Back in Korea

End of the Year

2009-12-31T21:42:00.006-05:00

I have been a little neglectful of this blog recently so here are a several pictures from the past autumn and early winter. A nice way to close out 2009...

Thanksgiving in Korea

Friends

The boys out for my friend's leaving Korea party

My friend, Ally, and I doing the classic Korean picture pose

Josh and Beth at the ice skating rink

Standing next to a statue of a dog, my animal for the Chinese calendar

Hiking

2009-10-30T05:26:00.008-04:00

One saturday morning a few of us went hiking. It was a fun time and took most of the day. This was a good time of year to go, the leaves on the trees have been changing colors and were quite beautiful.

Long Weekend

2009-10-08T07:11:00.003-04:00

We had a long holiday weekend. Luckily it was nice weather and we took the opportunity to have a picnic and do a little hike. At the end of the trail was a cool looking tomb, where a King's father and cow were buried.

Campus

2009-09-03T06:50:00.002-04:00

I'm teaching at a University in the mountains of South Korea. Its an expansion campus of the main university and they are still finishing construction on a few parts. Its a beautiful place and the semester has barely started. Here are some pics of the campus.

The Quad

View from my lecture hall

Athletic facilities

View from my apartment balcony

Grad School

2009-06-26T17:34:00.006-04:00

This is my favorite photo of the year. It sums up the good times and fun experiences I've been a part of during my time in England. Although graduate school is invaluable for me, it is times like these that make life worthwhile. My classmates and I sharing a laugh...

Vienna, Austria

2009-05-24T06:33:00.005-04:00

Derek and I had a fun time in Vienna. We toured around the city seeing all kinds of fun things. On the last full day we took a trip outside the city. We rented bicycles and were able to ride up and down the Danube river enjoying the country side.

In front of the Natural History Museum

From the Freud museum, which is located in the house he use to live

Derek and I both had a go with the lion in the Natural History Museum

We met a Canadian friend one night who we shared some drinks with

The Imperial Palace in Vienna, where the Hapsburg dynasty once resided

The maze at the Imperial Palace was difficult to get through

Touring around on bikes

We came upon some ruins of an old castle, so we took a hike to the top

A photo of the Danube river valley

Prague, Czech Republic

2009-05-20T04:08:00.007-04:00

Derek and I went to Prague, it was a crazy time. Prague is a beautiful city that seems to come from a Disney film. It was very clean and quite Gothic looking.

Derek in the terraced vineyards of Prague

The Jewish cemetery

The Church of St. Nicholas

The Old Town Square of Prague with the Statue of Jan Hus and the The Church of Our Lady before Tyn in the background

The Prague Castle by night with the Danube river in the foreground

The famous astronomical clock

Derek in front of the Basilica of St. George of the Prague Castle

The statue dedicated to the writer Franz Kafka

Rome

2009-04-27T16:51:00.006-04:00

For a little end of the term celebration my classmate Chu and I went to Rome for a couple of days... can't wait to go back!

Sitting on the edge of the Tiber River with St. Peter's Basilica in the background

Chu is hanging out with the weirdly dressed Vatican guards

In front of the Parthenon

Chu and I at the Roman Forum, the center of Ancient Roman life

The two hour line to get into the Vatican Museum

It was worth the wait... Chu and I in the Sistine Chapel listening to the audio guide;the artwork behind us shouldn't need an explanation

It was a long day for Chu... he took a quick nap while I enjoyed a coffee in the Piazza Novena

Colosseum, sweet!

Pics from the Term

2009-04-10T18:49:00.006-04:00

Here are some photos from over the past term...

The rarity of snow in the UK, classes were canceled from a little dusting

Judy and Raquel making lamb and potatoes for Greek night

A little Greek dancing after dinner

A little singing after dinner, it must have sounded Greek based on Heli's reaction

Spring time on Campus, the library looks quite appealing from this view

A little soccer with the boys

A little fun after soccer

Enjoying some carrot cake with the birthday boy, my friend Roger turned 23

Friday night pub political philosophy

St. Paddy's Day

2009-03-23T17:13:00.002-04:00

The St. Paddy's Day parade in Birmingham is suppose to be one of the biggest in the world, behind New York and Dublin. I don't know how true that is, however, it is long and there were a lot of people there to see it. It also happens to be Guinness' 250th birthday, so there were twice as many reasons to celebrate!

My classmates and I enjoying a pint

My favorite part of the parade was when St. Patrick arrvied riding a tractor with a large glass of Guinness on the back!

A small part of the parade

My classmates celebrating Guinness' birthday

Portugal

2009-02-22T11:25:00.004-05:00

Flew down to Portugal for a few days to enjoy the sun. Unfortunately, our camera misplaced itself and the only photos we have are from the last day or two taken from a mobile phone. We spent time in Porto, where Port wine is made, excellent. Then stopped in the towns of Fatima and Coimbra. Eventually made it down to Lisbon where it was nice and warm.

Sitting in the Castle of St. George overlooking the city of Lisbon

Tower of Belem, guarding the city of Lisbon

Pena National Palace, started off as a monastery and became home to some of the Kings and Queens of Portugal

In Sintra, a photo from within the Castle of the Moors

My classmate Raquel standing in the Belem Tower

A photo of the cloisters within the Monastery of St. Jerome in Lisbon

Belgium

2009-01-25T10:16:00.006-05:00

The Political Science department took us on a trip to Brussels, Belgium to visit the European Union and NATO headquarters (which no pictures where allowed to be taken). With a group of about fifty, we had a wonderful time.

We visited the village of Bruges, located outside of Brussels. Lots of chocolate was consumed!

In Bruges, the lake of love is a beautiful spot.

Over looking Bruges

Inside the European Union Council, behind us is artwork of the many European stereotypes

Our group dinner was a lot of fun!

My classmate Heli is entertaining herself

I'm enjoying a great seafood dinner

Manneken Pis, little boy pissing, is a famous landmark in Brussels

The famous Atomium was built for the world fair

Heli and I representing her home country of Finland in the European Union Commission

Andy, Judy and I sitting in the European Union Parliament

End of the Term

2008-12-12T19:38:00.004-05:00

Here are some random pics from the autumn term...

Birmingham celebrates Christmas with a German Market

My roommate Angela and classmate Kelli, eating some weird cream treats at the German market

Andrey and I enjoying the same

My classmates threw a little birthday party for me

My friend Deniz and I at my birthday party

Classmates posing for a pic at the Political Science Christmas party

A another pic of the University campus

My Indonesian colleague, Najam, and me

Windsor, Stonehendge and Bath

2008-12-08T10:04:00.004-05:00

Some classmates and I rented a car for the day and did a little road trip. First, we drove to Windsor castle, which is the largest working castle in the world. One of the homes to the Queen. Then to Stonehenge, which is in the middle of nowhere, we made just before the sunset. Finally, we made it to the city of Bath, which is named for the roman baths that still stand in the city.

We ate at this great restaurant for lunch, it was located across the street from the castle

One of the entrances to Windsor Castle, there was also a little Christmas parade that afternoon, which is what all the people are waiting for

Jenna and I sitting on a bench waiting for the parade to start

Stonehenge, obviously, was great to see... however, a little smaller than I thought

Jenna and Kelli posing for a pic, unfortunately the park was closing when we arrived, so this is the closest we could get

In the city of Bath, we visited a German market located behind an Abby

Paris, France

2008-11-10T16:40:00.003-05:00

I went to Paris for a long weekend with one of my classmates. Luckily she spoke French so I just sat back and enjoyed my time. We packed a lot in the four days we were there, I would have to say my favorite was probably the Louvre Museum. Where we saw the Mona Lisa, the armless Venus, Code of Hammurabi... You could spend days there and not see it all.

Jenna and I in front of the Notre Dame Cathedral

Not too far from our hostel was the Sacre-Coeur Basilica

Here is the Effiel Tower from a far on a cloudy day

We went up the Effiel Tower at night, then walked around the Tower which has a little light show every so often

Here we are at the gates of the Palace at Versailles, a massive palace with a beautiful garden

A part of the garden at the palace which flowers would fill during the spring time

The famous Arc de Triomphe

We managed to make it into the Catacombes of Paris, there are thousands of humans bones in the catacombes that were moved here from cemetaries in the 18th century.

The outside of the Louvre Museum

More Birmingham

2008-10-09T16:24:00.005-04:00

This is a picture of Victoria Square, the Council house and a fountain; a naked women sitting in a pool of water (when the water is on), the locals call this the "Floozy in the Jacuzzi"

This is a picture of the entrance way to the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallary

This Greek looking building is the Birmingham Town Hall

Birmingham has a system of old canals

This is the Church of St. George

London

2008-09-20T07:23:00.004-04:00

I visited London for a couple of days and went exploring. I met some really fun people and had a great time. London is very interesting and full of history which I love.

A random group; an Italian, a German, a Brazilian and two Americans - one from LA

A photo of the London Eye (a giant ferris wheel) sitting on the Thames river

Hanging out in a Pub

The infamous Buckingham Palace as the changing of the guards is happening

The British Museum

Big Ben and Westminster Abbey

The Tower Bridge

Cape Town, South Africa

2008-09-18T04:42:00.012-04:00

I decided to travel down to Cape Town to see Derek who is now the Head Meteorologist for one of the TV stations in South Africa. It is a very beautiful place and as you can see we had no fun.....no fun at all!

Walk out of Derek's front door and there is nothing but water between you and Antarctica

Derek and I trying to act tough before we went for a freezing swim in the ocean

Enjoying a beer at a BBQ as the sunset ends

Having some of the best seafood of my life with Derek and Kat at Codfather

We climbed to the top of Lion's Head mountain to catch the sunset

Cape Town has about 4 million people, its very spread out

We rode the gondola up to Table Top mountain

A look at Lion's Head Mt. from Table Top Mt.

Surfin' Time...

...or not, that's right ladies I had to fend off a shark to save three, cute, little puppies!

The Dr. was good, only 6 stitches

Birmingham

2008-08-28T12:39:00.003-04:00

Been here about a week and snapped a few pics to show those who want to know what Birmingham looks like. The weather has been a bit cloudy, but a decent tempurature. Its been hard to understand the British even though they speak the same language, its not really the same. I have a lot of vocabulary adjusting to do...Cheers!

Some pics of the University

My small room, I'd guess about 6'x12'

Living room, and kitchen on the left

The street I live on, my place is the second door on the left, partially open

These last two are a look at the city centre known as the Bullring Shopping Centre

Seoul, Jan 2007 - June 2008

2008-08-28T12:26:00.000-04:00

Tulip Class Pictures

2008-05-30T19:42:00.003-04:00

Bonny is doing some excellent coloring

Sunny is enjoying making pottery at the Art Museum

Decorating Fans!

The cutest little 3 year old Korean ever...yes, I never thought I'd say that either

Andrew is a little coloring challenged, so I'm giving him a hand

This one looks like a good advertisment for Korea

Random Korea Pics

2008-05-18T10:12:00.003-04:00

The boys went to a baseball game

The stadium wasn't very full and Dosan beat LG 16-4

This was a big DJ Festival, they played music for 48 hours straight

We went out for my friends birthday

Another perfect example of strange Korean signs, this was in the bathroom of a bar

This was Clare and Ashleigh's last night in Seoul, we had a little going away party in their apartment

My Class at the Zoo

2008-04-22T05:05:00.008-04:00

We went on a field trip to the zoo on Monday. It was pretty crazy having a buch of preschool kids running around at the zoo. They saw lots of fun animals and had a good time. Near the end of the day there was a crocodile show, a couple of idiots played with crocodiles sticking their arms and heads inside the croc's mouth, even kissing them. I don't think the kids really got it.

This is the class I teach, the are called the Tulip Class, seven - 6 year old students

I was really scared of the Orangutan, it had its arm around me and it stared me down the whole time I was standing by it

I don't think Bowit and Justin liked this monkey too much

As I was walking by the trainer he threw his monkey onto me and all the kids thought it was hilarious

Lunch time, all the kids had bags full of candy

Tulip Class is ready to see the crocodiles

These guys were very crazy and pretty stupid, just check out the video below

Last Weekend

2008-04-17T09:16:00.003-04:00

Last weekend was a going away party for our friend Greg. We also went to a soccer game at the infamous World Cup Stadium in Seoul. We all had a lot of fun. After the game we went out for Greek food.

Mark, Greg and I

Teachers from my previous school are saying goodbye to Greg

FC Seoul fans show their pride

It is a nice size stadium

Some of the group having fun

Dinner after the game was excellent

Random Pics

2008-02-22T02:10:00.002-05:00

Here are some randoms pics from the previous month. I took a new job and moved into a different apartment. I am teaching preschool kids...who would have thought! Its fun, easy and I get to color a lot. I now live in a different part of Seoul, more towards the middle of the city. I have really enjoyed the new area.

This pic is from my last day at EG, I'm holding Sarah, one of my favorites.

This is my new place in Apgujeong-Dong, its a bit bigger and the shower is much nicer.

My friend had a DJ gig and we went out to support him, it was no fun...no fun at all

A Fun Night Out

2008-01-21T18:22:00.000-05:00

Recently we have had some fun nights out, especially during the holidays. Here are some pics from New Years and Clay's birthday. With 17 teachers in the office there is always something going on between us.

Kristen and I on New Years Eve

Mark and Clare on New Years Eve

For our co-teacher Clay we had a birthday party. He is from Tennessee so we had a "hick" themed bowling party

Here I am explaining the perfect technique

Yes it's true, Mark drew the flag on his shirt with markers

My favorite pic from the night, our co-worker Will pulls off a good hick

Focus Johnny, Focus!

Excellent example of strange Korean signs...

After bowling we found a little place that had a flare show. It was very impressive.

Everyone likes a little fire

A Not So Korean Christmas

2007-12-27T06:53:00.001-05:00

We decided to celebrate Christmas with all the foreign teachers in our office. It was fantastic and couldn't have wished for anything else. We had an early evening dinner of roasted duck, chicken, potatoes, and a melody of salads. After dinner we went for a walk in the park, then came back and socialized all night until we finished with a late secret Santa gift exchange.

The before picture, this room is truly smaller than it looks

Hesue and I are cutting up the chickens, don't worry we both made it will all our fingers

Dinner time, we had 14

Small, but it did it's job well

Mark and I, the hosts of the party

A light walk after dinner and a little mauled wine got us going...especially since we sung a few carols in the park

Ashleigh and her favorite desert, wine...oh yeah she had chocolate covered strawberries too

Russian roulette, everyone gets a piece of chocolate, but one is actually a hot pepper

Clare receives a gift from Santa!

Santa receives a gift from Rosie!

The after shot, 17 people total, this room is truly much dirtier than it looks!

Fall Sports Day

2007-10-01T22:45:00.000-04:00

We had another sports day on Monday. Several EG branches got together, were divided in teams and played each other in Basketball, Soccer, Tug-of-War and a Relay Race. Everyone had a fantastic time. My team came in second place, the first place team was the boss' team.

The boss, Mr. Jung, and I

Bryan is very afraid

Ashleigh and Clare enjoying the day

A little basketball action

There were many wounds, here is Mark caring to his

Bryan enjoying a beer at half time

Arial is taking a lunch break

Collin and Bill going head to head

Jordan is very intimidating

Independence Day

2007-08-16T03:28:00.000-04:00

Korean Independence day is August 15th and they celebrate it much like we do back in the States. A bunch of us got together and had a Cook-Out, it reminded me of Michigan. We made some great burgers and sat in the sun right outside our apartment building.

Beijing, China

2007-08-04T10:25:00.001-04:00

We spent four days in Beijing, China for a long weekend. We had a lot of fun. We saw all kinds of land marks, went shopping at the markets and met a lot of interesting Chinese people going out to the bars at night.

Our first meal was a little disappointing. We decided we wanted a real Chinese meal, so we went down a little ally and into a small restaurant. We did a lot of pointing and ended up with pork intestine. Pretty sure it was fresh intestine too!

A pleasant bridge outside of a tea house.

A Panda Bear at the zoo.

A memorial at one end of Tiananmen square.

At the other end of Tiananmen square is the Forbidden city.

We were the only foreigners in this bar and by the end of the night we owned that place.

One of the singers and me.

Here is the path to the tombs of the Emperors of China.

The Great Wall

Oh, at some parts its a steep climb.

The Wall seems to be very confusing, it weaves back and forth a lot and there are many different branches going in all directions.

MUDFEST!

2007-07-22T08:13:00.000-04:00

We lost our disposable camera on the beach, so I stole these pics from another friend that was with us. The Mudfest is a celebration of mud. The mud in

Korea

is supposed to be very good for you skin, so for ten days Koreans celebrate mud. It’s basically a huge party on the beach and everyone is covered in mud. We had great weather and a sensational time.

Out for a Bike Ride

2007-07-17T22:51:00.000-04:00

I’ve been a bit lazy on making posts lately, but I will try to keep up with it better. Everything is still going well. We’ve had some good weather lately and I have been very active. There was a holiday on Tuesday and we went for a bike ride around Seoul. We stopped at a climbing wall, saw some animals at the Seoul forest park and finished the ride with eating some pizza for dinner. Later that night we saw the newest Harry Potter movie. It was a good day.

The Lantern Festival

2007-05-23T08:10:00.001-04:00

We went to the Lantern Festival on Sunday. It is a celebration of Buddha's birthday, which is actually on the 24th of May. There are thousands of Lanterns hanging all around the city. There is an opening ceremony (the first picture) and then a very long parade ending at the Jogyesa Buddhist Temple.

Sports Day

2007-05-06T01:03:00.000-04:00

On Friday, instead of teaching little kids, we played sports all day. Several of the EG School branches came together to compete in basketball, soccer, kickball and a relay race. Out of four, my team came in second place. There was lots of food, beer and fun!

Allister's Going Away Party

2007-04-29T23:16:00.000-04:00

We had a going away party for a teacher I work with, Allister. We introduced some American games to Korea and went to an all you can eat and drink buffet for dinner. On the way to the restaurant we convinced a guy to let Greg drive a forklift! A good time was had by all.

I Am Famous!

2007-04-11T09:14:00.000-04:00

It's true, I am now famous in Korea. A picture of me teaching class appeared in the newspaper Veritas. The picture of the Korean man to the right is the owner of the academy I work. I have no idea what the article says, but it's cool anyway.

Korean Cuisine

2007-03-26T23:01:00.000-04:00

I have really enjoyed Korean Cuisine. If you like spicy, seafood and vegetables, you will enjoy it as well. It was tough at first because I could barely pronounce Korean let alone did I know what I was ordering, but after a few trial and errors I have found some favorite dishes.

This is my favorite dish, it is called "Ojino Duck Bop", it is Squid, with vegetables cooked in cayenne pepper and grape seed oil.

With every meal you get appetizers, they will change a little from meal to meal, but these are some of the most common. In the middle is the famous Kimchi - its cabbage pickled in vinegar and cayenne pepper. Above it are some kind of anchovies, to the left is some kind of spinach either cooked or pickled. Then we have cucumber pickled with vinegar and cayenne pepper and next to that is radish, also pickled. The soup is anchovy broth with green onions, which is Excellent.

My Apartment 2

2007-02-21T07:49:00.000-05:00

Since everyone seems to be infatuated with my apartment, I decided to snap a few more pics. My apartment is fairly small, but I am only one man and I don't own a lot of stuff (as you can see) so it works out just fine. Hopefully, this will clear up any questions.

My porchish thing is through the sliding doors, its really more of a 3.5 season porch. It isn't heated, but it is totally enclosed with windows - like a green house. I keep my dresser, hanging rack and washer out their. And yes, I am watching some movie with Kristen Dunst in it, they show a lot of American films on tv.

I do have a shower, the entire bathroom is tile and there is a shower head on the wall above the door.

My kitchen is sufficient. Koreans don't use ovens, but I do have a toaster oven and lots of chopsticks.

Namhansanseong

2007-02-17T22:05:00.000-05:00

Some friends and I went for a hike at Namhansanseong provincial park located southwest of Seoul. There is a Buddhist temple located on the side of the mountain. The park itself is very beautiful and has small areas of exercise equipment scattered throughout.

*The swastika, which appears in many of the following pics, is a symbol that was used long before WWII, in fact several thousand years before. In Sanskrit, the language of the Indo-Europeans and one of the official languages of India, it translates as "little thing being associated with well-being" or "lucky charm." It has been found around the world in almost every culture, but since WWII, it is usually found in a reverse rotation as compared to the Nazi symbol.

This pic was taken from the entrance of the park. The temple is in the center.

This area is used to burn incense and ask for the good fortune of others.

Great view overlooking part of Seoul.

A pic looking at the main room used for meditation.

This is the ceiling of an area used for meditation.

Around My Apartment

2007-02-17T21:44:00.000-05:00

Here are some more pics from around my apartment building.

Here are what my apartment building looks like. There are about 25 of these buildings in the complex.

There is a little park right outside my apartment.

This is a pic of climbing up to the viewing area in the park.

If you look close you can see some exercise equipment around and under the viewing area. There are little park/exercise areas on almost every block in my part of town.

Here is a pic of Seoul, facing north, from the viewing area.

Valentine's Day

2007-02-14T07:50:00.000-05:00

Happy Valentine’s Day All. Yes the Koreans do celebrate many of the same holidays as we do back in the States. However, there are some differences, for example: generally only the men receive gifts on Valentine’s Day. And yes, I did receive quite a lot of candy from my female students. It was very nice. Don’t worry ladies; you have a day as well, its called White Day. This is the day that women receive gifts from men. Also, we can’t forget about those of us that are single, we celebrate Black Day. Basically, this is where we go home by ourselves and eat 5 gallons of ice cream while sitting on our couches, but, if it happens to fall on a weekend it's usually one of the biggest bar nights of the year. Everything is still going well and I hope to get outside of Seoul a little this weekend. Talk to you soon.

I'm Really Here in Seoul, South Korea

2007-02-05T21:15:00.000-05:00

I am having a great time, so far. Seoul is a beautiful city, I love the food and the job is ok aswell. I finally got all my furniture moved in my apartment and the internet hooked up, I am ready to go. My job is pretty sweet, the cirriculum and lessons plans are already done, all I do is teach and grade. Most of the teachers I work with are Americans, we have a great group of people who watch out for each other. I will be posting as much as I can, but for the most part I won't be leaving Seoul often. Whenever I have new pictures I will post them. Here are some pics so you can get a feel of Seoul. I was hoping for a little more English, but I will just have to get use to Korean. Enjoy!

This is on my walk to work. This is looking at a National Park to the south of Seoul.

This is the inside of a mall in Seoul called Techno Mart, it is 10 floors full of electronics.

This is looking out the subway over the Han River at some interesting architecture.

This is the inside of my apartment, kinda small, but it works for me. It also has a porch where I keep the laundry machine and all my cloths.

This is a picture of the youngest class I teach right now. They are 10 & 11 and very smart!

Istanbul, Turkey, February 12 - June 12 2006

2007-02-02T22:03:00.000-05:00

Last Post

2006-06-05T03:11:00.000-04:00

My last day in Istanbul. Due to not spending frugally I have no more money and now must return home earlier than I had foreseen. However, I have had a wonderful experience in Istanbul and regret nothing. Here are a couple of pictures for my last post. See you all soon.

Dinner with Turkish friends

Scimits - the breakfast of Turkish champions, I will certainly miss

Wondeful view on the walk to class.

Playing backgammon and drinking tea

View of the Blue Mosque from a small cafe

Greece

2006-05-22T06:47:00.000-04:00

We had a fantastic time in Greece. I would recommend all to visit this beautiful part of the world. Ryan and I met in Athens took an over night ferry to Crete spent two nights, then went to the island of Santorini, the island of Ios and spent the last two nights back in Athens. The atmoshpere was great. We had a fun-filled, but relaxing time.

Iraklio, Crete the 5th largest city in Athens, this is the port area

Knossos, Crete where the legandary King Minos, the Minotaur and labyrinth were said to exist

Island of Santorini, an ancient volcanic island that had black sand (seen here), red sand and white sand beaches.

Main city of Phira in Santorini, extremely beautiful.

Island of Ios, a view of the beach area from just outside our hotel

Chiros, Ios the main city on the island, full of night-life

The legandary Parthenon

I spent the day in the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki traveling back to Istanbul, this is a 3rd century church in the middle of town

Egypt: Cairo, Luxor, Aswan, Alex.

2006-05-10T17:06:00.000-04:00

We spent nine days in Egypt following the Nile south then back north. We landed and spent 3 days in Cairo, then traveled to Luxor and saw the valleys of the tombs. Then continued to Aswan and saw the dam. Then we went to Alexandria for 2 days and relaxed. There is so much to say and so many pictures to display I simply can't. Here are some of my favorites.

A great picture showing how much western culture has spread. We needed a bathroom after seeing the pyramids and this was the view on the way out of...?

A faluka (sailboat) ride up the Nile

A top our hotel in Luxor over looking the Nile and a beautiful sunset.

The step pyramid of Zoser.

Oh yeah, we took camels to the pyramids.

The group and the Pyramids.

Temple of Queen Hatshepsut

This is one of my favorite pictures. This is in Coptic Cairo, which the population is Greek Orthodox. Here is one of many graves portraying the great blending of culture. A picture that would surprise most.

Temple of Philea, now under water do to the Aswan Dam.

The Mohammad Ali Mosque in Cairo

Kushadasi, Ephesus and Izmir

2006-04-26T11:13:00.000-04:00

I went to the southwestern cities of Kushadasi and Izmir, which the Ancient Ruins of Ephesus lay. We spent one day on the beaches of Kushadasi, spent one day in Ephesus and a third day in the 3rd largest city of Turkey, Izmir. Kushadasi is a small tourist town and our hostel was across the street from the Mediterranean Sea. Very beautiful, or in Turkish "chok guzel." Ephesus is an ancient city maybe 1400bc, but the Greeks didn't settle until 1000bc. It has a long history of being conquored by the many Empires of ancient Anatolia. It experienced its peak population of 250,000 people when is belonged to the Roman Empire in the 2nd century AD. St. Paul is said to have visited Ephesus and may have even been imprisoned here for a time. Izmir is nice city located on the water as well. We spent most the day at a park on the water for a national holiday celebration. Then caught the sunset before returning to Istanbul, a 9 hour bus ride.

The view of Kushadasi from the balcony of our room.

The view at night.

Ancient theatre said to hold 24,000 people

The famous Library of Celsus

You thought modern public toilets were bad!

Famous Izmir clock

Beautiful sunset in Izmir

Sofia, Bulgaria

2006-04-18T08:18:00.000-04:00

Yes, thats right Sofia, Bulgaria. Located northwest of Turkey, it boarders the Black Sea to the east and is to become a full member of the E.U. next year. It is a very beautiful country as you can see. Sofia is said to be one of the oldest settlments in Europe claiming to be over 7,000 years old. We had a fantastic time.

This is the city center in Sofia. The statue is of Sofia, or wisdom, the city's Patron Saint.

Bulgarians are Orthodox Christians and this is the Church of St. Nicholas a Russian Orthodox Church.

Another part of the city center. The unfinished court house.

Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, built in the late 19th century to honor Russian soliders who aided in Bulgarian independec in 1878.

We arrived in Sofia at 5:30am, couldn't check in until 11am, so we walked around and eventually caught breakfast.

The Beautiful mountains around Sofia, which resides in a valley, is also surrounded by mineral springs.

The group minus 1, the photographer.

Random Group Pictures

2006-04-12T17:19:00.001-04:00

Exchange students at the bar on friday

The group from Cappidocia

Chili bread bowl night in my dorm

Another bar night, maybe a thursday

Western District Istanbul

2006-04-11T07:01:00.000-04:00

I wondered around the western district of Istanbul. It is a very beautiful and often overlooked area. There are many sights to see including The Aqueducts of Valens built in the early 5th century. The Mosque where Sultan Mehmed II, who conquered Istanbul for the Ottomans in 1452, is buried. The defensive walls from the late 4^th century still stand in this area and have a beautiful view from on top of them. Also, there are plenty of small churches, turned into museums, with amazing mosaics and frescos.

More Cappadocia

2006-03-31T19:47:00.000-05:00

These are more photos from Cappadocia. The first is a castle with 16 levels. The next two are fresco paintings from the 11th-12th century, inside caves that were used as Churchs. The last two are from an underground city, which the first two levels date back nealy 4000 years from the Hittite period. Slowly, more and more levels were dug over the years until it now has 8 levels which reach up to 80 meters below ground level.

Cappadocia

2006-03-30T11:40:00.000-05:00

I visited the area known as Cappadocia in southern central Turkey. It is located between two mountain ranges and three volcanoes, thus is has unique geography. In the first picture there are formations known as "Ferry Chimneys.” The rock is soft enough in the area to carve caves in easily, which people lived in until the middle 20^th century. The last picture is of the Church of St. Simon. I went with 16 other exchange students and we stayed in the city of Goreme. For more information on the area visit: http://www.hitit.co.uk/tosee/cappy/history.html

Basketball Match

2006-03-21T17:20:00.000-05:00

This was a European League Basketball game a bunch of exchange students attended. The Turkish team Ulker vs. Madrid. The Turkish team lost 69-71, but it was a great game. The photos are of Luvean (D.C.) and Martinda (Holland) posing for the camera; and the second is of my friends Travis (Virginia) and Rayn (Hawaii). I am sitting between two Turkish students, Burak and Halil, with whom we have been playing futbol.

Beshiktash Futbol

2006-03-21T16:56:00.000-05:00

I went to a futbol game with some of my Turkish friends. It is Turkey's professional league, we watched Beshiktash vs. Ankara. It was a good game, but ended in a tie 2-2. Turkey fans are crazy. Not too long ago, there was a suspension, because of fighting and rioting there were no Turkish fans allowed for Turkey's international team for six games. After this game I can see why, they never sit and chant all game. The entire crowd will boo the ref. for several minutes and throw things at the coachs, if needed.

Topkapi Palace

2006-03-11T09:32:00.000-05:00

I toured the Palace of the Sulatans. It was built when Sultan Mehmed II conquored Istanbul in 1453. It served as the Sultan's palace until the middle 19th century. It has been a museum since 1923. The Palace sits on the North Eastern corner of the old city and over looks both the Bosphorus straits to the east and the Bay of the Golden Horn to the north.

Beautiful Campus

2006-03-02T06:38:00.000-05:00

This is the path I take down to the main campus everyday.

The Superdorm

2006-03-02T06:27:00.000-05:00

The front gate had been closed for construction since I arrived. They finally opened it this week. This is the front of my dorm, the futbol pitch and track.

More Greek Patriarchate

2006-02-28T06:10:00.000-05:00

Greek Orthodox Patriarchate

2006-02-28T05:31:00.000-05:00

I visited the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate for a service on sunday. I went with a friend who is Orthodox and she explained much of the service, because it was all in Greek. It was interesting and I enjoyed it very much. With the exception of the outside, which appears to be humble, the Patriarchate is beautiful.

More Hagia Sophia

2006-02-23T10:09:00.000-05:00

Hagia Sophia

2006-02-23T06:58:00.000-05:00

I visited the St. Hagia Sophia yesterday. It was built between 532-537AD. This was the seat of the Greek Orthodox Patriach for over a thousand years. Because of its size, compared to other churches of the time, it was named Hagia Sophia, which is Greek for "Holy Wisdom", refering to the second person of the holy trinity. This is a massive building with a dome supported by 4 piers. Originally, the chuch's interior was covered with thousands of mosaics, which can be seen in my pictures. However, after the Muslim invasion of 1453AD it was converted to a mosque and the mosaics were painted over. It is now a museum.

Chay

2006-02-20T17:19:00.000-05:00

Check out this view for Chay (tea) and a good conversation with my Turkish rommate.

The Group

2006-02-18T05:12:00.000-05:00

Most of us are from America - Trinity College, Hillsdale College, North Carolina, Iowa University, Chicago - Except the girl in the middle who is from Holland. (We had our waiter take this so it is a little blurry)

Taksim

2006-02-18T05:02:00.000-05:00

Checked out the touristy shopping district of Taksim on Wednesday. It was very interesting, a lot of thin roads and loud shop keepers trying to sell you stuff any way they can. I enjoyed it very much. If you mention you are American they immediately turn on there charm because they consider us to be rich, which is true to an extent, however; I have seen plenty of wealth, especially around my campus. Most automobiles BMW, Porsche, Mercedes cost twice as much as in the States. We wondered through the Spice Bazaar and Grand Bazaar which are impressive, but also expensive.

Arrival

2006-02-17T17:58:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone! Everything is going well. I arrived on time, the only major setback was a gate change in Frankfurt, but I made it just in time. The "taksi" driver had to ask directions to get to my dorm, and even though his only English was "Welcome to Istanbul" he still seemed very nice. I was one of the first exchange students to check-in. Monday night was a little lonely, but I met two roommates, which one is the RA for the dorm. I registered for classes on Tuesday and met all kinds of other exchange students. Explored some of the city today, and just arrived home from a bit to eat. Istanbul is nothing like most Americans would expect. TodayI went to a mall that had three different Adidas stores. I even picked up a cell phone for domestic calls. Hardly anyone speaks English not even the security guards at the front desk of my dorm. So it has been interesting attempting to communicate, but I think I am learning fast. I am having a great time and will try and update this website as much as I can.

My Dorm

2006-02-17T17:40:00.000-05:00