Just a quick note from a quite crowded T4 Terraces (Gate 10 version) and on a nice newish 19" flat panel monitor at the computer stations.

Collected our DONE4s Tuesday (now Thursday 14:30) from the very nice Ulya at BA's office in IST (wanted to thank her personally) and am now between flts at LHR while Ms. 'Loo is having her back rubbed downstairs at the Molton Brown spa. BA's office is in a heavily-guarded new tower block in an outer part of the city - 25 min. cab ride from the Sultanahmet - but worth the effort - they are genuinely nice people and when I mentioned "You must be selling a lot of these lately," she smiled and said yes, and it was good for business. So if any IST-bound RTWers have the time, I'd recommend you try to pick up your tix there and add to the praise parade.

Counterpoint - 4 hours in an A320 from IST to LHR in a J seat when the guy in front decides to pretend he's in NCW and reclines into your orange juice is a serious drag.

Istanbul itself was an interesting 3 days - obviously the city deserves far more time than we had but I'll do a trip report by and by and post it to the proper forum.

Followups forthcoming once a marathon night-day-night is in the bag.

Glad to hear you were finally able to get your tickets and start your trip after the false starts you had last year. Have fun.

Nice to hear good news. I will use IST , too.

Greetings:

Thanks for the report and may I ask just what steps you used to set it all up. I hve sent two E Mails to the BA Ist office but have not heard back....(two weeks ago or more) I do not want to upset the apple cart by using the wrong approch.

I lost WAW by being sick just as the change in price was going through....I have had by flights checked by "The Experts" and am all set (I think, maybe, etc., etc.)

Is it doable just using E Mail.......I can not use the phone.................

Any hints, etc. would be great.................when you have the time.

Thanks,

2 Points:

1) You got her name wrong (but maybe you knew that).

2) The office is smack in the middle of the city and not that far from where it used to be. Sultanahmet may be a tourist center, but is not a business or any other center of Istanbul.

That was the way it was in her emails to me and on the business card she gave me. Or are you referring to my wife's name?

Point taken. From the air I realized how enormous the city is.