Our family loves grabbing sweet treats and easy snacks each time we travel to Costco from Saudi Arabia.
09.10.2023 - 16:25 / theguardian.com
I grew up in a terrace house in Portsmouth. At one end of the street was Fratton Park, where the local football team played, and at the other was the Istanbul Grill House. Only one of these venues was in the habit of providing value for money.
Between the ages of seven and 11, I’d go to the Istanbul Grill House every Saturday with my pocket money. Each time I entered, the guy who worked there would salute me theatrically and say, “Merhaba, my friend – hello, hello.” I’d give him a wink, swap some football stickers with his son then place my order. It would always be a cheeseburger. Having just got back from Istanbul – and loving that city’s range of tasty staples – I now look back on my childish routine with no small amount of regret.
If I could relive those youthful visits, I’d do things differently. I’d start with a skewer of slow-cooked, marinated lamb with humus and tabbouleh and a splodge of chilli sauce. Then I’d have a bowl of mercimek çorbası (lentil soup), a helping of kokoreç (a bit like haggis), a sizable pide (boat-shaped flatbread ballasted with cheese and spicy sausage), a serving of menemen (like shakshuka but with scrambled eggs and spicier), and a dollop of sutlaç (baked rice pudding).
If he had his way, my younger self would conclude his visit with a shot of raki and a conversation with Haktan Tursun (whom I met in Istanbul but who would be transported through time for the occasion), to be regaled with stories of the Ottoman back-scrubber who whispered revolution while greasing up his clients; the catastrophic riots that kicked off after a chariot race at the Roman hippodrome; and the medieval executioner who, to protect his customers from infection, would fastidiously wash his blade between beheadings.
Haktan is 35, the son of farmers, a tour guide and a passionate Istanbulite. I’d arranged to meet him in front of the Blue Mosque, Istanbul’s most Instagrammed establishment, beloved for its blue tiles and its six minarets. I’d just arrived from Bucharest on the night train (which is another story) and was feeling like no amount of turkish delight could keep me awake. But then Haktan started talking – about Byzantium and Ben-Hur and the maiden who got locked in a tower for her own good only to be eaten by snakes – and all dreams of sleep were suddenly banished.
Istanbul’s history is legion, its stories are operatic and its buildings are totemic. Its waterways are beguiling and its cobbled streets teem with students and tourists and trolleys and taxis and dashing salesmen stepping into the road and saying, “Merhaba, my friend – where are you from?” before doing their utmost to flog you a carpet. It is a city that invites – and deserves – superlative descriptions. It is a city par
Our family loves grabbing sweet treats and easy snacks each time we travel to Costco from Saudi Arabia.
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Editor note: This article is regularly updated as new information becomes available and is accurate as of 10:30 a.m. EDT on Oct. 19. For the most up-to-date information, contact the U.S. Department of State or similar official websites.
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