Yummy bread!

The people: We found people there to be welcoming, nice, fun loving, and politically engaged. Just an fyi, we did not find a single person there who liked GW Bush or Texas. The people we met had a great sense of humor - some favorites include Mustafa, my favorite bowl vendor, the owners of our favorite restaurant Nev – Alem, Hussein, Martin, and our Kurdish waiter at Omar’s, and the policeman who liked to walk arm in arm with August when we walked out from the port because August was so warm. I will also miss the many cafes and bakeries we stopped at and the old man I befriended who sold the round bagel / pretzel like bread and said hello to me every morning as I took out my 75 cents to buy my early morning treat.

The sites: I can’t even tell you all about how beautiful the city of Istanbul is. We went to the Blue Mosque, Aya Sofya, Topkaki Palace, was at the Golden Horn, Suleyman Mosque, Fatih Mosque, Istanbul University, the old city walls, the Jewish quarters, the Greek quarters, The Bosphorous, the men fishing on the bridges everyday, the sunset while we had drinks at the 5th floor of a restaurant right outside the Blue Mosque and Aya Sofya, the Church of St. Saviour in Chora (one of my favorite places and days in Istanbul – thank you August, Samantha, Jordan, and Scott). I learned there that it was because of the Muslims that the Icons on the walls were saved for us to now view since the Christians were at that time trying to destroy icons from their churches. We saw the cartoon museum which is located inside a former medrese from the 17th century. We also saw so many of the mosques built by Sinan – I call him the Gaudi of Istanbul with regards to the fact that he built so many of the mosques in the great city like Gaudi built so many of the famous architecture in Barcelona. We also had a glorious day going to the third sacred place in Islam – the Eyup Mosque. We missed going to the Pierre Loti café this time but we did learn so much about Eyup – the companion and standard bearer of the Prophet Mohamed. Walking around the city allowed us to make new discoveries and long to stay for just a few months more. I can’t honestly tell you if I prefer seeing a famous site or just looking out at the Golata Bridge or watching the men cast their fishing lines and show off their catch of the day to those of us passing by. The fat cats were some of favorites sites by the way. I loved the way the locals just kept feeding them and cuddling with them. We did too as well – hopefully, none of us got cat rabies!

The food: I gained whatever weight I lost on the voyage back in Istanbul! The breads and pastries were incredible. I had chicken doners salad with olive oil and lemon, Ottoman feasts which included chicken and rice baked in a phylo coating, fresh fish, thick lentil soup, corn on the cob with lemon, chili pepper, and salt, and this pasta with meat inside served with a white thick garlic sauce and red marinara on top. The hot chocolate was the best – it reminded me of the ones I had on Bavarian trains as we whizzed by forests.