If you’re a regular follower of our blog, you know how much we love seeing the cool places where ONA bags go with our awesome customers. Our team also loves globetrotting with our own ONA bags: early this month, marketing manager Christine Amorose spent two weeks soaking up the sunshine in Turkey with her Leather Capri.
One of my goals is to spend every birthday in my 20s in a new country: this year, I chose to celebrate in Turkey! I couldn't wait to see the otherworldly landscape in Cappadocia and enjoy cosmopolitan Istanbul.
Watching the sun set over Rose Canyon in Cappadocia, the pink hues reminded me eerily of the Grand Canyon thousands of miles away.
Houses and hotels are carved into the caves scattered throughout Cappadocia. There's even an open air museum that showcases the Christian cave churches from the 12th century.
The main reason people come to Cappadocia: to take a hot-air balloon ride! Up to 100 balloons fill the air every sunrise, and it is just stunning.
I mentioned in my booking that I was coming to Turkey to celebrate my birthday, so the kind folks at Voyager Balloons surprised me with champagne, cake and flowers after the ride. So blown away by Turkish hospitality!
After a couple of days in Cappadocia, it was thrilling to see hot air balloons fill the sky on my way to an early flight back to Istanbul.
One of my favorite parts of traveling in Istanbul was seeing how the domes and the minarets of the mosques dominated the skyline. It's so foreign but so beautiful to wake up and fall asleep to the Muslin call to prayer being broadcast across the city.
The intricacy of Islamic art and royal opulence was on full display at Topkapi Palace. I was in love with the color scheme!
We rode the commuter ferry back and forth from Europe to Asia: it's such a relaxing (and cheap!) way to see the city and soak up the sunshine. One day, we even rode the ferry for about an hour and a half out to Princes' Islands, a collection of laid-back islands that serve as a beach day trip for locals.
The Leather Capri on display on Heybeliada, one of Princes' Islands.
A traditional Turkish breakfast at Cafe Privato. What a spread!
For more wanderlust, check out the rest of our Travel Journals and follow #WhereONAGoes on our Instagram. You can also read more about Christine's Turkey adventures on her blog.