After week one in Istanbul (well sort of, half of the time was spent in Sofia, but that’s besides the point), I’ve had a whole lot of ups and downs.

Ups include amazing sunsets, coffee on our terrace, random excursions to the Princes’ Islands, kick ass food, and wonderfully helpful people.

OK, so I know this is going to come across super corny and super cliche but it’s very true…. it’s the little things in life that matter. Everytime I’ve travelled I usually had a good supply of cash, I could do whatever I wanted whenever I wanted. Unfortunately (or fortunately) this is not the case this time. So because I don’t have a few thousand dollars sitting in my pocket, I can’t do all those expensive tourist things and party party party all the time. But hey it’s ok. I’m seeing Istanbul differently that I would if I was hanging out in the tourist area doing only the tourist things. I’m having a friggin blast still none the less.

Here are some things that have made me smile in the last month:

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