Surpriz!

The word 'surprise' in Turkish is surpriz (pronounced soo-preez) which probably comes as no surprise. Pop star Gülben Ergen sings the song entitled 'Supriz', which seems to be topping the music charts lately.

The sound that you'll hear from the video below is very typical of Turkish pop musik - a little traditional flare mixed with dance-tech beat. These type of songs are generally one-hit wonders, a summer trend, and the singers often disappear after their initial peak. A slightly different visual approach than Gece with "Asik Miyiz" but entertaining, nonetheless.



Give it a few seconds to load (you might have to watch a quick advertisement). But if you can not view the clip, go here.

Buzz Off Mozzies!

Summer is the season in Turkiye where mosquitoes like to 'spread the love' and cash in on their vacation time.

We all know that these annoying little buzzards leave a series of bumpy pink 'love bites' on your skin. And although they are a bit itchy and uncomfortable, they are also just another part of our ecology.

Since my arrival here, I've been blessed with 7 love bites (that I can see). About 4 on my arms and three on my legs. (I'm sure y'all wanted to know that.) And seeing as I still have a few more weeks of vacation, I anticipate receiving a lot more of their affection.

Of course you can take preventative measures to avoid the health risks associated with mosquitoes. They are, after all, vectors for Malaria. Rest assured that I will not be traveling much in the Malaria risk areas of Turkiye.

But then again... you can never be too cautious.

Buzzzzzz...

Bagel vs. Simit

In the US, Americans have their bagels. In Turkiye, it's all about the simit - especially the 'street' simit. Same round shape as the bagel, except a little wider, crispier, and with sesame seeds all over it!

You can find a simit vendor just about anywhere on the street - they're virtually on every corner. Some are traveling vendors that walk up and down your neighborhood, yelling SIII-MIIIIIT! and people come out of their apartments to buy them!

They are best in the mornings or right after lunch when they come out of the bakeries hot and fresh!!! And while most Americans couple their bagels with coffee, Turks prefer their simits with tea. Simits are usually found on the breakfast table or as part of the afternoon tea-time.

I think I've averaged about 1 simit per day. They range anywhere between 1 to 0.75YTL - Yeni (new) Turkish Liras, depending on where you buy them (or if you look like a tourist, they vendors might charge you more!).

In fact, mmm... I'm eating a simit right as I'm writing this post. So does that mean I'm blogging with my mouth full?

Topkapi Palace *Brief Nudity*

Aaah... the Topkapi Palace! One of Istanbul's greatest palaces on the European side of the city. Built in the center of the Ottoman Empire overlooking the Bosphorus Sea, this amazing landmark was home to 31 Sultans between the 15th and 19th centuries!

It's got everything a under one, er... many roofs (way too many to count, in fact). Although its rich history spans hundreds of years, there's no way to deny the fact that it's absolutely breath-taking!! (Dick Osseman has taken some 'ossem' photos of the palace!)

The kitchen was perhaps my favorite aspect of the palace, though there were much more luxurious parts of the palace (as most would agree). But there's something about knowing that hundreds of cooks slaved together 24/7 to create dishes worthy of the Sultan's tongue that puts the show Top Chef to shame. I mean, imagine having to keep 6000 residents of the palace fed throughout the day - including the big guy himself!

And boy were these sultans big!! Their portraits hung in one of the rooms, and they were either all overweight or obese. Not to mention, so were his wives (harem)! Well, I guess when you have your choices between your fast food and your fatty women (or is it fatty food and fast women?)... who cares about CVDs and STDs?

Although I know nothing official about architecture, I could deeply appreciate the time and effort it took to create such details in these structures. I mean, just look at this stuff! The building I'm standing in front of, parts of it are gold-plated, baby! Oh, don't even get me started on the 86-carat, 17 gram, pear-shaped Spoonmaker's Diamond. Uhm... hello!

If you ever visit Topkapi Palace, never spend less than 3 hours (and that's if you're cruising through - no joke!) Get there early tour the rooms, enjoy the view from the restaurant during your lunch, then relax by the many gardens around the premises. On your way out... buy a simit.

Just to tease you... here is the view from Topkapi Palace! Enjoy!

Grand Bazaar is, well, GRAND!

No one should leave Istanbul without visiting the famous covered market called Kapalıçarşı (aka the Grand Bazaar) - full of every imaginable thing in the world - including Aladdin and his monkey friend Abu! The bazaar is Turkiye's equivalent to a swap meet, except it's a lot more physically and emotionally exhausting.

First of all, there are about 4000 vendors on 82 different streets. It's a labyrinth. A few turns here, a few steps there, you can end up walking for miles and never find your way out.

And if you do get lost, don't even think about asking someone to help you find your way out - espcially the store owners. The vendors are highly cunning and manipulative - they will do anything, say anything to get you to buy something. They may even ask you to step into their shop to show you an item, perhaps offer you tea, then (in some cases) close the door and refuse to let you leave until you make a purchase. What do you expect, it's a tourist trap and these guys have to make a living!

Also, bargaining is the name of the game. Never, never pay for anything without bargaining your price down to, at least 50% of what they ask. The first, second, and third offers are always too expensive, you're guaranteed to find something less expensive around the corner. You haven't experienced the true essence of buying from the bazaar until you've bargained your way out!

I captured some video of the bazaar below, so you can get a highlight of the scene. But I couldn't grab too many photo ops because 1) you can find better pics on the net, and 2) any more, I would have been harrassed by them vendors. Because nothing says 'tourist' like a white chick with a camera.



After capturing my media, I put away my camera and put my sunglasses on (it's helpful in avoiding eye contact with the vendors). I walked briskly and got out of there as quickly as possible. I'll definitely go back though - there were a couple of things that caught my eye...

NOTE: Never go into a bazaar for casual window shopping... to have a successful bazaar experience, you must go in with a focus (know what you want to buy), an "I'm-calling-the-shots" attitude, and a time limit. This way, you're bound to get what you want, at the price you want it, in less than an hour. :)

Me... I'm going take the easy way out and go there with my mom, instead. I know... I'm lame! But she's very effective when it comes to bargin shopping and shop bargaining. (And you would totally understand if you saw the purse I saw and just had to have it... LOL!)

Tourist for a day!

On Wednesday, I took at full-day Imperial & Ottoman bus tour around Istanbul. I became your cliche tourist for the day! I visited classic Turkish landmarks - like the Ayasofia, Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace and the Grand Bazaar (with a lunch break at a rooftop restaurant). I also met loads of folks in my tour group from India, Japan, Argentina, Italy, and of course, the United States (Colorado, to be exact).

I had seen most of these places in my previous visits, so I wasn't as obsessed with taking pictures of everything like some of my other tour mates (plus, my parents were avid home video directors back in the mid-80's, early 90' - so I knew most of these places were captured on VHS tapes and collecting dust at home.) So I focused more on enjoying each place with more attention.

But these landmarks never, ever get old. You can visit many times and still be in awe of all the cultural history, inticate architecture, and unique views that (even now) continue to leave you breathless.

You can see most of my pics from my day trip in my Turkiye Flickr album.

Five Mile Run/Walk Route

I've saved today's 5 mile running/walking route on gmap-pedometer here. If you look at the route in 'hybrid' or 'satellite' view, you can get an idea of the neighborhood I am currently living in called Suadiye.

More pictures and runnin routes to come!

Gece - "Aşık Mıyız?"

I always look forward to learning about what bands are 'in' and what songs are 'hot' in Turkiye during my visit. Obviously, music is universal and what is popular in the US is also well-known here. But I also get a kick out of listening to Turkish pop musik which sometimes share similarities with the sounds we're used to in the states.

One example is a band called "Gece" (pronounced Geh-Jeh, 'c' sounds like a 'j' in Turkish), which means the night. The song is entitled "Aşık Mıyız?" which asks the question "Are we in love?"

Check out the video below and let me know your thoughts. (If you can't view the clip, go here).

Gece - Asik Miyiz by Aluxton
Uploaded by Aluxton69

I rather enjoyed this song. What do you think? Would the band translate well in the states?

Interesting Thing About Restrooms

Whether it's a restroom inside an apartment, house, restaurant, or theater, the light switch is usually located OUTSIDE the bathroom. Isn't that weird?! I've asked around to find out why, but no one really seems to know.

My theory on this strange design phenomenon is so you won't have to blindly look for the light switch when you enter the restroom - which makes perfect sense since there have been plenty of times I've found myself sliding my hand up and down the wall, searching for the light switch... haven't we all done that at some point?

But I can't help but think of the vulnerable position you are putting yourself in while attending the restroom. The idea of letting the power of the light switch rest in the hands of the people in the hallway just seems very unsettling.

Lights out. Flush.

Kizkulesi Tour

Kizkulesi is translated in English as "Maiden's Tower" and it's one of the most romantic symbols in Istanbul.

Legend has it that a princess (long ago) was sent there by her father because a fortune teller told him that his daughter was going to die at age 18. So, in order to prevent any bad things from happening, he had his daughter/princess locked away in a tower to avoid any potential harm.

Well, as we all know by now, fortune tellers never lie. So on her 18th birthday, a supply boat arrived to the tower carrying food. And wouldn't you know it, hidden among the basket of grapes was a poisonous snake. With one delicious bite, the snake took the life of the princess.

That's only one version of the legend. There is another, more romantic version of the story, as told by the French - about a woman trapped in the tower because her father forbid her to marry her lover. And another version that claimed it was used as a prison. Who really knows?

But one thing is for sure, this 2500 year old landmark stood through the Ancient Greek period of the Archaic ages, the Byzantine and Ottoman Empires. According to the historical brochure, "It is a symbol of loneliness, love and uniqueness and has been the subject to many poems, paintings and photographs through the years."

My mother and I had the opportunity to visit Kizkulesi on Sunday afternoon. It was an extremely windy day, but we enjoyed our 3 hour excursion to this historical landmark.

We took a ferry to the platform where the tower stands. The waves were particularly strong that day - so it was hard to capture a nice shot of the tower from the boat. Inside the tower, we discovered a romantic restaurant and quaint, tiny coffee shop near the top.

At the very top, we could see a spectacular view of the coast. My photos hardly do it justice - so I'd highly recommend checking out some rather gorgeous shots of the tower and restaurant here.

The Otübus Experience

Riding on a city bus in Istanbul is like being in the live version of the 1994 adrenaline-packed action flick SPEED. The driver maneuvers the bus like Sandra Bullock on speed. Weaving in and out of traffic, hoping not to kill anyone along its path. But unlike the Hollywood version, he actually succeeds in keeping the city in tack, taking you from point A to point B, C, D, E...X without much cross-city destruction.

In the course of my thirty-minute bus ride (and after I got over my fear of flying), the people who flew in and out at each bus stop, some while the bus was moving, had very interesting stories to tell. Many thoughts went through my mind...

- A 30-something lady gave up her seat to an older mid-forties woman. Same mid-forties woman, then gave up her seat for an elderly man in his mid-sixties. Perhaps respecting your elders is a universal gesture, with no cultural boundaries. My heart melted. Despite a crazy world, there's always room for compassion.

- A passenger entered the bus from the back, not able to get on from the front because it was too crowded. He handed his bus card to a passenger, and the passenger handed it to the next passenger, and so forth until the card slowly made its way to the front. The bus driver slid his toll through the machine. Then the bus card slowly made it back to its owner. It's amazing that in a city where you're taught to keep a close watch on your belongings and trust no one, that at least 7 people had a hand in helping this stranger pay the correct bus toll.

- As people enter the bus, you find yourself shifting places, sitting down as seats are vacated, then standing up again, giving up your seat for those who need it. You move towards the middle of the isle, then get pushed to the side of the bus, and so forth. And as you move to different spots inside the bus, you hang on to different poles, hold different handles, and lean into various seats and wonder how many millions of people have been through here before you? Definitely not the preferred mode of transportation for the 'germaphobe'.

- Awkward silences are prevalent on city buses. In a city with 15 million poeple, everyone lives a breath's distance away from each other. Yet, somehow conversations on a bus are limited. In fact, most people are either sleeping or blankly looking out the windows. Eye contact is rare. Every once in a while a cell phone may ring, but rarely someone answers it. And if they do, the conversation is cut short. Everyone is in such close proximity that one couldn't help but eavesdrop on every conversation. Weird to think that we guard our privacy differently in certain circumstances, yet find it absolutely necessary to share our dialog on a blog or via Twitter for everyone to see...

- Smells. Distinct smells of perfume, deodorant, aftershave, sweat, and other random odors. Some good. Some not. You're packed in like sardines, and after a while, you don't smell a thing (until the next stop when a new wiff of air passes through.)

The people on the bus represent a cross-section of a unique culture. Rich or poor, young or old, regardless of race, religion, socioeconomic class, or gender... everyone relies on the bus (or some form of public transportation) in their Istanbul existence. Let's face it, the bus is cheaper, more efficient, much faster - and anyone with a car knows that Istanbul traffic can be a nightmare!

Taksim Square and Surrounding Areas

A bit more about Taksim Square...

"Taksim Square is the heart of modern Istanbul, laid out in the late 1800s near a taksim (branching-point) in the city's water distribution system."

But at nights... the place turns into an entertainment culture hot spot! It's located on the European side of Istanbul, near an area called Beyoğlu (pronounced bey oh loo, the 'g' with the little squiggly on top sounds almost like a 'y').

Full of life and activities, the main street where my cousin and I are standing is Istiklal Street - where you can find all sorts of nightlife, clubs, coffee houses, karaoke clubs, restaurants, street vendors and performers... you name it, it's probably there - along with 10,000 other people.

Below is a better picture I got from here.


And if you want - check out the video capture of the street. (This was shot close to 1am, mind you... and the crowd showed no signs of dying down).

Karaoke Night at Taksim Square!

Some people join the cast of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat to learn a language, I join karaoke night. LOL. Saturday night (around midnight - after a 10pm dinner) we went to Taksim Square - one of the most popular areas for clubs, bars, restaurants, street vendors and performers. And of course, karaoke!

Because we were a big group of 14 people, we were given our own karaoke room where we got to pick our songs and sing to our heart's content. The group selected a list of old Turkish songs as a way to entertain themselves. (Traditional Turkish songs are known for their telling tales about the pains and agony of unfulfilled love. What can I say? The Turks love drama - it's in their blood.) Of course, I knew none of the songs. NONE. But I could bring on the drama with the best of them!

Although I now know more phrases in Turkish than I did before tonight, don't ask me to sing "you broke my heart into a ka-zillion mini-pieces" and "My love, come back to me, can't you see I'm completely broken without you" in Turkish. My singing makes the only-positive Paula Abdul cringe.

On the other hand, I was enjoying my cousin and his friends dancing and singing till 3 am...

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat

I can't really imagine Turkish people running in flocks to see a production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Not because it's not an entertaining musical - cuz it is (hey, I have the Donny Osmond recorded soundtrack) - but because of its light religious and cultural references than might not clearly translate to this audience. An Egyptian Pharaoh as Elvis?

On Saturday night we went to see this Andrew Lloyd Webber classic. It was sung in English, which is why my cousin and his friends probably they didn't understand a thing! I did my best trying to translate Joseph's dreams, but to no avail. I only got puzzled looks and blank stares.

During the intermission I heard English being spoken around me. I wondered why. Then I learned (after reading the program) that this was an event held by a British theater arts organization. Apparently there is a large British community living in Turkiye. Wow, didn't know that! I wonder if anyone of them knew Posh Spice.

I asked my cousin how he'd heard about this musical. Turns out, one of his friend's girlfriend was in the musical - her first. And we were all invited to support her efforts. (Later I found out the only reason she joined the cast was to learn more English.) Interesting way to learn a language, in my opinion. Perhaps I should joined the Paris cast of Les Miserables to polish up my French. Oui Oui!

After the show, we did the obligatory "You were great!" kisses and hugs scene. We even posed for a photo with Elvis, himself!