Mediterranean Mini-Trip

After leaving Istanbul Noel and I headed to the seaside town of Çanakkale. The trip took 6.5 hours by bus, but the scenery was gorgeous. We traveled through ancient Thrace, very close to the Grecian border and passed field upon field of sunflowers. We met a native from Çanakkale on the bus named Sinan. He was returning home from a trip to see Mayan ruins the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico. We talked about 12/21/2012, which he believed wouldbe the beginning of the next ice age, noting the ridiculously hot weather Istanbul andmany other cities in the world have been experiencing. I changed the subject to Mexican food, a much more enjoyable one in my opinion!

Çanakkale is an important historical region in Turkey. It is the port town at the mouth of the Dardanelles straight opening into the Mediterranean. The WWI Battle of Gallipoli was fought here, where the Turks sank an allied ship and successfully prevented them from entering

the Marmara Sea and thus attacking Istanbul. The forces that landed there were mostly from

Australia and New Zealand. There is a holiday commemorating the battle each April 25 in

Australia called ANZAC Day to honour members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) who fought at Gallipoli, (also celebrated in Çanakkale), remembering the soldiers that died there. Now there is a Peace Park there, where in 1938 Ataturk delivered a speech, part of which said:

"Those heroes that shed their blood And lost their lives. You are now lying in the soil of a friendly country. Therefore rest in peace. There is no difference between the Johnnies And the Mehmets to us where they lie side by side Here in this country of ours. You, the mothers, Who sent their sons from far away countries Wipe away your tears, Your sons are now lying in our bosom And are in peace After having lost their lives on this land they have Become our sons as well."

We checked into a nice hostel called the Yellow Rose. There we met two women from Barcelona, Sonia and Cristina, who joined us for dinner. We

ate some delicious fresh fish and then walked along the boardwalk, stopping to smoke some Nargile (hookah) and drink some Efes.

On Saturday, 8/21/2010, Noel and I headed to see the ruins of the city of Troy. We took a dolmuş (mini-bus) with some Turks and a British family to the site, about 30 min. south of Çanakkale. As we had heard, there wasn't too much to see at Troy but just being at the site was interest enough to the both of us. Plus, we got to take the classic tourist photo with the giant wooden horse replica. :P

It was Saturday so the dolmuşes were running less often, so we didn't get back until around 5pm.

We met Cristina and Sonia at their hotel at 8pm for dinner. We found a super-cheap buffet style restaurant right by their hotel and ate our fill. We then headed to a Nargile/hangout spot that Noel and I had scoped out earlier, called "Han" where we again enjoyed some Efes and Nargile and also met some local Çanakkale youth. At the table next to us was a woman and two men, and the woman greeted us in English and invited us to join them to have a drink on the boardwalk. We bought some "island wine" from a corner store and sat on the boardwalk next to some other groups of high school/college aged groups of kids and got to know each other late into the night.

On Sunday, 8/22/2010, the two Spaniards, Noel and I headed to the island of Bozcaada (pronounced Boz-jada). Unfortunately the wind was too strong from Çanakkale to take the ferry direct, so we first had to take a 1.5 hour bus ride to Geyikli and take a ferry from there. The island was absolutely gorgeous. Just what you'd expect from a Mediterranean island: small white-washed houses, vineyards, quaint shops, friendly people, delicious seafood, and knock-out beaches. We spent the WHOLE DAY at the beach, swimming, relaxing, eating fish, etc. The water was a little chilly, so I spend most of my time dozing, marinating in the salt, sand and sun.

I met back up with Canan and Serkan and Canan's boyfriend Cank back in Çanakkale. They took me to their friend's house where are few people were drinking and hanging out. It was as it would be in the states, people just chillin' with cigarettes and booze, listening to Bob Marley, Janis Joplin and The Red Hot Chili Peppers. They asked me about my life in America, and talked about sex, drugs, and rock n' roll…what else?!

Monday, 8/23/2010, Noel and I headed eastward to Ankara to visit our friend Pelin who was a Fulbright Scholar who taught Turkish at the UA in 2009-10.

More on Ankara soon...and for a little preview of what's happening in "real time", I end up in the capital of Republic of Georgia, Tbilisi! But more on that later…keep checking the blog! :P

XOXO,

AMS

Merhaba Turkey!

It's been a BUSY first week in Turkey. I unfortunately forgot my connection cable for my camera in my other bag, so I won't be able to upload any photos this time.

Day One/8.14.2010: Departed Finland and arrived in Istanbul. Took the Havaş to Taksim, a popular central district in Istanbul. My friend Sibel who is a graduate student in the NES department at the UA met me there and we took my things to her apartment. She lives with her brother who had prepared a delicious meal of salad, cooked green beans with onion, and a Turkish soup/ Delicious! Especially after the unsavory airline "lunch". I should mention that this is the hottest summer on record in Istanbul, and has been in the 90s with insane %s of humidity. The moment I got into Sibel's apartment I started sweating, and I haven't stopped since then. :/ How I wish I had my personal mini-fan with me!!

Sibel took me out to the Istaklal Cadessi that night where we walked down the crowded boulevard, surrounded by every kind of shops imaginable, tourists & locals alike, bars and restaurants, and towering Ottoman-era buildings with their French architectural designs. She took me to a chic club atop an art school, where we sipped Efes (Turkish beer) while listening to live music ("Layla" by Eric Clapton and "La Bamba" were featured) and looking out over the Bosphorus at Topkapı Palace and the Haya Sofia aglow. I felt in this moment that it was truly unbelievable I was in Istanbul, as if in a dream.

I stayed at Sibel's that night, awoken in the early morning by the drums and singing of a man in street who traditionally does this during Ramadan (Ramazan in Turkish) to wake people to eat before the day of fasting. I didn't mind though. It reminded me of being in Morocco.

Day Two/8.15.2010: Sibel accompanied me back to Taksim where I caught a mini-bus to the other side of the Bosphorus, the Asian side, to meet my friend Serkan's family who I was going to stay with. Serkan's brother in law, Can (pronounced "John") spoke English very well. It was helpful for my transition since I don't speak any Turkish (I'm learning...). Serkan's two sister's Serap and Mehtab were there, as well as his parents Ismet and Fatma and his nephew. The whole family was very warm and welcoming, and excited to see the photos I had of Didar and Serkan's wedding in Tucson.

We spent the afternoon play a Turkish tile game called Okey. It's kind of like Rummy. I sat and watched for maybe 1/2 an hour and then joined it. Tons of fun! I'll have to pick up a set to play back home in the states. I think my Dad would really like it, too.

Then Serkan's 3rd sister, Sevtap, who is just a few years older than me, arrived. She speaks English very well, and like the rest of his family, was very sweet and welcoming. We had a delicious dinner of soup, green salad, a cold sauteed eggplant/tomato/onion salad, kefta (meatballs), pilaf (rice) and a sweet, syrupy drink with dried fruit in it.

Day 3/8.16.2010: It was so hot and humid, and I was jet-lagged. So, I spent most of the day relaxing, Skyping with my sister, and napping. I headed back to Taksim that night with Sevtap to meet up with her friend and her friend's sister, who both spoke English. We went to a great cafe next to the famous Galata tower and had drinks & dessert while looking at a beautiful view of the Bosphorus and Golden Horn. I slept on the balcony because of the heat, I think to the dismay of Fatma.

Day 4/8.17.2010: My first day venturing out into the world of Istanbul without a Turkish speaker with me to translate...and I didn't get lost!! I ate the usual Turkish breakfast (like the Levant-Arabic breakfast) of tomatoes and cucumber, olives, cheese, bread, and tea.

Then I got ready with my map and camera in tow, took the mini-bus to the port district called Kadıköy. From there, I took a ferry to Eminonu (the "Golden Horn") to explore the historical area, leaving of course the main attractions like Haya Sofia and Topkapı Palace for the next day to see with my friend Noel who was coming to join me from Syria. I went to the Museum Complex which houses the Archeology Museum, Museum of the Ancient Orient (which unfortunately was closed for renevations) and the Tiled Kiosk.

At the Archeology Museum I saw LOTS of sarcophagi, mostly from the Necropolis of Sidon (in present Lebanon). Other than the sarcophagi, there were lots of roman statues and frescos which all kind of ran together. There was a great statue of the Roman god Bes as you enter the museum. I'll be sure to post that photo. But I think the museum has more than it can handle in terms of artifacts. Broken columns, headstones and statues line the street as you approach the museum, and a courtyard outside the main entrance has rows of marble this-and-that laying in the open without any order or labeling.

The Tiled Kiosk was gorgeous. Built in 1473 , it now houses samples of pottery and ceramics from the Ottoman empire and beyond. I thought a lot about my cousin Sara who majored in Ceramics at Notre Dame University. As someone who knows nothing about ceramics, I was in awe, so I can only imagine how she would have felt.

I was thoroughly exhausted after spending just these few hours site seeing (in my defense, at the hottest time of the day), so I headed back to the Asian side to Ismet and Fatma's apartment and napped, woke up for dinner, and then went back to bed.

I woke at 3:40 am to Noel's phone call saying he had arrived in Istanbul. I called a taxi and after a long communication struggle with the driver, finally found Noel. It was a small feat which felt like a huge victory and I hugged Noel with all my heart and soul, so happy to see a familiar face. The same poor cab driver took us to Kaldikoy where we had coffee and tea with baklava and caught up on the past 3 months since we saw each other last.

Day 5/8.18.2010: Around daybreak, we dropped Noel's backpack at the Açikğoz apartment and took the ferry to Eminonu. After devouring some delicious Börek for breakfast, we headed to Topkapı Palace. Unfortunately, its lines rivaled Disneyland's and a can of Sprite cost us 9TL, or about $6USD. But I will say that the Harem (which you pay extra to see) was worth the trip and tourist mobs. There was spectacular tile work and architecture. We didn't get to see the jewelry and costume exhibits because the line to get in was ridiculously long and we were getting hungry. We did get to see the holy relics housed there, some of which Noel and I found questionable, i.e. Prophet Joseph's turban, Prophet John's skull, and Mohammed's beard,. However, others, such as the Ottoman era key to the Holy Ka'aba of Mecca we probably legit and pretty awesome to see.

Then we toured Hagia Sophia (Aya Sofia) which has always been a dream of mine. I felt truly blessed to be there. Walking up the narrow corridors to the upper-level, I thought of all the people who have been in this holy place before me through the centuries, and what a historically important place it is. It is no longer in use as a mosque or a church, but is a designated state museum.

Then up the street to the Blue Mosque, or Sultan Ahmet. A very loud Imam was giving a khutba (sermon) over the loud speaker. The only words I could understand were "Yes" and "Ramadan". Noel went inside to pray while I took photos outside in the courtyard, not feeling that the dress I was wearing would be appropriate.

Then it was back to the Asian side, where Noel got to meet Ismet and Fatma and converse with them in his broken (surprisingly good) Turkish and sign/body language. It was hilarious to watch. While Noel entertained, I sorted through my bags and condensed the belongings I would need for Noel and my "Turkey Tour" into my large backpack. After finding Noel a hostel online, (the "Chill Out Hotel"), we ate a delicious dinner of stuffed eggplant with ground beef, rice pilaf, sautéed green beans w/ tomatoes and rice pudding for dessert. Probably the best meal I've had yet in Turkey. Fatma really knows her cuisine.

We caught a mini-bus to Taksim where we parted ways; me to Mehtab's house and Noel to his hostel in the middle of the hustle and bustle of Taksim.

Day 6/8.19.2010: I successfully found and caught the Metro ("Tramvay") to meet Noel outside Aya Sofia at 10am. I didn't quite understand the payment system for the tram, and ended up hitching a free ride. Woops!! I actually don't feel bad ripping off the city of Istanbul, especially after what happened to Noel the previous night. Over a breakfast donar (meat wrap), Noel told me about his insane night.

He had met a "business man" who spoke English very well, and joined him for some hookah ("Nargile"). The man proceeded to take Noel to a "club" which was really a strip club/ brothel where they demanded he pay 900TL (around $600) for drinking a Sprite (Noel doesn't drink) and talking with two of the girls. It was a bad confrontation, and Noel ended up paying 200TL (about $140) to get out of the scary situation. Now, I haven't heard of something like this happening in Turkey, but apparently it does because an American guy staying in Noel's hostel told him the same thing happened to him but he ended up paying $400. I was shocked to say the least and also felt horrible for my poor friend! He was dealing with it really well, but still, I could tell that it really bothered him. We decided to leave Istanbul the next day, feeling disenchanted and a bit jaded. Besides, it is a ridiculously expensive city, even by American standards.

We had a fuuuuullll day of sight seeing, beginning at an old Turkish graveyard we stumbled upon on our way to the Grand Bazar. Everything in the bazar was over-priced, but we had fun looking around at all the trinkets and fancy jewelry. Noel was especially taken by the miniature art, and spoke to an Armenian man who paints miniatures on leaves he imports from Florida. He seems to be quite renowned and had dozens of newspaper articles about his store and work on the wall, including a photo with both Hilary Clinton and Laura Bush.

Outside the spice bazar we happened upon the Istanbul University and then had a quick coffee in the President's Palace Hotel lobby cafe. We spoke more about our future travel plans, Noel suggesting we travel to Georgian and Armenia. We stopped at a small hole-in-the-wall restaurant for a sort of Turkish pizza which they made fresh before our eyes. It turned out that the baker was a Syrian Kurd who spoke Arabic, which was really exciting for both of us because we could better communicate He was very sweet, and so was his wife who was working the counter. He ranted about how we shouldn't go to Izmir or Konya, but should check out Antalya and Bursa. He blew off Urfa (supposedly Abraham's birthplace) and seemed very upset about Noel's story of getting conned.

We then wandered the streets of the old city attempting to find the Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum. We were lost, but it was fine because we got to see some amazing old wooden Ottoman houses. Finally we found the Arts Museum. It was well worth the effort and in my opinion, better than Topkapı Palace. There were artifacts from ancient Samara, the Safavid and Qajar Dynasties of Persia, lots of Ottoman finery and TONS of rugs! I thought of my mom, since she loves weaving. Afterwards we went under the city to see the eerie Yerebatan Cistern, a 6th century Byzantine cistern with 336 Corinthian columns under impressive brick vaulting. About a foot of water remains in the cistern full of fat carp, no doubt fed well by all the tourists. You're able to walk amongst the columns on raised wooden walkways.

We headed back to Taksim where, exhausted, we spent some down time at an Internet cafe and then had a delicious dinner at Lades Restaurant followed by some yummy pudding from a shop across the street. We ended the evening by smoking nargile at a cafe in one of the narrow side streets, eaves dropping on a crazy American talking to a Turkish friend about the Qur'an stating "There are easier ways to get 72 virgins". Sigh. I hope that not all American tourists make asses of themselves like this one. I'll also mention that his shirt read "I stopped being a feminist because bitches hate that shit".

I wearily dragged myself through the rest of the Istaklal Cadessi from Noel's hostel, exhausted after walking easily 7 miles that day, and took the tram all the way back to Mehtab's home on the other side of the Galata Bridge arriving around midnight.

And now it's day 7, and Noel and I are a planning on departing Istanbul for the coast, to see the ruins of ancient Troy.

More to come….

Much love.

AMS

18 hours in Helsinki

You would think that perhaps 18 hours would be too short a time to get to know a country, but I think I did quite well considering I didn't even make it into Helsinki proper. For those who don't want to read the rest of the blog, here's a Haiku inspired by my 18-hour Finland layover:
Woodlands and berries,
The mystery of Moomins.
Strange meats, hot saunas.

Now in a little more detail...
I stayed the night with my colleague and friend Heidi's brother Mark and his wife Johanna and 15-month daughter, Isabella. Plus, their two dogs, Emmi and Essi who are both very sweet rescued dogs from Eastern Europe.


The greatest first impressions of the country were the trees! The tall, pencil-thin pines and birches I saw carpeting the earth before we'd landed. Mark and Johanna live right against a stretch of forrest that we walked the dogs through around sunset. Despite the supposed dry summer, the forrest was extremely lush, with moss-covered rocks, blueberries/raspberries/lingonberries/+ everywhere, and of course the exquisite birches.

Their flat was small by American standards (bigger is better! :P), clean, organized and nicely decorated in IKEA from top to bottom, with oil paintings of Mark's grandparents, great grandparents and great-great grandfather on the wall. 3-stories, the nursery and bedroom are on the top floor, living and dining room, kitchen and bathroom on the main floor, and the basement with their deluxe entertainment room (more on that later), fireplace, bathroom, sauna, laundry room and storage.

Mark showed me around the place, as well as his yard where he's been installing a new fence. A pear tree was a few weeks away from bearing ripe fruit. Of course I was delightfully obsessed with the organized and efficient division of their trash and recyclables. There's a bin for organic compostables, paper and plastic wrap for burning (at the power plant), cardboard, metals, glass, and plastics. Then of course waste, which when I asked Mark what "waste" was the only things he could think of was diapers and dust from the vacuum. LOVE IT!!

Their daughter Isabella was of course one of the high lights. She was such a good baby, very quiet, yet playful and curious. She was more fascinated by my cross-stitching and camera than her toys.










After a yummy snack of coffee, tomatoes (which TASTED like tomatoes!) and bread, we headed to the JUMBO store to get some groceries for a BBQ. It was fun seeing all the Finnish food, especially the curious orange cloud berries and aisles of licorice and Salmiakki to choose from. Salmiakki is salt-liquorice unique to Finland - said to be an "acquired taste". I have yet to try the small package I bought, but if you're curious, just harass my father to give you a taste, as he should be receiving some in the mail. :)
Here are some interesting food items I found shopping around Finland:

Cloud Berries

Kangaroo Meat



At the super-market, I found it very efficient that you have to place a EURO in a slot on the shopping cart in order to use it, which is then returned to you when you place it back in the designated area. No stray shopping carts in this parking lot! I asked if people ever stole them to push around, which was a silly question it turns out since there are no homeless people in Finland. Since homelessness is something that really bothers me about America, I found this both dumbfounding and praise-worthy. I think that a population living in relative equality is so much more healthier than one where a few have more than they know what to do with, most have enough but are made to feel like they don't and go into debt acquire more more more, and then too many really don't have anything and are ignored by the rest of the population and fend for themselves for the most part on the streets. Yay America.

But back to Finland. I also fell in love with the Moomins, the beloved Finnish cartoon characters kind of resembling white hippos that are as ubiquitous as Micky Mouse in the US. Apparently the Japanese have a particular affinity for them, and so they made me think of both my sister and friend Jennifer, who both have an affinity for the Japanese. :) I coincidentally read in the Financial TImes today that there is a cookbook newly translated into English called "The Moomin Cookbook: n Introduction to Finnish Cuisine". Check it out:
[LINK]

We enjoyed a nice BBQ of beef & chicken on the deck and discussed American vs. European sex education, abortion policies, fundamentalism, and water management practices. Then, Mark and I enjoyed some sweets and watched part of "Top Gun" on his insanely nice projector in the basement. He has personally sound-proofed the room and installed a giant screen to project movies as well as a state-of-the-art sound system. It's like their own private theatre, and I wasn't exaggerating when I told him if I had a similar setup I would never leave home.


But finally to the best part. Most Finnish households have their own personal Saunas. THis was a fact I hadn't realize but was very, very pleased to discover. Mark and JOhanna invited me to go for a Sauna which I gladly accepted. The first room, probably 15X 8ft is entirely tiled and water-proofed so the shower has no curtain giving you lots of space which was luxurious. The sauna is attached so you can go back and forth between the sauna (around 65 degrees Celsius) and the shower. Despite my naturally warm body temperature and aversion to heat in general, I throughly enjoyed the sauna experience, pouring water out of the special bucket onto the rocks, and laying on the warm wood feeling myself sweat. Needless to say, I slept VERY well last night.

I hope I'm able to return the favor someday to Mark and Johanna. They and all the other Fins I came in contact with here were wonderful.


Next…Istanbul!!

Step One: Boston, MA

Hi everyone!

I have officially and successfully packed up my home and left for my Middle East Walkabout (as my former boss dubbed my upcoming adventure). Thank you to everyone who gave me support, advice, love and their time during my final weeks.

MY TRIP

If you don't know what my Middle East Walkabout is, let me tell you in a nutshell. I decided after years of wanting to do a trip like this, that the time had come. So I quit my job at CMES, packed-up my house, sold my car and bought a ticket for Istanbul. In addition to living a more spontaneous, less-structured and exciting life, I'll be doing a combination of traveling, WWOOFing, visiting friends, and exploring future research opportunities in the Jordan River valley.

My first stop is Boston, to spend three days visiting my friend Becky (good friends since high school) before I leave on Thursday 8/12/2010 for the Middle East. Second stop is Helsinki Finland, where I'll be staying the night with my friend Heidi's brother & his family one night on the way (not on the way exactly, but a cheaper way!) to Istanbul, Turkey. I'm set to arrive in Istanbul on 8/14/2010 around noon local-time (10 hours ahead of Tucson, AZ). I'll be staying with my friend Didar's sister-in-law, Sevtap in Istanbul until I leave to travel around Turkey and Greece with my friend Noel. After that, I'll be in Turkey WWOOFing, before moving on to Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel/Palestine, and Egypt. So as you can see, this will be an extensive journey and I do not have a solid schedule nor do I know when I'll be returning.

MY BLOG

In general, I will try to keep the blog updated as much as possible. At the very least, every 2 weeks I should have an opportunity, but during my first few months it should be more frequent. Stay updated on my whereabouts and shenanigans by clicking on the "Follow" box on the upper right-hand corner of the website. Then you'll get an email when I post anything new.

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BOSTON

After an emotionally goodbye, and sleeping a compounded 4 hours in 48 hours, I flew into Boston on Monday night. My friend Becky's (we met at University High School) Ben picked me up from the airport and after getting some Indian take-out, we arrived at their new flat in Somerville.

Becky of course had everything spic-and-span, candles lit, pineapple-caramel upside-down cake on the table and champagne chilled. Their new place is SO NICE. Two of the rooms are already painted nice colors (Lilac Lace and Salsberg Blue) and Ben has been busy organizing closets and hanging handy hooks and shelving. The most AMAZING feature other than their beloved Rumba (vacuum robot) is their enormous and well-equipt kitchen.

Can you believe this place? It's a temple to the food-goddess that Becky is.

Tonight we went to The Elephant Walk, a fabulous Cambodian-French fusion restaurant in Cambridge and tomorrow I'm hoping to see some other friends who are in the Boston area as well as get some final errands done. There's also a possible trip to Cape Cod or Walden Pond.

Much love,

AMS