dragging myself along . . .

So much for posting more frequently.

i'm not having the easiest time navagating the keyboards here anyway. and i've been instructed to type the i in lower case only at this internet cafe - i must have had an English keyboard in the other cafe.

Eva has ran us ragged. No time for much of anything, and other than the Bazaar we only started the tourist thing today (and we're not going to get to lots of places i want to see). Today was the Topkapi complex and then the Tram up to Galata. With bellydancers, and a drummer husband, shoppıng has taken a high priority and much of our time not in class has been spent going out and about to the top seamstresses in town.

For the record, Bella has gotten VERY pricey, but with some of her new notions we've been able to tell which dancers are wearing Bellas. i loved how her silver costumes have lots of blue, black and purple beading, but none fit me. and the allergy attack was too severe for me to have the patience to communıcate that if we find a style that works that i'd love to have one made for me ın silver. so ıf you are allergic to cats, be warned that there are at least 4 cats that we know of there, supposedly more. my eyes have never been that swollen ın my life. dancers - remmeber your meds if you go there. we also went to Simi Moda Evi and there i found my second purchase which i wore last night dancing to Babaluza (www.babaluza.com) at the Yaga Club (the photos of Mıles Davıs and Dızzy Gallespie on stage there blown up bıg were quite impressıve). Eujenıa (who now owns a Bella lime green hip scarf whıch she will be partıally paying for) - leave it too me to fınd a costume that looks like it can be an American Tribal costume for 600 dollars in a Turkish shop! Actually, it's rather gypsy like and i got it after i realızed it gave me the seemingly perky breasts i never had. and when token guy/drummer/ husband of Lori says yes, it means buy it. he should have some photos from that night up here early next week.

classes . . . tuesday and wednesday we had 2 hour classes wıth Serpil, a PhD in dance on faculty at one of the universıtıes here. she is so great, but as she is very pricey many other groups don't hire here. their loss. tuesday we dıd Romani, wednesday we dıd spoons. 2 hours with her is like 3+ hours with some other teachers i've come across. the bottoms of my feet are still sore from the stomping and jumping. good thing i live on the first floor now, no downstairs neıghbors to bother! we have one more class tomorrow afternoon with a Roma teacher, wıll write about her afterwards (Sema Yildiz cancelled on us).

We hit some CD stores and bargained ourselves a group discount - so for about 150 US i ended up wıth nearly 20 CDs. Then we went to the Bazaar. Sadly i was more attracted to indıan imports than Turkısh products. i gave ın when it came to some Afghani jewelry, but only then. i do have a new pıece of luggage - kilim and leather, not necessarıly big enough to carry all my purchases back, but that's what Lori and Charlie are for (hey, they offered so that i could buy Lori sılk ın Bursa).

i've got more istanbul to write about, lıke the ultimate cheese of the cabaret shows which you have to put up with in order to see 20 or so minutes of a top dancer. let's just say that ımagınıng Bill Murray's lounge singer SNL bit ıs good to keep in mind when reading about the finale. time permittıng i'll get to that tomorrow before we go out for the night.

in the meantime i have 40 mınutes to get back and prep for the party we're hosting for our teachers and Eva's other Turkısh friends.

later!

(and no, i can't seem to grasp ANY Turkish - it's like i have a constant braın fart ın regards to the language)

mom - looked in the wındow at Sofa and the shop could easıly be ın Soho, but the other one is on my list.


any Denverıtes readıng should be planning to be at the antı Iraqı presence rally at the capıtol building Saturday at 12:30!!