Travels on Sandals

Heaps of friends have been asking about Turkey since we came back this week, almost all asked with a concerned look,"But how's the food?"

So I'm putting together bits and pieces of our experience of Istanbul and Ephesus, which really can be summed up in a word: splendid.

1. We stayed at Tashkonak Hotel, which is a wooden house that resembles a boxy version of the Trojan Horse. Staying boutique style means very personal and warm service from our host, Levent:''Your first time in Istanbul? Ah, first time is the best time, first kiss is the best kiss, right?'' Sometimes, a bit too personal:"You guys married? Oh, you should get married, marriage is good.''

2. Ah yes, Turkish men are typically charming and extremely good talkers. Five parts smoothness, four parts impish humour and a dose of delicious sarcasm, even. They can give Frenchmen and Italian men a run for their money. Turkish hospitality is not a myth, either.

Straight after closing a sale with us, our travel agent promptly invited us to have lunch nearby with her.

3. The Blue Mosque and the Basilica Cistern are fantastic. But more splendid than the two is the Aya Sofya, or Sancta Sophia. Built about 1500 years ago as a Roman church, and turned into a mosque in the 15 th century, it is the most jaw-dropping, awe-inspiring structure I've ever seen.

The grandeur of this place is beyond description. It has gigantic soaring domes with no apparent supports, a design that has baffled architects for centuries. The building materials are marble, gold tiles and alabaster. In every nook and crevice, there are ornate carvings, amazingly detailed mosaics and gleaming gold fixtures. Each corner is a work of art! It defies imagination that something so grand and yet so exquisitely detailed can be built with "backward" technology, AND survive wars and incessant earthquakes.

4. We took a day trip to Ephesus. Making our own way there on a domestic flight (forgive me for feeling proud:D), we were then driven to the 2000 year-old Roman ruins. They're not exactly that ruined, you know. You can see an entire marble-paved (no joke!) main street, with a bathhouse, hospital with a manual on "how remove stones from the body", apothecary, a 25,000-seater amphtheatre, a brothel and a bee-yoo-tiful grand library, largely intact. They found make up tools, among other household items, in a row of rich people's homes. Roman women used tweezers too! So we aren't that advanced after all.

5. To answer your pressing concern: The food, the food. It's rather yummy, really. Of course, Turkish stuff is nothing like what we are used to eating. But it ain't all kebaps and cheese. We had Turkish food throughout our entire trip, and each meal is different. The cooking is honest and straightforward. Meaning your chicken or fish is simply and beautifully barbecued and complemented with a mound of flavoured rice and salad. Fresh produce is unadulterated, unmolested. There are restaurants with fancy decor, there are street stalls whose stuff we bought through sign language. The food's equally good.

6. A treasure of Turkey are the myriad roadside stalls. Buying street food is a ritual and an adventure. On the famous Galata Bridge tht straddles Old and modern Istanbul, little boys man stands full of mussels. The modus operandi, we learnt, is to go up, open one of them fried mussels stuffed with rice, and the boy will squeeze a wedge of lemon in it. You eat on the spot, and pay when you're finally done. At 40 cents a pop, the mussels are delicious!

Then there are cucumber stalls, where the guy will peel of the skin for a customer, slice the top like an open flower, sprinkle some salt, and voila! A grab and run summer snack.

7. Istanbul can be a shopping paradise, but surprisingly, I came away with only two bargain pashminas. Heaven knows I did enough damage in Hong Kong.

The Istanbul markets are a real treat just to see and hear and smell. You see mother-of-pearl inlaid jewellery boxes, copper Aladdin lamps, silk cushion covers and yes, Andrea, gorgeous tea glasses lined in gold. Haggling is a joy, too. Buying something at 10 dollars is a different level of satisfaction from buying something priced at 20 but you managed to bargain down to 10.

10. How friendly is friendly? Random people will walk up to us on the street and say:''Hello, where are you from? Welcome to Istanbul! Have a good trip." and walk away. Kids will ask to take pictures with us. Yes, we do feel like aliens. VIP aliens.

9. There are so many places we have yet to cover in these five days - Troy, Pergamum, Capadocia. We made a promise. We will be back.

On The Road

You must all come to Istanbul. It is well worth the 20 hours spent flying, stopping and flyıng agaın.

We arrıved at our tiny sliver of a boutique hotel in the heritage area of Sultanhemet, fıve minutes' walk from the Unesco protected sıtes. It is a lovely wooden hotel on a street with cobbled stones.

Breakfast on the rooftop is quıte ordinary - bread, olives, cheese and boil egg. But the view ıs anything but - unless you call the vıew of the gıgantıc 15th century Blue Mosque ordınary.

We visited the Mosque for free. It was grand and tranquil. But the sight that left me gobsmacked was the Underground Cıstern built 1500 years ago by a Roman Emperor. It must be the most glamorous water storage tank there is.

Supported by more than 300 ornate columns rısıng above a pool of water, and ıllumınated by tıny lıghts, the enormous cavern is cold and surreal. It's survıved all these centuries perfectly intact. Utter magic.

An incredibly Turkish experience is the grand bazaar and its surroundıng alleys. The throng of humanity vie for your senses along with the spices, fresh produce, crafts and wares on sale ın hundreds of little shops. Shopkeepers shout theır wares whıle temptıng you with apple tea in ornate glasses... I love the feel of it.

We are perhaps two of a handful of Asian people here. It is impossible to disguise our "tourıst" status. So we are targeted by persıstent touts everywhere we go. But that aside, ordınary people wıll come up and say hello, just for the sake of ıt. And schoolkids will run up and greet you with warm smiles, like we are a novelty. It totally melts my heart.

Time for dinner. Is it possıble to get kebaped-out in a week? There are always meatballs and more meatballs as an alternatıve. I will blog more when I find a better keyboard to type with.

Are We There Yet?

"But you'll never find, peace of mind, till you listen to your heart"
- from the song Kissing A Fool

Here are a few of my favourite things:
Book of the week: If Andy Warhol Had a Girlfriend (by Alison Pace), a light, sparkly love story set in the art world.

Album of the week: Tsai Chin's retro hits

Dish of the week: A tie between crab linguine swimming in creamy tomato sauce at Menotti's and garlicky char kuay teow at Marine Parade food centre.


Work was so exhausting, I literally spent the whole of today in bed. Thank goodness next week is vacation week. But before going, the pain before the gain - an interview I have to do for ad industry wanker.... Remember that pesky guy from last year that wanted publicity for an event six months down the road? Well, the six months have passed, and he's at it again.

Once in a blue blue moon, when I have to do a non-story, I feel like such a sell-out. Perhaps it's something a waiter would feel when he has to serve a dish that he knows is icky, or a used car salesman who has to sell what he knows is a wreck. You feel sorry for the end user.

A good story speaks for itself. A non-story is just maybe one part information and nine parts spin.

Something to look forward to though, is the trip to Istanbul. It's a 20 hour journey, in proletariat class.... I don't fly well, sweethearts. Can imagine popping my head every now and then in the cockpit and asking,''Are we there yet? Huh? Huh?"

But it's a dream holiday we've been planning for months. A land of byzantine-era mosques and
rooftop terraces strewn with cushions, where you can watch the golden sunset with a drink in hand.

Can't wait for Tuesday... Are we there yet?

Push and Pull

These few weeks, I've been aching for Sydney again. I cannot call it homesickness, since it isn't really home... I've got news of my application, after 11 months, but more like an eternity.

Maybe it's the endless days of 35 degree heat here. Or perhaps it's the tragic state of social behaviour ( graciousness in public places simply hasn't caught on in Singapore and - trust me, darlings - never will). Or just the feeling of being intellectually trapped under a box - there is no one to have a coffee and talk ideas with. Everyone seems to be in a hurry to move up a tax bracket or two.

Of course, there are huge reasons to stay. Work is interesting and it's heaps of fun to work amongst brilliant, good-humoured young people. And there's Boy.

But I do miss the atmosphere of anything goes :the eclectic viewpoints, the intellectual buzz, the smell of coffee as you walk down Missenden, the eucalyptus scent that lingers in the air after a storm. Life was simple, but delicious.