Hey you guys, it’s Laurel!

Traveling for the last seven months has been amazing. It is hard to believe all of the people I have met and situations I have been put in and gone through. The real crazy thing now is settling in a new country for a few months—Turkey. It’s great to be immersed in a different culture and try to discover who I am in this different culture.

I think it’s important to have these experiences because it really shows you who you are. Being put in a different environment, you can see all the things that have changed from who you were and some habits and patterns that are the same. This is horrifying and nice at the same time, because you come face to face with things you love about yourself and you have now dropped habits that were caused by your environment. But then, there are those habits that you dont like, that are still there, and unfortunately they’ll be harder to change.

Since traveling, we’ve been go-go-going and I haven’t stopped to look at who I am, which is what I plan on working on while I am here. I want to meditate, be introspective, eat healthy, learn more Turkish, be more involved in community and events and stop getting sick!

One hard part about being here has been the nightlife, because going out with friends can mean being up really late. But then there are responsibilities in the morning. Sometimes I feel like I am on vacation but at the same time, I have things to do and I’m settling down a bit…it’s weird. Either way, it’s great. I’m having an amazing time and I am happy I am able to do what I have done, to see what I have seen and to continue on this crazy journey we call life. I feel really lucky and everyday when I walk down the streets of Istanbul, I am reminded of that!

Literally right across the street from our apartment, a woman is painting a large image of a Mexican revolutionary… How awesome is that? I also saw a finished painting of a Mexican woman on a horse, and a smaller piece off to the side of La Virgen. I almost wanted to take a picture from my door but that seems a bit creepy. Maybe I’ll meet here someday soon. —chris

Hey all! Chris here. Been in Istanbul for one month now. Three months ago, I’d have had no idea I would be posting up here in a flat of our own, with a job, ready to spend winter and spring.

The city definitely has a magnetic vibe about it, or like a quick moving current which has pulled me in (and it’s not just the cheap pomegranate juice I’m sipping on in this picture). I love it here! I’ve never lived in a big city, and now I’m in one of the world’s top five; I’m blown away. It’s also been a major change of pace since traveling for the last 6 months, moving from city to city (or sometimes, country to country) in a week or less, occasionally stopping for longer periods here and there (to WWOOF, for instance). Now we’re settled and have a space of our own for the first time in half a year, and it feels quite nice.

I’ve been catching up on all the cooking I was used to doing in California. Sure, I’ve cooked here and there at some hosts’ places, or while WWOOFing. But to be able to stock up on ingredients and shop more extensively at local markets is where it’s at. I’ve been trying here and there to reproduce the tastes I have experienced in not just Turkey, but Egypt and everywhere inbetween; however, the abundance of certain ingredients (like around 50 cents a pound for tomatos, eggplants and other foods common in Turkish foods) has imparted a nearly inevitable local flavor onto the foods I’ve been cooking up. And chiles are cheap too, thank the universe.

Musically, I’ve been working my way into different scenes as time goes on. My landlord introduced me to a kind spot which seems open to artists and musicians alike—a jam space in Cihangir with 2 stereo overhead mic’s to record, amps, a keyboard, guitars; in front, all sorts of pottery made by one of the guys who lives above the place; lots of painted art around as well. Got invited to maybe play bass with a group there.

Also found another place, Kooperatif, which has weekly jams. One day is middle eastern & balkan jams, and the other is musique concret, a type of experimental avant garde improvisation of French origins.

Then of course there is the busking side of things. Lau and I have run into various opportunities musically while busking (though most have fallen through, like playing paid gigs at one girl’s mom’s new balkan restaurant). Otherwise, I’ve gotten to participate in a Colombian photographer’s photography book of tango shots, with me on the margins of a set of shots with a local tango teacher and student in the focus. We’ve met different kind folks and exchanged smiles with thousands while playing on the streets of Istanbul. The man below was a friendly Armenian dude who recognized the couple of Armenian pieces I picked up from the UCSB Middle East Ensemble. Awesome.

One more recent musical development is a woman who is putting together a theater show of shorts, one acts, monologues & comedic musical bits based around the theme of love & expat life in Istanbul. I have volunteered my musical services for the performace in April. Should be fun.

Another friend is helping do music for a children’s Turkish adaptation of Rapunzel! One of the awesome things about such a big city, I’m finding, is how much crazy, diverse and awesome stuff is going down everywhere, all the time. I think I’ll plan a little parade through Taksim sometime. We’ll see.

Whatup folks! Chris here. İt’s been a good whıle sınce any storıes so I thought I’d share a lıttle buskıng story. Quıck update before that: we are currently on the ısland of Büyükada, the largest of the Prınces’ İslands (Prens Adaları) off the coast of Istanbul. LOVING ıt! No motorızed vehıcles allowed (except utılıty vehıcles, ambulances, etc…) and somethıng lıke 6 square km bıg. A bıt of a releıf from the excıtement and busıness of Istanbul, where we’ve been couchsurfıng for about two weeks. Anyhow, hope to get some Istanbul and Cappadocıa pıctures up soon on flıckr, though ın the meantıme there are some fresh ones from England up. Anyhow, on wıth the brıef story on busking in Istanbul.

We’re busking for our 3rd time ever in Istanbul. Busking had been good, so far. The first time we busked, we made almost 30 lira ($20 USD) for around 80 minutes of playing under an overhang, in the rain on Istiklal (one of the main pedestrian areas and shopping/tourist zones of Istanbul). So here we are, about an hour before sun down, on an overcast but dry afternoon in December, again on Istiklal. Before we even started playing, someone threw some change in the bowl, “for good luck,” I assumed is what he said in Turkish. After about 5 minutes of playing, a young woman drops a 5 lira note in the bowl. (That’s about $3.50!) We’re on fiyah! We keep playing, but a plain clothes officer with a walkie-talkie tells us that playing there is a problem. We take a hike, but ask an officer in a car on the way if it’s a problem. “No, no problem,” he replies. So we confidently begin playing in a new spot around quarter mile down on Istiklal.

We begin the set from the beginning, starting with Azizah, a pretty well known Arabic piece (I think it’s popular for belly dancing). A woman comes up, excitedly listening. After a few minutes, she says, “I am Azizah!” along with many utterances in Turkish which I try my hardest to tell her I can not understand. “Adınız Azizah?” I say (I think that means “Your name is Azizah?). She shakes her head enthusiastically. So we’re playing HER song! She drops us a 10 lira note (almost $7 USD!) and sticks around for another song before bidding us adieu. Awesomeness! Shortly after another, officer tells us to stop, and we give up for the day. We chalk it up as a major win. We had good times and positive feedback from many passers by. And to top it off, we made around 20 lira in about 20 minutes of playing. Success!