Kayla from Bostancı

What made you come to Turkey?
Originally seeking a train route to India (Honestly).

What do you do in your daily life?
Currently exploring Turkey and writing about my experiences

Family?
Gobs. All over America.

Can you compare your first days here with today?
Well....Yani...But it would be another story (Thanks)

Has living in Turkey influenced your approach to life?
Yes. Being in Turkey, has made life for me worth living.

Turkish language?
Ne Kadar? Cok az, ama ben pratik Türk dil yapiyorum her gun (pretty bad huh?) (translation: So little, I practice Turkish everyday)

Let's talk about the region you are living in?
I currently live in Bostanci. In a 'just right size' apartment with a slice view of the Marmara Sea. I adore it. I am close enough to the Metro systems, not to mention the ubiquitous taxis. In my particular neighborhood, my neighbors still have ties to their villages. So seasonally I'll get glimpses of a life that I imagine is fading. Women carding wool... Washing their carpets, occasionally festooning their balcony with red peppers.

Have you traveled in Turkey? Tell us your discoveries
Not as much as I will. The usual tourist spots. Kusadasi, the ruins in that area. Fethiye, Oludeniz and Pamukkale. It would be another story to list my discoveries. However, one of them was when my daughter came to visit. She was not a 'good traveler'. Me wanting her to love Turkey as much as I did not to mention, return with a favorable report to my parents. I chose a fairly benign trip checking out some of the ancient wonders of the world. The incredible archeological ruins and places where she could do scuba diving...All went well until we arrived at Pamukkale...Her own fault, we ate at a huge restaurant catering to the bus loads of Tourists across from the site... I did caution her against, some cream dish and she did not eat much....

Never the less a few hours later developed, her first case of 'Tourista' a very bad case (I don't say that lightly). I informed the proprietors, what was going on and that our plans for leaving the next day were postponed. I made it quite clear that my daughter did not get sick from their wonderful meals...but that we had to wait it out...on the third day . Angelina requested solid food...an apple

I walked around to various small stores. No apples, about a mile and a half away. I stopped at yet another store, an old women was crocheting yazma (design on fabric) outside and a younger woman running the store I asked for apples she pointed out the nar (pomegranate)
I said " Well ... my daughter, she wanted an apple"
She " Oh for your daughter, wait right here, I'll go home and get her some"
My Turkish is not that good but I did understand wait and she'll be back
She did indeed return a few minutes later, with some apples, refused money and said
"I hope she feels better gecmis olsun... "

I had never seen this woman before, we were a mile and a half away from the hotel. Frankly between you and me, Tourista is not that rare, it happens everywhere, people get it in America.

I was and still am stunned at the caring of these Turks. My daughter and I were a long way from home and yet I felt more cared for and safe, there in that tiny köy (village) than I ever was in America. The prologue of this story is that we did indeed make it back to Istanbul by train (another story). Angelina, returned home a bit fatter off all the great food here. She was so inspired by traveling in Turkey that she decided to start traveling herself just finished a tour in Central America.

What is your preferred characteristic trait of Turks?
Their day to day thoughtfulness . It is such a contrast from where I've been.

What was the annoying one?
Their kindness it makes me paranoid.

Turkish Cuisine?
Its All Good!!! From the skewered karaciger (lamb liver) behind the Yagmur café to Balık Yumurtası (fish eggs) but my favorite is koyun (lamb) did I mention all the goodies from those Pastalerini places like 'Özdilek' and ooh la la the Biber (hot pepper), the daily fresh bread. Safe to say there is nothing I have tasted here that I don't like or love.

Any suggestion to new comers to Turkey?
Walk, walk, walk around . Life becomes normal all to quickly drink in the difference.

Any suggestion to people planning to visit your region?
Check out Eminönü, Take a Turkish bath . See the Archeological sites that they've only heard about in a Biblical text. Stop at a pub in Taksim and listen to the live folk music, And Relax you're among good people.

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