It came as something of a surprise when so many Turkish friends, mostly from Istanbul, warned me off travels to this area. “It’s not safe, you’ll end up at the bottom of the Black Sea!” Luckily, I love a challenge. And I’ve also learned (eventually!) to follow my own gut instincts in life. In this […]
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Travel
Western Black Sea – independent travel?
Safranbolu – Ottoman Black Sea magic
A trip to Safranbolu is a trip back in time to the grandeur of the Ottoman Empire. This tiny UNESCO preserved Ottoman town nestled in the hills of Karabuk Province, offers a magical glimpse of Turkish Black Sea life as it was during Ottoman times. It’s peaceful, hilly streets, lined with glorious 200 – 300 […]
Reality dawns on the Turkish pipe-dream?
Dream: When I’d planned my move to Turkey, I’d always dreamed of living somewhere green and rustic, close to the earth, immersed in structures of rough-hewn wood and cosy kilim furnishings. A romantic notion fuelled by memories of wide-eyed travels through amazing rural places such as Safranbolu, Sirince and Cumalikizik, amongst many others. Reality: So […]
Arrival in Antalya – Getting to Kaleici
On stepping out the exit doors at Antalya airport you immediately understand you’re at something of a tourism hub. Instead of the usual taxi ranks, a long line-up of dozens of bus ticketing booths to nearby seaside resorts awaits you. After pacing the length of the bus booths for a few minutes you’ll eventually discover […]
Culture
Turkish Residency (Ikamet) – lessons learned
Many years as a professional project manager drilled into me the discipline of sharing with others your lessons learned at the end of any project. And this was SOME project! So here it is, the story of my path to Turkish residency. Hope it helps. Why am I here? That’s a long story. In a […]
Discovering Turkish music – a never-ending story
Turkish Pop A couple of embarrassing admissions: It’s probably true to say that the first Turkish song I’d ever listened to, without knowing it, was the cringe-worthy Aussie cover version (Holly Valance) of Tarkan’s Şımarık. I thought Tarkan’s music was fantastic and proceeded to fill home, car and exercise with sounds from Tarkan and Dudu. Sounded […]
Food & Drink
Hamsi heaven – it’s worth the wait
At first, I really didn’t get it. It’s just a skinny little silver fish. Why this incredible Turkish obsession with anchovies (hamsi)? For eleven months of the year, Turkish eyes will shine brightly as they reminisce with reverence about last year’s feasts of fresh hamsi. Then comes winter and the feeding frenzy begins. For a […]
It’s winter, and that means…hamsi days!!!
Today I fulfilled another dream here in Turkey. Buying fresh hamsi, in season (winter), here at a local fish market (balik Pazar), and preparing a plate of this legendary pan-fried delight. The last (only) time I’ve cooked (assisted actually) hamsi was many years ago in North London – not the same. Has to be experienced […]
