Istanbul (Not Constantinople)

SURPRISE!
I'm off to explore the sunny, humid banks of the Bosphorus. For the entirety of July, my life will consist of learning about Ottoman history, visiting many of the sites and mosques my professor talks about in class, and meeting new people on the other side of the world who will show me around the beautiful city of Istanbul (not Constantinople).

Aside from enjoying my experience there, I have two other things planned:
1) EPIC Harry Potter marathon leading up to the release of Pt. II of the seventh (and last) film. The last resounding note of my childhood will slowly die out as Harry takes his final walk into the Forbidden Forest. And although I will be saying goodbye to Harry Potter in a very different way than I had imagined, it will not go without tears and very fond memories.
2) And of course, Nancy Drew. Just so you all know, Nancy has actually traveled to Istanbul before- which is why #47: The Mysterious Mannequin is tucked away in my carry-on bag. It shall serve me well when I can't sleep on the plane or when I'd like to give my 700-page reader a rest (not that it's had much wear... at all).

So this was all 100% exciting and everything, until I happened to read this (courtesy of Wikipedia):

Beginning 2 March 2011 access to Blogspot was blocked, following a request by satellite television provider Digiturk; Digiturk alleged Blogger was being used to distribute material it holds the broadcast rights to.

In other words, I can't actually access my blog because the Turkish government has really tight restrictions on... well, a lot of things when it comes to the Internet, apparently. YouTube was banned in Turkey because someone posted a video that offended Ataturk, the founder of the modern state of Turkey. This is pretty sad considering Turkey is a relatively liberal country (and anyhow, everyone knows that half the people on YouTube are crazies who start verbal to-the-death battles all because someone misspelled a word).

I'm going to be writing throughout July, and see if I can get my sister or someone nice to post everything for me. Nice, wonderful siblings/friends/parents/relatives who would just love to help my cause... right?

Have a peachy July :)