Rusen at night in the taxi
Old man selling corn at Urla Beach
 
Beach at Urla
Childhood joys
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In Akçay, Tariq, Rusen and I board a late bus to Izmir. I avoid the cologne, and start a game of cards with Rusen, as we chat merrily and continuously tease each other. She is distracted by the appeal of the full moon lighting up the coastal landscape, whereas a woman sitting next to us is anxiously looking at the road and startling us with her every fear of an accident, particularly when a drunk driver zigzags dangerously in front of us until dashing off to the other side of the road and coming to a halt. In Izmir, we catch a taxi to the flat that Füsun's has left us the keys for, and where a few friends are waiting for us: Özgür, Ipek, and John. This is where the charms of my company, SOS, of the Turkish hospitality, and of Rusen's friendliness all combine, as everyone so kindly comes together to make our trip worthwhile. Özgür and Füsun are local correspondents of SOS, whom Tariq and Rusen had met on a trip to weave our network of local hospitals and doctors. Ipek is as well, though she has come all the way from Ankara to meet us on her holiday. After a typical Turkish breakfast, we drive into central Izmir to make a few arrangements. I discover a congested concrete maze, with no particular appeal but the charm of the bay around which the city wraps itself. Rusen and I have a tea (Pasaport) by the sea while Özgür and Ipek are busy, then we buy a few pastries (Sevinç), and go to say hello to Doctor Bilgin. He is one of the dentists our company works with, but more importantly, he is an amazing character and a truly generous person. In no time, he makes the whole group laugh, and will certainly do so in the days to come - for now, he returns to his patients as I take hold of his car and try to keep up with Özgür's mad driving. By the time we make it back home, I have already had to drive through a couple of red traffic lights, and have been forced to adapt to the variation of lanes, between one and three depending on the mood of the drivers, the size of the other vehicles, and the random parking along the streets. We drive to the seaside village of Urla, for a swim in the salty Izmir Bay. There are many families and children, as it is a public holiday celebrating the advent of the Turkish Republic - in the city, we have seen many flags covering the buildings. We take in the sun and the heat, and play on a diving platform, all very relaxed already, in this lazy late afternoon. In the evening, we drive to central Izmir to meet Bilgin, who is taking us out to one of his favourite restaurants. Özgür is busy burning red lights again, in the midst of the typically hectic traffic. Eventually, I give up trying to keep up with him, as I have had enough infractions already to lose my license twice! Bilgin takes over and we continue our quest through the city's sprawling infrastructure, until we reach a place where the ferries come and go (Bostanli, Karsiyaka). The last floor of an old ferry has been reconverted into a restaurant (Altin Balik, Golden Fish) - we arrive as a wedding party has just settled in. The bay is lit by the full moon and all of the city's lights. A breeze passes along this elegant top deck, where we are greeted by stylish staff that will impress me all through the evening by their excellent sense of service and discretion. We choose our dishes from a tray, and the actual fish that we want for our dinner. Bilgin entertains us with his humour all through a stunning meal. We toast with raki and enjoy the starters, which consist of various salads, yoghurt based dips, a spicy tomato mix, and octopus marinated in olive oil. Shrimp and calamari follow, before the highlight of the dinner arrives: the burning and breaking of the salt crust of our grinning fish. We wrap it all with a beautiful platter of fresh fruit and coffee. It has been long since I have had been so amazed with a restaurant. All must come to and end though, and we eventually head back through the city's empty streets.
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Izmir 