I am still struggling with sleep. Two nights ago, I had four hours of sleep. Yesterday, attended the business meeting at WASLI and then I went to Asia and back! Pretty cool — in case you are not aware, Istanbul is partly in Europe and partly in Asia. Jen, Allison, Eve, and I took a ferry to the Asian part and went to a hamam — Turkish bath. It was a crazy experience that I would not trade for anything!

A selfie in front of the hamam — thanks, Jen!

We wondered around and found a wonderful cafe for coffee and a treat.

The Asian part of Istanbul seems so different than the European side! We shopped and then caught the ferry back to Europe.

Asia from the ferry

The WASLI conference officially started last night with a reception. There were speeches, beverages, and appetizers. To top it off, Eve and I picked up a corn on the cob on the way home. This morning, I set up my poster session and then went to the first Keynote session. I sat in on the morning sessions. During the break, the poster presenters went to the room where the tea was being served and stood by our posters. I met people from Nigeria and I met the WASLI Regional Representative who is from South Africa. In the afternoon, I was the time keeper for three sessions. You cannot imagine how stressful that is! 20 minute presentations with 10 minutes for questions and 5 minutes for transition to the next presenter! After that and during the afternoon tea break, I stood by my poster again. I met Paul from Cameroon. He knows some old friends of mine from Gallaudet. I hope to be able to visit Camaroon while I am in Africa.

Paul and I at tea break in front of my poster.

My sleeplessness during travel from the US to Turkey and my first night here hit me hard on my second day in Istanbul. I managed to make it through the morning session of a pre-conference workshop with Nigel Howard teaching International Sign (IS). I enjoyed it so much, learned strategies for communicating with WASLI delegates from other countries, and, through the interactive activities designed by Nigel, met people from New Zealand, Nepal, the US, and Turkey.

Lunch was included in the registration for the day. It was a huge buffet full of breads, salads, meats, desserts, beverages. Oh, did I say desserts? There was fruit, cake, baklava, clotted cream, dates filled with nuts and sweetened with honey, and many other things I did not even recognize! There were so many types of baklava! I tried 5. My favorite is the one with pistachios. I should have gotten a photo for you all. I hope to have other opportunities between now and Friday.

I ate lunch with a former WOU student, Jenn Morris! How absolutely delightful! She married a Turkish man and knows about the culture and can speak some Turkish. After lunch, I went back to the flat for a nap. After two hours, I would not say that I felt refreshed, but at least I was awake enough to head back to the conference venue and meet up with other attendees to discover more of Istanbul. I met Eve, one of my flat mates. We stood in the lobby and greeted colleagues from Panama, Rochester, and Oregon. A group emerged that included Eve, Erin, and Kurt (all three of my flat mates), the former WOU student and one of her flat mates, and another Oregonian I have known since I arrived in Oregon in 1993! We took a walk across Taksim Square, bought cards for public transportation, and found our way to the funicular, or a cliff railway. It is a car that goes in two directions — down and up. We went down and caught a light rail car to the Grand Bazaar. It was beyond humongous and overwhelming. We arrived at about 6:30 and the place closed at 7. We went in and took a cursory look around. After the Grand Bazaar, we went had dinner at Ara’s Cafe and Restaurant. (More about the evening and some photos later — I have to go to the conference volunteer meeting!)

My first cup of Turkish coffee with cinnamon cookie treats — delightful! (I cannot rotate!)

After a long series of flights and layovers, I arrived in Istanbul. I had a short wait at Customs, got Turkish Lira from an ATM and then got taken for a ride literally and figuratively by a taxi driver. My advice is that you not accept a ride from a driver who meets you in the airport!

When I arrived at the flat, there was a group of Bulgarians just leaving. The young Bulgarian man who was just leaving, helped me to get into the flat. He spoke English very well, but once he left, I was with three Bulgarians who spoke no English. After they left and the woman arrived to clean, I went for a walk. We are in a busy, small neighborhood, with cafes, small restaurants, and shops. Within a short walk, I was on a main street where there is a Hilton hotel I walked around and saw a Burger King and a Starbucks! I opted for a small Turkish cafe where I had a Turkish coffee with some delicious cinnamon cookies that seemed to melt in my mouth. Istanbul is a smoker friendly city — it has been a very long time since I sat in restaurants where customers and the servers were all smoking! I asked for a bottle of water, but got a glass instead. I hope it was from a bottle. I hadn’t checked on whether I should be drinking the tap water. The Internet says that the water is safe, but advised not to drink it. So far so good.

After a nap, a cold shower, and my flatmates arrived, we set out to find the conference hotel and a place to eat. We had a lovely evening. I am pretty sure that I ate the freshest and most delicious baklava I have ever had!

A delicious cup of tea to finish up our evening meal (unable to rotate the photo)

I heard chanting periodically throughout the day. At dinner, one of my companions mentioned that it was the Islamic call to prayer. The voice of the muezzin sounds like beautiful singing and is broadcast over a loud speaker.