It's the most wonderful time of the year...

Hi all!

It's been a little while since our last post. We've been busy getting ready for Christmas and enjoying the Christkindlmarkets that have opened up all over the city. These are street markets that are open annually during the four weeks of Advent. They are generally located in the main squares of the city and the nearby pedestrian-only areas. The market is composed of various open-air stalls, which sell food, drink, and seasonal items. There is also sometimes various types of entertainment, including singing, dancing, etc. They are always decorated festively with lots of lights, trees, wreaths, and more. It really gets you in the holiday spirit. All of the many markets are just a little bit different from each other. There is the largest one in the main square of the city, Marienplatz. This is where most of the tourists are found. It's definitely the most crowded. There's also one inside the Residenz (the former palace) courtyard which is very quaint and cute. They have a few displays with moving figurines in various holiday scenes, a la Disney World (think more like outdated "It's a Small World" figures and not the newer rides haha). Another interesting market is the Medieval-themed market near Odeonsplatz. This market is basically the same as the others, except everything is made to resemble the Medieval times. The workers are all dressed in "traditional" medieval clothes, the drinks are served in chalices (ceramic chalices, not wooden haha), etc. It's pretty interesting. There is also a more modern market near Matt's office, where craft items are sold. The food is a little different at that one, as well. You can get flatbread and even pasta instead of just traditional Wurst. No matter which market you pick to go to, you really can't go wrong.

I like to browse the stalls to see the various handmade items that are for sale. They have so many different things, from ornaments and figurines, to pottery, to soap, and even hand-knitted scarves, hats, and gloves. We never buy much, but it is always fun to look. They also sell elaborate Advent wreaths, which always remind me of Christmastime at our house growing up, when we lit a new candle before Sunday dinner during the four weeks leading up to Christmas.

Most locals don't go to the markets to shop, however. They go to eat and drink, of course! This is also Matt's favorite part of the markets. An actual quote from Saturday: "Kris, what is my budget today to spend on food?" haha What is there to eat you ask? Well, bratwurst and schweinwurst are always sold at every German festival, of course. But there are many other yummy things, as well. Fries, baked potatoes with toppings, Goulash soup, and potato pancakes are some of the other options. Additionally, you can smell the "Gebrannte Mandeln" (the sweet, candied, toasted almonds), traditional Christmas cookies such as "Lebkuchen" and "Magenbrot" (both forms of soft gingerbread, often coated in chocolate!), fruits dipped in chocolate, strudel, and "Kaiserschmarrn" (light, caramelized pancake made from a sweet batter and usually topped with fruit). This year, we tried the "Dampfnudel," which is a sort of sweet roll served with a Vanilla-Bourbon sauce. It was delicious, but very rich! The highlight for most Bavarians, however, is the "Glühwein," hot, spiced wine. There are several variations, including ones with an additional shot of rum. There are also "tropical" flavors and different fruit flavors. Really, it's just cheap, bad wine with spices added and heated up. But the locals go crazy for it. Many of the markets don't even serve beer! Can you believe it? In Bavaria, a place where you can't get beer! Unbelievable haha. We also saw some groups of locals that bring their own personalized Glühwein mugs. Talk about dedication. As always in Germany, the drinks are served in real (aka not plastic) mugs. You pay a deposit up front and then you get it back when you return the glass. They are usually Christmas and holiday-themed mugs which are very cute. It's definitely a fun tradition.

Even though it was about 25 degrees F on Saturday, we had a really nice time visiting some of the markets throughout the city. We'll most likely visit a few more with friends over the next two weeks.

Here are a few photos from our day:

Hopefully, next year, some people will come over to visit us during this beautiful and unique time of the year in München!! Let us know if you'd like to make your reservations haha ;)

Cheers,
Kristin and Matt

Weiβwurst Frühstück!

So, last Sunday we hosted a traditional Bavarian breakfast at our apartment for about 10 of our friends. This tradition is known as a "Weiβwurst Frühstück," as weiβwurst is the name of the traditional type of sausage eaten ("white sausage") and "frühstück" is the German word for breakfast. The meal is supposed to be eaten before noon, according to an old Bavarian saying that says that the weiβwurst should not hear the church bells chiming at midday.

The "weiβwurst" sausage is made from very finely minced veal and pork. It's very mild, not like spicy Italian sausage. To cook the sausage, you must first boil water. Then, you remove it from the heat and put the sausages into the hot water for about 15 minutes. You don't want the water to be actually boiling when the sausages are in it, as they will split and then, according to the Bavarians, the sausages are ruined. When you eat the sausage, you must remove the casing. The traditional method is to actually suck the meat out of the casing, but this traditional method is rarely used anymore (thank goodness). Instead, you just make a small cut and peel the casing off. The sausage is really tasty.

The other essential components of the traditional Weiβwurst Frühstück are pretzels ("Brezen"), sweet mustard to go with the pretzels, Obatzda for the pretzels, and of course, Weiβbier. Obatzda is a Bavarian cheese delicacy that is a combination of two types of soft cheeses, butter, and various herbs. It's very tasty. Weiβbier is a Bavarian wheat beer. Since it is brewed with a large proportion of wheat, it is a very heavy beer. It is always served in a special, 500 mL, vase-shaped glass. It's not my favorite type of beer here in Munich, but it isn't too bad. It really goes great with the rest of the breakfast, as well.

Here are a few photos from the breakfast. We didn't take too many, but you get the idea from these. We had a really great time and we're looking forward to sharing this traditional meal with anyone who comes to visit us next year!

So it turns out a couple of Americans can successfully pull off this Bavarian tradition! Experiences like these are our favorites -- it's so cool to do things that are long-standing traditions of people from other countries. I think it will be the memories of these experiences that stay with us for years to come.

We hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We missed seeing everyone, but we will be back in the States soon for Christmas! Speaking of Christmas, the infamous Munich Christmas markets will be opening next week, so look forward to a post with some photos within the next week or so. Until then...

Cheers!
Matt and Kristin




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Prague!

Hi everyone,

Again, sorry for the delay in between posts. Since Mom Sterdis was here last week, we were very busy and spent the remainder of this week catching up on stuff. We had a great time with her. We showed her around Munich a little, and we also spent the weekend in Prague, in the Czech Republic.

Prague was awesome. It's an amazingly beautiful city with a lot of interesting history. It is the capital of the Czech Republic, and the largest city with a population of about 2 million. The culture is pretty unique since the country was influenced by so many other cultures throughout the years. We arrived on Friday afternoon and spent most of the day just walking around and exploring the city on our own.

We finished up the day with an amazing dinner at a nice restaurant in the city. Thanks to the very favorable exchange rate (1 U.S. Dollar = about 20 Czech koruna), we were able to have an awesome dinner at a really great price. On Saturday, we spent most of the day on a walking tour so that we could learn more about the history of the city and the country of Czech Republic. The Czech Republic has only existed since 1993. Before then, it was a part of the country of Czechoslovakia. We learned about Prague's role in WWII (there was a large Jewish community in the city), as well as what it was like under Communist rule. I can't imagine living under the conditions that they had. One interesting story: Towards the end of the Communist rule, there were many protests by the Czech citizens. One young student even lit himself on fire to prove his point. It's pretty crazy when you think about how recent this all was. On the tour, we also learned about Prague's most famous landmark - the Astronomical Clock. This large clock, installed in 1410, has several components. Just by looking at it, you can tell the local time, the time of day (day or night), the date, and the lunar phase. There are also some figurines that move on every hour, but we didn't hang around to actually watch it in person. Apparently, it is not very exciting and is often referred to as one of the most disappointing sights in Europe. Our tour guide however, was quick to remind us that most of the disappointment results from tourists' modern expectations. Thus, it is important to remember that this clock dates back to the 15th century. So really, it is pretty cool.

The entire tour was very interesting and we enjoyed it, despite the chilly weather. Afterwards, we enjoyed a lovely cheese plate and some Czech beers at a cozy pub. Of course, Matt enjoyed sampling the Czech beer. We found two kinds that he approved of haha. Later, we even had some time to do a little shopping. We had another great dinner at a French-ish restaurant in the city. Despite Matt's doubts (the restaurant is closing within a month and thus, had a very limited wine list), we had another fantastic dinner. The Czech cuisine (similar to German cuisine) seems to have an emphasis on meat dishes, especially pork, duck, and even rabbit. Both restaurants that we dined at served delicious variations of these. On Sunday, we took a bus back to Munich.

Here are some more Prague photos:

We had hoped for better weather and more time to show Mom Sterdis how beautiful Munich truly is, but alas, we will have to wait until her next visit in the Spring or Summer to do so. Our first time hosting a visitor from overseas was a great success (so we think haha), and we are looking forward to having more visitors in the Spring and Summer!

On Sunday, we are hosting a traditional Bavarian breakfast known as a "Weisswurst Fruehstueck." We'll take some photos and post more about that next week.

Until then... Cheers!

Regensburg

Sorry for the delay in posting, yet again. As usual, we have been quite busy and my blogging "duties" just got away from me.

Anyway... Although Halloween is not a very popular holiday here in Germany (read: it is celebrated by next to no one), there are a handful of "parties" held at bars throughout the city. We accompanied two of our friends (they're married, she's American)to an Irish pub (aptly named "Kennedy's") for the evening's festivities. It seems that the majority of Germans (or English and American ex-pats) who choose to celebrate Halloween, prefer to dress up in scary, ghoulish costumes, as opposed to many of the comedic ones that you find in the U.S. The few people that decided to participate and come in costume were all covered in paint or make-up to resemble gashes, bruises, blood, guts, and the like. We did not choose to dress up (shocker, I know). After years of grudgingly dressing up simply to appease friends at annual Halloween parties, we were both ELATED to be relieved of this duty. It was so nice to not have to celebrate our least favorite holiday, for once. But let's not pretend we weren't disappointed in the lack of free candy. Overall, we had a good time at the bar. To be honest, other than a handful of people dressed up as zombies, it really wasn't much of a Halloween party. However, it was karaoke night, which is always a good time. Especially when Germans pick the most random English songs to sing. We also discovered that our friend Katie is an awesome singer. So we will be going to karaoke with them much more often...

We also had November 1st off for All Saints Day. Bavaria (southern Germany) has a strong Catholic influence, so everything is closed on just about every Catholic holy day. Since we were out late the night before, we decided to stay and relax in our cozy apartment.

On Saturday, we traveled by train to Regensburg, Germany. It's also located in Bavaria, right on the Danube River. The large, medieval city center is a UNESCO World Heritage Site (read: supposed to be really beautiful, historic, etc.). Regensburg is "special" in that, unlike many of the other major German cities, it suffered little damage during WWII. As a result, many of the buildings are very old, as opposed to Munich where many of the buildings were rebuilt following the war. Though the day was a bit chilly, we had a nice time wandering around, window shopping, and enjoying a traditional Bavarian meal with Regensburg beer. Here are a few pics.

I'm sure you are all surprised to see photos with us drinking beer. But let's be serious, is there anything better than sausage, sauerkraut, and beer on a chilly day in Autumn? (der Herbst for all of you aspiring-German speakers out there)

Tonight, we will be waking up at 3 AM to watch election coverage. That's dedication, right there (or insanity, take your pick).

We're anxiously awaiting the arrival of Mom Sterdis on Thursday morning!! She will be our first visitor. We are so excited to show her all that Munich has to offer. We're also taking her to Prague this weekend, so we will post some photos from the trip next week.

Until then... Cheers!

Just a couple of updates...

Hi all!

Not much to post about this week. We have been keeping busy. Kristin hosted a girls' night last Monday night, while Matt joined some of his guy friends for a few drinks at a cafe. Later in the week, we watched a re-playing of the Presidential debate on YouTube. Thanks to modern technology, we can connect our laptop to the TV and watch the debate on the TV screen. We had a few of our German friends over to watch with us. Many of the Germans that we are friends with know more about American politics than many Americans! (Note: This is a bit of a skewed population sample though, as all of our friends are highly educated and very interested in world news in general) Anyway, it is always interesting to hear what the Germans think about American politics. In summary, I think they get a kick out of how theatrical and dramatic everything is. For example, you would never see campaign ads like what is shown in the States. Additionally, their campaigning process is not as long and drawn out. What's even more interesting is that most Germans (as well as most Europeans) find it difficult to believe that half of America is actually considering Mitt Romney for President. They just don't see why we wouldn't want any social programs to help those who need it. It's really interesting to hear some different perspectives. However, I'm not going to get into politics. We're well aware that Germany and America are two very different "animals." I just thought it would be interesting to share a bit of the discussions that we've had with some of our friends over here. After living here for a few months, we definitely get frustrated when we see uninformed American friends and acquaintances on Facebook post about how the “socialist” programs in Europe don't work. Every country is different and while Greece, Spain, and Italy are struggling (again, a different story), countries like Germany and Switzerland are doing quite well. We've already personally experienced a bit of Germany's healthcare, and along with discussions with friends, it really isn't what Americans imagine it to be. I wish I could tell all of my friends to refrain from opining on a topic unless they are truly informed or have actually experienced it firsthand.

Alas, I digress. The purpose of this post was not to discuss politics, but simply to update you all on our past week. Our respective German classes have been going well. Kristin is in her third week of classes. She goes to class every day, Monday through Friday, from 9 AM until 12:30 PM. She is really enjoying it and feels like she is learning a lot. Matt still meets with his private tutor a few times a week, and he is making great progress. It’s still quite difficult to interact with native German speakers, but we are becoming more familiar with the basics and can usually pick up some of the key words. So, we’re getting there but it will still take some time. The grammar rules are very different from English, and much more complex. We’ll get the hang of it though.

Matt’s job is going well. He is staying busy at work and learning a lot. While Kristin has not been actively looking for jobs (she wants to improve her German language skills first), she did find a German family who would like her to watch their nine-year-old daughter for a few hours a week. They basically just want a native English speaker to play with the little girl in English so that her language skills improve. Kristin met the family and they are very nice. They also live quite close to us, so it will be an easy commute. Her first day is this Wednesday. The family also mentioned that they have friends nearby who are also looking for an English speaker to watch their children. So maybe it will lead to a few more hours a week.

Last week, we also went to dinner with an American couple that Kristin met through her German course. It was nice to have dinner with some Americans and compare moving stories. They were very nice, but they are moving on to Nuremburg in about a month as the American guy has been put on an assignment there for Siemens. Maybe we will get to hang out with them one more time before they go.

Yesterday was our anniversary. We enjoyed celebrating it. It’s hard to believe one year has gone by already! Since we couldn’t have our wedding cake, Kristin made cupcakes. From scratch. (And not because she loves Matt that much, but because cake mix is no less than 6 Euro a box.) It was all worth it though to hear Matt’s, “These are bomb.” We also had champagne, of course. ;) Tonight we will watch the re-playing of the final Presidential debate. On Wednesday, we are planning to get dinner and drinks with one of our couple friends. The guy is from America and moved here a few years ago to be with his German girlfriend (now fiancée, they recently got engaged). So he speaks English (obviously) and she speaks nearly perfect English, as she spent several years in the States for school. We enjoy spending time with them because they have a lot in common with us and, it’s always great to spend time with native English speakers (nothing gets lost in translation, they always get your humor, etc.). On Thursday night, we’re going out to eat with a few other friends, including another married couple that we really enjoy hanging out with. He is German, she is American. They are both hilarious and again, speak great English. We’re going to a burger place in Munich, so we’re also excited to have some American food.
So, as you can see, we’re staying very busy. But we miss you all very much! Until next time…

Cheers,
Kristin and Matt

Grocery Shopping Adventures

Of all the adjustments we have had to make over the past few weeks, grocery shopping is definitely one of them. I’ve spent more hours in grocery stores than I care to mention. We have a decent sized market about two blocks from us (2 minutes on bike, 5 minutes on foot) where I can get most of our necessities – meat, milk, yogurt, produce, etc. However, I like to go to some of the larger stores at other spots in the city to get some items that are more difficult to find. There’s a department store chain called Karstadt that has a great market in the bottom floor of all locations. We have one that’s about a 3 minute bike ride from us. I can usually find everything we need there and it’s a nicer shopping atmosphere, if you ask me.

A couple of interesting differences:
1. The language. Obviously, everything is in German, so I sometimes have to pull out my iPhone and use our translator App to figure out what I’m buying. Usually, you can tell by the packaging, but sometimes there are additional words that need translated. Being lazy can be costly. For example, I tried to buy sour cream for tacos once and ended up buying a type that had herbs mixed in. Pretty tasty, but not on tacos haha. Grocery shopping is definitely a great way to pick up more German vocabulary.

2. The lack of variety and choices. For some items, there are tons of choices. They love this oat-ey, granol-ish cereal stuff that they call “Musli” and at every store, you can find at least 20 varieties with different mix-ins. Not exaggerating. There are also lots of yogurt brands, orange juices, and decent selections for a few other items. However, for most items, like milk, bread, peanut butter, eggs, etc., there are only one or two options.

3. The measurements. I almost fell over when I first saw the produce prices. But then I realized that they are per kilogram and not per pound (approximately 2.2 pounds in 1 kilogram). Sigh of relief.

4. The preferred types of meat. It’s sausage, pork, beef, turkey, and then chicken, in that order. There’s a huge wall of various types of sausage, yet only 5 packs of chicken breasts in the cooler (not 5 brands, just 5 packs). A huge switch from the USA. I will definitely be looking for more non-chicken recipes haha. Lunchmeat like turkey and ham are also sometimes difficult to come by. And forget bacon like we’re used to! However, again, at the largest stores, you can usually find a small package of “American Breakfast Bacon” if you search long and hard (Yes, that’s exactly what it is described as on the packaging).

5. The shopping cart system. Now, this isn’t true for all stores, but a lot of them have it and I think it’s worth mentioning. When you want to use a cart at the store, they are all linked together by keys on chains. In order to release the cart you want to use, you must insert a 1 Euro coin into the slot, which then releases the key. When you return it, it gives you your Euro back. I personally love this system because I hate hate hate it when I’m at Giant Eagle or Target and see lazy people leaving their carts in the middle of the parking lot instead of walking it 10 meters to the nearest cart return. Those Germans can be pretty clever.

6. The lack of pre-packaged, pre-mixed, pre-shredded, etc. etc. I’m sure glad I purchased a nice grater at Crate and Barrel before leaving the States, as it is nearly impossible to find cheese that is already shredded. I have seen shredded “Pasta Käse” (pasta cheese, a mixture of Mozzarella and who knows what else), but again, only one brand and only at the largest stores.

7. The lack of favorite “staple” American recipe ingredients… Such as chicken broth, any “cream of…” soups, cheddar cheese (so difficult to find and scarily expensive!), baking powder, baking soda… the list goes on. I will definitely have to get a bit creative as it’s difficult or impossible to find many ingredients that are used in some of our favorite recipes.

8. The “USA” section. This is my favorite. Most of the large grocery stores have a (very tiny) section that is designated for “popular” American products. It usually consists of BBQ sauce, salad dressing (mostly Newman’s Own brand for whatever reason), Betty Crocker brownie and cake mixes (for a mere 5.99 Euro!), maple syrup, “American pancake mix,” Oreos, macaroni and cheese in a blue box (although not actually Kraft), and every American’s favorite necessities – Pop Tarts and nacho cheese. Because who can’t live without nacho cheese, am I right? I think it’s pretty funny to see what they think Americans can’t live without.

9. They keep their eggs at room temperature. Enough said.

10. The hours. The stores are generally only open from 8 or 9 AM until 8 PM. And not on Sundays. Other than bakeries in the mornings and a few restaurants, nothing is open on Sundays. We used to always do our grocery shopping on Sundays, so this is a change for us for sure. Although, when the store is right on your bike ride home, it’s a lot easier to stop quickly during the week.

11. Milk. There are two types – 3.5% fat and 1.5% fat. No skim. As someone who has been drinking skim milk for about 10 years, this is an adjustment. But the 1.5% is not so bad.

12. The lack of diet, fat-free, sugar-free, etc. items. Nothing is labeled in this way. It's a huge change from American brands that seem to bombard you with this stuff. In America, you can find a "diet" form of pretty much everything. Not true in Germany, for whatever reason.

13. The lack of "snack" foods, like chips, crackers, cookies, etc. Maybe they don't need #12 because they don't indulge in these like Americans do. You can find some tortilla chips and potato chips, but not the variety like in America and definitely smaller packages. And there's certainly no entire aisle devoted to cookies like in American stores haha.

I also grocery shop much more frequently, as most things are sold in small quantities due to the fact that the average fridge is the size of an American college student's dorm room fridge (not kidding). I also think that they use less preservatives in their food, as things go bad quite quickly. Like I said though, it's not a big deal to go to the store more often when it's two blocks from your apartment. Additionally, since we don't have a car, I either walk to the store and carry the bags home or ride my bike and put the bags in my basket. So I usually try to not buy a million items each time.

This is only some of the differences. Nothing is life altering, but it definitely takes a little getting used to. We try to look at everything as an adventure, so it’s not so bad.

Cheers,
Kristin and Matt

A Couple of Americans in Istanbul

After much persuasion, Matt convinced me to travel to Istanbul. I admit I was a bit hesitant at first, due to Istanbul's location and the fact that the threat of terrorism in Turkey is slightly elevated (mostly due to other areas of the country, not Istanbul). However, after doing a lot of our own research, as well as talking to many of our German friends, we decided that it would be perfectly safe for us to go. So, on Wednesday we embarked on a 4-day trip to Istanbul, Turkey.

Istanbul is very different from any other European city we have ever visited, that's for sure. However, it still has many similarities to the other cities. We were also struck by how friendly everyone was (for the most part). It's definitely a popular tourist destination and all of the citizens seem to be comfortable with foreigners. Everyone we interacted with spoke at least basic English, which was nice. Many of them also speak a few words of other languages, as well. We would walk through the market, with the vendors trying to say hello to us in about 5 different languages. Sidenote: We get excited when Europeans mistake us for Germans or the French haha. Our hotel staff and our servers at restaurants were especially friendly. I would say that the people of Istanbul are more similar to the Italians in that they have a different idea of personal space than we do and that they tend to push and shove in crowded public places more so than we do. I don't think anyone is trying to be particularly rude, it's just in their nature to be more comfortable with getting closer to strangers haha. It wasn't a big deal, just something to note that is a bit different from Americans and Germans. Istanbul is a very busy city, due to the sheer size of the city -- It's Turkey's largest city with a population of 13.5 million. NYC has 8.2 million (for comparison). So yeah, it's huge. Also, there are stray cats everywhere. I used to think I hated pigeons in cities, until I tried to enjoy a meal outside with a stray cat at my feet begging for food. Definitely a different experience.

The city's natural setting is just stunning. It's set on the Bosphorus, which runs between the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara. It also is partly in Europe and partly in Asia, which is very interesting. We visited both the European side (the main tourist spot) and the Asian side, thus, being in Asia for the very first time! Very exciting.

Most European cities we have visited in the past are cities with an obviously Christian influence. There are churches everywhere, and they are usually very large and elaborate. Istanbul is very different, as there is a strong Muslim influence. There are mosques everywhere throughout the city. We visited three during our trip, including two of the most famous -- Hagia Sofia and the Blue Mosque. The Hagia Sofia is interesting because it was first built as a basilica and not a mosque. It's sheer size is just amazing.

The Sultan Ahmed Mosque, or the Blue Mosque as it is also known, is also very impressive. This mosque is still used for worship today. It was built in the early 1600s. It has 6 minarets (the tall, skinny towers surrounding the dome), which caused some contention when it was being built as 4 minarets is the common maximum number. The mosque is tiled with beautiful hand-painted tiles inside.

Other interesting sites that we visited during our trip included the Grand Bazaar, the Spice Market, and the Basilica Cistern. The Grand Bazaar is a huge, indoor market where vendors set up "stalls" to sell various items, including pottery, scarves, bags, shoes, jewelry and more. It was huge inside, but not as crazy or crowded as we thought it was going to be. The Spice market is an indoor/outdoor market where vendors sell, you guessed it -- spices. It was pretty cool to see all kinds of different spices everywhere. They also sell various types of nuts, cheese, Turkish delight, baklava, and more. It's smaller than the Grand Bazaar, but still very cool. We bought some pistachios there.

Grand Bazaar

Spice Market

The Basilica Cistern is the largest of several hundred ancient cisterns that lie beneath the city of Istanbul. It was built in the 6th century and is capable of holding approximately 2,800,000 cubic feet of water. The ceiling is supported by large marble columns. In one of the corners of the cistern, the bases of two columns are blocks carved as the head of Medusa. The origin of the two heads is unknown, though it is thought that the heads were brought to the cistern after being removed from a building of the late Roman period. One head is turned on its side and the other is upside down. Archaeologists believe that the placement is on purpose, but no one knows why. Pretty cool.

While all of these sites were very cool, our favorite was the Topkapi Palace. This palace was the residence of the Ottoman Sultans for 400 years, from 1465-1856. The palace complex is located on the Seraglio Point, overlooking the Golden Horn and the Sea of Marmara, with gorgeous views of the Bosphorus from many spots in the palace. While the palace is quite stunning in itself, it also houses many interesting historical artifacts, including jewels, art, clocks, and weaponry. We got to see an 86-carat diamond! There is also a room with relics that are believed to belong to many of the Islamic prophets, including Mohammed. It houses what are considered to be "the most sacred relics of the Muslim world": the cloak of Mohammed, two swords, a bow, one tooth, a hair of his beard, and an autographed letter and other relics which are known as the Sacred Trusts. Several other sacred objects are also on display, such as the swords of the first four Caliphs, The Staff of Moses, the turban of Joseph and a carpet of the daughter of Mohammed. It was really interesting to see some of these artifacts. We spent several hours here since there is so much to look at.

We also tried lots of Turkish food on our trip. We ate at two really great restaurants. Both had outdoor roof terraces and we had fantastic weather, so it was pretty amazing. The service was great, too. The food is similar to Greek food -- chicken, lamb, spinach, tomatoes, olives, etc. They also use a lot of spices, which isn't surprising considering the climate. One of our favorite parts of traveling is enjoying the local cuisine, and we were definitely able to do that on this trip. Drinking alcohol does not seem to be as popular as it is in most of the other European cities. Our best guess is that the strong Islamic influence is the main reason. Matt still found an opportunity to try the Turkish beer Efes (the only brew we saw offered anywhere in the city).

The weather was beautiful, the views were stunning, and the people were very helpful, so we really had a great time. Although the city was different than what we are used to, we really enjoyed experiencing a new culture, which really, is the whole point of traveling in the first place. It wasn't our favorite European city and we don't know if we'll make it back, but we're definitely glad we had the opportunity to see it. Here are just a few more photos.