for college students to do. Enough said. Now before you jump to any conclusions, I was there with three other highly reliable and responsible friends- Kate, Logan, and Kathryn. We all decided to meet there for the weekend to experience the culture, and despite the (mostly) terrible weather we did succeed in going to the Van Gogh museum, passing by the Ann Frank house, and seeing how Heineken beer is brewed. So, since pictures are worth a thousand words, here are a few of my favorites from that weekend. Enjoy!


2. This past Friday was a national holiday, and I celebrated by racing in a single scull on the Golden Horn of the Bosphorus. And it was terrifying and wonderful at the same time. No need to mention how I placed. Just understand that I did not really know the starting commands, nor did I know where the finish line was. I think that the race was about 1 kilometer long, but I can't be sure. And because of that, I wasn't sure when it was over. I just assumed when I saw the other competitors headed to shore that I was probably finished. Oops! It was my fourth time in a single scull, and so I consider myself lucky for not flipping. For those of you that have never rowed in a single, they are very tippy. Especially if your sculling technique is terrible. Anyway, shoutout to Williams Crew: I thought of you guys the whole time, and even though I didn't finish first, or even second, or third, I think I brought pride on our behalf. I don't have any pictures of myself rowing yet, but my friend was there with her camera, and as soon as I get her photos I will share them with you. Be forewarned: The Golden Horn is a large body of water, and a single is a small boat. I will look tiny in the pictures. But I think that is appropriate, because that's pretty much how I felt. And this way hopefully you will not be able to scrutinize my technique!

3. On Saturday I went with Stella and Alison to Topkapi palace, which is in the Sultanahmet region of Istanbul, to the south of the Golden Horn. This is the most touristy area of Istanbul for good reason. The Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, and the Basilica cistern to mention a few are all within a very short walk of each other. If you want to be a tourist in Istanbul, you must go to Sultanahmet. Saturday was the first sunny day in nearly a week, so my friends and I celebrated the occasion by spending the afternoon exploring this marvelous palace and acting like little kids with my camera. We did not go on a tour or anything like that. We mostly just wandered and read the signs posted in all the different rooms, halls, and chambers. But it was still fantastic and definitely worth visiting! We payed a little bit extra to get into the Harem, which is blocked off from most visitors. The Harem, as you probably know, has traditionally been highly orientalized by the Western perspective, and it was interesting to see where so many of our outdated notions on the mysterious and erotic Middle East came from. I fulfilled my tourist duties by taking plenty of pictures.




This last picture is the view from the palace. Note the seawalls, which I believe were built in the 7th century to protect Constaninople from an Arabic invasion. The far shore is Asia!