I arrived in France and was picked up at the train station by the host I would be staying with for the next 3 weeks.  The town I was in was called Le Perigeuex vert.  The land was 30 acres of beautiful woodland with a 500 year old stone cottage and barn.  Unfortunately, I left my camera in Turkey and was unable to take any pictures until the last couple of days.  It rained every day that I was there, which made it tough to do garden work.  I was the only volunteer there for the first few days and I worked on building a raised veggie bed, setting up a small green house and turning over the massive compost piles.  

Once the other volunteer, Charlotte (from Australia), arrived, the weather was too bad to do any work outside.  We would sprint outside at the slightest bit of sun.  Instead of gardening, we worked on sorting and cataloguing books that the host, Alex, sells online.  He is a 29 year old guy from London and he moved to this property about 8 months ago to run his book business and enjoy the peace of the country. 

The three of us had a lot of fun watching movies and playing games and trying to stay dry.  We went to a farmers market one weekend, saw a band at the local cafe and went to a few BBQ’s with Alex’s friends.  One night we went to the cafe because we had heard there was going to be line dancing.  When we arrived, we found 12 French people dressed in matching cowboy/girl uniforms doing a line dancing performance for some British people having dinner.  There were more performers than guests...  It was one of the most bizarre things I’ve seen.  They were part of a line dancing club and met weekly to practice.  The dancers were very serious about what they were doing and were clearly miffed when they made mistakes.  After we watched this for a while, the dancers invited the audience to learn a dance, which was a blast.  We then decided we had had enough and went home. 

Charlotte and me

A few days later we picked up another volunteer, Salina, from Switzerland and we went out for dinner and drinks together.

Charlotte, Salina and me

The next day I received news that a family member was very ill and they weren’t sure how much longer she would live. So I decided to cut my trip short and return home in hopes of getting there in time to see her.  It feels like the right decision for me. Europe will always be here and I look forward to returning one day.  I have had an incredible time here and feel fulfilled by the experience I had.  I learned a lot about myself and grew in ways I couldn’t have imagined.  Thank you to those who have followed me on this short journey. Your love and support were always felt and greatly appreciated.

Until next time,

Jake

Stuttgart and Bavaria

Stuttgart and Bavaria 

After leaving Turkey, I flew back to Stuttgart to spend some time with my friend Meike.  It was my third time visiting her since I’ve been in Europe. She is always so welcoming and goes above and beyond to make sure I’m comfortable and happy.  We spent a few days hanging out with friends.

With Susi (left) and Meike (right)

Meike planned a trip for us for the Easter holiday.  We drove down to Bavaria and stayed in a little bed and breakfast owned by one of her friends.  When we arrived we explored a little bit and had some fun.  

Meike's friend, Caro, and me

That evening dinner was made for us and we all sat around drinking German beer and speaking in a mixture of German and English.  

The next day we woke up to a TON of snow.  One of Meike’s selling points for coming back to Germany in April was that it would be warm and I needed to give Germany another chance. Yeah, that worked out...  

Meike rides horses competitively and one of her old horses was at a barn near where we were staying. So we went for a visit.

I've never seen a horse do a barrel roll before

Getting some horse love from mama and baby

Afterward we went out for some traditional Bavarian food

And stopped to admire the view

We were really into jumping for pictures

The next day the snow was gone again and we decided to go see Neuschwanstein 

This is what it looks like, but it's impossible to take a picture of the whole thing when you're there.

That afternoon we drove back to Stuttgart and a few days later I flew off to the south of France to work on another farm.   

Assos, Turkey

We woke up early to make the 6 hour drive from Istanbul to Assos, making stops at cafes and farmer's markets along the way to stock the house.  The drive was incredible as we made our way south along the coast.  We drove through the little village of Assos and out into the countryside where we came to Metin's 2 acre property.  He bought the land with the idea that it would be divided up into 6 plots and he and 5 friends would each build a house there and live as a community.  Currently, only Metin's house and guesthouse (where us volunteers are staying) are finished, but there are two others that will be completed by the end of April.   Metin has a small garden in which he grows olive trees, lettuces and spices and plans to expand it to include more types of veggies and fruit trees.   He also has 5 dogs: 3 Jack Russell Terriers and 2 GIANT shepherd mix.  

Taken from the roof of the guesthouse. Metin's house and in the distance is one of the houses under construction.  All the houses so far are made of stone.

The guesthouse

Our view from the guesthouse

While here, Metin has asked us to just relax and make some art pieces for the property.  With the three of us being artists, we loved this idea.  We also decided to take on the task of walking the big dogs three times a day, which has turned out to be a much greater feat than we had anticipated.  These dogs are literally like horses and have had no training whatsoever, so it's more like we get dragged behind them wherever they want to go.  We have had some hilarious mishaps that really should have been caught on tape.

The dogs: Maya (left) and Horton

We spend most of the day sitting on our deck in the sun coming up with ideas for projects.  Here are some of the things we have made so far:

He has a windmill on the property that he is experimenting with, and he didn't like how industrial it looked. So we painted it:)

We setup this fire pit area in the olive tree grove

Hidden seating area . Im not sure you will be able to see it in this photo, because it blends into the rocks.  We outlined the area with painted rocks and hung lanterns and sculptures in the trees.

The three of us painted this chair white, and then each chose a panel to do what we wanted

An interesting thing has happened since I have been here in Assos.  I have become OBSESSED with painting and I'm not sure where it came from.  I always liked painting, but i was never really drawn to it. But now, it's all I can think about and I want to paint anything and everything I can get my hands on. And I have.  We only have access to a few colors, and it's metal paint, but it hasn't stopped me from using it on wood, rocks and plastic. 

Here are some of the things I have done:

I painted this board that was put up in the outdoor seating area

I painted a few of these metal pieces and placed them around the farm 

More painted wood

One of the days we decided to walk into Assos and explore.  The city is on a hill and at the top are the ruins of the temple of Athena.

Assos

Temple of Athena

The view from the ruins

A typical village home

At one of the dinners we went to we met a guy who lives in the heart of Assos and he invited us to stop by when we walked into town.  He showed us his home and the building project he was working on. He is starting a sailing school and is turning an old house in a school.  We sat with him and had some coffee while he told us some interesting things about the villagers and the area:

• When he moved to Assos 20 years ago, he said the villagers were all so friendly and every morning he would find baskets of cheese and olives on his doorstep.  But in the past 5 years or so, the villagers had acquired a fair bit of money and that type of friendliness stopped.  
• He told us that the tradition houses have two floors with the family living on the top floor and their animals living on the ground floor.  This is because the heat produced from the animals is enough to keep the family warm without having to use another heating system.
• Most of the people now living in the heart of Assos are foreigners and the villagers live in the outskirts.  This is because the government set up a program in which any villager who had lived in the city center for 5 years or more could sell their property and the government would give them a piece of outlying land that they could then build a home on with the money from the sale.  Most of the people moving into Assos are from Istanbul and want to have summer homes in Assos, and they are required to follow strict building codes to preserve the traditional style of the city.  
• The sheep and cattle herders take their flocks and go up into the mountains for 2-3 months in order to become more connected with them. As a result, the herders develop a language that the animals understand and respond to.
• Apparently, Assos is the place from which the gods watched the Trojan war

While exploring Assos, we visited an amphitheater that was built around the 2nd or 3rd century B.C.

That is most of the adventures I have had while being in Turkey.  We have a couple of days left and we are going to spend them finishing up some last projects, drinking tea on the porch and going swimming down at the beach.   I have so enjoyed getting to know Holly and Nick. They have been great fun teaching me all kinds of new terminology and recipes for English roasts that I'm excited to bring home. 

It has been really interesting to be a part of this culture for the past two weeks, because it is so different from my own.  There is still a great deal of male dominance over women in a more blatant way than we see it in the States and it has been an eye opener for me.  While being here I got some first hand experience and every time it happened, it lit a fire in my belly that made it hard not to say anything or take a stand against it.  For example when we have dinner with friends of Metin - mostly men with successful businesses,  Nick is addressed far more in conversation, and compliments of all of our cooking are addressed to him. They presume he must be the head chef and has directed us less-able women. 

Nick's empty glass of raqi is offered re-fills as the men share it around the table but our empty glasses are ignored. But our quiet irritation doesn't last long and we're suppressing uncontrollable fits of giggles. The men are actually very nice, polite and kind to us all. Some show lesser degrees of the subtle cultural sexism than others,and Metin seems to have forgotten the sexism almost entirely, minus the odd sarcastic joke. He also has many friends that are powerful, funny women.  This sexism stems from a long history of a  religious/cultural belief system that women are simply naive and, therefore, could never be as powerful or independent as the men.  The first night I was in Istanbul, Metin introduced me to his mother, who lives in the apartment across the hall.  He told me that this is the custom in Turkey, that the man takes care of the women in his family.  In return, his mother cooks and cleans for him.  I came home one night after dinner and my bed has been made and my room had been tidied.  I asked Metin about it and he said "She loves to do it. And if you are ever hungry, you must go next door and ask her to make you some food.  She would really love that."  Of course, I would never in a million years knock on a strange woman's door and ask her to cook for me.  But it was so interesting to see the way this culture works and that they have found a way to live in harmony. It was shocking to me that most of the women like it this way. 

Turkey is an amazing place that I hope to return to one day.  My host has been beyond generous and I hope he will make the trip to Santa Barbara so that I can repay his hospitality.

In a few days I will fly back to Stuttgart and then on to France!  See you then:)

Istanbul, Turkey

After leaving Egypt, I flew to Istanbul where I had arranged to volunteer on another farm.  I took a cab from the airport across town to meet my host, Metin, and two other volunteers, Holly and Nick, from London.  We had decided to spend a few days exploring Istanbul before we headed south to his farm.  As well as the farm, Metin runs a textiles business, producing fabrics which he sells in two shops/cafes he has in Istanbul. They are called Fes Cafe.  His fabrics have also been used in movies such as Harry Potter and Troy.  He has been the most generous host and I couldn't have imagined a better person to volunteer with.  While in Istanbul he took us to some of the most amazing restaurants and introduced us to many of his friends.  

The first night, Metin took us for dinner with some friends of his at a fish restaurant on the river. He was warmly welcomed by the waiting staff who clearly knew him (as does EVERYONE else in Istanbul, it seems), and during dinner the chef and the owner came to the table to say hello and welcome Metin.This was our first proper experience of Turkish food culture. Food seems to appear endlessly, a platter of babaganoush, feta, olives, breads, almonds in ice, marinated seabass, calamari, spinach, mange tout, butter beans, all cooked in different sauces, all ridiculously delicious. Whenever a dish was empty it was replaced with something new. We had the traditional Turkish drink of raki- tall thin glasses, aniseed spirit which goes cloudly when topped with water and ice.  Unfortunately, I was not a fan of this drink. So I left that area of Turkish culture to Nick and Holly.  As dinner progressed, Holly, Nick and I realized we had eaten everything on our plates before the others had even started.  Eating is much more casual here, the food is definitely more of an accompaniment to the conversation and we had to make a conscious effort to eat slowly and force ourselves to put down our knives and forks every now and then. We were so full, and then were told that was just the starter. Luckily the main course was just one beautifully cooked fish for us all to share. 
After a few more evenings we realized that this is the norm, a huge variety of mainly vegetable meze dishes to share, followed by a small piece of meat and a small Turkish desert, Baklava or Halva, or a strange but amazing sweet melted cheese thing.

Metin

 Fes Cafe

Fes Cafe

Near the cafe is the Grand Bazaar, one of the world's largest covered markets.  There are so many different halls and passageways that I was afraid of getting lost in there! There is also a Fes Cafe in the Bazaar, but I couldn't find it.

We spent one day walking around some of the side streets and were amazed to see some beautiful architecture. We were shocked at how little was being done to preserve it.

After our long day of walking around the city, we stopped to enjoy some Turkish coffee, a drink that

Club Med - Hurghada, Egypt

After leaving Barcelona, I flew to Dresden, Germany to meet my parents for the German Juice Plus+ conference.  It was a fun weekend of health education, amazing people and loud music.  I was so inspired by the product and the integrity of the company and I'm so excited to be a part of that community.

The Lecture Hall. Packed!!!

Once the conference was over, my parents and I flew to Hurghada, Egypt.  From there we drove to El Gouna to stay at Club Med for a week.  It was a relaxing week of sun, beach volleyball (FINALLY!!!), coffee and Bailey's, and crazy signs.  The three of us also read the Hunger Games while I was there and listened to the second one on tape.  We were addicted!  I like the book so much that I decided I needed to try the archery offered at the club.  Unfortunately I was terrible at it...

The pool

The Hunger Games and a pina colada

Beach volley. YES!!!

One of the days we took a trip to the marina in the town. 

 Tok Tok. This is how we go there.  It didn't seem like the safest idea, but we went for it anyway.

The bar where we spent the afternoon

We met some really fun people on this vacation and it was so nice to spend some time with my parents.  There were a lot of Egyptians working at the club and it was really incredible to see how much pride they have in being from Egypt. 

On the day we left. With Mina, one of the Egyptians who worked there. 

BARTTHHHHHALONA!!!!

Hi All!
I have a lot to share from my adventures in Barcelona. It is such a beautiful city and it is amazing to be in the sunshine again! I found the beach and have been spending a lot of time sitting in the sand and drawing.  This is more like it!!

 Barceloneta

 The W Hotel. One day I will stay there

Spanish beach volleyball!

The first hostel I stayed at was a little outside the center, and it was a good place to start.  I met a couple of guys from Argentina who have been living in Barcelona for the past 3 months looking for work. 

Martin and Pablo

It was great to have some "local" tour guides for the first few days.  They took me out to some restaurants and helped me figure out what sights to see when.  They had the inside scoop on when certain museums had free entries and which days were less crowded.  One of the coolest things we did was go to the HUGE flea market. They literally had everything you could imagine there.  We were wondering what these people did with all the stuff when they weren't at the market. 


These guys also told me about the turmoil in Spain right now. The government is lowering wages and raising taxes and the people are rioting.  We were watching the news one night the the police brutality is like nothing I have ever seen before.  Also, students are being charged more for tuition and that is also causing uproar.  There is a protest going on here in Barcelona and tourists need to be careful not to get involved.  

One of the first things I did was go to Parc Güell, designed by Gaudi. 

 The view

 Gaudi's house, which is now a museum

I walked by La Sagrada Familia by Gaudi (I still have to go inside).  It was begun in 1882 and is still being worked on.  Supposedly it will be completed by 2030.  There will be a total of 18 spires, representing (in ascending order) the 12 apostles, the 4 evangelists, Virgin Mary, and lastly Jesus Christ.

As I was leaving my first hostel to move to one in a more central location, I was standing on the sidewalk reading a map and this little Spanish woman, Gloria, came up to me and was so enthusiastic about helping me.  She wanted to practice her english and she ended up taking me on an hour long tour.  of the neighborhood.  We have been emailing back and forth a little bit and I will try to see her agin before I leave.

Gloria

I went on a walking tour of the Gothic area with the hostel and saw the art university Picasso's father worked at and where Picasso attended when he was only 13 years old.  The average age of students there was 21.  The typical application process required students to attend the university for 1 to 2 months and build a portfolio and then it would be decided if they were accepted.  But for Picasso, it only took one week to be accepted.  

I saw the Barcelona cathedral, also designed by Gaudi.

On Sundays a full orchestra sets up on the front steps and the square is filled with locals doing the traditional Catalan dance.

Kitty corner to the cathedral is an architecture school, and painted on the building is a Picasso sketch. The story is that Picasso was in a bar and was doodling on a napkin to make fun of the skill of a fellow artist and the bar tender kept the napkin.  After Picasso's death, the bar tender presented to napkin to the city council.  

The people of the town joke that for an architecture school, the building is one of the ugliest in Barcelona, and they aren't sure if the painting makes it better or worse.  Haha

On the tour, the guide stopped us at an empty corner and pointed out a small, spray painted figure on the wall.  There is an artist called Invader who spray paints the image of a character from the Space Invaders video game in random corners all over the world.  They can be found in most major cities, but no one knows who the artist is. 

The hostel I moved to is right in the middle of everything and was voted the most popular hostel in Barcelona. It is known for being a party hostel and every night at 2am, the staff take everyone to a night club.  The normal time of arrival back at the hostel is around 5 am.  Needless to say, I haven't slept much in the last 5 days.  Haha


This is Bruno, one of my roommates there. He is from Sao Paulo, Brazil, exploring Barcelona for a couple of weeks.

I went to the top of a "mountain" (it's really more like a hill, but they call it a mountain) and saw a 360 degree view of the city.

And two days ago I went to the Picasso museum, which was incredible.  I have seen his work before, but I am always blown away, especially by the work he did when he was a little boy.  I love his Blue Period pieces as well as Guernica.  There was also a video of his process of copying Diego Velasquez' Las Meninas.  Picasso did a series of over 50 studies in preparation that now live in the Picasso Museum.

That is all I have seen so far.  On my list to do in the next few days are the interior of La Sagrada Familia, Gaudi's Casa Battlo, and Montjuic! 

I have loved my experience in Barcelona thus far and have met some great people, which makes traveling that much better.  It's much more fun to share these experiences with others.