Writing Home

There is LOTS to write home about, I just haven't been the best at keeping up with this whole blogging thing! Let's see…where do we start…

Last weekend was VERY eventful for us…

Friday night I was invited to go along with some ladies to dinner and some shopping.  We went to an area that was a LOT different than the area around here, at the base.  I couldn't believe how much nicer is was, and it wasn't even that far away! One of the ladies I was with said her mission was to make sure that people knew that Turkey wasn't only what we saw outside the gates.  We had dinner at a very nice, beautiful architecture and landscaping, delicious restaurant! Of course, I can't even remember the name of it….the meal I had was chicken kabob with couscous and vegetables…very yummy! After that we went over to an outdoor lounge-type place and had ice cream (a lady after my own heart, another ice cream lover!ha-ha) I ordered a banana split and it was the largest I've ever seen! It came w 3 small scoops of ice cream, banana (obviously), peach slices, grapes (which they for some reason only like SEEDED grapes around here-gross!!!!), some other fruit, covered in a hard shell chocolate …yummy!! We attempted to do some shopping but it was a little too late, and the shops were beginning to close…we eventually made our way back to base and I thought I was safe with not blowing money on shopping and then we stopped at a purse store…..let's just say I walked out with 3 purses and a wallet!! :) No need for any of it, but it was super cheap so heck, why not! haha

Saturday, we took a train ride to Mersin.  That was an experience!! Have I mentioned the difficulty in not speaking Turkish!?!  We took a taxi to the mall (the reason for us going to Mersin) and shopped around….I would liken this mall to a combination of Easton and Polaris.  There were tons of stores, but we didn't buy too much as you can get a lot of the same stuff cheaper at other places. That night they were having "Latin Night" on base and we were supposed to go, but J-Twice was being a party popper and fell asleep! :)  

This was the train station in Adana

The mall

Sunday, we went to Kizkalesi, which is a beautiful beach! I was so excited to FINALLY be going to the beach! We had been here a month already and I hadn't been to the beach once! On our way to the beach we stopped at a place they call "Heaven and Hell"..you can climb down 300+ stairs to go to Heaven, or climb up stairs to go to Hell…we didn't go either way---we didn't want to pay and wanted to get to the beach! haha They also offered camel rides, but we didn't take part in that either. Boooo on us being boring! :) Off the coast of Kizkalesi, there was a castle built in the Mediterranean Sea that is called "Castle by the Sea"…original, eh!? Lol You'll have to Google the story behind that castle, pretty interesting! The beach was beautiful…I loved it! The water was so clear, you could see your own shadow on the ocean floor…crazy! It was cold in some spots, and warm in other spots..very weird…and you could go out pretty far and still not be too deep… it was lovely…no waves so very relaxing.  Next time we go, I am definitely considering parasailing…i'm sure that would be a breathtaking view!

Castle by the Sea

Camels to ride

Mosque in Adana

Monday, I joined a new friend of mine and her husband (as well as a couple of his work buddies) and visited a Mosque in the local area.  They had beautiful landscaping and the Mosque itself was gorgeous! It was at least 94 degrees outside and we all had jeans and sweatshirt jackets on! Just following the customs!  I thought it was definitely worth the experience.  Had a great time….and afterwards we went to a mall and had lunch and walked around…needless to say, Monday afternoon I was ready for a nap!! I hadn't had that active of a weekend since we left the states! :) 

This past week has pretty much been a blur---not that I did anything, it just went by really fast.   I'm volunteering for the MOPS group here on base, so Thursday morning I spent with 15 infants, screaming their heads off because they wanted their mommy!! Lol I also attended a 'spouses club' meeting so that I can get involved and meet new people….in that sense, this base is better than where we came from. but it is TOO far from home! :) Our time here in Turkey has been great so far, and while I may complain about being homesick and not wanting to be here occasionally, I'm certainly glad J-Twice and I are experiencing this together.  

I will try my best to not make the time so long between my posts, but having something to write home about certainly helps! :) You can see plenty more pics on my Facebook page! 

Missing ALL of you!!