14 Days... You have 14 days to live your life the way you want it to be...

There is something about having a tremendous amount of work to do that inspires me to post an entry. Oh yes, it is called procrastination. Regardless, I am back after another long hiatus. Apparently I am not as good at the regular blogging as I would have hoped... But I claim quality over quantity?

Let's break it down...

Spring Break
After the family arrived, we spent a day exploring parts of Istanbul before heading to the Turkish Cyprus. We stayed there for several days, visiting my Aunt and Uncle. Then, it was off to Cappadocia for several days. This might be one of my new favorite areas in Turkey. Despite narrowly making it through customs control, (Who knew that Cyrpus was considered a different country?!) we finally made it to our cave hotel. Yes, cave hotel. The next couple days were spent playing on the mountains, taking pictures, and making a new friend, Sitki. A local guy, he took us under his wing and helped to make us feel at home. A true representation of Turkish culture, he opened his home and heart.
From there, we headed to Izmir for a couple relaxing days of bazaar shopping and eating dinner on the water. After getting stranded by a boat, trying to rent a car, driving for hours on end, and almost getting lost in Istanbul, we finally arrived back.
Although my spring break was over, my family had another week in Istanbul. We got to see all the big sites, as well as enjoy the small parts of the city that I have come to call my home. My Dad and Cyrus left, and my mom stayed behind for another week. We had to chance to shop, drink coffee and do all the thing that the boys didn't get to spend a lot of time doing.

Since Spring Break
Life has been relatively uneventful. A normal pattern of school and friends has developed, and its hard to break out of the norm.

I did however, have an incredibly exciting visitor. Eric Miller, a close friend of mine from high school has been studying in Germany for the year. He, along with three of his friends hopped on a plane to Istanbul. I was able to spend a good portion of their time here with them. In addition to all the fun touristy things, we also spent a day on the beach. Yes. The beach. The Black Sea to be specific. This was an INCREDIBLE day, including playing in the water, fresh cherries, horseback riding, holding jellyfish and frisbee.

Now
Classes are over, finals start on Tuesday. This means that not having done much school work all semester long is about to catch up with me. I've already said goodbye to my friends, saying that I will see them in a week, when I finally emerge from the library. The good news is that my last week here will be much quieter, with only one project to finish. I plan on spending the time doing all my favorite things in Istanbul one last time. Hopefully I will be able to chronicle these adventures for all of you to read about.

While this entry was severely lacking in humor, excitement and spice, I blame exhaustion.

So instead, I leave you with the thought that perhaps these are things that are overrated. What makes a home a home? Its a comfort in your surroundings. Its a acceptance of norms. Its the routine. Its the love of where you are.

I guess that means I've found a home.