Turkey: Day I (Istanbul)

Saturday, March 19th:

Merhaba!

            I finally arrived in Turkey today around 2:00pm after a couple long flights overnight through Amsterdam. The Amsterdam airport may be one of the more confusing I have ever been in, but luckily that didn't stop me. My girlfriend, Jen, met me at the airport with some delicious Turkish Baklava treats, and after a long (and expensive) cab ride, we made it to our hotel, Villa Denise, in Arnavutköy. Arnavutköy is a fairly wealthy neighborhood of Istanbul that is filled with Bosphorus-side mansions and tons of fish, or balik, restaurants. Our hotel is one of these mansions, converted into an operation of five rooms with a friendly staff (at least the male desk-worker). Our room is on the top floor and offers an in-room hot-tub and a balcony with views of the Istanbul strait, the Bosphorus (or Boğaziçi in Turkish) between the Marmara and Black Seas. Unfortunately, the weather upon my arrival was not the best as it was slightly rainy and cloudy and expected to remain that way for a few days. As my birthday was March 18^th, Jen also gave me my birthday gifts: a red wine from Cappadocia decorated on the exterior with limestone depicting the ancient underground homes of Cappadocia, and a traditional Turkish backgammon board decorated with pearl. How awesome!

View of Arnavutköy from our Room in the Hotel Villa Denise:

           After a much needed nap, Jen and I made our way to Ortaköy for my first taste of Turkish cuisine and the difficulty of trying to get cabbies to take you where you actually want to go given the language barrier. After unsuccessfully trying to find the restaurant we wanted to go to, we settled upon one of the small cafes and I had some lentil soup and an authentic Turkish Lamb Kebap. I also found out here that Turkish people drink tea (çay) after nearly every meal. Before heading to Taksim Square we also sampled a local favorite: Stuffed Mussels with rice inside. With some renewed energy we arrived at Taksim Square for a long stroll down Istiklal Caddesi, one of the main urban areas filled with shops, clubs, bars, restaurants, and large crowds. We walked around for a while, dodging the typical Turkish hecklers trying to recruit you to buy their wares or food, and got a couple Efes beers and a cocktail before heading home to get some rest for sightseeing the next day. The Efes beer is a Turkish domestic beer,  is almost the only beer sold in Turkey and it is basically everywhere.