Yesterday was a sunny cold day so we went to Balat, walking down the new pathway along the Golden Horn which is a genuine delight. Such a change from when we first arrived, when there were countless immense roads with high-speed traffic to cross, and later, the never-ending construction zones. Now we can walk across the Haliç bridge and to Balat along a protected route bordering the water, with little parks separating pedestrians from the road.
From Balat we walked in a different direction, on towards the city walls, and passed through quiet streets, a big change from the Instagrammable cafés. Lots of pretty old houses, interspersed with remnants of stone walls. We made it to Feshane, the old fez factory and the first of the Ottoman factories of the Eyup district, and then took the tram back to the Haliç bridge.
Breakfast, I should say, was a particular triumph today, and rather surprising too. I made cornmeal crepes and decided to add some South Indian flavours, and also ran out of milk so used yoghurt whey and the result was remarkably like a dosa. Very enjoyable. Topped with some slowcooked spinach, again desi style, and fried eggs. I’ve been trying to become habituated to desi cooking of various types, as I’ve always felt rather bad that I don’t have or make enough of it, and I think it’s going quite well. Though the test will be when I cook for someone from home.