A Sunday Stroll

This afternoon, your three favorite Fulbrighters went for their first Sunday stroll through Yalova. Though we're not sure if Sunday strolls are actually a "thing" in Yalova, we were really impressed by the number of other Yalovites out and about.  The cute kid count soared as did the number of sweet hand-holding couples.  (It always makes me happy to see affectionate Turks!)  It was another perfect summer day, too, so there were plenty of picture opportunities!

 Since Sunday in Turkish is "Pazar", as is bazaar, we started our stroll by heading toward and walking through Yalova's bazaar.  This fellow on the left seems to hold a monopoly on Yalova's garlic market.  Now we know where to go when we can finally cook for ourselves again!

The shopkeeper next to our garlic guy also had interesting stuff--who knew that chicks could actually be bought in Easter colors??  Even though their coloring made no sense, these little chickens were pretty cute!

Yalova bazaar had other great things to offer too--Clayton bought some new boxers (we can't wash clothes yet), and we found a good shop to go back to for towels or cool Turkish bathrobes. Also, there was a separate fish market just across from the harbor.  We didn't really investigate that too closely but we could hear the fish mongers calling to us with their, "Balik-balik-balik-balik."

After the bazaar we checked out the times and prices of Yalova ferries.  Good news for all people planning to come to Yalova, there are 5 ferries most days of the week, the first one out of Yalova is at 7:30 am and the last one back departs Istanbul (European side) at 7:30 pm. So convenient!  After looking this up, we continued walking along the sea-side of Yalova's main street (Yali "Yallah" Cd) and found a great new park! There was a large statue of Osman Beg, who I just wikipedia-ed. He appears to have been the founder of the Ottoman empire and not at all related to Yalova.  Nevertheless, an awesome statue and beautiful park.

  Continuing along this side of the road, we were excited to soon come to Heykel--the statue of Ataturk that acts as the hub of Yalova.  Not long after that we were passing the harbor, and then we got to the beach.  Both were beautiful.  Margot and I are already beginning to lay out plans for renting a large, 45'+ sailboat to sail the Marmara with friends, i.e. you all!  

Also, since swimming didn't end up happening this weekend, it's a must for next weekend or the one after. Yalova's beach is a fascinating microcosm of Yalova itself.  My little Turkish town is not yet a tourist destination for Westerners, however it is a major one for "Arabs." We're not yet sure exactly what this means except that they're willing to pay a lot for housing during the summer.  It also means that on our sandy beaches, I spotted both bikinis and burkinis.  "Score!" I thought,  "There's no need to worry about what I wear to the beach  next weekend, and these spacious changing rooms mean I can wear street clothes down and then change back before I head home." But really, doesn't this picture make you want to grab a suit and a floatie?

 The people of Yalova seem to really like their water.  In addition to spending time beaching, we passed many Turkish men fishing.  A few were casting lines off of the above (background) and right (we're actually on it) jetty, but many more were dropping lines in off of the dock at the harbor or over the side of the bridge.  

After all of our walking, we stopped for a cay break in a nice little garden cafe. Then Margot and I did a little browsing for clean/new work clothes (I found a great deal at Colin's--two new blouses for 19 TL--that's like $6 a shirt!). 

And so ended a great Sunday stroll. I can only hope for such great weather on upcoming Sundays--especially when we have y'all as our guests (misafirler)!

Sending love from Yalova,

-Annika