productive procrastination...

well I am too cheap and too lazy to make a real website, but this is a start...

theothergreysquare.blogspot.com


after seeing other artists' websites I thought: I could do that! I have interesting projects that I would like to share in one space and have the chance to explain them. Also, since I have other ideas that maybe should be kept in a sketchbook but I am interested in sharing them and seeing their visual development.

new, recent music obsession!

the original by Robyn is really good too and will get stuck in your head for days...
enjoy!

Summer in Hatay - 2011

some of my personal advice for visitors...

a few times now I have been asked by people who are coming to visit for some good advice and recommendations. It has been two years now so I have plenty of places and food to suggest and I fear I tend to overwhelm people with my suggestions. But I have decided to post a couple of my various emails that I have sent, in which many of the things overlap but there are some personalized suggestions I tried to make depending on the people, their interests and the time they have to spend here. It also seems like a good place to store and archive my suggestions. so if you need to be tempted to come visit or are planning a trip here some things to start with:


for a young 20-something friend from Wellesley, visiting for a long weekend: 
so i've tried to think of a few basic recommendations off the beaten path for you or even the small touristy places you might skip over. First of all you will definitely spend at least a day in the touristy district where you will be staying. Topkapı palace and the Hagia Sophia church (/museum) are worth the large ticket prices. Luckily all the mosques, like the Blue Mosque, are free to visit because they are still in use. Just remember that you will have to visit them during non-prayer times. Also the Grand Bazaar and Spice Bazaar are always a good time to wander through and get lost and get yelled at by many many Turkish men trying to sell you things. Two smaller recommendations, which are probably in guide books, are the Basilica Cisterns and the Rüstem Pasha Mosque. The Cisterns are a super cool, underground space where water was stored. It's right across the street from the Hagia Sophia, ticket price is less than 10lira, I think, and its a fairly quick visit so its easy to fit in if you are waiting for prayer time to be over or to escape from the afternoon heat. The Rüstem Pasha Mosque is down by the Spice Bazaar, it can be a little tricky to find since there is just a small doorway to stairs that lead up to the mosque. (I will also send you a Google map where i placed all the spots I am recommending since Istanbul can be a bit overwhelming and confusing at times). But the mosque is really beautiful and full of the famous blue Iznik tiles. As for food in that area, the fish sandwiches that you can buy down by the water are quite delicious and fun since they are made on brightly lit-up boats and cheap! But you will smell like fish and onions all day so you may want to wait until you are on your way to the hotel to change. (I don't remember if you are a vegetarian or not...there are some other decent, old, classic restaurants in that area and if you check any guidebook you should be able to find a good one.)

My recommendations for places outside of the historic peninsula are first of all to take a boat ride up the Bosporus. There should be plenty of cheap ones, even commuter ones. But as long as the weather is good, a ferry ride is one of the best ways to experience Istanbul and you will understand how huge Istanbul is. And if you do take one that will let you off at Sarıyer, that where I have been living and where my school is. Its a cute little neighborhood and a decent place to stop and get lunch (Sarıyer is known for börek a type of flaky pastry filled with all sorts of tasty fillings or Çiğ Köfte is my favorite - its a spicy concoction of bulgur, potatoes and spices wrapped up in a durum with lettuce and lemon). Then you can take a bus back down the coast (the 25e leaves from the bus stop near the coast and will take a while or the 25t goes back to Taksim through more financial districts) or another ferry. 

The other thing you will want to do is to hang out in Taksim. Its the hipper, more European area where the bars, clubs, shopping and restaurants are. You can get to it by crossing the bridge from the Spice Bazaar and after you cross there is a Funicular tram that will take you up the hill (Its a very very steep hill and I don't recommend walking) to the end of the main street in Taksim, called Istiklal Street. The tram is called Tünel (like tunnel) and you should see signs for the entrance after you cross the bridge, you may have to follow underground pathways to cross the street. If you ask someone they should be able to tell you too. Its only one stop up the hill, and when you get out, if you go to the right there are a bunch of music stores if you are interested in buying some traditional Turkish instruments. There are also lots of fun backstreets near there which are full of people and bars and restaurants, especially at night. Then you can follow Istıklal Street all the way up to Taksim Square. Istiklal is a pedestrian avenue that can get very crowded but there is lots of good shopping and people watching. My other recommendation is a bar called Kooperatif (like Cooperative). They usually have some interesting music concerts going on and cheapish alcohol. It also reminds me of the Hoop because its below ground and all painted white with art everywhere. I think you would definitely appreciate it. The guys who run it are very cool and usually speak English. They may have a facebook page if you want to see if they are having any events when you are here. The first time I ever went was for an improv Theramin concert so they definitely host some weird and interesting things and sometimes its traditional Turkish music, you never know, but it is a great place to hang out and possibly meet some other interesting people passing through. 

I know this message is going to super long but forgive me, there's a lot to recommend in Istanbul  A few other places to check out that are more off the beaten path...first of all there is a neighborhood called Ortakoy, just underneath the first bridge, on the European side. Its a nice, smaller place to wander, buy souvenirs and drink tea with a view of the Bosporus. It is also the best place to get street food. There is a square next to the main road full of food vendors selling three main things: Kumpir, Gozleme and Waffles. Waffles are basic waffles filled with whatever sweet and fruity thing you want. Kumpir are baked potatoes filled with whatever salty thing you want, highly recommended!! and Gozleme are almost like Crepes, a thin dough filled with cheese or potatoes or spinach, etc. and then cooked on a domed grill. Also very very delicious! 

If you are going up or down the Bosporus along the coast, another good place to stop is Arnavutkoy. This is where Jitters is working for the next month so you should email her to see if she's available that weekend so she can take you to our favorite restaurant. There is a place there called Bodrum Mantısı Restaurant. Mantı is usually translated as Turkish Ravioli and is best when lightly fried. Then they cover it in yogurt, butter sauce and garlic. It is the absolute best. Then next door is great ice cream place called Girandola. Eating at these places are fabulous because the food is delicious, service is great and you can wander along the shore when you are finished. Def. email jitters so she can make sure you get the full experience. Its also good to have an excuse to hang out in places beyond the average tourist area. 

The final recommendation again is all about ferries and food! You can take a ferry from the historic peninsula across to Asia to a neighborhood called Kadıkoy. If you have time and want to explore more, its a nice little trip to cross over, the ferry takes only 20 min or something and is a commuter ferry so should only cost about 2lira. Its a funky neighborhood and there is a famous restaurant there called C(h)iya. There is a kebab restaurant and a 'sofrası' restaurant, they are right across the street from each other. At the sofrası you can pick out a plate of tasty small foods like hummus, filled squash, etc. Then they also have a menu of specialty food from across Turkey. If you really want a taste of Turkish food that is a good place to go.

So, I think that is enough for now. If you need or want any more specific details of how to get around just let me know. It is pretty easy, there is lots of good public transportation and people can usually point to the right direction if you get lost. I will send you my map with a few other places if you are interested. Also, some good websites are:http://www.turkeytravelplanner.com/index.html which is a very comprehensive website for tourists. and http://istanbuleats.com/ which is a great, English website for food to eat and where to eat it in Istanbul. Also, Anthony Bourdain did an episode of No Reservations in Istanbul last year which is very fun and a good introduction to Istanbul and its food: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pz223HRovno 

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msa=0&msid=203785227080739741927.0004a6350e44638135eb3&hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=41.078506%2C28.998434&spn=0.178135%2C0.118575&output=embed

market day...

so, now that my computer has returned to me with all the lovely pictures I put on it before it died a couple weeks ago, I can finally post pictures from the weekly market (the bazaar or in turkish - pazar). It may not seem the most exotic of markets or food but hopefully it will add some color to the blog after the long post about my thesis research.

view of the market street on wednesday morning

just the beginning...

shoes!

cheese

olives

sour, green plums...turks have a strange affinity for sour, unripe fruit which is actually quite tasty once you get used to them.

yay for seasonal fruits

an artsy photograph per Ashley's request

grape leaves for dolma (the stuffed grape leaves with rice, etc.)

dried fruits and nuts vendor

Ashley at the market

more olives, yum!

a especially nicely decorated veggie stand

artichoke vendor...i've never bought any but have always been intrigued by the floating artichokes in large blue buckets...

more lovely cheap bazaar shoes which are actually quite comfortable

more cheese

you can even use your credit card to buy sheets at the bazaar 

afiyet olsun!

thoughts...

So, I am in the process of writing (hopefully finishing) my thesis. To give those of you who don't know and care some background, I am writing about archaeological site management in Turkey. The main chapter is a Site Management Plan for the Bronze-Age (c.2000 B.C.) excavation at Alalakh, which I worked at last summer and will return to work at again this summer, in a month. The site was excavated back in the 1930s and 40s by Sir Leonard Woolley, a famous British Archaeologist who was buddies with Agatha Christie. Currently the site is being excavated by one of my Professors, Aslıhan Yener. They have been excavating and studying the site for about the last 10 years. In the past couple of years they have decided to present the site more efficiently and officially to visitors as well as taking greater length to preserve Woolley's excavated remains as well as the recently excavated spaces. All this while continuing the scientific excavation seasons every summer.

All over the world and especially in Turkey, during the past decade, there has been a concerted effort to increase preservation and presentation efforts at Heritage Sites. This is often due to increase tourism but in a way helps (depending who or how you look at it) the preservation of culture and heritage. Turkey is also increasing their nominations to the World Heritage committee of UNESCO which then requires more standards and management efforts. Site Management Plans are one of these requirements which are beginning to be required for every site in Turkey, not just the ones applying for World Heritage status. Of course, it is another discussion as to who is really enforcing this requirement or funding it for that matter. Nevertheless, site managements plans can be useful in some situations, though more often than not they are shelved and never used because everyone involved are unable to agree on all decisions stated. The Management Plan which I am writing is only a preliminary plan, firstly because it is just me writing it, for a plan to be fully operational all persons involved and experts should be able to write or be heavily consulted about the relevant section, and secondly because I am only writing it in one year (Inşallah = god willing). A plan should be a long, drawn out process of constant consultation and discussion and editing as excavations progress and as different experts are brought in. So hopefully what I write can at least be used as a starting point and usable document for further development of the site. Besides the basics of the plans, such as stating the significance, values, historical background, funding options and stakeholders (people with some degree of interest in the site) I have also been given the task of discussing, and in some cases designing, the practical aspects which will also be implemented such as the visitors path, information panels and revamping Woolley's original excavation house as a information (or visitors) center. Some of these elements have already been designed and planned by the architect they have hired, such as the path and structure which will be built to cover and conserve the remains. The other elements such as panels and exhibits have been left to me, as the "heritage expert" to design. However, before I can get to any practical design stages, I have been caught up in the theoretical background as to how people really experience a heritage site, what information they are interested in and how much they can understand and how to connect the information to the process of excavation, to the surrounding landscape which houses many other ancient communities, and to the artifacts themselves which are housed in museums in the nearby city of Antakya as well as in the British Museum all the way in London. This brings in all sorts of theories and ideas, from Public Archaeology to Reception Theory (a personal fave from art classes at Wellesley) to New Museology methods. I have always had a tendency to get caught up in the preliminary, conceptual conversation before getting to the practical aspects, but really, how can you decide how to design and layout and strategically place an information panel, assuming you really want visitors to read it and understand and appreciate it, without taking into account all these theoretical concepts? Yes, you could stick the boring history  on it and some pictures...but I barely ever read that stuff and who does? Though, it is interesting the practical aspects that do come up which can easily be overlooked if you are not looking at the greater picture. For example, when I walk around a site or museum I get tired, I want to sit down...therefore you need to add benches to the site and you need to add them in shady spots because who wants to sit and relax in the hot summer sun of south Turkey? This being said, I have been going through a great deal of practical as well as theoretical concepts in relation to my thesis. It has certainly been an interesting process and I have learned a lot, and am still learning a lot. I have been fortunate lately to network and meet with more 'heritage experts' who have more experience in the field though, really for every situation different approaches and methods have to be applied because every site is different and has different strengths and threats.

It was interesting last week, I attended a conference in Istanbul entitled 'Memory, Materiality and Cultural Heritage.' The conference was mainly dominated by anthropologists, who have a vastly different approach to heritage than archaeologists, a much more human-centered sensitivity rather than a focus on the ancient, material remains. I, personally, do not have an anthropologists viewpoint but I understand the need to incorporate the recognition of the local communities in the development of heritage sites. When you are only there for the summer, they are there year-round and have to deal and interact with any tourists who visit and they are the ones given responsibility to protect the site. And the more they can identify and respect the remains the more they will consider it their duty to protect it. Especially in my situation, we can't expect a spiritual connection by them to the ancient community, seeing them as their ancestors whose remains they must protect as is found in some parts of the world. Instead this is a 4,000 year old site and a recently settled, small, poor village whose even existence is threatened by the government because they dwell on the mound itself. They aren't allowed to expand and renovate their homes because they are in a legally protected heritage zone. And of course they have no where to more to, let alone the money which would be required for resettlement elsewhere. Yet, we have to expect or convince them that they have important ties to this ancient community in the hopes that they will respect it, protect the site and be proud of it, wanting to share it with their children, neighbors and visitors.

So, the question remains, how do you answer all these questions? efficiently, affectively and sensitively? All I have got so far is that it is a process, a very long one and I am not sure that it has an end. Now, I should go and actually write my thesis, now that I have vented some of my ideas, frustrations and concerns. Hope it hasn't bored you too much but since I know I don't post very often about what I am doing, I wanted to show that I have been thinking, if not doing.  I'll leave it at that for now, maybe add some more later...

food

So, as I have been travelling and attempting to be more aware of the culture I have been immersed in the past two years, I have come to be even more aware of my love for food. And as you may have noticed I have been taking many pictures of food when I travel and I think, have gotten fairly good at taking aesthetically pleasing close-up pictures of delicious, exotic food. This being said I have decided to take more pictures of the food I eat on a daily basis not just the food I eat while travelling. I am posting an album here of some pictures I have taken so far, at home and around Istanbul. I hope to add more pictures to this album as I continue to eat more deliciousness in the coming months. The pictures that are in the album currently show making Sigara Börek (Sigara because this particular version looks like cigarettes) at home with friends. This version of Börek is just a rolled bit of thin dough (like the dough used for baklava) with a cheese and parsley filling and then fried, they can also be baked for a bit healthier option. The other food in the album is a basic Adana Durum, which is the spicy version of a meat filled wrap, like kebab but with ground meat mixed with spices. And with it a delicious Ayran, the salty, watery yogurt drink that goes well with spicy food. And finally is the Çiğ (Chee) Köfte spread. Çiğ Köfte originally is a spicy mix of raw meat, but in this case the fake version has become a very popular fast food version. Instead of raw meat, it is rather a spicy mix of mashed potatoes and bulgur (at least as far as I can figure out from the recipes I have yet to try). But this particular restaurant chain is delicious and by far the best I have tried so far. The traditional way of eating it, when not in a wrap, is to wrap it in lettuce and lavaş (like a tortilla) with lemon, spicy sauce, and parsley. I have become addicted to it and luckily they do not deliver otherwise my addiction would be even worse. However it is on my list to learn how to make this as well so if/when I leave Turkey I can continue eating it. 

Food in Istanbul - At Home or Outside

and until I take more pictures of more food...enjoy and afiyet olsun! (Turkish for bon appetit!)

the little bit of spring that we've had so far in İstanbul...

Tulip Time in Istanbul

Every year in Istanbul there is a Tulip Festival celebrating the national flower of Turkey. Its historical importance goes back to the Ottoman Empire, there is actually a period call the Tulip Period. [The Turkish for tulip is Lale.] The festival usually happens around March or April, luckily also around Spring Break. In addition to the amazing flower arrangements they build along the highways (check out the clock made of tulips) and neighborhood roundabouts, a few major parks around the city are designated as specific festival destinations. Last year, for various reasons I did not attend any of these parks so this year I made a point not to miss it again. So, one very nice friday (it gets ridiculous on the weekends so I was very lucky I could go on a weekday) I stopped over in Emirgan Park, located in one of the very nice, fancy neighborhoods up along the Bosporus. The weather pretended it was spring for the day so I could fully enjoy the blue skies and live outdoor music. The park was huge and very hilly so if you missed a bit chances are you had to climb all the way back up again to see the map of Turkey made with red tulips or the river of tulips. Also to get back to the stand selling flowers involved yet another hill but to remember the day I had to buy my own tulip for 1lira, (about 70cents) and I was then able to enjoy Spring in my own room for another week. 

visual evidence of my spring break...

Spring Break Part I: Hatay

lots of boring overgrown rocks, enjoy!!

Spring Break Part II: Selçuk and Ephesus

much more interesting old rocks :)