Istanbul, Turkey

I FINALLY GOT OFF THE SHIP. we went running and screaming down the gangway, jumped in a taxi and told him to take us anywhere.

we ended up at the Grand Bizzare, an outdoor shopping area comparable to the garment district in New York just lots more dirty and hairier men(some were gorgeous, but definately hairier). we walked around all the different shops, had some turkish delights, visited a cemetary, and found ourselves in the Blue Mosque. this place was amazing, i have pics and videos of it but its was breathtaking. really makes me wish our culture had something as significant and moving as that place of worship. it was massive but comforting at the same time. we had to take our shoes off and the girls had to be fully covered and we walked in and it was silent. a man was chanting or praying up front and everybody was kneeling facing Mecca. its like the stuff you read about. we spent some time there, went to another shop and had a dance party with the belly dancing skirts, went for more shopping, got lost in this street that was nothing but shoes, learned how to say thank you very much from a local....phonetically it sounds like tay-shay-khourr erredim...i think. so yeah, we went shopping and i love the way europeans dress, the style and colors are fantastic. also, their hair products smell amazing. we jumped into the taxi ride from hell. this man was drivin 80 between lanes on the highway, honking non-stop, and not stopping for pedestrians. it was crazy. now i'm back on the ship and going to the gym.

god bless you istanbul. matt, we're going there.