We arrived in Viet Nam with mixed expectations. We've heard it all. Some travelers hate it. Older generations don't understand why we would even want to set foot in the country. Backpackers love to rage there for pennies. The Vietnamese hate Americans. The food will make you sick. We put all the noise out of our minds as soon as we landed in Hanoi.

Entry

When giving a place a real "go," it's important to not judge based on first impressions. Our first impression was immigration and it was annoying. Americans need a visa to enter, but unlike most other countries in Southeast Asia, you can NOT get one upon arrival. This left us three options:

1. Send our passports away to the consulate in D.C.-Not an option

2. Visit a consulate in a capital city of another country. -Not an option

3. Pay an online service to fill out our application and email us the certified approval. -Winner!

As soon as we arrived back from our safari we submitted our paperwork and forked over $8 each. Big spending, we know! Within three days we had received our approval letter via email.

So, we arrive in Hanoi thinking we will just need to pay our $45 USD for a single-entry visa because our paperwork is already done. Nope. We were turned away at immigration to fill out more paperwork after they had already taken our certified visa letter and our passports. We waited until they flashed our photo on a giant screen to pay and hand over our additional paperwork. Then they returned our passports with our visa attached. It was a strange process.

Hanoi

We arrived in Hanoi and immediately fell in love with the food and the city itself. We spent nearly a week in Hanoi wandering the city.

Learning to cross the street was one of our first challenges. This is a big deal because Viet Nam has zero traffic laws. I'm talking nada. The few traffic lights are merely suggestions. You can drive on sidewalks, against on-coming traffic, stop in the middle of the road, anything. You do you. We quickly learned we couldn't stay on the sidewalk forever and the traffic never slows.

Here is a quick tutorial on crossing the street in Vietnam:

1. Traffic has an unspoken hierarchy. Buses, cars, scooters, bikes and finally, pedestrians. Know your place in the system and you're off to a good start.

2. Drivers anticipate the move pedestrians are going to make, so make moves slowly. Step in to traffic when there is a slight break in congestion. Don't step out in front of buses. See number 1.

3. Walk slowly and surely across the street. Wave your hand a bit to your side to indicate which way you're anticipating cars or scooters going around you, either in front or behind you.

4. Do not stop but never run! Traffic is like a river, it flows around rocks. Pedestrians are rocks. The traffic will flow around you if they can predict your location.

5. Finally, breathe! You made it across the bustling streets of Hanoi.

Some of our favorite things from Hanoi:

1. Hanoi Street Food Tours were an excellent way to start our eating adventure in Viet Nam. There is no way we would have felt comfortable ordering or trying certain things had it not been for this experience. We highly recommend this for a first or second night in Viet Nam. We even ate the infamous balut, a hard boiled duck fetus. We both cringed and gagged before finally swallowing. At least we can say we've done it. Yuck!

2. The Water Puppet Show was a silly one hour spent seeing the history of Viet Nam through plastic water puppets. While not a must-see, it was interesting. If you have an hour to burn, you'll have a few laughs and enjoy the AC.

3. You can easily put together a self-guided walking tour of the major sites including the Temple on the Lake, Temple of Literature, Hoa Lo Prison aka Hanoi Hilton, the Imperial Citadel and Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum.

Tips: To see Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum you will need to be fully covered. Shorts and short sleeves are not allowed. Hoa Lo Prison closes at 4 p.m. Do this in the morning to give yourself plenty of time. The Temple of Literature has no books. The Imperial Citadel was destroyed so many times, the remaining structure is from as recently as the French occupation of Viet Nam.

Ha Long Bay

When in Northern Vietnam, a visit to Ha Long Bay is a must. The scenery is breathtaking with the green mountains rising from the middle of the water. We booked upon recommendation from a friend with Ha Long Party cruises. This turned out to be 50% fun and 50% a terrible mistake. We should have known better by the name alone. We were on a boat with 20 raging backpackers and felt like the mom and dad the entire time. On the bright side, we met a few really amazing young people getting ready to start careers and had incredible conversations, listening mostly to their dreams and goals.

Brian and I mostly did our own thing while we were on the cruise, but got to watch the college-esq shenanigans from afar, reminiscing our own.

We are glad we didn't miss Ha Long Bay but would have picked a different tour.

Phong Nha

One of Brian's wish list excursions on this trip was to do caving in Viet Nam. These caves were recently discovered within the last five to ten years and are huge. You can fit a three story building in some. The excursion starts from a small town called Phong Nha, a one street town with a few hostels and restaurants.

We took a two-day, one-night trip with Oxalis Adventures. This was plenty of time to see the caves. We were picked up from our hotel and driven out to the gorgeous countryside. Oxalis provides waterproof bags and also has porters to take your small bag of bare necessities to the rustic camp site.

We hiked several hours up into the jungle mountains and spent the afternoon swimming through the caves. It is dark, the water is murky and I'm pretty sure I won "wife of the year" award for this excursion. No running water, a hole-in-the-ground toilet and mosquitos in full force. It is not a trip for the high-maintenance.

We woke up early the next morning to make it through three more caves, swimming and hiking through each and exiting somewhere in the middle of the jungle. We scrambled up rock facings and crossed small waterfalls as we went. It was truly an incredible experience.

Hue

We took a jam-packed bus to the old Imperial Capital of Hue, home to many emperor pagodas or tombs. We spent a long afternoon touring the Imperial City aka the Forbidden City aka the Ancient Town. There is a lot to see surrounding Hue and our one full day here wasn't nearly enough. We wish we had stayed longer.

Hoi An

We quickly moved on through the Hai Van pass to Hoi An, where we met Elizabeth. Brian and Elizabeth worked together at Beck and she's the only non-family member we had join us on our travels. Yay for Elizabeth! It was great to have a familiar face traveling with us.

Hoi An is known for its tailors and we indulged in a navy suit for Brian and a Grace Kelly-inspired black dress for me. We were fairly impressed with Ha Na Tailors. My dress was $55 and the suit was $130. Not too bad for a completely tailored article of clothing that was started at 11 am on day one and finished at 11 am on day two.

We explored the Ancient Town, which costs a 150,000 dong donation to enter. This also grants you access to five attractions of your choice within the town. The Ancient Town is pretty much the only place to eat, drink, see in Hoi An, so you can't get out of paying this "donation."

A MUST visit when in Hoi An is the now-famous (thanks to Anthony Bourdain) Banh Mi Phuong. While Tony's suggestions rarely rock our world, this time he pulled through in a big way. At the counter, order a number 9 and your drink and grab a table under a fan. This sandwich comes with roast pork, pate and just enough spicy red sauce. It was the perfect bahn mi. We tried a few others on the menu, but came back again for the #9.

Our favorite day trip from Hoi An was biking to see the small pottery village and then out to the beaches. We ate great seafood from Ca Restaurant and then lounged in the waters of the South China Sea. All the restaurants along the beach have beach loungers for use if you order food and drink.

Another must see is the My Son Sanctuary. We booked an easy bus trip from our hotel. The half-day tour was plenty of time to see the restored ruins and our guide was such a riot. He rolled his Rs and made hilarious sounds to simplify his heavily-accented descriptions of things. Say this out loud: At the end of the tourrrrrr, we take a verrrrrry, verrrrrry, rrrrrrrrromantique walk. That is an actual sentence our tour guide spoke.

Ho Chi Minh City

We flew to HCM from Da Nang, the major airport in central Viet Nam.

Our only plans were to visit the War Remnants Museum and take a trip to the Cu Chi Tunnels, used during the Viet Nam War by the Viet Cong. The War Remnants Museum is gut-wrenching, knowing the atrocities both sides committed during the war. The effects of Agent Orange on the people have proved to be lasting and we saw many crippled people throughout our time in the country. It was sobering.

The Cu Chi Tunnels were an unbelievable experience. The system built underground was extensive and provided a way to get to Ho Chi Minh or into Cambodia. The tunnels were so claustrophobic and hot, we couldn't believe people lived in them. We moved through the widened tunnels (for tourists) and had to exit a few times to be able to breath. We were also shown the guerrilla warfare tactics used by the Vietnamese and it turned our stomach.

In HCM, we had an "American" night, with gourmet burgers from Soul Burger and then craft beers from Pasteur Street Brewing. It was a nice break from noodles.

One thing we will not miss is the flagrant nose picking that goes on. We have never seen more people openly digging for gold in our lives. But, you just have to laugh and think, "It's Viet Nam!"

Overall, we really loved Vietnam and would put it in our top five countries visited. The people were so friendly and we never shied away from saying we were Americans. There is a "western tax" we paid from time to time, but it was so minimal, it never felt like a scam. The food was incredible, cooked fresh and cheap. The natural beauty shocked us. We even skipped a few places we would happily go back to experience, including Sapa in the north and a Mekong Delta visit in the south.

In Southeast Asia there is a phrase you can't escape. "Same, same, but different" is used by locals to describe something similar. For example, if you asked about the difference between two noodle bowls, the reply would be "same, same but different" to describe similar broth, price, but different meats. It's a really funny phrase that we still can't seem to shake out of our vocabulary even here in New Zealand.

After leaving Viet Nam, which we loved, we were really expecting Thailand to Wow! Everyone loves Thailand and we were expecting to feel similar. You know, same, same, but different.

I won't go as far as saying Thailand was a disappointment; it was just average. It has clearly become much more westernized and felt like a lot of the grit and charm has left.

We flew from Ho Chi Minh to Chiang Mai in Northern Thailand and stayed near to the Old City at The Britannia. This hotel is owned by a Kiwi and his Thai wife, who we affectionately called Mom and Dad by the end of our five days there. The funniest thing about the hotel is it was built by the original owner as a "love" hotel, so in every bathroom is a picture of a naked Thai woman. I'm not talking a painting, I'm talking a full-on tile nude picture. We laughed later with Mom and Dad about this and told them they may want to give people a head's up. They just don't seem like the nudey photo type. We laughed every time we used the bathroom.

Alright, so on to what we did...

Chiang Mai- You can easily spend a ton of time around Chiang Mai area.

1. Monk Chats are a great way to learn about Buddhism and to also help a monk practice their English. Quite a few temples offer this opportunity, just be sure to check the times.

2. Elephant Nature Park is a popular attraction for tourists. ENP is run by a conservationist who has purchased nearly 250 elephants from abusive owners. It is pricey for a day-tour, but is a great way to learn about the horrific treatment of these animals and to see the happy life they now live. You also can hug them, bath them and feed them throughout the day.

3.Temple hopping leads to temple fatigue, but there are a few great ones to see in and around Chiang Mai, including the White Temple and Black House on a day trip up to Chiang Rai and the Golden Triangle. White Temple is a spectacle and Black House is demonic and weird. Tip: Most temples close from 12-1 pm for lunch, including both of these attractions.

4. Chiang Rai is a city that plays host to the famous Golden Triangle, where Thailand, Burma and Laos meet. Unfortunately, the Golden Triangle is about a two-hour drive away. We booked a (terrifying) driver for the day for $40 per person. It poured during our entire drive up there but the clouds parted as we arrived for a stunning view of the sun glistening off the green lands and Mekong River. Tip: Chiang Rai is also home to two Opium Museums. Go to the larger, government-funded one.

5. Sammy's Thai Cooking School was suggested by Mom and Dad. It was a great day spent learning six basic recipes of Thai cooking. Sammy himself is a bit of a nut job, but thankfully it's his wife who does the actual class. She is a kind and easy-going woman and we enjoyed nearly everything we learned to cook.

6. Pa's Smoothies located across the street from the Chiang Mai gate were the best smoothies we had in Thailand. This energetic lady whips up a mean $.71 smoothie. The hike to the gate was worth it every time.

7. Chiang Mai Food Tour wasn't as great as our Hanoi Food Tour, but it still offered a great sampling of local cuisine.

Bangkok

Some people shrug Bangkok off as just another big city, but let's be clear, Bangkok isn't a big city. It is a HUGE city. As far as the eye can see is a sea of buildings. It's simply overwhelming.

We spent time in a few different areas, including near the Khao San Road and the Grand Palace's more touristy area. The Grand Palace is massive and has strict modesty policies, including no tight pants, no shorts and no short sleeves. It was also boiling hot under the covers they give you for a deposit fee.

Worth a visit:

The famous SkyBar offers over-priced cocktails at nearly $15 per cocktail, but you're paying for the view. Go on a clear night to take in all of Bangkok. It's a spectacular view. Don't buy into the hype to head right first, go left and order a drink from here.

Muay Thai is intense and if you want to get a lesson, Bangkok is the place. Off of Kho San Road is a gym that offers classes at 8 am and 5 pm every day. Be prepared for a total butt-kicking in this two-hour long training session. I don't think I've sweated so much in my life and we had just come from Viet Nam! Totally worth it and be ready for sore everything the next day.

Kho Phangan

Phangan is known for its infamous Full Moon Parties, where white trash from around the world converges for an all-night rave once a month (or more as there are also half-moon and quarter-moon parties.)

We spent 12 days on Phangan, skipping all said parties and just enjoying hiking around the island, snorkeling, paddle boarding, swimming and eating. Thailand has beautiful beaches, but they are similar to Viet Nam's Ha Long Bay. We loved spending so long here, especially because we needed the time to get the ball rolling on our return to the good, ol' USA and plan for New Zealand and Australia. It wasn't a bad place to set up an office.

Thai Food

Thai food is delicious but spicy! If you want "normal" spicy, ask for it with only one pepper or "nick noy" meaning a little.

An absolute MUST visit in Chiang Mai is a tiny lunch spot called Khao Soi Khun Yai. Tucked between Wat Mo Kham Tuang and Wat Monthian, they are only open from 11 am until 2 pm every day. Get there early and order two bowls, one chicken and one pork, along with a refreshing tea. You will not be disappointed by this subtly spicy Burmese style curry served with red onions and crunchy noodles.

Definitely take a food tour for insight into more than just the standard pad thai, which we found to be fairly bland.

Overall, Thailand didn't blow us away like we had thought it would. We even had our trusty travel buddy, Elizabeth to confirm the sentiment. I really think we would have loved it more had we gone there first instead of Viet Nam. I also think we laid low and skipped a few of the bigger attractions like Kho Phi Phi due to not wanting to deal with the crowds. Thailand is not as inexpensive as people would lead you to believe and certainly caters more to tourists than ever before.

Getting to Cambodia from Thailand is known for being the toughest border crossing in Southeast Asia. It turned out to be fairly easy and our experience and how-tos will be on a forthcoming post.

After making it across the border via the direct bus, we were welcomed into Siem Reap by a gazillion tuk-tuk drivers hounding us. There is even a shirt for sale that reads "no tuk-tuk, not now, not ever." The biggest ploy to be aware of is hotels sending tuk-tuk drivers to pick you up from the bus station and then they "offer" to take you to Angkor Wat the next day.

Cambodia is on the dollar and the riel, so you're guaranteed to get a terrible exchange rate, as you pay in dollars and get change in riel. However, even though things really aren't "fair," you can hardly feel ripped off because for us, it's $1-$2, but for locals it's all they might make in a day.

All this set up to say, as a Westerner, you will live like a king in Cambodia. We stayed at the wonderful Angkor Hollywood Hotel and it was luxury for $30 a night.

Siem Reap

Visiting Angkor Wat is the main reason people visit Cambodia, but it's not well-known that Angkor Wat is actually only one of hundreds of temples in a 400-square kilometer complex. Consider it the New York City of its time. There are three loops you can do, each taking about a day. If you're super in to temples, you can buy a 3- or 7- day pass. We decided to just go for the one day, traditional Wat loop. Tickets are purchased the morning of your first visit, at a ticket window just outside town. Your tuk-tuk driver will stop there. Bring cash.

We went with a recommended driver for our day visiting the traditional loop including sunrise at Angkor Wat. We paid $25 for the day for three people for a 5 am pick up and 11:30 am drop off. The days get hot quickly, so it's a good idea to get started early. You can contact Sok here: sokmeneatuktuk@hotmail.com

Listen to your driver. They do this everyday and will take you where you need to be. Be aware though, if you want the traditional Angkor view, you need to enter the gates across the water. One more comment, your chances of getting that postcard shot are about 10 of 365 days. Nearly all days in Angkor Wat start out cloudy. If it's raining, sleep in.

Following Angkor Wat, we headed for Bayon, with the gazillion faces and then Ta Prohm, famous for the filming of Tomb Raider. Ta Prohm was our favorite. You can walk into the center of the complex where the trees are surrounding fallen rocks. We were the only people in the serenity except for a woman making offerings. It was an exceptional experience.

Some tips for your day at Angkor Wat:

1. The complex is seriously massive, so if you want to go to the landmine museum or other lesser known temples you will need to schedule another day of site seeing or pay extra for doing it all in one day. BUT, temple fatigue is a real thing. They don't look the same, but you definitely start to feel "meh" about the latest stop.

2. Many temples are still active places of worship. Wear modest clothing. I wore a Columbia fishing shirt and zip-off hiking pants. This was perfect.

3. Bring a lot of water. You won't regret it.

4. There will be many children trying to sell you knick-knacks. Do not purchase from them.

5. Bring breakfast with you to see the sunrise at Angkor. You will be sitting for awhile and then can hit the road while the tour groups stop for breakfast.

Siem Reap is extremely touristy, but you can still find street food-esq places. We ate at a place called Lim Kim Cheng, which was cheap and had good traditional khmer curry and fish amok. We also dined at Khmer Kitchen on the corner of Pub Street and had a fancier meal at Aha Wine Kitchen, where the service was outstanding.

Tip: Catch the free (with drink purchase) traditional Cambodian dance show at the Temple on Pub Street.

Battambang

Many travelers advised us to skip Phnom Penh and we decided to take them up on the advice. While I know most people visit to see the Killing Fields and S21 prison, I knew I just couldn't do it. It would wreck me mentally and emotionally for weeks. Fortunately, the same travelers advised us to visit Battambang as a replacement. This turned out to be an incredible decision.

Battambang is nothing like Siem Reap. It is not touristy; it doesn't cater to tourists, period.

The one fabulous thing about bus transportation in Cambodia is you are always picked up from your hotel. We took the 2 pm Mekong Express bus between Siem Reap and Battambang, a three hour journey. Note: there is also an 8 am bus every day as well. During wet season, you can take a day-long boat trip along the river.

Brian was nervous about bus travel in Cambodia, but the Mekong Express was a breeze. The driver was safe by SEA standards and the roads were only rough for half the trip.

We were picked up by Rich, who would become our tuk-tuk driver the next day. We would HIGHLY recommend him and you can contact him here: obpengan@yahoo.com or Cosmictuk-tuk.weebly.com

Rich picked us up at 10 am and we headed to the infamous Bamboo Railroad. After the demise of the train system, locals continued to use the tracks to transport goods between villages. Not having enough money for motors, locals used bamboo shoots to push bamboo slatted platforms along. Now this has become a tourist attraction and uses lawnmower engines. The ride is a bumpy one along the dilapidated tracks. When you arrive in the village, you can walk down to the old brick factory. Be prepared to be accosted by many young girls selling bracelets. They each latched on to a tourist and demanded we "pinky swear" we would buy from them upon return. It is very intense and you have to be firm.

Following this we went to the Killing Caves, a series of three caves used to murder intellectuals, teenagers and infants during the reign of the Khmer Rouge. As we stood in a cave where the intellectuals were hit on the back of the head and then tossed to the bottom of the cave, Rich told us the story of his family. We looked at each other with tears in our eyes as he told us his grandfather was murdered in the place we stood. It was overwhelming.

While the day was sobering, it also gave us a great opportunity to ask questions and listen to Rich talk about his family and future. Later in the day, we met his five year old son, who wanted to come with us to the Cambodian circus. It is incredible to see such a strong character continuing on from such tragedy and making a new life for his family. I hope you will reach out to Rich if you are in Battambang and hear his story for yourself.

Our final stop in Battambang was at the local circus. There is one in Siem Reap as well. Local children are trained in acrobatics, music, stage production and audio-visual to provide them an outlet, as well as a skill utilized world-wide. This show was incredible! Think Cirque-du-Soleil with teenagers. All the proceeds go back to the program and it was well worth the $12 for the show.

Cambodia was a place high on my list to visit and we are both so glad we did. One week would be plenty in this country, but I strongly recommend it for an adventurous traveler wanting to get a true sense of Southeast Asia. The people were lovely, the food was a pleasant change and the history will bring you to your knees.

We've been planning for the craziness of our time in Israel. How do you see so much history in six short days? You just can't.

We arrived in Tel Aviv and spent one night in Florentine area, exploring Old Town Jaffa. The free walking tour offers a great overview of the small Old Town. Old Town Jaffa is a hipster's paradise with coffee shops and rustic cafes lining the main street.

We didn't cross to the modern side of Tel Aviv, but drove through it one morning before a tour. It seemed to have pockets of really neat neighborhoods. If we had had more time, we would have spent it in the city center, since Old Jaffa can be done in a full day.

We took a taxi bus to Jerusalem, about an hour drive for 28 shekels per person. Our AirBnb was in the German Colony neighborhood, but it turned out to be so far away and was frankly, a dump. We spent one night there before ditching for an apartment via Sweet Inn Apartments on Jaffa St, near the Jaffa Gate.

Israel is SO expensive, but this move was definitely the right one and worth every extra penny. Bonus was it had a washer! Clean clothes!

Sandeman's New Tours offers great walking tours around the city. We had the same guide, Yariv, every day for three days and felt we got our money's worth. It is a ton of walking, but we saw nearly everything from the Old City, to the Mount of Olives, and the many places in between. You can explore on your own, but it would just be wandering through the different places, while the tours provide great info without a hard push for any religion.

We had a memorable mishap on our way to the Mount of Olives on our final tour day. As usual, the meeting point was the Jaffa gate. The group of around 15 tourists had to hop on a van to transport us to the Mount. Unfortunately, the company had sent too small of a van, so Lindsay and I were directed to hop into a taxi with another couple. Yariv paid the taxi driver and directed him to take us to the Mount.

It was Friday, the Muslim holy day, and during Ramadan, so tens of thousands of Palestinians bus into Jerusalem to worship at the Dome of the Rock. Traffic is horrendous and streets are shut down to funnel vehicles into and out of the center. The Mount of Olives is located on the opposite side of the Temple Mount. Just 5 minutes down the road, our cab driver, finding his route cut off, forced us out of the taxi on a street corner, refusing to take us any further on account of the traffic. The other couple with us decided to give up and head back to their hotel. Lindsay and I decided to persevere and trek across the city on foot to find a way to the Mount and reunite with our tour.

We called Yariv, who in a flurry of expletives, told us he couldn't do anything for us, but would reimburse another taxi ride if we could find one (which was nearly impossible). We walked back toward the Old City among throngs of corralled Muslim worshippers and very intimidating military checkpoints.

After asking several helpful police officers, we were unable to find a taxi and consigned to walking. Suddenly, a taxi appeared behind us on the desolate road and agreed to take us to the Mount for 100 shekels. A few minutes later, he dropped us at the top of the Mount, where we found our group. It was insane to be abandoned amid the crowded, militaristic scene, but it reinforced our confidence in our wayfinding skills.

Our favorites of Israel included the ruins of Capernaum, on a day-tour we wouldn't recommend with Noah Tours/United Tours. The tour was terrible, but the ruins were incredible to see. Side note: Our guide was a crazy, old lady who rambled the entire trip and ended by singing us "Shalom" in nearly every octave she could imagine.

We also loved Hezekiah's Tunnel. Not recommended for the claustrophobic or very tall, you can walk in the flowing spring water of the nearly 3,000 year old tunnels which provided drinking water to the City of David. Bring a headlamp and water shoes. This is a must-see and was one of our favorite experiences on the entire trip.

The Dead Sea was also such a unique experience. It's almost indescribable the sensation you get in the salt water. We went on a four hour tour with Abraham Hostel and this was the perfect amount of time. We spent about an hour and a half in the water and got to meet some great backpackers from other countries. The weather was balmy and the water so salinated that the tiniest cut stings. The buoyancy of the water is aggressive. You can hardly stand up because the physical force wants to distribute your weight. Nothing to do but lay back and float like a leaf.

Religious & Political Jerusalem

Jerusalem is the true definition of a living, breathing city. The three main religions find a way to live amongst one another (mostly) peacefully. It seems like the best method to maintain the peace is to simply ignore that the other group is present.

We never felt unsafe in Jerusalem. Security is tight and a natural part of every day life. Armed military personnel and cameras are on most streets, especially around Old City. We also never were on public transportation without someone in uniform carrying an assault rifle. Sounds scary? It doesn't feel like it at all. People don't even blink an eye over it.

Unless there is active unrest, the country feels extremely safe, even in Palestinian-controlled West Bank. Our media really sensationalizes what is happening. However, there is a sort of tension we carried with us throughout our time there. Perhaps it was from our preconceived notions from US media or perhaps it's something that truly exists beyond our imaginations.

Many people come to Israel seeking a religious and moving experience. We never quite got that feeling. In many ways, we felt more like we were intruding on the customs of the locals, no matter the religion. As devout tourists weep over statues, rocks or sacred places, locals simply step around them to go about their daily religious traditions.

We were also a bit disappointed because we were hoping to get more of a sense of the history of Jewish traditions from many of the sacred sites. Unfortunately, the mother of Emperor Constantine, Helen, spent time in the Holy Land commandeering relics and erecting a church on every single site of Jesus's time. Shrines and reliquaries exist on every purported spot where Christ walked, or performed miracles, or was crucified. To us, it all draws attention away from the message of Christ. In many ways, the experiences now feel more like idol worship and contributed to the disappointment with our Israel experience.

Food

The "diversity" of food in Israel is an overwhelmingly diverse selection of hummus. Any restaurant, whether Jewish, Palestinian, Iraqi, Western - all serve hummus. The food is extremely fresh in Israel, with nearly everything being cooked to order. We had great hummus lunches from Abu Hassan in Jaffa, Lina in the Old Town Jerusalem, and Moshiko on Ben Yehuda Street. We cooked at home the majority of the time to save money. Lunch every day cost between $25-$30, just for a hummus and pita style lunch.

We are happy we took the time to visit Israel, as it's a place we know many people are hesitant about because of security concerns.

Who knows what Israel will be like in another 50 years? More history is being created and uncovered every day. Maybe one day we will venture back to see how much things have changed while still staying the same.

There is so much to see in Istanbul, it can be overwhelming. We were meeting my parents (Charles and Bev) there and knew we wanted to see the major sites as efficiently as possible to have time to just relax with them.

Upon recommendation, we booked a day-tour of Old Town through Neon Tours and requested the highly recommended guide, Gulay. This was a great decision. Gulay took us through the Old Town hitting all of the major sites including Hagia Sofia, Blue Mosque, Basilica Cistern, Grand Bazaar & Spice Market. She was a wealth of historical knowledge and even laid out our next day of site seeing across the river.

Having knocked out the major sites, we spent the next few days actually trying to see less. While Istanbul is known for the food, we left a bit disappointed. Even in the nicer restaurants it seemed the menu was just a "fancier" version of traditional Turkish cuisine. It wasn't bad, but it was a bit bland.

Our top recommendations for Istanbul are below:

Suleymanye Mosque: Located up a hill just outside the Grand Bazaar, this was our favorite mosque. It's giant, but much less traveled by tourists, and the inside is beautiful. It also offers the best views of the city. It's worth the hike up to the top.

Basilica Cistern: The main water storage for the city during Roman times offers an incredible glimpse into just how modern the Roman Empire was. This small portion that you see is only 10% of the actual cistern. It blew our mind a bit. It's also a nice break from the heat.

Dolmabache Palace: With a prime real estate location on the Bosphorous River, the palace is overwhelming in its opulence. You are required to go with the tour to see the palace and it moves quickly, but don't bother trying to pay attention to the guide, yelling over the other tour groups both in front and behind you. Just wander along and look around. Tip: Don't waste your time on the harem here. Do the one at Topkapi Palace instead.

Bosphorous Cruise: Just under the street from the New Mosque is a company called Tuyol offering an hour and half cruise for 15 lira/person. This is the best and quickest way to see the shores. A longer cruise would probably be a waste of time; our cruise was sufficient to see everything on the river. If facing the New Mosque, sit on the left side for the best views along the cruise.

Unfortunately, we don't have any overwhelming MUSTS for food in Istanbul. Most of our experiences, even those recommended by several people, turned out to be just average.

My one recommendation for food though would be to try manti - a mini ravioli stuffed with meat and garlic yogurt sauce. So delicious. Kebaps are ubiquitous, so try many styles and vendors, and decide on your own favorite.

We got to experience the breaking of the fasts during Ramadan and witness families coming together in the parks to share a meal at sundown. This was so special to see. There was also a beautiful craft market beside the Blue Mosque area which was reminiscent of the Altenmarkets of Germanic Christmas. Fast-breakers would stroll among the shops after finishing their family meal.

We really did love Istanbul. Sharing the experience of the city with my parents was the perfect cap to our 3 weeks exploring western Turkey.

We flew from Bucharest, Romania to Izmir, Turkey, arriving just a bit before Scott and Travis. We were so excited to meet up with them and share experiences in this new (to us) corner of the world. Scott and Travis also visited Cappadocia and loved it, like many others before them. We chose to skip it due to time and budget constraints, but it's on our list for our return trip to Turkey. We were moving pretty quickly with them and only stayed two nights in each city: Izmir, Kusadasi and Bodrum.

Izmir

Izmir is a large city and its nickname is reportedly "Infidel Izmir". It's a supposed party town on the water, but to be honest, Bodrum is truly the party town.

Izmir is home to the ruins of the ancient city of Smyrna. Don't be fooled by the gates surrounding the ruins that appear to be closed; it's open and the entrance is on a side street. While the site is still an active archeological dig, we were able to explore the underground cisterns and see the excavated pieces laid out, ready to be assembled together.

This city is also home to a Mustafa Kemal Ataturk museum, the famous leader of the Turks, which gave an excellent timeline for his rise to power and his life.

Easy to explore on foot, we were glad to visit Izmir for the ruins, but it wasn't our favorite city in Turkey.

Kusadasi

We used Kusadasi as our home base for exploring the ruins of Ephesus. It's a tourist town with a below average market full of trinkets and junk. The town caters to cruise ships, which have become the bane of our travel experience.

However, Ephesus is a MUST see and truly is an incredible place to visit. The terrace houses are worth the extra entrance fee and the city itself is so well put together that you get an amazing sense of what it was like to live there. Certainly some of the best ruins we've ever seen. It was incredible to walk the streets and stand in the amphitheater where Paul preached and see the secret sign of the Christians living in the city - a pie symbol which spells out Cristos. We booked our private tour through OnlineEphesusTravel.com and got a great rate of $52 per person. However, the quality of the tour was pretty mediocre and our tour guide spent lots of time on his cell phone instead of paying attention to us. This tour also included an undesired stop at a typical rug shop. It is really interesting to learn about how silk is harvested and woven into rugs, but you're then obliged to listen to their sales pitch and elbow your way out of their clutches. The tour ended with a quick stop at all that remains of the Temple of Artemis - a solitary column in a swamp. It is entirely unimpressive, but was another one of the Seven Wonders to check off our list. We were disappointed with the tour but assume most of them are like ours. At least book a private tour for the late afternoon like we did. It is the best way to see Ephesus at your own pace and most of the swarms of mega tour groups have left by then.

Kusadasi itself is situated on a stunning coastline overlooking the Aegean Sea. Take the time to hike up to the top of the Ataturk statue to watch the sun set.

Bodrum

Bodrum was our favorite city in Turkey. A little port town, it's cozy and fun. This is Turkey's true party town and they seem to love the reputation. It is well developed for tourism, but maintains its unique charm better than Turkey's other Aegean cities.

We visited the Bodrum Castle, built by the crusading Knights of St. John in the 1400's, which also houses the Underwater Archeology Museum. We spent hours here learning about many excavations and dives. The concept is genius. Why doesn't every fort just make the entire place into an exhibition?

Buy a combo ticket for the fortress and for the ruins of the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus. This shrine was built as a grand resting place for the wealthy King of Caria, Mausolus (hence the name). The ruins aren't spectacular, but seeing the remains of one of the original Seven Wonders was pretty neat.

From Bodrum we also took a five-hour-long boat cruise around the coast so that Scott and Travis could see the coastal scenery. If you don't have a full week like we did to take the gulet cruise, this is the best way to see the beautiful Aegean in a day. At the marina, you can find a number of boats that do day trips with around 20-30 passengers for 40 lira per person ($15). Lunch is included, the boat sells cold Efes beer, and you stop at three coves to swim. We stopped at Orak Island, which has the clearest water we've ever seen. It's hard to beat this deal.

Bonus Review: Marmaris

We included Marmaris because we started our gulet blue cruise (a traditional Turkish boat) from there. It's much bigger than we expected and is packed with sail boats from around the world. The promenade runs the entire length of the city along the water and it's a lovely walk. Marmaris also has a huge market selling anything you could desire.

We enjoyed one night here at the end of our gulet cruise and stayed at the Reis Beach Hotel. It was a great spot and their restaurant served us one of the best meals we had in Turkey.

We hardly scratched the surface of Turkey, only exploring the west coast, but central and eastern Turkey also hold many significant historical sites. We look forward to seeing much more of this country one day.

We departed from Marmaris on June 21 along the Carian coast of Turkey, bound over seven days for tranquil Turkish coves and Greek Dodecanese isles. The gulet pulled away from the harbor at a moderate clip and traced the jagged coastline bearing west. These types of boats don't use their sails anymore, they are just for show. Steady diesel engines chug them along the whole way.

The mountains which isolate the inner mainland from the sea form a nearly impenetrable barricade. We ambled past them with a slow roll. The contrast of colors between the sky and Aegean Sea is unmistakably definitive. It is like holding up two paint chips on a wall, one of blindingly light blue, the other of deep undulating navy, and seeing for certain the contrast between your choices. When I gazed at the coast to the north, strips of grey and green separate the two blues like a demilitarized zone between competing factions. Every few kilometers, a small peninsula or island juts out from the mountainous wall, bare of vegetation. The fissured geometric rocks resemble dirty, grey ice cubes stacked upon each other, reflecting the sunshine but defying the melting forces. And to the south, the colors clash at the unending horizon at a line so straight, you could calibrate your carpenter's level to it.

We first stopped for a swim and lunch near Arap Island. Each day went similarly. An early start is made, then a stop for swimming and lunch at a tranquil cove, then an afternoon cruise to the next port or harbor for the night. The first night was spent in silent Bozukkale. The second just north up the coast in Bozburun, where we witnessed a breathtaking sunrise over the mountains. The third was spent in a quiet natural harbor east of Datça. Each of these legs of the trip were full of gorgeous scenery. Our activities for the day consisted of sunbathing, swimming, reading, and chatting with our fellow passengers.

The fourth day brought a morning stop at the small resort town of Datça. We had previously considered coming to Datça over land and staying a few nights. We are glad we didn't because this small town doesn't have enough to keep you occupied for more than a few hours. It is somewhat charming, but the beaches and sights are not enough to make it worth the several hour bus ride from Bodrum. In the late afternoon, we cut across he bay into open water toward Greece. A short time later, we arrived at the island of Symi.

After a swim break in a quiet harbor, we rounded the corner for Symi's main port, following in the wake of a giant German cruise ship. Symi harbor seems way too small to accommodate a cruise ship, but they somehow cycle through multiple ships in a day one at a time. We disembarked from the gulet right before the cruisers did. The small town was chaotic for the two hours during their "excursion" period. When they finally left, the town settled down and we took a quiet post-dinner stroll. The unique architectural style and array of pastel colors have made Symi famous. There are still winding alleys with traditional shops and cafes, but the waterfront is totally geared toward short term visitors. I can only imagine what this town was like 20 or more years ago, or at least before the mega ships came calling.

On our fifth day, we departed Symi bright and early for Rhodes. For such a large island (the largest in the Dodecanese), Rhodes has a rather small port. It can handle a cruise ship or two, along with a handful of gulets and private yachts. Again, we disembarked around the same time as a flood of cruising Germans. The super touristy old town center was swarming with cruisers. As the afternoon went on, it thinned out and allowed us to experience more of the town's charm. We visited some typical sites like the town castle and walked the old moats. Our favorite activity, however, was a stop at the Cellar of Knights. We spent over an hour chatting with the owner, Nektarios, and sampling traditional Greek wines. Rough weather that night forced us to move from the main port to another natural harbor on the other side of the island. Fierce wind made for a difficult night's sleep.

The final day, we cut back to Marmaris and slept terribly on the boat one last time before disembarking on the seventh morning. If the weather is calm, your best chance of getting good sleep is on top of the deck, where cushions cover the sunbathing area and allow stunning starry scenery at night.

Prior to visiting Turkey, we were totally unaware of the Blue Cruise phenomenon. This type of trip is incredibly popular with Germans, Dutch, and other Northern Europeans. In our group of 12, there were four Dutch and six Germans, all over the age of 50! It made for an interesting week. They made us feel old because we drank the least, went to bed the earliest, and spent the most time reading. The party moniker clearly belonged to them!

For the price (€450 per person for a week including all meals), this is the best way to see the coast of Turkey and visit some Greek islands. We booked our tour through Bodtur.com, and the staff were very responsive and helpful. There is an abundance of time to relax, and enough beautiful sights to make your eyes bulge and jaw drop permanently. It is fun to do alone or as a couple, but would be perfect for a large group to have a really memorable week.