12 Hours to Go

In just 12 hours I'll be on the journey of a lifetime for what, to toddlers, will be the length of their lifetimes (are we there yet?!).

Beginning tomorrow with a 7:00 am wakeup, I'll be on the move until approximately 5:00pm THE NEXT DAY Istanbul time.

• Tomorrow my Harrisburg companions (Mark Hafer and Cynthia Hartman, both teachers at Harrisburg High School) and I will be hitching an Amtrak train to JFK in New York City at 8:45am.
• We should arrive at JFK by 2:30ish, and our flight leaves at 4:45 pm, EST (Turkish Airlines TK2, if you're tracking at home).
  
• Our flight is of the 16 hour variety, arriving in Istanbul at 9:30 am, EST - however, when you remember that Istanbul is 7 hours ahead of our time, it'll be about 3:30 pm there.
• Approximately 34 hours after my first travel, I'll be at sit down on the bed of my first hotel stay - The Lamartine Hotel in the center-city district of Taksim. The link for the hotel is here - http://www.lamartinehotel.com/.

Attached you'll find 2 photos - one of me fitting my suitcase within a suitcase; hey, I'm prepared to bring home souvenirs.


And my most endeared "souvenir," my lovely girlfriend Devin, who I'll miss dearly over these next 2 weeks.

But Turkey awaits! Tam yol ileri (full speed ahead)!