Christmas!

Since Turkey is a primarily Muslim nation, there is no Christmas vacation in December at normal public and private schools. Most of the exchange students here in Istanbul had school on Christmas, which upset everyone terribly. So we asked to skip school and attend a mass at a church on Istiklal Caddesi, Taksim. The preacher was from South Africa and the choir was composed of multiple East-Asian nationalities. Since I was there with a group of exchange students from the USA, Germany, France, Mexico, Canada, and Brazil, it was a thoroughly international service. After the service we went to Molly's Cafe, a cafe/boutique/bookshop run by Molly, a Canadian ex-patriot. Molly made us delicious pancakes with real maple syrup and fresh fruits.

Church on St. Anthony of Padua

Kody (Nebraska, USA) and me really feeling the Christmas spirit

Church of St. Anthony of Padua 

Church of St. Anthony of Padua 

Theo (Germany) and me outside the church

A street vendor blowing bubbles onto our group (Vendor, me, Kody, Katie, and Theo)

Bubbles 

Lasse (Germany), me, and Mario (Mexico)

Lasse, me, Mario, and Lauritz (Germany)

It was definitely an alternative Christmas, but not without it's charm. 

By Retro

My life in Istanbul has been çok meşgul (very busy).

Here are some of the highlights and moments of the past few months. 

Some weeks ago I visited By Retro, Istanbul's oldest and second largest second hand store. By Retro is located just off of Istiklal Caddesi on Suriye Passage. From the street it just appears to be a few simple racks of garish clothes, hanging limply from their mismatched hangers outside the shop's door. However, down the steep and liberally poster-adorned stairwell lies a treasure trove of costumes, sunglasses, shoes, coats, hats, furs, jewelry, and many other types of clothing. The entire store, except for the sad outdoor racks, is underground. The fact that there is no ventilation underground does not deter the employees from smoking cigarettes as they go about their work. Must, smoke, and dim lights fill the air, and illuminate the treacherous path between the stacks and racks and piles of clothing. Despite the smell, the store was wonderful to explore. Every kind of object and clothing could be found within the depths of By Retro, it just takes massive patience to sort through the mass. 

By Retro dress section 

My friend Katie in the male dress shirt area.

Katie with a tail

Me modeling the current fashions.

The hippest outfit I could find in 12 seconds.

By Retro

By Retro

By Retro

I ended up only buying two scarves, but it was definitely an adventure.