He restores my soul...

A German, A Swede, A Scot, and An American go for a walk one crisp September morning....
The story that follows is proof positive that all you need to have an adventure is an open mind, an open spirit, and 3TL (Turkish Lira).
Maja (Swedish) Sophie (Scottish) Max (German) and I (American in case you didnt' know) decided to go to the Prince's Island off the coast of Istanbul. So we hop on a ferry and get our butts in motion. Its 9 in the morning and thanks to mosquitoes we all are suffering from a lack of sleep, but we pull it together and try to find our way around. A kind man helps us find the Ferry station and we thank him in our new found Turkish. We all are in the same Turkish 101 class together so combined we are the Turkish Lnguage equivalent of a two year old, possibly an advanced 1 year old.
We get on the ferry and embark on a 45 minute journey to the islands. Every moment is picturesqe, from the soft lapping of the waves against the ferry to the sea gulls gliding at eye level with wings spreak wide. The coastal region of Turkey is nothing but buildings and hills with tall towers in the distance. I cannot wait to explore the Asian side of turkey.
We arrive at Island nunmber 1 but do not get off because at this point we are relying completely on instinct which is a good percentage of adventurism as i'm beginning to learn. You have to just go with the flow otherwise you will stress yourself into a pool of fear on the floor, and everyone will step on you. At Island number 2 we get a strangely peaceful vibe and we jump off and stroll onto the shore. At this point we are obviously in tune with each other because no one complains or stalls we all just look at each other and make decisions.
We stop at a cafe and get coffee and food to warm up as it has started drizzling a little. Once it lets up we begin to explore. We set off down a road not knowing where it leads or what we will do when we find any destination. We just walk, and talk and enjoy the magnificent scenery. If you have ever seen something that makes you stop breathing all together...this was that experience. The water was deep blue and the shore was rocky and steep in most places, but there were beaches with sea shells.
We finally hike down an incredibly steep path to get to a beach where we stop talking and just sit, and soak in the moments. There is not another person in sight of us as we sit on the beach, picking sea shells and listening to the tide rolling up at our feet. It's what i would imagine nirvana to be like, if nirvana was something i believed in at all. Maja and i agree that the peace is what we have been missing in Istanbul where quiet is never an option.
Here there are no cars, unless you are in a casket then they take you to the graveyard in one. Only horses with buggies exist, and bikes. It seems to be set in a different time. The pace is slow, the people all know each other and smile kindly as you walk past. They dont bother you because the understand that quiet is unexplainably essential to those who come to this particular island.
Maja then begins talking about her home in Sweden and how she doesn't think she will live there for any extended period of time. Sophie says she doesn't know where she will live though she would like to spend an extended stay in the Middle East.
I, feeling particularly silly, decided to be honest and mention that i have every desire to travel the world and experience it all, but not a whole lot of enthusiasm for the idea of living abroad for any extreme length of time. Let me be perfectly clear- Its not because i'm fearful or Zenophobic. Au contraire...I love international studies and living abroad is probably the most exhilirating and alive i've felt in awhile. I love Istanbul, i probably wont want to leave when the time comes, i'm already dreading the plane ride back home...but i I love America, and not in a red neck conservative nationalist way. I simply love it, just because of all that it is, all that it isn't, and all that it has the potential to be. It's mine.
anyways coming back to our little story. We explore longer and ask ourselves the deep questions in life such as "what is one thing you would change about the world?" and "who in history would you want to spend a few hours talking and getting to know" and "what kind of animal would you be?" We pondered the meaning of evangelicalism while waiting for our return ferry. I wouldn't say we mingled with the Turkish culture so much today, we still explored it as outsiders looking in, but in the process we found peace...inner and outer peace. Isn't it odd how when you go out not looking for anything at all...you find what you most need?
In Istanbul you find a collective chaos that gives energy but at the end of the day if you aren't used to it, it can drain you. On the islands we found replenishment in the slow easy way the Turks lived their lives there surrounded by beauty and stillness. truly he leadeth me beside still waters!

Bye Bye!