A Path Unpaved

Meet Mr. Wayne: My New #1 Man

Dear World,

Today is the two-month anniversary of my adoption of Bruce Wayne.

On our initial 10 hour car ride home -- Hi Bruce!

It was a hard decision to make, but yes, I have another dog.
And yes, he is named after Batman (thanks to the BF). He also goes by #BatDog.

I needed a dog with a tough-guy name, and what's more tough than an homage to Bruce Lee, Bruce Willis, and Batman? Not much. So, Bruce Wayne it is. He looks a bit dopey, but he also looks 100% like a survivor -- exactly the kind of dog I need.

Bruce is a wonderfully lazy counterpart. He enjoys snoozing on anything and everything, and the occasional walk/jog around the neighborhood. But mostly snoozing...here are just a handful (of many) photographed testaments of that:

Bruce hates baths / smelling like apples and being near moving vehicles (phew!), loves bones and having his belly scratched, and is indifferent about: visitors, goats, cows, being outside, eating people food, seeing himself in the mirror, and taking pictures with me.

Loves.

Meh.

He is as dark as night, with big paws, too-long legs, and floppy ears. He's almost doubled in size/length in the past 60 days, and I expect him to outgrow his cousins within the next two.

Then: the week before I picked him up (when we first met)

Now: legs for days!

He's almost big enough to go on adventures -- stay tuned (and keep snoozing).

xoxo,
M

#36HoursInTheBul: Exactly What I Needed

Dear World,

Back in December, I flew to Italy to celebrate Christmas abroad with my mother. However, on the way there, I booked myself an extended layover in Istanbul - 36 hours to be exact - to try to knock everything off of this to-do list I put together.

After my semi-failed attempt at traveling alone (while enjoying it) in Malawi back in September, it's safe to say I was extremely hesitant about trying a bite of solo travel just a few short months later. However, I couldn't have been more pleased with my experience!

Istanbul is a magical city. A large majority of the sites are packed close together, and between walking and their metro/train system, getting around is an absolute breeze. I was able to accomplish everything I wanted to from my to-do list (but didn't do them all because I exchanged out some things!)

In Istanbul, I fell in love with ceilings. And walls. And murals. The architecture is absolutely stunning; some of my favorite moments were just soaking in views like this:

And the food! You might have noticed I did have a meal at Burger King (old habits die hard) but I ate the rest of my meals in tiny hole-in-the-wall establishments, which provided me with insanely delicious food without a ton of other tourists around.

I also confirmed that the places you stay when you travel alone can make/break your experience. I met two fantastic guys at my hostel, and while we spent most of our time following our own itineraries around the city, it was really nice to have people to share meals with, chat about life over evening beers, and wish you well for the next portion of your journey.

Would I go back to Istanbul?

In a heartbeat. I might even consider living there for a stint...

but for now, there are so many other great places to explore. See you later, Turkey.

xoxo,

PS: In case you missed it, my Istanbul photo diary is here.

36 Hours in Istanbul: Part One

Hey World,

I'm still working on a text-based post about my time in Istanbul, but I also wanted to share some of the 300+ photos I took while I was there (and captions to help)!

Enjoy :)

xoxo,

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