.

Quote is super inaccurate, whilst furthering my aliases association with balls.

''It's not the daily increase, but the daily decrease....''

Holy ****. How did I not see that Yang

Writing my schedule for tomorow, it's pretty 1 sided for doing things, opposed to decreasing things. Time to split my Diary pages into debit/credit language.

This quote is actually perfect for some thing I'm working on. OMGAWD

YOU CALL IT BE ALL OVER BABY!

LC-Thread right place for this?

Had a long weekend away ended up in casino after hitting town won some got bored of poker then spent then next 3.5 days off my face with little to no sleep in a daze that ended up with me 30k in the hole....duhhh

That's a bit less than 1/2 of my yearly wage so boohoo (5k non gaming related) just saying caz i am stil crying.


Anyway had to cash out most of my balance from all my different sites and have been playing ****ty stakes and not enjoying it so after watching Grand Budapest hotel last night i thought 1 month break from poker and anything gaming related and **** it may as well spend some doing something fun so i bought a return ticket to Romania today.


I have 18 days and will probably visit Turkey as well so any one who lives in either of these want to give me some tips like where i should go and which towns to avoid?

Leaving in less than 2 weeks did not even think to check weather stuff or anything before getting tickets but looks not to bad so i figure mountains and out door adventure cheap holiday lol any ideas?


I know i can look on the Internet but lots of Romanian players these days so i figure you guys will have a better idea of where to visit for the short period and mountains that wont be too bad this time of year.

Turkey i am just going to be lazy and look at pridy stuff and old stuff i think.

If you help i put up photos, or not if no one wants to see them

I am Turkish though i haven't been in Turkey for a long time myself. One advice i'd give is that you definitely should try street food. So many unique flavours.
And taxi drivers will try to scam you. There is an app that when you type adresses, it shows how much taxi fares should cost. If you don't tell them beforehand that you are willing the pay X amount and nothing more, they will both waste your money and time. I rage just thinking about Istanbul taxi drivers.

If you have any questions, shoot them.

I just spent the last 5 weeks backpacking throughout Greece and turkey. Had an absolutely awesome time. Feel free to ask me anything

Thank you appreciated, Turkey for me is going to be about historical sites, natural places of beauty and Islamic art (as well as food) so if you can think of any places that you think are a must or off the beaten track/normal tourist side that you think are worth a visit it would be a help.

Was thinking Greece could be worth a visit while that side of the world funnily enough, i can get a week more for holiday if i want and change ticket no problem but i better stick to just asking about Turkey and Romania do not want to spend more than 5-6k + flights (sorted) after my last 6 months of abusing mind, body and pocket also detoxing while away so will not be bothering with drinking spots or clubs.

I am guessing 5-6k US ish will be fine if i want to do Greece as well adding a week? nothing fancy accommodation wise dont mind Backpacking hostels and the like but it has been a few years since i have been in Europe and i want to see and do as much as i can in the time.

You gotta post a trip reports w/ pictures of beautiful places, chicks stories, life variance IMHO
And the most important part, did you run above your trip expected value?

+1

I like that, pic would be great.

Yup LC thread is perfect place to post something like this.

Sorry to hear about you losing so much at the casino. 3.5 days straight gambling w/o sleep is some serious degeneracy. How exactly did it happen? You just kept drinking and chasing losses at pit games like blackjack?

I normally enjoy Wes Anderson films but wasn't a fan of Grand Budapest Hotel. Turned it off after 30 mins because it was so bizarrely strange and ridiculous. The critics loved it though

Don't know anything about that part of the world so can't give you any vacation advice, but I think taking a trip to clear your mind after that rough casino session is a good idea

Short version is yes the drink and stuff then chasing when the losses started sinking in + being a dick head.

Was not all no sleep i did go back to hotel for 1hr or 2 after about 36 hrs? then about 4 after another 20 ish? but got about 2 hrs sleep before losing the most money in the last run.
Was kind of not with it and am now trying very hard not to think about it lol.


Oprah version in spoilers if your bored or like a bit of soap type gossip. Worth skipping but who knows if some one may get something positive out of it

As you'd probably guess, Sultanahmet is your no1 location. That part of the town is literally full of historical monuments and Islamic art. Food there though very touristy. Istanbul is one of the most poorly organized cities in the world, you can't just look at a map and be fine. Check wikitravel, there are detailed directions to most sites or you can ask for directions. Turks love giving directions to tourists.

I'd also suggest visiting Princes' Islands. They are a group of Islands a few miles off the coast of Istanbul. It's really good this time of year. When i lived in Istanbul i used to go there regularly, couple of times every month. It's absolutely beautiful.

Taksim Square/Istiklal Street is the "night out" place. Shops, pubs, restaurants and clubs and some art galleries though mostly contemporary. You don't seem like you are very interested in a place like that. But you should definitely at least have a walk there. This place is really really good, if you're feeling like having a bit fun. There is this place called J'adore Chocolatier, they make the best desserts. Just try it.

There are these islands Gokceada and Bozcaada off the coast of Canakkale. Canakkale is the place where the Illiad happened. You know the Trojan Horse and all that. There is not much to see there imo, a few local museum with very old artifacts such as pots and spearheads and a replica Trojan horse. I wasn't impressed. But the islands are really beautiful. Bozcaada's local wines are delicious in an unorthodox way. People are really friendly and interesting. It's just naturally beautiful.

These are the ones i could remember off the top of my had.

lol i only took a taxi once in istanbul and we got into a fight. story time later.
avoid taxis and take the metro, tram or bus. save yourself alot of money and hassle.

Istanbul is amazing! definitely one of my favorite cities in world now.
historical sites
-blue mosque.
-agia sophia. under construction so you are not missing much if you dont go.
-Suleymaniye Cami. my favorite mosque. highest one in the city and gives great views of istanbul
-basicalla cistern.
-list goes on. so much to see in istanbul. i had 7 nights and still wasnt enough.

Cappadocia






just go. take the night bus and spend 2 nights there. unbelievable place.

I never went to ephesus as i had enough of wandering ruins but i heard its pretty cool. will definitely go there when i go back to turkey.

foodwise. try a bunch of different kebab places. i found the ones that used the machete to cut the meat as opposed to an electric shaver were of much higher quality. a real kebab is grilled meat so dont always get the meat on spit and pay a little more to have your chicken/beef grilled. so much better. avoid main streets too as youll pay 2x, 3x price (in istanbul that is). kofte (meatball) on turkish bread is also really good. make sure u have a pottery kebab in cappadocia. its only available in that area so dont miss out.

off beaten path places? im not so sure as i followed a very popular tourist route. id probably inquire about that in istanbul but my guess would be to head anywhere east and you wont be disappointed. a friend i met traveling went here.

Mount Nemrut. looked pretty fkn cool and not alot of tourists around.



Id avoid greece if i were you. weather is starting to get cooler and hostels/hotels are starting to close. plus its expensive to get to greece via turkey and vice versa. ferries within greece also run less frequently and sell out quickly so be prepared to get 'stuck for a few days' on some islands. santorini ferries run multiple x a day and will continue to do so till end of october i believe so if i could pick one island to do this time of year it would be that.

moneywise? i didnt spend more than $65usd (not including $175USD hot air balloon ride) a day in turkey and i stayed at nice hostels and ate well for the most part.

will do. got stories of all that and more.
i spent more money than i would have liked to have but definitely ran really well my trip. lets just say the next time i go hiking in a 600m gorge i am definitely wearing a helmet.

little preview of some pics.

Olympos, Turkey



+1 to all that. love istanbul!

Went to Best Buy this evening to look at laptops and ended up buying this one

It was a lot lighter and sleeker (and cheaper) than the 15.6" models which is why I decided on it. It also has 1600x1200 res which is better than the 1366x1000 res of most of the cheaper and smaller laptops.

It was 700 (745 inc tax). When I checked price online while I was in store, I thought it was this model + so I was getting a competitive price, but it seems like I bought a different Best Buy exclusive one since mine has an i5 processor not an i7 + can't find comp w/ my upc model # at any online retailer except BB.

Did I get a reasonable enough deal or should I return it and buy a similar model that's a better deal online?

F it, I guess either way I'm just gonna keep it, not going to go thru hassle of returning it + ordering one online to save <100 bucks or get a slightly better comp

Thanks for the information and pictures.

I have wanted to do a big trip through middle east for a long time now but war happened so i decided that looking a bit like a jar head (army guy) it would not be smart to ignore warnings and go anyway.

Short of a few of the beach type holidays with girlfriends i have not done any decent travelling for a few years now.

Those two very well written posts and the pictures hockyhero31 put up clinched the deal.

Changed ticket return date till end of December, with option to change again up to 12 months after departure for $250 more.

Told the boss i quit but i guess he got some action this morning or reads 2+2 as i was informed not to worry job in January if i want it.

Now i can blow the rest of my savings as well.

Some friends are in Europe at the moment so will jump on a train or something and catch up with them for a week or so at start then go back and do Romania and Turkey.

After reading both your posts i figured 18 days would not be enough, not with losing at least 2 for travel jet lag, Turkeys sounds like it wants 18 days on its own.

Got some intrepid tour brochures that cover Greece and surrounding areas to give me some ideas.

Sounds like i should take you advice and give Greece a miss this time of year so i am just going to plan Romania and Turkey then wing the remanding time where ever i end up.

Thanks again to both of you for the info and pics very appreciated

Neat evolution of warfare gif:

quite nice gif. goes a bit too fast tho

ty for epilepsy. it tickled

that's a good one Slimy

Performed this one for a few friends last night at a party. Good times.

nice one jabonator

+1, you've developed some really good range w/ your vocals, and this is also another cover where I prefer your more stripped down arrangement than the more sappy, melodramatic original version.

Still waiting on that mellow piano or acoustic guitar cover of "Internet Killed the Video Star" tho

I just moved down to Guatemala and managed to get myself robbed in the first 12 hours. It was my own fault and I only lost $20 though so can't really complain.