DRINKS ON US: Win a $25 Gift Card to Founding Farmers – Closed

Located in Foggy Bottom, Founding Farmers is one of DC’s hottest farm-to-table restaurants.  Not only does their food menu promote sustainable agriculture, but their cocktail menu is extensive and offers a little bit of something for everyone, including in-house non-alcoholic sodas.  This DC favorite has partnered with us to bring you our very first DRINKS ON US GIVEAWAY!

To enter, you must:

1. Email WillDrinkForTravel@gmail.com with your favorite Founding Farmers’ cocktail and why from the options listed below:

• Ward Eight (Founding Farmers Rye, lemon and orange juices, housemade grenadine)
• Farmers Sazerac (Founding Farmers Rye, Cognac, bitters, Absinthe)
• Farmers Smash (Founding Farmers Rye, muddled lemon and orange ginger syrup, bitters)
• Farm Sour (Founding Farmers Rye, citrus, orgeat)
• Farm Daisy (Farm Gin, Green Chartreuse, lemon, lemongrass)
• Park Your Vesper in the Barn (Farm Gin, Absolute Eylx, Cocchi Americano)

2. Complete at least 2 of the following:

• Follow Will Drink For Travel on Twitter (@DrinkForTravel)
• Follow Founding Farmers on Twitter (@FoundingFarmers)
• Like Will Drink For Travel on Facebook
• Like Founding Farmers on Facebook

You must like Will Drink For Travel and Founding Farmers on at least one social site. Completing these three steps qualifies you for an entry to win. For bonus entries you can:

• Tweet about this giveaway {“I just entered @DrinkForTravel ‘s DRINKS ON US Giveaway sponsored by @FoundingFarmers} +1 entry
• Subscribe to Will Drink For Travel via email +1 entry

You can score a total of 3 entries!  This giveaway ends at 8:00pm on Sunday, June 22nd. The winner will be chosen at random and announced at 12:00 pm on Monday, June 23rd. Good luck!

Cheers!
Ashlee

How I Saw Istanbul in 3 Days – Day 3

Since it was our last day in Istanbul, we knew we had to make the most of it. So we caught the Tram near our hotel and headed to the Sultanahmet area of the city. I loved this area because the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia and Basilica Cistern were all so close to each other. By the way, Istanbul’s public transportation system is awesome. It seems like there’s a way to get anywhere you want to go in the city, which is great for minimizing costs.

Our first stop was to the Blue Mosque.  Since we were now mosque-visiting pros, we knew to take our shoes off and cover our heads.  The inside, in a word, was beautiful.

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Our second stop was to the Hagia Sophia.  It was built as a Christian temple, and then became a mosque for several hundred years.  In 1935, it became a museum showcasing some its Christianity and Islam heritage.

We were approached by a tour guide outside who offered to tour us around at a discounted rate.  He had an official license issued by Turkey.  I recommend doing this if the person seems reputable and legitimate. He was able to give us little anecdotes about the museum and it was much more interesting than listening to a guide on tape.

After we finished touring the Hagia Sophia, the guide offered to take us to the Basilica Cistern, an underground water storage area. Before being converted to a cistern, a Basilica stood in its place. It was surprisingly serene down there. The Medusa heads, one on its side and one upside down, were the most fascinating pieces in the Cistern.  It seems like there would be some interesting story about why they’re there, but our guide said they needed something to hold up the columns and the heads were the perfect size. Oh well.

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While in Istanbul for 3 days, we were able to experience much of Turkish culture. But I left feeling almost a little sad because there was still so much to see and do. I didn’t make it to the Topkapi or Dolmabahçe Palaces, the Hippodrome and I didn’t cruise on the Bosphorus, and much, much more, but there’s no possible way you can do everything in just 3 short days. Believe me, I tried. It just gives me a reason to return sooner rather than later!

Until next time Istanbul,

Ashlee