T-minus 7 days...

One week away.

Wow.

It kinda boggles my mind when I consider the magnitude of what Kate and I are doing. While I know that going overseas has been done, and we are not beautiful or unique snowflakes, I still marvel at Kate's and my self-confidence at taking on this task.

Consider what we're planning: We will arrive in a foreign country, only knowing a few words of the language, recieve training, find two jobs that can support us living in one of the biggest cities in the world, and find an apartment, again, without knowing the language.

Its the bit in italics at the end that scares me a bit.

I do realize that we had a whole summer in which to learn Turkish, but it appears that we would rather enjoy our last summer of college with our friends, and mostly avoid anything that resembles schoolwork.

There are pluses in this equation however. We have met a Turkish woman, Rae, who has been wonderful and helpful, promising the aid of all her relatives in Turkey, so we are not venturing into an unknown land without contacts. Also, from what I have heard and read, Istanbul is an amazing city, and the Turkish people are friendly, helpful, and love to have visitors.

In truth, the idea of Istanbul is very intriguing and exciting. This week is devoted to making the transition from the Istanbul in my head into the Istanbul in reality go as smoothly as possible, and banks, luggage, fees, and visas are all part of that equation.

So, what is my current mood? Apprehensive, but excited.

But check back with me in a week.