Again, i was lazy, have not posted for some days bu the end of my trip is comming close and i enjoy my time in Istanbul... I will fly home soon for the winter. A lot of skiing, time with my family and friends but next year, i will resume my journey. The rest of the trip will be up in the next days and some of my winter time too probably.
So back to Istanbul, more than a month ago. All i can remember from that friday is the evening, a welcome back party for one of Istanbul's couch surfing ambassadors. Before going to that nice party, i finally meet my host and get to chat a little with her. She tells me i should not expect to much from a flat, from a job or from anything in turkey as a matter of fact. Writing this, almost a month later, i realize why she thinks so about turkey...
She is a funny girl and we have a good time and laugh as we head to the party. Most present couch surfers are Turkish men. A bit later, i meet two guys, Davin from Zahir and Nicolas from Austria. There are both already quite drunk and having a very good time. But, there are not enough girls around and the music is pretty shitty, will i agree on that last point but it is mostly the first one that is driving Davin. He drags his mate out and start talking about Turkish women :) Or more accurately about the Turkish men, who wont let their woman go with foreigners, he says they are jealous of his success and carefully keep all their women under their protection. It is a pleasure to speak with him and i have to smile a lot, both at what he says and the way he sais it, with such conviction and such a strong accent :) I however soon will realize that he is much closer to reality than what i would have imagined. Nicolas also understands French quit well so we go on talking in French, a language less people would understand on the streets...
We try to get into Babylon where Sayag Jazz machine is playing but it is already sold out... I was really looking forward to that concert and i am a bit disappointed, never mind i have my two new friends to joke around with. As i talk with Nicolas, i first realize he is from Vienna, then that he know IDA, Lena's club and that he played there. But wait a minute, he starts looking familiar now, and he is! He is the dude from scrape goat i talked with at the end of the concert there, about 6 month ago! Small small world... While i was traveling around, he got married to a Turkish women and is now living in Istanbul. i have a great night with those two crazy fellows and when we get into Riddim, a big hip-hop and rnb club, i cant help making fun of the people in disguises around and their fake attitude... seems like we are in an MTV movie clip. Nicolas leaves us and we soon catch a cab home too.
samedi 6 décembre 2008
lundi 24 novembre 2008
Discovering Istanbul
Sorry for this short break...
On my first day in Istanbul, i look for a flat, i decided to start with the couchsurfing faltmate groupe and contact 4 or 5 people. Then, i have the chance to read in my mailbox that there is a couchsurfing meeting at 2 pm. I join what starts with a couple cay (tch-eye), talking about politics, turkey, foods etc... The turish cs girl tells me she does not like Turkey because of womens position, the italian Cser tells me how much he loves it, the spanish Cser is discovering something new as i am and is rather happy about it. Different experiences different points of view, as always :)
We then start to drink a couple beer on one of istiklals small side streets. The typical type of streets you find in Taksim, walking only, narrow, full of people and full of terasses, half of them cafes, half restaurants. The restaurants display great ice tables full of fish, the waiters want to invite us in... The traffic is intense and the population very mixed, this is on of the things that strike me, unlike in the Balkan where it is pretty straight forward to spot a foreigner (ok i still cant recognize Albanians from Croatians or Serbian but i think this is impossible anyway), here i am puzzled by the variety of hair and skin colors, figures traits and eye colors. In the end in Istanbul i could look Turkish...
So we sit and sip our beers, the Turkish girl sitting opposite me, Eva, slams them down one after the other, i have two, the Italian dude one while she had 3... It turns out she did a year exchange in Check republic. That explains things! Later, two more people join us, they confirming the impression i just mentioned, both Turkish and yet one has chocolate skin, a round face and an American accent, and the girl has freckles, dark curly hair, also a very round face and i would have said she is German. After they join us, we head for some food, finally, i had nothing but beer to eat today. The food is nothing special and Eva gets all excited that out Turkish specialty is not served properly. An eggplant puree with some meat pieces, covered with melted yellow cheese. It is ok for me anyway.
As i sip my glass of red wine, one of the eventual flatmates i found shows up, he does not like this place so we move a bit further. Still in taksim, he and his girlfriend take me to a small alley, into a building, in the elevator and up the the last floor. There, we are welcomed by chill out music and a nice atmosphere. The Balkoon bar offers both a roof terrace and a roof greenhouse. It is too cold outside, we make ourselves comfortable at a large table. Soon three more girls join us and we start a lot more chatting about Turkish society. They paint a very unequal repartition of wealth, few people are extraordinary rich and spent a week end shopping in Dubai or a week flying around the world from Istanbul, to Dubai, Paris, London new-york Sydney and home, while many people are extremely poor... As i picture a depressed France where many people are on prosac to my neighbor, she tells me that she is as well... I meet some very nice people and a sweet place where i will come again but the cohabitation is not going to be possible, he looks for a longer therm flatmate...
Later, we all leave and i join the second potetial flat mate. She listens and sings hxc, Hard core music. Yeaaah!! She looks for someone temporary before choosing “the perfect match”. I can visit tomorrow. We understand each other pretty well in this Arsen Lupin bar, playing a lot of rock, hard rock and metal classics.
It is past two in the morning, i am exhausted and head home. On my way i find out i now live in a city, a big city with all the stuff that comes with it. Prostitutes, transvestites, drugs, violence and verbal aggressions... For the first time in 6 month i feel slightly unsafe. Mmmhh dont care, just want to get home, and i do, fast.
On my first day in Istanbul, i look for a flat, i decided to start with the couchsurfing faltmate groupe and contact 4 or 5 people. Then, i have the chance to read in my mailbox that there is a couchsurfing meeting at 2 pm. I join what starts with a couple cay (tch-eye), talking about politics, turkey, foods etc... The turish cs girl tells me she does not like Turkey because of womens position, the italian Cser tells me how much he loves it, the spanish Cser is discovering something new as i am and is rather happy about it. Different experiences different points of view, as always :)
We then start to drink a couple beer on one of istiklals small side streets. The typical type of streets you find in Taksim, walking only, narrow, full of people and full of terasses, half of them cafes, half restaurants. The restaurants display great ice tables full of fish, the waiters want to invite us in... The traffic is intense and the population very mixed, this is on of the things that strike me, unlike in the Balkan where it is pretty straight forward to spot a foreigner (ok i still cant recognize Albanians from Croatians or Serbian but i think this is impossible anyway), here i am puzzled by the variety of hair and skin colors, figures traits and eye colors. In the end in Istanbul i could look Turkish...
So we sit and sip our beers, the Turkish girl sitting opposite me, Eva, slams them down one after the other, i have two, the Italian dude one while she had 3... It turns out she did a year exchange in Check republic. That explains things! Later, two more people join us, they confirming the impression i just mentioned, both Turkish and yet one has chocolate skin, a round face and an American accent, and the girl has freckles, dark curly hair, also a very round face and i would have said she is German. After they join us, we head for some food, finally, i had nothing but beer to eat today. The food is nothing special and Eva gets all excited that out Turkish specialty is not served properly. An eggplant puree with some meat pieces, covered with melted yellow cheese. It is ok for me anyway.
As i sip my glass of red wine, one of the eventual flatmates i found shows up, he does not like this place so we move a bit further. Still in taksim, he and his girlfriend take me to a small alley, into a building, in the elevator and up the the last floor. There, we are welcomed by chill out music and a nice atmosphere. The Balkoon bar offers both a roof terrace and a roof greenhouse. It is too cold outside, we make ourselves comfortable at a large table. Soon three more girls join us and we start a lot more chatting about Turkish society. They paint a very unequal repartition of wealth, few people are extraordinary rich and spent a week end shopping in Dubai or a week flying around the world from Istanbul, to Dubai, Paris, London new-york Sydney and home, while many people are extremely poor... As i picture a depressed France where many people are on prosac to my neighbor, she tells me that she is as well... I meet some very nice people and a sweet place where i will come again but the cohabitation is not going to be possible, he looks for a longer therm flatmate...
Later, we all leave and i join the second potetial flat mate. She listens and sings hxc, Hard core music. Yeaaah!! She looks for someone temporary before choosing “the perfect match”. I can visit tomorrow. We understand each other pretty well in this Arsen Lupin bar, playing a lot of rock, hard rock and metal classics.
It is past two in the morning, i am exhausted and head home. On my way i find out i now live in a city, a big city with all the stuff that comes with it. Prostitutes, transvestites, drugs, violence and verbal aggressions... For the first time in 6 month i feel slightly unsafe. Mmmhh dont care, just want to get home, and i do, fast.
jeudi 20 novembre 2008
broken ass, birthdays and a little break
Yep i broke my ass... a nice, adrenalin full 15 meters freefall into the purple waters of Olympos left me with a nice souvenir. 5 days later, every time i sit i can recall this endless moment. "Me ass is so sore mate". I picked up a bit on that aussie accent again traveling with me mate Dave. My ass hurts, my back is all messed up but no worries, i will get an massage from Angel. No not that type of massage and not that type of Angel you sick mind...
It s Chills birthday, Angel and Brice are coming over from Istanbul, it will be a nice parteee.
I dont realy feel like posting about the past today... present and future! Yas i am in Ankara and i will be home soon! i booked a flight home for xmas, family, friends and the snow!
More about Istanbul, the beautiful south coast and friendly turcs soon!
Take Care!
Andre
It s Chills birthday, Angel and Brice are coming over from Istanbul, it will be a nice parteee.
I dont realy feel like posting about the past today... present and future! Yas i am in Ankara and i will be home soon! i booked a flight home for xmas, family, friends and the snow!
More about Istanbul, the beautiful south coast and friendly turcs soon!
Take Care!
Andre
mardi 18 novembre 2008
Road to Istanbul! Finally in Asia!
So i wake earlier with my friend and we go for a coffee... We are right next to a big coal mine so there are many truck driving to Istanbul and i should get a ride easy. But it is damn cold and i cant wait outside so i stay in the petrol station cafe and read a bit. And anyway nobody sees me yet, it is foggy and dark... Buses pass, full of workers, the cafe is full of smoke...
An hour or so later i get out and get a ride with a fisherman, he tells me again about the huge fish. not tasty, especially the skin part, you need to remove it. And even then he prefer smaller ones. He drops me further on, where the trucks pass... A paved street, i can not believe it, something mystical with the remaining fog, i believe i am somewhere in the north of France... And a 4 wheel drive stops to bring me closer to the border at the place where the roads to Greece and France split. he works for Peugeot, speaks good French. He drops me and soon a truck driver pulls up. Long time in no truck, plus it is a Turkish one! He speaks no english, little Bulgarian, impossible to communicate. A couple kilometers later he is stopped by the highway control. They check his speed and driving hours in the past 4 hour... he tries to blackmail and fails, he has to stop and i have to find an other ride... i am now a couple kilometers from the Turkish boarder and the next car while bring me there fast.
I pass the 6 or 7 boarder check by foot, get a 15 euro visa and there i am, welcome to Turkey! Soon as i walk a bit, a truck picks me up and will bring me to Istanbul! No englsih so i communicate with basic gestures and learn to count in Turkish. He is a Kurde and drives on and on through eastern Europa wish i would learn more but i am tired and really in a hurry to get to Istanbul. We make a stop to eat and drink tea in a small highway restaurant. Musaka and tea, delicious and very welcome i had nothing to eat today!
As we get closer to Istanbul, 20 kilometers from the center, huge building are being constructed everywhere. I immediately have the impression of a growing, rapidly expanding city. Who will live here? so far from the city?? probably no rich people... Workers? factory workers? i will try to figure out...
I pass the bridge over the bosphorus under the rain and then get of at the next pay toll. I have to cross the 30 lanes of the paytoll to get to the other side and ge back into the center... It is not so hard one by one i make t to the other side. A car is stopped just after the toll counter, i ask for a ride, he is a little surprised but accepts. He is general manager in a drop by drop water irrigation system. This represent 60 % water saving and is an important business in turkey at the time. He brings me to the center.
As usual i go for a sim card, a new phone since mine is lost in the macedonian trains. But i find non cheap enough and soon realize i cant buy anything anyway, i have lost my credit card... I go to an internet cafe and use skype to call the couple numbers i have in Istanbul. Marion is ok to host me!
I rush to her place before she leaves. She meets her boyfriend so she hands me the keys, apologies for not welcoming me properly and tells e i should do as if i was home. So I take a shower and go to sleep :)
An hour or so later i get out and get a ride with a fisherman, he tells me again about the huge fish. not tasty, especially the skin part, you need to remove it. And even then he prefer smaller ones. He drops me further on, where the trucks pass... A paved street, i can not believe it, something mystical with the remaining fog, i believe i am somewhere in the north of France... And a 4 wheel drive stops to bring me closer to the border at the place where the roads to Greece and France split. he works for Peugeot, speaks good French. He drops me and soon a truck driver pulls up. Long time in no truck, plus it is a Turkish one! He speaks no english, little Bulgarian, impossible to communicate. A couple kilometers later he is stopped by the highway control. They check his speed and driving hours in the past 4 hour... he tries to blackmail and fails, he has to stop and i have to find an other ride... i am now a couple kilometers from the Turkish boarder and the next car while bring me there fast.
I pass the 6 or 7 boarder check by foot, get a 15 euro visa and there i am, welcome to Turkey! Soon as i walk a bit, a truck picks me up and will bring me to Istanbul! No englsih so i communicate with basic gestures and learn to count in Turkish. He is a Kurde and drives on and on through eastern Europa wish i would learn more but i am tired and really in a hurry to get to Istanbul. We make a stop to eat and drink tea in a small highway restaurant. Musaka and tea, delicious and very welcome i had nothing to eat today!
As we get closer to Istanbul, 20 kilometers from the center, huge building are being constructed everywhere. I immediately have the impression of a growing, rapidly expanding city. Who will live here? so far from the city?? probably no rich people... Workers? factory workers? i will try to figure out...
I pass the bridge over the bosphorus under the rain and then get of at the next pay toll. I have to cross the 30 lanes of the paytoll to get to the other side and ge back into the center... It is not so hard one by one i make t to the other side. A car is stopped just after the toll counter, i ask for a ride, he is a little surprised but accepts. He is general manager in a drop by drop water irrigation system. This represent 60 % water saving and is an important business in turkey at the time. He brings me to the center.
As usual i go for a sim card, a new phone since mine is lost in the macedonian trains. But i find non cheap enough and soon realize i cant buy anything anyway, i have lost my credit card... I go to an internet cafe and use skype to call the couple numbers i have in Istanbul. Marion is ok to host me!
I rush to her place before she leaves. She meets her boyfriend so she hands me the keys, apologies for not welcoming me properly and tells e i should do as if i was home. So I take a shower and go to sleep :)
lundi 17 novembre 2008
From Sofia to ...
I wake up, pack my stuff and go to the center with my host Zdravko who needs to sort out some administrative stuff. Meanwhile i check out the hot water springs on a central square of Sofia, the oldest market hall and a couple surrounding streets, it is a very short stay in Sofia and i wish i did not have to get to Istanbul and had time to visit a little more, check out how things look at night, have a couple beers and meet some young Sofiots.
But we head back of and i have to make it further. Zdravko drops me at a petrol station and i ask very car that doesn't have Sofia plates if they go to Plovdiv or to the boarder. Finally a young kind Bulgarian smiles and says yes. He has a funny voice, a little belly and looks a little like Winnie the Pue to me, cute, smiling and round (not fat). We talk about economic situation, fishing huge over sized old fishes, electrical plants and jobs.
His old golf takes us to destination but first we need to make a pertrol stop. In these regions, people never tank up a full tank, they always go little by little as they need it Money is always low... we need to make a stop on a building sit, my driver rents cherry picker. I have long though these were machines to pick cherries but after a couple confusions, i am explained they are used on construction sites to reach high places, fix electrical lines etc... So we need to go and see one of his machine that is not working anymore on a building sit. he is stressed, hoping it is nothing bad. The business is already difficult to run like this. Fortunately nothing bad, just small electronic issue. We go home and as night is falling he proposes i can sleep at his guest house for 5 euros and be ready tomorrow early. Good idea, we go for some nice qofte, delicious meet balls served with a salad for a very modest price. Before going to sleep i write, he has to sort out some administrative work, fill out his accountability... ahh Europe's bureaucratic obligations... it was not always like this in Bulgaria. Now he even needs a certificate for his cherry pickers... of course they are old and even passing the examination would be to expensive so he needs to make a fake...
But we head back of and i have to make it further. Zdravko drops me at a petrol station and i ask very car that doesn't have Sofia plates if they go to Plovdiv or to the boarder. Finally a young kind Bulgarian smiles and says yes. He has a funny voice, a little belly and looks a little like Winnie the Pue to me, cute, smiling and round (not fat). We talk about economic situation, fishing huge over sized old fishes, electrical plants and jobs.
His old golf takes us to destination but first we need to make a pertrol stop. In these regions, people never tank up a full tank, they always go little by little as they need it Money is always low... we need to make a stop on a building sit, my driver rents cherry picker. I have long though these were machines to pick cherries but after a couple confusions, i am explained they are used on construction sites to reach high places, fix electrical lines etc... So we need to go and see one of his machine that is not working anymore on a building sit. he is stressed, hoping it is nothing bad. The business is already difficult to run like this. Fortunately nothing bad, just small electronic issue. We go home and as night is falling he proposes i can sleep at his guest house for 5 euros and be ready tomorrow early. Good idea, we go for some nice qofte, delicious meet balls served with a salad for a very modest price. Before going to sleep i write, he has to sort out some administrative work, fill out his accountability... ahh Europe's bureaucratic obligations... it was not always like this in Bulgaria. Now he even needs a certificate for his cherry pickers... of course they are old and even passing the examination would be to expensive so he needs to make a fake...
dimanche 16 novembre 2008
Visiting suroundings and goinf to Sofia.
After good rest today, we check ou the souroundings and visit the place were the most famous medium of bulgaria and maybe europe raised a church after her death. A nice place next to a hot sulfurous spring. I am a little to hangover to bath in them, i regret a little would have done me good.
Goce goes for more shopping, Electronics for home. Later we visite the young bride once more before everyone heads of. Separation after about a week of excellent time together... But we will see again in Istanbul! I head of a bit late, the sun is setting and i have to get to Sofia or Plovdiv tonight... And i am lucky to be picked up by a young dude real happy to speak a little german again. he drops me further were i have to walk to a petrol station to find a spot that is not comletely in the dark. I dont like hitchhiking in the night but tonight i will get the best ride of Bulgaria!
A 4 wheel drive pulls up and stops, i open, large guy all smilling and a strong smell of vine. At first i am a little suspicious... Drink and drive on Bulgarian highways, not a good idea... But the dude has clear eyes and seems like a good man! So i step in, we comunicate in basis of german and serbain, funny times. After about 100 meter he asks me if i like vine... Ahhh of course. He pulls over and step out to fill me a small bottle of water with some house vine. He has about 400 litters in the back and want me to taste i am from france after all :)
I test him and propose some. He refuses, he stopped drinking since he had a bad accident and now does yoga. Plus he is driving... I tast, it is good! local production, completely natural, no chemicals, no selling, just for him and his friends. AS we tlk he wanders where i go and where i sleep. Soon he invites me home and to do the small delivery he has to do before driving home. Of course i accept. So we deliver 300 liters in the middle of nowhere. A house in the nature, his friends young “maitresse” cute and smart. And lots of vine, i get to taste the different vines, more or less ready. Delicious! Simple and not very fine but good!
We drive back of and as e arrive hoem, he wakes his wife for a dinner. a very simpel man but he seems to be the major of this suburb of sofia. He is always smilling and gives a very “ rural” and simple impression. He hosts and gives work to 2 men with no family or relations, we bring them vine and check on the goats. They build a house for hi, slowly but shurly. Good man! We share our evening meel, eggs, tomatoes, ognions, fresh cheese from his goass and vine of course!
i fall a sleep fast in my simple hoe, the house next too his house... in renovation, somaire mais connfortable.
Goce goes for more shopping, Electronics for home. Later we visite the young bride once more before everyone heads of. Separation after about a week of excellent time together... But we will see again in Istanbul! I head of a bit late, the sun is setting and i have to get to Sofia or Plovdiv tonight... And i am lucky to be picked up by a young dude real happy to speak a little german again. he drops me further were i have to walk to a petrol station to find a spot that is not comletely in the dark. I dont like hitchhiking in the night but tonight i will get the best ride of Bulgaria!
A 4 wheel drive pulls up and stops, i open, large guy all smilling and a strong smell of vine. At first i am a little suspicious... Drink and drive on Bulgarian highways, not a good idea... But the dude has clear eyes and seems like a good man! So i step in, we comunicate in basis of german and serbain, funny times. After about 100 meter he asks me if i like vine... Ahhh of course. He pulls over and step out to fill me a small bottle of water with some house vine. He has about 400 litters in the back and want me to taste i am from france after all :)
I test him and propose some. He refuses, he stopped drinking since he had a bad accident and now does yoga. Plus he is driving... I tast, it is good! local production, completely natural, no chemicals, no selling, just for him and his friends. AS we tlk he wanders where i go and where i sleep. Soon he invites me home and to do the small delivery he has to do before driving home. Of course i accept. So we deliver 300 liters in the middle of nowhere. A house in the nature, his friends young “maitresse” cute and smart. And lots of vine, i get to taste the different vines, more or less ready. Delicious! Simple and not very fine but good!
We drive back of and as e arrive hoem, he wakes his wife for a dinner. a very simpel man but he seems to be the major of this suburb of sofia. He is always smilling and gives a very “ rural” and simple impression. He hosts and gives work to 2 men with no family or relations, we bring them vine and check on the goats. They build a house for hi, slowly but shurly. Good man! We share our evening meel, eggs, tomatoes, ognions, fresh cheese from his goass and vine of course!
i fall a sleep fast in my simple hoe, the house next too his house... in renovation, somaire mais connfortable.
samedi 15 novembre 2008
Batman and Superman at the Marriage!
Today is a long day of ceremonies, but before we still have time to buy a couple things, i need a proper pair of pants for the marriage (i will buy jeans! but that is ok me and Goce are special superhero guests!) and Goce needs to satisfy his shopohoicness :) he buys toaster, pans, socks, slippers... and much more :)
We then go relax in the water of the thermal pool, warm and good for your health, though it smells a little to much like chlore to be healthy, it is nice and relaxing. Water massage, bubbles, relxation! The whole thing is in a grat hotel, the marriage buffet will take place here later. Slightly communist, mostly modern, this place is comfortable.
As we get out, we go for more shopping (Goce!!!!) and then go get shaver and dressed. I am superman, Goce is Batman! nice dress, the parents react in a very decontracted and positive way. I cant believe, this is the first marriage i attend n a loooong time, and i am dressed as superman!
The whole ceremony starts as the future husband comes up and picks up the bride from her parents house. There the shafer (Goce) has to keep him from coming in for a while. Then he finally walks in with all his friends and family and gets into the room of the bride where he asks for permission to the father (i think, i dind quite get this part...) and gives a pair of shoes. Very nice tradition, everyone is happy, laughing and drinking of course!
After this episode, we join the first ceremony, a melancholic, stoned sounding voice pronounces the union for the first time at the majors house after a lot of walking (drive for the bride :) trough the city. Then a second ceremony takes place at the Church, full of symbols and traditional protocol.
Then we walk to the hotel for the banquet! A nice banker with very nice vine. It gos lat into the night and i have the pleasure to meet many great people. Dancing, eating, drinking and a little singing go on and on...
We then go relax in the water of the thermal pool, warm and good for your health, though it smells a little to much like chlore to be healthy, it is nice and relaxing. Water massage, bubbles, relxation! The whole thing is in a grat hotel, the marriage buffet will take place here later. Slightly communist, mostly modern, this place is comfortable.
As we get out, we go for more shopping (Goce!!!!) and then go get shaver and dressed. I am superman, Goce is Batman! nice dress, the parents react in a very decontracted and positive way. I cant believe, this is the first marriage i attend n a loooong time, and i am dressed as superman!
The whole ceremony starts as the future husband comes up and picks up the bride from her parents house. There the shafer (Goce) has to keep him from coming in for a while. Then he finally walks in with all his friends and family and gets into the room of the bride where he asks for permission to the father (i think, i dind quite get this part...) and gives a pair of shoes. Very nice tradition, everyone is happy, laughing and drinking of course!
After this episode, we join the first ceremony, a melancholic, stoned sounding voice pronounces the union for the first time at the majors house after a lot of walking (drive for the bride :) trough the city. Then a second ceremony takes place at the Church, full of symbols and traditional protocol.
Then we walk to the hotel for the banquet! A nice banker with very nice vine. It gos lat into the night and i have the pleasure to meet many great people. Dancing, eating, drinking and a little singing go on and on...
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