After I last wrote, I went to meet Oktay.   Very nice person...he is a mechanical engineer, 28 and lives with a flatmate who i call Charles because i can't even say his turkish name let alone spell it.  They have a very nice flat near Taksim Square and are wonderful hosts.  I was so tired...but they wanted to take me out.  So we went out at 10 pm...and the streets and cafes were full!  we had some typical meditarranean food, coffee, and talked, talked, talked...we were out until 2:30 AM talking about Bush, Politics, Iraq, Islam, Christianity, ATheism, Nitczhe, Camus, the purpose of life, etc.  Very light topics as you can see...i thorougly enjoyed it.  I am there first American Guest and they kept saying I should be an ambasador to prove that not all Americans are foolish!

They had to go to work this morning...so i took the bus to Old Istanbul.  These people here must have the strongest legs...Istanbul is the city of 7 hills....it is like San Francisco.  I got seriously lost in Old Istanbul..to the point that i just went to a cafe to calm down.  I couldn't not find my way out of the maze of streets.  Finally, i found the Grand Bazzar which has 4500 stalls selling carpets, spices, trinket...it was overwhelming.  From there I finally got to one of my main sites that has been on my list of places to see...The Aya Sofia...built in 532 AD by Emperor Justinian and was the largest Christian Church until the Vatican 1000 years later!  But it was plundered by the muslims and they removed all the mosaics and made it into a mosque.  now it serves as a museum.  it was breathtaking.  From there I went to the Blue Mosque..which was a great experience. i removed my shoes and it was my first time in a mosque.  i even knelt down and contemplate for a while.  I think my highlight was after that sitting in the park and the noon time prayers started over the loud speakers through the city....it was surreal to sit in front of the blue mosque listing to the islamic prayers broadcasting over the city!  After that i walked to the hippodrome where the Roman had chariot races,   Oktay recommended I go to the Basilica Cistern....it was great.  It was something out of Phanotm of the Opera or Dracula...It is all underground, damp, wet, with water, candles and it was build by Contantine nearly 1500 years ago.  I then took a walk along the Divan Yolu to Topkaki Palace.  But it was getting late and the palace requires a lot of time...so i am saving that for tomorrow along with shopping.

The sun started setting about 4 pm so i thought i better head back near Taksim Square where i stopped to have coffee and two waiters wanted to join me and ask questions of the States and to practice their English.  That is the stuff i love...meeting people and talking.  there is a bittersweetness in it...to meet someone, share a conversation, and know that you will never see them again.  It is like a microcosm of life.  So it is evening now...and I'm unwinding and waiting for Oktay and Charle to get home from work.  They want to go out again tonight.  Tomorrow I will wrap up the sites of Istanbul, do a little shopping and then move on....

Hi all....i finally made it.  It is 7 pm here in Istanbul....10 hours ahead of \los angeles.  i am absolutely exhausted...23 hours 30 minutes of travel.   I just love it when I arrive in a new city...it's scary, overwhelming, exciting, and gets my adrenaline going.  After leaving Rome...we flew over Italy, adriatic sea, croatia, and bulgaria...the scenery was dotted with dozens of little villages and i couldn't help but think that in each home is a family, a story, hopes, sadness, etc.  it's such a big world..and at the same time so small!

i arrived in istanbul and had to get my visa...i didn't realize that i needed one.  i then went through customs and my luggage was one of the first one off the carosel.  i then had to find a phone card and call Oktay...he is one of my contacts in istanbul.  i called him and he is getting off work and he told me to take a shuttle to Taksim Square and would meet me in an hour.  I will stay with him for the next three nights.   Once the shuttle got to Taksim I bought went on overload trying to cross the street...it's crazy...there are no rules...you just step out and hope for the best.   it was neat driving through the city at night with all the mosques lit up.  very beautiful...and the men are beautiful too!  we were driving through istanbul...which is very crowded and i couldn't help but think "my God...I'm in a country that borders iraq"...it all seems so far and foreign to me.

i do wish i spoke a little of the language as that is my biggest problem...i have no clue what is going on. but in someways that is good..it teaches me that when put into a situation you just adapt and go into survival mode.

Well, take care.  Tomorrow i will start hitting the streets with my camera.  I know tomorrow i will see  Aya Sofia and the Blue Mosque.  It is so wonderful to stay connected to all of you back home.