Things have gone well so far. The second leg of the trip was much more difficult to stay awake for some reason, perhaps because of the irregular amount of sleep I obtained during the first flight. Trying to read Faust did not suffice during the layover. The structure of the poem seemed poised to strike down whatever consciousness I had left within me. I soon found myself browsing for another story I'd yet to read, settling upon Dracula. This caught my interest far more and I was able to endure the layover and flight with hardly a thought, though I fear that the journalistic writing style may temporarily affect my own. (Perhaps I had dreamed it, but for a moment while flying over Germany I could have sworn I saw a pair of red eyes stari-STOP IT HYDE YOU ARE NOT BRAHM STOKER-sigh)
Getting through customs was remarkably simple. I gave a man behind a booth twenty dollars and he provided me a ninety day visa sticker on my passport. I gave another man my passport and he stamped it. I walked out, picked up my luggage, and passed through a door where customs agents where just watching people for an unknown purpose. I say unknown, for they never stopped anyone, there were no forms to fill out for import/export, and the officers didn't seem bothered by whatever they saw in our weary group.
On the other side of the doors from customs I met Jeremy. We boarded a bus to a popular area of the European side around 1AM (I believe it is called Taksim). Taksi is Turkish for Taxi, and Jeremy tells me the ending m makes the word possessive ("my taxi"). This was quite true, I have rarely seen so many taxis crowding an area as I noted in that plaza. We took another bus to Kadikoy, and walked to his apartment. I told myself that I would immediately fall asleep (it was 2AM here / 7PM at home), but that was not entirely accurate.
I still woke at a reasonable hour. The sun was out and it was around 9AM. Jeremy had run out to get groceries, and by the time he was back and had breakfast ready I was fairly coherent and ready for the day.
Jeremy made me a mostly-standard Turkish breakfast:
Egg with tomato and pepper, cheeses from sheep and perhaps goat, bread, olives, and very fresh milk. I also had sage tea, which was quite delicious for being one of those bagged Lipton affairs. There was also a fresh fig, which is utterly amazing and I would readily consume again at any time.
Before heading out for the day (and finally bringing my camera with me), he introduced me to the peach juice here. It literally is like they took a peach and liquefied it, and it is amazingly delicious. This makes two drinks that are in danger of disappearing should I be near.
We took a walk through several nearby locales after breakfast. An amazing park by the waters of the Sea of Marmara. A place roughly translated as a "tea garden" where one sits at tables scattered along an overlook of trees and the sea, where turkish tea and cold drinks are served to those who want it. A crowded street market filled with fresh fish (the fishing season started September 1st, apparently, so everything here is fresh now). Bakeries, dessert shops, nuts and spices. There is too much to list for now. I shall include some pictures I took to relate some of this.
Two things stand out during this trip. One is how similar everything is. There is definitely a different feel to everything, but a city is still a city, and Istanbul is not so much different from others. The other is how polite everyone is. Even when hawking wares, the vendors do not push you to buy. They encourage you to try samples, and don't mind much if you don't have the minor change necessary for paying full price. It is quite interesting, and I am certain I shall make more notes about this in the future.
In the meantime, it is nearly time to head back to Taksim for this evening. Jeremy has made elaborate plans to introduce me to apparently everyone he knows in this city, and if I am to be overwhelmed with new acquaintances I should probably get off the internet for some time.
First, however, those pictures:
The park, overlooking the water. I could get used to this.
So these are what figs look like.
The promenade, walking along the Kadikoy shore.
The rooftops interest me greatly in this city. It's one of the little differences that stand out to me.
For those who do not know, this is Jeremy. He is awesome. He has a blog at http://asimjeremy.blogspot.com
Apparently stray cats and dogs are common in Istanbul. They also apparently have perfected being adorable and friendly to survive.
My major is now a chocolate.
...What?
A look at what the signage is like around Istanbul. The typeface is very succinct, but it retains a kind of elegance that I do not recall seeing in most US varieties.
This is a glimpse of the street market Jeremy and I toured. If this is uncrowded (it is Ramadan and most people stay indoors during a good part of the day, apparently), I am intrigued to see the change next week.
SO MANY DESSERTS SO MANY CHOICES I MUST EAT THEM ALL
A wider street, this is fairly common in atmosphere from what I have seen around Kadikoy. At least, during the day. I understand there are several bar-heavy streets near me.
Hey let's cross the str-SO MANY PIGEONS WHAT ARE THEY DOING?!!
In truth, who can say?
(I can - they are eating bread)
A political rally of some kind was being set up. Police were stationed nearby with automatic weapons. This was close enough for my first day in the city.
Terrible picture in terms of quality, but this shows one of the jellyfish that are common in the bay.
Look at that street crossing sign. It has a counter for the time until pedestrians can cross, as well as how much time they have to cross. Genius.
There is a fair amount of graffiti around the city. I like urban decay and street art in general, so you may see some of these photos sometimes. I have seen one message in english here so far, but did not have the presence of mind to take a picture of it. Instead, you get more standard fare.
Until next time,
Hyde
No comments:
Post a Comment