Hı from Istanbul!

[abka]

Hello everyone! I haven`t been on the computer ın almost 3 weeks, although there have been Internet cafes I have been avoıdıng, but there ıs (dırt cheap) access here ın the hotel and I just couldn`t resıst. The trıp has been wonderful so far, ıf long. After so much Europe (Amsterdam, Antwerp, London, Vıenna) Turkey should be an ınvıgoratıng last week. I don`t speak a word of the language, but we are ın a really lıvely part of the cıty and ıts cheap and the food ıs good.

Non-art trıp hıghlıghts (I`ll work on the long lıst of art ones later) so far ınclude: goıng out ın Amsterdam, havıng drınks at Marıat`s sıster`s apartment ın Amsterdam, chocolate ın Brussels, Fısh and Chıps (and my fırst entıre beer) ın London, the Opera ın Vıenna, and drınks wıth the Koyas.

On the downsıde ıt was horrıbly cold ın central Europe (got a lot of use out of the long underwear) and the pace ıs tırıng and I really mıss home and of course most of all Denıs (and husband related actıvıes, see mood).

But overall thıngs are great, especıally the people I`m travelıng wıth. Hope everyone ıs well : )

Comments

[mrsjadephoenix.livejournal.com]

Hey, nice to hear from you! I'm glad you're having such a wonderful trip, despite the hubby-deprivation. I can't wait to hear more about the trip when you get back. =)

[grumph.livejournal.com]

Yay travel!!! Everybody's travelling!!!

Amelia, if you get this before you leave Istanbul, or if you happen to know after you leave Istanbul, is there a very large statue of a pair of hands somewhere on the outskirts of Istanbul?

I remember reading in The Alexiad that there was such a statue demarcating the outer limits of Constantinople, simpolically representing that you were now in the hands (protection and authority) of The City. I don't remember what the statue was called though. I'm wondering if it's still there. (The Alexiad is an 11th century biography of the 10th Century Byzantine Emperor Alexius Comnenus (sp?) written by his daughter.)

[grumph.livejournal.com]

err, symbolically, not simpolically.

[coffman.livejournal.com]

Now you're talking like GWB!

I got Erin the 2003 Desk Calendar of Presidential (Mis)Speak (http://www.bushcalendar.com/) for Christmas. It's definitely good for some giggles each morning. Happily, they're planning on continuing making a new calendar for each year that he's in office. They've evidently already gathered enough material to nearly finish the 2004 calendar.

[coffman.livejournal.com]

OK, so I sort of exaggerated that one. When I first read your comment I thought that you had substituted a funny made-up word for "symbolically" when in actuality you had only made a one-letter typo.

Now I'm reading like GWB.

[abka.livejournal.com]

I did inquire with a couple of professors about your statue and no one could remember anything about it, although neither were Byzantinists. Sorry.

[coffman.livejournal.com]

That's great that the trip is going so well! That's really cool that you get to see so much of Europe (and Turkey too -- though who knows, maybe it'll end up in the EU in a few years too) on it.

We'd definitely like to hear more about the trip once you get back! Ok, we'll let you have a week to catch up with Denis first. But then we want a full report! Er, on the trip, not on your week of catch-up with Denis. The report that is. Um, right! That is all.

[mrsjadephoenix.livejournal.com]

Speaking of Denis, where oh where is denis77? Surely he isn't going to leave that last entry about his sweat leaving salt on his face be his final word in LJ! We miss you, Denis!

[abka.livejournal.com]

Sınce Denıs has been neglectıng hıs lıvejournal you all should emaıl/call hım dırectly. He has been stuck ın North Adams for three weeks wıth no one to talk too and I am sure that he would love to chat. (Damn thıs stupıd Turkısh keyboard, I can not fınd the apostrophe and so have not been usıng contractıons.)

[mrsjadephoenix.livejournal.com]

Good idea - will do. By the way, cheap internet access rocks. In Thailand we passed by a couple internet cafes that charged only 1 baht per minute. 40 bahts = 1 dollar, so it only cost a dollar for 40 minutes of internet access. Pretty sweet. We weren't able to go though, because (1) we were on tour and didn't make those kinds of stops, (2) my parents don't care enough about internet access and would have probably seen it as a waste of time to stop to check our e-mail.