The Galata Bridge in Istanbul is crowded with fishermen - yes, all men. My husband and I enjoyed a fish sandwich for lunch shortly after I snapped the photo which inspired yesterday's sketch .
And my friend, Susan, in Victoria, recently returned from a trip that included a number of days in Istanbul and recently sent me an email with these comments:
We loved every minute in Istanbul and because we were there so long, we saw
all the famous tourist sights and then were able to do things which were off
the beaten track. We did a culinary walking tour of the Old City, which was
wonderful and very interesting. We had no idea that Turkish cuisine was so
varied and delicious. We went on a ferry to the end of the Bosphorus (the
busiest waterway we've ever seen) and got off on the European side in a
small village. We found a great seafood restaurant on the water and had one
of our most memorable lunches, washed down with Turkish chardonnay. We did
an all day tour called The Other Tour and went to the guide's mother's house
for lunch (delicious) and had our first Turkish bath. Istanbul is
fascinating and complex (with some difficult political and social issues)
but one visit was enough for us. It is a very different society from ours
or any truly European society we've been in and, while women have made huge
strides there in recent years, it is still chauvinistic. Twenty five
percent of the Muslims there are religious, so religious women all cover
their heads. It's a matter of degree: a pretty head scarf to match a
conservative but pretty outfit to full burka. Meanwhile, hubby or
significant other is in shorts, t-shirt and sandals! One of our waiters was
clearly religious, as he couldn't hide his disapproval of Chris and me
ordering a bottle of wine to go with our dinner. He made a "tsk tsk" sound
at me when he saw that I had actually finished one of my glasses!! However,
we are thrilled that we spent lots of time there and would recommend it as a
destination for others.
all the famous tourist sights and then were able to do things which were off
the beaten track. We did a culinary walking tour of the Old City, which was
wonderful and very interesting. We had no idea that Turkish cuisine was so
varied and delicious. We went on a ferry to the end of the Bosphorus (the
busiest waterway we've ever seen) and got off on the European side in a
small village. We found a great seafood restaurant on the water and had one
of our most memorable lunches, washed down with Turkish chardonnay. We did
an all day tour called The Other Tour and went to the guide's mother's house
for lunch (delicious) and had our first Turkish bath. Istanbul is
fascinating and complex (with some difficult political and social issues)
but one visit was enough for us. It is a very different society from ours
or any truly European society we've been in and, while women have made huge
strides there in recent years, it is still chauvinistic. Twenty five
percent of the Muslims there are religious, so religious women all cover
their heads. It's a matter of degree: a pretty head scarf to match a
conservative but pretty outfit to full burka. Meanwhile, hubby or
significant other is in shorts, t-shirt and sandals! One of our waiters was
clearly religious, as he couldn't hide his disapproval of Chris and me
ordering a bottle of wine to go with our dinner. He made a "tsk tsk" sound
at me when he saw that I had actually finished one of my glasses!! However,
we are thrilled that we spent lots of time there and would recommend it as a
destination for others.
