Non-stop LAX to IST....

After a full 10 months of planning, we head to the airport today with our huge bags of supplies for the English camp, along with "a few" personal items. The days of planning are over, bringing the days of doing to the forefront.  Man I am glad this day is here.  The planning  and the details have drained me of all excitement for this trip.   I am looking forward to feeling that excitement again...hopefully when we hit the ground in Istanbul! 

View of Topkapi Palace

Istanbul is one of those places that has always intrigued me.  Some call it the gateway to the east, others the gateway to the west.  So what they all agree on it is that is it a gateway of some sort...Thousands of years of Byzantine and Ottoman history for our enjoyment.  After our non-stop flight from LAX to Istanbul, we will hit the ground running Sunday evening with a tour of  Galata Tower and a turkish meal at Lebi- Derya.
http://www.galatatower.net/english/
http://www.lebiderya.com/lebiderya/eng/ana1.html
Not a bad way to recover from jet lag! 
I have been practicing my turkish phrases like crazy... I think I know enough to create some adventure for us...or get me thrown in jail. :)

Blue Mosque

Hopefully on Monday morning we will be able to see a few sites as well....Topkapi Palace, Blue Mosque, Grand Bazaar, etc...  Then it is back to the airport for our afternoon flight to Kosovo!

We fly from Istanbul to Prishtina, Kosovo on Monday afternoon... Strange to think that it has been 3 years since I have been back to Kosovo.  In those 3 years, God has transformed my life in so many wonderful ways.   I wonder how God has changed this little country and its people during that time as well.  I look forward to worshipping together with them in Albanian, hearing their stories, and dancing the night away.  Ok, the excitment is starting to come back to me now...  Hajde shkojme!  (Come on, let's go!)