I know this post is long overdue and, for that, I apologize. It's been a stressful two weeks and I thank you for bearing with me while I get adjusted to Europe. Well, now that the apologies are finished, let's get started!
September 4th: Saturday was the longest day I've ever felt, not including anything related to IB. Both my brother and I simply could not slip into a nice long coma to last the first leg of the trip. Instead, we watched movies and read fanfiction the entire time. In all honesty, wouldn't you? The airlines had new videos, such as Shrek Ever After, Letters to Juliet, and The Karate Kid. By the time we arrived for our 4 hour layover in Frankfurt, Germany, everyone was cranky as all get-out. We did see almost every single ethnicity walk around us, though. Who knew there were so many cultures. It was a very good eye opener for me, I must say.
Anyway, a couple of coffees and sodas later, we hopped on the flight to Istanbul for a one-night stay. Besides the staff telling the passengers they could only have one carry-on item at the last moment before boarding (it simply was not possible for our group), I wouldn't call it a horrible flight. For one, I actually got some sleep in.
September 5th: We landed, put half the luggage (for school) in a locker at the airport, and boarded a Courtyard by Marriott bus. Note: when traveling to Istanbul (or anywhere in Turkey, for that matter), do not allow some stranger (mainly a man) to come up to you and take you to where you want to go. People in this country normally don't help a foreigner just for the sake of being helpful. This is a society founded off of entrepreneurship and they will expect compensation for going out of their way to help you. Anyway, we came to the hotel and a man came out of the front gate and circled the bus, looking underneath. This is because there have been hotels recently that have been bombed. You never know what could happen. Going through the front doors, we were herded through a scanner (similar to going through security at the airport).
With minimal confusion involved, we went up to our room and collapsed. My mom and brother brought back food authentic to the region while I was unpacking. It consisted of lentil soup, steamed carrot and cucumber slices in herbs and butter, pizza, and Turkish coffee. We read a little and passed out from shear exhaustion (no surprise - it was Sunday evening there, Sunday midday in Marietta. And so it began.
Feel free to comment. I'll catch up eventually, so please stay tuned! :)
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