tuuuurkey

oh oh oh life in turkey!

Mom and David arrived on Sunday afternoon. I checked into the hotel that morning (yes! hotel! not a hostel! an actual bed with an actual shower!) and then shuttled out to the airport to meet them. That in itself was an adventure...mainly involving the factors that Turkish drivers are nuts and that you have to go through security just to enter the airport building...and I (of course) had a knife with me. No no no no. So I spent about twenty minutes trying to find a way to not give my knife to security. I was told that I could visit the police station nearby and have them hold it for me at their desk. This sounded like a good option, and would have been if I could have found the police station. I asked three different people where it was. I got bad directions every time. Two of the three people were police officers.

So I hid my pocket knife in a bathroom stall in the parking garage.

Then I went inside and (guilty guilty pleasure) got a big (grande) cup of Starbucks Drip Coffee. Oh drip coffee, I've missed you. Not to complain--turkish coffee is incredible. Then I waited and waited and just when I had decided that because I arrived late (the knife ordeal) I must have missed their arrival, ta da, there they came walking out of the magic door that leads to International Land.

Mom got a haircut, which is pretty cool. She got it cut really short, so she can style it with one hand. She has to style it with one hand because she shattered her right elbow a week ago! But the trooper she is, the first thing she told the doctor (this was right between her arrival at the hospital and surgery) was, "You do realize that I am going to Turkey." There were worries for a few days about whether the healing process would be ok for travel, but she got the go ahead from the doctor on Tuesday. I think it was Tuesday. They left Yakima on Thursday. Now she's got an elbow made up of flesh, bone and steel wire. Steel. Cyborg-mom. Rad.

We spent the last two days just exploring Istanbul and seeing the sights. Yesterday we wandered all around Beyoglu, the neighborhood that I had been staying in. We ate fresh sardines in the fish market. We drank fresh pomegranate juice. We went to the top of Galata Tower, where I pointed out the balcony that I played guitar on most days. Then we went to the hostel and I took up to the balcony that I played guitar on most days, where I pointed out Galata Tower. It was pretty easy to find. It's only the biggest landmark on this side of the Golden Horn.

This side of the Golden Horn. I like that. It's like This Side of the Mississippi. Well goooolly gee, that's the best durned kebap I've done tasted this side o the Gooolden Hawrn!

Today we spent the afternoon inside the Blue Mosque and exploring Aya Sophia. Both really incredible places. Which I can't even begin to describe in a blog post. Except maybe to say that they are both really big and really old, and one smells incredible musty in the best way. If you're ever curious, ask. They just aren't blog moments for me. It would be a really great conversation.

We wandered through the Bazaar District and then all around in the Grand Bazaar this evening. What a great place. People EVERYWHERE trying to sell you carpets, kilims, pashminas, carpets, gold jewelry, tea sets, carpets, coffee pots, backgammon boards and carpets. It takes a lot of energy...everyone trying to pull you into their shop, starting conversations with you, talking to you, running in front of you. Kind of irritating, until you consider the fact that this is how it has always been, for, you know, a couple thousand years. Thousand. So you get over it. It's part of the fun.

I haggled and haggled and when I come home maybe I'll make you turkish coffee and play backgammon with you.

Now we are sleeping. Or, everyone is sleeping but me. I'm posting a blog at the hostel/internet cafe down the street. We get up at 5am tomorrow to head to Pamukkale. Yup.

Maybe at the airport (we are flying) I will get some more drip coffee.

We return to Istanbul on the 22nd. On the 23rd I fly to Mumbai. I arrive early (430am) on the 24th. That's when India begins. Whoa.

In other news, sometime in the last week my shoes picked up The Stench. I can't get rid of it. Uh-oh.