Postcard 1 to Monica and Family Dear Monica (and everyone in the Alipranti Family), Sorry I did not write for so long. I hope you are doing well and that your Dad is at home with you and you are all having fun. Did you finish the Anastasia book we started? I am sorry not to be there with you to read it. I have just arrived in Greece, and before that I was in Turkey for three weeks. Your Mom or Dad can show you Greece and Turkey on a map. Istanbul is not the capital of Turkey (Ankara is), but it is its most famous city. For one, it has been the seat of many empires, including the Roman Empire and the Ottoman Empire. Also, half of Istanbul is in Europe and half is in Asia. The two sides are divided by a river called the Bosphorous and there are large freighter ships going up and down the river all day. The river leads into the Black Sea. There the boats pick up oil from the ports along the eastern shore of the Black Sea. Istanbul has everything modern you could want, plus it has very ancient things, like an old bazaar with thousands of little shops and stalls. The city has a lot of mosques too, and five times a day the mosques call out to the faithful to come pray. It is a very strange sound to hear, but very musical. Unfortunately, the first time they call out each day is at 5:00 A.M., and it always woke us up. Mosques are like churches, but for Muslims. Muslims believe in the same God as Christians and believe that Jesus was a prophet, but they think that 500 years after Jesus, a man named Mohammed was the most recent prophet. One of the most famous buildings in Istanbul is called the Aya Sofia, which is considered one of the greatest Christian churches ever constructed. There is a photograph of the church attached to this email. It was constructed 1,500 years ago by Roman Emperor Constantine, for whom Istanbul used to be named (Istanbul used to be called Constantinople). About 500 years ago, the Turks took over Constantinople and changed the name to Istanbul and converted the Aya Sofia into a mosque. In 1937, the mosque was converted to a museum. The first photo shows the outside of the Aya Sofia. The second photo shows the inside with a fresco of the Virgin Mary and Jesus and the words Allah (God) and Mohammed written in Arabic. Another famous building is the Blue Mosque. The third photo is a photo of Mr. Mike and me there, with birds (the streaks of light) flying all around it. More important than its buildings and history are Istanbul�s people. I am happy to report that most of them are very, very friendly, and when I have been lost or needed information, they always went out of their way to help me. They also have a great sense of humor, often cracking jokes. Anyway, that is all for now. Grandpa was here with me for about a week and can tell you more about our trip. Mr. Mike is traveling with me as well. Please share this email postcard with the rest of the family by reading it to them. I will send my next email postcard to Thomas, and then one to Francis and then Joseph. Love, Uncle Jeff