Istanbul: The "Middle" Days

I posted about the "first days" of our Istanbul trip previously, and I'm back for more.  Like I mentioned, we spent a lot of time visiting the "must-see" sights at first.  The 3rd and 4th days were a bit more relaxed.  We explored different areas of the city, drank Turkish coffee and tea, and just piddled around a bit, enjoying ourselves and the culture.  

Have you heard about Turkish coffee?  The preparation is very different from western-style filtered coffee.  The grounds are boiled and served right into your cup, resulting in a thick, extra-strong espresso-like beverage.  Turks joke that if a horseshoe floats in the coffee, it's been prepared correctly.  We really enjoyed it, but I don't think I'll be trading in my filtered coffeemaker anytime soon.

I talked before about the fresh squeezed juice offered all over- this is fresh "squeezed" pomegranate juice.  YUM!

You can't go to Turkey without getting a Turkish Bath, right?  We visited one of the oldest.  Such a neat experience.  The picture below was taken immediately after... congratulations on seeing me at my most disgusting :)

There were cats everywhere!  People would put out piles of cat food in front of their homes and storefronts for them.

We got some amazing fried fish and oysters at this random food stand.

Aaand Will wanted my picture with the owner.  That must be his signature expression.

This was one of the bars we visited several times- half bar, half bookstore.  Awesome concept.  Also perfect example of a Turkish cat.  Randomly finds a soft chair in a warm bar- then leaves when he's done napping.

There's still more to come of our trip :)  We've also got a little announcement to make soon... okay, a big announcement!  I'll keep you posted!

Istanbul: The Spice Market

Things have been a little busy around here lately... as spring always seems to be.  I have a lot of little house projects coming up that I'll share with you, as well as a few more detailed posts about our Istanbul trip.  For a celebratory it's-almost-the-weekend post, though, I've got a few pictures of the Spice Market below.

I'm pretty sure if I'd never cooked a day in my life, I'd still be completely fascinated by the Spice Market.  There's such a huge array of colorful, fragrant spices lining either side of the indoor market, broken up by displays of pastries and Turkish Delight.  I was totally reminiscing my "Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe" times as a little girl.  I'm telling you... you've never tried Turkish Delight until you've tried it in Turkey.  YUM.  We brought some back, too.  Needless to say, there's none left for sharing :)

Packing Successes... and Failures...

I've had a few people ask how I fared with the lighter packing style I used in Istanbul.  You can see that original post here.  In a sentence: I'm forever using this method!  I had chosen which clothes to take so carefully, there was no concern over what I would wear and when.


Items that have (surprisingly or not) made my "must pack" list:

1. Leggings.  It was a bit chillier than I expected on a couple days, reaching only the mid 50s.  I slipped these on under my long skirt and felt comfortable all day.  I had originally only packed them to sleep in, but they were so handy to have as an added layer.
2. Boots.  Visiting in spring meant we had to deal with a little rain occasionally.  I was hesitant to take my boots at first, since they're so bulky, but they were fabulous in the rain.
3. Scarves.  These made the list long before this trip, but my love of scarves was just strengthened in Istanbul.  Of course, I needed them for visiting mosques, but I wore one every day.  I wrapped up in one in the morning, when it was cooler, tied it around my purse once I warmed up from all the walking, then donned it again in the evening.
4. Bobby pins.  I don't think these made the official packing list, but I always keep some in my purse.  Before leaving for a trip, I always think I'll beautify myself every morning before I go out.  In reality, I'm in no mood to mess with any of that.  I'm ready for adventure the whole time, so bobby pins kept me from having to fuss with my hair.  Ever.

Some of my clothes combos:

Stuff I didn't need (Yep, I still packed too much):

1. Running gear.  Uuuugggghhh... yes yes, I know.  I should've known I wouldn't actually get a run in during the trip.  I mean... I should have gotten a run in, but didn't.  The half marathon this weekend is going to be a struggle now.  I'm a bit disappointed that I won't be running it as quickly as I hoped.  I'm still glad I didn't waste my time training though when I was exploring Istanbul instead :)
2. Hair drier.  Like the bobby pins, I'm not sure I officially added this to my original packing list.  The apartment we rented is owned by a guy, so I didn't expect there to be a hairdryer.  I have one that fits the European outlets (I blew up a hairdryer in Spain trying to use an "American" version with a converter, so it was a good investment).  It's small, so I threw it in at the last moment.  Turns out, this guy has anticipated every need, so the apartment had its own hairdryer.
3. Swim suit.  The hamam (Turkish Bath) we visited had us pretty much covered.  I took some of my own gear (as suggested by most guide books), but really didn't need it.
4. A book for leisurely reading on the plane.  On the way there, I was reading the guidebook half of the time, and sleeping/eating the other half.  On the way home, I was watching movies.  Not every airline does this, but British Airlines has personal televisions in every seat back, with tons of new releases to watch.  I think I watched 3 movies on the way back, including Les Mis.  No time for leisurely reading!
5. A money belt.  Truth is, I ended up not even taking it.  I've had it forever, but have never actually used it.  And I can finally say (officially) that I never will.  They're just obnoxious, and we never travel anywhere that's especially unsafe anyway.  Burn, money belt, burn!

What I wish I would've packed:

1. Fingernail clippers.  I forget how frequently Will and I use these each week.  We ended up buying one from a convenient store right across the street from our apartment.  I think they were 2 TL (about $1.20), so I wasn't completely devastated that I didn't pack our own.
2. Nothing else.  Seriously.  I didn't need a single other item during the trip.  And as you can see from the list above, while I packed pretty light, I still overpacked.

I can safely say that I'm a complete advocate for lighter packing now.  It was so nice not to have extra clutter to fuss with (Although I'm still bitter I wasted suitcase space on running shoes for nothing!).  Having a washer helped.  There turned out not to be a dryer, so we would wash everything a day ahead since we were using a drying rack.  It would've worked the same way if I'd been hand washing everything.  Apart from the running pants and shoes, I wore every single item I took at least once.  

Long story short, lighter packing was a huge success!  Bring on the next trip!

Istanbul: The First Days

We spent the first couple of days in Istanbul going full force.  We woke up early, walked everywhere, visited several "must see" spots, and stayed out late to explore the nightlife.  

Our first stop was the Galata Tower... right outside our apartment.  It's got a fantastic view of the city if you ride the elevator to the top.  

We realized right away why April has to be one of the best times of the year to visit Istanbul.  The weather is pretty much perfect (albeit a little unpredictable at times... it is spring, after all), but the tourist season hasn't hit yet.  Any major sites were line-free, and besides some European tourists, there weren't a large number of vacationers around.  

We soon headed for the "Old City", across the Galata Bridge.  Prime location for fishermen, apparently.  The bridge was forever lined with them.

We ate lunch at sidewalk cafes, or grabbed kebabs on the run.  Kebabs are the ultimate street-food in Istanbul.  Large pieces of meat stacked on a long skewer are roasted, then thin layers are shaved off for the gyro-style sandwiches.  Some places also had vegetarian options for moi :) You may remember me mentioning that our place was above a kebab restaurant.  Devine.

Below, Will's enjoying one of many kebabs to be had on the trip.  I'm having lentil soup- another Turkish favorite- and fresh squeezed orange juice.  Everyone and their uncle sells fresh squeezed juice (with any fruit you could imagine) for 1-2 Turkish Lira... the equivalent of 60 cents to a dollar twenty.  Darn good bargain, if you ask me!  They usually make it right in front of you with a monster-sized juicer.

It was common for us to head back to the apartment for a mid-afternoon nap before dinner :)  What a life, right?!

The evenings were usually spent just a few blocks from our apartment on and around Istiklal Cadessi, the main drag in this part of town.  The side streets are hoppin' with bars and restaurants that are open as late as you'd like to be out.  Well, at least as late as we liked to be out :)

After dinner one evening, we headed to the square just below our apartment, which is apparently the hang-out for the boho crowd on the weekend.  Every person had a friend to laugh with and a drink in hand, making for a laid-back night cap.

The relaxing mood in these pictures is making me nostalgic already... 

Happy almost-weekend, friends!

Going Green on Earth Day

Seeing a bit more of the sun recently has gotten me in the mood to green this place up.  I love having plants in the house.  Even when there's dust on the furniture and dog hair on the floor (basically 100% of the time), a little foliage makes the place feel clean and airy.

I started with a jar from Goodwill to use as a terrarium of sorts.

Yep.  As the song goes- "it was 99-cents!".

I picked up some succulents at Lowe's.  Because they're so darn adorable.

I filled the bottom third of the jar with river rocks for drainage.

After breaking up each plant's roots and adding a little soil to the mix, the little guys made themselves at home.

 My next feat was a little more daring.  I got this little hanging glass candleholder for about $3 with a coupon at Michael's.  As noted, it's a candleholder... not a planter... but I was determined to plant something in it.

I needed the plant to grow towards the opening for this to work, so I tilted the glass globe on it's backend to do the planting.

A few river rocks later, and he was looking quite charming :)  It would've been easier to use an air plant instead, but I'm going to attempt to keep this guy alive.  If he starts to struggle, I'll just transplant him to a different jar.  Now I just need a spot to hang him...

We're enjoying the rest of this sunny day on the front porch.  Happy Earth Day, everyone!