Oh Istanbul

Something about the weather this morning made me feel like I was in Istanbul. Maybe it was the uncharacteristically balmy 60 degree temperature I enjoyed walking to work. Maybe it was the scent of the many shop and restaurant workers smoking outside their establishments. Maybe it was the sound of the cars honking or the buses passing by on the wet pavement. Or maybe it was the state of my heart and mind this morning.

Whatever it was, I was overcome with the desire to hop on a ferry to cross the Bosphorus and spend a few hours at my favorite park and tea garden in Moda (on the Asian side). I could practically taste the Turkish tea, feel the breeze as it blew the pages of my journal, see the islands peeking out of the glistening Marmara Sea, hear the seagulls barking and the children playing and chattering in Turkish at the nearby playground… Even though I wasn’t really there, for a couple minutes this morning, I was refreshed by recalling these welcome senses.

How I miss my beloved Istanbul…