Longreads

"There is a time and a place for lists. Here, for instance, and now -- when the number of emails that I receive, in which the sender is heading to Istanbul and asking for a few general tips, reaches a critical mass. Istanbul, it seems, is hot."

"Get into tea drinking. It's a great excuse to rest up and rejuvenate after sightseeing/walking/shopping etc., and also a great way to soak up the local vibe. It's also a fantastic means to staying upright if you're fighting jetlag. Turks drink tea all day -- they'll stop anywhere, anytime for a bardak (glass). Get into this mode. Also, if someone offers you tea feel free to accept. It doesn't obligate you to anything other than friendly chit-chat. (Even if it's offered by a carpet seller.) You are also free to decline, as Turks do. Do so politely and no one is going to hold anything against you."

A magnetogram recorded at the Greenwich Observatory in London during the Carrington Event of 1859. Noon approached on September 1, 1859, and British astronomer Richard Christopher Carrington was busy…