Impressions of Istanbul

I have successfully adjusted to the Turkish time zone and I am ready to update everyone on Turkey thus far (and by everyone, I mean the 5 people who read this). So last night Serin, Yigit and I went out to an early dinner at a nice restaurant. I sat helpless as Yigit and Serin ordered our food. The only words in Turkish I know are mersi (meaning thank you...the only reason I know it is because it is also French) and Kebap (meaning a delicious kebap), so I was at the mercy of Yigit's order. Luckily, Turkish food is generally delicious and I loved everything that was delivered to our table. I made sure to say "mersi" before leaving. Although my stomach was full, I was still exhausted--having lost 7 hours and not getting much sleep on my flight--but I knew that my life would be better if I went out to rage in Istanbul regardless of sleep--I can sleep when I am dead.

Serin and Yigit had arranged for us to meet up with some of their friends in a neighborhood called Taksim--the young, fun party area of Istanbul. It's wild, crowded streets are lined with bars, restaurants, clubs, and young people. Since I still did not have my luggage, I went out in my travel clothes. Thank god I dress well for every occasion, because I did not seem to be under-dressed for the evening. I was, however, freezing. We met Yigit's friend and decided on a bar. The bar had a sweet vibe and was blasting an awesome mix of traditional Turkish music and Euro-Trash techno. All I could think was that I wanted every song on my Euro-Trash Birthday Bash play list for next week!

Tequila seemed to be the drink of the night and we all ordered a couple of shots. You know what they say...One tequila, two tequila, three tequila...great night! After dancing, talking, and getting our drink on in Taksim, we left for our next destination: a posh club called Ulus-29

here is the link: http://www.group-29.com/

It was so much fun! The club doubles as a restaurant during the day and it is easy to see why. It is beautiful and over looks the Bosporous (the strip of water that separates Turkish-Europe from Turkish-Asia), the whole city is visible from the club's windows and it looks like a thousand stars glowing at night (overboard analogy? maybe). The music was even better than in Taksim and we partied until 5 am. We then cabbed it back to Serin's where we slept until 2 pm waiting for my luggage.

Sunday was more low-key. Serin's grandparents live on the Asian side of Turkey, so we crossed the Bosporous on the ferry to visit them. It was an interesting visit because they do not speak a word of English, so Serin had to translate everything for me. They were exceptionally hospitable and made us eat way too much! It was not hard because the food was so good, but I was very full. Serin and I went to coffee (I ordered a traditional Turkish Coffee, which is very small and very strong) and we made our way back to Europe. It is crazy that Istanbul is one city in on two continents. Fascinating.

Serin worked all day on Monday so I took the opportunity to venture into the city on my own. I am generally very comfortable being alone in foreign cities, but Istanbul is very different. It is the fourth largest city in the world, and unlike New York or Paris, there is not logical grid system to be seen! The public transportation is hard to use, too. Another handicap I discovered was that very few people in the city speak English unless thay want to trick you into buying something. Therefore, whenever someone asked me something in English, I would respond in French, Spanish, or German to throw them off. One man called me a "tricky bastard!" Whatever, I was not going to buy the cheap crap he was trying to sell me with his broken English!

I went to Old Istanbul and saw the Blue Mosque, the Hagia Sofia,the Yerebatan Sarayı, the New Mosque, and various spice markets! I did not buy anything today...I am waiting to go to the Grand Bazaar, but I was tempted! The sights were amazing and so beautiful. While the ancient churches of Western Europe are gorgeous, these Mosques were breathtaking. The detail covering every inch of these massive buildings is awe-inspiring.

I was proud of myself for navigating the city all alone and went back to Serin's to meet her at 8:30 pm after her day of work. The only problem was I could not call her, she could not call me, and I was stuck outside her apartment building for an hour. Freezing, pissed, and a bit nervous (I seriously considered taking a cab to the US Embassy), I stormed off to a nearby restaurant I remembered seeing called "The Wrap." I busted through the door and snarled "English!" to the person behind the counter. He obviously understood my urgency, because he rushed off to get someone to help me. I asked for a phone to use and called Serin. Finally able to reunite with her, I was happy. Now I am warm and watching Turkish TV...ah, the life.