Travelling in Turkey pt.1

Current mood: hot
Category: Travel and Places

Well,

Here I am in the motherland of Turkey. I've been here in Istanbul for 3 days now. We're leaving for Ankara tomorrow AM.

I meant to blog sooner, but jet lag, trying to enjoy the culture/food/etc. here, and dealing with family business has kept me busy, and/or tired. I hope to be able to sleep through the night tonight, finally.

I've sent many postcards already. Found some really nice ones this time.

My trip in review, so far (BBC news on in the background):
Upon arriving, I met up with my father at the airport. Once we left, I immediately felt at ease, and like I was at home. Seeing the Sea of Marmara and the Bosphorus, and Turks lazing about picnicking on Sunday comforted my soul. My father had the Godawful task of transporting my mother's remains with him. She is in 2 boxes, and kinda heavy...I know it's very hard on my father, being here and going through all this, and not speaking Turkish. So many memories must be tormenting him.

Despite all this we are doing OK. I feel strong enough.

Sunday night, we chilled at our hotel. A boutique affair, very nice called Celal Sultan Hotel. Clean, and very friendly staff. Hotel is situated near the 2 most famous mosques in Istanbul. Cisterns and obelisks abound, too.

Monday: Business day. Lawyer's office. Very nice. I made a good choice months ago. Their office has a stunning view of the water around Istanbul. No shabby affair. We walk around the surrounding streets before and after the meeting - Istiklal Caddesi. Hip area. I bought 3 CDs. Two of them are by artists I discovered through the movie "Crossing the Bridge" which features Alexander Hecke (from Einsturzende Neubauten) recording cool Turkish bands. These artists include Ceza, the Turkish rapper, and Aynur, who performs Traditional Kurdish and Turkish folk songs. We went to a little coffee shop called Kaffeehaus Istanbul or something like that and I order an iced caramel macchiato. Weak 'cause they don't seem to get the iced coffee concept. We bought some almonds. Turkish nuts are the **BEST**. But we got ripped off 'cause we didn't mean to buy as much (40 Turkish Lira/kg) they gave us. Walking past the shops amidst the hubbub, we saw some guys dressed up in traditional garb, wearing fezzes, handing out little brochures for a restaurant. We asked one to take us to it and he led us down some small narrow streets and my dad got a little nervous, but it was OK. A very cute rustic type place, it was, and I ate a poppy kebab for dinner.

Anyway, in sum, after meeting with the lawyer we realize we have a complicated road ahead, which we already knew.

Tuesday: Wonderful Turkish breakfast included every morning. Olives, cheeses, teas, breads, cucumbers, tomatoes, hard-boiled eggs, cheese pastries (savory not sweet), watermelon, and more. We decided the night before the check out the Kariye Muzesi today- the Chora Church - which contains beautiful Christian mosaics. Cum usual, many of the faces and eyes of the icons have been rubbed out or chipped off. Golden and shimmering, many of these artifacts are...I bought some things at their little museum shop, after the polis tracked down the vendor, who had been busy eating lunch!

Then we ate lunch at a restaurant next door, called Asitane. They specialize in Ottoman recipes, and we tasted some exotic things. Apparently, Ottoman cuisine is more often baked, whereas a lot of Turkish food is grilled. The Ottoman food reminds me a little of Indian cuisine - apricots, nuts...

The next part of the day was totally botched. I read about a Yoko Ono exhibition going on at a local university, and decided to check it out. So we took a ferry across the sea to the Asian side of Istanbul. We get off amidst buses going all over and spewing diesel exhaust in our faces. I try to ascertain which bus to take. Some guy tells me a number, and we get on. That bus driver says there is no direkt servis from here, but he'll tell us where to get off and take another bus if we get on his.

One hour and 15 minutes later, he turns around and says OK, here. At that point the gallery was closed and we just wanted to get back to our hotel ASAP. He lets us off and we catch the same number going back.

A complete waste of time. Dusty poor neighborhoods I have no desire to EVER see again.

My mom's cousin {now my 2nd?} agreed earlier in the day to pick us up for dinner. He does, and his wife, 10 year old son, and the son's lovely young English tutor come along. They take us to a wonderful place, in a grove. Beylul, it's called, and it was formerly a summer home of sultans. We sit outside, as we have for almost every meal here so far. Lovely trees, the cloak of night, and a nice view of the water and the evening lights contribute to my good mood. My mood has been pretty good actually since I arrived.

Tony calls, and he asks if I've seen any Ottoman Turks. Not yet I say. I tell the family, and they assume he means the big turban-like hats...

We chat about light stuff, and heavy stuff {family land/affairs} like my mom's passing. They are sympathetic. I like hanging out with these people. They are smart, and modern, and friendly. If I have to be away from my loved ones back home, these people sure do cheer me temporarily. It's nice to break up the energy between me and my dad, too. Crucial and essential.

After dinner, cousin Murat and his wife take us to a bar - the nicest in Istanbul according to him. It's in a ritzy area called Bebek. He and my dad have raki, and I have whiskey. Again, we sit outside. But this time we a re right on the water. Little dinghy, nice yacht, and barge alike coast by - some stealthily in the darkness. The lights and hills are so beautiful!

It may sound like a broken record, but sitting outside and enjoying the view are big pastimes here.

They drive us back to our place and we bid goodnight.

Today Wednesday: Did some shopping with Dad. The tiles in Turkey are so beautiful, and bountiful. Some very special, unique artisanal crafts can be found here. Zengin olsam...{If I were rich} Took it easy today. Nice dinner outside at a place with a Medusa theme...almost full moon tonight.

Leaving Soon

Current mood: hungry for a cookie
Category: hungry for a cookie Life

Allahim.

I'm leaving in less than 3 days. Some friends called to say they were worried 'cause there was a bombing in Ankara - one of the cities I'm heading to, most likely.

Anyway, I'm freaking out over here, but I am also trying to methodically get everything organized, gathered, paid, and laundered. My laundry I mean.

Amidst the mania of the documents and travel info, I am actually getting a bit thrilled to go. Somehow knowing I have people in my life who really love me strengthens me so much. I feel a spine to lean against.

I read today about orchid ice cream I can get in Istanbul. Very interesting. It's so thick you have to use a fork and knife to eat it! It's called salepi dondurma, but salep comes from Arabic sahlab, which means "fox testicles".

It has something to do with the shape of the dried tubers from which the flour/paste is derived.

Anyway, edible flowers are where it's at. Are you sensing a theme yet? {Afyonkarahisar}

Also in food news, I attended a cheese tasting last night at Whole Foods near Charles St. VERY NICE!!! We sampled 12 cheeses, all from New England. Sssssooooooo good. Especially the goat cheeses. The cheesemaster giving the class was English, and works at the Alewife store. He was born outside of London...he thought Frank, the Californian member of the supper club who went with me, was English before Frank even uttered anything. Funny.

Our palate cleanser was POM peach white iced tea. We had crostini and crackers, and even little Spanish tortes with anise with the cheeses. Also orangle blossom honey.

Afterwards, Frank and I wandered through Beacon Hill to No.9 Park for a cocktail, but they were closed for a private dinner. So we walked on to The Last Hurrah at the Omni Parker House. Along the way, we passed a cute little al fresco sushi joint called Zen that looks fun. Felt like I was in a different city, and I live for that sensation. Mysterious wonderousness reminding me of new things!

At The Last Hurrah we sat down for our drink and discussed many things. I told Frank about what I'd been up to the past several days. Show Thursday. Described it and the drama surrounding it. Groupies! Cowgirl hats! Video-cameras! Ok, well I forgot to tell him about the last 2 but anyway...Friday show with Garvy J and the long-winded Cirkus Jirkus or whateverthefuck they're called in Worcester/burger. Saturday dinner with some of Tony's family. More red meat:) Sunday early rise and off to NYC for 2 straight days of sessions. The record's mostly done being recorded!

**I blogged somewhat more poetically about the recording on the Black Fortress of Opium myspace blog page, so feel free to cross-reference there. **

Anyway, while the server shook and blended our individual little drink shakers, which created a very soothing sound, and we noshed on freshly warmed mixed nuts, Frank gave me some gr8 news.

It turns out, my bet for the Kentucky Derby won after all. Well, it came in 2nd. I won like $14! You may remember me saying this was a horse named Hard Spun whose mother was called Turkish Tryst, grandfather called Turkoman, and father namer Danzig. How cool is that?

When I first googled Turkish Queen years ago, a racehorse going by that name came up. I couldn't find a pic of it though. I like the racehorse metaphor. It's a hardworking machine, but alive, with the softness and vulnerability of warm flesh.

Some events I'll miss while I'm gone to Turkey:
2 parties this weekend
Psychic TV, who I've never seen live

Apocalypse Now

Current mood: sleepy Category: Life Still half-awake. Very unlike me, usually once I'm up, I'm up. Had an apocalyptic dream again last night. Or, actually, I suspect it was this morning. Tony's building was crumbling and there was smoke streaming out of several places. Ay yay yay. I didn't even wanna tell him about it. Felt like I was bearing bads news or something. But I also felt a duty to tell him. Whenever my grandmother or mom had a dream about us, she'd call and tell us. Yesterday, my appointed social therapy day, I had another dream with my mom. I think she spoke this time, but can't remember what she said...probably just a memory... Going to Türkiye on May 26th for 3 weeks. I've begun gathering the necessary supplies - legal papers, sunblock, SIM cards and all that yazz. I'm nervous about having to first understand and secondly translate everything once I get there! My father speaks no Turkish. It looks like we're gonna fly around mostly, but possibly rent a car to travel to certain spots, like AFYON, the town named "Opium". I MUST visit this place and learn its secrets. APOCALYPSE NOW: Watched it Friday night. Tony is obsessed! Keeps talking about Captain Willard and Colonel Kurtz, and wearing camouflage...hee hee. Man that is one gritty film. Martin Sheen was so cute:) I thought music was hard to do, but film is a whole other level, or several. You really have to be insane to do film. It requires SO MUCH help! Building shit just to blow it up, etc. Now we're about 20 minutes into Fellini's Satyricon. WEIRD. Very colourful, and great burnt out imagery. Went to a rock and roll social yesterday. Seriously anxious first. But once I got there I was semi-OK. A friend helped and then more friends showed up. Girlfriends. It's good to get some feminine energy in my life. And it's super cool when it's femmes who do music but aren't competitive or weird with me. Then we can chat and commiserate like the boys but in our own girly way. Anyway, I'm glad I went. Met a few people, handed out some flyers, and I won a haircut. I was so hoping to win and the universe heard me! I wanna lessen my locks for summer. Just a trim. ****** Got in the mood do do some cooking this week. It's hard with so many roommates buzzing around like flies. But anyway, I made some Tiger Balls. Yes, unfortunately named, but tasty! powdered sugar, chocolate chips, graham cracker crumbs, 2 sticks butter, organic pnut buttr rolled into balls and drizzled with chocolate Everyone seems to like them. I also plan on making garlic Swiss steak and Mucver this week. Mucver is Turkish for zucchini pancakes. I got the dill! A tip for corn: I like to boil the water to a rolling boil, then put the cob in, along with a pat of butter and some sugar, like a tsp or something. Cover and remove from heat for 8 minutes. Then voila, it's done and kinda sweet and tasty. This way I don't feel the need to add more butter or salt afterwards. **** One more thing. Kentucky Derby was Saturday. Frank noticed one horse's dam was named Turkish Tryst, so he put $3 on that horsie for me. Alas, it did not win, place, or show. {Suffolk Downs is the only place I've ever been where I've seen men spitting on the floor - inside a building.}

Doe

Current mood: sneezy
Category: sneezy Life

Yesterday I read online about Evil Eyes. Here's a very cool website all about it:http://www.luckymojo.com/evileye.html.

I am preparing for a journey to the motherland ~ Türkiye. Hoping to make it to Afyonkarahisar for obvious reasons.

Beautiful glowing MOON (((O))) last night, hanging over the city. Sometimes it's so big, it's funny and absurd.

I'm psyched that this month there is a blue moon, and I'll be in Istanbul for it on May 31st. The moon there over the seven hills is powerful.

This month is so crazy - show, recording, international travel. Dang, I guess I wish it was like that more, but I like my cozy quiet cafe time, too.

I'm pretty full mentally, and I hope I remember everything necessary for my trip!

Forgot to wear earrings today and my balance is off.

I think the coffee shop gave me caf instead of decaf. Yikes.

Yesterday, I walked through the Common a little on my way to Studio 44, and it was a wonderful scene: I was carrying my beloved dedicated copy of Musashi. It was sunny and bright, and there were pink petals raining from the trees that gave the impression of snow.

Most poetic in my heart and soul.

My horoscope says I won't be happy staying in this weekend, so I gotsta get out and about, or I'll have cabin fever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

ART:
Hoping to check out the Edward Hopper exhibit chez MFA before I split for Turkey. And to finish viewing the Beuys/Fluxus.

Tysav is playing the Baseball Tavern Saturday, so I suspect I'll be celebrating Cinco de Mayo there...oh wait, I'm Texan, so I should be lamenting it. But if Tejas hadn't lost, it wouldn't have such a cool and distinctive shape, so I'm not sad.