settled and comfortable

so being in an apartment is a thousand times better than being in a hostel. sure, there aren't any argentinians obsessed with walt whitman running around, but i have my own space with my books organized on the low table at the foot of my bed, a sitting room- aaaaah.
additionally, uğur is currently in germany, so i actually have the place all to myself. breath of fresh air.

tuesday i mostly just wandered around taksim/beyoğlu. when i say this, don't imagine my day was uneventful. as burcu told me in a facebook message: 'in fact, don't leave beyoğlu. i wish i was there right now.' its quite the place. the highlight of tuesday was the 'homer' academic english bookshop. seriously, it competes with my favorite place in berkeley, university press books. its dangerous, and i haven't been back since.
wednesday i went back to sultanhamet area and went to the hagia sofia. as the guidebooks say, don't be fooled by its drab exterior. it is one of the most incredible buildings in the world, for sure. one of the little plaques on the upper balcony area read 'this is where the empress would celebrate the mass.' one thing i've been trying to do wandering around in all these incredible places is to imagine the now-empty (or at least tourist-filled) buildings in the height of their glory. i have to say it was hard to fathom the hagia sofia full of people celebrating a Christian liturgy.
after the hagia sofia, i went to the topkapı palace, the main palace of the ottoman sultans. i'll have to go back because i skipped out on the treasury (because of long lines) and the harem (because i spent way too much on lunch at the palace cafe- note to self: do not eat in touristy areas), but the place is pretty cool. the view overlooking the rest of istanbul (the palace is on a little cape portion of the city) itself makes it worth it, but the blue isnik tiles really take the cake. when i stop being lazy i'll post pictures, but i highly recommend a wikipedia article or something on iznik tiles- sooo beautiful.
thursday, i took care of little things. electricity, a new pen, a pencil sharpener for my sacred orange pencils- it's amazing what an effect the little things have. additionally, i finally got over to asia and had yoğurt and turkish coffee (i won't debate the merits of calling it 'armenian coffee' since im in turkey) with nicole. taking a ferry across the bosphorus- starting in europe and ending in asia- is pretty freaking sweet. i read the english language newspaper, the 'turkish daily news,' on my way across and felt like one of the thousands of people that commute by ferry across the bosphorus daily.
friday was a trip to the istanbul modern art museum. it was fun, but nothing mindblowing- although the retrospective of a turkish painter, cihat burak, was highly enjoyable. i couldn't bring myself to pay the 60 lira for the book though- ebay anyone?

finally, a couple side comments. on wednesday and thursday, before uğur left, his whole family was around the apartment. i got several family style meals, and weds night we stayed up drinking rakı while they all played guitar, drums, and sang. quite the experience for only using craigslist- i feel really lucky to get a glimpse into turkish life a little. glad i chose to rent a room and not an apartment (so is my pocketbook).
also, i have found my little cafe. many know i love being a 'regular,' and there is this cute little cafe right around the corner from my apartment. the first day i had tea and soup, the next day there was tea on my table and he was telling me what today's soup was. they are really friendly, and it makes my day start really well when i wave and shout 'günyadın!' (good morning!) when i leave the apartment in the morning.

in other words, im finding a niche in my little area, getting a better feel for public transit, and if i could just figure out if there is a drying function on the washer...
pictures soon, honestly! iyi günler! (good day!)