Erholung

View of the Bosphorus from dinner

Erholung means "rest' or "rebound" in German and that is exactly what I'm doing today. After a 6 day work trip to Istanbul, I was beyond excited to sleep til 10am, take a yoga class, treat myself to 7 euros worth of fresh strawberries and blueberries from a nice lady off the street, make myself a delicious brunch of cheesy scrambled eggs, berry salad, and coffee, and catch up on mindless TV shows (and Kaffee & Suchen of course!). I didn't even mind the storms this afternoon, because it gave me an excuse to be that much lazier.

Refreshing Turkish limonata

So, Istanbul. I'm very glad to have visited the city for the first time back in March with Julia and Jonathan or it would have been torturous to be in such an incredible city with no time for sightseeing. Even people on business trips have to eat though, so I at least got my fill of Turkish food, Kahve (Turkish coffee), and some language lessons along the way.

Eggplant Kebab

Künefe, one of my Turkish loves

It looks like I'll be in Istanbul pretty often for work, and I'm pretty pleased about it. The city is vibrant, buzzing, and just crazy enough, and the Turks are some of the friendliest people I've ever met. In a way, it's also connecting me more to Berlin by helping me understand the culture and history of a people who make up such a considerable part of the German capital. Every trip to Kreuzberg and the Turkish market will have a little more meaning as I start to use some of the language and know exactly what to order off a menu. I'm sure I'll have more to say on that in the future, but for now, I plan to get back to my relaxing Saturday. Enjoy yours!

Bosphorus and full moon