Ignore the little grinning chipmunk-person-thing behind the curtain, if you would...

Yeah, so apparently Maeghan thought she'd be clever. Clearly, she did not quite succeed. Feel free to head over here and tell her so. Loudly.

Ahem. Anyway.

On Tuesday...Fernanda and I had an Expedition to apply for student akbils - basically, super-duper bus passes with nice discounts (which we should have gotten much, much earlier from, say, Rotary - but oh well). We started in Kadıköy and wound up walking almost to Acıbadem (just...trust me. That's a ways), navigating by a highly effective accost-a-stranger method and recieving directions along the lines of "turn left at the cow statue and go past the mosque. No, the other mosque." But we got there. Eventually. And now we need to go pick up our akbils next week!

Thursday, Maeghan the Canadian (doesn't that just roll trippingly off the tongue?) and I had an Expedition to pay for the upcoming trip (WOOOO!!). Which meant Taksim. Which meant going from ATM to ATM in Taksim trying to find one that dispensed US dollars, because that was how the travel agency preferred to be paid (Turkish liras were accepted, too, but with a definite "well, if we must" air). Last time I had to pay for a trip, I managed to withdraw the whole amount in one go. This time, the bank was apparently feeling a little persnickity, because it cut me off at something like $500 USD + change. Relatedly, someone remind me that I owe Maeghan $200 USD and a box of Cheerios (interest).

Although if she keeps hacking my blog...hmmm.

And from their we tripped to the post office in Taksim so she could mail home a package (sorry, friends. I don't love you enough to mail stuff home. Seriously, I could eat for three months on what it would cost. This should be considered further proof that Maeghan the Canadian is a vastly nicer person than I am. Except when she hacks my blog). And at the post office, we had the usual "Where are you from?"/"I'm Canadian, she's American" schtick, followed by the usual "Obama good! Bush bad!" routine and a few clerks trying to describe their opinions on the current bailout plans. Dude. I am not my country. I am not my president. I didn't vote for either of the aforementioned heads of state* and I haven't watched FOX News in ten months. I am not a walking foreign policy suggestions box. Everytime Maeghan complains that no one knows about Canada, I point out that she's never had a take-out guy refuse to hand over her food before she'd heard his opinions regarding the Bloc Québécois. Or, say, Gitmo.

...Right. So. Maeghan mailed a package, and we took a rickety tram down İstiklal Caddesi, walked past Galata Tower, and took another tram to Eminonü to hit a bazaar in the underground pass-through connecting the tram and subway so Maeghan could buy a pair of shoes and settle a bet with her host family. Something about being able to buy a replacement pair of go-everywhere shoes for $15 TL or less. Mission was a success, and now Maeghan can consign to the dumpster her prior pair, which were no longer so much "shoes" as "husks."

Stinky husks.

And from there, we rendevouzed back to Maeghan's host family's flat, armed with cookies and juice boxes from the market outside (yes, we are seven years old) and settled down to watch The Daily Show.

Good day.

And if any of you see Maeghan, kindly inform her that she is getting her camera back never.

-

* I tried to vote by absentee ballot, but it turns out that there's a three-day window wherein you can't change your overseas address to do so - and I was moved to my second family during that window.