Breakfast (with pictures)

Yesterday I wrote an incomplete blog entry about Turkish breakfast, because there were no photos of the food. http://melaniesdubaidiary.blogspot.com.tr/2015/05/turkish-breakfast.html

Today I made an effort to document my breaky before devouring. 

At first, I thought we just got really lucky that the complimentary breakfast here was amazing, but I'm figuring out that with the hotels here, a nice breakfast is a major thing, many hotels in Istanbul have rival spreads. 

Front and center is, like scrambled eggs with chorizo, but with a Turkish spicy sausage. Very tasty.

The biggest surprise for me is simit, Turkish bagel. I love bagels, and had never heard of this. It's thinner than the huge NY bagels, so when I saw it, it looked to me like a round pretzel. These have very nice toasted sesame seeds and other spices, so it's like a great everything bagel that you can eat plain. 

The fried french toast seems over the top to me, I like it fine on the griddle, but that's how they do here. It's great with the nice range of preserves to choose from.

Also, you can see the plates are personalized, along with the view, this place seems super fancy to me, but is only a modest price to stay. 

I haven't stayed anywhere else in Istanbul, the Sultanamet area was strongly recommended, but I'm glad I have stayed in Beyologu/Pera.

It's a little noisy at night, because it's so fun. But I suggest you join the fun, or use the earplugs that are supplied to you, along with a shoehorn.not together of course.. 

It's also worth mentioning there are a lot of gay guy couples here. I'm not sure if Istanbul is notably gay-friendly, but the antiques neighborhood is nearby, with rug shopping not far away, so they probably regularly host same sex couples. Even more reason to party in Begoylou, I hope gay friends, and everyone actually, will come check it out.

I love breakfast, here are more pics: 

Hamam

I finally had my first Turkish bath  www.galatasarayhamami.com/hammam/ in Turkey! Done by a real Turkish lady, in a place that has been around since 1481. That isn't very old in 

the scale of Turkish places, but I was in awe of the entire experience. The nice ladies who run this place have all been there since opening.

To start, I walked in the men's baths, and got an eyeful- I always consider myself a "main entrance" kind of gal, but in the hamam world, the ladies section is the alternate entrance at the back...

I found the correct door and walked up these old marble stairs. 

Everything inside is also marble and ornate decor, but I didn't take any pictures, because there's a lot of nakedness.

I got the "pasha package" which is steam, washing, intense rubbing exfoliation, more washing and steaming, then a 20 minute oil massage, which turns you into a wet noodle. The entire thing was about an hour and a half. 190 TL = $72

I got undressed, was given spa panties, awkwardly put them on, then covered in a towel. A lot of this experience, especially if you don't speak Turkish, is like one of those "naked dreams" where you think "what am I doing? What am I supposed to do now?"

Upon entering the communal steam room, the naked bodies of other ladies somehow made me think I wasn't supposed to be uncovered, but Turkish grandma took my towel off me and told me to go lay down, I obeyed, and it was divine. So hot, steamy, and relaxing. A beautiful old place- where you lay on warm marble and stare at the beautiful dome ceiling. Can't find a good picture on the internets, use your imagination.

I followed the lead of other ladies and used the copper bowls to pour warm or cold water over my sweaty body. Sensational.

At just about the right time the lady came in and indicated it was my turn. She was also just wearing panties, whereas at other places, not in Turkey, they wear little shorts and tank tops. This little lady needed my help putting her bra on for the service, I helped, it was all part of the strange dream, which was real.

So she scrubs me down, face to feet. When she pointed for me to get up and go to the sink to rinse, a lot of me was left on the marble slab. The exfoliation took a lot of stuff off that I didn't realize was there... Gross. Good thing she washed away the evidence, from the table and from my body.. Next is the soaping, a full front and back wash that makes you feel like a newborn baby. More gray skin left behind, so icky. Thanks Turkish grandma! She was so pleasant and kind, I was very gracious and thankful for her patience and expertise.

It was indicated we were done for now, so I was to lay there and steamed a little longer. 

Some Russian ladies came in together and were chattering, they realized it was quiet in the room and started whispering to each other. I wanted to say, "it's okay, I don't understand Russian." But didn't break the peace, even though I enjoy eavesdropping on languages I do not comprehend.

 I was getting hot and thirsty now, and thankfully could feel my lingering sinus problem going away. I went and rinsed off again, perfect timing, Turkish granny came to get me and gave me a bottle of water. We all sat together, me in only a towel, drinking water, the bath attendants/masseuses talking about the gal who just came in, they seemed not to like her.

Then I was taken upstairs to get my massage, which really wasn't necessary, because I was completely relaxed. But it gave my muscles a little extra relaxation, and my skin is now glowing fresh with mineral oil. Selfie inside my little changing room. 

I saw these great pictures and graffiti on my way out the door, to the back alley. 

Paris Hilton plays the lute there on Friday evenings.

What a great time. During this trip I'm planning to go to another historic hamam that was recommended to me. At what point have you been over-exfoliated? 

Turkish Breakfast

Similar to Greek breakfast, or a regular continental breakfast the Turkish put out a tasty array of bread, olives, and spreads. At the Troya Hotel in the Pera neighborhood of Istanbul, the view is also very yummy. It's about 65F, 16C here, with a sea breeze from the Bosphorus.

Should have taken a pic of my fried toast with cherries, but they were devoured before the idea sunk in to blog. 

Erik and I were here two weeks ago on a historical sightseeing marathon, but this week I'm on my own for the IFLA (International Federation of Library Associations) Presidents Meeting. The topic of the meeting is "The Future of Libraries." If the Hunt Library of NCState  University is any indication, scenic verandas are a part of the future of celebrated libraries.