Gotta Brand New Pad

Hey all you out there!

There has been quite a bit of excitement on this side of the world, especially in our little town of Kadikoy.

First off, we have finally found a place! We moved in about a week ago and the ability to come back to a home is a great change from returning to a vacant, somewhat eerie building-of-a-home. Now, don't misunderstand- the place was not all that bad, it just had probably a total of ten people living in it, including the family that runs it, at the most occupied time. It was just a little unwelcoming those days that you came home from a long day and had to walk to your box room with orange metal furniture ad relax on the "comfortable" twin bed and see absolutely no one as you made dinner and hung around. yea.... The people were awesome though. It was so nice to have Mustafa, Zubede and Ramazan around to act as our pseudo-family. They never failed to provide a ton of tea and catch me on the most inconvenient moments to have a meal and/or tea- of course! They are really good people that I am very thankful to have been set up with as the acclimation process got underway.

Our new place is practically a new life in a different world. The city we live in is Moda, which is a richer area to live and is very nice and comfortable. There are many cute cafes and restaurants right down the street, one of those cafes I am actually at right now writing this post and having a glass of wine... oh, the hard life. Did I mention that the water is about a block away? ...hmmm, somehow that slipped my mind- not quite sure how. Anyway, I am so happy here and seriously have a really good thing going. Yes, I can complain about the work sometimes, but when you weigh those few hours of "work" with what you get out of it- wow, the scale has fallen over.

Anyway, I have a full schedule right now, but am really enjoying my classes. The job only gets easier as the days go by. The students warm up to you more and more and really appreciate you as a teacher and as a person. I have kept my lunch hours and dinner hours semi-full with grabbing some food with students every now and then.

These are some of my Level 1 girls after their last exam. They wanted to take me out to dinner and it was a great time. We had our meals and then all got tea/coffee. One of them read me my fortune, too. It was nice to hang out with them in a different setting than the classroom.

I have been able to hang out with some other students outside of the room on other occasions.

This picture above is of the crew... Mustafa, me, Kate, Zubede, Ahmet (Mustafa's nephew), and Serkan (Mustafa and Zubede's son). We were overwhelmed with the amount of hazelnuts (fendik) that Zubede continued to pour onto the table and entertained ourselves finding new ways to crack them open... oh, what language barriers do to you. It was a good time though, and they really appreciated our company. Serkan recorded a video of all of us acting like idiots and put it on his website, I think he was stoked to show that he was hanging with two Cali girls.

Below is the room that we had to pry each others fingers away from the door jams to leave for the new place. Oh, how I will miss that orange...

Well, on to bigger and better...

I do not have any pictures right now of the new place, only ones from our housewarming party that somewhat show the place- if you can see through the faces and beer cans...

So, it is custom here to have a party when you move into a new place. People often bring over a gift and everyone sits around and talks over food and coffee (kahve). Well, that took a hard twist of the arm- a party, well... sure, I guess. Anyway, our party had neither coffee nor "sitting around". We chose other forms of sustenance and activity. It turned out to be a really fun night. A bunch of our close friends that we have made in the time here, plus some. Now, it was nothing crazy- but it was a good time.

Here are the new roomies! Yes, such a great picture- we are having it blown up, framed and will hang it over our fireplace (subtle message to you Kelli). Anyway, Michael is another English teacher at our work. He has been here since May. He is from Canada and well, just an awesome guy. So, he is a perfect ingredient for the Katie sandwich.

Here are Dia (an English teacher from Canada), Diana- pronounced Dee-awna (Ukranian, who has lived here for 12 years) and Anthony (one of my first friends in Turkey, native Californian).

A few other friends here in Turkey. Me, Mehia (English teacher on the Euro side from England), Kevin (English teacher from Ohio), Jeff (English teacher from Boston), and Hülya (a Turkish student).

This is Greg and I. He is another English teacher and from Suffolk, been here since May.

...and this is what happens when the only beer in Turkey is Efes and you cannot just buy a keg. This picture does not do the aluminum/glass count justice.

Ok, so party aside... we had actually gone out to Heybeliyada (one of the islands right out from Istanbul, us foreigners like to call it "Hillbilly Island- because that is what it somewhat sounds like). We board the crowded ferry and end up just standing around until we hit the first island. A bunch of people left the ferry and so there was a little sitting room, and this group of people were quite apt to offer us seats next to them. Now, this group had been somewhat loud the ride up to then and they seemed to know a ton of people. Well, we couldn't pass up a seat, so we accepted and found that this huge group was actually not Turkish, but rather from Iraq/Iran and here on business for a few days. They all spoke English, including the little girls that were there too. They actually spoke very good English. One of the men had attended the University of Michigan and had his Masters in Sports Therapy. They were the nicest people and were so excited to take countless pictures with us. It was hilarious, to be honest. They all brought up cameras and took turns sitting in between us. Even a little boy was smitten sitting between us with his arms around us, well as much as he could reach.

These are two of the girls with the group, that were so happy to talk and sit with us. It was really cute.

When we left the ferry, all of them leaned over and were yelling their "good-byes". After that, we decided it was time to grab some grub and then hit the beach. The Beach!!! Finally! I was stoked coming here thinking there would be countless coasts to go to, but apparently that is not the case. Here was our chance and we made the most of what we found. The island was beautiful and a nice change from the hustle and bustle of the city. We ended up finding

a beach to lay out at and swim, but that was after we had to pay 2 YTL to enter the "park/beach" area and then 5 YTL to just be at that particular beach. Oh well, it was very relaxing and a very nice change of pace.

This is from the island shore we were on, looking out at one of the other islands across the water. We spent a few hours there, but had to return for our Wednesday ritual at Selale with our friend Marc. We make it back in time for our dinner and beers, bringing back some salt-watered hair and sun-tanned skin. Yea, it was a good day.

Now, the weekend is over and tomorrow we are going to finish our residency permit process. We will miss our first class, but be back in time for the evening one. The best part about his upcoming week is that Saturday is a national holiday, so there won't be any classes. We will have four days off and our original intent was to go to Greece; however, those plans did not come through and were becoming a big hassle. So instead, three classes from now we will be on our way to Izmir for a few days of sun and sand. The flight there was very cheap and so we were able to justify a hotel a little more than what we were intending to spend. The hotel is right on the shore of Cesme and looks like it will be AMAZING! I cannot wait to go and come back relaxed and tan! It will be nice to do a little traveling within Turkey.

As far as life in Turkey goes, everything is just becoming normal and things that I used to find different don't even cause my eyes to flinch. Sometimes there will be something that will remind me I am in a completely different country, but it doesn't happen as much as it used to. The weather right now is extremely hot, and more humid than ever. I actually let my class go home early twice last week because it was so hot and the air conditioner was not working.

Well, I hate to cut this novel short- but the cafe is closing and therefore I will have no internet connection. I send my best to everyone who reads this and to those who don't too. Take care and I'd love to hear about what's happening on that side of the world too! Love to you all! Gule gule!

What up

Welcome back! Much of the same stuff has been going on since I last left you all. I haven't really done any more exploring, but rather got to really know the area of the Asian sıde. Social life is becoming pretty stable and have made some really good friends. I do not have work these next few days and there was word that a group of us would possibly rent a student's house over on one of the islands, but I just got word that tomorrow morning I will FINALLY be going to get my residency permit. It will be an early morning, but once it is done- we can rent a place and get our bank account set up and all that good stuff. So, I guess that whole island idea won't be happening. That will have to be another time. Also, now that the residency permit is getting taken care of- there can be travel plans in the future! That will be nice because we won't have to worry about wondering if we have to go get that permit anymore.
Travel plans to Germany for Oktoberfest are coming under way too. It is going to be such an awesome trip. We are flying into Munich and then taking a train over to Stuttgart for about 3 nights. People keep saying that the Oktoberfest there is so much more authentic and less of a tourist sight, not to mention cheaper. Anyway, Germany in general will just be amazing, so I am super stoked on that. We'll be in Munich for the last day/night and then return to reality- which still, is pretty nice. There are a few potentials to join us on this adventure and so it is just going to be crazy. Until end of September though...
Other than that, we have celebrated a few birthdays and been keeping busy. Today, we will have our weekly lunch/dinner/drinks with our friend Marc and spend a few hours at our favorite restaurant. It will be an early morning tomorrow and then Frıday- who knows. I need to get over to the islands soon! I will be starting a full schedule of classes come Saturday, so maybe I'll take it easy and do some prepping for the full days to come. Who knows though.
I have been finding a ton of new places to eat and grab coffees though. All these places look like they are small little holes in the wall, and then you walk into them and they are huge and some have gardens and nice terraces. The outsides are definitely deceiving! Anywho, there is this bar that is literally a hole in the wall. There is no name and no sign posted anywhere, but you walk through the door and there is an amazing outdoor lounge area and a few floors of the place. It was a great find!
There are a few more people living here now, so that makes this place feel a little more alive. It was so weird before walking into a huge building and rarely seeing anyone. So, it is kinda nice now... but of course this happens as we are on the verge of finding a place to live!
Anyway, I need to get going. As I am the veteran here now, I owe the newbies a tour of where to buy things. I have a ton more pictures and some more stories, but some people are waiting for the only computer that has internet right now.
Talk to you all soon, peace

Yo^3

This is a quick recap of my time since I last posted... going out in Taksim- which is on the European side- with some new friends, checking out a few mosques here and there, grabbing some grub and oh yea, teaching.

We went to go check out the shops along the major street on the Euro side one day and decided to meet up with another teacher that we had met before from Australia.  We were able to get a two others to tag along with us.  The bars that we go to are so awesome.  They are rooftop terraces overlooking the city.  The drinks are cheap and the music is always good.  So, we hang out there for a bit and then head out to this other bar... where we are absolutely the only people in there.  Granted, we did bring a crew of about 10, but still it was desolate in there until a few more groups came in. Anywho, if the view had not been sooooo amazing and beautiful:

....it would have made the 10YTL bottled beer a complete joke.  With that, we vowed to never go there again unless we just sit and take in the view.

We were able to entertain ourselves despite the amazing view that was just oh-so boring... COLOR ENHANCING PHOTOS!!! 

This is Dylan at his best.

We met this guy Kahn/Cohn/Cahn... who knows

he was visiting his cousin here in Istanbul from Australia...

lots of Aussies around

(another color enhancement)

...So here is the major street over in Taksim- Istkilal.  At night it is a completely different sight than the busy hub it is during the day...

So, one day we decided to check out the historic sights on the Euro side... yes, everything seems to be on the Euro side.  Anyway, we were walking around and this picture opportunity couldn't be passed up.

I mean- talk about old meets new!

Oh yes, those invisible trash cans I had mentioned before.  They are just so convenient, aren't they?!?

Anyway, so when the school days get rough we like to go out and relax with some of the other teachers over a beer... or two.   After hanging out with some others, we decided it was time to make the trek on home... and we def entertain ourselves along the way.

alrighty, so we took the ferry across to the Euro side and thought that we would find out where Beshiktas was... it was a little farther away from where we wanted to go- but check out the sights we got to see along our walk!

This is just sitting there between the road and the water. Who knows what it is or how old. It just sits there and looks pretty..

and this is another part... a beautiful clock tower right on the water. 

Ok, so here begins our tour of the mosques.  Below is the side view of the Hagia Sophia.  We decided to just walk around the area and take a gander at the mosques before we did a tour or payed to check out the inside. Apparently, you could get lost in one mosque for hours!

This is the famous Blue Mosque! I just loved this shot with the fountain in front of it.  Anyway, story goes that this used to be a Christian church and then when it became a Muslim mosque, the minarets were added.  That is why they are not attached, as they would be in a traditional mosque... learning a little bit of history while over here.

Here we are in front of the Blue Mosque.  

I'm not a tourist with my big camera and all... I swear!

HA! I just could not pass this up... please pay attention to the sign.

After walking around the mosques, we explored a bit of the city- called Sultanahmet.  This is just a shot of the area and the people.

Seriously, she looked like a giant next to these little old ladies! It was hilarious! The picture doesn't even do justice to the actuality...

Alright, this is inside the grounds of Topkapi Palace.  This is apparently where the sultan would live and the harem is supposed to be such an amazing bit of history and quite a sight.  I even heard that the bathroom is immaculate.  I guess the sultan needs extravagance even while doing his duty.  

This is a view of the front of the Palace.

...and us being us...

- if we cannot go inside the palace, we'll have fun outside of it-

So, that is just our week+ in a nutshell.

We went to one of our friend's places the other night to enjoy a few beers and dinner on his rooftop.  The views from so many places here are just amazing! 

Last night, we went to a Lenny Kravitz concert.  Our head teacher gave us the tickets for free and so we went to check it out.  It was such an amazing location... right on the water.  It was funny bc, you could tell he had no idea what to say- so a lot of the time he just yelled "Istanbul"! Tonight, we are going to our friend Marc's house.  We are gonna make some grub and just hang out.  He is a really cool guy and studying psychology right now.  So our convos get very interesting!

...and tomorrow, we are going to another friend's place to hang out at his pool and he is going to BBQ for us! I am so excited about that! He is from Hawai'i and claims he has the best terryaki sauce.  We'll see about that! 

Saturday, I do not have class until 3 and it is actually my last day with my Level 1.  We are going to all go to dinner after and they are taking me to some authentic Turkish restaurant.  I am very excited to check this out!

Sunday morning I am subbing for a friend who has his girlfriend visiting and then I have nothing going on until Monday morning.  Monday and Tuesday mornings I will have class and then nothing (as of now) until the next Monday morning.   My schedule will be a little light until I get some more classes assigned.  Then it is back to reality! 

We are hoping to plan a trip somewhere in the next few weeks... either Greece or some place in Turkey.  We want to take advantage of the weather and the time off we'll have.  

Alright, I think it is time I go, but rest assured- more posts will be soon to come.  

Check ya later!

No worrıes!

Hello to all! Agaın, I am slackıng on my postıng... yea, I know- Bad blogger I am! -but I just wanted to let everyone know that we are completely safe over here. If you heard anythıng about bombıngs ın Istanbul, know that ıt ıs true, but that ıt happened on the other sıde far away from us. We are very safe and have been reassured that any acts of terror would not even be dırected towards us anyway. So rest assured, we are stıll goıng strong lıke always and thıngs are fıne!

Wıth that beıng saıd, thıngs have been verrrry busy. Tests are comıng up and one of my classes ended last week and one wıll fınısh on Saturday. After that, thıngs should slow a bıt. I actually wıll only be workıng 2 days a week untıl I get some new classes- so that means travel tıme!!!! The mınımal money aspect ıs not so great, but hey- there wıll be plenty of that come fall when we get busy!

Stıll lookıng for a place to move to and we are checkıng one out on Wednesday. I wıll keep you all posted on that!

Well, I hate to blog and run- but I got lots o stuff to do. Tomorrow I should have a lıttle more tıme, but I maınly wanted to put your nerves (ıf you had any) at ease about the whole bombıng sıtuatıon.

...I'll be back

Daha Resims (more pictures) + videos!

Here are some pictures that I am actually in. I am always just so excited of what I am seeing I never think to prove that it was me there! Ha... anyway, there are few and they aren't the greatest- but they are me, and they are pictures.


...At one of the many parks on our tour

... so it was a liiiiittle windy! Ha! This picture is ridiculous, but oh well!


This is the view from the roof of our friend's apartment on the European side!...there wasn't much to say for this half hour watching the sunset!




Whoa! Video time!

A glimpse of The Black Sea pouring into the Bosphorus


So the other night the man who owns this place, Mustafa, and his wife Zubeda, sat in with me while video chatting with my fam. It was so cute. They are the sweetest people and we are very lucky to have them here watching over us. They feed us tea non-stop and they even made us dinner the other night for when we got back from work.

Tonight, they cooked us fish with salata (tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, onions with a little lemon juice and salt) and ekmek- bread. Mustafa went crazy eating the little fish bone in and all- literally just dropping those suckers into his mouth! Ha, it was so funnny!and... It was delicious... and then they called us downstairs to sit with them and have tea at the desk at the front door. They are awesome!


We attract the sane ones... jk- some friends we have made here so far.


...one more really quick...


...uhhh this is what the outside of car looks like from the inside... ha....

That's all for now. I think we are going to explore the European side tomorrow... that is if it isn't dumping buckets of rain and windy like it was today! Peace ya'll (and I'll work on those pictures)

Heyo! It has been a little busy over here, so excuse the delays in posting. 

So, I left off saying that one of the students was going to show us around Istanbul. The 9 hour tour all started at 10 in the morning when Muhmet comes to pick us up.  Along the drive to our first stop, we get a history lesson on the various buildings and areas we pass.  This guy should be a tour guide.  There is so much history here it is insane.  Seriously.  Anyway, so he is takes us along the coastline of the Bosphorus- which is absolutely beautiful.  You can see right across to the European side, which we have yet to really explore.  Ok, so our first stop is this cute little town called Cengelkoy.  It is famous for cucumbers because it used to be the major producer, until it got crowded and built up. Anyway, we stop here for a bite to eat.  Muhmet orders us a few different items so that we can try them.  The first is called bokuz, which is the traditional thinly layered pastry that can be filled with cheese, potatoes or spinach.  The other is simit- a sesame seed covered bread that can sometimes have a hint of cheese.  We take the food to this cute restaurant that allows outside food.  Tea of course is served and we just enjoy the view:

...this is what people do everyday! How awesome is this?!?   Anyway, this is just the beginning!

This is the major street in Cengelkoy, which runs parallel to the water.

So we head out and onward with our journey.  Again we cruise the coastline and we stop briefly at a little park right on the water.  There are people fishing, walking around and just hanging out...
Continuing northeast, we see the usual markets on the beds of trucks, numerous little restaurants and set ups of markets along the street... including this watermelon pile...
Ok... the pictures got out of order.... so I'll just reference the ones 3 and 4 down.  Our next stop is a town famous for their yogurt.  Yes, everyone eats different kinds of yogurt with everything- but apparently this yogurt tops everything.  The town, Kanlica is very small.  We go into this restaurant and grab a seat right by the water... and when I say that, I mean the windows are open and the water is right there.  It has a great view and yes... the yogurt was good.  We haven't developed our yogurt palate yet, so we really couldn't tell how great it was- but it's more about the experience right?!?? 

Our next stop is a religious cemetery that holds the tomb of the cousin of Moses.  It is on top of a hill overlooking the water.  It was a quick stop, but actually very interesting.  

We make it to the town of Anadolu Kavagi that is amazing. Apparently this town is known for their fish.  We go to a restaurant right on the water (of course) called Yosun and ate... and ate... and ate.  He wanted us to try all these different dishes, so he ordered a ton of food.  First we had a salad- nothing really out of the ordinary, but tasty.  Then we get haydari- which is a yogurt with cucumber and dill in it.  It is refreshing and tastes great on bread.  Then comes some fried calamari, aubrigine- which is eggplant with bell peppers and a rich sauce and then a baked shrimp in sauce that had a pretty good bite to it.  It was all really good and we were struggling to finish what was in front of us.  But wait... there's more- we each get our own sea bass.  It was so good, but by this time we were stuffed.  So I tried my best to finish enough to not feel horrible for wasting it, while watching Kate struggle with her chewing, knowing how much she hates fish! It was a very nice dinner and of course, completed with some tea.   

Here is the town of Anadolu Kavagi...
...and these are houses along the water- called something like yelas.?- i forget

Ok, so actually before we ate we went up to the top of the hill above the city to a place called Ceneviz- where there is a castle called Yoros.  This was amazing! Somehow those pictures didn't load, so I will have to post them separately... but this place is where the Bosphorus meets The Black Sea.  We were amazed. It was so beautiful and seriously, who can say they have been to The Black Sea!??!? We spent a good amount of time just taking in the view and experiencing what we were seeing and where we were. 

This is taken from the yogurt stop in Kanlica.
...and this was taken in Kanlica- just restaurants on the water.

So... after a delicious meal we started making our way back down the coast.  We stopped a few more times along the way, including a park that overlooked the city.  It was really nice and from the park we could see all the buildings in between us and the water and then past all that out to the islands.  It was quite a view.  From the other side of the hill you could see the millions of buildings spanning the cities.  Seriously, so many people live in Istanbul- it is crazy.

This is a huge cargo boat passing under the bridge... we later saw it going out to sea from the park on the hill.  There are tons of ships passing through the Bosphorus everyday going up to places like Russia or coming back down.  

Oh, this is right outside of the city Anadolu Kavagi... and if you look really closely- up by that flag is where the castle is and you can see The Black Sea.

So, after a long day and a ton of tea we finally make it back to our lodging.  We get to our rooms and I get a call from our friend.  He is wondering if we are home bc he is here visiting Mustafa- the man who owns the place.  Random timing! So we go upstairs and he is here with a few other people.  We hang out for awhile and then go out to grab a drink with some of his other friends.  We go to the town of Moda- where we hope to move to. Anyway, we have a good time and a nice ending to an amazing day.

The next day we just hang out and relax.  We had a very busy schedule since we arrived and it was so nice to just sleep in and not go do stuff.  We are actually meeting up with the same guy, Muhmet, again because we didn't have time to finish the tour.  So at about 5, he picks us up and he shows us the area closer to where we live. He takes us to a few parks and to Badat Street- which is the place to be... so they say.  It is lined with really nice stores, about 10 Starbucks and is just really nice.  After, we meet up with some other teachers and decide that maybe we'll go to the beach up at The Black Sea this Thursday or Friday... hopefully that happens!!

Anyway... next day= school then right after we are meeting up with some friends to take the ferry to Taxim on the European side.  This guy, Dillon, just moved into this amazing apartment and is having a little house warming party.  This place is awesome! He is a yoga teacher and the company gives him room and board in their old studio- which I guess they rarely use.  It is on the main street and the view from the roof is just spectacular! We don't make it a late night because we have class the next day.

So... Sunday= school again and well...yea, more plans.  We are going to the European side again to meet up with an Australian  teacher we met at one of the trainings.  He lives and works on this side, so it was nice to explore the area a little bit.  We meet up with his friends and check out a few bars... and randomly, I swear the world is shrinking, we run into Dillon at one of the bars! Anywho, we all have a really good time and call it a night.  

So... that leads me to today.  Today was brutal.  I think the non-stop plans have really caught up to me, so classes end and I came back to take a nap.

awhhhh... so that has been my past week in a nutshell.  We are meeting some very interesting people and getting to explore the city.  Classes are definitely getting better and our Turkish vocabulary is slowly growing.  Once we get settled in a new place, I am seriously considering taking a Turkish course.  

Well, my brain has been very slow today and I think it is done working. Sorry about the layout of this blog- I have yet to figure out the pictures and everything. Hope all is well! I'm out.

This is the view from the park... you can see all the buildings and also those islands I mentioned.

PICTURES!!!!!

Ooops... these are out of chronological order- but hey, pictures are pictures!

Here is a man with his horse-drawn market...

The street.. I- something (forgot the name) in Taxim on the European side. A very long street that goes from the heart of the business area down to the Golden Horn, a part of the Bosphorus. 

A temple upon a hill overlooking the Bosphorus from the bottom of that long I-named street. These Turks must hate the views here!!!!?!!

On the ferry from one continent to another... leaving Europe.

So... apparently in order to cut back on water waste, we should flush two times! ... the bathroom at the airport

Since the traffic is known to be so bad, vendors have moved to the freeways. It isn't oranges in LA... but cotton candy, water, rugs... the usual!

This is a little park we stumbled upon killing time one of the first days.  It is right down the street from our work.  Imagine a cursive capitol L- this is the beginning of the letter, our work is the bottom of the upper loop, the Bosphorus curves around to be the top of the top loop, the area we want to live in is the stem and parallel to the Bosphorus and the place where we currently live is the end of the L- the whole thing about 20-30 minutes walking from furthest points.  I hope that made some sense...

Oh... just the street parallel to us.

This is the view from the canteen/cafeteria at our work.

Here are just a few pictures that I thought would give you an idea of what it is like here. Many more to come!