(November 26, 2006 - By Fr. Nectarios Trevino) We arrived safely in Istanbul 12.5 hours after departing Washington, D.C. As always, trips of this nature seem to be more arduous as one gets older; however, the prospect held forth for the coming week fill one with energy and optimism for the future. Today in Istanbul there were protests held by 20,000 to 25,000 people. The numbers of and description of the protesters depending on who was doing the reporting. Indeed, all whom we have encountered know that Pope Benedict is coming to Istanbul. Police and traffic control barriers are ever present. We were welcomed at dinner tonight by Mr. John Halecky, the secretary to the Ecumenical Patriarchate Archons. The members of the written media team that are travelling with me include Rowena M. Itchon, Dr. Robert Moynihan, Daniel P. Schmidt, PH.D., and Subdeacon Maximus Tatum. Rowena M. Itchon is Vice President for Marketing at the Pacific Research Institute and a former senior editor at Regnery where she edited five New York Times bestselling books. Dr. Robert Moynihan (Ph.D., 1988, Medieval Studies, Yale University) is the founder and editor of Inside the Vatican, a monthly magazine on Vatican affairs with a worldwide circulation. Daniel P. Schmidt, Ph.D., is Vice President for Program at The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Subdeacon Maximus Tatum is a doctoral student at William & Mary College, Williamsburg, Virginia.