with a little glimmer
of what duo retirement might resemble,
we decided a morning
doing our own things
was a good balance to
spending 24/7 with each other
for about a week :)
so, while hubby went in search of
the perfect Turkish barbershop
(to match his memories of this
from when he taught English
at Tarsus American School
many, many....many years ago),
i decided on a repeat of the scrumptious breakfast
we had early on at The Lavender Cafe'
(near our place) ~
it was absolutely the right choice
for me, and i thoroughly
enjoyed it!
i think i was the only one there
the entire time
not wanting to pick
a dish i might not savor,
i got the exact same breakfast
as previously but
took the bold move of
starting with the Lavender Latte
and ending with the Chocolate Turkish Coffee
...to die for!!! so amazingly yummy!
the "mini breakfast" spread (above)
& the chocolate coffee (below)
after breakfast, i decided to stay local
& explore around our place,
which we hadn't really done.
imagine my surprise to find
a Christian church just blocks away!
(it was, really, quite hidden away)
this is the Crimean Memorial Church
(or Kirim Kilisesi - Christ Church)
and is not that old, being built
in the 1860's to commemorate
English soldiers who died
in the 1850's Crimean War
after a couple of more recent
decades of closure,
the church was restored by
refugees from Sri Lanka
and re-opened in 1991
currently, it is a safe haven for new refugees
as well as providing shelter for those
finding themselves homeless
after a week of primarily Islamic religious culture,
it made me smile to see some Christmas greenery
the roaming chickens
also made me smile!
i continued my wanders nearby,
finding some arts and crafts studios
tucked away on quiet streets
and many narrow, steep streets
(leading up towards the
and, always, graffiti!
i was always glad we were on foot
or using public transportation
rather than attempting to
drive & navigate these streets!
kind of liked the worried moon face graffiti
in this crumbling doorway
i couldn't decide if these were
drawn by a primitive style adult artist
...or if this was a children's art studio...
i'm going with an adult artist
as they are just a little
too perfect
in addition to graffiti on many corners,
there were also cats!
i am not a cat person,
but these cats are decidedly
regal - and look so clean
for living their lives
on the streets!
well....until you see them
going after the raw meat...
(they are very well
taken care of!)
i was surprised to see
what looks like a
plastic Easter Egg
peeking out of a
broken post
but not at all surprised
to see cat prints
in the sidewalk cement
cats, cats, cats
everywhere!
i finally emerged
from the quiet parts
of our neighborhood
into the tourist area
near Galata Tower
street scenes
i had been eyeing the fresh juice stands
in the days prior and resolved
to get myself one,
which i thoroughly enjoyed!
my tiny orange juice ^
& my wee shop bag
with handmade earrings
(my go-to souvenir item
for myself)
this was, i guess,
a little bit of a ritzy, Western area
(though...what, on earth,
is "micro welding" when done
to a human body???
really, i don't know what half of
these services might do to me!)
came upon a model
(a petite Turkish woman)
and a photographer
(a large Germanic woman)
more curves, narrows,
& tight spaces!
^ getting very close to our place again ^
(you can see the sign advertising
the "otopark" on our street)
just around the corner,
so we passed Zen Ceramics
fairly frequently coming & going
on our daily adventures
...this time, i stopped!
and bought a ceramic mushroom!
(which, amazingly, made it
all the way home without breaking!)
we were headed back
for one last performance
at the AKM that evening,
so reconnected & journeyed back
towards Taksim Square,
this time on foot!
i was excited to show hubby
the Crimean Memorial Church,
then we had a late lunch
(or was it an early dinner?)
of the most amazing falafel
i have ever eaten!
a little hole-in-the-wall
i am!
one photo from our walk
grand hotel, but
apparently famous* people
used to stay here
when heading out on
(or arriving from)
Agatha Christie and...
in the fancy hotel bar
i had a lemonade...
not on the menu,
but you get what you ask for
at the Pera Palace Hotel!
after our indulgence,
we strolled up Istiklal Avenue,
that of the famous red trolley
& admired the lights
and shop windows
(note: we had been kind of avoiding this
very touristy, wealthy area as it was
the target of a bombing just weeks
before we arrived)
at the top of the hill,
near Taksim Square,
we were back at the
beautiful AKM venue
to see modern dance!
we enjoyed it!
it was interesting to see
a dance performance where, largely,
it was the male dancers who had all
the primary parts, with the women
more in the supportive role
unsure if this was actually the case
or just my perception
the musicians, who were on stage
throughout the performance,
were also an integral part
and received much applause
it's a lovely venue!
we wandered back down the hill
and couldn't resist scooping up
a few last Turkish treats
from a tiny place
called Cihangir Tarihi Simit Firini
with amazing baked goods
and a sweet mother-son duo
closing up shop for the night
we were sad it was our last night
in Istanbul - but
in Istanbul - but
super excited to move on
to Milan!
