The Cats of Istanbul

A light rain falls today, turning the otherwise vibrant streets a subdued set of pastels. I am unsure what our course of action will be for this situation.

Yesterday our group did some awesome things, such as visiting a strange, canyon-like mall, having the most sugary bread known to mortals, and going to a football game. But instead of describing all of that boring stuff, I shall dedicate this post to pictures of cats during my travels.

Biker cats. Badass.

We took refuge behind bars of iron in an attempt to evade the creature, but I suspected they would not be an adequate deterrent...

Day by day, the cat drained the tank, until at last the fish were within its grasp.

Neither cat is in that hat. I feel so disillusioned.

Dude, that cat is onto you. Watch out, pal.

The best way to fall asleep is through reading poetry on top of your book collection.

WHO IS MASTER NOW, PUNY HUMANS?

Given how many cats there are in this city, I am quite surprised so few dig through the trash.

A can of food, a jug of water, and sleeping off the hangover from last night.

Cat. Hey, cat. You're supposed to be beneath the umbrella. Not sitting on it staring creepily at me.

These are just three of about seven hanging out by the corner of a building between Beshiktash and Ortakoy. Cats are everywhere.

Perhaps these ones technically don't count.

Perhaps next time I'll actually update you on what's been going on. Or perhaps I'll devote another entry entirely to pictures of graffiti. Who can say?

-Hyde

Beshiktash and Ortakoy

It is about eleven in the morning this Saturday and I am listening to Sonia look up translations on intimacy. Never let it be said my mornings aren't interesting here.

This was breakfast yesterday. It was fish, greens, and bread. A fish sandwich, as it were. Delicious.

HE'S STILL SINGLE, LADIES!

Delicious baked goods that needed to be consumed. Everything in these stores, from the cookies to the breads, are absolutely amazing.

The train station is the old building across the water. Notice how acclimated all of the passersby are to this scene. How could you get used to this? It's beautiful!

Live performers by the docks were playing Turkish music. I have no idea if it was traditional or a more modern piece, as I have yet to train my ear to the differences (except for a phat techno beat in the songs. I know for a fact that's an ancient tradition)

Smile at the daystar!

This is the ferry we would board for the day's adventure.

Last afternoon our group set out to Beshiktash (I apologize for not having a Turkish keyboard - just pretend the sh are an s with a squiggle from here on out). The ferry was extremely windy, and I stayed looking out over the railings the entire time. The other two were wimps and hid inside for most of the trip over. Why would you not want to be buffeted by wind and sea spray for half an hour? It is beyond my understanding.

I have been threatened by this one that, should I ever post an unflattering image of her upon the face of the internet, I should be destroyed upon the spot. I like testing hypotheses! Let's see if I'm still posting tomorrow, folks.

We pass by these immense loading cranes often during our ferry rides. They're bent at the bottom in that fashion to allow cargo trains to pass under them.

You can see the whitecaps along the Bosporus. That spray of water you see was thrown up as I was taking pictures, and immediately barraged my person and lens with salt spray. Worth it!

The end of the line. The stations look so cool, don't they?

Artsy shot!

Upon arrival in Beshiktash, we set out on foot for Ortakoy, an area with an absolutely gorgeous mosque and an amazing view of the bridge.

This was on the way. I have no idea what it was, but it certainly looks cool.

Jeremy told me the place was "like something out of a tourist brochure". I don't see it.

(Seriously, though, this place is gorgeous)

The entrance to the mosque.

I keep trying to create a caption for this image involving the words "cute" and "sexism", but every time I do it seems worse and worse to say. Let's just move on, shall we?

Photography is not allowed during prayers in these mosques. These people aren't worshiping during the prayers, however, so I felt almost no guilt taking this shot.

I want to congratulate whoever designed this mosque. The light in the afternoon fills the room with such a subtle, dappled effect. It is a place glowing with peace and quiet introspection.

Oh, yeah. This place is also huge. (Honestly, though, what place isn't in this city?)

The back of the mosque. Note all the people taking shelter from the sun in its shadow. Vampires, or mere tourists?

A bit better angle of the place in this shot.

This bridge is over 1.5km long. It spans the Bosporos.

Notice this gigantic cargo ship? See the clearance it has from its tower to the bottom of the bridge? This bridge is scary big.

It was super windy still, and the water was churning against the edge of the docks below the mosque.

WATCH OUT SOMEONE IS BEHIND YOU

I trusted a complete stranger with my camera for this photo. I am glad he took a picture instead of laughing and flying away on a magical unicorn made of stolen consumer items. I think about these things quite often.

I FOUND IT AGAIN

This is the delicious dill bread that I have no clue how to make. I shall discover this secret, and shall inflict it upon all who know me upon my mastery of its alchemy.

We did not go to this shop. I was intrigued by the method of cooking the flatbread, though. There are stalls like this around many of the areas we've been to.

True love.

After browsing the nearby market stalls for a time, our group had an evening at Taksim. Some of Sonia's friends where in the city, and we met up with them for a time.

Dawwww!

Eventually, as with any good night at the bar, the chess board was pulled out and things got serious. I mercilessly destroyed Sonia right out of the gate, but soon found myself flagging under an onslaught from the combined forces of Sonia and Jeremy. 1-2 overall. Next time, Chapman! Next time!

-Hyde

Island Escape

Our trio attempted to escape the city yesterday. Since I am writing this from Jeremy's apartment you may know immediately that we did not succeed. We did, however, manage to sojourn to one of the nearby islands.

Upon looking at the schedule for ferries, Jeremy rushed us to the docks, unaware that small ships were making trips every twenty minutes or so. We ducked into a bakery on the way to a Dolmus to the docks, which turned out to be very fortunate. We purchased three breads and one noodle-based pastry of some mysterious origin, all of which are delicious. The last bread we tried was particularly good. The shopkeep had said that it was a pastry made with cheese and dill. She lied. It was made of dreams.

We then shot onto a Dolmus, rushed to the dock, and got onto a boat. I have no idea what the name of the island is called, only that it was "the middle-sized one". I shall call it Kyle for convenience.

This is my obligatory picture of boats and docks.

This is my obligatory picture of Jeremy with a strange expression on his face.

HI BIRD

Someone on the ferry next to ours threw some bread in the water. It was immediately mobbed by a swarm of fish. I can only imagine the terror riding this ferry would cause in a person made of bread (aka most Americans)

The boat ride over was very long, but that was a good thing. I love the wind and sun, and our seats on the ferry gave us plenty of each.

Goodbye, Istanbul!

Eventually, the face of Kyle rose from the depths before us, pocked with houses and trees. We touched upon the shore, and descended onto Kyle.

Hi, Kyle!

Apparently at least three people on the island support the Evet vote come Sunday.

This area was made for leisurely strolls.

Photographers always intrude into other people's lives. Good thing I took a picture of it. That'll show 'em!

Fun fact: These islands have all banned cars. It was eerily quiet, and for the first time in days I found the roads a safe place to walk on. It was as if nothing could go wr-

OH NO HORSES

The islands have horse-drawn carriage rides that tour everything. We did not tour Kyle in this manner, but it was certainly an interesting prospect. If my hatred of all equine beings did not seethe through me, I might have deigned to get in one of these contraptions.

Instead, we went to a beach club half a kilometer or so from the docks.

Ugh. Everything in this island is so freaking picturesque.

 I fear that I have been spoiled in New England, for I am always used to beaches visited by few, if any, people. As far as popular beaches go, this place was not so bad. Jeremy and Sonia went into the water, while I read into the evening. It was quite relaxing, and I forgot entirely to take pictures. Jeremy did, however. You are welcome.

Instead of focusing on the beautiful scenery here, I would ask you to pick out one of the people in this photo. Ask yourself how often they come to this beach. Ask what you are doing with your life instead.

Thanks for these photos, Jeremy. They're great.

...Thanks.

We took a ferry back to Kadikoy once the evening was upon us, and we caught a rather nice sunset on the sea (no pictures from here on out - use your imagination). The rest of the evening was spent being introduced to even more television shows I must add to my Big List of Things to Watch Once I Stop Having a Life (this one is Coupling, a very hilarious British comedy). Oh, and there was something about visiting friends at the bars nearby, as Roseann is unfortunately leaving for her home country for a time and was having a send-off. You know, no big deal or anything.

One last thing about yesterday: This is perhaps the first time we have managed to turn in before 1AM. I still woke up late this morning, but it's the attempt that matters.

-Hyde