Istanbul and Cappadocia

The past week in Istanbul has been one of the most interesting of the whole trip. We've seen a fifth century church with beautiful mosaics, two Ottoman palaces, two mosques, and the Hagia Sophia. The Hagia Sophia was especially impressive because both its Christian and Muslim histories are very visible, and it's absolutely gorgeous inside and out. Our guide for the duration of our time here in Turkey is an Istanbul local who is able to share lots of insights into Turkey's secularist Islamic culture. On Sunday we got another very interesting perspective when we went to a Christian church service and a discussion afterward with some of the members of the congregation. Turkey is 97 percent Muslim, so it was very interesting to hear what it's like to be part of an extremely tiny religious minority.

The mosaic in the Hagia Sophia

Inside the Blue Mosque in Istanbul

The Bosphorus Fortress in Istanbul

Today we flew to Cappadocia. The terrain here is very different from Istanbul. It's desert-like and much colder. There are also pointy rock formations and cliffs everywhere. This afternoon we saw a pottery workshop where many of the techniques used have stayed more or less the same for the past 4,000 years, since the time of the Hittites. Then we saw a series of ancient churches, houses, and monasteries located inside the pointy rock formations that are everywhere. Originally the churches used the caves to hide from the Roman soldiers when Christianity was illegal in the Roman Empire. Definitely one of the most interesting sites of the trip!

Cappadocian rock formations

A second century church carved into a rock formation

We'll be here in Cappadocia for two nights and then on to Kusadasi for another five days. Finally we're headed back to London for one night before flying home. I can't believe I'll be in California in one week!

A Whirlwind Tour of the Ancient World: Rome, Athens, and Istanbul

After two weeks in Florence, we headed to Rome for five days. Seeing the Coliseum, various ruins, the Trevi Fountain, the Spanish Steps, and the Vatican were real highlights. We also attended mass at St. Peter's Basilica, and saw the Pope because it was a holiday!

The Pantheon

The Trevi Fountain

The Coliseum

St. Peter's Basilica

We got a whirlwind tour of Athens during our six hour layover. It was enough time to get a great tour of the Acropolis.

In front of the Parthenon

Yesterday we arrived in Istanbul. Today after class we took a tour of some of the major city sites, most notably the Hagia Sophia. It is a beautiful city, but definitely very different from the European cities we've seen so far. I'm looking forward to understanding Turkey's culture and sites better in the next two weeks.

The Hagia Sophia in Istanbul

The Last of London

The past week in London has been wonderful. Whether it was visiting museums and landmarks with the group or taking in the city parks on my own, I have thoroughly enjoyed all that London has to offer. On Wednesday we took a little time off from London and went on a day trip Canterbury to see the cathedral. It was especially interesting in light of our studies of pilgrimage and migration.

Canterbury Cathedral

This weekend I went with a group of friends to the Thames festival, which featured a huge market, music, dancing, and an emphasis on multiculturalism. We had also noticed a number of odd sculptures in one area of the waterfront, and once it got dark, we discovered that each sculpture involved fire in some way. The entire festival was lit with these fire sculptures, as well as a number of fire pits where people were welcome to congregate and stay warm. Combined with lots of live music, the entire effect created an awesome atmosphere. The festival was one of the best finds of our time in London.

Nighttime at the Thames Festival

Tomorrow is our last day here. I'll certainly miss London, but I'm also looking forward to Northern Ireland. We'll be staying in the small, semi-rural town of Rostrever, in the same guest cottages where I stayed last summer while studying in Northern Ireland on Mayterm. Rostrever is a beautiful, slower-paced place where there will be lots of opportunity to catch up on school work, spend time getting to know the other members of the group better, and hopefully do some hiking. There won't be consistent internet access there, so my next update will probably be in a week or so from Bruges, Belgium.

Weekend Highlights

What a weekend! It was a busy couple of days, full of unplanned outings. On Saturday we went to the Borough Market, an open-air market selling all kinds of great food. Then we saw the Tower Bridge and St. Paul's Cathedral. Today a group of us went back to St. Paul's for a church service, which was beautiful. After church we went to the Notting Hill Carnival. The Notting Hill district of London has historically been a settling place for Caribbean immigrants, so the carnival there is a celebration of Anglo-Caribbean culture. There was a huge parade that had a lot of steel-drum bands and lots of dancing. The entire thing felt like a great big block party, and it was a fantastic way to spend the afternoon.

The Borough Market

The Tower Bridge

St. Paul's Cathedral

Notting Hill Carnival

Tomorrow it's on to Birmingham!