We couldn’t resist feeling a little mischievous and painting some graffiti to pay homage to our adve

Over the past three weeks, I have ventured into the first and second countries I have ever been where I literally could not speak one word of the language — and I've had more fun than I ever thought I would!
First, we were scheduled to go to Turkey for our Educational Field Trip ("EFT") the week after a suicide bomber attacked the U.S. Embassy in Ankara, the capital city of Turkey. The night before our plane was scheduled to depart, we sat in our dining room waiting for our Program Director to descend the stairs and break the news to us about whether we would get to go or not the anticipation almost killed us!
When we got to Turkey, we immediately crashed in a hotel in the Asian section of Turkey, not far from the ancient ruins of Ephesus. (Sound familiar?) Needless to say, we couldn't resist reading a little bit of Ephesians while we were there. We saw St. John's Basilica, and as we reached the top of the ruins, the Muslim call to prayer started resounding through the air around us. It was the first time we had heard it and it was breathtaking. For those of you who don't know what a call to prayer sounds like, it is something of a cross between a hymn and a chant and it's projected over a loudspeaker so that the whole town can hear.
From Ephesus, we visited a traditional carpet company where they make carpets by hand. They spread miles and miles of carpets out before us, hoping to sell one. I wish I could say we didn't disappoint them, but handmade carpets are pretty pricey! Next, we were off to see some tile manufacturers and their pottery. Turkey is especially famous for their blue tile. In the Blue Mosque, which we had the pleasure of visiting in Istanbul the next day, these tiles blend with frescoes painted in the same design to cover the entirety of the inside in stunning swirls of blue.
After the Blue Mosque we visited the Hagia Sofia — a Christian church turned mosque turned museum. The light hit the building perfectly cheap air line ticket just as we exited the Blue Mosque to cross the street and we were all a little overwhelmed. Then we stopped to have some kebab and move on to the Topkapi Palace cheap air line ticket before we hit the highlight of our journey — The Grand Bazaar.
Did I forget to mention that this entire time we were claiming to be Canadian and going by the travel company's name (Transbalkan) while a bodyguard tagged along beside us? In the Grand Bazaar, cheap air line ticket we may have forgotten our cover story a couple of times. Not that the vendors cared — they wanted to sell us a scarf no matter where we were from! This eventful day ended at the Turkish bath which I truly cannot express in words. It's an experience you have to have for yourself.
I realize I'm going on longer that I really should, so I'll just say that from the Spice Bazaar to the (rainy) cruise on the Bosphorus Canal to see Whirling Dervishes and finally back to the Grand Bazaar — we laughed and learned for the entire week.
Then we had a week of classes (boring) before I was off to Prague in the Czech Republic! We started our trip looking for a building we had learned about in art history before moving on to explore the castle. About halfway through our journey through the castle rooms, it started snowing! Pretty perfect, if you ask me. We meandered cheap air line ticket through colorful beams of light streaming down through the prettiest stained glass, danced in the snow and ended up grabbing Starbucks along the way. We ate crepes and goulash and some delicious cinnamon cheap air line ticket dessert called a trdlnick(?) and were just about convinced that Prague couldn't get any better when we found the Lennon wall, and some other friendly cheap air line ticket tourists handed us a jar of purple paint.
We couldn't resist cheap air line ticket feeling a little mischievous and painting some graffiti to pay homage to our adventures as Transbalkan the week before. Then we stopped by old town to see the astronomical clock and soaked in some Czech life as a break. That night, we ventured into an ice bar — a room that is totally coated in ice and kept chilly enough to keep everything — the walls, cheap air line ticket the seats, the tables, even the blocks of ice that hold drinks — frozen solid.
These two trips were to cities that seem worlds away from where I live now, but really, that's what made me love them the most. When you don't have any expectations, you tend to be pleasantly surprised more often than not. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to Dublin for my spring break! I'll catch you up on it next time.