Interview with expatinterviews.com

I am excited to say that the people over at expatinterviews.com recently came across my blog and asked if they could interview me for their website. The site is run by Victor Volder, who lives in the Netherlands and Lizza Capucion, a freelance writer who lives in the Philippines.

They interview expats and are particularly interested in "what motivated people to live in another part of the world, how they generate their income, how they manage to live there, and what they’ve learned from their experiences in a land that's become their new home."

To check out the interview, including some of my thoughts and tips on moving to Turkey, click here!

And a big thank you to Victor and Lizza.

Yogurt fresh from the farm

Some of the fresh produce available here is delicious! We are particularly lucky here in Yenikoy because at our local market (pazar) there is a guy selling lots of yummy cheeses, sucuk (garlic sausage/salami type thing) and cured meats. He also sells this yoghurt we decided to try. It is water buffalo yoghurt! It comes in a beautiful terracotta pot which is a bonus. I might even get around to buying a plant to put in it once we finish to put on the windowsill in the kitchen.

The flavour was gorgeous! How to describe it? Hmmm...thick, full bodied, home made, even a little bit of a cheese flavour to it. We had ours with Yesil Fasulye, but I could easily imagine having it with a cheese plate - Camemberts, quince paste, fresh peaches and freshly toasted bread pieces rubbed with garlic. Mmmm, I wish I was having that right now!












*Ooh, I forgot to mention my yoghurt hot tip...the cheese/yoghurt guy said that you should always use a wooden spoon, never metal, to stop the yoghurt from getting watery *

Cheeky boy

Here is another photo of the little cutie pie! I loved the captions for last weeks photo - thank you! Keep them coming! My entry for this week is 'no, really, Mummy, that's enough with the photo taking!'

It's getting hot in here...

It's heating up here so, inspired by Lindsay Lohan, (just kidding!) I decided I was in desperate need of some jean shorts.

So I took a pair of old favourites...

and sacrificed them for the greater good!

Decided they were in need of some pimping up so added a few stitches, ok maybe not pimping up but at least a little tszuj in the spirit of Carson from Queer Eye.

The finished product! Am loving them so much I could hardly bear to take them off to photograph them - seriously!

ps. the Lindsay photo is from Celbridiot.com where you can find many more Lindsay jean-short photos...if that's what you're in to.

A swim in the Bosphorus?

The Bosphorus looked so inviting on the weekend. The weather was just a little sticky, the water glistened. We didn't venture in though. Apparently the currents can be strong and although we saw others swimming I'm not so sure about how clean it is.

Thousands of ships sail along the Bosphorus every year carrying cargo, petrol and gas. Although it is beautiful to watch the huge ships sailing past, they bring with them the risk of accidents because of the heavy water traffic and pose a hazard for the gorgeous and historic yalis and mosques that line the shores.

These dogs didn't seem to mind though!

Yashar Weekly Photo

After many insistent requests (demands!) from family and friends for Yashar updates I have decided to post a weekly photo of Yashar! Plus he is just such a cutie! He is is definitely my favourite subject to photograph and so coming up with a weekly photo is no problem at all - it's more a case of which one! He loves bath time, but this is a more serious moment I think...so many possible captions! It would be so super cool if you left some possible captions in the comments section - next week I will pick a favourite and add it to this post.

And the winner is...'hmmm...shall I leave the jacuzzi and hit the big pool?' !!!!
Loved the comments!!! Thank you! It was very hard to decide on the winner (ended up having to have a vote here).

Manyak misin?!!!!

If you have ever been to Istanbul you will know that sometimes the traffic can be pretty crazy here. My favourite Turkish phrase at the moment is 'Manyak misin?!!!' that is 'Are you a maniac?!!!' I have managed to drive a few times here now (of course with Senol directing me every step of the way). The first couple of times were surprisingly easy. No near misses, no incensed drivers bashing their horns.

The most recent time was a little more stressful! Lots more traffic, cars darting in and out in front of me, narrow streets winding up steep hillsides with Audis and Mercedes parked on one side and sheer drops to the other. Let's just say that it ended with @#$@!! and me throwing the car keys at Senol! Hehehe - very funny...in retrospect.

So this morning we decided to take a more leisurely form of transport and caught the ferry from Yenikoy to Eminonu. It was very early in the morning and was gorgeous and refreshing.


The visit to the Police Headquarters for my temporary residency was not quite as relaxing. It's a funny old place. All the Turkish police women are gorgeous, you have to line up early for a number and then wait around for hours in crowded hallways while the Police go outside and have long smoke breaks. The visit ended with two Russian pros sizing me up in the hallway.

Ahhh...is this the sweet life in Turkey???

And she's back!

Wow, that took longer than I thought. We have been busy moving, buying new things for the apartment and generally getting settled... and I have been totally mesmerised by the views. I often look out and can't believe I'm living here!

There is, however, a price to pay for these views. Let's just say that we now have no need to go to the gym. Poor Senol went up and down these stairs so many times with our things that he has already lost weight! (conveniently Yashar always needed looking after at exactly those moments)

It's pretty steep around here. No gentle strolls allowed. But still I love it! The area where we are is so close to Senol's work but has a little village feel. The neighbours are friendly and the kids play soccer every evening on the street. Vegetable sellers make their way up the hills every day yelling out 'green beans! tomatoes!' as old ladies emerge from their gardens to buy something for dinner. Plus soon I will have a very toned up husband!

Moving!

Yay! We are moving into our new apartment at the moment so I won't be posting for the next few days.

The Euro Cup comes to Velibaba

A Euro Cup qualifier in Velibaba. The weather was perfect for a match.

The star striker stopped to sign autographs and to allow the paparazzi to take a few shots.

The match was intense.


The spectators were on the edge of their seats.










The umpire's decisions were constantly disputed.








The match ended in a draw, with a rematch planned as soon as the players finish school for the day!