Inspiration. Motivation. Discipline.

Here is my wish for your day and your life, written beautifully by the author of todaywasmeaningful.wordpress.com.

`and while you are here, on this earth, i hope you make someone smile.  i hope you forgive someone when it’s the hardest thing to do, and i hope you say you are sorry when you’re wrong.  and with the time you are given, i hope you find the things that you love and spend it with people that help you to become a better person.  i hope you say ‘i love you’ every chance you get, and i hope you wear that expensive perfume you’ve been saving up.  and in the amount of hours.minutes.seconds. you have, i hope you take risks, go on adventures, and eat good food. i hope you laugh until you cry and dance even if you don’t know how to.  i hope you help when you can and that you replace quick judgments with attempts to understand. and with your time, i hope you find yourself trying new things and growing in whatever way that you can. i hope you change someone’s life and find the one thing you are really good at.´

I pray that each of your days is filled with knowing how much God loves you. That you will fully understand His Truth, His Strength, and His plan for your life. I hope you are able to spend each day sharing the joy that fills you with those around you, and that you will be a shining light to all the world. I wish for you a life that is filled with meaningful days, and that you will seize every opportunity, and not just that, but that you will create opportunities to help others and bless their lives. That your life won´t just be about you. That it will be about all of God´s creation, all of His children, all to His glory. 



This next month is a month of Thanksgiving. Since I am in a country that does not put such seasonal significance on helping others, giving thanks, and sharing what we have been blessed with, I am reminded that this must not just be an activity that we focus on for 2 months out of the year. People need to be shown God´s love 365 days of the year. As you go about your day, keep your eyes open for ways to help everyone; they are each someone that God created with love and purpose. Stop and give your boxed lunch to the homeless guy on the street. Smile at the janitor; ask him how he is doing...be genuinely interested in his life. Hold the door open for the person behind you. Say good morning (or gunaydın) to your neighbors. Strive to be a friend who is always opening your home to others. Share what you have with others. I don´t just say this to motivate you; I say this to myself as well. Many days I fail to take opportunities to make that day meaningful for someone else. I don´t want a single day to go by that I do not take full advantage to love everyone around me. 

In this day and age, we have so many open ways to help people around the world, people we will probably never meet but who can greatly benefit from us sharing our blessings. Keep your eyes open for these opportunities; you may forever change someone´s life forever. You may just be the action that is needed to show them that someone out there cares for them. 

www.gfa.org
www.samaritanspurse.org
www.asourown.org
Scarf project (not too late to sign up!) - http://stayathomedaughter.com/ktil/
libertyinnorthkorea.org

Have a great weekend and make today meaningful!

So much fun!

The past two weeks have gone by in a whirl and I haven't kept up with blogging (although new pictures go up on Instagram each day, so follow @faithful_nomad to keep up with me on a daily basis). Life is a daily adventure here. Today is the last day of class before our 'fall' break, which is called Bayram ('holiday) in Turkey. We have a week off, and many Turks travel to go visit their families this week and take part in religious traditions, such as slaughtering animals and giving the meat to the poor. My week will consist of relaxing and going to the beach, but I will blog about that after the fact :)

Two weeks ago, my flatmate, Joost, obtained this amazing book called Istanbul Eats: A Guide to the Culinary Backstreets. It's a really great guidebook to a lot of amazing restaurants in Istanbul. The book divides Istanbul into several sections, and we decided to hit 3 of the restaurants closest to Rumelihisarustu (where we live) and try out what the book recommended. Along with another exchange student from the USA, Aileen, we walked about 5km to an area along the Bosphorus Strait and decided to eat our hearts out (on a college budget, of course). The first restaurant we went to was Bodrum Manti & Cafe (which was my favorite of the 3 places). We ordered a 1/2 serving of manti (stuffed pasta, boiled) and a 1/2 serving of kofte (fried meatball). After our meal, each of us were promptly brought our own dessert for free, which was one of the best desserts I have had in Istanbul! It was two thin crispy waffles, a scoop of vanilla icecream in the middle, and some sort of berry sauce (*yum!*). We ooohed and aaahed as we ate our desssert and couldn't believe how hospitable the staff was (especially when the desserts alone cost more than what we ordered and paid for). I'm sure the server noticed us using the Istanbul Eats book, and also noticed that we were on a tight budget. Turkish hospitality is the best! We trooped on to two more places and tried several more appetizers, including huge kalamari, fish balls (which are like grown-up fish sticks in a ball form), and lahmacun (pronounced 'lahmajun'). At each place, we asked the chef to sign the page of the book that was about their restaurant. They were more than happy to give us their autographs, and the book has continued to fill up. Hopefully by January we will have tried each place in it. 

Last weekend, I traveled once again to Ankara, this time not to crash a wedding, but actually go to one that I was invited to! My friend, Pelin, has a friend who was getting married, and they invited me to take part and see what a Turkish wedding is like. The happy couple is so kind, and I had an amazing time. This wedding was fairly modern, and very similar to the many weddings I have worked at in the US. There were, however, many small differences that I noticed that were very interesting:

Me and my bestie at the wedding. Such a beautiful celebration, beautiful people, and so much love!

1) The bride and groom are able to see each other before the ceremony. There is no ban on the groom seeing the bride in full bridal dress, and they were hanging out together in a dressing room before they came out for the ceremony (we even got to hang out with them and joke as they got over their pre-wedding nerves). 

2) There was no 'vow' or 'exchanging rings' part in the ceremony. The couple simply came in, sat down at a table, the officiator read something like a contract, and the bride and groom said 'evet' (yes) in turn. They signed the contract, and then took pictures. That was it! For the rings, they wear their engagement rings (both of them) on their right hands until the wedding, and then switch to their left hands after the ceremony. 

3) No wedding registry or cards! Everyone brings gold items (either small coins you can purchase, or gold bracelets and necklaces) and money as gifts. As the bride and groom go around the room after the ceremony, they wear large sashes and the bride carries a small bag. They greet each person, get congratulations, and then that person gives them the gift. Family members usually give larger gold items, like gold bangles that they place on the bride. The money is pinned to the groom's sash, and gold coins can be pinned on the bride's sash or placed in her bag. By the time the couple has made it around the room, they are covered in wealth that can be used for whatever they need as a new couple.

In between all these fun events and trips around Istanbul, I've been hard at work taking classes at Bogaziçi University. Because I want to graduate this spring, I am taking 3 senior-level chemistry courses and 1 course in microeconomics. They have all been really great, and I am making friends with the Turkish students, which is a real blessing. I have been able to Skype home a few times, and even got to Skype with my grandparents (hi, Boomama and Boopapa!). It's really great to get to see everyone's smiling faces and stay in touch. 

Make sure you follow my blog by putting your email address in the right-hand side box, and also follow me on Instagram (@faithful_nomad and @k_rover_explores_the_world). Would love to hear from you! Hadi gorusuruz (talk to you soon)!

You know you live in Turkey if...

#1 - You hear the Islamic call to prayer 5 times a day.

#2 - You forget that there are lines on the road because nobody actually uses them. 
#3 - All meet & greets include touching cheeks (at least once on each side) with your friends and new acquaintances. And you ALWAYS say goodbye to everyone in the group before leaving. No sneaking out of the party here!

#4 - You have bread and çay with every meal. Yes. E-v-e-r-y meal. 

#5 - You know that real men have tea parties. Well, they wouldn't call them tea parties, but they are. They sit outside of cáfes with çay and a cigarette in hand and talk for long periods of time. Tea parties.

#6 - You don't think twice when you see 20 cats and dogs on your way to school or work. It is a well-known fact that they are legitimate neighbors, deserving of your extra food and loving kindness. 

#7 -  You spend half of your life on some mode of public transportation.

#8 - One of the most important decisions you make is what futbol team you support. Go Fenerbahçe!

#9 - A simit cart is never more than a few steps away. 

#10 - you are a girl and you don't go anywhere without a scarf. I mean, they are the best fashion accessory ever! And they are great for if the weather turns cold all of a sudden :)

#11 - You can't buy granola bars at the grocery store...but there is a whole aisle dedicated just to cookies.

#12 - You eat olives with your breakfast. And tomatoes. And cucumbers.

#13 - You don't normally shop at huge stores or supermarkets. Everything you need can be found at one of the tiny Mom&Pop places on your street. I think this is directly related to the fact that most people don't go driving to run errands, and so there are more options for buying within walking distance of everyone's houses and apartments.

#14 - Coffee = Nescafe or Turkish coffee. Which means that it is either 'fake' (as I like to call the instant stuff), or as thick as coffee mud (but utterly delicious). Unless you go to Starbuck's or Dunkin Donuts, where you will pay much more money for your American-style cup of joe.

#15 - You know that drinking water is not ever free. You pay for each bottle of water you order at a restaurant, and you drink bottled water at home as well. The tap just doesn't make the cut here.

#16 - You read "c"s as "j" sounds. Jacket = ceket, jazz = caz, etc.

#17 - You have a huge appreciation for being near large bodies of water, and you love being near the seaside.

#18 - If it's nice weather, you would never imagine eating inside! Actually, even if it is bad weather, you will still sit outside under an awning or inside a temporary shelter with blankets and a heat lamp provided by the restaurant.

#19 - Images of cigarettes and alcohol use on TV are fuzzed out.

#20 - You have a habit of haggling for everything you buy.*

#21 - Entering a mall means going through a security checkpoint.

#22 - When you talk about breakfast, you get a dreamy far-away look in your eyes.**

#23 - You call cake "pasta."

#24 - There is intermission at the movie cinema...and they always pick the MOST intense part of the movie to cut at. You're all like, "Say whaaaat?" 

#25 - If you don't see mountains on your horizon, you're probably not in Turkey anymore.

#26 - All of your friends' names mean something, like a certain type of flower or wheat, heart, sky, angel, light...

#27 - You add "yaaaaa..." to the end of most of your sentences. And you know you do it just to sound cool. 

#28 - You say "yes" by winking both of your eyes at the same time, and "no" by jutting out your chin and "tsk"ing your tongue.

#29 - You NEVER wear your shoes inside a house...and they even give you plastic covers for your shoes once you enter the gym!

#30 - You have mad jaywalking skills, because it's not jaywalking here...it's called crossing the street. 

#31 - when a bus pulls up, you don't wait your turn in line. Instead, you push and shove your way to the front (but do give way to older people or those with children). Without this maneuver, you would never actually make it onto the bus. Like ever.

#32 - You give up your seats on buses and public transportation to those who are older/elderly, pregnant, or have children with them.

#33 - The public transportation advertisements involve reminding you to watch out for having too much body odor, not using other people's transport cards in order to get the discounts, and not falling over and sleeping on your neighbors. 

*Courtesy of Martin, a fellow exchange student in Istanbul

**Courtesy of Tara, a fellow exchange student in Istanbul

Turkish Breakfast, Hamamonu, and more... Ankara Part Three!

Ok, here's the last installment from my first trip to Ankara, the capital of Turkey. My Sunday started off at around 11am with the best breakfast ever...

A complete Turkish breakfast. Gozleme, french fries, olives, cucumbers, tomatoes, cheese, fried eggs, bread, çay...the list goes on and on. I could get used to this. Just so you know, though, this was a special brunch-like spread at a really nice restaurant...Turkish people don't eat breakfast like this every day. They usually have a few of these things, not all of them. We decided to go all the way :)

Me enjoying this delicious meal outside under the trees on a crisp Sunday morning.

And my bestie!

We went to old-town Ankara, called Hamanonu. There was the most cute bazaar where all the ladies had hand-made a ton of jewelry. This lady was a real seller...we both got a bracelet from her, and she made us make a wish and then she put the bracelet on us. She was so sweet :)

Pelin and me at the bazaar.

The buildings and roads in this area are just gorgeous.

Nobody was at home... :)

Going to definitely make some of these for my room when I get home. They were so beautiful. And you know how much I love color!

After Hamamonu, we went to the mall and found an H&M (I know it sounds touristy, but it is really nice to go to a store where you know what you will find). Got dinner at the mall and headed back to Pelin's place. Not pictured is our awesome game of Okey that we played that night - you play with tiles just like Rummicub but it is a little different and the strategy is fun. I didn't win a game against the experts, but I will conquer next time. Stayed that night and then headed back to Istanbul early Monday morning. Really enjoyed Ankara and visiting Pelin's family! Can't wait to go back :)

Stay tuned...last night we went on Day 1 of Joost's "Istanbul Eats" food adventure and I will be blogging it up in the next few days. In the meantime, you should definitely see if there are any Turkish restaurants or cafes in your area (they are sometimes camouflaged as 'Mediterranean' places). Make sure you try kebap, durum, çorba (soup), mezzes (appetizers), and kofte! Comment and let me know what you think :)

Snail Mail Rocks!

I love getting and sending letters so much. It is just so special to write a letter to somebody on a beautiful card or on cute stationary, and then to receive letters and get to keep them for forever and read them again and again :) I've been sending snail mail since I was a little girl. I would write letters and color pictures for my Aunt Ev, who was in her 90s and lived in Florida. When I went and visited her, she would have my letters all up on her fridge or propped up in her living room...it made me feel like I really was brightening her day when she opened an envelope from me.

My favorite memories of receiving mail are from March of every year. I would always figure that two weeks before my birthday was right about the time that I should start receiving birthday cards. In our house, if your birthday is coming up, you have first rights for checking the mailbox. I would listen so carefully for the *stop, go, stop* sound of the mail truck (actually, I listened for it every day of the year...of course, not on Sundays, silly). Then, I would dash out to the mailbox to see if I'd gotten anything. Those birthday cards rocked! (and if you are taking notes, I still really love getting birthday cards, so send me one come March!). Even though my birthday and Christmas were the most ripe times for getting good mail, I always enjoyed getting notes from people throughout the year. There is just something so happy and cheerful about getting a note from someone saying that they are thinking of you. It really does make any day a little brighter.

My friend, Megan, shared this Buzzfeed on Facebook today, and I thought it was really cute (I'm not a Harry Potter fan, but everything else was pretty right on) - http://www.buzzfeed.com/tabathaleggett/reasons-everyone-should-start-writing-letters-again

I like sending mail so much that once-upon-a-time I made a ton of really amazing envelopes (for brightening up plain stationary...or the cards that I always can't find an envelope for) out of magazine and catalog pages.

All you have to do is take a normal envelope of the size you want, carefully unfold it, trace it onto the back of a magazine page, cut out the envelope from the magazine page, and carefully glue it together as a new envelope. Much better than just throwing away those already-read but beautifully illustrated magazines, right?

I also love how they mention sealing with wax on the Buzzfeed I linked to above. One of my great friends, Paula, gave me wax and a wax seal for my last birthday, and I have enjoyed sealing letters with my special seal ever so much :)

Anyway, my main form of brightening the world right now with snail mail is sending postcards from Turkey! So, if you want to receive a postcard from me (it may take a few months...actually, I might see you before you even get my postcard LOL), then comment below with your address. The comments actually get moderated through me before they get published, so I will write down your address and then not publish the comment... and no worries about the whole world starting to send you mail :)

And, hopefully after reading this post, you will go send some snail mail to someone else. Maybe be creative...send a message in a bottle, a matchbox, or think of something new. Just go brighten someone's day...you won't regret it :)

Comment below if you are sending out some snail mail today!

And, don't forget to follow me on Instagram because I'm always posting some sweet pictures of Istanbul @faithful_nomad and @k_rover_explores_the_world.

Exploring, Shopping, and More Partying! Ankara Part Two

Party crashing wasn't the only thing I did in Ankara this past weekend. Pelin, my bff, and her brother were amazing tour guides! Here's what we did (because I know you like pictures)...

This is the mausoleum above where Ataturk is buried. Ataturk was the founder of the Turkish Republic.

The guards at the mausoleum. They have these cool boxes they can stand in if the weather gets bad! I don't think I could stand still for that long...

Me, Pelin, and Polat inside the mausoleum. We also went through the museum on Ataturk and the War of Independence, but we couldn't take any pictures in there.

Such a beautiful place! This is the walkway up to the mausoleum. (By the way, who likes my awesome Istanbul shirt from Mavi? Repping my lovely city!)

Watching the changing of the guard. Pretty cool!

More watching of the guard. 

Enjoying çay and famous Ankara simit in Kizilay during our first mad shopping trip of the weekend :)

Pelin and I at a really cool bar with live music...everyone was singing along with the Turkish songs and the atmosphere was amazing!

We are waiting patiently for our mezzes to arrive...

Live classical Turkish music at the restaurant...we pretty much just walked around and went wherever we heard some good sounds :) Worked for us!

Tamam (Turkish for "ok"), so that concludes my Saturday in Ankara. Sunday was another adventure too, so part 3 of Ankara will be coming soon!

Party Crashers! Ankara Part 1

This weekend I took a break from Europe and decided to head over to Asia...the Asian side of Turkey, that is. My best friend is from Ankara, and she was heading home for the weekend so I rode a bus (all by myself!) to Ankara to meet her. It was so great to finally meet her family and get to see where she lives. I also officially added a 'first' to my list of Turkey adventures...crashing a party!

It's a running joke now that my friends use me, the American, to do cool things. It usually goes like this (or so they've told me...my Turkish is still pretty poor)..."Hi, our friend here is American and she is really interested in Turkish culture. Could we have a look around?" Of course, with the way Turkish hospitality is, everyone always says yes. And that is how you crash an engagement party, folks!

Here's the photo evidence...

The girl in green is the future bride. She was totally nice about us crashing her party.

It was totally fun and amazing, and I couldn't have thought of a crazier adventure in my wildest dreams. There is much more that we did during our weekend in Ankara, but I will save some for later. Someone tell me I'm not the only person to crash a party, right?! Comment below :)