Empanadas Out of Cars, Cathedrals Out of Salt

While we haven't really had a blistering pace to our trip, a lot of time has not been spent hanging around the room or typing away in Internet cafes. So I'm behind on this here blog thing, but that's ok. Day 4 here in Colombia today, three nights so far in an incredible hotel in Bogota. We've just arrived back from our day trip to the Salt Cathedral in Zipaquira, a must see adventure for any Bogota traveler. But before I dive into the top new wonder in all of Colombia, let's rewind the tape to Day 1 - DC to Bogota via Miami.

Dani arrived at Dulles airport just after 6am, fresh as a spring chicken. A spring chicken who hadn't slept in close to 24 hours, but a spring chick none the less. I picked her up at arrivals and we went back to my house to finish any last minute packing. 9am came very quickly and our cab was on the way so we kissed Max goodbye, dragged our bags down the stairs, and hopped in a yellow taxi waiting to take us to National airport. While we were lucky that Dani's redeye flight was not delayed, not all went smoothly as I still couldn't find my small digital camera, the little guy that fits in my pocket and is ready in a half second to shoot whatever random scene it might be that captures my eye around the world. I had to give up on looking for it and resign to the fact that my iPhone would need to act as my primary shoot and go camera for the trip. But do not fret for I still have my big daddy Nikon D2H along for the ride! Let's get to the airport already....I feel the need to rush through security so we can sit and wait thru a 2 hour delay.

Siting at our gate in DCA, a quick conversation with the gate agent causes concern as she tells us that we may miss our Bogota connection in Miami if our flight is any further delayed. While this gives us time to sit  back and take care of emails and outstanding work, we do so anxiously, hoping that we can board and get out of DC in time to prevent us from spending the night in the MIA airport. Our flight actually was delayed slightly even beyond the original delay, but luckily Mr. Pilot was able to make up time in the air and we landed early relative to our departure time. It also didn't hurt our chances that the flight from MIA to BOG was about 20-30 minutes delayed as well. We grabbed some snacks (yes, there were gummy bears) and boarded the AA plane full of mostly native Spanish speakers returning home. Now the real adventure can begin.

It took 90 minutes or so from deplaning thru baggage claim, but aside from the wait for immigration, all went smoothly. Looking back, our first experience in Colombia was rather foreshadowing of the trip to come (so far at least) as the process of getting a taxi to our hotel was one done in an orderly fashion with a set price and helpful, friendly Colombians assisting along the way. I say this because my experience with exiting a major international airport and finding a taxi to downtown has been anything, anything but easy in other third-world countries. Cairo being by far the worst experience but even other Latin American cities, like Quito, were not nearly as "tourist friendly" if you will. We had a printed ticket that told us what to pay, our luggage put in a cab for us and a driver that was not more concerned with cheating us out of a few bucks than getting us where we were going in a timely manner. $24,000 pesos was the price - abut $12 or $13 dollars for the 30 minute ride. And yes, they use the USD currency symbol for their pricing in pesos which can lead t all kinds of confusion. But after a few days here, you learn to just cut three zeros off the price and divide by two. That gets you pretty close to knowing what the cost is to you.

Our Spanish quickly came in handy in brief discussions with the driver and would certainly be needed in the days ahead as English is practically unspoken outside of the American hotel. And I'm definitely ok with that - the less English spoken, the more Spanish I learn. We've spent a good amount of time in cabs so far as they are pretty cheap and most of the sights are spread out around this city of 6 million people - few are really in walking distance of the hotel with the exception of a nice restaurant district called the G Zone. As you may have expected, food has been at the forefront of this trip and rightfully so. Empanadas, empanadas, empanadas. That's the name of the game for me! The plantains (platanos), yuca, arepas, potatoes and abundance of grilled meats all come in a very close second. We've had some semi-formal meals which proved to be great ways to get our feet wet and included a slew of fresh juices. Strawberry juice is my favorite but Dani really likes the mandarin and the passion fruit, both a little too "intense" in flavor for me. While our first two meals were sit down in upper to middle class restaurants, we all agreed that street food was calling our names, an loudly! Monday was to be declared Street Food Monday and we made good on our goal as soon we stepped foot out of the hotel Monday morning. Dan and Steph did the preliminary spying - there were station wagons selling empanadas out of their trunks on multiple corners. How do we choose just one? Silly reader, of course we don't choose just one. We choose them all plus the little food cart down the street selling chorizo hot dogs in a big arepa! In case you haven't been able to tell yet, I love empanadas - with beef and rice, chicken and mushrooms or, my all time favorite, simply con queso. No matter what shape, size or filling, they are so freaking good. Sometimes more crispy than others, but I could eat them all day long. In fact, I just may do that tomorrow.

I've gotten so caught up in the details of getting here and the specifics of how we ate that I've found myself in the typical predicament I experience with every single blog post. I can spend more time here finishing what quickly becomes a novella each  time, or I can go play and further experience the wonders that await me outside of the hotel (or hostel) doors. But I didn't even get to tell you about the miraculous views to be had from our cable car ride up the mountain at Monserrate (which was called teleferica, the same as the one in Quito with very similar views), or our tour through the Gold Museum, or the details of how many different ways these brilliant Colombians have of cooking and preparing that fruit, aka God's gift to man,  the plantain. Or how about our trip today into the giant salt mines at Zipaquira to see the fascinating wonder of the Catedral de Sal, an enormous cathedral and church complex carved inside of the earth out of salt? Well. tomorrow we get up early to fly to Barranquilla on the coast and catch a car down to Cartagena on the beach. Perhaps I'll have beach side time where I feel like doing nothing but blogging and drinking? Actually, that seems kinda likely and probable. Here's to that happening! 

This country is no Ecuador or Egypt - it has the infrastructure, safety, laws and security of a much more advanced and even progressive country than I would have expected given the average person's perception of Colombia and South America as a whole. This is a pretty modern city and country and, so far, is one that has left me wanting more, more, more (empanadas)!

Back to South America I Happily Go

In 12 hours, I will be pulling up to DCA in a taxi, ready to take on my next big adventure. I am tremendously excited to be going back to South America tomorrow. Colombia to be exact. A country that fascinates me in more ways than one. I'm not sure if there is really a true pattern to my traveling, because countries are often selected based on the best airfare deal to be had, but I have a strong desire to visit, photograph, eat and see countries that are not on the average American's checklist, are seen as a tad bit dangerous, are full of natural beauty and, last but not least, have the ability to provide for endless delicious meals. Colombia definitely fits that bill - bring it on!

Food grabs the first focus of this trip, especially since I'll be traveling with my good friend, amateur chef and food blogger Dan Tompkins (aka Kitchen Geeking). I've written on WeLoveDC.com a few times about our epic local food journies and we also have a history of tasting the best ethnic food each city around the US has to offer when we traveled domestically. But this time, for the first time ever, we get to take our culinary foodventure abroad. It is not by chance that we chose a Latin country, the home of the empanada. Empanadas, arepas, platanos...I am so hungry I can't stand it. We are happily joined by my quickly-becoming-an-ethnic-foodie-and-lover-of-plantains girlfriend Danielle as well as Dan's fellow foodie friend Stephanie (who Dan refers to as #TheQuietOne). Nobody is going hungry on this trip, that is for sure.

True to style, only the infrastructure for the trip is already planned and reserved. The details and internal travels are yet to be solidified and will be based on some great local advice as well as anyone we happen to have a conversation with on the street or in a bar. Or more likely, in a restauarant (or food cart?). While my Spanish is nowhere near what I want it to be, I have a feeling I'm the translator for this trip. Let me apologize in advance, Colombia - please bear with me.

We fly to the cosmopolitan capital of Bogota tomorrow (via Miami) and have reserved 4 nights in a super fancy hotel which happened to be super cheap because of hotel points. It's supposedly one of the best in Colombia so I'll be traveling just slightly differently from my previous South American adventure in which I slept on concrete beds in 100 degree hostels that only had cold water. But regardless of 0 star hotels or 5 star hotels, my goal of experiencing the culture, food, people and sights of the country will absolutely be realized. It just may be in comfort this time, that's all. After Bogota, we hope to get flights to Cartagena on the coast to enjoy a historic colonial town and a little white sand beach time. A lot of delicious fun awaits and you can bet there will be something new on the menu at Pound in the coming months!

Well, packing is calling. I've got the iPad with me on this trip so chances are good that pictures and blog posts will be frequent. Adios.

Karl

From Istanbul to Athens and Beyond

This is one of those posts where it's impossible for me to take the time I need to adequately describe the last few days. Since visiting Asia, I've explored more of Istanbul by foot, flown to Athens, Greece, visited and hiked to the Parthenon and the Acropolis and all of the surrounding temples and monuments, sailed off to a nearby Greek island called Aegina, spoken with countless locals in little cafes, taken a very brisk swim in the Aegean Sea after jumping off nearby volcanic cliffs, had dinner at a restaurant on top of a tall hotel with the absolute best possible view of the Parthenon at night (most amazing dinner view I've ever had), danced in a couple of crazy Greek nightclubs in Athens until 2am (including one with a live techno "band"), and now, as of today, walked through thousands of Greeks loudly protesting the restrictions placed on the country by the IMF bailout terms. All that in really less than 72 hours.

Right now Athens is getting major international attention as parts of the city are supposedly on fire. Even a few protestors have died either in clashes with police or because of the fire. Riots have broken out and people are smahsing bank windows. Fortunately, life is relatively sane where I am right now. I'm in an internet cafe in the Plaka, a big, historic bazaar and market like area with endless picturesque cafes and little shops. We are all safe but the mass labor strikes have shut down the airport and ferry docks today. My friends were not able to fly out today so they were able to spend another day exploring the city, but the strike has not been quite so kind to me. I am unable to get out of the city today so my Mykonos plans are now on hold. If the ferries are running tomorrow, then I will be able to sail away to Mykonos tomorrow and have just one night to spend there (it is a 5 hour ferry each way from Port of Piraeus), which is fine with me as long as the docks are open tomorrow.

I have so many pictures from both incredible countries and I am really excited after getting a little look at some of them. Some of them came out really well! I can't wait to share them with everyone. There is so much to tell from these experiences over the last few days but I certainly don't have the time to expand on them now. So I will leave you all with a few choice pictures of mine. Many more are on Facebook, and a few thousand will be coming to Flickr when I get back.

OH, and how could I forget. The gyros are ridiculously delicious! I've had two so far for snacks, more to come for sure. Bye!

I Went to Asia for Lunch

A thousand and one sayings could have captured the last few days here in Turkey, but the level of excitement I've had to cross over the Bosphorus into my 5th continent, Asia, absolutely takes the cake. So much so that it's become a big running joke amongst the group. Well today my friends...my dream became a reality. I WENT TO ASIA! After a very eventful yet incredibly stressful and disappointing day yesterday, today more than made up for it.

Claire, Mary, Dana and I hired a driver to take us over to the Asia side of Turkey and up the coast of the Bosphorus to the mouth of the Black Sea. Because it sounds just so damn cool to say, I went to Asia for lunch. Lunch that was sitting just feet from the Bosphorus and consisted of Turbot fish that was brought off the ship earlier that morning. After lunch, we set off on foot up the steep hill to the castle in the town. The last few days I've walked probably 15 miles and biked a few more on top of that (all up hill) so today's hike left me in a little pain, but it was well, well worth it. The views as we approached the castle were comparable to some of the best I've ever seen around the world. And as we crested, we were treated to an amazing open view of the mout of the Black Sea. I can only hope the pictures (which were numerous) do it any justice at all. We all could not stop remarking on just how damn beautiful it was. I checked off a lot of boxes today...Asia, the Black Sea, fresh Turkish fish and a cruise on the Bosphorus - which came on the way back. Our journey back was a liesruely 90 minute boat trip on a ferry that was much improved over our transportation to the Princes' Islands yesterday.

Exhaustion would be an understatement to describe my state right now. I'm sitting in "net club", probably the largest internet cafe I've ever been to. It's hot as hell in here and there is Turkish music blaring. But all is right with the world...for I went to Asia.


(I leave you with a quick shot of a mosque in the sunset last night from the water)

Istanbul and Me

I came to Istanbul kind of expecting a lighter version of Cairo but wow was that a ridiculous assumption. Istanbul is a modern, bustling, culture-packed city that, as far as massive primarily-Muslim cities go, very progressive. A city that is split between both Europe and Asia but most commonly associated with the "Middle East", Istanbul has a very noticeable European flare wherever you go. Full of street side cafes, modern and Western clothing stores and a pretty robust mass-transit system and amazing views of glistening bodies of water on multiple sides, you might even think it was a small country nestled in between France and Italy somewhere.

We're only about 28 hours into our Turkish adventure so far, but I have to say that I really, really like this city. It's not surprising since everyone I've ever talked to that has been here has said the same, but people will tell you that about everywhere they go. I've already decided I would like to move here, which is something I've said about every country I've ever been to - except Panama. But I really do like the feel, the vibe of the city and it's people. Without a doubt, the food is easy for me to love. Add to that the fact that they have an enormous amount of street food and open shop vendors lining most busy streets with everything from bread, corn-on-the-cob and roasting chestnuts to perfectly seasoned and grilled lamb just waiting to be carved off for your next kabob, and you get a place that I like. A place that I get hungry just typing about. A place I can't wait to get off the computer at so I can go find another restaurant to try. Turkey is way more delicious than turkey. We should have to change the name of the bird out of respect.

Today I practiced what I've come to know as the only real way to take in a brand new city - walk it. Walk all over the place. Up hills, down hills, around hills. Walk along any body of water. Walk through every possible market and bazaar. And that is exactlty what I did today. Killing two birds with one stone, two of us from the group headed out on a photowalk from Taksim Square, the vivacious shopping area located just a few blocks from our flat, all the way down the shores of the might Bosphorous, past a little fresh fish market located on the Golden Horn, over to the Spice Bazaar, through many local markets that were thankfully tourist-free, and all the way up to Sultan Amhet, where the primary sites for the day sat. A few hundred pictures and very, very sore legs later, we sat down at what we thought was just a random cafe to get tea (spelled cay, pronounced chai). Tea in Turkey is a way of life...something most sit down for 5 or more times a day. As we walked to the back of the very traditionally decored Turkish cafe, we came out onto a deck with a stunning view of the Maramara Sea. After 20 minutes of sitting on cushions in the sunshine, looking out over the glistening water and doing absolutely nothing but sipping a phenomenal little cup of mint tea (nane chai), the fantasticness of the moment - and the trip - hit me head on. This was the life. Give someone else a week of nothing to do on a beach, give me sipping tea while overlooking the sea in Turkey.

I've joked that this trip is really R&D for Pound, but in someways I see every trip moving forward in that light. My experience with food and culture from around the world so far have a lot to do with what we serve at Pound and the experience we hope to deliver. I've taken in a few new cuisines here already, sampled a select collection of amazing little cakes and pastries and tried my hand at the ultra-intense Turkish coffee. So far, I like it all. Look out Pound fans, Turkey may be leaving an impact on the restaurant soon! And that's a good thing.

It's time for me to get back to the bustling streets of Taksim Square and find my way down the hilly, cobblestone-like streets to our flat. I have to get back to watch the sunset over the Bosphorous, with Asia just a few hundred yards away, while sitting on the balcony off of my bedroom for the week. But I need one last thing to make this experience complete...I'll need a beer. Luckily, there's a store for that!

Turkey! Greece!

In exactly one week and one hour, I will board my United flight from Dulles (IAD) to Istanbul, Turkey (IST) via Munich, Germany (MUC). As you can tell by the last blog entry, it's been almost exactly a year since I left the country. Far too long! The catalyst for this next exciting trip is my good friend Rod's birthday. He's turning 30 and wanted to celebrate in a big way!

Along with about 10 other friends, we'll be in Istanbul for 5 days - all staying in a flat we've rented there. Because my life has been beyond crazy the last few months between my day job and all the new work associated with getting my restaurant and coffee shop, Pound, to a good, profitable place...my planning for this trip has been severely lacking. But this I know - I'll be in Turkey from Wednesday to Monday and then flying Monday morning to Athens, Greece. Only about half the group is making the second leg, but even then they're only staying for two days. Since the Greek islands are a-whole-nother world from Athens, I've extended my trip two extra nights aside from what everyone else is doing.

So many things to see, do and, most importantly, EAT! I just watched Bourdain's show on Turkey a few weeks ago and I'm still hungry from it. I am going to eat well on this trip! As if I don't on all of them. Right.

Hopefully I will get another update in before I actually take off, and I haven't decided how I'm going to do updates from the road. But most likely, my writings will be limited to the time I can find to hang out at net cafes around the area. I will definitely be taking tons of pictures and will be packing my new, super special Nikon D-SLR!

Now I just need to find the time to get as excited about this trip as I should be. I've got the Lonely Planet Turkey book, so I'm half-way there. TURKEY HERE I COME!