daily life

  • Building bridges… will Istanbul get a third?

    Written by Casey on February 15th, 2012 in I was in Turkey, Living in Turkey, Travel1 Comment
    Building bridges… will Istanbul get a third?
    Will Istanbul get the controversial third Bosphorus bridge? Development was planned to start this year, but it seems it’s a rough road full of potholes./strong> Traffic. That’s all I’m saying, and if you’ve been to Istanbul, I need not explain. If you can’t picture an intercontinental traffic jam (you know, the ones that happen somewhere between Asia and Europe), take a taxi tour at peak hour across one of the Bosphorus bridges. Or even at 2am in the morning. Then you’ll know the very inspiration for building a third bridge across the Bosphorus Strait. Probably, you’ll even be swearing for...

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  • İş kötüydü ama muhabbet iyiydi – the business was bad, but the conversation was good

    Written by Tajda on May 19th, 2010 in Living in Turkey, Turkish CultureNo comments yet
    İş kötüydü ama muhabbet iyiydi – the business was bad, but the conversation was good
    “Come to my office” or “come to the shop”, “stop by at my workplace” – Turkish people seem to work a lot: they work until late in the evening and very often on Saturdays as well. But, due to the relaxed atmosphere on most of the work places, the workplace seems to be a socializing site where people spend time with their colleagues, or a place to which they can invite their friends and family. The small shops – dükkanlar in the Istiklal Street and in the Tünel, as well as the bakkals and the shops in the bazaars, are...

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  • Danger Is My Middle Name

    Written by Suzanne on May 10th, 2010 in Living in Turkey1 Comment
    Danger Is My Middle Name
    “Why did you take a cab?  It’s a waste of money!” Personally, I thought that my hour-long, $30 cab ride from the airport was worth every penny.  I hadn’t been able to carry my bags all the way to the subway, much less handle them for the whole three hour trip by subway, tram, boat, and bus I would have otherwise needed to take.  Coming in from Germany, my twenty minute trip to the airport had cost about the same, making the Turkish ride seem like a bargain.  The real shock, though, came when my friends asked me to join...

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