a cabinet of thoughts

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

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!)

Thursday, May 5, 2011

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.

Monday, April 11, 2011

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 :)

Thursday, March 31, 2011

upcoming spring break adventures...

so next week is finally spring break so I have actually made plans to leave Istanbul and see some more of this country I've been calling home. This weekend I will go back down to Hatay, technically for a thesis research trip. I will revisit the mound and the site of the excavation. Also I will hopefully have some time to see the town of Antakya as well and some local sites. Then after I return next monday, on tuesday morning I will go with my friend Deniz to Ephesus. Our greek professor lives nearby so he will take us on a tour of the Roman site and other places depending on how far away they are and how much time we have.

I am super excited, to see new places, old places and to eat some delicious künefe with ice cream in Antakya!
There will definitely be some pictures coming in the next couple weeks.

happy spring :)

Monday, March 21, 2011

greek...

so, we are just about to start reading a section of Odysseus in our greek class and it has reminded me of my favorite poem so I am posting it here, along with a cheesy video interpretation complete with pretty pictures.

As you set out for Ithaka
hope the voyage is a long one,
full of adventure, full of discovery.
Laistrygonians and Cyclops,
angry Poseidon—don’t be afraid of them:
you’ll never find things like that on your way
as long as you keep your thoughts raised high,
as long as a rare excitement
stirs your spirit and your body.
Laistrygonians and Cyclops,
wild Poseidon—you won’t encounter them
unless you bring them along inside your soul,
unless your soul sets them up in front of you.

Hope the voyage is a long one.
May there be many a summer morning when,
with what pleasure, what joy,
you come into harbors seen for the first time;
may you stop at Phoenician trading stations
to buy fine things,
mother of pearl and coral, amber and ebony,
sensual perfume of every kind—
as many sensual perfumes as you can;
and may you visit many Egyptian cities
to gather stores of knowledge from their scholars.

Keep Ithaka always in your mind.
Arriving there is what you are destined for.
But do not hurry the journey at all.
Better if it lasts for years,
so you are old by the time you reach the island,
wealthy with all you have gained on the way,
not expecting Ithaka to make you rich.

Ithaka gave you the marvelous journey.
Without her you would not have set out.
She has nothing left to give you now.

And if you find her poor, Ithaka won’t have fooled you.
Wise as you will have become, so full of experience,
you will have understood by then what these Ithakas mean.

http://www.cavafy.com/poems/content.asp?id=74&cat=1

enjoy!

Monday, March 14, 2011

blog design

sorry for the constant changing of the blog design but I have yet to be really happy with the aesthetics that it presents. It also happens to be a great procrastination tool :) if anyone happens to have good design ideas or color themes that work best I would be more than happy to listen. Also, I have yet to figure out or take the time to make a personalized header with a picture from my own archives, which I think would be most effective in representing my collection of thoughts. Today, I also happened to figure out the reason blogspot has not been working on my computer at home in the apartment, because Turkey has banned blogger.com! Good thing Koç Univ. allows access to all blocked websites so at least when I am at school I can access such exciting and scandalous sites.

till next time...enjoy the yellow:)