Final Thoughts on Turkey... mostly its food

We thoroughly enjoyed our Turkey vacation and the variety of new things we got to see and do.

If you didn't know it was going on, we were surprised that Ramadan did not make much of an appearance, other than in a few places... at least, along the tourist trail. We really wanted to experience a traditional iftar (breaking-of-the-fast) meal, but most places were strictly for the observing faithful (typically tents next to the mosque), and we didn't want to intrude. It looked like there was a chance in cosmopolitan Istanbul, but we arrived too late for the seating... and stupidly, it didn't occur to us until we were there, that of course, there would be no second seating!

Turkey offered a varied and delicious cuisine with not a bad meal in the entire trip. In a country where they also revere my favorite meat, my streak of eating lamb ran 13 days. On the coast, there were fried whole fishes and even calamari. Turkish breakfasts ensured a regular supply of fresh goat cheese and exceptional honey. Faced with tantalizingly prepared vegetables and a wealth of meze options, I decided to ignore the traveling taboos of eating of the raw, unboiled, and unpeeled... and was rewarded (or lucky) with nary a bellyache! ...mmm, ripe figs the size of your palm.

The real prize of Turkish fare, especially for backpackers, is the vast array of fast food. In all their shapes and forms, kebaps are king. The meat on them is real meat and bares little resemblance to the baloney-grade rotating skewers you see elsewhere. Red cabbage or garlic sauce did not appear in the original version, but frequently, three or four cold french fries would get thrown in. Pides (Turkish canoe-shaped pizzas), lahmacun (round Arabic pizzas with no cheese), and gözleme (Turkish crepes) were cheap and came with all kinds of toppings. My personal favorite were the börek, a family of rolled or layered flaky pastries that get stuffed with savory (spiced ground meat, cheese, spinach, potato, or some combination thereof) or sweet (fruit) fillings.

Finally, in our last days in Turkey, we became big fans of mulhallebi (Turkish milk puddings). There was your common rice pudding version, an almost flan-like one with a caramel syrup layer under a bed of ground walnuts, and another with a powdery burnt sugar envelope. It was relief to discover the "chicken breast pudding" was just another milk pudding in the shape of a raw chicken breast and did not actually contain any poultry. Cooling and creamy, they were a refreshing break from the sugar and honey stickiness of most Turkish desserts.

Istanbul (Turkey)

For our summer vacation together, we opted for Turkey... along with the rest of Spain. We heard nearly as much Castellano in Istanbul as in Barcelona.

Istanbul exists at a crossroads between religions (Islam and Christianity), continents (Europe and Asia), and time (ancient and modern life). The Christian church of Aya Sofia, when finished in a scant 6 years (I'm hinting at you, Sagrada Familia!), was compared with the magnificence of Solomon's temple. Then it became a mosque. Now it's a museum. Mosaics depicting Jesus and company decorate the walls while giant medallions of a master Muslim calligrapher hang from the celings.

The Blue Mosque, still used as one, sits opposite. From the outside, it looks like a building from Coruscant, for all you Star Wars fans. All that's missing are a few lighters zipping around the background. Inside is a carpeted expanse covered with domes of intricate painted designs. Outside, we chanced upon a taping for Turkish television with a Rudy Guiliani look-alike. The program allowed us to have a free viewing of whirling dervishes. One poor fellow might have had to abort his prayerful dancing due to premature dizziness.

The sprawling grounds of Topkapi Palace were once home to the sultans of the Ottoman Empire. A selection of the crown jewels are available for viewing with blingin' thrones and emeralds the size of your palm a common sight. Should your tastes run more toward the spiritual, there are also some important Islamic relics. These include bits of the beard of the prophet Muhammad (stored in what looked like light bulbs) and the rod of Moses (handy for parting seas with).

A Bosphorus ferry ride will take you up the strait between Europe and Asia. Yalis, the summer mansions of sultans and the rich, dot either coast. The European side looks very European in architecture and high street shop options. The bridge at the mouth of the Golden Horn is a great spot to get a sandwich from guys frying the fish up on severely rocking boats.

It is the Muslim holy month of Ramadan (Ramazan in Turkish). The food in Turkey has been fantastic so far, but we do feel guilty stuffing our faces in front of people who have to wait until sunset to eat. In the ancient Hippodrome and Sultanahmet park, families and friends gather in picnics to break their fast. Lines pack the pavements as restaurants do crazy business (kebabs so fast you'll freak!) in the hour beforehand. When the mosque finally makes the calls, the babble of the crowds goes silent for a good half hour as everyone chows down.

Turkey could challenge even the most hardcore sweet tooth. Most Turkish sweets seem to revolve around combining sugar in all its forms. Solving the problem of sugar dropping out of solution, Turkish desserts just coat everything in honey for good measure. There's your basic dozen variations on baklava (sugared and honeyed layers of pastry) or Turkish delight (jellied sugar coated in powdered sugar), which I did not think was good enough to betray your family for (see Edmund in the Chronicles of Narnia). We also tried out some sweets we are calling “goo on a stick” (multi-colored sugary taffy), “Turkish churros” (dripping with honey and dusted with coconut and pistachio), and “Turkish gulab jamun” (fried doughballs soaked in honey). They were all so sweet that Rich was using Coca-cola as a palate cleanser!