We leave Sapanca early. This is a tourist town but I can’t see it. Maybe it is Lake Gölü that is the attraction.
The drive is uneventful. The hire car returned without drama.
We are in Beyoglü and have finally found our groove.
My great friend Luke suggested Beyoglü. His wife is from these parts and he is practically a local. I should have listened.
Hindsight is a wonderful thing. If we stayed here when we first arrived we would never have left.
Shell gets a haircut and I get a shave. We visit a few clothes boutiques and there are cool places to eat and drink on every corner.
We stop in top La Cave and grab a bottle of Öküzgözü, when in Türkiye. Pass on the Sassicaia, 1500 euros is a little steep. There is Barolo and Brunello, it is a cool place.
Our apartment is perfect. Balconies on two sides and the cruisy pulse of the street below filters in as we drink.
Dinner tonight at Solera Wine Bar, we order a few starters and the sommelier matches a glass of wine with each. An Emir with anchovies. A Narince to follow. We finish the night with another Öküzgözü and a Cabernet Franc from the Solera winery.
There is an art gallery across the street. I have had too much to drink because I leave with a piece from a local artist, Mehmet Güreli. I make exceptions for books and art when it comes to the ‘I don’t buy stuff’ rule.
For the first time since I arrived, I don’t want to go home.
Late flight tomorrow.
“One’s destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things.”
Henry Miller