Rila Monastery

My trip to Sofia, Bulgaria included a short day trip to the Rila Monastery, a UNESCO World Hertige Site.  I had no idea what to expect when I arrived at this place, but was pleasently surprised when I walked through the gate.  I’ve got some photos uploaded here, which show off the cool Bulgarian architecture and the colorful frescos.  My preview:

Live from Bulgaria

I’m in Veliko Tarnovo, the former capital of Bulgaria.  It’s a pretty great little mountain town in the middle of the country.  For those familiar with Azerbaijan, think of Sheki on steroids.

Bulgaria has actually been a pretty great surprise for me, as I had pretty low expectations.  I was going to head to the beach, but after I read the rainy weather report in Istanbul, I did a last second itinerary change and made my way to Sofia, where I caught up with a friend that I went to school with at Yonsei in Korea.  It was great to not only catch up, but get to learn about Bulgaria from the local perspective.

So as I’m chillin’ at Hostel Mostel before I head to Romania, I thought I’d post some more pictures that I took from Istanbul.  Check the photos here.  Of course, here’s a preview:

Pics from Istanbul

Here are a few photos from Istanbul.  You can click here to access my flickr account, which will let you look at all of them.  This is just a little preview.  I’ll be uploading more when I get them off of my camera.

Questionable but Awesome

I’m sitting in Starbucks in Istanbul right now.  I got up early and really wanted to just have a seat adjust to my new surroundings with an old friend: Coffee of the Day.

I announced my intentions to visit Starbucks to a friend and she acted like I told her I wanted to see the local Puppy Euthanasia Clinic.  Trust me, I see the point.

I’m in Istanbul, a city that spans two continents.  One that features some of the oldest buildings in the world, yet I got excited when I saw the coffee mermaid above the Starbucks sign.  Am I that lame?  Am I one of “those” Americans?

I say it’s quite the opposite.  I’m so excited to be in a world-class city that has it’s act together well enough to have a Starbucks, that I can’t resist to take advantage of the situation.  I’ve been away from this kind of stuff for two years.  For me, this trip across Eastern Europe is just as much about getting back to the real world (which yes, includes Starbucks) as it is a celebration of my exodus from Azerbaijan.

I’m out

No more countdowns.  I’ve finished the Peace Corps.

I guess I’m just a normal dude now.  Weird.