Tomorrow, I am going to Germany. From there, to Istanbul, then to Izmir, and finally, to Ayvalik. Ayvalik is a resort town on the west coast of Turkey, where I will be residing for the next 19 days. Why Turkey for my first foray into Europe, or, more geographically correctly speaking, Europe and Asia? The answer has its origins in meeting Tamer, my good friend from high school whom I have been known for over half of my life. For over 20 years, we have commiserated over life, mortgages and taxes and celebrated our respective kids and Stanley Cups together with such passion together that it can only be experienced to be understood fully. It is he who is taking me here for an extended holiday that is, in terms of days, the longest trip of my life. I am told there is a sort of paradise at the end of the trip, and, once the inconvenience of flying halfway around the world is dealt with, I will be a full witness to the splendor and beauty I have only seen in the numerous pictures Tamer has emailed me. Other than some time in Mexico, the Cayman Islands and much time spent in Canada (which should not even count as foreign travel, Epcot pavilion notwithstanding) I have never spent any time outside of the U.S., despite traveling to every corner (literally) of the continental 48 states and Alaska. I am visiting Turkey at, I am told, an extraordinary time, when citizens of the proudly Islamic yet secular country are loudly protesting the creeping authoritarian regime of a prime minister whose agenda has been to make the country more religious in law and culture. For a devout atheist like myself, this is something of interest to me, and, as the old Vulcan proverb says: Only Nixon could go to China. Needless to say, my eyes will be open to avoid trouble and I hope the many firsts of this trip will not involve getting a whiff of tear gas. I will be living like a local, eating (I think) foods that Anthony Bourdain would be proud of, and speaking through my interpreter to haggle over goods destined to make their way to my Smoking Room. It will be, in every sense of the word, an adventure. As I am in the midst of my 40th year, I look at this as a sabbatical from my real life for a bit, and as a time for reflection. After all, as the historian David McCullough has mentioned, the country you learn most about while traveling abroad is your own. This blog is a way to report back to those who are interested in seeing these things through my eyes. I am not exactly someone especially qualified to do this, but, having been an attorney for 14 years, I have much experience and knowledge of both the best and worst of human nature. As to how that perspective will shape my view of this trip, we shall see. And for the next 19 days, I want you to see it all with me. Welcome to A Lawyer Goes To Turkey.