Today was rainy and cold (like most of this week was) so I spent most of the day in bed, cuddled up in my blankets learning Turkish. I usually don't have an affinity for pigeons--especially Yalova pigeons since their favorite things to do seem to be speeding past our floor when I'm outside and pooping on our patios. This little guy, though, hung out with me for a while this afternoon (him on his side of the glass, me warm in bed). Both of us were huddled away from the wintery weather, though, and I felt like we really understood each other.
When I did venture out, Margot and I headed to the bazaar to get some produce. All the rain did not dampen our bazaar's business. In fact, it was busier than I've ever seen it before!
Yalova's bazaar is covered, but imperfectly. As a result, many stalls still have colorful canopies over their produce. As you can maybe see here, grocery shopping is a non-gendered activity in Yalova. Men and women, young and old, are out together or with their same-gender friends, filling up plastic bags with all their favorite fruits and veggies. This giant farmer's market would have foodies and cash-conscious shoppers at home drooling.
Here are a few pictures for you all!
Aci Biber--hot peppers, and, as far as I can tell Turkey's primary source for spice. These beautiful little firecrackers are anywhere from a 1/4 inch-inch long and range in color from pale green to fire engine red.
Below: A cauliflower and cabbage guy shouts, "Buyrun--buyrun--buyrun!" (Help yourself--Go ahead--Help yourself!)
Domates, sogan (onions), patates---these three dominate the bazaar. Practically every stall offers some.
Grapes are almost as common and today I saw a lot of that enormous cabbage.
In the bottom left picture you can see a selection of apples. I got a few and am looking for to checking out how they compare with NW and MN-grown varieties.
Margot and I were able to get almost everything we had on our list, but after we hopped off our bus at Migros, we couldn't help but pop in for a few more items.
Here's the grand-entrance of our MM Migros (the more Ms, the bigger the store). Isn't it so nice and friendly-looking?
As I walk through the girish, I feel like I'm back at QFC or something! They have almost everything I could ever want, plus great sales and a "money card" so that I can save more. What a deal. In the bottom picture, you can see the Morgul bakery counter they have, too, where I often buy my 75 kurush (~40 cent) bread loaves and where I got my free baklava last week!
After Migros, I came home and whipped up a spicy meal with zucchini, tomatoes, plenty of aci biber and
simple white rice. After a little skyping, google-chatting and now blogging I called it a night!Iyi geceler, arkadashlar! (Good night, friends and loved ones!!)
-Annika
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