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I have been given a pharmacy of meds to fight this viral infection. So if this post seems garbled, just know…one of the side affects reads “may cause hallucinations.” I’ve caught myself writing words backwards (for instance, I wrote sprow for words a moment ago). They said nothing about it causing dyslexia. Hmm.
I have skype set up so I can call anyone in the US. This weekend I’m gonna try and catch up with everyone I was unable to call before now. In a couple of weeks I’ll probably get around to creating a phone number so you guys can call me too.
Our adventure to Kiskalesi continued with a delicious trip to Cafe Rain where the food was…amazing.
Our appetizers were simple and refreshing. Shephard’s salad, fresh-made bread, and Borek Cafe Rain style. If you remember from the Adana video, the Borek from Adana is far different from this one. Cafe Rain’s looked like mini egg rolls. The Borek was fried instead of baked and the flavor was just a bit different.
Borek, What was left of our Shepherd's Salad, and Homemade Bread
For the main entree, I had the insanely good Rain Special (chicken with eggplant, onions, peppers, cheese, cucumbers, and a divine sauce that made me wish I had a second or third stomach). Both Drell and Gray love the fish. I wasn’t quite that adventurous yet.
Rain Special, my meal
Gray chose the grilled fish. The roasted garlic smell was absolutely divine.
Grilled/steamed Fish. Boyd said it was his favorite.
Drell chose the fried fish. It looked delicious!
Fried Fish. Drell said it was his favorite.
For dessert they served Chai (the tea) and Watermelon. The refreshing desserts (tea and fruits, usually) are complimentary.
Dessert on the house. Chai tea and watermelon.
And now, my friends, I’m going to bed. Hope you enjoyed it!
Peace, I’m out.
Posted 1 year ago. 1 comment
A road trip to Kiskalesi turned into a pretty cool adventure. We went to the beach and from a distance I could see the Maiden and King Castles. They were spectacular to look at. We could have paddled out to the Maiden’s castle but I needed to save the lira (Turkish currency) for the Cafe Rain.
In this post, I want to focus on the two castles and the folklore surrounding them.
The Maiden's Castle
There are several stories surrounding the Maiden’s Castle. The most popular is as follows…
The King loved his daughter and wanted her to marry well. She, however, followed her heart and fell in love with a common man. To prevent their union, the King built a castle in the sea where he kept his daughter. Some of the tales go on to say how the valiant young commoner fought through the waves, only to die in her arms at the land’s edge. Other versions of this story say both died from grief and the King had no heirs. Tragic.
Another tale surrounds prophecy. In it the daughter is fated to die tragically by her 17th (some say 16th) birthday. So, to save his daughter, the King built her in a castle in the sea surrounded by his most trusted guard. All food was checked and there was no expense spared for her safety. On her 17th birthday, a snake (which had been sleeping soundly in a basket of apples), bit her and she died. The King had no heirs. Tragic.
The King's Castle, Kiskalesi
Either way it gets my imagination going! LOL. The water was crystal blue and warm. You can swim to the maiden’s castle but there was para sailing going on…and I wasn’t too sure they’d pay attention to anyone in the water.
Sometimes you just see things here that you’ve never seen anywhere else. The bread guy was one of them. He walked around the beach selling bread. Just bread. Stacked neatly on a tray sitting on his head. There were Chinese tea sellers and Vodka shot sellers as well. I snapped this shot while he was walking up the beach.
Bread for sell!
Tomorrow I’ll show more pics and tell a few more stories.
Happy birthday Brannum!
Peace, I’m out!
Tasha M. gave me an amazing care package!
Tasha M. (last initial only since anyone can read this blog) sent me a care package! For those who don’t know, a care package is something friends and family send from home to those deployed. It can include anything, within reason, that customs will allow in country. A lot of times you miss the simple things. Homemade cookies, anything to flavor the neverending supply of water you have to guzzle down, a way to write home, etc. When you’re in another country you miss the little things that remind you of home. The handwritten notes you can reread to your heart’s content. Pictures of family and friends you can put up in your room or on your mirror. Tasha sent me a message asking what I’d like. I gave her a few suggestions and she just ran with it!
Included in the package: One kicka$$ San Marcos Texas state shirt, five notebooks (did she know how much I LOVE notebooks??), pens, stamps (THANK YOU!), a magnet, a list book (I’m a list NUT, so I’ll be needing this), enough crystal light to keep me going for at least six months (THANK YOU!), a card, a handwritten letter (you guys don’t know how important those are) and cookies. Made with love. Thank you, girl. You made me feel amazing. And I can’t thank you enough for the joy you’ve brought me.
While you guys on the other side of the pond are sleeping, it’s back to work for me. I’ll see you all later. I’ve got some cookies to snack on *WEG*
Posted 1 year ago. 1 comment
It was delicious! Carrots in fresh lemon juice. Absolutely refreshing.
You’ll have to forgive the graininess of these pictures.We were in very low light and I had to blind people with my flash in order to get any of these pics. I promise the food looked far more appetizing in person. *sigh* I should have really paid attention to my husband and his photography tips from his own food blog.
For Drell’s birthday we went to a sushi place called Frend’s. That’s right, I said sushi. Unfortunately, however, THE sushi guy was on a two week vacation so we had to order off the main menu. I promise you I was NOT disappointed. They brought out a delicious flat bread layered with Mediterranean flavors. Before I could taste it, however, the waiter brought the condiments and asked that I please try the bread with them first. Who am I to ignore a waiter’s request when it comes to food? They should know better than me. The first one was a garlic mayo. Delicious, but I’m not much of a mayo girl so I tried the other. It was ketchup but sweeter than any ketchup I’ve ever tasted. It was fabulous with the bread, and I never thought I’d say that! LOL.
It was time to order and I’m creative when I go out. Several people had been there and were giving suggestions. “Try this, it tastes like Chinese food,” or “this tastes just like a stir fry from back in the states, only with curry!” I just came from the states so I’m not homesick for those flavors. Yet, anyway. So I pointed to something that seemed impossible to say and asked…has anyone tried this? They all said no. I asked the waiter to pronounce it for me. He couldn’t do it either, but he did tell me it WAS chicken so I said why not. It was called Champselyees. The bit of research I’ve done tells me it’s either a recipe based on the Avenue des Champs-Élysée which is a famous avenue in Paris, France named after the Greek Elysian Fields (home of the blessed dead…should I have worried?) OR it’s based on a kickass cocktail that has about a thousand different versions. Either way, it was delicious.
Chicken sauteed with red peppers, mushrooms, onions, spinach, and a little something with a kick made the main course absolutely mouth-watering. The menu described the dish as “with spinach, very sharp.” I suppose very sharp means a bit on the hot side. 
At 11.50 ytL, it was also very affordable.
They also brought wine glasses with carrot slices and lemon juice. Lemon, the waiter told me, makes the raw food clean. He’s not the first to tell me that, and while I know it does destroy bacteria, it also made those carrots refreshing. I can’t help but wonder if my husband will make his own version. I’ve heard they make them with cucumbers as well.
For dessert we received a complimentary fruit platter with all sorts of decadent selections. Fresh grapes, mango, honeydew, and a few fruits that I only know the Turkish name for.
The pictures I took of the main dish look terrible, so I don’t think I want to post them.
Drell enjoyed his 26th birthday among twenty or so friends and I got out and tried a taste of the culture.
Oh…did I mention? Frend’s is an oasis camouflaged by…a gas station. Only in Turkey.
My great-uncle had a carton he'd saved from World War II. It looked much like this one.
I know…the sheer randomness of my images. There’s a story here, I promise. My great-uncle was a prisoner of war in World War II. The stories he told were horrific. Every prisoner was starved to the point of near death. He said a woman, a young woman saved his life. She was the daughter of the camp’s CO. In pity she gave him the “juice from the rice” and by that alone he lived. I’ll leave the story there, as there wasn’t a happy ending. He was rescued. That is all I’ll say. What he did say, however, was the first thing he was given when he got aboard ship was milk. He kept the image with him, torn from the powdered milk container. LOL. He said no one would ever tell him what to eat or how to eat again. The image is so like the one here. Random day over. More fun stuff tomorrow!
Posted 1 year, 1 month ago. Add a comment