sarah's visit part one: in istanbul

sarah arrived safe & sound on saturday, a little weary but ready to set out and explore the great city of istanbul.  ben and i were happy to take her to several of our favorite spots, starting at house cafe on the bosphorus for a celebratory cocktail

unfortunately the weather was incredibly hot and humid in istanbul and it made all of us slightly groggy- including the cats

but we still had a fun afternoon of walking around ortakoy and bebek, two trendy neighborhoods.  that night sarah had her first authentic turkish meal (in turkey, at least) at one of our favorite spots, asmali.  

the next day we hopped on a ferry boat bound for kadikoy.  we were invited for tea at ben's great aunt kadriye's home and were excited for the opportunity to cross the bosphorus and meet some of ben's family.

in kadikoy it was just as hot, but we enjoyed a long walk up the hill to moda where ben's great aunt lives:

once we arrived at kadriye's home, we took in the beautiful view

kadriye explained to me that she had a (very impressive) collection of ottoman bridal wear, and that she would like me to try on an ottoman bridal dress, hat and shoes.  unfortunately we didn't have enough time, but she let us view her collection, starting with the shoes

followed by the headgear.  these are all silver pieces!  can you imagine the weight these poor brides had to carry?  

i did oblige kadriye by wearing the head piece (it was HEAVY).  she was pleased!

here's a picture of a young ottoman bride in all the gear...

it was a lovely afternoon spent visiting with ben's aunts and cousins

later on sarah and i spent some time in taksim walking down istiklal boulevard where we found lots of interesting graffiti

before calling it a night back in sultan ahmet at our hotel.

and unfortunately that is where my pictures end, since the battery died on my camera and i didn't bring the charger.  but i can tell you we had a fun last 2 days in istanbul, complete with a tour of topkapi palace, a walk up the bosphorus, lunching on kumpir, and shopping at the spice bazaar.

we've returned home to ankara and look forward to welcoming ben's grandmother tomorrow, followed by mom and dad on saturday.  a busy week ahead, but i will try my best to keep the blog updated!