Hello From Istanbul! (Sunday, 9/27)

We left Portland on Thursday afternoon and arrived in Istanbul 20 hours later at 5:30 pm local time. A shuttle was waiting for us and whisked us down some crazy streets right to our hostel. The sun was starting to set by the time we got there (7:30 pm) and something clicked so we instantly fell asleep without exploring.
The next day we dealt with bank troubles (card cancellations-- even though we called ahead of time!!) and did some tasks in town, such as buying cool little akbils for getting around the transit system, stopping by our school to pick up text books, and buying soap and shampoo. We also got a a chance to explore the tea gardens near Topkapi and had a long lunch with a great view of the Bosphorous. Again, we fell asleep at 8pm!

Today we've done some more sightseeing-- checking out the Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum and walking around the Hippodrome and the back of the Blue Mosque. We've even been trying out some Turkish phrases, with much success... we think. Tonight our goal is to stay up to 10 pm.

Much love to everyone,
Mike (and Eleanor)