My last day in New York City. What to do? Eat, of course! I have a later flight, so I have plenty of time to visit two places I've wanted to go since I arrived. First off, a bakery in the Red Hook area of Brooklyn called 'Baked.' I saw the owners on Martha Stewart and have wanted to go ever since. They have such an interesting menu, great website, and now it is finally time to see the space! I took the subway as far as I could, but it doesn't go into Red Hook, a former industrial neighborhood by the river that is an up and coming arts district. I walked from the subway so I could see more of the neighborhood, and I liked it. Baked is close to the water and very ... read more

Not really an early start today. I had booked a Food on Foot Tour that started at 11:15AM from Penn Station. I went a bit early so I could walk around that area. There is a huge post office across the street (see previous entry for photo) and lots of shopping and restaurants and a Borders that is going out of business, as they all are, but I didn't buy anything because I didn't want to carry it. My tour met inside Penn Station and there was one other 'single' so we were paired together and everyone was told to share, otherwise we wouldn't have room to taste everything. Food on Foot was started by Cory who lost his job three years ago. He is the CEO, the tour guide, the scheduler, the secretary, the janitor, ... read more

Well, finally!!!! I made it to New York City after five years of finally having money to travel. When I booked my flight to come home to Kentucky, I had a 22 hour layover in NYC so I extended it to four days knowing that 22 hours is a just a teaser and four days is at least a small bite. And a bit it was! I have a new favorite city in the world and it is fondly referred to as The Big Apple. I arrived on a Friday afternoon and took a taxi to my home for four days in Brooklyn. When I was looking for accommodation, I discovered a website which will forever change the way I travel. It is called www.airbnb.com and this is where people all over the world list their ... read more

After visiting Sumela Monastery, we drove back to Trabzon and it was early afternoon so we decided to use the car to see Aya Sophia before returning it. On the map, it looked like Aya Sophia was further away than it really was. It is actually in the city, just 3km from the city center. It sits on a hill overlooking the sea and is pretty easy to spot. We found free parking close by, totally by accident, and walked up the hill. We had to walk around to the back to get in (3TL). Aya Sophia was built between 1238-1263 and its original name, Hagia Sophia, means Church of Divine Wisdom. This church-turned-mosque is well-preserved and has beautiful frescoes and a mosaic on the floor that was once stunning, but has clearly had pieces removed. ... read more

My new friend Megan and I decided to visit a small part of the Black Sea area of Turkey this summer, and I am really glad I did. I am leaving Turkey in two weeks and after living here for a year, I realized I hadn't done any traveling within Turkey, and that is a shame. So we took an evening flight to Trabzon, rented an economical Fiat for three days, and drove the 70km or so to Rize. We stayed in an öğretmen evi, or teacher house. These apartment-like hotels are all over Turkey and are for teachers to stay in when they travel, and some even live there while teaching. Megan had a teacher card, so I could stay as her guest. These apartments are inexpensive and convenient, and a great idea!!! When we ... read more