I know this much is true:

• The Earth moves around the sun
• Beyonce makes the greatest albums of all time
• Turkey is one of the coolest countries on the planet

And today I’m here to demonstrate concrete proof of that last point. Forgive me if this is a little long… even narrowing down the highlights of a place like Turkey is difficult.

Following Thanksgiving week in Israel, all of us (my uncle, sister, and friends Brian & Andy) fly to Istanbul for three days of exploring.

We enjoy a lovely seaside lunch and then walk along the Bosphorus River at sunset.

We visit many of the famous mosques in town, beginning with the majorly impressive Suleymaniye Mosque.

Our day continues at the Grand Bazaar.

And we partake in another fabulous meal, this time overlooking the Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque. If you’re in Istanbul, you must visit Seven Hills Restaurant for these views:

The food is great too:

A few shots from the Blue Mosque:

Aww:

We visit the underground Basilica Cistern:

And spend a morning wandering around Topkapi Palace and its harem.

Here’s the inside of the Hagia Sophia:

And a sweet shot of my uncle and sister as we cross the Bosphorus River from the European side of Turkey to Asia.

Ummm… can we talk about baklava for a moment?

I am crazy for this stuff. I eat two pieces most afternoons… and sometimes most evenings.

I bid farewell to my family and take a LONG bus down to Selcuk, home of the ancient ruins of Ephesus.

There’s a gorgeous mosque in town (Isa Bey Mosque) and I catch sunset overlooking it:

The next day I arrive in Pamukkale and wander its terraces. Doesn’t this hillside appear to be covered in snow? It’s just mineral deposits and there’s hot water actively streaming down the hill. Visitors are required to go barefoot to protect the terraces.

At the top of the hill lies Cleopatra’s pool. Ancient ruins from next door (Hierapolis) spill over into this natural hot spring. The highlight of my day is swimming among the overturned columns and horizontal pillars.

I walk back down towards the town at sunset:

The next day I hop on a bus to Fethiye and visit nearby Oludinez. This charming seaside town is a hot spot in the summer but the whole area is very quiet this time of year.

So I kick it up a notch by going paragliding! This is totally spur of the moment — I run out of things to do since the town is basically shut down, and it’s a gorgeous day so why not try paragliding for the first time?

It’s quite fun (not scary at all) and I’m in love with this view of Oludinez’s Blue Lagoon below:

I continue on to Kas, another cute village along the Aegean Sea that bustles in the summertime.

I’m here for one reason: to dive to a plane that was purposely sunk as a dive site in 2009 (that links to far better photos than mine). I find the one dive operator in town who is still open this time of year — shout-out to Yusuf at NaturaBlue Diving — and he very kindly brings me down.

My hostel for the night has stunning views of the sea. But I’m one of the only people staying here and it feels eery to be so alone.

The sunset does not disappoint —

The next day I move on to Antalya, a city I did not plan to visit. But I have an extra day and since Kas is so quiet, I figure why not see something else?

This proves to be SUCH a good decision — Antalya is now one of my favorite places in Turkey.

I stay in the Old City and love the cobblestone streets, dramatic water views, and outstanding restaurants.

I take an overnight bus to Cappadocia. I arrive at 5am IN THE SNOW and everything is closed. I’m the only person who gets off at this bus stop so I’m all alone and it’s freezing.

But as I wander around for an hour waiting for something to open, I’m greeted with this view… so it’s not all bad:

Mercifully, an airport shuttle driver sees me and stops, asking where I’d like to go. He very kindly drops me off at my hotel about a 15 minute drive away. I feel terrible pressing the call button, but the very kind manager lets me into my room at 6 in the morning and soon I am toasty and catching up on sleep.

And this isn’t your average accommodation — it’s the Taskonaklar Hotel and the most unique place I’ve ever stayed. The hotel was built into caves along the hillside. How cool is that?! Here is my beautiful suite:

And check out this stellar breakfast:

I am in LOVE with this place! Can’t wait to share more photos in a future post.

After a long nap, I head to the Goreme Open Air Museum to explore some of the ancient cliff dwellings.

And I check out a nearby underground city in Kaymakli. This place is HUGE and goes many stories deep into the ground. Such a cool place to visit.

And no trip to Cappadocia would be complete without a hot air balloon ride!

I am lucky to be traveling with Voyager Balloons, the best in the business. And lucky me: since I am taking photos for them, I get to go up twice!

The first day we encounter really high winds during our rough landing. The balloon sort of drags to a stop in this position and we are covered in snow:

The next day there is almost NO wind and it’s the smoothest landing ever — we glide gracefully towards that truck bed below, and then hover for a moment while employees tie down the balloon.

It’s freezing cold, but we have to celebrate with champagne, right?!

Again, I can’t wait to share more photos from this trip in a longer post.

That afternoon I tour the remaining highlights of Cappadocia: a panoramic lookout, Uchisar Castle, Love Valley, Red Valley, and Sunset Point.

And then my 2+ weeks of traveling around Turkey draws to a conclusion. I head back to Istanbul for two more nights and then move on to the final days of my RTW trip.

I can’t wait to tell you more about my time in Turkey. Each of the places I visited really blew me away and I can’t wait to return… in warmer weather! But Turkey’s pull is so strong that you’ll be reeled in no matter what time of year you visit.