This Sunday, in two days, I’m moving almost all of my worldly belongings from Budapest to Istanbul by bus. It's more than 600 kilometers, includes crossing through no fewer than three countries, as well as plenty of mountainous terrain.

When I’ve told people, they’ve looked at me like it is...

"I work...to travel," the man behind the counter says in careful English, spreading his hands to gesture at the narrow confines of the convenience store. Then he tells me a little about his travels - to Mali and Niger, to West and North Africa, to Europe. He reels off a list of languages he speaks: English,...

I spent about a year and a half living in the Tarlabasi neighborhood in Istanbul. When my husband-to-be had moved into the area several years before, it was a lively, mostly Romany neighborhood with colorful street life, and a bad reputation. By the time I moved there, it contained a strange mix...

Turkey is culturally, historically, and geographically the cradle of civilization. It has been the fountainhead for the three most powerful societies in history: the Hitite, the Byzantine, and the Ottoman Empire. Situated between the continents of Europe and Asia, the country is a fusion of the East...

Objective

To discern essential cultural differences and between the cities of Rio de Janeiro and Istanbul, focusing on two primary points of analysis: cats and old men.

I. Cats

The majority of local street cats I happened upon in Rio were mangy, flea-ridden creatures. They prowled around the...

I spent my first night in Istanbul at the Antique Hostel in Istanbul, a much-lauded spot in the heart of Sultanahmet, the sight-seeing center of the city. I arrived there at around midnight, and was greeted at the desk by a guy wearing a button-down shirt opened halfway down the front of his...

I heard that line a lot growing up, and now, trying to break into this whole travel writing scene, it seems to be the one parental rule I absolutely cannot follow if I’m going to get anywhere. The thing is, I’m having a lot of trouble getting past it.

As a female solo traveler most of the time...

Merhaba people!!

I just spent 5 days in Istanbul - the city that never sleeps... you can tell that by the traffic... no matter at what time of the day, the traffic in Istanbul is C-R-A-Z-Y!!!

I am wondering how maniacs like them even get a license to driver out there ;-) It's definitely an...