The August winds have arrived and decided to stay. With them, they have summoned the cold from some far off mountains, and this has resulted in me wearing my thick socks and a jumper inside my flat. In 1973 Nic and I thought that the 1st of September would be a nice time to get married. Spring, just around the corner, it should be warming up. Well this year is no different to that. Once the sun goes down there is just no warmth remaining.
Having just looked up the official Spring Day in the Southern Hemisphere on Wikipedia.org, I see that it is only on the 21st September! I didn’t know that. Perhaps it will be warm by then.
Desperately in need of food, I had to get to town to replenish the stock pile. For the first time in my life I used a scarf on my head, to keep the hair in place.
Somehow there has always been a feeling of romantic indulgence when I think back on the actresses of old and their scarves.
Marilyn Monroe, Jayne Mansfield, Audrey Hepburn… the list is endless. They would be driven around in open sports cars by the best looking men in the movie.
Well, I looked nothing like that. But my hair stayed in place which was a plus!
So, lets return to the magical old Country, Turkey and continue on my adventure…
The hotel was situated on the left hand side of a decidedly busy road. It boasted a 3 Star rating and we were on the top floor, room 304. From our window we looked onto two derelict buildings. The view was certainly not its strong point. There were 2 tram lines imbedded into the road. The trams were rather smart looking – very streamlined and they were three coaches long.
One of the major obstacles, however, was that cars and pedestrians also used the road, and the pavements were very narrow.
This meant that the trams would hoot each time there was an obstacle – this happened throughout the day and night and it took us a while to get used to the noise. The windows were all double glazed, so eventually we realised that sleep was more important than fresh air.
Once we closed the windows it made a difference.
The hotel was very central. The first afternoon we walked across the Bosporus Bridge to get from one side of the Horn to the other. This bridge was approximately 1 km long and was always lined with fishermen. They would have their lines in the water – the rods varied from pieces of stick to fishing rods to old men just using nylon dangling in the water without rods.
As they caught the little fish, small like our Sardines, they would put them into buckets next to them.
There were venders up and down the bridge and all along the roads leading to it. Roasted Chestnuts, boiled sweet corn on the cob, the next vendor having corn braaied over an open flame, condoms, cigarettes, bagels, oranges being squeezed for fresh orange juice and someone selling water.
This was before bottled water was sold. He had a huge container on the top of the table and a large piece of ice floating in it. Anyone going past could buy a glass of cold water. The plastic glass was wiped clean after each use and then reused. The cost per glass was 25,000 Turkish Lira (.50c).
There were little sidewalk cafe’s where the smell of Shawarma’s set the taste buds going. Fishermen in their boat had a large drum in which a fire was burning. A skottle was then placed over this drum and was filled with oil. As the boat rocked and rocked, so the fish that were cooking in it were constantly being basted by the hot oil.
The smell of the fish cooking drew the crowd. They served it with the traditional bread which is approximately a foot long, it would be sliced through to the crust width wise, a liberal helping of tomato and onion would be placed into this sandwich and then a freshly cooked fish, bones and all, would be placed on top of the salad and you would be ready to eat it. On the quay side the fishermen had a dozen or so seats set out where you could sit. These were children’s stools made out of coloured plastic and no more than 50 cm high.
At this height it was easy to sit with your legs apart and spit all the bones onto the pavement! What a delicious meal!
On the first night we walked across the bridge to the other side and were accosted by very keen waiters who all tried to get us to eat in their establishments. On the pavements they had glassed deep freezers with the catch of the day displayed. As you approached them they came and asked you what you were wanting to eat and explained their display to you. They then gave you the cost for the proposed menu – and then the haggling began.
Fred thrived on this type of transaction, I was no good at it, and felt embarrassed. Eventually the price was set at 600,000 Turkish Lira (R30) and for this we got a fish to share, a salad, bread and a free small bottle of wine. This was by far the best offer we got whilst in Turkey – and it was never repeated. When we passed the same restaurant the following night, we were not invited inside. I think someone made a huge mistake with the calculation.
And so ends this chapter of my trip to Turkey. Hope you have enjoyed it.
Blessings and love 💕
