David S. Demarest

First, and as promised, a couple more Darjeeling photos:

     Mt. Kangchenjunga (28169 ft), world’s third tallest mountain, at sunrise from Darjeeling

   Typical Darjeeling street scene     and a quiet Darjeeling lane

   The famous Darjeeling (toy) train.  It runs on a 24″ track

Before Istanbul, a bit more on getting out of Delhi.  In my last post I may have mentioned being waitlisted to fly out to Turkey.  Arriving as instructed at the airport at 11:30pm, I was told nothing could happen until 4:00am, and that I would have to PAY to wait in the waiting area in that no one was allowed in the terminal until three hours before their flight!

To make a long story short, once I got in the terminal at about 1:00am, I had the pleasure of meeting two young ladies (19 years) from Sweden who have been on the road for eight months, had spent a month going around the US by bus, and were off for their final month in South Africa.  Absolutely amazing, and entirely wonderful.  What an opportunity to grow and learn!

Anyway, at 3:30am I found I would get on the flight.  Thus commenced the circus of getting me processed.  I think there were four Turkish Airline staffers helping – as they multi-tasked in many different areas.  The change fee was 3,000 rupees (about $75) but it had to be cash, which I did not have.  I was escorted off site to an ATM – it was out of service.  We went to a second one, which fortunately worked.  Ultimately I got on the plane and arrived in Istanbul at about 9:00am local time!

Istanbul is a fascinating city!  And compared to Kolkata or Delhi – and even Darjeeling to a certain extent – it is quiet.  Not to say it isn’t a busy city, it is.  A thriving port, a population of about 15 million (according to one source), and a daily exchange of 50 or so billion dollars in commerce (from another source).

It is also old.  The history is incredible.  Last night I wandered through the Blue Mosque and a myriad of side streets paved with cobblestones and line with cafes and shops – today I acted even more like a tourist and joined a tour!  We saw the city’s old wall, the summer palace which was amazing, took a cruise on the Bosphorus which connects the Sea of Marmara and Black Sea and is also the dividing point between the Asian and European continents, and saw numerous other sites.

I also enjoyed others on the tour.  We had a couple from Dubai (she Indian, he Jordanian), a couple from Mexico City, another from the north island of New Zealand (she a teacher and he a farmer), a couple from Austria, and numerous others.   Some of my most enjoyable times on this trip has been in conversation with people from other parts of the world and today was no exception.  Funny thing, the question of politics (presidential) always comes up – and they are all up on what is happening! 

Where I am staying is Hotel Legend in the old part of Istanbul.  Blocks from the Blue Mosque and surrounded by history.  It is also interesting to note the number of universities in Istanbul – it is apparently quite an intellectual city.  It is also a city that is still uncovering its past – so much so that construction of a subway is constantly grinding to a halt as new archaeological sites are located and evaluated.

Still working on plans from here, so will be sure to share what I get figured out.  In the meantime, a few Istanbul photos…

         The Blue Mosque

   Historic fort       Yours truly on the Bosphorus

   Istanbul Spice Market – a comment on the food, and especially the fruits and vegetables – one could eat their way through town