We had lunch at the new Kitchenette in Bebek today. The building looks gorgeous, one of the finest buildings in Istanbul (according to my humble taste), but the service wasn't that good. Everything we wanted to order, we had to ask 3 times, and that didn't even guarantee getting what we wanted. Fortunately it was in our favor to not be able to order dessert.Kitchenette, an English word, kitchen, and a French suffix, -ette. And what happens when you have to visit restroom at Kitchenette? Well, you have to look for the sign that says Toilettes, which is supposed to give a flair to good old "toilets". The Kitchenette people must have a thing for that kind of mix up . . .
After lunch I walked home by the waterside, on my own. The weather was wonderful. Just a beautiful Istanbul day with the sun shining on the water, seagulls fighting over the available fish, and fishermen checking out the girls who walk by.
I admit that sometimes I feel sad about leaving this place. Leaving all this organized mess behind me, with all the colors of nature but also the pulse of a metropolitan city. There were times I thought I should leave, but I guess never really wanted to leave all my dreams behind, which were closely interrelated with this place I tried so hard to get to since I was 16. But the time to go is coming closer, and something inside me says this is the way it should be. And the Turkish men who stare at me as I walk by the sea enjoying the nice day like everyone else is, don't help change my mind. Neither do the 'women in black', that I see around almost every day of the week that I go out now. Maybe it's not 'my Istanbul' anymore, maybe the city has fallen.
But it's still the place that holds a lot of my dearest friends and fondest memories.
(pictures by pelin)
