Christmas and Exhibit B: Canım Ciğerim

(My first successful attempt at cookie making, and they were pretty damn successful)

Well... I don't really have any pictures to post from our Christmas over here.  Without a day off, the idea of travel was far fetched, so I just stayed in Istanbul.  I hung out with some co-workers, a pleasant first for me, and had a great time eating, drinking, being merry; all that good stuff.  Heck, I even had a stocking! 

I did get to go a really good restaurant though for a pre-Christmas Christmas dinner with my good friend Zeynep (who actually knows Nick Mullins).  It's a great place called "Canım Ciğerim," which translates to "My Dear, My Liver."  They serve skewers, lots of skewers, and tons of flatbread and veggies on the side.  It's delicious.  They're always super packed, so we had to wait outside for a bit, but it's well worth it.  

(The disembodied hand of Santa Claus)

In other news, I'm really looking forward to my trip home at the end of January, so I've been amassing a stockpile of Turkish goodies for everybody (though, admittedly, some of the goodies are gooder than others).  But! Before I come back to the states, I've got one short trip coming up...  I'll be going here:

To see these guys:

And bring some of this back to Turkey:

Exhibit A: Boza

 (A picture from last week's bike ride up the Bosphorus.  It's a fishing boat hauling in the nets.)

I'm slowly realizing that Turkey is home to a lot of weird food, so I've decided to start cataloging it as I happen to think about taking pictures.  I figure it'd be interesting for you guys, so I'm starting with a seasonal drink, something akin to Turkish eggnog (minus the eggs).  It's called "Boza," and it's a sweet winter drink, very thick and slightly alcoholic.  It's usually served with cinnamon and, oddly enough, chickpeas.  It's made from slightly fermented corn and wheat.  It dates back to the 10th century, and was extremely popular during Ottoman rule.

 It's really delicious stuff, but It's sold chilled, so I don't know if it would survive the trip home.  I guess I'll have to bring some raki back instead.  As for nutrition facts... I don't know, nor do I really want to know.  It's delicious, thick, creamy, and sweet... They used to use it to feed the army during the winter, so I doubt it's terribly healthy.

O, Christmas Tree!

Hey family!  I'm sorry I haven't written anything in a while, but I haven't really had any pictures to post.  But here's a short recap of what's been going on.  I've been teaching a lot, trying to figure out how to best teach 200+ kindergarten-ers English.  So far, we've just been singing a lot of song and playing a lot of games.  It's been working out well, so I guess I'll stick with that.

I saw all of the pictures from Thanksgiving, and I'm extremely jealous of you guys, but I was able to have a little Thanksgiving of my own.  I got together with some American/English co-workers an we cooked a turkey in a toaster oven.  It was a 10 kilo (about 22 lb) bird.  The door could barely close.  We had pumpkin pie (made from scratch), Stove-top stuffing, mashed potatoes, the works!  It was a really nice, close approximation, to a real American Thanksgiving.

I also went out and chopped down a tree for Christmas.  The man at the tree farm was nice enough to wrap it in that white netting stuff so I could take it home on the metro...

 (supplies)

Then I had some friends over who helped me trim the tree.  We drank some egg nog (and nobody died), let the branches fall a little bit, and then put on the lights and decorations.  A Christmas miracle!

(We had to improvise some of the ornaments)

Ireland!

Panorama from the cliffs of Howth, north of Dublin.

Just made it back from a big, slightly delayed trip to Ireland to see my good friends John and Cecile.  John's there studying creative writing at Trinity College, and his beloved Cecile is teaching French with the amazing Alliance Franciase (forgive the lack of diacritical marks).  Here they are with their new favorite hats:

They were nice enough to let me stay at their flat in Christchurch.  It's a nice part of town, close to the Guinness Brewery and not far from the center of town.  I've seen Dublin before, so this wasn't really much of a sight seeing trip... It was more of a Drinking-Guinness-And-Eating-Pork-Products trip...

I know, I know.  It's a sad day when one engages in culinary tourism by going to Ireland.  But it was great! And it's all of the kinds of things I can't easily get in Istanbul, the land of fresh fish, pomegranates, and lamb.

It was a really great trip, mostly because it was just nice to hang out with John and Cecile.  We went to Saint Stephen's Green...

...where John and I threw some Lucky Irish Coins into a Lucky Irish Fountain.  Oddly enough, we seemed to be the only two people good-lucking ourselves at this ancient Celtic fountain.

One thing that surprised me, and made me a bit sad, was the fact that Ireland already had their tacky department store Christmas decorations up. 

Tacky, I know, but I won't be seeing anything like that for a while.  Santa Claus does not come to Turkey.

When we tired of the unfamiliar Irish and their culture, we retired to more comfortable settings for some more familiar beer and food...

Now I don't know if you can make out the sign, but it's a Czech bar that was playing all the hits! Pickled cheese, Gambrinus, Staropramen.  It was great.  Not the top of anybody's list when traveling to Ireland,  but we couldn't resist!

We also took a trip out to small town on the coast named Howth.  It was a beautiful, clear, cold day and we did some hiking around the cliffs out there, ill equipped as we were to do any actual hiking.

Cecile and I, with John's shadow taking the picture*

The town of Howth from the pier.

Of course, we also went to the Guinness factory, which is now kind of like a black-beer theme park.  Amazing nonetheless, and very educational.  We were able to find John's apartment building on the small scale model of the Guinness factory (which takes up most of the neighborhood around it).

That's about all I've got for pictures.  As interesting as the Guinness factory was, it was moodily lit, so I didn't get many good shots.  We did have our complimentary Guinness at the top of the factory though, and definitely had the best view of Dublin from up there.

I'm glad I went, I had a great time, and I didn't hear a single U2 song the entire time I was there.  Success!

*I realize this may be first picture of me that anybody has seen since I got rid of the beard.  Be kind.

Big Bike Island

(Bikes on the ferry to the Prince's Islands)

Over the weekend my friend Ian and I took our bikes out to one of Istanbul's Prince's Islands, a group of islands about an hour or so by ferry from the European side of the mountain.  By law, the only motorized vehicles on the island are official municipal vehicles, so it's one of the few car free places in the city.  It's really popular during the summer, but this was my first visit.

(One ferry to another)

We rode our bikes down to Kabatas and then hopped on the ferry.  It's slow, and makes 5 or 6 stops, but it's cheap.  A token for the ferry is the same price as a token for the the metro, tram, or bus (2 TL).  The ferry goes across the mouth of the Bosphorus, then out into the Sea of Marmara.  The area is like a multi-lane highway with all of the ferries, fishing boats, speed boats, barges, and tankers using the well trafficked waters.  A little further out we saw some small sailboats, but I think the weather is getting a bit cold for too much of that.

 (Horse-drawn carriages are a popular form of transportation)

The islands differ in two big ways from the bulk of Istanbul.  Number one: there are no cars, so people use horse drawn carriages or bikes to get around.  I'm pretty sure the carriages operate like taxis, but there's really only like... two places to go on the island (more on that later).  The result is a different, less disagreeable foul smell that pervades the landscape.  Number two: Wooden houses.  I was shocked to see so many wooden houses in various states of repair/disrepair.  The first word that popped into my head was "colonial."  It made me realize how little wood is used in construction in the city itself.

This is one of the few things to see on the island.  Well... I guess the landscape itself is the real sight, but if you're looking for things to look at, this is it.  It's an old abandoned Greek Orthodox Church run orphanage.  Long abandoned, there's some arcane law that prevents them from either tearing the building down or renovating it.

 

 This is the view from the other "attraction," a still functioning Greek Orthodox monastery at the top of the hill.  I wasn't aloud to take pictures in the monastery itself, but the grounds were nice, and the view was amazing.  It made for one of those Oh Man I Live Here moments.

Here are some of the horses (off-duty, I suppose), just hanging out by the side of the road.

And here's a shot of the city as seen from the top of the hill.  I think we're gonna try to get some people together this weekend and make another trip out there before the weather gets too cold.  I'll keep you guys posted.

 

Hey Dad!

You're gonna be so proud of me.  I went to see some Turkish* music the other night, and it was awesome!  Sorry about the quality of the pictures.  My camera is good, but point and shoots only do so well in low light...

(*It was actually Greek music, which I can't really make any clever jokes about: Greeks and Turks historically don't get a long at all.  However, this band was well received, and they even played a few Turkish classics, or so I've been told.)

The band played in this tiny bar up three flights of stairs in the back of a building off of one of Istiklal Caddesi (pronounced ees-teek-lahl ja-des-sea). I'm not sure what the band was called, nor do I even know what the bar was called.  Such is the nature of a lot of things in Istanbul.  Most of the good places I've been to have been great, but in really out of the way, almost hidden building and courtyards.  It's a such a jam packed city that anybody who wants to set up shop has to do in any available space.  The more desirable locations are all already taken up by big retailers (The Gap, Saturn (like Best Buy), Sephora, ad infinitum).

But anyway, back to the band.  They were a five piece.

There was no percussion save for hand claps, the stomping of feet,  a tambourine, and a the occasional thump on the acoustic guitar.

Later on in the evening, and I regret not having pictures of this, there was a lot of Linking of Arms and Intricate Foot Movements while Moving Around in a Circle.  It was exactly like what you picture when I say, "I saw this great Greek band in a dive bar in Istanbul."  Exactly like that.

Rainy Day in the Neighborhood

The front of my apartment building in Kasimpasha

The weather has been really lousy here the past couple of days, so there hasn't really been all that much to take pictures of.  However, I decided to take a few random shots around the neighborhood.  I'm trying to get the hang of this whole Taking Pictures things, so just bear with me.

 

Do you see that lady walking down the street?  My apartment is basically right above her... that first small balcony slightly to the left of her on the first (American second) floor is mine.

My building is close to the corner, right next to that little market.  They sell some fruits/vegetables, but it's really not that great.  The old ladies that live on my block love it though.  So much so, in fact, that they'll drop a basket down from their balcony with money and a shopping list and the clerk at the store will do there shopping for them and then put their stuff in the basket for them!  I know, pretty... um... well... pretty lazy, but the guy's  very nice for doing it.

This is Istiklal Caddesi, the main tourist/shopping street in Taksim.  It's pretty dead for a Sunday, but it's usually packed, all the time.  It's nice to have something so lively so close, but I'm glad I don't live any closer to it.

The little red cart is a simit salesman.  Simit is a small sesame seed covered bread that is something like a cross between a bagel and a breadstick.  It's kind of like the ubiquitous "rohlik" of the Czech Republic.  These things are always available, and they're usually pretty good for a snack or breakfast on the go.

Let's see, what else is going on?  I think you guys are pretty caught up on the more personal things that have been going on, which I'll not get into here.  Oh! I know.  I was able to catch up on my American culture over the weekend... I drank beer, ate pizza, and watched football!

HELLO SUNNY CANADIAN STUDENTS

Hey guys,

This week I don't have anything new to tell you about Istanbul, but I was very impressed with how well you answered my questions.  I did see something very interesting in the newspaper the other day, though.  I was reading a very famous American newspaper.  It's called the New York Times, and they had an article that made me think of you guys.  Follow the links below to see the article and a slideshow of pictures from the article.

CLICK HERE FOR THE ARTICLE

CLICK HERE FOR SOME GREAT PICTURES FROM THE ARTICLE


Have you ever been to any of these places?  What did you think?

Have a great week, guys!

Mr. T

HELLO SUNNY CANADIAN STUDENTS!

Hello everybody (especially 3.B)!

I hope you guys are having a great school year.  Are you being good for Miss Pien?  Of course you are!  I want to tell you a little bit about my school and my new classes.  I teach at a place called Terakki Vakfı Okulları.  You can click here to see their website.  It's written in Turkish though, so it might be hard to read.  It is a very big school.  I teach in the kindergarten and I have about 200 students.  I know, that's a lot of students, but they are all very nice and very fun.  I miss you guys a lot, and I'll be using this blog to teach you about Turkey and Istanbul.  Can you find Istanbul and Turkey on this map?  Can you find the Czech Republic?  Is Istanbul the capitol city of Turkey?  Post your answers in the comments section.

PS -- Can you send me some of your summer writing stories?  I would really love to read them!

My 180 Students

Ya know, I was really bummed out that I wasn't able to come back for the wedding.  I did see a lot of pictures (and some pictures of the honeymoon) and it looked really great.  Everybody looked wonderful, and I could tell from the photos that everybody was having a great time (even the ones where Steve puts on the serious face).  I guess I'll just have to wait until January to see everybody...

But!  I wasn't bummed out for too long.  As it turns out, my job is really physically exhausting.  I have 180 kindergarten students that I teach twice a week.  It's only 24 teaching hours, but man, I never realized how physical teaching is when the kids can barely speak.  What I mean is that it's all dancing, singing, running around and shouting the dozen or so words that they know in English.  It's really nice though, having all of the kids yell "Hello Mr. Matt!" when they see you in the hallway.  It's also kinda nice being salaried, because even though my classes finish at 3:30, I have to stay there until 5:00, so I'm forced to get stuff done ahead of time.  I like it.

Anyway, after the first week, we decided to celebrate by going down to the Galata fish market and eating some fresh fish and smoking a nargile (I know, bad for your health, but.. whatever) by the Golden Horn, the waterway that separates Beyoglu from Sultanahmet.  While we didn't take any pictures of the awesome view, I was able to find a picture on the internet that accurately depicts our setting...

(from http://istanbulstreets.wordpress.com/, so credit's given where credit's due)

So yeah, this is where I live now.  No castles in sight, but the view's alright just the same.

Claire's Here!

Claire finally made it!  After much deliberating on the issue, she just decided to fly in, rather than take the long way via train, so she got in on Monday evening.  I don't really have any pictures to show you guys of that.. but I'm sure we'll be doing something noteworthy soon.  We've just been eating really good food. I've been working, she's been getting job stuff sorted out... it's been great, but ya know, everyday life.

 Varna, Bulgaria

I know... I didn't get to come home last week on my holiday, thanks to the Storm That Wasn't Really As Bad For New York City As They Thought It Would Be But Was Really Bad For The Catskills, but I still had to take a trip out of the country for visa purposes.  I decided to go to Varna, Bulgaria, a small beach/resort town on the Black Sea coast.  It was about a 7 hour bus ride from Istanbul.  It was kind of like Prague 2.0... They had beer and beer gardens...

... but they also have awesome seafood that you can each at a beachfront restaurant...

 ... There's one drawback, though.  The Cyrillic alphabet (which, apparently, the Bulgarians invented).

I had a great time on the trip, but it definitely wasn't as nice as taking a trip home.  I've got a long break in January and a lot of credit with Delta, so I'll see all you guys then!

New Apartment

This is our new kitchen.  As you can see... we went from really big to kinda small (cozy, I'd say).

I'm not going to mention the Situation That Cannot Be Named, but I will post some pictures of our new apartment.  Much like our place in Prague, it's located on a giant hill near a small football stadium.  As you can see from the pictures, it's "sparsely" furnished, so I'm sure we'll be taking a trip to Ikea to get some more Stuff for it.  Oh, and it's dirty (but I've been cleaning!).

The kitchen (pictured above) opens up into this small dining room area.  We have a little balcony outside, which is really nice for watching neighborhood kids, drinking coffee, and hanging laundry.

This is the living room... messy.  Oh, we've got a TV though, and we have like 300 channels (a few which are even in English)!

Bedroom.  It looks small because it is small.  But, I mean, it's a bedroom.

And a bathroom.  Also small.  But ya know what?  All the furnishing are new, the landlords are awesome, and the price is right.  And I'm close to the metro and close to the bar/restaurant/gringo part of town, so speaking little to no Turkish isn't a huge problem.

Oh yeah, I also finally got my bike from DHL, which required no less that 5 hours of traveling around in DHL trucks/taxis/helpful peoples' cars.  But it's done! And I've discovered that it's possible to ride all the way to the black sea(!).  I'll post more this coming week.  I miss you guys a lot, and really wish I could be home.

The World's Most Expensive Used Bicycle

The bike finally made it.  I won't go into too many details, mostly because I don't know where to even begin, but the process involved 3 days of going out to the airport to go to different customs offices, DHL offices, and DHL warehouses.  Once I finally got the box, it was really satisfying to take the who thing out of the box, put it together in front of a crowd of DHL employees, and ride off into the sunset.  A lot of bizarre things happened over the course of getting the bike out of the customs, too many to recount here, so you'll just have to wait 'til I get home... Which I'll be doing NEXT SATURDAY!

Also, I think I'll be updating the blog on Sundays from now on, so that way everybody knows when they can check it to get some news on my trip.

The first week of school was good.  I was moved up to the high school program, but then moved right back down to Kindergarten.  So yes, Uncle Pete, I guess I was laterally promoted and demoted in the course of a couple of days.  I had my first true, Turkish made Lahmacun on Friday.  It was delicious, it's kind of like a flatbread pizza with minced meat and spices... very good.  They drink Ayran with it, a weird watered down yogurt drink.  I haven't tried that yet, though.  Okay... see you guys soon!