August 2010
6 posts
Wrap Up
Getting back from a long trip is an odd experience. You are usually exhausted, your clothes are dirty, and the trip is a blur. It takes a while to think about it and figure out what you really took from it. While we were traveling, I read on CNN about a study that found people who spent their money on experiences were happier than people who spent it on things. The rationale behind it was that you...
And suddenly, it hits me.
Madrid: our last stop of the Mediterranean tour. Madrid was beautiful and we stayed in an amazing hotel right next to the main square. Our room even had its own laptop and a great view of a pedestrain street. But even though the city was amazing, it finally hit me. I. was. so. tired. Nic was still feeling adventurous, but honestly, I wanted the internet and the bed. (And McDonalds. So naughty!) We...
Barcelona- Party capital of the world!
Background Info: The night before we traveled to Spain, there was a massive world event that went down but probably stayed a small news subtext in America. The World Cup Championship. Every single country we traveled to was obsessed with the World Cup. In Turkey, everyone was avidly rooting against Greece- their arch rival. In Syria, the government set up huge tvs in every park in Damascus....
Celie and Friends
When Nic first traveled to France, he did so as an exchange with the UT UTeach program. For half the program, a group of French teachers stayed with NIc and other UTers and then returned the favor when the Texas group went to France. During this exchange, Nic became friends with a cool chick named Celie.
Celie taught in Paris for one year, but she met a dashing Spaniard and asked to be...
Ahh, Paree!
Ahh, Paree! At my income level, nothing is more important than price when booking a flight. I will endure multiple lay-overs, crowded seats, and bad airlines just to book that lowest price on kayak.com. By an interesting chain of events, booking that low price had an added bonus when leaving Cairo. It gave Nic and I a three day layover in Paris. Oh Paris! Nic, who is a huge Francophile, had been...
Friendly Faces in Cairo
So before heading to Cairo, we had heard some things from previous visitors. Mainly, that it was incredibly dirty, full of hassles, and that we would hate it. 2 out of 3 of those things were correct. We pulled into the train station at about 6:30 am and stepped out into the early morning light on a city street that was filled with trash. On the taxi ride to the hotel, our sight distance was...
July 2010
2 posts
The transforming of a man...
So for those of you who don’t know, during our stay at Luxor, we have been using my dad’s Sheraton platinum status and staying in hotels redeemed from his points. Here, we were upgraded to a suite that had a massive terrace and 3 rooms! At first Nic felt very uncomfortable with the extra attention.
“I feel like everyone thinks we’re rich and we’re not! I don’t...
Planes, Trains, and Automobiles
We have made it a hop, skip, and a jump away from our last post and have landed in Luxor Egypt. Petra was amazing and our opinion of Jordan was that the people are very nice, Amman is a very up and coming city, and it is freaking hot.
We made the mistake last Wednesday of hiking Petra in the heat of the day. Our brains were fried but we did manage to see the tomb of Aaron, the brother of Moses...
June 2010
8 posts
Making Friends
Hello Blog, it’s been awhile. After a whirlwind tour of southwest Turkey, Nic and I are back in Damascus. We are planning on heading to Jordan tomorrow to see some biblical sites and make it to the gem of our trip- Petra!
Yesterday, we drove all the way from Adana Turkey to have dinner in Aleppo Syria and then arrived back in Damascus at 3am. That is of course with 10 other people in a van...
Of Tours and Tooth Pullings
So our tour of Syrıa took a turn for the awesome after the last blog post. That nıght my coworker Maısaa Tızanı and her brother took us to a fabulous meal ın a remodeled Damascene home. It was a fantastıc meal and the house was breathtakıng. We ended ıt by smokıng some apple shısha. (Hookah!) The next day we explored the cıty and then met up wıth my boss Dıana and her entıre famıly ıncludıng...
The tourist tax
Good afternoon
The call to prayer just came blazing outside the window of my hotel hidden on the 4th floor of a rather suspicious looking building in downtown Damascus. We had a nice flight this morning in from istanbul. Yesterday was a great last day in the city. We toured the bazaar (I bought a necklace that got bargained down to the “special foreign friend price” which means only...
Anonymous asked: How was your flight? Anything out of the ordinary happened or has it been smooth sailing so far? Are you wearing the ring in Turkey?
-Phyllis
-Phyllis
East Meets West ın Istanbul
Hello fellow adventurers
Please forgıve my errors ın punctuatıon. Thıs keyboard ıs crazy. Watch thıs: şğüö
So Nıc and I survıved our 24 hours of travelıng hell. The plane rıde over was not so good because the aır was not workıng and ıt was so hot! Plus we dıdn`t sleep for 36 hours. After arrıvıng on Tuesday nıght we ate at the hotel and crashed untıl 1 the next day. Oops. Determıned to not...
Istanbul, Not Constantinople
We will be here in 24 hours!
May 2010
3 posts
A Little Hill Country Camping
So this post is a little late in coming. We actually had this particular camping adventure about two months ago. Better late than never!
I wanted to get reservations at Guadalupe River State Park but those of you who camp often realize the impossibility of getting reservations in March and April. The nice camp lady pointed us toward this small private camp ground. The trailer camping area was...
April 2010
3 posts
Skipping School
Or just using up some days off before the year is up!
Nic and I left this morning to try a hike in Lago Vista: Warbler Vista in the Balcones Canyonlands.
Reasons why I recommend this hike:
Very secluded
Lots of shade
Beautiful sundeck that overlooks a large swath of Lake Travis
Great drive out to the reserve once you are past Cedar Park
We didn’t see Mr. Warbler, but I think I...
“AFOOT and light-hearted, I take to the open road,
Healthy, free, the world...”
– Song of the Open Road, Walt Whitman