First Stop Sao Paulo... Next Stop CURITIBA!!!

So this post is for all of my wonderful MG’s that have been reading my blog.  On Tuesday September 25, 2012 my boyfriend Blake Farr… LEFT FOR THE MTC!!!!  I couldn’t be more proud!!  Surprisingly I haven’t really cried yet… maybe its just denial but for now I am just super happy for him!  I think it definitely helps that I am in Jerusalem. 

So on Tuesday I woke up at 3:30am to talk to Blake before he went to bed (him Monday night).  Then the next day I was supposed to talk to him after lunch, before Palestine.  Since I am in a different country I had to use a calling card… and they DON’T WORK!!!  This is the second type of card the center has tried to use so I spent most of the half hour I had to talk to Blake running around the center calling everyone to see if they could help me get the phone to work.  So I emailed him and we decided to talk after Palestine, and then that would be it.  So after Palestine I got on Skype and called him… this is blessing #1.  Here at the center we have horrible wifi the fact that I could spend an hour and a half video chatting with him without any problems was seriously the biggest blessing ever!!  I got to see his face and say goodbye to him and that I would be there when he got back.

I spent the rest of the day trying to stay super busy I played volleyball with some kids, ate dinner, emailed everyone there was to possibly email, and did some homework.  After homework I was feeling drained and about ready to cry so I went to get a snack at the snack shack.  When I got there they had just re-stocked and had DR. PEPPER!!!  It’s crazy how much I have missed Dr. Pepper, it was $2 for a can because apparently they have to import it from Britain but it was TOTALLY worth it… blessing #2!  So I was feeling super awesome as I started to walk back to my room.  A group of kids ran into me and started offering me freshly baked chocolate chip cookies… blessing #3.  Like seriously could this get any freaking better?  I started tearing up and getting squeaky and everyone hugged me it was awesome. 

Me and my British Dr. Pepper

So with my cookie and my Dr. Pepper in hand I went to go find Mikele, she has a boyfriend that has been out for 6 weeks.  We got to chat a little and it was really helpful to have someone right there that totally understood what I was going through… blessing #4.

The one thing that Blake told me before he left was that we would both be blest because of the mission that he was serving… he couldn’t be more right!

This morning I woke up to an email from his step-dad with a bunch of pictures of him at the airport, best morning surprise ever!  I love this boy so much and I cannot wait for him to come home so we can get married.  Life seriously could not get any better right now!!  

Blake with his Stake President and Bishop

Very last glimpse... GOODBYE!!!

I LOVE YOU BLAKE!!! 

SEE YOU IN 2 YEARS!!!

Turkish Delight

So I am in… TURKEY!!! Crazy I know, and I have been learning (the hard way) how rough traveling really can be.

LESSONS LEARNED:

Travel in groups

Keep track of your wallet

Drink from water bottles ONLY in a foreign country
Don't jump into pools that don't have water in them

So the stories that go along with that all…

TRAVEL IN GROUPS:

I decided I wanted to buy a Turkish rug so I left my friends to go to a shop just next to them.  Before I knew what was going on I was alone in a shop behind a closed door.  As I was telling him I didn’t have the money he was asking for so he told me he would give me his card, and as he was writing it he asked what I was doing in Turkey, and asked to take me to dinner…. Ummmm NO!  So we shook hands and he hugged me and kissed me on the cheek and then as I pulled away he pulled me back for a full on kiss... HECK TO THE NO!  Lesson learned…

KEEP TRACK OF YOUR WALLET:

So we stop every two hours because apparently it’s a law in Turkey…  Anyways we always stop at a gas station where we can get snack and what not to tide us over until lunch or dinner.  So I decided to buy a coke, some pretzels, and a chocolate bar at a stop and threw my wallet in the bag that had all my food.  Genius that I am, when I was done I threw all my trash in my bag and threw it in the trash… oh wait… FORGOT THE WALLET…  Yeah didn’t realize I had forgotten the wallet until 2 sites later and the driver had already emptied the trashcan at the last site.  Lesson learned…

DRINK FROM WATER BOTTLES ONLY:

I really hope I don’t have to tell this story because there’s nothing pretty about it… drink from water bottles or distilled water, people.  That also includes brushing your teeth with bottled water!  Thank goodness it only lasted 24 hours for me!  And also thank goodness for Holly and her super, awesome, cool essential oils… She put a couple drops of one of them (for digestion) in my BOTTLED water and I downed it quick because it tasted nasty, but I have been fine since!!  Lesson learned...

DON'T JUMP INTO POOLS THAT DON'T HAVE WATER IN THEM:
So at Sardis there is a gymnasium that was attached to a Jewish synagogue.  In the back of it there was a pool that had been excavated that was about 3 feet deep.  Rosie and I thought it would be really cool to take pictures of me doing cannonballs off the side... I probably jumped 3 times and then on the fourth one I got cocky and didn't look where my feet would land... there was a big rock in the way!  Its actually really funny because Rosie took those consecutive pictures and you can see as I land my face change as my ankle twists... Awesome... but not so awesome at the same time.  Lesson learned...

So there are my lessons… Not gonna lie I am way too lazy right now to give you a play by play in words so I’ll just do it via picture… pictures are more fun anyways right?

Sweet picture I got from  the airplane once we landed in Turkey!

Dinner the first night

This was our guide Jasmin

                                                  

This is Jaquelle and Mister Sparkle the flower... he was our second guide after Jasmin... because of him I was never lost

We went to the Blue Mosque and had fun covering our hair... we definitely pull it off!

Left to Right: Me, Rosie, and Katherine

Blue Mosque

Ceilings in the Blue Mosque

Entrance to Topkapi Palace

2nd Gates into Topkapi Palace

We were pooped after our tour of Topkapi Palace

Left to Right: Me, Brad, Katherine

Steven the Explorer

This is in Anzac where the Battle of Gallipoli was fought during WW1

Roomies!  Me and Madison!

Sweet quote!

This is Brother Bench he fought for the Army for a long time... it was awesome to watch him walk by all the graves with so much respect!

We got to go to... TROY!!

Overlook of the City of Troy

Replica of the Horse... if you look way in the bottom far right window... thats me in the butt of the horse!:p

The Babes of Troy

Left to Right: Me, Mikele, Erin, Aliesha

All of the teachers

Top Left to Right: Invictus, Brother Jackson

Bottom Left to Right: Brother Bench, Sister Bench, Brother Judd, and Brother Schade

The beach at our hotel... and some super exciting things happened here!!

THESE TWO GOT ENGAGED!!!  They have known each other since the plane ride to Tel Aviv and now they are engaged and getting married at the end of December!

It was also Lauren, Ellen, and Cal's birthdays while we were in Turkey so we partied Turkey style with a dance party on the beach and ate this extravagant cake!

This is at Assos... we FINALLY found TURKIES in TURKEY!

No fieldtrip photo album is complete without a planking picture

So close...

I got to help with the restoration of the site... well not really but I like to pretend I did

Me, Erin, and my Sunbeam teacher partner Lizzie!

This is one of the 7 Ancient Wonders of the World!

Ancient Bathrooms... I am really thankful we have separate stalls now...

Library at Ephesus

Huge pillar at the Temple of Artemis

Inside the Ulu Cami (ooloo jami)

This was the CUTEST Black Lab that was at the Ayasophia, he stayed by my side the whole time we were there

View from where the Council of Nicea was held

Inside the Hagia Sophia (Aye-ya Sophia)

So the Turks love roasted corn, they sell it everywhere!  So on our last night Andrew and I spent our last lyras on some corn... it was really underwhelming but we spent some quality time together and with Brother and Sister Bench!

My last meal in Turkey... It made me cry after a couple bites...

Off to the Beach!

Ok so since I last posted…. I know it has been a long time and I’m sorry I’m just having so much fun!!! Not enough hours in the day to post! 

Last week I got to walk under the Center and see all the pipes and the inner workings of the center!  I also got to write my name on the pipes down there... here is my hint to my sibs... when you come to Jerusalem you have to go find my name!  I wrote it three times down there... see if you can find all three!

Skylor and Andrew rockin' the hard hats

close up

So during the week I have classes pretty much all day… in Ancient Near Eastern Studies (aka ANE) we had an orientation test everyone was SUPER FREAKING OUT!!  We were all studying constantly and we were all super nervous studying dates out the wazoo, but he just posted the grades and I got an 85%!!!!!!  I thought I totally had failed it!!  Thank you Professor Stratford!  Once that test was over everyone really winded down.  We also had a test in my Judaism class... I got 100%... pretty good for not studying at all!!

I went to chill out in the city one day and got my first shwarma and coke!

My favorite thing to do at night when I can't go out into the Old City is play volleyball, and as soon as the test was over we started playing again!  The best part is that Professor Stratford plays with us… but when we play volleyball we all call him INVICTUS!!!!  Love that man.  I talked to him last night and he said there is a team we could play at Hebrew University so we might make up a legit team and go play!  Needless to say I am so totally pumped and all my 4^th Ward-ians  (that means you Bro. Chou) had better watch out when I come back to volleyball nights!

So this is INVICTUS!!!  Love the man to death including his super nerdy archaeologist hat with the neck flap in the back.  He has a mean spike though!

So on Sunday we went to Tel Aviv!!!!  Perfect way to end the week.  I spent the day swimming, surfing, playing volleyball, playing on playgrounds, and exploring the markets.  We all had a lot of fun taking pictures on the beach, there were plenty of pyramids pics, jumping pics, and super awesome sports pics… I don’t have a lot right now but I promise I will post them eventually.  We came home totally pooped.  

Some of the girls on my bus! (Left to Right: Katie, Katie, and Erin!)

View from where we got dropped off... Not gonna lie I felt so cultured being able to say I went to the beach in Tel Aviv and swam in the Mediterranean!

Some of the girls made a Jerusalem Sand Castle

Katherine and I in front of a super sweet wall FULL of grafitti

Super sweet view

I think this was an art center, but the walls outside of it were absolutely insane!

This was a rundown Pirate Shack that Jay, Bradely, and I found!

Michael Barlow rockin' the floppy sunhat and aviators!

Oh and super exciting news that came on Saturday… I finally got a calling in my little church branch, I have been called to be the SUNBEAM TEACHER!!!  What could be better?!

So Monday we went on a filed trip, my roommate missed the bus by like 30 seconds and we left without her, but in my opinion she wasn’t missing much and that is all I will say about that.

We visited a Bedouin community that educates and empowers the women within their culture and helps them learn, go to college, start a business, anything!

Ready for the field trip.  Got my fanny pack, my avs, and my hard hat... I'm super attractive I know...

Super cool well that was excavated at Arad... Invictus makes a small appearance :)

Arad

Super amazing cistern I got to go down into and walk through... its was awesome!

So now I am all caught up Tuesday through Friday we have classes.  I had my Palestine class today, which everyone hates but I absolutely LOVE!  The teacher just makes the Islam religion seem so awesome and honestly does a good job relating it to the situation Mormons were in, I just really like the teacher.  And at the end of the week on Sunday I am… LEAVING FOR TURKEY!!!!  I will be there for a week I am so pumped!!!

I am also super excited because as of today, Blake Farr (my wonderful boyfriend) is leaving to serve his two year mission in Curitiba, Brazil in 12 days (he's super excited because his visa came a couple days ago finally!)… and I know he is just itching to leave… you’re so close babe!

Isn't he handsome?!