Tales from the Dark Side: Day 14

I don't know if I've ever been so happy to think about memories from a trip as I am about these memories.

That was the first thing I wrote when I started writing about this day while on the flight to Istanbul. I really didn't get to write much else, but I can remember most of it.

I got my bags together and the bellhops came by a few minutes early to pick them up, but I was pretty much ready anyway. I went down in a haze of sleepiness and sat with some group members to have the bread that they gave us.

The view from my room when we woke up and breakfast food.

I got up and saw The Model in the lobby. I almost reflexively handed him the other half of my bread when I got close, and he took it. I went outside and he was talking to the bellhop. At some point, I also pointed out to him that he wasn't showing up in my What's App contacts. He moved in closer to me to help me figure out what the problem was, and we made it work.

I was outside when the bellhops came out with the luggage. One mentioned how he wished he had enough money to stay at a place like this. I was too tired to muster any kind of response, perhaps I mentioned that I have been very lucky in life. He then started asking me if I was scared in Iran and make jokes that there were ghosts in an adjacent building. I smiled, laughed, and played along with the jokes. I wanted to close out the interaction with The Model with a hug, like I would with any other new friend. I tried to tell him that, but it didn't translate, and it never happened, but I guess a handshake and continued text messages will do. Soon enough, we were on the road, leaving the city and on the way to the airport. Someone remarked that there was no one sleeping on the street here, and that was something I had noticed throughout the trip. Here, they must take care of their own. In America, we don't see each other as ours. There are so many fragments, and even within our own, we are callous. Perhaps that is because we know the precarious situation on which many of us sit, and sometimes, a hand held out to help someone up is used to drag us down with them.

How I wish he would have really smiled.

We were on the highway, driving so fast. I wonder if these lights are up year-round.

We were told that this was Kohmeini's tomb.

Pathetically sad-faced selfies to represent how I felt about leaving.

The Model noticed that I was looking sad, and it was because I didn't want to leave. The airport was so far away, but eventually, we were there. Before we got off the bus, I took a last selfie with The Model, but it's an awful photo, so I'm not going to post it. We were getting our luggage, and when the bilingual guide approached me and said that I didn't even say goodbye to him, I instinctively hugged him. I'm glad I have his card. We went inside for the first line. This was an initial baggage inspection before check-in. Then we waited in line to check in. Next was passport control, after which we went through the normal security line. It was finally sunny out, and in this security line, they found the tiny Swiss Army Knife that the TSA never bothered to check, so I left a weapon in Iran.

All taken while waiting for passport control.

Finally, we were at the gate. I found some group members and sat with them. I mentioned how I now regretted giving my other half of bread to The Model, and it turned out that one of the other members had some bread to give me. Eventually, we got up to wait in another line. Our passports were checked again, and we got on the plane.

As I got on the plane, I said Salam to the flight attendants, but then I remembered that they were Turkish. We could take off our headscarves, and it was like I had left one planet to go back home. Well, I had an aisle seat and we were served food. I only got sleep during our landing, and then we were getting off at Istanbul.

We arrived in the Istanbul airport and I walked around, getting food and water and talking to people from my group. I met some African people at one point and gave one guy my number to contact me on What's App.

Look in the back, it's a Sbarro!

I ate this confectionery with a view of Turkey.

I took advantage of being in Turkey to have more of the delicious food we had on the plane, then we were boarding.

I was in an exit row, thanks to the nice agent that checked me into my flight in Tehran, but the other people in my row were in my seat, so they moved over. and I settled in. I had to put my things in an overhead compartment on the other side of the plane, and about 90 minutes after the scheduled departure, we were taking off. I learned that the people in my row had also been in Iran for the past few weeks, and we compared itineraries and pictures. The guy next to me was born in the US, but had dual citizenship. His mother, on the aisle, was from Iran.

A brownie, Turkish Delight, and some mint lemonade.

We also agreed that the flight attendants were a hot mess, dropping things left and right. During the flight, he nudged me while reading articles online and asked me, "did Prince die?" I confirmed the news.

I got absolutely no sleep during the flight, but I did get to 10,000 steps for this day. I listened to music and watched the flight monitors, taking a photo and queueing an Instagram post about crossing American airspace.

Customs

During our descent, I did manage to doze off and was able to miss the landing. We filed off the plane into America, but we still had to wait in customs, which was much more automated than the last time I arrived back in the US, in 2012. Lines and lines and waiting and waiting and we were through customs, now waiting for our bag. It had been raining, and the belt didn't work quite right. There was a point when we had to step in and pull bags off the belt as they kept coming up from below while the belt didn't move. After the longest wait, my bags arrived and I was ready to go. I said goodbye to some group members after I was past the last checkpoint. Then I got a cab, called my mom, and settled in for the ride home. When we arrived at my apartment building, I found out that my credit card did not work and had to use my debit card. When we got upstairs, I was compelled to show my mom all the souvenirs that I bought, including the beautiful bedspread.

Had my flight taken off on time, I would have arrived home in time to see people at Natachee's, but as it was, they were closed. I told my mother that I planned to go out and see friends briefly, including giving one friend the macarons I bought in Istanbul as a birthday present. It was so humid out, which was not really a relief. I delivered the macarons, and later, this friend mentioned to me that when I showed up, he had never seen me looking so happy. I went into the bar and chatted with some people who turned out to be intoxicated. It was a little weird to be interacting with drunk people again. I told them that they had to go to Iran. In fact, that's what I told everyone. Out back, I found another friend and hung out there, giving him popping chocolate. Then I called Jarhead and told him that I met an Iranian man that made him look like crap (for the record, everyone agrees that Jarhead is very good looking). Smiley came by too and I gave him an extra gift for facilitating the key transfer earlier that week. After a while, I finally went back home and was able to go to sleep very easily.

Walking back to my apartment.

And, of course, my baby Bruno was very happy to see me again. This is going to end the formal Tales from the Dark Side posts. I may add additional photos, stories, and videos to the Iran Trip Comment post, but at this point (early, early morning on May 27), I am getting ready to go on a completely different vacation, to Minnesota for the Prehistoric Party. I hope you enjoyed the photos and they have inspired you too to take a trip to Iran. I am already thinking about going back in 2018.