Palace Feet

Hi All,
How do you all like my rockin' bright pink protective booties? In an effort to preserve the Dolmabahce Palace complex they require EVERYONE to wear them. Despite the fact you walk on carpets the entire time. They were especially annoying at the doors, where they'd put wedges up. A nice gesture, but it made for absolutely no grip and I almost fell 2-3 times. Also slightly ridiculous was the strict no-photography policy. Now, No Flash, sure. However, it's not exactly the Sistine Chapel (and that's only because some stupid Japanese company has exclusive rights... but I digress...) and with all the security around I think they could manage to keep a no flash policy and still preserve the building.

The Dolmabahce Palace...
...was easy to find, though a bit misleading (since they label the mosque nearby the same...so I made a small detour!). It was relatively easy to get to - only one switch between the Metro and the Funicular and a 10 minute walk by foot, parallel to the Bosphorous. It also seemed to serve as a military post (we had to go through a security stand before we even got to buy tickets, same as Hagia Sophia) and had soldiers here and there. As I came to reflect on it, the palace reminded me of a sort of combination between the Danish palace in Copenhagen and Neuschwanstein in Germany.

Denmark had the frozen guards as well (think Buckingham palace style...lots of photo ops, apparently!) but had more a feel of the 19th century than Neuschwanstein. However, the opulence of the palace was also huge - and the man who built it greatly resembles Ludwig the II. Though I'm not sure if they murdered (drowned?) Sultan Abduelmecid. The 31st Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, A. (for simplicity) built the palace between 1843 to 1856 - as a sort of last ditch effort to proclaim the strength of the empire. It caused significant economic stress on the Empire and was inhabited for less than 100 years. Ataturk used it as a presidential summer residence (the view of the Bosporus is breathtaking) and I even saw the bed he died in.

The furnishings in the palace were quite ornate, and more genuine than Neuschwanstein. The floors were wood - and had beautifully intricate patterns made from Beech, Rosewood and Mahogany. One of my highlights was the Murano glass chandelier - ironically in the prayer room not sure the Pope would've approved... - which was huge, green and slightly gaudy. But it gave me a scale of the worth. There were beautiful rugs everywhere, of course, but a lot of the crystal (including the famed crystal staircase) was from England. Also on display were gift sets (because one was never good enough?). Russia sent matching bearskin rugs, while large urns seemed to be a favorite of others. I laughed when everyone was fascinated by the rugs - they weren't very big by Minnesota standards!

The harem was very similar, although that tour was in Turkish. However, the first tour guide was so soft-spoken that I mostly read the information pamphlet anyway. Then came the Crystal Pavilion, which only had a few sculptures of note (including a crystal piano) but overlooked the aviary. Which now mostly consists of chickens and few peacocks.

The Call to Prayer


Now, the full prayer takes at least 5 minutes, but I managed to catch a clip or two (the other one I'll put up in my online album). It's coming from the closest Mosque. I asked my HM how they did it and got the basic explanation. The voice is not a recording, and the holy men have a rotation for who does it when. So, some have wonderful voices and others...not. Also, there's one per minaret (oh my goodness...there must be literally hundreds...there's even one by HM and HD's office!) and the sound quality differs a lot. It's a nice sound to hear (as I haven't heard any bad ones yet...) and I suspect it will soon become like the trains in Grand Forks, although blessedly unable to wake me at one in the morning until I become accustomed!

Why I Don't Shop
Well, the US malls don't usally require one to step through security measures (including a bag scan and metal detector) so that threw me a bit after my morning out. I was at the mall close to HM/D's office and was going to find "Electroworld" so I could buy a microphone headset. I was flushed with my transportation prowess, and was feeling good. I even found a map right away, and confidently pushed the -2 button on the elevator...only to go up. Huh. Someone boarded, and pushed the ground floor, so I tried again. I held the button, and pushed again when it didn't work. The young woman said something to me, saw my incomprehension and tried again: "English? This elevator is...special...it only goes floor one and 3."
Well duh, Steph, how could you not know that? What kind of elevators don't only go to highly selective floors? Honestly.

Somewhat subdued, I rode the escalators and managed to find (and then avoid the personnel) in Electroworld. Purchase managed, I got upstairs no problem...to be daunted at the exit. Fortunately I watched others walk through the gap in security, so I did the same. When no yelling ensued, I felt safe. I walked back to the business office building and sat down to read some Istanbul history while waiting for U. After a particularily confusing conversation I was able to discern that he was parked across from me and managed to get home. A safe end to a good day!

Hope all is well,
Steph
PS See the sesame sticks in the photos above...they were homemade!

Family Family Family

Hi all,
That was the theme for Bayram. HM's brother, sister and nephew stayed the night at HM's Mother's house just 2 blocks away. We'd had a large feast of lasagna (ala Turk), which sported mushrooms, a white sauce, meat, peppers and lasagna noodles. Interesting, but very good. Before I went to bed I was "warned" that we'd be grilling today: "The best grilling you've ever eaten!" my HD boasted...

Ah, the Food
Breakfast was traditional and later today, with a cooked semi-basted egg, cheeses, bread and sliced sausage that looks like thick pepperoni. Yesterday, after I'd eaten a similar breakfast, HD leaned over and said - with a twinkle in his eye - "Do you want to know what you just ate?". Rewinding to the conversation about intestines, I thought it over and said "Well, I'm pretty sure it's not intestine...oh god, tell me it's not horse?"
"Horse?! No...it is cow...but a male cow...so not beef. What would you call it?"
"Um, I'm pretty sure we'd still call it beef..."
This inexactness chafed a little, it seems. Later, when we sat down to eat the grilled feast HD jokingly said that it could be horse - or dog! (Apparently horse isn't eaten in Turkey, but really, it was a fair question on my part, because it IS eaten as a sausage in some places in Germany. So I meant no disrespect when I suggested it...so it somewhat comforted me for him to compare it to dog!)

But..the grilling was fantastic. It was all mutton, little bone pieces, little steaks, and shishkabobs. Not to mention Kofte the Turkish equivalent of meatballs, but those were made of hamburger. There was also a "salad" made of chunked tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion, green onion, and spice green peppers. However, the highlight of the meal for me was when D, HM's best friend and neighbor asked if I wanted a certain dish. It was fried spice peppers covered in yogurt. When D smiles her whole face lights up, and so I decided to try it. She spooned some onto my plate and I made a sound in the back of my throat. She froze, while I haltingly said "Teşekkür ederim" - Thank You. She was so excited and please that she planted an impromptu kiss on my cheek! (I'd made HM help me practice in the kitchen before dinner...)
Turtles and Bubbles
For the kids, the highlight was probably finding the adorably miniature land turtle (tortoise?) living near the back yard. The scooped him up and gave him grass to eat. If he's around tomorrow I'll snap a picture. He's about 2 inches max, and his shell is a good 1.5 inches tall. I was glad to see that the moms made sure the kids went to clean up after handling him though. As I went inside to check something, I noticed that K was happily splashing in the sink. Or what you could still see of it...it was almost overflowing with bubbles! I rushed in and turned off the water (which was a good 6 inches below the lip of the sink, even the bubbles towered a good 6 inches upward from the top edge...) - just as I heard a cell go off. I told K "No more water...ok?" and ran to get the phone. HM had also come in and we walked back to the bathroom at the same time...and what should we see?

Surprisingly, K had left the water off...but had taken bubble removal into his own hands. Since the water had drained leaving a sink full of bubbles...he decided on the natural solution for bubble disposal - the toilet! HM got him rinsed off and I worked on splashing the bubbles down the sink (though they kept re-surfacing through the emergency drain hole on the side for a while...) and we both chuckled as she flushed the offending bubbles away. "He loves his bubbles!"

Tomorrow...Grand Exploration
HM decided I should go out again tomorrow (as she'll be staying home Thursday) and I readily agreed. Since U seemed so unhappy last time we went (I think it was due to excessive time in public transportation...) I decided to pick somewhere closer. I found a palace (Dolmabahce) and the Galeri Nev (free! with important collections and there are 2 special exhibits "Strange Fruit" and "Harem"). When I'd finally decided on my plan, HM asked me if I'd go by myself (ride into town with her, take the subway and funicular) as both are within 10 minutes of a stop and each other. I have my cell after all. So, I'm a little excited and a little scared, though since it's a tourist area I should be just fine. I have a pretty good internal map (for which I thank Speech in High School...learning to navigate all the other HSs) so I should be just fine. I'll be sure to bring my camera.

At any rate, I should go to bed at decent time tonight to be fresh for tomorrow.
Hope all is well,
Steph
PS The picture is off my bedroom in the morning light!

Lazy Day

Hi all,
The boys managed to pretty much amuse themselves today, along with the help by one of their cousins (who's pretty much right between them in age) - with a minimum tussling. So I spent a good amount of time being able to relax with the adults or just read. But I have a little funny observation that I've made.

In Which I Abuse My Power
HM noted to me the other day that K has started to pick up on my mannerisms, speech wise. I didn't realize the extent until we were in the middle of playing UNO and I slapped down a draw 4 wild. "Oh dear..." he sighed. Which, I suppose it's a good thing that I don't have a problem with swearing, because I'm sure HM and HD would find that far less endearing. However, I decided to have a little fun. Midway through an intense game, I softly sang "Don't you wish your girlfriend was hot like me?" and three seconds later K (with absolutely no indication that he'd been paying attention...rapt on his current play) parroted "...hot like meeee". Power is a dangerous thing, my friends...
Anyhow, hope your Monday was nice as well...
Steph

Steph Goes to Asia

Hi all,
So, today I went to Asia, but it was only a minor (ha ha) part of my day. Today marked the beginning of the 3 day celebration of the end of Ramadan, called Bayram (pronounced Bye-rum) - which is what you'd think people would do after a month of fasting. Alas, since there's a tenet against drinking alcohol, that would not be the case. Ok. Enough Puns.

HD's Family Visits
So, when I went to bed last night, HM hadn't told me anything about what to expect today. I was upstairs and showered by 9:45, catching HM in the kitchen. "Oh!" she said, "I forgot to tell you that today we will go to HD's great aunt's house for a Turkish breakfast because of Bayram...I'm glad you're ready - we leave in 10 minutes!". Ok. I can go with that. We swing by HM's Mother's house (she doesn't drive) and drive into the city - without my camera. After about 45 minutes we enter the great aunt (and uncle's) apartment. It's very much what I now imagine the classic view of a Turkish apparent to be like. It had the beautiful carpets (guess who will be lugging one home..?), family pictures galore, heavy and ornate wood furniture, and crystal chandeliers (albeit now electrified). I was, for the first time so far, given the full-blown Turkish welcome: the double kiss. I discovered I have a lot less problems kissing old people (and trust me, I got plenty of practice today!) than I did in Germany whenever I met young guys from Spain!

Breakfast was a very nice treat, the full-blown traditional breakfast, plus delicious baklava and Boerek (a new favorite...). Nevermind the plentiful cups of tea. As custom, I was offered food continuously, but managed to balance the line between politeness and being stuffed. K was rather impatient, as his mother had thought to bring along UNO. A great idea, as kids have no love of 3 hour long visitation sessions. However, the people behind Bayram were geniuses and even thought of a way to bribe -erm-reward the kids for visiting: it's traditional to slip money to them near the end of the visit. It was very interesting to find out that the great aunt was like a second mother and that the great uncle was a colonel in the Turkish army (a lifer) who had his decorations in a large cabinet and he also apparently spent a year stationed in the US in CA. He was very sweet, and gave me a grand tour. But all good times must come to an end. So, several hours and kisses later (with many hands of UNO), we continued with what was decided on as an impromptu trip to visit HD's mother. She, however, is dead. So I got to see my first Turkish cemetery. It was gorgeous. The graves are actually more like marble boxes that double as flowerbeds, with the name plaques behind them. There were degrees to the opulence, but all were white marble and cultivated in some way. It was also a very popular destination today, and parking was scarce.

HM's Family Visit
So, unbeknownst to me, at some point a discussion happened that decided that all the family visiting should take place today. So we set off to see HM's great aunt. She apparently is a fascinating woman - never married and independent - although it was a much shorter visit. I discovered that it's definitely a tradition to have a well-stocked chocolate candy dish (much to K's delight), and of course there's always a beverage offered. Afterwards we went to the family's old neighborhood (a lot of families buy whole apartment buildings -smaller ones- and my family still rents theirs out) restaurant for a traditional Turkish meal. It was very good, with exceptional service (I wore the poor waiter out refilling my water glass, I'm afraid).

After lunch we struck off to HM's Grandmother's house. She lives on the Asian side of the Bosphorous, so I got to visit a whole new continent! It wasn't very exciting. However, the Fatih Sultan Mehmet bridge - think near copy of Golden Gate Bridge - which spans the Bosphorous, charged no fee today because of Bayram. So naturally it was a mess. The news ran a special showing all the drivers that tried to insist on trying to pay anyways, which was amusing.

However, we finally arrived at the Great Grandmother's apartment. She is a tiny thing (HD calls her a dwarf in an affectionate (?) manner) who also brought out the tea and baklava. (Quick point to ponder...if I manage to eat my body weight in both yogurt and baklava will they balance out? I'm thinking no...unfortunately!). The visit took about 2 hours, and I spent a good chunk of time playing UNO. Luckily we headed back after that (at around 7:30pm) and the traffic caused the normally non-rush hour 40 minute-long trip to take 1.5 hours. So, a very long day ending with K crashing in the car.

Tomorrow we will stay home (or that's the plan, anyway) and I'm looking forward to that!
Hope all is well,
Steph