Last stop: Paris

We are writing this blog post from our own computer which means...we are home!!! We flew home from Paris on July 11 and are very much enjoying the comforts of home: our own bed, clean sheets, clean towels, laundry facilities, variety of clothing options, milk, water that you don't have to pay for, washroom that you don't have to pay to use and family!! Our flight was just over 9 hours and was a direct flight from Paris to Calgary.

Here's a quick update of our last days in Paris with our friend Leah. On our first day we took a trip out to Versaille and saw the palace, which was so elaborate and full of gold everything, and the Royal Gardens which you could get lost in. Everything was very beautiful but sooo packed with tourists! That night we went to the Eiffel Tower and took the elevator all the way to the top. Seeing as how Donovan and I were in Paris at the start of our trip, this was our second time at the tower but enjoyed it just as much! The views from the top are amazing. We stayed long enough that we were able to see it all lit up. Quite the beauty!! The next day we went to the Picasso museum, Pompidou Center (modern art museum), The Louvre to see the Mona Lisa of course, walked down Champs Elysees (famous shopping street) to get to the Arc de Triumphe and our last day we visited Saint-Chappelle church, Notre Dame Cathedral, the Pantheon which helds tombs of some well known people of the past and finished our day with a boat ride up and down the Seine River. Our days were full but enjoyed every last bit knowing it was the finale to our 3 1/2 month trip.

Thankyou to everyone who came with us on our trip via this blog!!! We appreciated the comments and words from home. So thankyou!!

Here's some pics of our time in Paris!


Loved the pastries for breakfast!!

Versailles

Leah and I with our audioguides

In the Royal Gardens

Us with the Versaille palace in the background

Eiffel Tower

Leah and I at the top of the tower

Eiffel Tower all lit up at night

Leah and I enjoying some delicious pastries in a park

Us 3 in the Louvre Museum

Us with Mona Lisa

Arc de Triumphe

Paris

Notre Dame Cathedral

Istanbul, Turkey

Istanbul has far exceeded our expectations! We have had such a great time here and would definitely return! There is so much to see and the city is really beautiful. Our hostel was located close to the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia which are both extremely impressive. We went to the Grand Bazaar (over 4000 stores) a few times and every time we went, we were bombarded with guys trying to get us to buy their stuff. They were quite convincing with using lines such as "How can I spend your money" and "Now are you ready to buy your Turkish carpet". We would either just ignore them and keep walking or Traci would nicely try to say "No thankyou". Over the course of our trip, we have come to the conclusion that we as Canadians are probably the most polite people in the world which made us easy tagets at the Grand Bazaar.
We also went to a similar Spice Market that was much smaller than the Grand Bazaar and had mostly spices and teas.
One of the highlights while being here was taking a Turkish Bath. The whole experience was quite different because you are wrapped in only a small towel and someone who you've never met is scrubbing you down. The bath also includes a massage while you are all soaped up. Donovan had a male that really worked him over with hard slaps to the thigh and multiple back cracking techniques. Traci had a woman that bathed her so her time was much more gentle but still a little uncomfortable. However, the whole experience was fun and a must do if you come to Turkey.
We went to Topkapi Palace where the Sultan used to live with his Harem. Friends of ours were recently in Istanbul and we just so happened to run into a friend of theirs that works as a guard at the palace (See the last 2 photos).
Istanbul was our second last stop on our 3 and a half month trip. We are meeting our friend Leah in Paris (who we also met in London at the beginning of our trip) for a few days and then we fly home!



Donovan in front of the Hagia Sophia

The Blue Mosque

Traci at the Spice Market

The Grand Bazaar

Turkish Delight


Traci with Istanbul in the background

Donovan chowing down on some corn from a local vendor

Turkish Bath


Because we couldn't take our camera into the bath with us, here is a picture from the brochure.

Basilica Cistern

Donovan in front of Topkapi Palace

Traci and Janelle's friend from Turkey

Donovan sharing a laugh with his new friend.

Naxos

Today was our last full day on the Greek islands. For the last four days we have been on the island of Naxos and spent 3 out of the 4 days just lying on the beach. Seeing as how this was our last chance to relax on our trip, we took full advantage and didn't do much sight seeing on the island. On our first night here, we noticed an outdoor movie theatre in the town and that they were playing the new Indiana Jones movie so we decided to check it out. The theatre was probably the most ghetto place we've ever watched a movie however it was great fun and added to the atmosphere. The movie got 2 thumbs up from us. We have a full day of travel tomorrow heading to Istanbul, Turkey. Mmmmmm....turkish delight!

The sea with part of Naxos in the background

A ruin on Naxos

Traci living it up!

A church in Naxos

We told you it was ghetto

Pumped!

Donovan ready to enjoy another Harrison Ford masterpiece

Naxos in the evening

Us in the town

Santorini

We were just on the beautiful Greek island of Santorini. A lot of the towns on the island are located on the cliffside and buildings are built directly into the side of the cliff. Our hotel was located on one of the highest peaks of the island, giving us amazing views of the sea and the sunsets. On our first day in Santorini, we ventured over to the other side of the island where most of the beaches are located and went to a black sand beach near the town of Perissa. We also celebrated our 3rd wedding anniversary while in Santorini. For it, we took a boat tour to the nearby volcano, swam in some natural hotsprings, went to the neighbouring island of Thirassia and ended the tour with a donkey ride back up the cliffside to where our hotel was located. The donkey ride (and the smell) is something we will not soon forget! Santorini is definitely a beautiful place to visit!

The view from our hotel

Fira - the main town on the island

Traci on our balcony

Donovan enjoying the shade on the black sand beach

The black sand beach

The boat that we took on our tour

Traci on the boat

Donovan on the volcano

The natural hot springs (although it looks like sewage, the brown colour is from sulphur and mud)

Us on our Anniversary

The Greek Island of Paros!

We don't have too much to report as we've spent the past 5 days maxing and relaxing on the beaches of Paros (not to make anyone jealous). The heat has been intense and the water very refreshing...ahhh...
We did take a break from all the relaxing one day to tour around the island on our little rental of a scooter. Scootering around was so fun and we got to see all the sides of the island. However, at the end of the day, our behinds were a little sore!
Our next stop is the island of Santorini and we plan on doing much of the same there.
Here are a few pics we managed to take in between all the suntanning and swimming!!

This is the beach that was the closest to our hotel with the port in the background

Island shot

Donovan takes a break from safe and cautious driving to pose for a picture

Traci posing by our sweet ride

This is a church that we came across

A view of the island taken while scootering around