Thoughts....

Merhaba!!!!!!!
Well...it's been a whirlwind of a week.
Last Friday we finally received our household goods!!!!! It was like Christmas...having our comfortable couch and bed, different clothes to wear, a microwave, our TV, the Wii...all the fun things we missed was awesome!!
The unpacking....was not so awesome. haha J Twice got his DVD's unpacked and put away, set up the TV and Wii and thought he was done. In the meantime, I worked my little ol heart out getting everything unpacked and put away. It's time like that in which I miss my 3 story house in DC!! lol
So basically this last week has been getting the house put together (and still not being able to hang anything  up on our walls...we're working on that!).
On Monday, the girls and I took our regular trip to the market and got our goodies for the week.  Afterwards, Amanda decided she wanted to try and find the bead store....it was an unsuccessful trip to say the least!! And all I have to say is, I am glad I was not driving!!!!!!! Turkish drivers are INSANE!! They make 2 lane roads 4...they honk to just let you know they are beside(behind, about to crash into you,whatever they are feeling) you...and basically just make you feel uncomfortable! Since I was not driving, I sat in the backseat(dying laughing, turning different colors-she says) and watched Amanda make her way through Old Adana!! We were very thankful when we got out of there! hahaha
Yesterday, Lori and I took a trip into Old Adana on the Dolmus (their bus system).  It was exciting...this was the first time for me, but Lori had been on it a couple times so she knew her way around pretty well.  It was only 1.25 TL for a one-way ride..pretty cheap! We went to visit the Adana Mosque (Camii **pronounced Jami**in Turkish) again, and then walked around to see what stores they had to offer.  We didn't spend a whole lot of time down there, but are definately planning on going back soon, as we saw different places on our way back that we would like to visit. On our trip back, a school boy was on his way home for the day and was very interested in teaching us about the different places we were riding by.  He showed us an English dictionary they were learning from in school so as we would go by places he would ask us how to say something in English, and we would ask him the Turkish way, pretty cool! Turkish people (esp. children and men) are very friendly, always willing to strike up a conversation if they can!
This weekend we are taking our first overnight trip and we are SO excited! We will be visiting Ephesus, Pumakkale, and a couple other different places so stayed tuned to hear all about it.

7 Weeks

We have been in Turkey now for 7 weeks…and honestly, the time has flown by! I was just telling someone the other day that my first full day here my Facebook status was : current feeling..hate it here!! Boy was I being rude! I wasn't even giving this place a chance, but I.was.homesick!!!!!  So much has changed since then.

I have made friends, I have volunteered for a couple different activities, and we have ventured out to a few places (as you can tell!) I can only imagine that it will get better and our time here in Turkey will continue to fly by. 

A few of the things we have missed in the last 7 weeks:

• Chipotle
• Wal-Mart
• Target
• Panera
• Papa John's (J-Twice) or any pizza from Ohio (Becky!)
• Family and Friends
• Cell Phones
• Mobile Web and Mobile Uploading for Facebook!! haha (Becky anyways)
• Having a vehicle to drive (we joke we will need to take driving courses when we return!) 
• Sunsets on the Potomac River
• The sun NOT setting before 7pm! 
• Cable TV
• PUMPKIN SPICE LATTES!!!!! 
• Being in the same time zone
• Our couch, bed, microwave, TV and Game Systems (and ALL other household goods)
• Our home church
• The English language

But along with missing these things, we have grown to love a few things here:

• Palm Trees everywhere
• Sunshine/Warmth always
• TAVA!!!
• Cheese bread
• Mediterranean Beaches
• Cucumber/Tomato Salads
• The different culture 
• Walking everywhere..haha just kidding..only love that SOMETIMES! :)

These are obviously just a few of the things we have grown to miss and to love, but you sure learn how to appreciate the things you have in life when you don't have  them everyday!!

Thanks for visiting and check back soon! 


Güle güle!!!!!

Gaziantep Bazaar

Yesterday, we went to visit a bazaar...

There hung dried vegetables.

Little boys working designs into their copper-ware..

A lady making a treat...

Men pushing carts of vegetables through the walkways..

Men carrying bread on top of their heads...

And mounds and mounds of spice sat..

Along with all the Pastachios one could want..

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!!  

Hot and Sunny in Turkey Today...

Today is another very hot and very sunny day! It has been 100+ everyday for at least the last week...crazy hot but loving it! I can handle the clear, blue skies and sunshine every, single day...really, I can.  It's the walking in the very hot temperatures that can be tiring and most def. sweaty! haha Today makes it 3 weeks that we have had Turkey as our home....each day seems to get a little easier, but I def. have my days that all  I want to do is go home to the States! The weekends seems to be hard for me, which is weird b/c J-Twice is home, but we usually end up finding something exciting to do.

 Last weekend we tried our hand at a round of golf.  We really weren't too sure where the golf course was but we got on our bikes and made the trek....the LONG trek!!! Not exactly sure how long it was, but it was at least 2 miles we rode to get there and on the way there the left pedal on BOTH bikes broke!!!!!!! I was ahead of J at one point (almost to the course) and I look back and he was gone...at this point I kinda started freaking out cuz we were on an empty road and I wasn't too sure where he went. He eventually came off a side road and said his pedal broke off (his brand new bike) and not 2 minutes later, my pedal broke off the bike I was riding(a very old bike that was given to us)....weird huh!?! So we made it to the course and started our journey of golfing.  I have never played golf before (besides miniature golf, which doesn't really count) so this was going to be interesting!! We only kept score on one hole, and that was enough for me! haha I was about 4 or 5 over par...yeahhhh---rest of the day went the same way! But we enjoyed ourselves and that's all that matters. Needless to say, I will def. be signing up for those golf lessons! At least we look like pro's right...haha

Well.....that was about the extent of the excitement for the weekend.....hopefully this weekend will have some more exciting news...I'm going to look into what trips they are offering for Labor Day Weekend and see if we want to join in on one of those..should be fun, I will keep you updated!!
Talk to you all soon!! 


Güle güle!!!!!

Annoyed!!!

Here we are, STILL waiting on the internet to work at the house!! I guess this is a way of really testing my patience! :) J-Twice found out today that what a superior told him about how to hook up the phone line (which we need for the internet) was incorrect. All this time we have been waiting and we didn't even complete the first step!! hahaha ohhh joys. 


Anyways, not too much has been going on with us.  We are finally getting accustomed to the time change. I am still going a little bit stir crazy without a job (which I can not get until my Visa arrives---thank you Bolling for taking your sweet little time).  I have been spending WAY to much time flipping through the 8 channels we have on TV...stuff is really getting old....but i've also been spending time at the pool and wondering around base to see where i'd like to get an internet connection for the day!! lol (or afternoon, at least) J-Twice is adjusting to work....and PT!! Ha Ha So needless to say, not much has been going on (hence my lack of posts!) 


Hopefully something exciting will be happening this weekend and I will have something good to write home about! 


Keep on checkin' in! :)

We're Around!

Been MIA for a few days since we are in our house and dont have the internet hooked up yet!! Hopefully that will be fixed VERY soon because I am about to lose it with my lifeline!! haha Having to walk across base for internet is only good for so long!! lol Exercise is good, but the pool of sweat while walking there isn't always the greatest! :)

It has officially been a week since we have been here, in Turkey.  I am currently cooling down at Starbucks enjoying a nice, cold Caramel Frappaccino! :) Holla to all my Starbucks lovers!   I spent the afternoon sweating my rear end off at the pool and now I am waiting on J-Twice to get off work so we can make a visit to the commissary (grocery for all you non-military folk!) 

Let's see…….what have we been up to….

We moved into our house yesterday---it is NOTHING like our house we had in DC---I LOVED that house--we sure were spoiled! Oh well---2 years….one week down---roughly 103 weeks to go! haha ((yes, i do have a countdown!) I spent the morning cleaning it and then our loaner furniture was delivered in the afternoon, and yes--when they say bare minimums, they give you bare minimums!! Thankfully, J-Twice's sponsor is allowing us to borrow an extra TV he has so we aren't just staring at the blank walls in the evening. LOL I will be, oh-so-HAPPY when our furniture arrives…we find ourselves longing for our comfortable couch! 

It is customary around here to hire gardener's, maid's and nannies.  Needless to say the gardeners didn't wait but 2 minutes before the guys who delivered the furniture to leave and start banging on the door.  I ignored them and let J-Twice talk to them today when he came home for lunch (b/c yes, they were back at it again today).  I knew J would hire one, because of course it gets him out of the fun work!! (and myself too…no picking weeds for 2 yrs…YES.PLEASE!!) It's only $40/month so why.not!!! They do everything for you. We Americans are very rich compared to them, so we will do our part in helping them to live a better life.  

There are lots of fun, adventurous trips offered here so we are trying to decide where we want to go first.  There are so many options!! We are looking forward to getting out there and exploring.  Don't you worry one bit, I will be posting about each trip! 

Well, I am off to meet J-Twice for some grocery shopping…wooo hoooo!!!! haha I am SO over eating out!!!! This chick needs to start cooking dinner again! :)

Talk to you all soon!