Monday, May 6, 2013

Turkey - Day One - Istanbul

These last two days were very interesting so far.  The bands climbed onto the bus at 11ish am on Sunday morning and drove for 8 hours to Chicago.  Once there, we boarded our flight to Turkey at 9:15pm and spent the next 10 or so hours flying to Istanbul, from which I am currently writing this post.

It's awesome here in Turkey.  The people on the street act like people from Chinatown, eagerly attempting to persuade visitors to eat at their restaurant.  It's interesting to see the difference in customs, so to say, compared to the U.S.  Workers ride mopeds quickly through the streets, forcing pedestrians to get out of their way.  Gentlemen smoke indoors and in vast quantities.  Cats roam the streets at night, meowing at passersby.  It's such a different atmosphere from what I'm personally used to in the U.S, and yet I don't think it has quite struck me yet that I'm in another country.  It feels like another part of Minneapolis that I've yet to see or a suburb of a city I knew little of before, where the people speak a strange language.

My friends and I ate at a small restaurant close to the hotel we're staying at.  The food was quite good and it was evident that the waiter wanted to provide the best service possible, possibly because he knew we were Americans, but potentially also because it is a custom in Turkey, or at least that's a vibe I'm getting from the place.

The real fun begins tomorrow, however, when the band finally begins our exploration of Turkey and performs our first concert.  Check back tomorrow to see how that all goes.

-NP

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