Then Home

We got bumped to first class because there was a big school group traveling together and by the time we checked in (90 minutes before the flight) they didn't have any three seats together.

Ella took to it right away. She even sampled some of the caviar.

Ella and Elena were reunited (however temporarily). They started right away working on their Russian Easter eggs.

Russian easter eggs are a lot like American ones, only much fancier.

Final Days

I think Ella is trying to thank Andrew for the trip.
The universal sign for "pick me up", usually without such a happy face though. Such a nice surprise on our last night in Istanbul, we stumbled across one of my all-time favorite restaurants, Wagamama. Originally a London institution, I've now eaten there in three cities, London, Istanbul and Sydney.

They had baby chopsticks for Ella.

She needs a little more practice.

The What Mosque?

We finally made it into the Blue Mosque.
Ella and I got on our mosque attire.

Ella was impressed.

Ella had some trouble understanding why it was called "the Blue Mosque" as opposed to other names that she thought were better (she's really into re-naming things right now, like herself), such as "Red Mosque" or "Purple Mosque" or, my personal favorite the "My Little Pony Mosque." Here's a video of her expressing her preference.

Entertainment

Ella got a little tired of eating out every night.
Not used to so much sun, she kept complaining "eyes sore".

After the Harem tour of Topkapi Palace, Ella just wanted to enjoy the grounds.

She was almost as popular with the Turkish men as her aunt Tiffany.

Cruising the Bosphorus and enjoying the beautiful views.

Aya Sophia

After being thwarted in our attempts to see the Blue Mosque, we headed over the neighboring Aya Sophia, the famous church turned mosque turned museum that was open all day.
Ella and I sort of took it easy.

Then Ella and Andrew went to take naps and Tiff and Diana and I went to the Grand Bazaar. We had a really fun time looking at pottery, silk scarves, belly dancing outfits, and rugs. I found one I liked and brought Andrew back later that afternoon to buy it. Andrew was excited to go to the Bazaar, but after walking around lost looking for the rug store for twenty minutes, he decided he'd had his fill and didn't need to go back. The girls and I found an excuse to come back and so some more serious shopping. Tiff got especially good at bargaining, and at one point manage to trade "a kiss to the neck" for a bracelet (total savings= $3.50). The Turkish men really liked Tiff. I've been to a lot of bazaar type markets and done a lot of haggling, but I've never seen anyone pull off that kind of move. Not bad for a novice. I'll have to try it next time.

The rug we finally picked.

On to Istanbul

Ella and I cover our heads and remove our shoes in preparation to enter what we thought was the blue mosque.

It was nice to be somewhere so sunny and warm and let Ella finally wear her spring/summer clothes.

After exiting the mosque, we figured out it wasn't the blue mosque, but the 'new mosque." We were a ways off course. There are a lot of really big, impressive mosques in this city. We finally made it to the blue mosque, just in time to find out it was closed for prayers. About this time I decided Ella and I needed to head back to the hotel for a nap.

We took some pictures of the grounds and exterior though.

Santorini

After two ferry trips, we arrive in Santorini. It was a little chilly and we had to pull out our coats which I was hoping not to need again until Moscow.

The view from our balcony was beautiful.

The "crib" provided by the hotel was not exactly what we were expecting.

Most of the time it was cloudy and drizzly, but whenever the sun came out we tried to make the most of it.

Tiff was nervous about going on the gondola, but there really wasn't much else to do, so she suffered through.

We spent a lot of time browsing shops during the rain, which Ella really liked. She must have inherited the Haslam shopping gene.

Time to go again. Tiff and Diana had to haul their suitcases up all the stairs.

We hung out on the top of the hill to catch the first non-rainy sunset of our stay. These statues disconcerted Ella, who kept saying, "Let him down!"

The sunset was beautiful, as advertised.

Our ability to appreciate the aesthetics was at odds with our desire to stay warm.

After two days, we were back on the move again, headed for Athens and then Istanbul. Wherever we could, we tried to save money by taking one cab instead of two. Ella loved the company in the back with her.

Good Traveler

We're so lucky Ella is such a good traveler. She doesn't mind a disrupted schedule, sleep deprivation or long periods of boredom, just so long as she has the full attention of multiple adults. Here she is amusing herself while we're waiting in a cage for the next ferry.

In Transit

Ella practiced her "fancies" in between ferries.

With a toddler in tow, we had a lot of extra stuff to carry, like a carseat. Fortunately, Tiff and Diana packed light, so they were able to help out. We started to re-think our strategy of packing six different flights into one trip though.

Ella really liked riding on all the boats and busses and taxis and airplanes. She especially liked it when she got to sit by Tiff.

Our ferry to Santorini.

Ella was looking for dolphins, but finally concluded that they were all "unda da water."

Mykonos

Tiffany impressed us all with her willingness to try new food, like hummus. We were worried she might starve on the trip.

She even tried a little of my fish, though the presentation left something to be desired.

The beaches were beautiful, even if it was too cold for swimming.

We toured the island on rented quad bikes.

We met this really big pelican. Ella kept talking about his beak all night.

We enjoyed the seaside cafes.

Scenic windmills.

Andrew auditioning to be the sixth windmill.

Lovely evening strolls before dinner.

Not exactly ideal beach weather.