Istanbul

Istanbul ages well. We took a wonderful family vacation there in 2006, when Adam was 8 and Claire was 12. We stayed in old town, visiting the Blue Mosque, Aya Sofia, and the spice market. There were ruins everywhere - fortified city walls, old buildings, and even graffiti from the  2nd century. And lots of ferries. Wendy and I visited many of those same old haunts today, and they were just as fun as the first time.

Some nice tourists from Winnipeg took this picture. They got my attention, only to quickly say “It’s OK - we’re not asking you to buy anything!”. A visit to this area is not complete without someone asking you to buy a carpet. I decided not to tell the touts that we just got fabulous new high-quality carpets from Costco....

We took the ferry to Üsküdar, just to take a ferry. It was lovely, except for the length - the trip was only 10 minutes each way. On the other end, we ran into a huge festival full of politicians shouting their promises. Apparently they do that in all countries - though I’ve never seen a festival quite like this in the U.S.

Istanbul is full of mosques, which give it so much color, from the prayers on the loudspeakers to the city silhouette.

It turns out we were visiting Istanbul in the middle of Ramadan, the month when many Muslims fast during the day. It took us a couple days to figure out why the restaurants were so empty - except at night. After sunset, many restaurants had special large set-meals, and were packed. On nice nights (like this one) many families also take picnics, so the green spaces were packed. 

There was a special Ramadan message and  colored fountains at Hagia Sofia. 

Then it was time for Wendy and I to take the metro back to the airport for our 2 am flight to Cape Town. We lucked out - our flight was less than half full. I could hardly figure out what to do first - play with the entertainment system, wait for the yummy dinner, write my blog, read my own book, or try to sleep. Wendy had a whole row of 4 seats - I only got two! Before we knew it, we’d flown over almost all of Africa, and were landing in Cape Town. 

Next Up: Cape Town

IMC Robotics

Wendy and I headed out to TEV İnanç Turkey Orel Lisesi school to meet FRC team 4191 - IMC and their FLL team. We had a delightful time meeting the students, hearing about their trips to the Istanbul regional, the Aerospace regional in Lancaster, CA, and World Championship in Houston. We got to hear how they manage shipping their robot, doings outreach, and so many more parts to running successful robotics teams. 

Their school is on a gorgeous hilltop overlooking the ocean, with views from many classrooms. It’s a boarding school for gifted and talented youth, and these kids are powerhouses! We also got to see their shop, a dedicated space that gets colds in the winter but is all theirs. We did not get to see their robot, which is still making its way back from Houston. 

We got to eat dinner with the team, sharing a typical Tuesday dinner of green beans, lentil soup, yogurt, and a potato filled pastry. Yum! They sent us home with IMC shirts and some of the best baklava I’ve ever had. Thank you IMC, for such a special visit!

Afterwards, Wendy and I made our way down to the scenic waterfront at Ekihisar, then back to the hotel. The view from our window at night is lovely. 

Next up: Istanbul

First Stop - Turkey

It’s a really long way from Minnesota to Turkey. A 90 minute flight to Chicago, then an 11 hour flight to Istanbul. Some people ask me how I can stand 11 hours on the plane when they think a 3 hour flight is long. Truthfully, I also think 3 hour flights are long, but 11 hours aren’t that bad.

The first adventure was exploring our jam-packed personal entertainment systems. They also gave us a pillow, blanket, headphones to fit their funny plugs, a pouch of travel goodies, and a really delicious dinner and breakfast. Who says the airlines don’t take care of you anymore? 

Picking up the e car and driving through rush hour traffic was just as slow as any big city. I got a big kick out of driving UNDER the Bosporus, even though it looked like just another tunnel. Google maps was amazing. Between downloaded map layers and some international data, we got turn-by-turn instructions in English, even when the signs were in Turkish. It may have been slow but we didn’t get lost!

This is morning we were woken up by the call to prayers, which is broadcast from each mosque on big public speakers. I love it. I recorded it - or thought I did. When it was over, I realized I dreamed that part. No wonder - it was 3:38 am! I closed the window, drew the blinds, and turned on the air. We slept though the next round - and breakfast. 

Next step - find lunch. Then off to visit IMC Robotics

Africa - Here We Come!

We're heading out on a new adventure this weekend. Three weeks - four countries. Our main destination - Cape Town. They have mountains, hiking, safari, oceans, and penguins! Did I mention the penguins? They also have drought. We are looking forward to the adventure of living like locals with VERY little water.

Next Up: First Stop - Turkey

Turkish Delight

It took something like three days to get home, days being a relative term, comprised of some unknown number of hours, due to to time zone changes.

Day 1: Chitwan to Kathmandu
The bus ride back was surprisingly comfortable. Maybe it was having seats near front. Maybe it was the fantastic views. We traveled along the river almost the whole way, climbing from around 500 feet of elevation to almost 5,000 feet of elevation. Right at the end, the road climbs a set of steep switchbacks to reach the Kathmandu valley. I'm not sure what happened our day, but we eventually passed at least 5 broken down trucks on the hill, which backed up traffic on the hill in both directions for miles. The road is only two lanes, with the mountain on one side and a steep drop off on the other, so a broken truck means that everyone in one direction has to stop while the other direction passes. It takes time. The trip that should have taken 6 hours took almost 10. But we made it back to Kathmandu safe and sound, in time for last minute shopping, device charging, and some sleep.

Day 2: Kathmandu to Istanbul
We met up with our guide, Kiran, again for breakfast, after which he presented us with katas, or prayer scarves, which are traditional for all sorts of things, including arrivals and departures.

The 8 1/2 hour trip was extended a couple hours, due to a refueling stop in Delhi - the fuel crisis is definitely not over. We arrived in Istanbul around 7:30 pm, local time. We quickly proceeded through customs to the "Hotel Desk", where we waited a VERY long time (over 2 hours). But the result was incredible - two free rooms at the Grand Chevalier Hotel, a place that we would never have paid for on our own. We collapsed into the cushy room after making good use of the plentiful hot water and shampoo :)

Day 3: Istanbul to Chicago/Minneapolis
It was a delight to be back in Turkey. It felt so clean and easy. Meg and I walked around after an incredibly sumptuous breakfast buffet, shopping at local supermarkets for snacks and presents, watching regular people head to work. The airline even sent a bus to bring us back to the airport. It was fun to see a different part of the city - most of our time has been spent in the old town by the Grand Bazaar and Topkapi Palace.

 Then it was time for our last long flight: 12 hours from Kathmandu to Chicago. The loaded personal entertainment devices helped the time pass. I watched Spy, Everest, and Boyhood. Wendy and Adam watched the Hobbit too. They even had all six of the first Star Wars movies. And then there was the food! Some of the best Turkish food I've ever had. Check out the menu they gave us when we boarded:

We're pretty enamored with Turkish Airlines, between the movies, the hotel rooms, the food, and the pile of goodies (I'm always going to fly with slippers from now on!).  And Istanbul. I highly recommend both!

When we got to Chicago, Adam and I rushed off to catch our Spirit Airlines flight, leaving Wendy and Meg to deal with all of our luggage and customs. Wendy and Meg spent another day picking up the dog in Milwaulkee and driving home - bless them!

And that's that! Now we're home to the land of plenty: food, heat, electricity, transportation, etc. And more responsibility. And of course the jet lag, which gives me plenty of time to post instead of sleeping! But what a trip - it was well worth it :)

Chitwan National Park

Chitwan is an amazing place. Last time I was here, the oppressive heat and humidity overwhelmed my experience. This time, I am free to appreciate the beauty. It is so different than the mountains. We are on the flatlands here, near the Indian border.

Our lodge consists of two long buildings facing each other across a lovely garden, with trees, flowers, stone walkways and shaded palapas. A tree in the garden provides oranges for Meg's fruit lassis. After the rigors of our trip, we have all been glad to take some down time. Our rooms are fairly simple, but seem luxurious to us, with nice bedding, attached bathrooms, hot water and towels. Each bed has a fancy princess canopy, otherwise known as a mosquito net, to protect us from the handful of mosquitos we've seen. Out back are two resident elephants.

Yesterday morning, after much research and soul searching,  we took a ride on the government elephants. They cost more than the private elephants, and are treated a bit better. The fees are also used to combat rhino poaching. So I hope it was an ethical choice. I was glad to share the experience with Wendy and Adam. The four of us perched on top of our elephant, at the four corners of the "saddle" as our elephant plodded his way through grasslands and forest. It was a misty morning, but we still caught glimpses of deer, monkeys, birds, and one sleepy rhino.

After lunch, we took a four hour jeep ride through the park. I had my doubts - four more hours bumping along sounded a bit like torture. But even with the bumping, I loved it. We were constantly scanning the trees, grasses and woods for animal spottings. The grasses are quite tall this time of year (they are burned back in March) but we felt very satisfied by the glimpses we got of three kinds of deer, peacocks, black-faced monkeys, termite mounds, wild boar, crocodiles and one rhino. There is a crocodile breeding center that raises and releases cut little baby gariel crocodiles. Beware swimming here! We ended the day with an amazing jungle sunset. 

This afternoon we took a leisurely trip down river in a traditional flat bottom "canoe" made of one single log. We saw birds and tons of crocodiles (both gariel and the more dangerous mugger) at every turn. Good thing we didn't tip over! 

Then we took a 3 hour jungle walk. It was nice to be up close and personal with the forest, after the elephant, canoe and jeep. But things got exciting when we came an elephant grazing ahead of us. We edged closer to get a look until our guides realized that we were seeing the female. The male was likely nearby, watching over her, and ready to protect her. After telling us to hide in the ditch if he charged, we edged through the forest to give them a wide berth. 

The adventures weren't over! Very fresh bear scat (which I did not photograph) kept us on the lookout for the dangerous sloth bear. The tiger tracks we saw weren't as new, but our guide told us all about getting raked by a tiger in this area just six months ago. But all we actually saw were a pair of jackals slinking toward a herd of spotted deer. 

Tomorrow we begin the very long journey home: 5 minute jeep ride, 7 hours on bus, overnight in Kathmandu, 20 minute taxi, 9 hour flight, overnight in Istanbul, 12 hour flight, then finally a 6 hour drive (Wendy and Meg) or a final 1 1/2 hour flight (Toby and Adam). Nepal is a long way from Minnesota!

-Toby

Bistari, bistari

 Those of you who watched us training for this hike may have imagined us striding vigorously along the trail, singing selections from the sound of music in four part harmony  (well perhaps those of you who have heard Adam or I sing knew there was no four part harmony going on).  But perhaps anyone who's ever hiked at high altitude can imagine the reality.   The higher you hike, the slower you go.  Take the film of us in your mind and run it in slow motion.  Now slow it down a little more.  Going up steep parts of the trail close to the top we might take 10 slow steps, then stop to catch our breath.  The Nepali guides in the back of each group can be heard murmuring " Bistari, bistari, - slowly, slowly".  That's good advice in many ways.   Walk slowly, and also gain altitude slowly, no more than 1000 feet per day.   We were by no means the fastest group in the area, but " Bistari, bistari, we made it to our destination safely and back down without getting sick or injured.  

Here are Adam and Meg arriving in Lukla!

Today our trip down from Lukla was an exercise in hurry, hurry, hurry - wait.   We got up early after a night of trying to sleep through the noise of large trekking groups drinking, singing and yelling.  One person passed out in front of Wendy and Adam's door.  We packed with as much speed as we could, then hurried up to breakfast.  Our hotel overlooked the airstrip, but that wasn't enough for Toby and Adam so they ate a quick breakfast and dashed off to stand by the airstrip and watch the first set of planes land.   Our guide said the trick was to watch for the first three planes from our airline to land, then go to the airport.   So Wendy and I lingered in our lodge, watching the runway on closed caption tv until it was suddenly time to dash for the airport.   Slowly, slowly- run!    Once at the airport we waited in a long line to get our baggage weighed, another line to have our baggage screened (a quick pat down and a few questions) then stood around for a while before joining the security line.   

Security in this airport is on the honor system.   Are you carrying any explosives, weapons or sharp objects?  No?  OK.   Then you are patted down ( the line for women was much shorter than the men's line) and enter a second waiting room where you stand around again, watching for planes to land and hoping the right number of planes actually lands before fog or winds shut the airport down for the day.   I used the waiting time for a lovely chat with Chhamji Sherpa, a lodge owner we met in Mongla.   We talked about work, children, retirement and schools and the time passed quickly.   Two more Tara Air planes landed and unloaded, including a huge stack or plywood and a dozen large batteries. The next plane would be ours.  Would it actually come?   It did, and we rushed out the door in time for a long wait on the tarmac, where we watched more plywood emerge and our seats quickly reinstalled before boarding our plane for the short trip across the mountains to Kathmandu.  

After an afternoon of showers, food, and repacking, we are off to Chitwan National Park, where we hope to see rhinos and monkeys.

- Meg