what's going on

merhaba!

ben and i arrived back from prague on monday night. we had a fun & relaxing time, spent exploring the winding alleys of old prague, the st. charles bridge, the castle, and much more. we happened to be there during 'wine week,' and got to taste lots of czech, french, spanish, italian, and south american wines for dirt cheap prices. that's one thing i really loved about it- it was dirt cheap, for food & drink especially. prague also offers great international cuisine (czech cuisine ain't all that) like fusion, french & italian... a nice change from turkish. our hotel was convenient, comfortable & warm. the weather was around zero to -5 c, which wasn't bad to compared to the usual -10. there were no lines or waits at restaurants, since january is an off-season for the tourist town. all in all, i think we lucked out on this trip & might just go back some day. i'll post some pics once i have them uploaded.

in other news, since getting back a lot has happened, some good some bad:

:: we have a new president! ben and i watched the inauguration last night via tivo (we didn't make it home in time for the real-time viewing). loved the speech, loved the dress, love our new first family. 'nuf said.

:: speaking of america, we were invited for a dinner of real-deal chicken wings last night, courtesy of good friends serhat & beril. they were amazing (mainly the wings, but serhat & beril too). that was a definite highlight for this week.

:: i've been busy studying like crazy since finding out i have a 2-hr turkish exam next week, which i have to pass if i want to advance to the next level. i think i'll be ok, but that won't stop me from freaking out for the next 8 days. my brain hurts from all of the vocab i've been trying to force-feed it.

:: most important on this list, i'm trying to send all of my vibes of love & strength to a very dear friend who is grieving the recent loss of a parent. i wish i was in the us and could be there for her. this is one of the first times i've really felt the distance from the us, and it's not easy.

that's it for now... more soon.