Hint of Spring

Walking from the university gate to campus this morning, it sure felt like spring. It's a temporary condition; the cold rain is supposed to return next week. I was walking because the minibus was ridiculously crowded, and the driver was less mindful of his passengers than usual, so I just got out at the gate. The 10-minute walk was much more pleasant indeed!

One fifteenth of 2015

1.  We welcomed the New Year with a modest celebration--Doctor Who followed by prosecco at midnight. 

 

40 seconds into the New Year!

2. I found a superbly unhelpful sign about the demise of "akbil," which was a popular method for paying the fare on public transportation:

The sign says: 

NO AKBIL

We don't know where you can find it!

3. Margaret and Jason visited! Poor things stayed for the coldest, wettest, snowiest days of the winter!! Thank you so much for coming!!!

Intrepid travellers we!

 

4. The holiday decorations were still up on January 7!

5. Aya Sofya is as amazing as ever, and I spied another graffiti detail (new to me, anyway).

6. The restaurant staff took pity on us and brought over a brazier to warm our frozen feet.

7. A gentle sunrise seen from the living room window.

8.  The frozen landscape in Gezi Park.

9. Topkapı Palace in the relentless rain.

10. No electricity when we got back to the apartment!

11.  A beautiful day to go to Asia (Kadıköy).

12.  Art! Architecture!

13. Sigh, all good things must come to an end. Margaret and Jason went back to the states. I went back to work to proctor and grade proficiency exams. The bright spot was this cat who decided to park on my lap in the cafeteria in the university.

14. Now that I am officially on vacation, I've gotten back out and about to see more of the old city.

15. Yesterday, after wandering for nearly an hour to find an Ethiopian restaurant, we were rewarded with a scrumptious meal, mesmerizing music videos (serious shoulder dancing!), and after dinner coffee with popcorn and incense, of course.

Odds and Ends for the End of 2014

Well, December has been a bit of a slog... weather-wise and work-wise! Classes and exams are over, and later this morning I'll submit the final grades [cue anticipation drumroll] and then.... another round of proficiency exams [cue sad trombone]. On the bright side, Margaret and Jason are coming to visit the following week, and that is sooo exciting! I CAN'T WAIT...

So, here are a few odds and ends from some fun things we have done lately:

Christmas tour of nearby villages

 

Pylons for the Third Bridge

 Fishing boat frenzy

 Chickens among the ruins

 The beach at Kilyos

 Random ivy covered remains of an arch or wall in Kilyos

 Approaching more monster pylons for the highway that will connect with the Third Bridge, 

taken from inside the minibus

A tiny glimpse of the madness that was the Istanbul Coffee Festival

Someone's homemade scooter, pretty much held together with packing tape

 Holiday day lights at the apartment complex

Thanksgiving in Turkey!

Our belated ex-pat potluck Thanksgiving was celebrated in grand style yesterday evening. It was a big mix of people from Koç University, Arizona, and friends of friends. We had plenty to eat and drink, no doubt! (I'll bring several leftover desserts to work on Monday.) Now for a quiet Sunday...

 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Escape Planet Escape

Last Friday, coincidentally Halloween, a group of us teamed up to escape from the "Sherlock Room" at Escape Planet. If one of these room size puzzles is established nearby, do it! It was fantastic!! I can't give away too many details, but we were locked in a room furnished in an early 20th century style. We had to find clues and use logic to figure out the combinations to several locked drawers and boxes around the room. The goal was to find the key to get us out of the room in an hour. We did escape, with a little extra time given by the puzzle organizer. Here is the team flush with success!

"Grading Day," i.e. No, I didn't go to work today.

Look! The sun has graced us today... and I got outside to soak it up.

Walk around Rumeli Kavağı

Just a jaunt to a little fishing village where the Black Sea and Bosphorus meet 

and the pylons of the Third Bridge loom