Farewell Istanbul

This morning we visited the Asian side of Istanbul.  This is the area where many families choose to call home.  It is also the most liberal part of the city, with very few women donning head scarves.  This is not a tourist area and it has an entirely different feel about it.

The Orient Express originated in Istanbul, so we had a chance to visit the train station before hopping on the ferry.  It really has a charming feel of the luxurious days gone by when travel was very refined.  After taking a few photos, we caught one the ferries for a short boat ride to Asia.  

The Saturday street market was in full swing upon our arrival.  Shop after shop displayed the fresh catch of the day, with the shop owners turning the gills out to show the freshness of the fish which were displayed much like a bouquet of flowers.  There were also fresh vegetables and fruits displayed in attractive bins on the pedestrian walkways.  Candy stores with beautiful sweets competed with fresh pastry shops for our attention.  I walked into one bakery and was engulfed by the sweet smell of fresh baked croissants and cakes topped with fruity icings.  The cheese croissants finally were too enticing, so I gave in to my hunger and bought one to enjoy on the streets.  We crisscrossed the pedestrian paths until it was time to head back.  This workshop had fully lived up to my expectations as did the city of Istanbul.

With the workshop concluded, a few of us headed back to the market behind the blue mosque to do a little more shopping before heading home.  The scarves were exquisite and too hard to pass up as gifts for the upcoming Christmas season.  Others were buying Turkish towels to take home to loved ones.  Knowing I had limited space in my bag, I judiciously chose a few items and then headed back to pack before going out for one final meal.

Earlier in the week, several of us had attempted to dine at Maya, which had come highly recommended to us, but were unable to secure a table at this intimate restaurant.  Our hotel had called (or so we thought) to make a reservation for us this evening.  When we arrived, the Maître‘d failed to find our names on the list.  He was unable to accommodate us and sent us back onto the streets at the peak of the dining hour with a handful of suggestions nearby.  It seemed every restaurant was booked solid, so we grabbed a cab to try and find something in the area.  This turned into a wild goose chase, with us essentially returning near our starting point after a frustrating tour of the city.  Back at the Galata tour, we found a place willing to move a few people around in order to seat us.  It was really a fun little place where we were able to find a pizza and salad and did not let the adventure ruin the evening. 

I had an early flight, so I slept a few hours before heading to the airport on Sunday morning for 24 hours of traveling, the worst part of any trip.  This week found new friends and sharpened camera skills.  It also whetted my appetite to return to Turkey for an extended trip, hopefully to show my husband some of the charming areas I was able to explore this week.  Ira and Liza are already talking about a trip next September which hopefully I’ll be able to join along with my new friends to continue to improve my skills and discover new sites.  

Check Your Ego at the Door

An early alarm for some of us called us to a sunrise shoot at a bridge lined with fishermen and people heading to work.  The light was great which meant our pictures should also be worth our early start.  The fishermen loved showing off their catch, practically flagging us down to have their photos taken.  There were also street vendors preparing for their day, some squeezing pomegranate juice for breakfast and others grilling fish for lunch.  It was really a great scene.

This morning was our first critique session by Ira Block, the National Geographic photographer running our workshop along with Liza Politti.  We had to cull through our photos from the previous day and present 8-10 for Ira to comment on.  Since we are here to learn, Ira can be quite picky about how we could have improved our work.  There are a few people in the workshop that have a lot of experience and it showed in what they presented.  Out of my eight, three were considered good without any comment, a couple could have used minor improvements and three were just not great.  I'm hoping to improve my keep percentage by the end of the week.

It was time to hit the streets again.  We caught a tram to the Galata side (still part of Europe) and were set free to have lunch and room the streets.  With food always at the top of my list, four of us struck out to Midpoint, a rooftop bar and restaurant with delicious salads and great people watching.  However, time was wasting and we needed to get back out to find those unforgettable shots.

This side of the river is very vibrant and filled with Turks not tourists.  We found lots of friendly (which is almost everyone here) people more than willing to have their pictures taken.  The main street where all the important life events of the city are held (parades, celebrations, etc.) is full of shops and restaurants with people filling the street.  This was a great place to be.

We all met back at Galata Tower to head to yet another rooftop bar for a sunset shoot and some hot chocolate.  This city loves its rooftop retreats!  The sky was filling with lovely blues, reds and golds which we were able to capture with the help of Ira.

Several of us retired to 360, a bar and restaurant with, you guessed it, a 360 degree view of the city.  After drinks we dined on Asian fusion and a little Italian thrown in for good measure.  Our walk back to the trolley gave us a whole different look at the city, now with lights hanging over the streets and lighting the shops. Istanbul is a late night town with shops staying open until 11 when the clubs start heating up.  This was a fantastic day of photography!