My ID:  5:51pm, Friday, 07 August 2009:  Istanbul Atatürk Airport

Turkish Airlines flight TK1450 from Zagreb

Ah, the land where East and West meet…unfortunately I wasn’t in a necessarily conscious state to experience this Initial Descent.  While the flight over from Zagreb was only two hours and some change, I really hadn’t eaten much all day, as I was rushing to catch my flight.  I remember feeling extremely about halfway through the journey, started sweating profusely, and the next thing I remember was the flight attendant bringing me some water, saying I had passed out.  This all happened over the course of about 20 minutes, and I had restored my wits and sensibilities well before we landed at Atatürk Airport.  Still, as I was kind of dazed at what had just happened, I didn’t really appreciate the full extent of my descent into Istanbul, only really noticing the water below and a mosque in the distance.  Fortunately, I had a friend waiting as soon as I passed immigration, and I knew I was in Istanbul the second we pulled out onto Ataturk Boulevard, slammed on the brakes, and crept along for what seemed like hours…