merhaba!

so here i am writing from istanbul, turkey! sitting in the new apartment with the DSL and wireless finally set up. so far so good. at the last minute, i opted out of going to my turkish language class for a number of reasons, mostly due to the fact that i think with any language, the most difficult obstacle for me is not learning the grammar and etc, but actually my self conciousness of using the language in real life settings. so instead of spending the money to go to a class, i've decided to get myself out and use my turkish (as bad as it may be) and learn that way. as they say in turkey, yavas yavas (slowly, slowly).

on sunday, samet and i went on an outing...sundays are his only days off work and we've decided to make those days "special days" made for exploring different parts of istanbul we don't always go to (or more likely that i've never been to!). samet suggested we go to ortakoy and i wanted to check out the istanbul modern museum.

what day isn't started out right without a little turkish kahvalti (breakfast). cucumber and tomato salad, sucuk, eggs, ekmek (bread), peynir (cheese), juice and of course, tea.

we took the local bus from Zeytinburnu to Eminonu. the local buses run everywhere and are easily marked with their routes. the guy in the red later came up to us and chatted with us about photography and web design. the two dudes sitting right in front of us got yelled at by an old man for talking too loud.

we walked from eminonu across the galata bridge...the start of a very loooong walk. it was hot, but not as unbearable as NY summers. walking across the galata bridge is always so picturesque. there are loads of people always and people wiling the day away fishing over the edges. this photo looks back at eminonu in the background.

here we are in front of the museum. it actually wasn't crowded at all...hardly any tourists or istanbullites. it was perfect to view the sparse inside and artwork, but a little sad that more people weren't flocking to this gorgeous museum!

out on the deck of the cafe/restaurant/bar, you get a gorgeous view of the water and on picture perfect days (which there are many of) there's an amazing view. but who can think about views when they've got yummy desert!! we took a little rest from our art viewing to sink our teeth into cheesecake with orange peel and raspberry sauce and apple pie with pinenuts and a cute little vanilla ice cream scoop! afterwards we headed back in and took a gander at more turkish modern art until the museum closed. and then we were off on our walk through besiktas to the mysterious ortakoy.

istanbul has got a lot of public transportation options and we could have easily hopped on a bus or dolmus or metro to get to where we were going, but samet insisted that we walk because it was our "special day" and i would get to be able to see a lot more of istanbul along the way.

about a quarter of the way there, we took a little pit stop for some tea. turkish people LOVE their tea. we sat for only 15 minutes, but had two glasses each of tea. this little spot overlooked the water and there was only one thing on the menu...TEA! no need to order, it just magically appeared cup after cup on your table.

ane more çay (tea). çay çay çay çay. traditionally served in little glasses with a couple of sugar cubes on the side. each glass only holds about 3-4 sips...this place was packed...right next to the ferry stop and al these turkish people looking out onto the water sitting on hobbit sized stools and tables drinking çay.

about an hour later, after we walk through besiktas, the area gets a little more upscale and trendy. i'm wondering where samet is taking me, and though i walked a lot in NY, my feet hurt! i'm thinking we will just be going to this ortakoy place to sit somewhere else, look at the water and drink more tea. and maybe some stray cats will come up and give us the evil eye.

we round a corner and enter a maze of little booths selling arts and crafts wares. i'm ecstactic!! totally worth the long walk and a beautiful bubbling little place. its a little posh neighborhood, but still quaint with waterfront restaurants and cafes, winding cobblestone streets, lots of food and an outdoor market.

so much to look at! the market sits near the waterfront where you get an impressive view of the first bridge built over the Bosphorous and of the Ortakoy camii (mosque). tons of kids and elderly couples, everyone sitting and of course, checking out the waterfront, eating kumpir (one of my favorite turkish foods). ortakoy is well known for their kumpir (another reason samet insisted we make the jaunt over) and they are like huge stuffed potatos...these are the biggest ones i've ever seen. we shared one but finished before i could take a pic.

one of the coolest things was this old dude selling this candy. it was like gooey melty dripy sugar syrup that he used to wrap around a wood stick to make your own lollipop. the texture was like really sugary taffy. soo good though!! it had to be eaten quickly because it would slowly fall like molasses all over your chin. cok tatli! (very sweet!).

the ortakoy mosque as the sun just started to set. further along the waterfront, there are a bunch of trendy bars and clubs that really start to get going once the sun goes down. as we were walking, more club goers started filtering in and the families started going home. the streets started to fill with porches and ferraries of istanbul's rich.

with the lights going down, it started to turn into a different place...magical lights, hanging street lamps, the rush of people moving in and out, honking of congested taxis...calling it a day though, we hoped on the local bus headed home.

you can view more photos of my istanbul adventures and more on my flickr account!