Izmir and Kusadasi, Turkey

Today has been the best day by far. We woke up at 4 in the morning and it's like 7 now but I feel great!
I'm in Asia!! We flew into Izmir and we toured. We started out with saint John's crib. I don't really know what else to call it cause it's awesome. Then we went to the home of Mary, the mother of Jesus. That was such a cool experience. It's a secluded place high on some mountain and they make you be quiet when you enter her house. I'm not sure if that's really the house of Mary but I definitely felt the spirit in there. It was awesome. As you walked in you could grab a candle and then light it when you got out in memory of someone you loved. So she could watch over them. Then you could wash your hands in the holy water and take some if you wanted. It's some of the only drinkable water in turkey. Then lastly, there is a giant wall completely covered in handkerchiefs and other random scraps. People are supposed to take something of theirs, make a wish and then tie it to this wall and Mary will make it come true. 
So that was way awesome. We ended with the temple of Artemis. One of the seven wonders of the ancient world. It was pretty cool but earthquakes have completely destroyed it. :(
Then we moved in to Kusadasi.  
It is BEAUTIFUL here. I like it better than Istanbul. It's a lot smaller. More of my style. And it's gorgeous! I'll try to attach a picture of where I'm sitting right now typing this. I'm in paradise. We have a way nice hotel and a room that overlooks the ocean. I want to live here. 
We came back and went to the beach where my partner, Ryan, and I became chicken champs. Whoo! I love to win. Then we decided to go back to he hotel pool and ended up with a big group of us playing "volleyball" with these little Turkish girls named "Touche" and "Illyada". They were adorable. The Turks are such nice people. Very welcoming. We ended the day with some tanning on the top floor and now I'm here, on my balcony typing away watching the sunset over the ocean in 80 degree weather. Yeah...don't worry about me. I'm doin' fine. :)
Love you all. I'll send pictures hopefully so you can all live vicariously through me.
LOL. Lots Of Love :)