copenhagen

ben & i spent the better part of last week in copenhagen, denmark.  

we were there to attend a conference on international education,

but we also got the chance to explore the city each afternoon/evening, and over the weekend, before returning home.

copenhagen is a beautiful - and very metropolitan - city.  every bar was like a jcrew ad, and every woman seemed to be sporting a lanvin bag.  them danes can shop!

we very much enjoyed walking the streets and watching the beautiful people walk around in their beautiful clothing, or peddle on their beautiful bikes.

they bike wearing stilettos.

the round tower observatory

being 5.5 months pregnant, this made me feel a bit awkward and out-of-touch, but that's ok.  i enjoyed it none the less!

royal danish army officers academy

by the end of each day after walking miiiles of conference and city, my pregnant feet were killing me.  my shoes don't fit like they used to.  apparently when you're pregnant, your feet swell!

nyhavn harbor

this made for the perfect excuse for ben to massage my feet though - so i didn't complain (too much).

dinner at cap & horn, nyhavn harbor

amalienborg palace

this woman was terrified of the guard but wanted a picture with him - backed up to him until she got too close & he cracked his weapon on the ground, at which point she squealed.  ben and i were quite entertained.

gefion fountain

on saturday morning we ventured to copenhagen harbor to view the famous little mermaid statue,

the little mermaid

and then across the river (on a ferry boat, which the captain let us ride for free when it was clear we didn't have the required metro passes - got to love the danes) to see freetown christiana.

christiana

christiana is a self-proclaimed autonomous neighborhood (according to wikipedia).  mainly, this means that the residents buy & sell hashish.  ben and i walked the area and found that, most of all, it is kind of a depressing place.

but walking to and from christiana did bring us past this incredible church, so that made it worth while.

and later on while exploring some different neighborhoods, we happened upon another incredible food market, torvehallerne (which reminded us of the one we visited in madrid), where we enjoyed the most delicious organic cupcakes.

we left with but one souvenir - and yes, it's for baby balkaya, not us!  i couldn't resist buying these viking pj's for my little viking (well, he kicks like a viking, anyhow)... who has now visited 5 countries!

20 weeks and counting down

this sunday was the 20 week mark of my pregnancy... that's half way!  as ben keeps reminding me, now i can start counting down... the end is (sort of) in sight.  baby boy is definitely growing - i'm feeling him move all the time now (though we're still waiting for ben to be able to feel his movements on my tummy), and starting to experience some of the pregnancy discomforts i've been reading about.  it's amazing how quickly you just get used to the sensation of a little body poking around inside of you.

on tuesday we visited a lab downtown for a diagnostic ultrasound - where they checked to make sure he had ten fingers and ten toes (he does!) and measured his head, arms & legs.  he now weighs 400 grams (14 ounces - just about a pound).  the technician showed us his heart and lungs, and also pointed out that it is in fact a boy... so i guess there is no room for doubt!  she was very sweet & assured us that we have a healthy baby on the way.

toledo & madrid

on wednesday ben & i boarded a high-speed train for toledo.  we arrived in 30 minutes (fast!) and spent the day & night exploring this beautiful medieval city.

tolidanas seemed to be a signature pastry of the city - we tried one and it was quite good

toledo street with the santa maria cathedral looming overhead

we toured the santa maria cathedral, where unfortunately no pictures were allowed inside - but it was remarkable!  we also enjoyed seeing el greco's masterpiece, the burial of the count of orgaz, in the church of santo tome - also an incredible chapel, but again with no pictures allowed.

the gothic santa maria cathedral

after walking the city all day, we took a rest back at our hotel before heading out for dinner.  since it was the one-year anniversary of our us wedding on sunday (and we spent that day traveling back to turkey), we decided to celebrate with a special dinner in toledo.  we looked at quite a few restaurants (all of which opened at 9pm) and decided on the meson de la orza - where we enjoyed a fabulous meal.

braised artichokes & calamari

salt cod with potatoes au gratin

after dinner we took a stroll through the old city, ending up at st. martin's bridge - beautiful at night!

the next morning we hit the streets again.  one of our first stops was at a children's clothing shop, maeso.  after walking by it i decided to stop in.  the children's clothing in spain is beautiful, and this shop was no exception!  although the owner did not speak english (and it turns out we do not speak spanish), we were able to explain what we were looking for by pointing at my belly and at several blue items.  soon enough she had a pile of baby boy outfits in front of us, and we chose one to bring home (baby's first outfit!).  she told us, in spanish, about her 3 grandchildren - all boys - and showed us pictures.  i then asked if i could take her picture with the outfit, and after checking herself in the mirror, she agreed.  so sweet!

after walking for a bit we took a rest on a bench in a square facing the santa maria cathedral.  i absolutely loved people watching in spain, and this square provided the perfect spot - though we were a bit taken aback by this girl who seemed to have forgotten her pants...

after a bit more walking it was time to say goodbye to toledo and head back to madrid.

so long toledo

on friday, adam had the day off and suggested we make a trip to the local zoo, one of kathryn's favorite spots.  it was a lot of fun (i am a zoo lover) - especially since the madrid zoo is a medium size (not overwhelmingly huge) and has displays which allow you to view the animals quite closely. were were lucky enough to catch this baby panda, which was sunning itself when we walked by.

we also took in a dolphin show at the arena, which captured kathryn's attention for about 30 minutes.

after the zoo we headed home for naps and play time.  we spent a lot of time talking about the baby in my belly (she wants to seeee it).  kathryn does not accept that the baby is a boy, but rather, insists it is a DURL (that's girl in kathryn speak).  she is non-stop entertainment!

playing kathryn's new favorite go-to-sleep game before bedtime

julianne returned from her conference on friday night, just in time to spend our last day in madrid together.  we decided to visit the reina sofia museum.  we enjoyed the exhibits (especially picasso's guernica) while kathryn carried her 'art' around the museum.

back at home, we were kept entertained in the afternoon by ben plucking adam's ear hairs (upon julianne's request).  these two, like kathryn, are non-stop entertainment.

that evening kathryn's nanny came to watch her while we adults enjoyed one last night out together.  we've really missed having adam & julianne in ankara, so it was a lot of fun to share conversation & laughter over dinner together, just like old times.  unfortunately, i forgot to have the waiter take a picture of us!  next time.

croquettes, cheese & a sampler from the chef

we dined at buganvilla, where paella is the specialty.

lobster with seafood and a duck, chicken & rabbit paella - delicious but so, so filling

it was a fun-filled visit with dear friends whom we will miss, until next time!