Day 4: Istanbul-> Canakkale

I don't know how to type the little doodle under the 'C' in Canakkale, so you'll have to use your imagination!
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The call to prayer woke us again and we were happy to find that breakfast was available before the advertised time of 7am and thoroughly stuffed ourselves, no other buffet may compare later!
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Our luggage and ourselves were loaded onto the bus for the 4 hour ride to Canakkale.
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Our room at the Kent hotel had been so nice, very modern. When we had returned to it yesterday the maid had cleaned and perhaps unrelated or maybe not our toilet stopped flushing. It did not miraculously fix itself after some hours so on our way out to dinner I stopped at the front desk to ask to have it fixed. I explained that out toilet wasn't flushing.
"What?"
"Out toilet is broken."
"Broken?"
"Ya it won't flush."
"Why?!" with the weirdest look on his face!
"Uhhh..." really?
Hahaha, so awkward! But he did call up to have it fixed, which it was when we returned later.
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Leaving Istanbul I marvel at the madness. There is no method here, traffic is without order as far as I can tell. Our tourguide told us that if we've a green, treat it as red. Tread with great care. The 'walk' light is even of a little green man running! On the roads, everyone seems to do as the please. The layout of streets and shops is without any sign of organization. Especially unusual is how shops appear stacked atop each other; second, third, fourth story windows crammed with manikins and merchandise. No wonder men work on the sidewalks to lure you in!Where is one to look first, everything is everywhere, and every space has ads plastered to it. It is disconcerting to understand none of these signs, I am lost in the chaos without the language to hold onto.
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2 hours into our bus ride we stop at a gas station. 1TL to use the WC (water closet, hehe). Pleen buys baklava and I get an Efes, turkish beer, to finally try, and a bag of mystery flavour chips. The bag has a picture of 3 spices, and tastes like Mr. Noodle powder. The beer is tasty, but nothing extraordinary.
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After more time on the bus we stop for lunch at another gas station. These places, like those we stopped at on our europe trip, are so much nicer than any I've seen in North America. I almost had a heart attack when approaching the WC, as another participant leaving the facilities asked us if we'd been practising our squatting! Oh no, I'm avoiding this as long as I can! But, relief beyond relief, there were both flushies and squatties, weird, eh?

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There was a nice bufe to eat at. (Bufe has two dots over the 'e', and means like the buffet restaurants.) I ordered the 'mix plate' as suggested by our tour leader, Selcuk (squiggle under the 'c', which makes it a 'ch' sound as opposed to a 'j' sound), for 5TL and a bottle of water. My meal seemed to consist of rice, a chickpea dish, some kind of meatballs, fries with grilled eggplant, a potato dish, and a stuffed green pepper that I gave to Pleen. It was all just ok. Pleen and I also had a tea, a cay (squiggle under 'c'), for only 50 Kurus (squiggle under 's' for a 'sh' sound) afterwards. And since everyone else seemed to be buying beer at the attached market, Pleen and I got a couple of Efes, in funky stubby fat bottles.
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After filling up, it was on to Troy! Very interesting learning the history of the real location, the legends, the discoveries, but the best part was being able to climb up into a trojan horse. Pleen and I were like kids clambering up the steep stairs/ladder, sticking our heads out the windows, posing for and taking lots of pictures. Extra fun and worth standing, walking in the heat of the day through the ruins. I was also excited to be able to catch a photo of a 'Trojan' squirrel scampering across stones and scaling sheer rock walls.

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It was time to hop on the bus and head to our hotel back in Canakkale, which we'd passed earlier on the road to Troya/ Troia (Troy). Our hotel is right across the street from the waterfront, like a fantastic sea wall with merchants selling cotton candy, roasted nuts, grilled corn on the cob, icecream, and various trinkets. As we pulled up alongside the building our tour guide Selcuk pointed out that we were just next to "Brad Pitt's Trojan Horse"; just down a ways on the seawall is the actual trojan horse model from Brad Pitt's movie "Troy", so cool! Of course we got pictures, though we couldn't climb into this one :(

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While strolling on the sea wall enjoying the view, the people, all the pictures we could take, along came a marching band/parade of men in costumes playing drums, horns, waving scepters with bells, and sporting magnificent mustaches, sparkly vests, curly toed shoes, and Aladdin pants. Apparently they are reenacting the guards of... something. Very neat, very unique music!

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It was time to have dinner, at the hotel. A buffet! Lots of interesting choices, I can't even begin to guess what they all were. It was pretty good, though nothing struck me as absolutely fabulous, so I didn't get a second plate of anything, unless you count my plate of dessert: one of everything! A cake layered with chocolate, whipped cream and cherries, chocolate pudding, and some kind of cookie soaked in honey. Everything here tastes fantastic soaked in honey!I totally forgot to take pictures of dinner, but did get one of dessert.

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After dinner Pleen and I went for a walk with Barb, Jenny, and Jayde. We stopped at a liqour store, though all stores seem to sell liquor... anyways I found some Tuborg! Four cans and a Tuborg beer glass for only 10TL, so cool! Everyone else bought a few drinks too. We had big plans, but after heading back to our rooms and showering, etc, we all proved too tired and retired for the night.

Day 3: Istanbul (part2)

We took the bus back to the hotel, napped, and awoke for a late dinner. We were on our own for this and so we wandered down the street in search of a good place to eat. We ran across another of the tour members who had already eaten and who said their dinner for two had cost 60TL (turkish lira) which they said seemed expensive but seemed at the time a reasonable price. Pleen and I eventually allowed one of the waiters on the sidewalk outside eating establishments to drag us to a table, pointing out items on the menu and saying "for you, only 8TL" when the amount listed below the picture was 11TL. Even the food can be bargained for I guess! Pleena nd I both ordered a lamb dish, and I also ordered a pomegranate juice. The juice came and looked fresh squeezed with pulpy bits and seeds. While the straw definitely looked as though someone had sipped my drink (we had a good, though nervous, laugh over this) I discarded said straw and the drink was delicious! Our lamb, which I guess had been cooked on a stick came with grilled pita bread, a tiny serving of fries, salad, rice, pickles, and sides of tzaziki and a red sauce with a hair in it, ha! Though ultimately tasty, some bits of meat seemed weird, fatty? so I skipped a few bites and left the salad, as our tour guide has warned us the tap water it may have been washed wiht may not immediately agree with us. The entire time we ate, our original waiter plus one other continued to stop by our table to ask how our meals were and to flirt endlessly and shamelessly with Pleen! Flattering, but kinf of exhausting. When we finished each of the waiters came by more then once to offer us tea, which we refused, and when we asked for the bill none came. Eventually, despite our multiple refusals, the brought tea. "a sample", "on the house" but also on the bill! Oh well, it was tasty! And served in very neat glasses; it would be nice to find similar ones to bring home as I think they might be the traditional thing.

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In Turkey, to a salesman, "no" seems to mean "try harder". After the cistern, while waiting for our group to assemble, we had been approached and flirted with by a couple of very friendly waiters who seemed determined that we should have drinks, at the very least, at their restaurant. It took some time, effort, and little white lies to extricate ourselves from them only for poor Pleen to spend the rest of our time waiting, seated by a nice fountain, declining the offer for a book of Istanbul. He worked himself down to a very good price! before offering it to her as a gift, "for a small price", hahaha! Despite telling him repeatedly that she was positive she didn't want it and wouldn't regret not getting it, I really want a book of Istanbul now, as I haven't been able to get books for the places we've visited like I did on our last europe trip. They've either been too expensive, or too big.

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Istanbul has cats like we've got pigeons! Eating the food dropped beneath tables, shooed by waiters, walking along sidewalks, fences, sleeping in the garsses. While they seem to like people, that are also... dirty!

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The streets and filled with men. There are noticably more men then women and even the poorest looking of them still seem to make the effort to dress nice, in at least a suit jacket! They exude confidence and will not drop their gaze when you meet it. The call to women from the streets any english they know, either to simply flirt, or to sell you anything. "Hello pretty mama", "Happy birthday", You're break my heart", "Lady Gaga!". Pleen and I had some good laughs. Istanbul could be a place to come simply for the confidence boost; it's hard not to feel beautiful!

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On the way back to the hotel we bought some baklava for a snack later, and visited another tour member's room to enjoy the amazing view! Pleen and I know that the baklava here is too amazing; back home it will never be nearly as good, it is as good as ruined. Our sleep then was sweetened sufficiently for pleasant dreams, our lips lightly honeyed.

Day 3: Istanbul (part1)

Pleen and I awoke with the calling for prayer unable, either through hunger or excitement, to fall back asleep. Our tour of Istanbul was not to start until 9, with breakfast starting at 7, so we had several hours to leisurely get ready for the day.

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Breakfast was amazing! I started at a table of sweets and filled my plate with shortbread, mini croissants, savory cheese filled pastries, chocolate cake, nut filled tarts and more! What little room was left I topped with a variety of cheeses, washing it down with coffee, cherry juice, and, as recommended by Pleen, "Cappucino with chocolate" from one of those wee machines. So yummy!

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A short bus ride brought us to the Blue Mosque. We had to take out shoes off, carrying them with us in the provided plastic bags. So beautiful, every wall decorated with tiles, the dominant colours of the intricate designs being of course blue.

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We had actually walked to the mosque from across what was once the hippodrome, of which only several obelisks remain. Men here sold scarves, funny hats, guidebooks, cameras of the disposable sort and accesories, spinning top-toys, and music pipes, walking amongst all the tour groups. In all of Istanbul, there are people selling anything everywhere, and any nook into which a store or stall can be tucked, crammed, or stuck, you'll find three or four.

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From the Blue Mosque we went to Topkapi Palace, where once the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire lived. Pleen and I toured the Harem, which isn't as one would imagine. Life in the palace sounds so exotic and amazing and I'd love to learn more. The views of the rest of Istanbul was incredible! We also saw some interesting religious artifacts including Moses' cane and Muhammed's hat and footprint.

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For lunch we were free to find our own place to eat, the guide recommending some meatball places and buffet type establishments. Pleen and I chose the latter, wherein one grabs a tray, points to several items, and pays before sitting to eat. I had a salad of lettuce, cabbage, carrots dressed with balsamic vinegar and lemon juice, and grilled eggplant topped with chicken and mashed potatoes, which was amazing. A bottle of water and some baklava rounded out my meal.

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From here Pleen and I went to the Basilica Cistern. So! Cool! It's an underground cistern, the roof held up by massive pillars, the water home to coy, some of which were huge! We saw the two mysterious haeds of Medusa and the pillar the grants wishes? Halfway through all the lights, every last one, turned off and the huge cavern near roared with the collective gasp of the possibly hundred people trapped within. It didn't last long though, so I was able to uncling myself from Pleen and continue through, though many of the "mood" lights were much slower to turn back on. Despite getting dripped on by water (eww...) this has so far been one of the most amazing sights!

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Afterwards we went to Aya Sophia. We were lucky to be here at this time as Turkey, or perhaps just Istanbul, is one of the cultural capitals of europe for 2010, and so the scaffolding the normally limits the views of the incredible dome has been almost ebtirely removed witht he rest pushed aside to provide an unobstructed view of the wonderful dome. Aya Sophia is a great example of what started out as a byzantine cathedral and has since been turned into a mosque and then partially restored. The different ways that the art has been modified to follow the edicts of Islam is very neat to see. This place is also a good example of the evolution of byzantine art, just like I have seen in art history books! One of the pillars within Aya Sophia is the place where a miracle of some sort took place; there is a hole in it and the legend is that when you put your thumb in it and rotate your hand a full 360degrees and make a wish it will come true. The worn is worn deep and smooth and weirdly shaped, the area of the pillar around it worn colourless where countless hands have swept across it. Pleen and I were so busy having our pictures taken while performing this ritual by each other that we both completely forgot to make a wish! I knew what I wanted to wish for though...

Day 1/2: Victoria-> Toronto-> Frankfurt-> Istanbul

I'm back, alive, and sharing now with you my travel journal as written on busses, on planes, in hotel rooms, and in the more atmospheric hotel lobbies, unedited and complete with run-un sentences, spelling errors, and all the boring bits, with just a sampling of the 600+ photos I took that may make it onto Picassa, but only if I've the energy to caption them all, 'cuz otherwise what's the point? Lets us commence our adventures now. (Also as I'm vaguely fanatical about the spacing on this blog, er, and everything else in life, and I know photos will booger it up, you'll see lots of fancy stars, oh boy!)

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"It's already tomorrow today."
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The longest days are those that at some mysterious point while in the sky, the next begins before the first ever ended; when you find yourself already fast into the next day. This kind of travel is exhausting.

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How many breakfasts can I possibly eat in a day? Coffee and doughnut before boarding the plane, muffin and carrots purchased one the first flight, full breakfasts served on both subsequent flights, with only the most random spattering of lunch/dinner tucked in with no regard to the general order these things are done in. Which breakfast signalled the start of a new day? I cannot say, I never can sleep while on the move.

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Is it the food that fuels me, or the adrenaline/excitement of an escorted rush through Frankfurt airport in a deperate flight to catch a flight? Or the anxious moments spent filling out forms when your luggage didn't make it to the plane as you barely did? Or could it simply be love, of living a life travelled, of seeing the lives that exist on the other side of the world, or living out of a suitcase in (hopefully) fresh sheets each night?

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Our first hotel is Kent, nearly across the street from a mosque and not far from the bazaar. With no luggage to deposit,we wandered the streets. Very few women to be seen, and well-dressed men everywhere. They openly stare at us, either because we are foreign, women, or possibly immodest in their eyes. The siewalks are hapharzardous, a strewn collection of cobbles and stones, steep, windy, and just as crowded. The traffic, even the parking, is without method. The stargest place I've yet been, nothing compares. I can't say I don't entirely enjoy the attentions, smiles, stares, comments of men, I'd been warned, and I'll enjoy it in the good humour it's meant.

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A quick nap before dinner, out heads had barely hit the pillow when the call to prayer sang out from the mosque. Magical. The most exotic experience, to hear prayers echo though a city, bouncing over rooftops, through crowded streets, into every open window. I hope I never tire of it.

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Dinner was what appeared to be authentic Turkey food! A cold salsa type mix served on grilled eggplant, a flaky pastry filled with soft cheese, breaded and fried white fish, and the best fruit salad for dessert: apples, oranges, cherries, pomegranate, grapefruit (which I ate around) amd kiwi! No stinking melons, I think I love it here!

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The dessert was so good I forgot to even take a picture of all the good stuff that was in it :)

King Carrot!

"You go get one carrot and I'll grab four onions."

He says to me: "Ok."

An unusual amount of time later: "I got the biggest one I could find."

He wasn't kidding! I present to you: KING CARROT!

And of course my artsy photographing diminished his glory. So here's another take:

My cutting board is too small! FYI that's a venti in the background (V 1p WM CGT tea, lol)!

And then I had to grate the entire mother-- :D

On the menu for tonight: slow-cookered beef and lentil whole wheat soft tacos with spinach, salsa, and cheddar. A new recipe and my first experience with lentils.

Um, what is a lentil? Like a bean? A grain? Veggie? Mineral? They look like tiny tiddlywinks.

Also, I blame the blurry photos on the caffeine. Or the general excitement of King Carrot.

Now to be a 'whoo girl'.

I'm writing a poem!


I had plenty of other things to blog about but now, gosh, I'm entirely too busy which is unfortunate for all my millions of readers because this post was going to be awesome, with pictures and everything...


What's a 'twitter' for anyways?


Also, why isn't 'ashen' a verb? It would have been awesome, absolutely perfect. Damn you dictionary.com and all of google for not agreeing with me!

Joy:

a little something like this. How fantastic! If I had a million dollars, I'd commision a little something to go with every animal poem...


I imagine myself excelling in my program come September, racing through every project and leaving myself time to meddle with metal. Fool some scraps into being something fantastical. I may need to add a workshop to the list of rooms my dream house must have.