Juice!”]About two months back, I bought some juice at the store. Not just any juice, but Happy Day brand pineapple juice. What makes this juice so special? Well, I don’t always drink juice quickly, and I found out that some of the juices I’ve bought in the past last for several days, not weeks, because not all of them are pasteurized here. Happy Day is one that is pasteurized, so I can take my time to enjoy it.

Except for the one I bought two months ago.

When I first opened it, I noticed some black stuff around the inside edge of the rim, but thought, “Meh,” and…took a swig.

About two days later, I figured I’d have some pineapple juice in the morning before heading to school. Not wanting to dirty a glass, I took another swig…and spit it right back out. After pouring the entire carton down the drain, I was left with a sink full of blackish-bluish mold. Yes, I took a swig of that nasty stuff [see picture]:

Blurry picture, but as you can see...that's not juice

I hopped on my computer and e-mailed Happy Day in Hungary, telling them exactly what had happened. I received a well written email, in English, from the QA manager. They apologized for the mishap, asked me for information about the carton I bought, and offered to replace the carton.

And I waited for a reply. And waited. And waited. And then decided to forget about it, since it was only a few hundred forints, anyway.

Last Friday, I was in between classes when my phone rang. A woman answered, “Hello. This is Rausch Happy Day.” Unsure who it was, I asked them to repeat what they had said. She then mentioned that I wrote to them or something, and I decided to just say yes to get the conversation moving. I thought maybe it was regarding some children’s English activity book or program or something…anything, but the juice I had written them about two months back. And then she goes on to tell me it’s about the juice I had written them about two months back.

After a few moments of cluelessness, I finally figured out that it was about the juice I’d bought two months back! Woohoo, they’re going to send me…one free carton of pineapple juice? Either way, I gave them my school’s address since I wouldn’t be home.

Around 11 o’clock, a teacher comes up and tells me that Laci down in the buffet is wondering who Hidas Jacob is and why he has juice down there. Hearing the bell, I race to class, deciding to reap my moldy rewards at the next break.

So, the bell rings, and I race down to the main entrance and ask about my juice. The guy at the reception area points down on the grand. I walk in and see, not one, but an entire box of pineapple juice. 12 cartons, to be exact.

12...count 'em...12 cartons of pineapple juice

It may have taken a couple swigs and two months, but I finally got my pineapple juice! Happy Day was really awesome to give me so much…if only I had a blender, an ice machine, a bottle of Sailor Jerry’s, and some creme de coconut to make myself a piña colada…then it’d really be a happy day!

Sunset at Pamukkale

After spending over a week in Turkey, I made it back to Hungary safely. Unfortunately, I can’t say the same for my health. My Turkish cold/flu may have been caused by the nasty, too-close-for-comfort bus ride, or walking barefoot in cold water at night in Pamukkale. However, the most likely cause was one of the friends I traveled with — cough, Val, cough — not sure who, though. Either way, now I have some extra time to blog about the last week.

Zombie-me walking underground!

Boo! Halloween weekend!

The last day of school before fall break happened to be the same day as my school’s Halloween party. I had some trouble getting a costume together this year, but wound up with some makeshift doctor/teacher/scientist zombie, and it actually worked. The party was a lot of fun, especially for the kids! I did have to get up in front of all my second grade students and sing aroo-cha-cha to them. Oh, you don’t know aroo-cha-cha? Well, check out this video. While our version has different lyrics, no drinking, and no old men, the students seemed to enjoy it nonetheless. Later that evening, I went with other English teacher amigos to Arriba for dinner. We were surprisingly the only ones to show up that day in costume, which meant free margaritas! After an awesome Mexican meal, we went to the Merlin theater for Funzine’s Halloween party! It was pretty cool getting to enjoy Halloween once again. Last year, I was in Cesky Krumlov, which was awesome, but I miss the days of dressing up, and, yes, even trick-or-treating — I know, I know! I’m too old now…so I just need a better excuse if I ever want to go again!

Istanbul was Constantinople…Now it’s Istanbul, not Constantinople

They Might Be Giants – Istanbul (not Constantinople), from Tiny Toons!

Egyptian Obelisk at night

After landing in Istanbul with no problems, we got our visas ($20 USD), and looked for our ride to the apartment. I’ve never had someone waiting for me at an airport holding a sign with my name on it…and Istanbul was no different. Instead, my name was on a piece of paper attached to a stick. Either way, it was still cool. The guy near the sign told us to wait a few minutes and we’ll go. Well, then he left. After asking someone else what’s going on, we got the same answer — wait. This went on for about 45 minutes. Finally, my name was the last on that stick. I went over and asked what was up, and a NEW guy said “Where have you been?!” Uh, right where you told us to wait 45 minutes ago! Whatever!

When traveling in groups, I prefer renting apartments over hotels. They’re usually cheaper, and have all the amenities we need (except for housecleaning and breakfast). Well, after much searching, I found Sultanahmet Suites, which turned out to be pretty awesome! They set up the (messy) airport pickup, included housecleaning, and was centrally located to all the sites. When we checked in, we found out that the apartment’s wifi password was Albuquerque. Strange choice, right? Well, two of my friends are from Albuquerque, and as it turned out, the hotel owner lived in Albuquerque for ten years. What did that mean for us? The first breakfast was on him! Anyway,  we checked in, chilled, went to a nearby restaurant for dinner, and then walked around the Hippodrome — where chariot races used to take place, as well as home to most of the sites to see and enjoyed Istanbul at night.

There are two main parts to Istanbul for tourists — Old Town  and the New District. Old Town has all the sites you come to Istanbul to see – the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, Grand Bazaar, etc. The New District is more trendy, with restaurants and bars — it’s where Istanbul’s nightlife is poppin’. For this trip, we spent all our time in the Old Town, which means I need to go back and explore the other side!

Group shot!

On Monday, I woke up early and decided to go for a run. That was pretty much a bad idea! Cobblestone roads, nonexistent sidewalks, and cars coming out of nowhere turned my three mile run into a two and a quarter mile run, but that’s okay. It was fun to see the city as it starts to wake up for the day.  Anyway, after I got back, we regrouped, and enjoyed our breakfast. The owner was there, so we chatted with him for a while. He gave us information about Istanbul and what sounds like amazing plans for his hotel/apartment, such as bringing supposedly awesome food from New Mexico to the hotel. Here’s a breakdown of what we did/saw/ate in Istanbul (in no particular order):

Inner Courtyard, Blue Mosque

Sultanahmet Mosque aka the Blue Mosque – built between 1609 and 1616, it really is an amazing mosque, with beautiful calligraphy along the walls and amazing blue tilework; still used as a mosque today

Outside the Blue Mosque

Inside the Blue Mosque...not so blue in this picture

Hagia Sophia — Was a church, then a mosque, now a museum; dedicated in 360; it’s enormous; I read somewhere that Notre Dame Cathedral’s dome can fit inside, or the Statue of Liberty minus her torch

Grand Bazaar — 1 visit was enough, but 3, don’t get me started. Unless you’re in the mood to shop, or are looking for something specific, get in, get lost for a few hours, and check out what else Istanbul has to offer. Val and Bea did an amazing job haggling for their purchases. I only bought a couple souvenirs, got a few liras knocked off, but walked away happy nonetheless

Fish sandwich — cheap, delicious — a must if you are in Istanbul

Doner kebap — I’ve had Turkish gyros here in Budapest, but it was nice to have one here; pretty good, and they offer bread, pita, or a wrap; definitely missing sauce though

Baklava — wow! There was a little café up the hill along the tram line called…Cegdim. For 4.50 liras, you get four pieces of baklava. Definitely stopped here more than once!

Baklava!

Street food — roasted chestnuts, corn, sesame pretzels, and some honey-covered churro thing that John and Bea went on a hunt through the city for (and nearly missed the shuttle back to the airport, too!)

Seafood restaurants under the bridge — beware, they beg for you to eat at their restaurant; prices aren’t horrible if you’re careful where you go. We, however, were not, and got screwed, even with a free beer! Stick with the fish sandwich instead!

Basilica Cistern — AWESOME! Two Medusa heads can be found under pillars in this underground basilica. Don’t miss this place! What a trip!

Medusa!

Turkish Coffee — worth a try, if you’re into coffee; I’m not a big coffee person, but I didn’t hate it

Whirling Dervish show — 50 liras — definitely a unique experience; I could never whirl as long as they did, even if there’s some special technique to it! Let me just say that I saw several people asleep during the show.

Walk across the bridge — either into Old Town or the New District

Spice Market — almost felt like a mini Grand Bazaar, but obviously with more spices

Haircut in Europe #3! — I’m starting to like this trend of getting a haircut in a new country. A Turkish haircut — quite the experience! The guy lit a cotton ball on fire, and whacked it on my ears and cheeks; I freaked out the first time, which freaked him out and then he yelled something at me in Turkish — probably “Don’t move, idiot!”. Other Turkish men walked in, sat down, used some gel, the hairdryer, said hello to us, and left

With all that I was able to accomplish, there’s still a lot I didn’t see! For my next visit to Istanbul:

Topkapi Palace — really bummed about missing this; ran out of time

Taksim Square — made it across to the Asian side, but that’s about it

Bosphorus Cruise — didn’t get to take a ferry, but especially want to take it all the way up to the Black Sea next time!

Old City Walls — definitely plan to walk on it next time around

Hookah — So what if I have one at home! I should’ve smoked one in Turkey!

Next stop: Pamukkale

Pamukkale panorama

After Istanbul, we flew to Pamukkale. The flight was easy, and the airport transfer wasn’t as bad as the first one — except we got into this old Turkish guy’s minibus at some point. He was really nice, and would’ve been the driver to Afrodisias, had I had time to visit the site…but more on that soon.

Admiring the view...

In Pamukkale, we stayed at the Melrose House Hotel. The hotel was about ten minutes from the UNESCO world heritage site. After enjoying an amazing breakfast (included in the stay), we walked over to Pamukkale. Well, the rest of the group did. I trekked into the center of “town” to solve our bus issue.

I would’ve gone to Aphrodisias on Thursday, but the driver didn’t have a big enough group for it to be worth the drive. No problem, I’ll go Friday, right? Nope. When I had emailed the Melrose Hotel and our hotel for our next stop, they both told me it’d be no problem booking an overnight bus to Cappadocia. They also didn’t tell me about the celebration that weekend. What celebration, you ask? Oh, yeah — Eid — the Festival of Sacrifice to commemorate Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son.

<ifWhat this meant for us was that all the buses that would’ve been no problem booking, like I was told, were in fact all full. So I marched into town, where I met a really nice guy who tried to help us find tickets. The best he could do for us was get us to Konya, and from there we could take a minibus to Cappadocia. No problem, he told us. Plenty of buses, he said. Unfortunately, that meant losing our entire Friday to traveling, spending more money than anticipated on extra buses and hotels, but at least we’d make it to our flight back to Istanbul on Sunday, right? Hold that thought…

Ruins of Heliopolis at Pamukkale

Pamukkale, which has been a spa since the 2^nd century BC, means “cotton castle” in Turkish. the travertines are beautiful. Back in the 70s, hippies and backpackers would come here as they traveled through Turkey to kick back and relax before continuing on. Now, a bunch of tourists come in by the busload, spend a few hours walking around, and leave. Instead of swimming in the ancient pool, which I heard has ancient ruins at the bottom, I decided to spend most of the day wandering around Hierapolis, the ancient ruins of the area. Since I wasn’t going to be able to see Aphrodisias, I figured I’d make the most of it. It always amazes me to walk through ruin sites like this, or like in Greece, or even the Forum in Rome, because it’s mindblowing to think of civilization as it once was.

The amphitheater there is amazing, but I hiked up a little higher to another part of the ruins, and it was just me, two other people, and complete silence. It was spectacular. Afterwards, we sat and enjoyed the sunset above the “cotton cloud” pools. The walk down was treacherous, as you have to go up and down barefooted. The water is hot at the top, but cools as you get closer the bottom, making the walk a little less comfortable. Afterwards, we stopped at Mehmet’s House for dinner. It was pretty good, with a very friendly owner, and a decent menu. I’d recommend it if you’re looking for a nice, relaxing place to eat. Afterwards, we went back to the hotel. I walked through the terrace in the cold weather wearing my t-shirt, shorts, and flip-flops. Everyone at the restaurant stopped and stared at me for a few minutes as I waited for the rest of my group. Maybe that’s why I’m sick…

Mushroom Chimneys!

Next stop: Cappadocia, or the Craziest Bus Ride You’ll Never Take

Friday morning was our biggest adventure yet! We went to the center of town, hopped on the minibus to Denzili, and made our way to Konya and then to Cappadocia. Or so we thought…

After getting to the station and exchanging our voucher for our tickets, we were told to wait at platform 17. So we did. For 45 minutes. Finally, someone came out and told everyone to go across the parking lot to the bus. So we did. And then some young guy started yelling on the bus in Turkish. We had no idea what was going on, but sat patiently, hoping we’d leave soon enough. The bus started up, drove about 30 seconds, and pulled over. The young guy, who had previously gotten off the bus, got back on, started yelling again, and stormed off. And then the police came. And they took the bus driver away. Was he arrested? Not at that point. Everyone got off the bus. I tried to ask anyone who would listen if they spoke English, and the answer was an astounding no. The best I got was me asking “Problem?” And one guy saying, “Yes, problem.”

Goreme! Welcome! (Finally!)

Finally, someone from the bus company rerouted us to Ankara, the capital of Turkey, and from there we were told we could get to Cappadocia. No problem, they told us. Again. After spending seven hours on the bus, we finally arrived around 8 pm. Hastily, I ran to the ticket desk to buy our next tickets to continue the journey. Guess what? Full.

Now, imagine the New York Stock Exchange. People yelling, papers flying, madness. Now, imagine all that, at a bus station, all in Turkish. It was a madhouse! I had to fight my way through the crowds to even get up to a desk. The only answers I got were “full” and “no English.” I finally caved in and called the hotel. They were apologetic, but  couldn’t help in anyway. They looked at trains — sold out. So I went back upstairs to try again. As luck would have it, I found Kontur, the bus company we used to get to Ankara, and started to berate them in English. Too bad they didn’t speak any, so they had no idea what I was upset about.

And then I met Alper. He heard my complaining, and asked what was going on. As it turned out, Alper is a computer science teacher who was having trouble getting to Antalya via bus. He offered to help us find a bus after he got his ticket taken care of. And soon enough, we found some guy quietly announcing a ride to Kayseri off to the side. Sketchy as this sounds, I guess it’s pretty typical to scalp tickets like this. I have a feeling our first bus of the day was more like this one. Either way, this bus worked out, but it was costly.

The bus wanted 120 liras to get to Kayseri. Fine, we took it. But if we wanted to go to Goreme, where our hotel was, he wanted another 180 liras. We THOUGHT we’d agreed to getting 30 minutes to find our own minibus at Kayseri, but once we got there, the large Turkish bus attendant waved us back on the bus, and basically demanded the money. I called Alper (yes, at about 3 AM), for help. He apologetically said there was some confusion, and that we now have to pay.

Former cave dwelling!

He basically overshadowed me, motioning with his fingers for the money. So we paid. After that, the Turkish  guy’s demeanor changed. He knew they had robbed us blind with that price and there was nothing we could do about it. He came to us, gave us some water (yes, we basically paid out the ass for a small cup of water!), tried to get us to dance, and kept babbling in Turkish. I kept saying, “What?” “I don’t understand,” and whatever else I could to make him understand that even our hand signals weren’t making sense, but he didn’t seem to mind. He hovered over Val as she slept. He sat with John, Bea, and I and just…sat. Awkward? You have no idea. He even took John’s hat, turning him into a Turkish Costello…Finally, I said, “Me (slap chest), Jake. You?” “Ali Ali.” So we called him Ali Ali. At one point, Ali Ali got the driver to stop the bus, waved goodbye, stepped around the corner of the bus, waited ten seconds, and then jumped back on laughing. What the hell, right? Well, at least they got us to the hotel and helped us with our bags! Otherwise we would’ve been searching every cave for our pension.

In Goreme, we stayed at the Cave Life Pension. While the location was great, I have to say I wasn’t too impressed with it. Sure, I’d recommend it, and if I needed to stay there again, I’d do so happily. But I’d also be happy to try another one, too. The breakfast was good, the staff was friendly, but the room was just okay. Guess it sounds like I don’t have much to complain about, after all. Anyway, Cappadocia was amazing. Who knew how awe-inspiring this area would be.

Getting lost in the underground city!

On Saturday, I decided to split off to ensure that I got to see as much as I could in the area. I started off with the Open Air Museum, which included old dwellings and several churches built into the caves. After, I took a minibus to the mushroom chimneys, which were just a trip. Lastly, I rushed from minibus to minibus to Kaymakli, where one of two underground cities can be found.  I was sandwiched between two English tours, so I got tidbits of information, like the pathways intentionally built small to have an advantage over anyone attacking, or the bathrooms up in the stables on the first floor with the animals, or where they make wine, or how they have special shafts for smoke to release without going noticed. I’m not too concerned with confined spaces, but walking through those tunnels were a little tense. One woman and her son were screaming at me to go backwards out of one, causing me to nearly trip and fall, because they were freaking out!

On my trek back to the hotel, a man who found out I was American told me to wait in some strange, smoky room for the bus. I found myself waiting therewith three young Turkish guys. They were all staring me down, chatting amongst themselves — about me and my being American, of course. Finally, one of the guys asked if I speak Turkish, to which I said no. He said okay, and they continued talking, most likely still about me. Who knows. We had dinner at a restaurant that served kebaps in clay pots, which was awesome!

I was going to pay the extra money to go on a hot air balloon ride, but with the extra buses, hotel costs, and my being sick at this point, I decided to sleep in instead. However, I’ve already added that hot air balloon ride to my list of things to do the next time I’m back in Turkey! The flight back to Istanbul was painless, except for the super long shuttle to the supposedly nearby airport. However, today was the day of sacrifices, so the streets were lined with cows, goats, and other animals being butchered by groups of men, some with children watching. Pretty intense sight, for sure! Even back in Istanbul, the sacrifices were happening — which surprised me considering this was more of an urban area than the village of Goreme.

Last stop: One more night in Istanbul!The last adventure in Istanbul was yet another transportation nightmare. Rather than take the easy route — a taxi — to our hotel, we decided to walk because it was supposedly only 5 minutes from the airport. Too bad the two addresses I had weren’t exactly the same. So we went with the one that seemed the most likely. A nice Turkish guy at a store helped us find a minibus, and we were able to find the hotel — after two and a half hours! I unfortunately missed the chance to see the palace today, but that’s okay. The hotel, Han Airport Hostel North, was a great place to stay if you don’t mind a little public transportation to get downtown, or a taxi to get to the airport. It’s very uniquely decorated in a modern style, and they probably have good food at the restaurant downstairs, too!

Peaceful...serene...Pamukkale

And this morning, at 3 AM, we woke up to head to the airport and end yet another fall break. I’m glad to have finally gone, but I’m definitely not finished with Turkey. There’s so much more to see and do, that it warrants several more trips!  I will say that even with the language barrier in many places, everyone was friendly and willing to at least try and help. I’d ask one question, and I’d have five different people all talking with each other trying to figure out the best solution. Now to get over my sickness and enjoy the few Turkish Delights that I bought!

I went because: Turkey’s been on my list of places to see, and I knew I’d need more than just a weekend to really enjoy my time here

Don’t miss: The sunset at Pamukkale, or exploring Cappadocia if you can get out there (especially one of the underground cities if you’re not claustrophobic!). No wonder they’re on the UNESCO world heritage list!

Don’t bother: Trying to fit everything you can into the trip! Enjoy what you do get to see, and save the rest for the next trip!

Coolest souvenir: My haircut, with the flaming cotton ball experience, or my mini model of Pamukkale or the fairy chimneys in Cappadocia

Worth a splurge: I didn’t get to splurge on this like I had planned, but had I, it would definitely have been on a hot air balloon ride in Cappadocia! Heard so many great things, but just couldn’t do it. Also, take either the green or red tour of Cappadocia if you’re pressed for time and want to make the most of the day. Transportation is doable, but time consuming and tricky. Of, and fly Turkish Airlines if you can…our short flights even included a lunch that was easily better than some meals I’ve had on international flights!

I wish I’d packed: less clothing! I packed more than I needed for a week-long trip, but also ended up not having enough to keep me warm while in Cappadocia!

Ending the day with a natural spa treatment! Pamukkale