The morning before Intrepid Expedition (09 April '18)

I slept in on to compensate for the late night activities. I knew I had to have more sleep in preparation for the Intrepid meetup. I wanted to go to Fener and Balat but computing the remaining hours I decided to go to the Post Shop instead.

I went up for breakfast and chose the corner, multitasking while finishing up the postcards. I had a few more to write and I realized my hands were stiff. It was pretty cold and I was in a rush. I looked out the window and could see the top of Little AyaSofia from a distance. I still haven't visited the site. History states that this was built before the well known AyaSofya in Sultanahmet square. 

After breakfast I said goodbye to the cleaning lady. She always had a sweet smile. I think it was also because I was the only solo traveler in the hotel, that the more she felt compelled to look after me. Thinking about my previous travels, this has always been the case. Mothers seem to always have that endearment towards me. 

I went out of the hotel thinking the post office was close by. For some reason, the mini map I was looking at gave me the impression that there was a P sign somewhere around. I ended up finding one half an hour walk away compared to a 10 minute walk I initially thought it was. 

The walk was pretty interesting, going through the side of town where tourists didn't really bother to explore. The area I went for showed me the day to day activities of workers and families on a Monday morning. Just the way I like it when exploring. I passed by a small playground with Mothers pushing their kids on the swing. A few shops and interesting museums were along the way. One that actually caught my eyes was the Photography Mini Museum. But the Closed sign was still out, It was just 8:30 am when I passed by. 

The streets became busier as I approached the Post office. Garbage trucks were passing through the neighborhood and cars were getting impatient. I couldn't forget the curious looks of people as I passed by. I took everything in, appreciating the moment and opportunity to walk these streets and see it all. 

I entered the Post office and everyone looked at me. I asked if someone could speak English. I was directed to the last guy in the room. I was told he could speak English. Apparently.. not. lol. It was actually an interesting exchange. He just stamped my postcards....not with the actual "stamps". I was wondering if it was going to get to the people I sent it to. The next goal was to send a package to New Zealand. Yup, that one, I wasn't sure if we understood each other. After doing everything, he gave me my receipt, smiled and said, Thank You. Great, I thought. That was the only English word I got out of him. As of this writing, I've been told by a few of my friends that they received the postcards. Whew!

I rushed back to the hotel needing to pack-up. There was another morning mission I had to do. To pass by the Turkish Street Cafe and have tea, as I promised the guy the other day. It was a delightful morning sitting outside the cafe whilst talking to a few of the customers. As much as I wanted to stay, I had to leave. Baho hailed a cab for me and hugged me goodbye. We connected via Instagram. 

I was on my way to The Golden Horn Hotel to meetup with the group for Intrepid - Black Sea & Beyond. The next 8/9 days was going to be in the company with strangers. I hoped everyone would be cool. I didn't really have much expectations, with an Open Mind and an Open Heart, I jumped into the cab, already aware that I was running late. Eeek! not a good start for impressions!

When Music wasn't part of the plan

I wasnt really sure where the train line was when I got out of the church. I zipped up my jacket since it was getting a bit chilly. I traced my steps back along Independence Avenue until I found the T sign to the Beyoglu station. The escalators were long and the floors were clean. I was glad it wasnt rush hour else I would have been overwhelmed. The design reminded me of Singapore. 

I found the Sishane station and had a feat with the ticket machine trying to figure out how to set the language to English. I just needed 1 ticket. Just 1 ticket. 1 way to Sultanahmet. After 15 minutes, the machine decided to agree with me. I approached the guard and asked, "English?" He looked at me and shook his head. I wish I was talking to the machine again, at least it could translate. 

We both agreed to look at the train station map. Then he said something in Turkish which I didnt quite grasp. In the end I had to take a photo after he pointed 2 points, Karakoy and Sultanahmet. I thought, what was the worse that could happen? Me, going on a train trip back and forth across Istanbul. What other way to get familiar. 

 

I got off Karakoy, went down, went up and discovered I was on tbe wrong lane. I was going back to where I started. I was mumbling under my breath of how silly I was.I finally found the right side. The night lights were on as I looked out the window. I wondered how the night life was. As much as I knew I looked like a foreigner, I already felt immersed. 

I got off Sultanahmet train stop and walked across the Hippodrome. Hagia Sofia and The Blue Mosque were looking more elegant with the lights on. I took a few shots on my phone..wishing I had my stand to take low exposure  shots. I chose to be lightweight on this trip so I had to forego the thought of it. 

The bazaar was closing but some stalls were still open for late night shopping. I got to the hotel

around 8:30 and asked them to ring Kalamar Restaurant (Sehsuvar Bey Quarter, we Anchor Sokak No: 21-27, 34126), a seafood place in the nearby area of Kumkapi. The service was really good. They offered pickup and drop-off from the hotel. As much as I was tired and wanting to eat and call it a night, I promised reception I'll check the resto out. So there I was around 9, in an old car, heading out for Kalamar.

The owner opened the door and greeted me. We walked along a strip filled with restaurants and I could see tables and chairs were setup outside the main dining areas with music filling the air from those who chose to have musicians as part of the ambiance. I was offered to sit outside but being a solo, I wasn't in the mood to people watch in the cold. The restaurant has 2 indoor dining areas in the first level and another one upstairs. The other half was packed with a wedding dinner party going on, so I chose the other side where it was more quiet and private.

I chose a spot beside the window, with good views of the street that offered me a scene to check whilst waiting for my food. Street lights were abundant and Kalamar had their hand-made candles (by the owner) and bouquet of flowers designed to add more life to the outdoor tables.

The order was a bit massive for me when everything arrived. The appetizer menu was filled with a variety of seafood and salad delights. For me, it was enough of a meal since I wasn't really that hungry to begin with. But since the hotel owner recommended it, I just went with the flow. The starters were all served cold style and some were really yummy. The fish, which was a sea brim, was a winner, right enough of crispy and of course typically juicy inside. The meat was tender and fresh, just the way I like it.

The wedding event was pretty loud, but I was amazed watching them dance the usual local Turkish moves. The group looked really young. Later on, I found out the bride and groom were only 26 years old. Typical age for marriage in Turkish culture. I was just starting my career overseas at that point of my life. The bride looked really pretty in her white dress. The owner asked me if I wanted to take a photo with the couple but I politely declined. I just found it a little bit off for me to disrupt an intimate event in their lives. 

There was a group of musicians whom he hired. A bunch of gypsies, as how he called them. In Turkish lingo, I wasn't sure what that really meant. My interpretation of "gypsy" is those people who moves around in their caravan and loves to play music and foretell the future. The bunch were made up of 5 guys, the fiddler being the main musician of the group. 

I ended up jamming with them, when the owner asked them to take down the guitar from the wall. Nylon stringed and all, I found out it was a guitar of his niece. Go figure. IT wasn't tuned, so I had to use someone's cellphone from the gypsy band to make sure I wasn't embarrassing myself.
Jamming Video 

I played a few of my songs, as requested by the owner. He listened and even took a video. The night was starting to be midnight, until the clock turned 1 and the restaurant was due to close. Still, we were there and just laughing out loud. The owner tried to teach me my first Turkish song, as I played along to the beat. It was fun. It was memorable. 

His brother dropped me off at the hotel and I said goodbye. I finished the day filled with so much memories of this beautiful city, Istanbul.

Tomorrow was another adventure ahead, joining the first Intrepid Expedition Trip - Black Sea & Beyond. I closed my eyes and wished it would be another memorable one for the books.