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Wanderlust

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Honeymoon Series: Bali

We have explored all sorts of options for the honeymoon – our favorites being Croatia, New Zealand, and Thailand. Then, as I mentioned in my previous post, I stumbled upon Entouriste and my mind was made – we’re going to Bali! In her post about Bali, Ami talks about her visits in Ubud, which is about an hour away from our hotel – the Conrad Bali Resort & Spa (see pictures below). After reading about her experiences (and seeing those pictures!), we’ll definitely make a trip north to see those sites as well. I am so excited – and relieved to have picked a spot! While the wedding is in July, we’ll wait until December to go, as Sasha has finals at the end of November. It’s a long, long journey there (29 hours, to be exact), but I know it’ll be worth it!

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Oh, Us? We’re Greek too.

Today’s pace differently dramatically from the first five days. We woke up late (quite a treat after many 5am starts), then walked to Avocado, which is one of the top 5 best restaurants in Athens and is a vegan/vegetarian spot (Sasha is an angel). It was absolutely, 100% delicious. We ordered falafel, a quinoa dish called Ahimsa, and the Forest Burger for Sasha – all amazing. We got a vegan chocolate pie, which tasted like heaven. Afterwards, we hauled over to Hammam, which is a relaxing bath massage place that was highly rated on Trip Advisor. The reviews were not wrong – this was one of the best experiences of the trip – my favorite massage to date. We felt so calm and relaxed after and sat sipping Chai (tea), while talking to a local Greek woman. The people here are so friendly and are helping us with our Greek. So far we’ve mastered hello (yasus), thank you (elfaristo), and please (parakalo) – not sure about any of those spellings! We wandered through Monastiraki, where Sasha got a gyro and I bought one of my Greek best friends a little gift, then I went into H&M. It is infinitely better in Europe, so naturally I had to get a few items. We drank some Greek coffee and wine at Lucafe after, then watched Greek people ice stake at the center of the square. It is obviously not their sport (see picture below) – we had a few giggles about that. After a 2 mile detour to get to dinner (woopsies), we ended up at Manh Manh – another top Trip Advisor spot. The meal was delicious – we have yet to be dissatisfied with food. Thank goodness we walked 8.8 miles today (Google mapped it out), or else I’d be very worried about my new clothes fitting when I return to the states. Hitting the big Athenian monuments tomorrow before our wine tour to Corinth on Sunday!

PS One highlight of the day was being mistaken as Greeks on multiple occasions. Sasha concluded that we are both actually Greek. I’m from the city of Kappa Alpha Theta and he originated in Tau Kappa Epsilon.

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It was so good, I don’t even consider him being a “good sport”DSC_1522

Quinoa and veggie sausage – what more could I ask for?
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The well-worth-it Hammam BathDSC_1525

Drinking his tea – he’s obsessed
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About as far from Avocado Vegan Restaurant as you can get!DSC_1538

This man is my gyro (beard and all!)DSC_1539

Home sweet home!DSC_1547

Apparently Greeks are not ice skatersDSC_1564

Stumbled upon this stadium on our walk back to the hotel

Cappadocia, Turkey

We’re in Athens now, and I absolutely love it. We heard a lot of negative things about the city, but we don’t agree with them at all. One place we didn’t hear one bad word about is Cappadocia, where we spent the last two days. It’s in the middle of Turkey, on the Asian continent. We stayed at Gamirasu Cave Hotel, which was literally the coolest hotel I’ve ever been to (see pictures below). One the first day, we went to an underground cave city that is five levels into the ground. It was built in 400 BC, and later used by Christians to hid from Muslims during war times. We ate the most delicious meal at the hotel and called it a night after Sasha built a very impressive fire (Instagram pictures to prove it). The following day, we slept in and then had a driver take up to the Goreme Open Air Museum, Pigeon Valley, the Ugurp Castle, and Imagination Valley – all of which were breathtaking. Lots of pictures below as evidence!

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Hot Turkish red wine – absolutely incredibleDSC_1340

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Istanbul Bucket List

What an amazing first day in Istanbul. So many wonderful bucket list places checked off: Hagia Sophia, Basilica Cisterns, the Hippodrome, the Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, and Gulhane Park. We drank lots of Turkish wine and coffee, ate local foods (amazing cheese!), and walked until our feet were killing us. We’ve got a boat tour of the Bosphorus and the Grand Bazaar, so expect many more pictures. Instagram photos first…photo 4 (8)

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And the non-Instagram pictures…
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