All aboard the crazy train...

Most interesting train ride...ever.

First off - we're all in Istanbul, all in one piece, and with all of our stuff. But it sure wasn't a breeze.

The girls and Rob decided to get a couchette for this night train for the ability to lock the door from the inside and not do shifts staying awake watching luggage in a normal cabin. This cost us about $4CAD. The other two boys decided they weren't shelling out any extra money and that they'd just chance it with a normal cabin (two bench seats facing each other seating 6 total).

Our cabin was great. We fell asleep pretty quickly, woke up at the Bulgarian border for a painfully long passport check, then back asleep until we were woken up and herded off at the Turkish side for their immigration. We knew we had to buy our visas, and that we (the Canadians) would be paying $20USD each for the priviledge. Rob (Brit) pays $10 pounds, and the Irish boys got off cheap with $10Euros. I had $100US with me, so we were more than set.

However, when the Canadians get to the front of the line we discover things have changed. The boys are being charged exactly what the guide book said, but we were told we have to pay $60USD each.... which we clearly don't have. I initially thought he was pulling our leg, so I roll with it for about 30 seconds until it's clear he is not. Panic sets in. We play the gesture game, attempt to barter (advice - customs officials don't take well to barter attemps), and even try the puppy dog "you cant leave us stranded at the border" eyes. Eventually he agrees to let us pay the remaining in Euros, and we scrape together the remainder, and get our stickers letting us in the country.

Meanwhile, Alan and Jeff have been hearded on and off crowded cabins, and are fearing for their lives as well as their luggage. They're offered a sleeping car in first class and they both decided to cough up the ~$11CAD to be able to lock out the crazies on the train. Lock means both a deadbolt type contraption as well as a chain that would let you open it partway.

However, somewhere between the Turkey border and Istanbul, they wake up to see two gypsies in their car (they got in through the double locked door with wrenches). The gypsies have no interest in the wallet, money belt, etc. that the boys have left out. They're too busy literally pulling apart the walls of their cabin, pulling out these black wrapped packages from behind the walls. After a minute of complete confusion, the boys try and hunt down a train attendant, with worries that they've now become accomplices in a drug smuggling operation. But then one of the packages comes out in a clear bag - and is full of eye glasses!!!! Regardless, the gypsies are taken by the train attendant (who seemed to not really care about what the gypsies were doing), and eventually literally thrown off the moving train a little while later.

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We're in Istanbul now, and safe. This city is amazing... we've visited the Blue Mosque, St. Sophia's church, and a cool pedestrian walking street in the evening (where we had a few beers, and even went bowling). Today we're going to visit the Grand Bazaar and try our hand at some haggling. Should be interesting considering we're all pretty timid and polite when dealing with other people.