As much as the day prior (a Friday) was a deep breath of
rare air, this day was a long, slow suffocating gasp in many respects.
We decided to do one last touristy thing in this city on
our last full day in Istanbul--Topkapi Palace.
People. Lines. Inconsiderate people in
lines. Cutting, nudging, slowing, stopping. It was Saturday and it
was a beautiful day. Everyone was out in Istanbul and that is a mother
lode of people.
The palace--what was open of it--was ornate and
gorgeous. Much of it was closed, though, including in particular an
aspect which came highly recommended, the Imperial Treasury. The
expansive property did still have a lot to offer, most notably the Harem section
(yes, it was what you think it was... on some level) and the palace kitchens
where they prepared meals in the Ottoman Empire days for thousands of people at
a time.
Our next move after that was to continue our quest for
more and better doner. We'd been told by our friend (manning the
reception desk of our hostel), Cesar, of a spot in the Spice Bazaar called
Zurmut. We headed that way.
The bazaar district streets were not visible.
People filled every part of the streets and one could only bob and waddle along
as one small part of a moving mass. It was reminiscent of what we'd just fought
through in the palace and our patience and tolerance for this sort of thing had
thinned to next to nonexistent. We ordered two durum (like a doner kebab,
burrito-style) and got the fuck outta dodge. We made our way to the
nearest square and ate our durums while we watched a cantankerous old man
spreading bird seed lay into and berate small children for chasing away and
unwittingly (in their joy) tormenting the local pigeons.
The durum sandwiches were delectable. Tender meat,
where you could really taste the lamb (not always the case), and juicy enough
meat to eliminate any need for any sauce. One couldn't help but think that this
was how God (or Allah) had intended doner.
Since we needed off the saturated Saturday streets, we
went to see our savior from the first storm--Omur. We'd specifically not
purchased a carpet for myriad reasons, but among them was that--if we ever
bought a carpet from anyone in Turkey--it was going to be our friend,
Omur. We casually browsed and let him know of our extremely limited
budget. Eventually, we found a piece that Becca and I both really liked
and Omur cut the price heavily to make it work for us. We then shared an
apple tea and hugs goodbye.
The crush of people and the day's early heat had us
wrecked and we went back to the hostel and enjoyed the air conditioning and
complete and utter silence for a time before we went to our Ottoman cuisine
dinner at Deraliye.
At Deraliye, they started us off with a pomegranate
flower juice (incorporating cinnamon) which is allegedly how the sultans
started off meals to cleanse their palates. We then got a meze plate for
two and our two mains: goose kebab and the "Sultan's Lamb Shank".
By this point, you get the drift. The food was scrumptious.
As was common in Ottoman cuisine, dried fruits and nuts were incorporated into
the meat dishes. The mix of flavors, including flavorful sauces, was
varied and well-matched. We shared in some Turkish red wine throughout
dinner as well, before ordering a rice pudding dessert dish, and finishing with
our final Turkish tea of the trip.
We made our way back to the hostel and packed and set our
alarms. Our flight was to leave Istanbul at 6 am and we were planning on
rolling to the airport at 3:30 am. This would begin a ~28-hour travel day
(assuming no complications) when all was said and done. As much as that
grueling ordeal could have shaken us and hung over our heads, what was
front-and-center and weighing far heavier on our minds was leaving this country
we'd grown so fond of so quickly.
This trip to Turkey was not a trip we would soon forget,
if ever--and I'd sincerely hope never.
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