TURKEY
Country Overview:
“Tasty treats, a tumultuous economy, and a love for street food”
I flew to Istanbul, Turkey from Sanya, China on Aug. 18, 2020. At the time, it was one of only several countries open to Americans that didn’t have any quarantine requirements. I spent close to 3 months exploring the city, learning the culture, and eating my way through this culinary paradise. I left in late October to fly to Serbia and although my time in Turkey was shorter than I would have liked, I will never forget the people, places, or food that made Turkey a must-see destination for any traveler.
Adios Istanbul
This afternoon I flew to Belgrade, Serbia to start my Balkan trip. I spent almost 3 months in Turkey and it was an incredible experience. If the opportunity ever presents itself, I’ll definitely be returning, if just for the kebabs and baklava.
Autumn In Istanbul
Church - Trolley - View from pool - Baklava - Istiklal street - Taksim Square - Kebab - Chicken wing takeout
Cheegs Kickstarter
Chad Heegaard, one of my good friends from Beijing, is launching an awesome product on Kickstarter today. It’s a dress shirt made with technology developed for NASA and includes all the necessary features to let you accelerate your dynamic life. Sustainable, high-tech clothing for essentialists!
Space shirts for essentialists who want to go through their day without worrying about small things, so they can focus on the big ones. Check out their site at https://cheegs.com/.
Dinner In Istanbul
Istanbul has a super pretty skyline, accentuated by mosques and its hilly geography rather than large skyscrapers.
Raki Night
Raki is a sweetened, often anise-flavored, alcoholic drink that is popular in Albania, Turkic countries, Turkey, the Greek Islands and in the Balkan countries as an apéritif.
In Turkey, rakı is the national drink and is traditionally consumed with chilled water on the side or partly mixed with chilled water. Dilution with water causes rakı to turn a milky-white color.
This phenomenon has resulted in the drink being popularly referred to aslan sütü ('lion's milk') Since aslan ('lion') is a Turkish colloquial metaphor for a strong, courageous man, this gives the term a meaning close to 'the milk for the strong'.
Food In Istanbul
Food in Istanbul is fantastic. There are so many options and so many different price points, that eating out is an enjoyable experience. I can get a kebab with chicken and vegetables for $1, go to a place that has a selection of dishes (top pic) for $3, or go out and get a salad with avocado and chicken for $6. I’m also super happy to be living somewhere that values cheese as an essential part of their diet. As much as I love SE Asia and Chinese food, I missed cheese. There haven’t been a lot of pork options, likely due to the large amount of muslims, but I’m happy with beef, chicken, fish, and lamb. So far, I am loving the food here.
Kadikoy - Istanbul
Kadıköy is a large, populous, and cosmopolitan district on the Asian side of Istanbul, Turkey, on the northern shore of the Sea of Marmara, facing the historic city centre on the European side of the Bosporus.
More From Istanbul
I had seen pictures of Balat online, so I went to go see the colorful area and I’m glad I made the effort. It is an eclectic mix of lovely renovated houses and condemned and crumbling houses.
Balat is one of the Istanbul quarters in which Jews were settled after their expulsion from Spain, enlarging a community that had lived here since Byzantine times.
Church of St. Anthony of Padua & Pera Museum
First 3 pictures are of St. Anthony of Padua Church, which is the largest Roman Catholic Church in Istanbul, Turkey.
The church is considered a minor basilica and is run by Italian priests. In case anyone is curious:
Saturday Mass is in Italian and begins at 19:00
Sunday Mass is 9:30 in Polish, 10:00 in English and 17:00 in Turkish
Tuesday Mass is in Turkish and begins at 11:00
Weekday Masses are in English at 8:00
Fun Fact: Pope John XXIII preached in this church for 10 years, when he was the Vatican's ambassador to Turkey before being elected as pope. He is known in Turkey as ”The Turkish Pope" because of his fluent Turkish and his public adoration for Turkey and the city of Istanbul.
The other pictures are from Pera Museum, which was super cool. My favorite exhibition was “Constructing A Dream” which focused on the Albanian government’s attempts to build a propaganda narrative for the people to achieve socialist realism. I love propaganda art and I thought the idea of “new person” had similar parallels with China’s style of people in their propaganda posters.
The last picture in the bottom right is an exhibit made of sand. Behind it was a video of the artist sweeping up a copy of the sand installation in her home. I don’t really understand why, maybe to symbolize that art is fleeting, but I can only imagine how long it took her to make it. For 25 Lira, if you’ve got a free afternoon in Istanbul, I recommend checking out Pera Museum.
August 30 - Victory Day
Victory Day (Turkish: Zafer Bayramı), also known as Turkish Armed Forces Day, is a public holiday commemorating the decisive victory in the Battle of Dumlupınar, on August 30, 1922.
The Battle of Dumlupınar was the last battle in the Greco-Turkish War. Victory Day has been celebrated as an official holiday since 1926, and was first celebrated on 30 August 1923. Fun fact: All public transportation is free on this day.
Pictures were taken in Taksim Square which according to Wikipedia, is considered the heart of modern Istanbul. Taksim Square is also the location of the Republic Monument, which commemorates the 5th anniversary of the foundation of the Republic of Turkey in 1923, following the Turkish War of Independence.
Both Sunday and Monday don’t seem to have a whole lot going on in Istanbul. Shops are closed, all the kebab places are shut down, and the only things open are gyms and supermarkets.
The Prince Islands
The Prince Islands are an archipelago off the coast of Istanbul, Turkey, in the Sea of Marmara. They consist of four larger islands (pictures are from Kınalıada — "Henna Island") and five much smaller ones. Fun fact: during the Byzantine period, princes and other royalty were exiled on the islands, and later members of the Ottoman sultans family were exiled there too, giving the islands their present name.
One Week In Istanbul
Here are some overall thoughts:
It looks European - the cobblestone streets, the ancient buildings/mosques, narrow winding streets, and small cafes/bars/restaurants with tiny tables outside People here are super friendly. On my first day, the taxi dropped me off on a street, but I couldn’t find my Airbnb, so three guys just on the street helped me call and took me there.
English speakers are hit or miss. Most people can speak it but to varying degrees. However, unlike China, they’re willing to work through the language barrier to figure things out, which is a nice change compared to “Sorry, there’s no way to solve this,” which was a typical response in China.
Istanbul can be cheap. A full kebab with fries is $2, but there are also really nice restaurants that can be pricey. I’d say from my experience so far; it’s on par with China prices. Taxis start at around $.80 and go up from there.
Istanbul is a lot more “hilly” than I had expected. It’s similar to San Francisco if that serves as a reference for anyone.
Knowing Spanish is helpful for Turkish. Because Spanish had such an influence from other languages in this region, many words in Turkish are similar to the words in Spanish. Additionally, it’s nice being able to phonetically read a word even if I don’t understand it - I am OVER character-based languages. My favorite word so far in Turkish is “oto,” which is “auto,” but they just simplified it here. So you see “otopark” and “oto shop” all over the place -- +1 for Turkish keeping things simple.
It’s gorgeous here. Maybe it’s the time of year, but the weather is great, the streets are clean, the buildings are colorful, and there is a nice mix of ancient and modern architecture. I could easily see myself living in Istanbul for a year. There is history, a strong culture, friendly attitudes, people take time to enjoy the day, and like hanging out drinking tea and having a cigarette in the middle of the afternoon. Besides taxis, no one seems to be in a rush. Plus, the food so far has been incredible. I’m a big fan of meat, cheese, and bread, and Turkey has all three of those covered.
People have called Istanbul the New York of the Middle East, and it’s easy to understand why. There are so many small shops, restaurants, bars, live music venues, and small corner stores throughout the city that I could spend a year here and still not fully “know” the city. But to me, that’s the exciting part. I like a challenge, and I think if there is a job opportunity in Istanbul, I’m going to take it. Having lived in China for 7+ years, there are many things I like about Asia. I also really like Europe, but it’s a bit too expensive and “rigid.” Turkey, right in the middle of both continents, seems like the perfect mix of what I’m looking for as I figure out the next chapter of my life. I came here because it was the only country besides Maldives I could travel to after China, but I think I’ve found a place where I could spend the next few years of my life. As usual, we’ll see what happens.
Grand Bazaar - Istanbul
Pictures from in and around the Grand Bazaar, which is one of the largest and oldest covered markets in the world, with 61 covered streets and over 4,000 shops. In 2014, it was listed No.1 among the world's most-visited tourist attractions, with 91,250,000 annual visitors. The Grand Bazaar is often regarded as one of the first shopping malls in the world.
This place was massive, and although you could haggle, no one was aggressive or demanding when browsing. Had a great time here. Food picture is Turkish pide, which is a flatbread baked with toppings in a stone oven. Kind of like pizza, but without the sauce.
The Column of Constantine is a Roman monumental column built for the Roman emperor Constantine the Great to commemorate the dedication of Constantinople on 11 May 330 AD. Built around 328 AD, it is the oldest Constantinian monument in Istanbul. It occupies the second-highest hill of the seven hills of Constantine's Nova Roma.