#4 - Taksim Maksim

Burgazada

Sonia's nickname, over a shop in Kadıköy not far from my apartment.

We were so hungry when we left the apartment we could not resist buying some dereotu poğaça, that heavenly dill and white cheese filled pastry, and gobbling them down while we waited for a dolmuş. We went to Bostancı, had Adana kebab, and climbed on a boat headed to Burgaz island.

The island has its charms: small houses, flowers everywhere, free wandering horses, a steady breeze, fields of various shrubs and small trees, etc. A couple of stray dogs decided to follow us all around the island.

They even waited for us while we took pictures.

It was about that time that I noticed a bright sundog in the sky. As we climbed higher, we got a better view and were treated to a wondrous and rare atmospheric effect.

Not only was there a sundog on the other side, there was even a well-pronounced rainbow above the Sun! It's not hard to see that it is all part of an entire halo.

From high above, we could see a beach.

So we hiked down to it, through a very narrow path in the woods. The Sun was setting when we got to the beach.

These last few days with Sonia have been unforgettable. The islands have really impressed me and I have loved spending time with Sonia in such a peaceful place. We talked and joked about many things and experienced many other beautiful moments. The sundog, the lone horse running up the street, the Sun setting while we swam, and the dogs following us everywhere were all moments out of a movie. The movie is ours and we've really enjoyed the show so far.

I hope you enjoy these tidbits and photos. Many more to come.

Kınalıada

 Since Hyde's departure, I have been posting much less often (for lack of anyone to compete with!). However, the adventures have been continuing. This weekend was my first break since starting a long week at my new job. I teach English to little kids. Anyway, Sonia and I decided to take a relaxing trip to another of the Prince Islands of İstanbul. We decided on Kınalıada since it is small. We found the place to be absolutely wonderful.

The weather was perfect, as was the swimming and the sunset.

Sonia and I talked about many things. For one, she taught me a handful of Slovak words including ostrov (island), more (sea), and lod' (ship). We also talked about Hyde. The biggest things I miss most about having Hyde around: his blue hair, his antics, his photos, his perspective on life here. Lastly, we often talk about Misa, my sister, who introduced us. It seems she thought we'd become fast friends and right she was. How did she know? Then again, if anyone else knew the two of us, I'm sure they'd have seen it too.

One night, three victories

Saturday late morning, Hyde, Sonia and I bought some groceries and made a kind of breakfast feast. We watched a little Coupling while eating. It is becoming the show that we all talk about, however, if I was familiar with True Blood we might have two shows. After breakfast we took Sonia's film to get developed. It will be ready on Tuesday. In the meantime we're stuck with Hyde's pictures! Ok I meant "blessed".

Saturday evening was unforgettable. Hidemesonia went to Taksim to meet up with friends. A little later Hyde and I broke off and went to Beşiktaş to prepare for the Beşiktaş JK (not a joke) versus MKE Ankaragücü match. Our preparations involved finding beer and groups of crazy fans. We found groups of crazy fans who were looking for beer and followed them until we found beer. We also bought some çekirdek (sunflower seeds) and paraded down Dolmabahçe Caddesi to İnönü Stadium with hundreds of boisterous fans. Finishing off another beer, we went into the stadium and found a nice place to sit.

The game itself was quite entertaining. A goal in the first half led to deafening screaming and a steady stream of chants from the crowd for the rest of the game. The second half was much more entertaining for us because we were in the yeni açık stands and Beşiktaş was scoring on the goal in front of us. And score they did. Final score: 4-0, though to be fair Ankaragücü had a certain goal come back off the post. Credit to Cenk Gönen who was very sharp, but the score could easily have been a little different. Players of the game I think were Nobre and Bobo. Nobre really hustled and played with the most heart in this one. Bobo had finesse, scoring both from the air and the ground. Highlights from Beşiktaş - Ankaragücü.

Beşiktaş's shot off the post, captured brilliantly by Hyde.

When the game ended, nothing happened. The players went to the locker room, and the fans remained in the stands. On the big screen, they were showing the last minute of the Turkey vs. Serbia basketball game. Everyone was captivated. Even some of the players and crew of Beşiktaş looked on. As one of the Turkish players was taking foul shots, the crowd went nuts for the first one after it went in. He missed the second and 30,000 people let out an exasperated "ha- si&t^r!..." in unison. I never heard so many mouths utter a swear at once. Hyde and I left the stadium but I was still listening to the game on the radio as we walked briskly up the hill to Taksim. Then a thunderous roar was emitted from the stadium behind us. At that same moment the announcer was yelling some stuff on my headphones. Short version of the story: Turkey had won its place in the final match of the world basketball championships against the USA.

Hyde and I continued to hurry uphill towards Taksim although now the sound of the traffic was adorned with frequent car horns and people celebrating the Turkish victory and their first FIBA final. We arrived much sooner than I had hoped at my new favorite bar on the European side, whose name I still don't know. On the top floor, Jana and Sonia were waiting. It really was the perfect way to end the day. In fact, it felt like a victory of its own.

One night, three victories. Though pictured above, a possible fourth victory :)