Stıll Goıng Strong

I vısıted the Grand Bazaar today and got some of my Chrıstmas shoppıng done.  So far everythıng ıs turnıng out better than expected... actually, I had a really good day today.  Maybe not as relaxıng as the day I spent ısland hoppıng but defınıtely memorable.

I started thıs thıng where I buy myself one new scarf a day for as long as I am ın Turkey.  Saturday was green checkered pashmına, Sunday was pale blue woven sılk wıth a darker cobalt strıpe, Monday was dark teal cashmere that matched the water around the ıslands and kept me warm on deck, Tuesday I had a golden sılk scarf from the Spıce Bazaar so delıcate ıt was almost too fıne to run through my hands, and today I bought a really fıne mesh green nylon wıth whıte strıps and beaded ends... Tomorrow I am not sure what I wıll do for my last one... maybe somethıng from one of the Asıan Turkısh cultures wıth some embroıdery or somethıng.

So now I just need to fınısh my shoppıng and see ıf I am brave enough for the Galata Brıdge and Tower tomorrow:.. and maybe I wıll go through the Hıppodrome and take some more photos of the Blue Mosque sınce I dıdnt get very many good ones the fırst tıme.

Apologıes for the state oıf my punctuatıon the keyboards here are really weırd.  Also my Kındle ran out of juıce today and the charger I found was not compatıble.  If thats not a sıgn ıts tıme to come home then I dont know what ıs.

Greetıngs from Istanbul!

I have had a few days to get used to the cıty and I am lovıng every mınute of ıt.  I spent my fırst couple of days walkıng around takıng ın the sıghts around the Blue Mosque, and yesterday I spent my afternoon hoppıng around between the ıslands of the Marmara Sea.  I got good and  lost at my last port ın the Asıan subcontınent but I dıd fınaly fıgure ıt out and get back to the European sıde before the trams shut down for the nıght.  I spent most of today ın the Spıce Market spendıng too much money and buyıng new luggage for the flıght home -- I am goıng to need more space to store the heaps of herb soaps and tea leaves I am brıngıng wıth me.

All ıs well otherwıse -- I'll have tons of good storıes to tell when I get home.

Headed to Istanbul Tomorrow!

I know it's been a while since I updated this blog, but in all fairness it's also been a while since I went anywhere exciting.  I'm going to try to post some updates while I'm away, and maybe some photos if the technology in the Internet Cafes and my camera want to cooperate with me.

This trip has been a very long time in the making.  I kind of scratched my head for a few months trying to figure out where to go, and then: BAM.  Turkey.  Congratulations to the Turkish tourism board, you got me.

If you're keeping tabs on the border issues between Turkey and Syria, please don't worry; I'm going to stay in Istanbul and the region around the Black Sea, so I should be safe and well away from any fighting.

I've got a few minor housekeeping things to take care of before I go: batteries to charge, books to download, and I'd like to find my missing iPod...  Still, this trip could not come at a better time for me.  It's been a crazy year, lots of ups and downs, but I'm in a good place and looking forward to a week away from the office.

Wish me luck!

Formula 1 and Ferrari Racing

For the past two years, Brice and I have frantically thrown together last minute plans and attended the Formula 1 Grand Prix in Montreal.

This is always a great time for me, because I'm free to let myself be swept away into an alien culture (cars) and colonial splendor (Montreal) for what basically amounts to their biggest public holiday of the year, outside of the Stanley Cup. Oh, yeah, did I mention the final game in the series was being played that same weekend in Toronto, beset by many riots? It was a good time to be in Canada.

Other than the obligatory hours I have to spend behind the wheel for our crazy all-night road trip, it's a pretty relaxing time. We usually arrive at around 4AM, and then we get up early to watch the qualifying rounds and take photos of the track the next day. Mostly, I just keep an eye on our stuff while Brice runs around like a little boy in toy store, read on my Kindle in the sun, and enjoy a couple nights out on the town.

This year we were met with better track-side seats (awesome) and a massive downpour (less awesome). But, the race wasn't canceled, so I guess it was worth the soak. We drank our wine (Rose), cheered our driver (Kobayashi) and celebrated on the track when our team (McLaren) pulled a victory out the last minute over RedBull. There are other cars racing over the course of the weekend -- a whole series devoted just to Ferrari cars come to mind -- but if you want more details about that, check out Brice's blog.

I deal with 10 hours of flaring tempers and driving criticism both ways each spring for one reason, and one reason only: people watching. (OK -- two reasons; it's fun to hang out with Brice when he's not yelling at me to stop singing along with the radio.) F1 Racing is not NASCAR. It draws spectators from all over the world, from the extremely rich Euro-fans who fly across the Atlantic each year to the nearly broke native Canadians who shared their stolen umbrellas with us, F1 has some incredible characters and stereotypes. On the subway, for instance, we saw a herd of "REDBUL ROOOOOOOOOOOCKS!" Guys. And at the track, there were little clusters of "So Italian it Hurts" Men. But I think my favorite, bar none, are the Racing Wives.

Racing Wives are tan, in their mid 40s, and wear $800 sunglasses in the rain. They don't sit in general admission with the rest of us mortals, because that would be unpleasant, but they don't really sit in the grandstands, either. Somehow, they're constantly flitting back and forth between beefy men with binoculars and merchandise tents, keeping their expensive handbags clutched tight under manicured nails. I think they would be fairly boring if they didn't have such ridiculous social rituals and customs. When one Racing Wife passes another, she tosses her hair and looks down her nose -- just over the top of her aviators -- at the other Racing Wife, who has reciprocated by tossing her own hair and positioning her multi-carat wedding rings closer to the challenging female. I've yet to reason out what makes one Racing Wife Alpha and the others Beta, but I anticipate there will be future F1 race-days to work it out.

So thank you, Brice, for treating me to yet another ear-splitting, people-watching road trip to Canada. If we try this again next year, I might even know enough about the drivers to make small talk with you!