Meetings

It has been one of those days when everything has gone according to the plan.

So rare.

The end result has been getting to my guesthouse in Istanbul in time to Blip before bedtime.

The Turkish Airlines flight was great. Comfortable, good food, and arrived 20 minutes early. The 4 hours went by quickly.  

A strange thing happened at Edinburgh Airport. I went to buy a bottle of water for £2.19. The man serving me explained that if I buy the Telegraph I get the newspaper and the water for £1.85. Special deal - although I think it's a permanent one.

So, I had a dilemma. I literally will not touch the Telegraph. It's a far right parody of a newspaper. I've been known to burst out laughing when I see its headlines as I'm buying my newspaper on the way to work.

The man behind the counter (Spanish or South American I'd guess) encouraged me. He reads it. Better to know your enemy, he reckons. We agreed it's a dreadful rag, and the poison it spreads is dangerous, and had a laught about it all.

In the end I took "the deal" on condition he put the "newspaper" in the bin. Then I went back to the place where I'd just eaten and gave the waitress the money I'd saved as an extra tip.

On a serious note, how many copies of the Torygraph are "sold" to people who don't want it, but do want to save 10% on their bottle of water? And how bad are its real sales figures if that's what it has to do to keep its circulation up?  

Ah yes, the Blip! The view from my bedroom, in the Sultanahmet area of the European Side. The lights in the distance are on the Asian Side. The Bosphorus meets the Sea of Marmara just about here.