The flight from Houston to London Heathrow was positively entertaining meeting a felow Texan who was traveling to London to Study Abroad at Kings College (Justin, another girl coming your way man). She instantly became my friend when we were assumed to be together. We got 2 times the wine, chocolate, and aircraft flight attendant attention. In between ignoring the demon possessed child 5 rows ahead and talking about how we wouldn't be drawn in by the local people to make bad decisions and break hearts over some kind of international drama. We bonded over the fact that we had a seat between us in which we could spread or so called wings. She kept kept making a fuss about the "crazy, foward, and freaking crazy" Rice girls. All I could do was laugh and not try to allude to the fact that I had dated those crazy Rice girls. After disembarking I was in line waiting at Heathrow airport,and my plan was an hour late for boarding for unknown reasons. The British Airways gate attendants kept running around like chickens with their heads cutoff between my gate and the adjacent one doing who knows what. The line had processed 3 people before it ground to a screaching halt as they informed us that the plane that we were supposed to travel on was replaced. Good thing that they replaced the plane before we were on it.
Landing in Turkey, somewhere around 5:30. I wasn't able to get the photos of the decent into Istanbul beacuse I didn't get the window seat that I booked. Kinda sucked but the pictures that I got when I got to my hotel definitely will make up for it.
Pictures!
We left our little hotel, The Cem (pronounced Jem) Sultan Otel and embarked on a journey into the music filled night in Istanbul. Following the brick street around a tight curve in the road we found ourselves in the central eating place of the Turks in the shadow of the Blue Mosque.
With Hookah called Nargele here, drums, a whirling dervish, and a crowd surrounding us we were officially welcomed to Istanbul with a feast completely covered by CIEE. Meeting the new people and the program directors as well as sharing stories of where we came from and what we hope to leave Turkey with we bonded in a sort of camaraderie only complete strangers could share. We started our meal with a read lentil stew and a pickled mix of vegetables on top of a salad.
We continued our meal with fresh bread and feasted on roasted tomatoes and peppers. This was complimented with a short grain rice that was bathed in a tomato pastte with grilled lamb, chicken, and mushrooms to add a little variety. There was a flat wrapping, not like the thick pita bread that you experience with gyros, but a thin paper bread that we wrapped our bounty in to create a package for our mouths to receive. The meal concluded with baklava, a pastry soaked in honey instead of rose water that is filled with pistachios and sugar, and çay (pronounced chai). Walking around the restaurant we took another right and found ourselves at the foot of the Hagia Sophia in awe of it's size and it's magnificence. Tomorrow we will get to your them both. This will be quite a trip to remember.
You are what you eat and I am full.
İyi geceler,
(Good Night)
JD
No comments:
Post a Comment