This episode wraps up a few life updates about language and our experience with buying a bed here. It also covers our 4th year anniversary weekend getaway to the Greek island of Chios just off the coast of Turkey.

Questions for the listeners:

• Have you ever bought a brand new bed?
• What is your anniversary tradition?
• Have you been to Chios? If so, what did you love there?

Listen to Episode050 and let us know what you think! Links are below!

3rd Anniversary Travels to Cyprus – Episode030

Recent 4th Anniversary Travels: Chios, Greece

Bus company we should have reserved tickets on if the website worked…

Our Airbnb – Our sign up code for a discount off your first stay!

Hatzelenis Tours – Car rentals

Larimar Boutique Hotel in Cesme

Mastic Museum

Volcanic Rock “Black Lava Rock” Beach

Olympic Village

Lidl Market

Upcoming Travels:

Lesvos

Rhodes

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode009 which explains why we made the international move!

Since we won’t be releasing regular episodes, please join our newsletter to get future updates and news and follow along with daily updates on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. 

Enjoy this? Share it!

Questions for the listeners:

• What podcast are you loving right now?
• Do you listen to any podcasts we mentioned?
• Any final questions for our final Episode050?

Listen to Episode049 and let us know what you think! Links are below!

3rd Anniversary Travels to Cyprus – Episode030

Upcoming Anniversary Travels: Chios, Greece

Catie:

• Modern Love Podcast
• The Simple Show
• Happier Project
• The Happy Hour
• RisenMotherhood
• Marriage Is Funny

Jason:

• Stuff You Should Know (SYSK)
• Hello Internet
• Cortex
• Analog(ue)
• Under The Radar
• Upgrade
• Accidental Tech Podcast (ATP)
• Unbelievable
• Stand To Reason (STR) Ask
• Ask Pastor John
• Reasonable Faith
• Car Talk

Other Random Mentions:

• Steal the Stars
• This American Life

As always, email us your questions and we will answer them in a future episode!

Like this podcast episode? Share it!

Questions for the listeners:

• What are you loving right now?
• Do you use anything we talked about?
• Would you want to have an episode about what podcasts we enjoy and why?

Listen to Episode048 and let us know what you think! Links are below!

Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie- Book and Movie

Hercule Poirot Series by Agatha Christie

Flatlander by Larry Niven 

The Stories of Your Life by Ted Chiang 

If you had not read this, stop what you are doing and go read them! Harry Potter Book Series

Modern Love Podcast

Star Trek: Enterprise

Star Trek: Voyager

Star Trek: Discovery

Postable.com – PS. Referral code! Use my promo code MRCE39SIHU and when you sign up and spend $20 we’ll both get $5 of credit!

Bulletin – Jason and Justin’s side hustle

My Places in Google Maps feature for travel planning  – How-to video

Apps connected to our USA library:

• Overdrive
• Hoopla

Greatest Showman Soundtrack – Spotify Link

Upcoming Anniversary Travels: Chios, Greece

As always, email us your questions and we will answer them in a future episode!

Like this podcast episode? Share it!

Dive into Episode047 and let us know what you think! Links and questions for you are below!

Episode005: When you go to Dubai at the hottest time of the year

Episode005: When you go to Dubai at the hottest time of the year

Dubai

Dubai Desert Road Run – 10k

Desert Safari

Shanghai Chic at the Ibn Battuta Hotel

Audible

Abu Dhabi

Louvre Abu Dhabi

Dates Market

Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque

Tools we used for this trip:

Hotels.com

Groupon UAE

Questions for the listeners:

• Have you been to Dubai or the UAE? If so, what did you enjoy?
• Do you want to travel to the UAE? If so, what do you want to see?
• Would you go on a desert safari?

As always, email us your questions and we will answer them in a future episode!

Like this podcast episode? Share it!

In case you are wondering – Jason’s Monthly Questions:

• What went well last month?
• What was difficult last month?
• What books did you read?
• How were last month’s goals?
• What are this month’s goals?

Personality – Gretchen Rubin’s 4 Tendencies

Quick article about Extroverted vs Introverted

Kombucha found @ Petra Coffee in Kanyon Mall

Migros – our local big shopping market

Next trip!

Questions for the listeners:

• If you have monthly reviews/reflections, what questions do you ask for your monthly review?
• Have you been a victim of a ‘shoeshiner’ scam? How would you handle it?
• What ‘shoeshiner’ scam stories do you have for us?

As always, email us your questions and we will answer them in a future episode!

Like this podcast episode? Share it!

Episode045 is a review of 2017. We chat about the best, worst, and unexpected things that happened to us this last year. There is also mention of future 2018 goals towards the end.

If you stick around after we wrap up of this episode you are in for a treat. The last few minutes gives you a little bit of insight into our continued Turkish via a surprise visit from a friend! While we still have a long ways to go, we are thankful we can at least chat with friends in Turkish.

“If you are moving, then you aren’t traveling…” – Episode044

Episode042 – Weekend travels to Pammukale and Laodicea

Episode038 – SE Asia Travels

Single best thing that happened to us in 2017 

Personality

• Gretchen Rubin’s 4 Tendencies
• Smalley Institute’s Animal Personalities 

What we both read: Red Rising Series – Book 1 of 3 (4th is coming soon!)

Catie got through several books using Audible.

Jason is a runner now! (no link for that ;), but… he suggests keeping with it and listening to podcast)

Catie uses Powersheets for her goals, directions and tracking progress.

Future Goals:

• Long-term planning for our families – financial, etc.
• Jason Monthly goals/reviews throughout the year
• Catie will continue pursuing her travel writing and website.
• Both of us will continue language.

Questions for the listeners:

• Do you do a Year End Review with your family?
• If so, what questions do you?
• Were you surprised how 2017 turned out?
• Do you have ‘family meetings’?

As always, email us your questions and we will answer them in a future episode!

Like this podcast episode? Share it!

First of all, thank you so much for following along on our journey of expat living and travel adventures. We are so thankful for you! Second, Happy New Year!  If you missed it here is our Christmas/New Year Card for you!

Our first episode of the year recaps our Christmas holidays spent in Germany! If you are wondering why we like to jet out for a Christmasy trip around the holidays, definitely listen to our last Episode043. Also, there are a few references to our last Christmas in Germany. If you want to catch up before listening to this one, check out Episode023 and Episode024.

Just like last year, our cousin graciously opened up her home for us to housesit and catsit while she was away. There were a few kinks in our plans, but overall it was a lovely stay. During that time, we also made it to a few nearby cities/countries: Stuttgart, Esslingen, Baden-Baden, Neustadt, Trier, and Luxembourg City, Luxembourg.

Germany:

• Stuttgart
• Esslingen
• Baden-Baden
• The Black Forest
  • Grimm TV Show
• Neustadt
• Trier

Luxembourg City, Luxembourg

5 Ws for Exploring the European Christmas Markets – Your Questions Answered

Other related articles:

Markets in Basel, Switzerland

Questions for the listeners:

• Where did you celebrate the Christmas season?
• Did you travel to visit family? Where did you go?
• Have you been to the Christmas markets in Europe? If so, where?

As always, email us your questions and we will answer them in a future episode!

Like this podcast episode? Share it!

That being said, we are also popping out to Germany again for a couple of weeks and will be celebrating Christmas day there. We are so thankful to be housesitting/pet sitting like we did last year and are looking forward to all the great Christmas markets around the area!

A Simple Advent by Tsh Oxenreider

Last year’s home and decorations

IWAI Christmas Market

Lighting of the Christmas Tree

Markets in Basel, Switzerland

Episode023: When your tickets are in France but you are in Switzerland

But most of this episode is about our weekend trip to the white hills of Pammukale, also known as ‘Cotton Castle.’ Along with our German friends, we made a loop drive covering the ancient cities of Sardis and Philidelphia along the 3.5-hour drive to Pammukale and Hieropolis. On our return, we checked out another ancient city of Laodicea. Needless to say, we have covered our quota of ancient ruin sightseeing for November!

Did you know we have Twitter? We would love for you to follow us there!

Mentioned links:

Tire Market – Felt goods

Glamping Hub

Saklı Göl Evleri

Göl Başı Restaurant

Sagalassos

Isaparta

Antalya

Book and Beer collection restaurant – Varuna Gezgin (Instagram)

Past conversations about daily work life and workflow

REVIEW: Why Glamping is the new way to camp – Our experience with Glamping Hub

Questions for the listeners:

• Have you been ‘glamping’ before? If so, where did you stay?
• Would you go ‘glamping’ in the future?
• How do you keep yourself on task? What helps you to stay focused?
• What secret tools can you share with us?
• Do you make a packing list? What is something you take with you that is unique?

As always, email us your questions and we will answer them in a future episode!

Like this podcast episode? Share it!

Recent Posts:

WRITING: Article featured in SUITCASE Magazine

TURKEY: Day out on the sea lookbook

EVENTS: 2017 Izmir Coffee Festival

Current Series: 

EXPAT: Going Home Series – 6 part series

• The Going Home Series is all about how you can have the best visit back ‘home’. Catie covers both sides of the spectrum to help both those in the native country and those living abroad have an easier time reconnecting and supporting each other.
• If you are an expat going back to your native country, this is for you!
• If you are someone who will be visiting returning expats, this is for you too!

GOING HOME SERIES: 10 thoughtful questions to ask your returning expat

GOING HOME SERIES: 8 ways you can bless your returning expats

GOING HOME SERIES: Expats, 5 ways you can help those back ‘home’ understand you better

GOING HOME SERIES: 6 practical ways to destress your next expat visit ‘home’

Stay tuned for upcoming articles:

TRAVEL: Randevu in Romania

REVIEW: Why Glamping is the new way to camp – Our experience with Glamping Hub

TURKEY: Handmade Lace at the Tire Market

TURKEY: The forgotten gem of Sagalassos

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode009 to help get you up to speed on our big move!

You can also join in on the adventure via Facebook means you will get the first scoop and discussion on new podcasts!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

In Episode040, we continuing sharing about things we are learning and loving in our expat life. This last month was filled with work and language learning. Catie shares some tools that are helping her move forward in travel writing and blogging. Jason shares a couple of new changes in his schedule that have helped him be more productive and enjoy different areas of his work.

And great news! Catie and Jason BOTH have their 2-year visas!

Did you know we have Pinterest? We would love for you to follow us there! Catie creates boards for each trip we take as well as pins recent blog post and podcast episodes there.

Mentioned links:

Powersheets

Catie’s checklists and routines on Google Drive for those who are curious – not sure how helpful they will be!

Not mentioned: Catie’s new tasks list websites and app – TeuxDeux

Bose Noise Cancelling headphones

White Noise App – Our favorite is Autumn Wind

Intentional Conversation Episode

Questions for the listeners:

• How do you get work done?
• What secret tools can you share with us?
• How do you manage multiple projects?

As always, email us your questions and we will answer them in a future episode!

Like this podcast episode? Share it!

Recent Posts:

EVENTS: Arkas Sanat Merkezi’s Landscape of Water Exhibition

Going Home Series: 6 practical ways to destress your next expat visit ‘home’

REVIEW: Touring Bangkok’s Floating Markets with LocalGuddy

WRITING: Article featured in SUITCASE Magazine

Current Series: 

EXPAT: Going Home Series – 6 part series

• The Going Home Series is all about how you can have the best visit back ‘home’. Catie covers both sides of the spectrum to help both those in the native country and those living abroad have an easier time reconnecting and supporting each other.
• If you are an expat going back to your native country, this is for you!
• If you are someone who will be visiting returning expats, this is for you too!

GOING HOME SERIES: 10 thoughtful questions to ask your returning expat

GOING HOME SERIES: 8 ways you can bless your returning expats

GOING HOME SERIES: Expats, 5 ways you can help those back ‘home’ understand you better

GOING HOME SERIES: 6 practical ways to destress your next expat visit ‘home’

Stay tuned for upcoming articles:

EVENTS: 2017 Izmir Coffee Festival

TURKEY: Day at Sea PhotoBook

TRAVEL: Randevu in Romania

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode009 to help get you up to speed on our big move!

You can also join in on the adventure via Facebook means you will get the first scoop and discussion on new podcasts!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

In Episode039, we are back to sharing about our expat life. That means several updates about daily life, getting back into a routine during our 2nd year, learning to love each other better in the midst of change and in a different culture, and a weekend getaway to explore the nearby 2,000-year-old ancient city.

Did you know we have Instagram? We would love for you to follow us there to see daily pictures and stories about what our lives look like in Turkey!

Mentioned links:

Visas – What all do we have to do?

• In the news… Thankfully this does NOT affect our longterm visa application.

Ballet at the Ephesus Ancient Theater – Check out some pictures at this post.

Ephesus in the Bible

Ayasoluk Hotel and Restaurant in Selcuk

House of the Virgin Mary

Grotto of the Seven Sleepers

Basilica of St. John

Car Rentals and our *ahem* many accidents…

• #1 Spain
• #2 Cyprus
• #3 Romania

Intentional Conversation Episode

Date Night to the Suat Taşer Bostanlı Open Air Theater

Questions for the listeners:

• Are you an expat living overseas? Where do you live?
• What does your daily life look like? How did you adjust to going back ‘home?
• Have you ever had to reprioritize your marriage to be more intentional with one another?

As always, email us your questions and we will answer them in a future episode!

Like this podcast episode?! Share it!

Recent Posts:

TURKEY: Selçuk’s Ayasoluk Hotel and Restaurant

EVENTS: 2016 Izmir Coffee Festival

EVENTS: Ballet at the Ancient Theater of Ephesus

Current Series: 

EXPAT: Going Home Series – 6 part series

• The Going Home Series is all about how you can have the best visit back ‘home’. Catie covers both sides of the spectrum to help both those in the native country and those living abroad have an easier time reconnecting and supporting each other.
• If you are an expat going back to your native country, this is for you!
• If you are someone who will be visiting returning expats, this is for you too!

GOING HOME SERIES: 10 thoughtful questions to ask your returning expat

GOING HOME SERIES: 8 ways you can bless your returning expats

GOING HOME SERIES: Expats, 5 ways you can help those back ‘home’ understand you better

Stay tuned for upcoming articles:

EVENTS: 2017 Izmir Coffee Festival

TRAVEL: Why you should use Local Guddy next time you travel

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode009 to help get you up to speed on our big move!

You can also join in on the adventure via Facebook means you will get the first scoop and discussion on new podcasts!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

In this episode, we cover our WHOLE month-long travel through SouthEast Asia with our friends Eric and Ashley. Yes, ALL OF IT! Which means, this episode is somewhat of a long one. So grab a cup of coffee and find a cozy spot and picture us sitting in your living room or kitchen table chatting over our favorite memories. Some of our least favorite things may have also snuck their way into the conversation too. But, hey, what is the good without a little bit of the bad right?

We are still working on some website articles including our fun pics, but until then check out our #funrowtravelasia hashtag on Instagram!

Did you know we have a Facebook page? We would love for you to like our page. Bonus: You will get notified of future updates, pictures, article links, and videos.

Mentioned links:

Couple friend goals: “Friends who travel together, stay together!”

• Episode017 – Our first vacation sailing with Eric and Ashley in Turkey
• Episode024 – Our second short meet up in Prague, Czech Republic over New Years.
• Eric and Ashley’s Website

5 countries we visited together:

• Thailand – Bangkok and Koh Samui
• Myanmar – Mandalay, Inle Lake, and Bagan City
• Cambodia – Siem Reap
• Malaysia – Kuala Lumpur
• Singapore, Singapore

Favs from Bangkok, Thailand

• Chinatown
• Thai Massage
• Wat Pho
• Thai Food
• Jim Thompson House
• LocalGuddy Tour of the floating markets – first ever durian tasting

Favs from Myanmar (formerly Burma) – Mandalay, Inle Lake, Bagan

• Dumplings at Mogok Daw Shan Noodle in Mandalay
• Tea Leaf Salad
• Fried Rice with garlic, green chilis infused soy sauce
• Bagan area temples
• Inle Lake
  • Sky Lake Inle Resort
• e-bikes
• Puppeteers

Favs from Cambodia – Siem Reap

• Popular Residence Hotel
• Angkor Wat – think Tomb Raider
  • Other temples in the area we saw
• Beng Mealea Temple
• Landmine Museum
• Butterfly Center
• War Museum
• Tip: bring clean, crisp, new USD!

Favs from Malaysia – Kuala Lumpur

• HOHO Bus
• Chili’s – yes, the restaurant
• Petronas Towers
• Meeting up with Catie’s old friend!
• Worse thing? Bus from KL to Singapore

Favs from Singapore – Singapore

• River Cruise
• Art Science Museum – Future World Exhibit
• Gardens by the Bay –
  • Cloud Forest
  • Supertree Grove – Light show at sunset

Favs from Koh Samui, Thailand

• Samui Boat Lagoon – our 2 bedroom villa with a shared outdoor living area and private pool
• Scuba Diving and snorkeling
• Jason loved doing nothing
• All you can eat sushi at Sushi Bar by Yin Yang

Bonuses:

• Priority Passes
• Get SIM cards for your phones!
• Uber App

Glad we brought:

• Shoes – Chacos, Keens, Teva shoes
• Essential Oils – Read about what Ashely brought here
• Sleeping bag liner
• More conservative clothes

Read more:

8 fun things to do in Bangkok, Thailand by Eric and Ashley

Questions for the listeners:

• Are you an expat living overseas? Where do you live?
• Have you taken a recent trip that has changed you? How did you adjust to going back ‘home?
• Have you lived in another area other than ‘home’? What did you learn from living in this new place?

As always, email us your questions and we will answer them in a future episode!

Like this podcast episode?! Share it!

Recent Series: EXPAT GOING HOME

GOING HOME SERIES: 10 thoughtful questions to ask your returning expat

Stay tuned for upcoming articles:

TRAVEL: Why you should use Local Guddy next time you travel

EXPAT: Going Home Series

• The Going Home Series is all about how you can have the best visit back ‘home’. Catie covers both sides of the spectrum to help both those in the native country and those living abroad have an easier time reconnecting and supporting each other.
• If you are an expat going back to your native country, this is for you!
• If you are someone who will be visiting returning expats, this is for you too!

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode009 to help get you up to speed on our big move!

You can also join in on the adventure via Facebook means you will get the first scoop and discussion on new podcasts!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

Also, we celebrate our ‘official’ 1 year in Turkey! Jason and Catie reveal to each other their top 3 things they learned this last year. The conversation was a tough one as we talk about stresses of moving abroad and what that looks like for our marriage and relationships with others. Main areas we discuss are intentionality vs. passivity, language, and friends.

And don’t worry! We will get to our SEAsia tour that we took in July with our friends, Eric and Ashley.

Until then, you can always scroll back through our Instagram and Facebook accounts to see updates, pictures, and videos.

Some of our favorite quotes:

The stress of moving to a foreign country...not understanding the culture...difficulty of language, made this character trait come out more strongly. - Jason
Click To Tweet

The short version is: you want to do everything, and I want to do nothing. - Jason
Click To Tweet

The stress of my doing everything probably causes you to not want to do anything. - Catie
Click To Tweet

I caused a lot of my own struggles with my identity... Being a believer in Jesus Christ, my identity is in him... One, I had to find my identity in Christ and two, I had to find another creative avenue where I was helping people. -…
Click To Tweet

I learned how to avoid situations that would force me to learn language, which was not a good thing. - Jason
Click To Tweet

Friendships take a while to become meaningful. - Jason
Click To Tweet

The lack of effort needed for daily life (in another culture) can now turn into for building relationships with other people.
Click To Tweet

People who have lived here many years have more energy to give to relationships because they have lived here longer. - Jason
Click To Tweet

Mentioned links:

Catie’s first print article – Reminiscing Romantic Romania

Jason’s Birthday!

Listen to his last birthday celebration in Episode017

Teos Tur

Listen to our month of Airbnb private room living in Episode018

Enneagram

EXPAT YEARS SERIES: 3 part series sharing what we learned in our first year abroad – check below for individual links

Questions for the listeners:

• Are you an expat living overseas? Where do you live?
• Have you taken a recent trip that has change you? How did you adjust to going back ‘home?
• Have you lived in another area other than ‘home’? What did you learn from living in this new place?

As always, email us your questions and we will answer them in future episode!

Like this podcast episode?! Share it!

Recent Blog Posts:

EXPAT: Interview with ExpatFocus

WRITING: Reminising Romantic Romania

Recent Series: EXPAT YEARS

EXPAT YEARS: Our First Year Abroad (Year 1 Part 1)

EXPAT YEARS: The Truth About Living Abroad (Year 1 Part 2)

EXPAT YEARS: 10 things I have learned my first year as a full-time expat (Year 1 Part 3)

Stay tune for upcoming articles:

TRAVEL: Why you should use Local Guddy next time you travel

EXPAT: Going Home Series

• The Going Home Series is all about how you can have the best visit back ‘home’. Catie covers both side of the spectrum to help both those in the native country and those living abroad have an easier time reconnecting and supporting each other.
• If you are an expat going back to your native country, this is for you!
• If you are someone who will be visiting returning expats, this is for you too!

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big move!

You can also join in on the adventure via Facebook means you will get the first scoop and discussion on new podcasts!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

In recording this episode, a new intro was in order! The other two times we have changed the two will mark our first two seasons. Episode001 – Episode014 will be Season 1, and Season002 covers Episode015-035. And now with a new intro (check it out again!), we have a fresh start for Season 3 starting with Episode036.

In Episode036, we come together to discuss each of our top 3 things we loved about our visits to the states. While some of them overlapped, you may be interested to hear Jason’s #3. This conversation reminisces about all the feels of what it is like to be an expat coming home after a year abroad. Spoiler* Catie’s all start with ‘F.’

In other news, we sent out two emails in our absence, and are welcome to catch up with those here. Also, there are a few blog posts that we wrote over the summer. Click on the ones you want to read below:

And don’t worry! We will get to our SEAsia tour that we took in July with our friends, Eric and Ashley.

Mentioned links:

Cafe Du Monde

Kilbert Gator Farm 

Lake Pontchartrain Causeway

The Cafe

Questions for the listeners:

• What did you do this summer?
• What do you love about the states? Any favorite foods or restaurant?

Recent Blog Post from the Summer:

WRITING: 7 Enticing Cities for First-Time Solo Female Travelers
TURKEY: The ancient city of Priene
TURKEY: Day trip out to Doğanbey and the Ottoman Costume Museum
EXPAT: Foreign Numbers featured on Expat.com

Expat Life vs. Full-Time Travel: Why we decided to become full-time expats
EXPAT: Fun in the Historic Aegean Sea published in Lela Magazine
WRITING: 7 Louisiana State Parks on Matador Network
EXPAT LIVING: 5 steps to help you when the unexpected happened

Recent Series: EXPAT YEARS

EXPAT YEARS: Our First Year Abroad (Year 1 Part 1)

EXPAT YEARS: The Truth About Living Abroad (Year 1 Part 2)

EXPAT YEARS: 10 things I have learned my first year as a full-time expat (Year 1 Part 3) 

Stay tuned for upcoming articles:

EXPAT: Going Home Series

• The Going Home Series is all about how you can have the best visit back ‘home’. Catie covers both sides of the spectrum to help both those in the native country and those living abroad have an easier time reconnecting and supporting each other.
• If you are an expat going back to your native country, this is for you!
• If you are someone who will be visiting returning expats, this is for you too!

As always, email us your questions, and we will answer them in a future episode!

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and look to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big move!

You can also join in on the adventure via Facebook means you will get the first scoop and discussion on new podcasts!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

In Episode035, we talk all our upcoming summer travels. You may remember our friends, Eric and Ashley, from the sailing trip in Episode017 and yet again in our Prague/New Years travels in Episode026. Well, we will tell you all about our new summer travel schedule with them starting in June. I won’t ruin the surprise here, but listen in to see where we are travelling next with them! (Or sneak a peek at the links below…)

What can we say, we kinda like them! #coupletravellove

In other news, we announce that after a year and a half of our bi-weekly podcast, we are taking a break! Yep, between writing, traveling, language, working, and visiting families, we decided it was a good and natural time to rest for a bit.

You will hear from us periodically this summer via email, but our mics will be turned off! This would be a great time to dip back into the archives and listen in to any episodes you may have missed! We would LOVE to hear which ones are your favorites.

We also are talking about some changes. Should we continue the podcast as is? Should we find another couple to podcast with? Should we instead think about doing a short weekly vlog??? Let us know your thoughts on how we can improve sharing our expat lives with you!

Enjoy and have a great summer!

Mentioned links:

Romania – meeting up with our friends from Episode005

• Bucharest
• Brasvo
• Dracula’s Castle

Thailand

• Bangkok
• Koh Samui

Myanmar

• Mandalay
• Inle Lake
• Bagan City

Cambodia

• Siem Reap

Malaysia

• Kuala Lumpur

Singapore, Singapore

Most excited about…

• Samui Boat Lagoon

Questions for the listeners:

• What plans do you have this summer?
• What suggestions do you have for our travels?
• Going to be in Louisiana the end of July or Iowa in August? We would love to see you! Just reply to this email!

Recent Blog Post:

TURKEY: Alaçatı, beauty through a crowded view
WRITING: Summer Activities in Iowa
WRITING: 5 ways to document your expat adventures
CULTURE: Our first Turkish wedding part 1 ‘Kına Gecesi’ or Henna Night
WRITING: Arabian Nights in Dubai

As always, email us your questions and we will answer them in future episode!

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big move!

You can also join in on the adventure via Facebook means you will get the first scoop and discussion on new podcasts!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

Enjoy and have a great Monday!

Mentioned links:

Foça via All About Turkey

Foça via Turkey Travel Planner

Things to do in Foça

Meze and Fish (Rakı Balık)

Turkish Wedding Culture

Questions for the listeners:

• Have you been to a Turkish wedding? What was it like?
• Have you been to a wedding of another culture before? What were some unique traditions!

Recent Blog Post:

EVENTS: Urla Aritchoke ‘Enginar’ Festival

TURKEY: Alaçatı, beauty through a crowded view

WRITING: Summer Activities in Iowa

As always, email us your questions and we will answer them in future episode!

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big move!

You can also join in on the adventure via Facebook means you will get the first scoop and discussion on new podcasts!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

Enjoy and have a great Monday!

Mentioned links:

Urla Artichoke/Enginar Festival 

Alaçatı Mosque

Our Food Lists:

Chocolate Baklava (Catie’s #10)

Lentil Soup (Jason’s #10)

Beyti Kebap (Catie’s #9)

Gozleme (Jason’s #9)

Lahmacun (Jason’s #8)

Düğün (Wedding) Soup (Catie’s #7)

Adana Kebap (Jason’s #7)

Meze and Fish (Rakı Balık) (Catie’s #6)

Izgara Kofte (Jason’s #5)

Stuffed dried eggplant (Catie’s #5)

Mantı (Jason’s #4, Catie’s #4)

Doner Ekmek (Jason’s #3)

Kahvalti – Turkish Breakfast and Sigara Boreği (Jason’s #6, Catie’s #3)

Ali Nazık (Jason’s #2, Catie’s #3)

Kunefe (Catie’s #1)

Iskender (Jason’s #1)

Questions for the listeners:

• What Turkish food to you love?
• What food sounded good to you?
• Would you try any of the food we talked about in this episode? If so, which one?

Recent Blog Post:

EVENTS: INFLOW Travel Summit 2017 in Istanbul, Turkey

WRITING: 5 Tips For Overcoming Culture Shock

HOLIDAY: Cinco de Mayo and Hıdırellez?

As always, email us your questions and we will answer them in future episode!

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big move!

You can also join in on the adventure via Facebook means you will get the first scoop and discussion on new podcasts!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

Also, at the beginning of this episode we talk about how Catie spent her birthday. Jason gifted a conference to her as her birthday gift. On Monday, we both headed up to Istanbul for the INFLOW Travel Summit and headed back to Izmir on Thursday! We completely forgot to chat about Easter, so be on the lookout for that next episode!

Enjoy the Q&A time!
Highlighted questions in this episode:

On another episode, you described your Starbucks mug collection. Do you get a drink while there (or just buy the mug) and if so, what is your “go-to” Starbucks drink?

What is your favorite InstaPot recipe?

How long do it take to get mail from states?

What do you miss most about living in the States?

What is the biggest Turkish holiday and how is it celebrated?

What is the structure of school in Turkey? Typical Turkish elementary school day: what does that look like? How many hours do students go to school? Are there state run and privately run schools? To add to that: at what age do students graduate? Is everyone on the same “track” or are there differences in university or vocational tracks?

How is living in Turkey knowing you’ve given yourself at least a three-year timeframe different than living there for a shorter period before? Like having a longer-term mindset as opposed to a shorter-term mindset.

Are your TV shows in Turkish?

Mentioned links:
INFLOW Travel Summit 

Swiss Otel – The Bosphorus

Few of the fun online influencers I met:
Speakers and Influencers

– Jennifer Tuffen / Izkiz
   

– Anton&Rache Diaz / Our Awesome Planet
    

– Kach & Jonathan Howe / Two Monkeys Travel Group
    

– Alex Chacon / The Modern Motorcyle Diaries
    

– Duygu Şar & Bilgehan Çelik / Biz Evde Yokuz
    

– Harjinder Singh Kukreja / HarjinderSinghKukreja
   

InstaPot

InstaPot Red Beans Recipe

Education in Turkey

Ramadan

Questions for the listeners:

• Any questions we need to clarify from our Q&A?
• What other questions do you have about our expat life?
• What was your week like?

Recent Blog Post:

First Annual Izmir Chocolate Festival

April 23 Children’s Day “Çocuk Bayramı”

As always, email us your questions and we will answer them in future episode!

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big move!

You can also join in on the adventure via Facebook means you will get the first scoop and discussion on new podcasts!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

Also, at the beginning of this episode we talk about a few of highlights in last week or two. Last weekend was the first ever Izmir Chocolate Festival and you can read more about it on our website and check out some photos. On Friday, we had to say goodbye to some sweet friends who are moving back to the states. There are so many good and hard things about living in a transient expat community!

Enjoy the Q&A time!

Highlighted questions in this episode:

How did you decide you wanted to move to Turkey or was a job offer for that spot?

What unexpected thing did you learn about yourself and each other that surprised you?

Are there turkeys in Turkey and do you eat them?

I want to know about the cost of things! I find it interesting how everyday things (i.e. bread, can of coke, gallon of gas, etc) cost!

What is the Turkish money called and what is the exchange rate? How do you exchange your American money to Turkish money?

Do you have a bank locally in Turkey?

Do a lot of the people speak English?

In this episode you hear about our travels to meet some Iowan friends passing through Istanbul. It was a short 2 day trip and we made the most of it. From Istanbul we started our 3rd wedding anniversary celebrations by traveling down to Cyprus.

In no particular order:

Istanbul

• Cisterns
• Ortakoy
• Mall of Istanbul

Cyprus

• Turkish Airlines
• Pegasus Airlines

Paphos

• Hotel – Capital Coast Resort and Spa
  • P.S. – We have been using Booking.com recently for some of our travels and have loved it! By using our link here to sign up, you can get $15 off your first stay(and we get it off our next)!
• Tombs of the Kings
• Archaeological Park
• Paul site
• O’Neills Irish Bar & Grill
• Chloe’s Chinese Restaurant

Day Travel outside of Paphos

• Aphrodite Rock – Petra tou Romiou
• Winery Route
  • Fikardos Winery
  • Sterna Winery
  • Vasilikon Winery
• Monastery
• Avakas Gorge
• Coral Bay – We did not make it here but it is recommend if you have time.
• Shipwreck of MV Demetrios II – not mentioned in the podcast was it was pretty cool.

Biblical references for Cyprus and Paphos

Nicosia

• Our Airbnb
• Ledra Street Crossing Point
• Cyprus Museum – Wish we got to see this!
• Sacred Temple of Virgin Mary Faneromenis
• Dinner – Piatsa Gourounaki

North Nicosia

• Semiliye Mosque – formerly known as Saint Sophia Cathedral
• Büyük Han – Big Market

Ledra Palace Walking Point and UN Buffer Point

• Home4Cooperation and Coffee Shop

Check out our Cyprus Pinterest board that inspired some of our travels!

Recent Blog Posts:

Coming soon… Post about Cyprus – Itinerary included!

Our recent weekend in Bodrum, Turkey.

Our weekend stay in at Castle Inn Cappadocia.

Questions for the listeners:

• Have you been to Cyprus?
• If so, where did you go? What did you find interesting about it?

We are taking questions for our next episode!!!

Email us your questions and we will answer them in the next episode!

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big move!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

Episode029 is here! In this episode you hear about our weekend travel to our friends’ Olive and Almond tree farm spring festival. Jason and I also chat about how our weeks look like everyone else – normal. We have a work schedule that we have actually written out to help us stay on track with our language learning and work productivity.

In no particular order:

19.Tolon Çiftliği Bahar Şenliği – Tolon Farm Spring Festival

Episode004 – Italy and our car rental

Homemade Mayo

Homemade Marshmallows

Turkish Book Jason has gone through

Duolingo

IWAI

Myers Briggs Personality

• Jason – INTJ
• Catie – ESFP

Recent Blog Posts:

Our recent weekend in Bodrum, Turkey.

Quick post about our first trip to Cappadocia region of Turkey.

Our weekend stay in at Castle Inn Cappadocia.

Questions for the listeners:

• Do you have a weekly schedule? Is it helpful to you and getting things done?
• Are you a fellow expat? What does your schedule look like?
• What is your Myers Briggs Personality?

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big move!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

In no particular order:

Bodrum

Albatros Otel – Remember Episode003?

Bodrum Castle – Underwater museum

The Mausoleum of Halicarnassus

Ancient Amphitheater 

New 7 Wonders vs. Ancient 7 Wonders

Buddhas of Bamiyan – actually a UNESCO sight

La Pasion Restaurant

Bafa Lake

Çeri Restaurant – Instagram

Recent Blog Posts:

Quick post about our first trip to Cappadocia region of Turkey.

Our weekend stay in at Castle Inn Cappadocia.

Questions for the listeners:

• Have you traveled to Bodrum?
• What are your favorite places to visit when you go someplace new?

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big move!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

Episode027 has a special guest! Meet Suat Ulusoy, manager/owner of Castle Inn Cappadocia in Ortahisar, Turkey. You will hear about our experience staying at his inn, but also a ton of great stores about his other profession as a hot air balloon pilot. He is a great storyteller and we hope you love him as much as we do!

In no particular order:

Castle Inn Cappadocia

Royal Air Balloons

Ürgüp Balloons

Captivating Cappadocia

 Blog Posts:

Quick post about our first trip to Cappadocia region of Turkey.

Our review of our stay at Castle Inn Cappadocia

Questions for the listeners:

• Have you traveled to Cappadocia before? Are you planning to go?
• What did you love about your visit to Cappadocia?
• Have you been on a hot air balloon flight?

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big move!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

[DISCLAIMER: We were not paid for this podcast. I did received a media rate from the Inn as a blogger. After our stay, I trust the owner, Suat, and am happy to recommend his hotel. One of the purposes of our website is to highlight Turkey, the local people, and try to help their businesses. At the same time we take the trust we have with our readers very seriously and will not recommend businesses/activities we do not think our readers will enjoy regardless of the friendship we create along the way.]

In this episode you will hear about the end of our #funkchristmas2016 tour – Prague, Czech Republic! You can listen to part 1 and part 2 and/or read part 1 blog post about how we decided to go . To be clear  about the title of this podcast, the only thing we have in common is our love for Prague! It was said that Hilter loved the city of Prague, and wanted to make the Jewish Quarter somewhat of a museum of the historical Jews in his future empire. Even though the quarters were more or less preserved, the people unfortunately were not. And we all know how the story ended with Hitler and his awful plans. (Or did they?)

In no particular order:

Prague – with our friends, the Rowells (You met them in Episode 17 which talks about our sailing trip!)

Our Airbnb

New Year(Christmas) Market Foods and Drinks – We may have to add Honey Mead to our Christmas Advent List.

Old Town Square

Monastery and Library with a Panoramic View

Castle

Charles Bridge

Transportation nightmare

‘Free’ Walking Tour

Astronomical Clock – Video

Jewish Quarter

Prague Boat Tour

Recent Blog Posts:

Our Christmas experience in Izmir…

• Holiday: Celebrating Christmas in Izmir
• Holiday: IWAI Christmas Market
• Holiday: Swiss Hotel Lighting of the Tree

Quick post about our first trip to Cappadocia region of Turkey.

Questions for the listeners:

• What are your New Year traditions? Share one with us!
• If you have traveled to Prague, did you have a favorite site and why?

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big move!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

Prague

Our Airbnb

In this episode you will hear about our 2016 review… sorta. We mostly cover our move and the first half of the year as we have thoroughly covered our last few months in Turkey via Episode 18-24! Two main topics we discuss are ‘Are we glad we moved to Turkey?’ and ‘What’s next for 2017?’

In no particular order:

2016 Review Post

Manhattan(Kansas)

Washington D.C.

Denver

Global Entry

Questions for the listeners:

• What do you do for family vision/goal planning? Any tips or suggestions?
• What do you want to hear about as we move forward?

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big move!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

Episode 24!!! We released a day early to get one more podcast episode in for 2016. And this wraps up our first year of podcasting!

Currently in the Czech Republic, we will ring in the new year in Prague! So while we still have a little more to tell you about our #funkchristmas2016 tour in Prague, you will get to hear the rest our of little European Christmas market tour today! We also discuss our Christmas time in Germany and a few day trips we went on in the area.

In no particular order:

German Customs – The one we mentioned plus a few more…

Our first city we have been together – Adana

Our first country we have been to together – Switzerland

Our first trip we took together – Utah

South American country Jason traveled too – Guyana

Correction* Honduras is in Central America (Catie has yet to travel to South America!)

Continent we want to travel too – Antartica (and how to get there)

Mostly because we want to scratch off this map

Elon Musk and Tesla… and interplanetary travel

How long it takes to get to Mars? Check that out here.

Christmas Market #1 – Basel, Switzerland

Our Airbnb

Christmas Market #2 – Strasbourg, France

Our Airbnb

Batorama River Cruise

Christmas Market #3 – Saarbruken, Germany

Our Hotel

Christmas Market Foods and Mulled Wine

Germany

Our little town for the week – Kaiserslautern

Day trip #1 – Heidelberg (Helene and Michael)

Day trip #2 – Frankfurt

Special treats – Thai Massage (ours was not this extreme) and Rogue One movie

Where we wish we went – Trier, Germany and Luxembourg City, Luxembourg

Where we are now – Prague – with our friends, the Rowells (You met them in Episode 17 which talks about our sailing trip!)

Questions for the listeners:

• What are your Christmas traditions? Share one with us! We did an advent calendar again this year!
• If you have traveled to Germany, did you have a favorite city and why?

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big move!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

We discuss a couple quick stories about our house and the beginnings of our travels. There is plenty more to come but for now… enjoy!

Questions for the listeners:

• If you have traveled to European Christmas markets, tell us which one was your favorite and why!
• Have you ever had a leaky roof? If so, what happened?
• Are you a linguist and know the word for whatever Jason was talking about?

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big move!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

This week has brought some major good news for our apartment to do list! Through the help of various men coming in and out of our apartment, pretty much everything on our list has been taken care of! But, of course, a new problem came up too… We talk about this, settling into our new home, our trip to Istanbul, and our next trip to Germany!

Don’t forget to check out our recent blog post about the Izmir Zoo!

In no particular order:

Unbreakable

Istanbul

Bosphorus

Kale Kafe

Turkish Breakfast

Eminonu

Spice Bazaar

Metro

European Christmas Markets

Questions for the listeners:

• What are your favorite Christmas traditions? And which of them would you just have to take with you if you moved overseas?
• Have you ever been to a European Christmas market? If so, what are some things that we need to be sure to see and do?

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big move!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

This episode covers some of the updates about our language learning and how our 3 weeks in language school went. There are updates about the apartment and our visas as well.  This last week we saw our first movie in Izmir… did you now they have intermissions? And enjoy a little side story of using our friend’s borrowed car to drive out to a college ghost town to pick up second hands chairs!

Don’t forget to check out our recent blog post about language, aşure, and the organic market.

In no particular order:

EYE Language School (instead of Tomer)

GPA Method 

Turkish residence permits

Canadian Benchmarking for Language

Cinemaximum

The Arrival

Slumdog Millionaire

Gediz Üniversitesi İzmir in Seyrek- no website available due to closure, but you can read a list of closed universities just in the Izmir region (state)

3 month state of emergency for Turkey was extended back in mid-October for an additional 3 months

Istanbul

Picture of our new chairs

Questions for the listeners:

What language learning games do you like? What games would you turn into a language learning games? How would you make language learning fun?

How would you feel about driving in a foreign country?

Would you drive out to a ghost town to pick up second hand chair?

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big move!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

This episode covers some of the updates about our new apartment and visas. We also chat about language learning and how we decided to go about this process right now.

What else are we up too? Listen to hear more about a weekend getaway to a cute little nearby coastal town as well as an ancient one!

In no particular order:

EYE Language School (instead of Tomer)

GPA Method 

Turkish residence permits

Mediterranean Cruise

Kuşadası

• Sentido Marina Hotel (Adults Only)

Ephesus

• Bible References

Girne Car Rental

Although it was not mentioned in our podcast updates, the last 3 month state of emergency for Turkey was extended back in mid-October for an additional 3 months. According to their constitution, the state of emergency can last for no longer than 6 months. Life for us and most people here are back to normal, but there are those who are still trying to rebuild their lives.

Any questions you want answered in our next podcast episode? Let us know via the comment section below or send us an email!

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big move!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

You will hear 3 things we are loving about our apartment and 3 things we aren’t. We also tell you how we are buying home goods(new, second hand, off the street???) and a couple fun items coming our way. Let’s just say that Catie is a little picky(said by Catie, not Jason). For some sneak peeks of our new rental apartment, head over to Instagram or our Facebook Page.

What else are we up too? Online course and visa runs have been taking up the rest of our time. Listen to hear more about what online class we are taking and why we are having to make multiple trips to the visa office…

In no particular order:

Some info about neighborhoods in Izmir

Enza Home – couch

Ikea

Letgo – Second hand website we have been using

Second Language Acquisition course

Turkish residence permits

PSL

Questions for our listeners:

If you are a plumber and have tips for a leaky toilet, let us know! (Not really a question, but a call for help!)

Where do you like to buy your furniture or house goods? New or second hand? What is one items that you would be willing to spend more money on?

Anyone out there have a good visa story to tell? We would love to hear it.

Also, we want to know for those who are married, would you take language classes with your spouse? If you are single and had a roommate, would you take the language class together?

If you are just now joining in:

We encourage you to go back into the archives and listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big move!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

While we don’t talk about the visas in this episode very much, all is on track for our application. Hopefully by Episode019, we will have a full(and positive) report. Other than that, Jason has been keeping up with his Tough Space work, and Catie has been fairly occupied managing errands, furniture budgeting, and other side projects.

Some info about neighborhoods in Izmir

YellAli

Sahibenden

Arcelik

Fun Bonus: In Episode017, we had some very special guests record with us about our sailing trip. Eric and Ashley made an awesome video. Head here to check it out!

And of course, if you are just now joining in, listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big change coming up!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

But THIS episode was recorded on a…. BOAT. Yes, folks, that is correct… a catamaran to be specific. So you will hear some background noise and the audio is not top notch – but hey, we were on a boat!  To make it even more interesting, our fellow sailing friends joined us as special guests to discuss our highlights of the week and give advice to others who may want to partake in this adventure one day.

In no specific order: (check out some photos at the bottom of the page)

MedSailors

• Specifically the Turkey route

Fethiye – Catie really enjoys this expat website.

Saklıkent Gorge

Karaköy

Paragliding with Gravity in Ölüdeniz

Sea Turtles

Paddle boarding – should have watched this video before we left… may have help with avoiding some falls

Once again, a huge thank you to Eric+Ashley and Brian+Michelle for being crazy enough to join us on this journey and for being our guests for this podcast episode! It was so much fun having y’all!

And of course, if you are just now joining in, listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big change coming up!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

Last time we mentioned that Catie is working on a new project to premier our travels in Spain. So for now, we will give you just the basics.

Little bit about Spain – in case you missed it last time

Rental Car

Seville

• Feel the City Tour for flamenco (a.k.a Star Trek’s borg)
• Plaza de Espana – a.k.a. Star Wars
• Alcazar Palace

Toledo

• Bracelet

Also, we sent out our THIRD (first one from overseas) email update. If you didn’t get it, check your spam box or let us know!  Make sure you let your friends know to sign up here.

And of course, if you are just now joining in, listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big change coming up!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

This is where we usually tag all the amazing sites and places we stay at when we travel, but this time we will tease you with just the basics. Catie will be working on a new project to premier the awesomeness of this country… one city at a time.

Spain

Cordoba

• City-Sights Bus Tour
• The Mosque Cathedral

Granada

• Feel the City Tours
• Alhambra Palace

Ronda

• Puente Nuevo – the newest of the old bridges (like really old)

Arcos de la Frontera

Also, we will be sending our THIRD (first one from overseas) email update soon so make sure you let your friends know to sign up here.

And of course, if you are just now joining in, listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big change coming up!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

Also, we sent out our SECOND email update to subscribers last week! And TODAY is the final day for our Turkish goodie bag giveaway! You will need to like our picture on either Instagram or the Facebook page and SUBSCRIBE to our email updates here.

And of course, if you are just now joining in, listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big change coming up!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

Hello friends! We are just coming along with our move here which means there are boxes, bags, and clothes everywhere! We have just over 2 weeks before we depart the states for our big international move. But in the next week, we will become homeless until our departure in August.  We didn’t talk about this in our podcast, but Catie ran the Chicago Rock’n’Roll Half Marathon with her mom and sis. There were 8 people in our group and we all stayed in one big Airbnb rental here. With 2 small children as part of our party, it was handy to have our own living/kitchen space for meals as well as a washer/dryer since it poured rain at the end of the half marathon. (Just more reason to go for an Airbnb on your next trip! You can get $30 off your first say via our referral.)

Since our last episode, there was a failed coup in Turkey. You will hear a little history of coups for Turkey and how we are responding to the recently enforced state of emergency (Spoiler! It’s more travel!)

This episode premiers one of our friends, Scott Rank, a history professor. He focuses on the Middle East and Christian-Muslim relations. He also writes books and makes online courses.

Here are a few links to the books he mentioned:

• Book – The Most Productive People in History: 18 Extraordinarily Prolific Inventors, Artists, and Entrepreneurs, From Archimedes to Elon Musk
• E-Course – History of the Middle East – 600 A.D. to Today
• Sidenote: If you like history and enjoy listening to someone else talk about it, check out Scott’s podcast, History in Five Minutes

Also, we sent out our FIRST email update yesterday! These will not necessarily be stuff we post on the website, and it will be more of an insiders look into our lives as we move. We would love for you to subscribe here if you would like to get them to your inbox!

And of course, if you are just now joining in, listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big change coming up!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

Hello all! The weather in Iowa these past two weeks has been all over the place – hot, rainy, AND cold. But this last weekend has been absolutely gorgeous, and we have been soaking it up! We have 1 month until we head overseas! We have enjoyed the Des Moines Farmers Market and finding new vendors like the Emu stand.  Catie also shares a little bit about her secret home brew of Kombucha. Enjoy another article about the benefits of Kombucha here. We mentioned this kind that you can buy in some markets.

Due to the recent events in Turkey, our discussion reflects some of our thoughts and feelings. We are deeply saddened about the bombing in Istanbul. We wanted to express our gratitude to those who have expressed their concerns about our move. That is our ‘feeling for feeling response’ (learned from a marriage conference on this book a while back) and hope that you find a way to trust us. Of course, if you are just now joining in, listen back to our first episode.  And we encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 9 to help get you up to speed on our big change coming up!

We also share 3 facts we lean on as we we move forward:

1. It is safer than it sounds. – It is important to see the positive and not overlook the number of people who have survived an attack. No one should ever have to die, and we are not dismissing the victims. We mourn for them.
2. The people on the ground feel it is safe. – We have a network a friends that we trust to be our eyes and ears on the ground before we go and while we are there.
3. No place is completely safe. – The goal is not to confuse random attacks with everyday warfare on the streets that is happening in other countries.

Context is important when deciphering and sifting through what you hear on the news verses the overall day-to-day safety of living in a country. We both discuss our time that we spend in Turkey as singles and how we first met (enjoy some of our first pictures together in the gallery below!). To learn more about Turkey and it’s culture, start here.

Turkish word (or phrase) of the episode: ‘iyiyim’ which translate as ‘I am good.’ So know you know how to say hello, goodbye, how are you, and I am good! A quick reference for greetings can be found here.

Also, we will be sending out email updates soon! These will not necessarily be stuff we post on the website, and it will be more of an insiders look into our lives as we move. We would love for you to subscribe here if you would like to get them to your inbox!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

Also, we will be sending out email updates soon! These will not necessarily be stuff we post on the website, and it will be more of an insiders look into our lives as we move. We would love for you to subscribe here if you would like to get them to your inbox!

We spent this episode sharing some of our moving updates. Including the following topics:

• Packing and moving stuff into storage
• Apostille…Apostilized…. Apostilization??? Read more about it here.
• To-do list
• Relocation companies list these two: Metis and Yellali
• Sailing!  Specifically this route with these friends!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

And we want to hear from YOU to help our podcast be better! What are you liking about our podcast? What are like… ‘eh, I could do without that’… ?  How can we improve? What do YOU want to hear about from us? Please leave us a comment below or on our FunkTravels Facebook Page.

We are back from our time in Colorado. If you have listened to other episodes (particularly the ones about San Francisco, Boston, Italy, and Dubai, and Washington D.C.), then you know we like to add on some play days to our work conferences we attend. We chat about some of our highlights like biking from Frisco to Dillon, A-basin Scenic Lift-and-Lunch, lunch at The Lost Cajun, this Italian restaurant in Denver, and see some old friends. We also mention the cute cozy resort Airbnb in Keystone that we loved (even though it seemed deserted), and the not so awesome Airbnb we stayed at in Denver (great view and location but cheap mis-matched furniture).

There are 3 updates about our transition! Tune in to hear them.

Few other things we referenced:
– Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney  – Listen to it here
– Minimum Viable Podcast – We can’t vouch for it since we haven’t listening to it. But give it a try!
– Marriage is Funny Podcast – They are wonderfully witty and deep in their discussions about topics within their marriage.

You can check out some pics of our trip to Colorado below!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

Happy Monday! (Or whatever day you happen to be here!) This week we are heading to Denver for some work and play! If you have listened to our other episodes, then you know we like to add on some play days to our work conference we attend.  This podcast is a little different as we tell you our big announcement that we mentioned in episode 8, and we go into the 5 ‘Ws’ as Jason likes to call them… Who, What, When, Where, and Why… and How Long? (Not sure how the last one made it in…).

You can also read more about what we talk in this episode here.

While you are here, will you consider being a part of our fun? Subscribing to our website will means you won’t miss an update and joining in on the adventure via Facebook means you will get the first scoop and discussion on new podcasts!

AND…

We are on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

Welcome back! We are happy to see you! Thanks for some of your suggestions for Denver and the surrounding areas. Keep ’em coming! This week we discuss one of our closer road trips we took to Manhattan, Kansas to see one our our friends. On the way down we stopped for a Mediterranean lunch at the Aladdin’s Cafe in Kansas City, MO.

Info, activities, and food:

Kansas – We don’t talk about the state of Kansas much, but here is a link to learn more about it.

Manhattan

Little more info specific to Downtown Manhattan

Kansas State University

Random Tidbits:

Jason’s first movie in the theater, Jurassic Park and the theme song

Catie’s memory of either watching Jurassic Park… or was it Hocus Pocus? NOT to be confused with Double, Double Toil and Trouble

Sardine Avocado Toast Recipe – Seriously, it sounds yucky, but it is delicious!

The recipe that Jason talks about is similar but instead of sardines, saute some mushrooms and onions together with soy sauce. He also mixed mayo in with the avocado. He didn’t measure things… so just eyeball it!

Other places we didn’t have time to try:

Tallgrass Tap House

Little Apple Brewery

Taco Lucha

Coco Bolos

So Long Saloon

While you are here, will you consider being a part of our fun? Subscribing to our website will mean you won’t miss an update and joining in on the adventure via Facebook means you will get the first scoop and discussion on new podcasts!

AND…

We are now on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

Our Favorite Services:

• Airbnb
  • Airbnb is a website for people to list, find, and rent lodging. It has over 1,500,000 listings in 34,000 cities and 190 countries. Founded in August 2008 and headquartered in San Francisco, California, the company is privately owned and operated. [wikipedia]
• Uber
  • Uber Technologies Inc. is an American multinational online transportation network company headquartered in San Francisco, California. It develops, markets and operates the Uber mobile app, which allows consumers with smartphones to submit a trip request which is then routed to Uber drivers who use their own cars. [wikipedia]
• Yelp
  • Yelp is an American multinational corporation headquartered in San Francisco, California. It develops, hosts and markets Yelp.com and the Yelp mobile app, which publish crowd-sourced reviews about local businesses, as well as the online reservation service SeatMe and online food-delivery service Eat24. [wikipedia]
• Google Docs
  • Google Docs, Google Sheets and Google Slides are a word processor, a spreadsheet and a presentation program respectively, all part of a free, web-based software office suite offered by Google within its Google Drive service. The suite allows users to create and edit documents online while collaborating with other users in real-time. [wikipedia]
  • We mentioned a Google excel template we created for our travels. You can view it via this link. If you want to use it, please make a copy of it to your Google Drive! Enjoy!

While you are here, will you consider being a part of our fun? Subscribing to our website will mean you won’t miss an update and joining in on the adventure via Facebook means you will get the first scoop and discussion on new podcasts!

AND…

We are now on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

Learn about Washington D.C. here.

What we did:

• Pentagon Memorial
• Capitol Tour
• Library of Congress
• Supreme Court
• National Archives
  • Made famous in this movie (just kidding)
• Arlington Cemetery
  • Make sure to stay for the changing of the guards
• Union Station
• Washington Monument
• Lincoln Memorial
• Martin Luther King Memorial
• Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial
• Georgetown
• Eastern Market
• Chinatown
• Ford’s Theater and Petersen House
• Newseum – Check out the Berlin Wall and 9/11 exhibit
• National Air and Space Museum – quick guide here
• American History History – quick guide here
• City Sights D.C. – Hop on and Hop Off Bus
• Whats the only thing worth purchasing? The Night Tour

Food:

• Dama’s Ethiopian – local style
• Ted’s Bulletin
• Know for their adult milkshakes and homemade pop-tart dessert
• Commissary
• Food Truck – Smile Grill
• Romeo and Juliet
• Chinatown Express Restaurant
• Ethiopian Restaurant – fancy style
• Dangerously Delicious Pie
• Chinatown Coffee in Chinatown
• Peregrine Espresso at Eastern Market

Other:

• Lyft
• Capital Bikeshare – See if your state has a bike share program via this website!
• Our Airbnb rental in Capitol Hill was just a couple of blocks away from the Capitol was amazing!
  • Sign up via our referral code and get $20 off your first booking!
• Capitol Hill Baptist Church

Other musts that we didn’t do cause we ran out of time!

• Treasury and Engraving
• Holocaust Museum

While you are here, will you consider being a part of our fun? Subscribing to our website will mean you won’t miss an update and joining in on the adventure via Facebook means you will get the first scoop and discussion on new podcasts!

AND…

We are now on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

Learn about Dubai here.

Read about the cultural wardrobe here and here.

What we did:

• Burj Al Arab
• Escape Room
• Burj Khalifa – tallest building in the world
  • Watch a time-lapse of the Address Hotel on fire
• Dubai Museum and Al Fahidi Fort
• Old-town Dubai and Souk
• Dubai Mall  – If you fancy, you can watch a 2 minute video (with pleasant elevator music).
  • Fountain Show – world’s largest dancing fountain 
  • Aquarium
  • Dubai Ice Rink – olympic-sized ice rink
• Mall of the Emirates
  • Ski Dubai
• Ibn Battuta – History/Travels 
• Escape Room
• Palm Dubai
• World Islands – video about it and you can buy one here

Food:

• IV Quattro
• Shanghai Chic at the Ibn Battuta Hotel
• Observatory

Helpful tools:

• Groupon
• Entertainer Book

Other must that we didn’t do cause it was just too hot or no time!

• The “Big Bus Tour” 
• Arabian Adventures Desert Safari
• Wild Wadi Park
• Aqua Adventure Waterpark at Atlantis Resort

While you are here, will you consider being a part of our fun? Subscribing to our website will mean you won’t miss an update and joining in on the adventure via Facebook means you will get the first scoop and discussion on new podcasts!

AND…..

We are now on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

How to leave an iTunes review from an iOS device:

• Launch Apple’s Podcast app
• Tap the Search tab
• Enter the name of the Podcast you want to rate or review
• Tap the blue Search key at the bottom right
• Tap the album art for the podcast
• Tap the Reviews Tab
• Tap Write a Review at the bottom
• Enter your iTunes password to login
• Tap the Stars to leave a rating
• Enter title text and content to leave a review.
• Tap Send.

(We totally understand…  it’s a process. But we appreciate it more than you know!)

In this episode, we talk about our busy week in Italy. This was the first part of a three part trip we took last summer.  Our time in Italy consisted of lot of hoping around and Catie had a full work itinerary while she was there. Regardless, we did get a few moments to enjoy a few sites together – our favorite being the overlook of Florence. (Yes, it was worth  the 1,436,271 steps to get up there.) We do have to apologize for some lapse in details! We have slept a few times since then and if you listened to Episode003 then you know we both can forget parts of our trip! We will be excited when we start recording some more recent events. 

EPISODE 004 TID BITS

Life Updates:

• Currently, we are in Washington D.C.! We are enjoying our time, but please, let us know what we should see and eat!

Italy:

Scroll to the bottom to see some pictures!

• Catie talks about why we went to Italy. (thank you work!) We are both pretty thankful that Jason has a job that can be moved from place to place so he could come with her.
• This is our 2nd summer to travel internationally together. We made it a point to go every summer until we move overseas.
• We talk about what activities we decided to do:
• ROME:
  • City info
  • Testfaccio Foodie Tour
    • Volpetti
    • Testaccio Food Market
    • Testaccio Mound
  • Eataly
  • Pantheon
  • Spanish Steps
  • Trevi Fountain
  • Colesseum and Roman Forum
• VATICAN
  • Info
•  TUSCANIA:
  • Town info
  • Church of San Pietro (we didn’t make it here, but it’s a main attraction of the area)
• FLORENCE:
  • City info
  • University – Lorenzo de Medici
  • University – Accademia Italiana
  • Accademia – David
  • Basilica of Santa Croce
  • Piazzale Michaelango
• BOLOGNA:
  • City info
• PARMA:
  • City info
  • Barilla School
• LODGING:
  • Our Airbnb place in Florence and Bologna!
    • (Sign up via our referral code and get $20 off your first booking!)

While you are here, will you consider being a part of our fun? Subscribing to our website will mean you won’t miss an update and joining in on the adventure via Facebook means you will get the first scoop and discussion on new podcasts!

AND…..

We are now on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

How to leave an iTunes review from an iOS device:

• Launch Apple’s Podcast app
• Tap the Search tab
• Enter the name of the Podcast you want to rate or review
• Tap the blue Search key at the bottom right
• Tap the album art for the podcast
• Tap the Reviews Tab
• Tap Write a Review at the bottom
• Enter your iTunes password to login
• Tap the Stars to leave a rating
• Enter title text and content to leave a review.
• Tap Send.

(We totally understand…  it’s a process. But we appreciate it more than you know!)

See you in TWO weeks for our next episode to hear about our travel to DUBAI!

EPISODE 003 TID BITS

Life Updates:

• Hear about a great marriage conference simulcast we attended at our church recently. Thanks Matt and Lauren!
• Exciting news! We are headed to Washington D.C. in March! Let us know what we should see and eat!

Boston:

Scroll to the bottom to see some pictures!

• Catie talks about why we went to Boston (thank you work!)
• We discuss the pros (and cons) our studio apartment we got for the week
• Jason tells you his favorite place to work in Boston.
• We talk about what activities we decided to:
  • Chinatown
  • Duck Tour
  • Freedom Trail Tours
    • Bunker Hill
    • Map
  • Boston Commons
  • Trinity Church
  • Boston Public Library
  • MFA – Museum of Fine Arts
  • Harvard Tour
  • MIT
  • Boston’s North End
  • Fenway Park
  • Boston Public Gardens
• We, of course, talk about what food we ate:
  • Mike’s Pastry
  • Maria’s Pastry
  • Taiwan Cafe
  • Giacomos
  • Zoe’s
  • Pho Basil
• Couple of other fun links for the area:
  • Boston has this awesome week long passes for their public transportation. It definitely all you need!
  • Our Airbnb place! (Sign up via our referral code and get $20 off your first booking!)
  • Way down in Kokomo… (cause we know it is now stuck in your head)

While you are here, will you consider being a part of our fun? Subscribing to our website will mean you won’t miss an update and joining in on the adventure via our closed Facebook group means you will get the first scoop and discussion on new podcasts!

AND…..

We are now on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

How to leave an iTunes review from an iOS device:

• Launch Apple’s Podcast app
• Tap the Search tab
• Enter the name of the Podcast you want to rate or review
• Tap the blue Search key at the bottom right
• Tap the album art for the podcast
• Tap the Reviews Tab
• Tap Write a Review at the bottom
• Enter your iTunes password to login
• Tap the Stars to leave a rating
• Enter title text and content to leave a review.
• Tap Send.

(We totally understand…  it’s a process. But we appreciate it more than you know!)

See you in TWO weeks for our next episode to hear about our travel to ITALY!

EPISODE 002 TID BITS

Life Updates:

• Little bit of Catie’s first experience with the Iowa caucus. You can read more about it here and here.
• We are working on two goals for 2016. Hear how they are the same and how they differ… there may be prisoner workout routine involved.
  • Quote: A year from now you will wish you started today. – Karen Lamb
• Hear about some decluttering as part of transitioning to life overseas.
  • End point: Catie’s ‘proactiveness’ is aka for it takes waaaayyyy longer to purge her earthly treasures.

San Francisco:

Scroll to the bottom to see some pictures!

• Jason talks about why we went to San Francisco (thank you work clients!)
• Hear a little about his first 2014 trip with the same client to the conference in New Orleans.
• FYI, you will need to get use to hearing about food because WE LOVE FOOD.
  • Flying Falafel
  • Super Duper Burgers
  • Blue Bottle and Ritual
  • Dottie’s Cafe
  • ChinaTown – supper at House of Nanking
  • Fancy dinner @ Foreign Cinema
• We talk about what activities we decided to:
  • Golden Gate Bridge
  • Cable Cars
  • Pier 39
  • Chowders
  • Catie did NOT do this crazy naked people race but instead went to a friend’s church called Epic

• Hear a nugget about budgeting for travel
  • This man is our friend… well, sorta, if he met us then we would be.
  • End Point: Agree on what to spend BEFORE you go
• Couple of other fun links for the area:
  • Uber
  • Our Airbnb place! (Sign up via our referral code and get $20 off your first booking!)
  • Catie past got thrown in there too… thanks Jason!

While you are here, will you consider being a part of our fun? Subscribing to our website will mean you won’t miss an update and joining in on the adventure via our closed Facebook group means you will get the first scoop and discussion on new podcasts!

AND…..

We are now on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES. This helps others find our podcast!

See you in TWO weeks for our next episode to hear about our travel to BOSTON!

EPISODE 001 TID BITS 

• Jason own a software consulting business called Tough Space.
• Catie works at an international programs office at a university developing study abroad programs which is pretty amazing thing to do.
• You will find out that one of us isn’t Iowan, and that we met here.
• We cover five reasons we started the podcast.
  • One of the reason may have to deal with this book, Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman.
• And we talk about who we hope will one day listen to it as well.
• The hopeful (wishful thinking) format of the show and four general topics are briefly mentioned towards the end of the show.

So, what are your thoughts? And what do you hope to hear more about as we move forward?

***Update*** 

While you are here, will you consider being a part of our fun? Subscribing to our website will mean you won’t miss an update and joining in on the adventure via our closed Facebook group means you will get the first scoop and discussion on new podcasts!

AND…..

We are now on iTunes!

POP OVER TO LEAVE US A REVIEW ON ITUNES.