Istanbul still rocking my world; coming home Dec 6
Time is such a funny thing when you're outside your daily routine...I feel in the past 5 1/2 days as if I've lived the equivalent of 5 weeks of normal time! Making even just a laundry list of what I've done would be exhausting not just to me but to you, the reader, so I'll just rattle off some highlights while they're fresh on my mind:1) bonding with my cousin Scott, his wife Alex, and their 4 kids around the house here. Olivia (aged 10), Guy (8), Finn (almost 4), and Natasha or "Tata" (2 1/2) and I have made clay sculptures, played with Guy's pet Terapin, rolled around on the gorgeous hardwood floors like animals, made snowflakes for christmas decorations, and eaten pounds of "kid food" around the house. One particular highlight that stands out was watching their reunion with Scott, who just got back from work in the middle east -let's just say HugFest2005 doesn't even begin to describe it!
2) Walking into the Hagia Sophia (or "Aya Sophia," as they call it here). As I wrote to Suraj and my parents, it was the first time it really hit me that architecture is truly art. I felt that the experience was akin to being able to walk through Van Gogh's "Starry Night." Architecture is such a personal form of art, because the viewer is able to walk in, out, and around the piece rather than just looking at a canvas. The building itself inspired so much awe in me...i couldn't believe it was first constructed 1500 years ago. It was SO BIG! I feel badly just trying to describe it, it's truly something that must be seen.
3) Riding up and down the Bosphorous River, whether in a bus or (preferably) ferry. Since my cousins (i'll lump them all together as that, seeing as i'm not sure where the line between cousin and second-cousin truly is) live about 30-40 minutes away from the center of most tourist attractions, I feel when I'm on public transport that I get a glimpse into the everyday lives of some of the people here. The Turks are famous for their hospitality, of course, and I've been helped on so many occasions with everything from paying my bus fare (i don't know the turkish numbers) to finding the entrance to a building!
4) Seeing other famous attractions, such as: The Blue Mosque (I loved the tiles! so gorgeous!), the Basilica Cistern (an underground collection of pillars and columns - different from anything I've ever seen before), an old fortress near where I'm staying (we took the kids - so fun!), Asia (I went to Kenikoy, which is technically in Asia - the western side of Istanbul is technically in Europe! I happened to go there on the one day a week where there's an enormous clothes market - i was the only tourist I saw there, which was nice!), the Grand Bazaar (the famous market - went there with a friend from home, Mike, and his friend from high school, Alistair - we bartered for some christmas gifs), learning to play backgammon (local favorite), going to the Black Sea with all the kids and Alex (we walked all around the sand and these rolling hills, then had a nice fresh fish dinner!), and drinking the famous Turkish apple tea and trying the lamb kebabs (in a word: good, yet i'm getting a bit tired of this heavy food!).
Quick side note: being here has awakened a long-latent interest in history. I can't remember if i've blogged about this yet or just thought about it. Anyway, for 2006 I want to become a voracious reader about not only history but current events! It's an area in which I am sorely deficient. For now, I'm signing off!
Logistical update: I'm now coming home on Tuesday, December 6 instead of the 20th, so I'm packing all I can into this last week! It's been an absolute blast and I can't believe I"ve only been gone for 6 weeks...for now, I'm off to a Picasso exhibit, tomorrow to Topakipi (sp?) Palace! | posted by Cheryl, 11/30/2005 01:49:00 AM
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