Fear not, Istanbul has Starbucks
By Gary Graham | September 24, 2008 | Turkey
As we approach our departure to the U.S. tomorrow morning, I thought I'd review my notes for interesting tidbits and anecdotes.
-- You'll see Starbucks, Burger King, McDonald's, Pizza Hut and Kentucky Fried Chicken outlets here, but they are not as prevalent as I've seen in other international locations. Krispy Kreme announced in July that it will open 25 retail locations during the next five years in Istanbul.
-- Things I've not seen here: Gatorade, bumper stickers, ice and ball caps.
-- Ankara is situated on a steep and rocky hill. Istanbul's hills make it seem like San Francisco on steroids.
-- The bright yellow taxicabs are remarkably clean and appear to be very recent models in most instances.
-- CNN and the BBC are readily available on the hotel televisions, but ESPN is a no-show. Thank heavens for the internet and my Slingbox connection, which allowed me to watch the second half of the Chicago Bears game on Sunday. Sadly, they lost.
-- The Turks I've encountered have been unfailingly polite, helpful and genuinely thankful that a group of journalists came here to learn more about their country and culture.
-- Traffic in Istanbul can be horrendous. One of our interpreters told of leaving his house at 5:30 a.m. in order to reach his office by 8 a.m. The evening commute can be just as time-consuming.
-- As we walked along a 900-year-old bridge spanning the Tigris River on the outskirts of Diyarbakir under a beautiful blue sky, a young interpreter who has lived her life thus far in that southeastern city confessed she had driven past the bridge many times but had never actually walked on it.
-- Our trip to Diyarbakir took us within an hour's drive of Syria and a two and a half hour drive to the Iraqi border.
-- The consensus of my group of traveling journalists (sponsored by the International Reporting Project at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies) is that the best dessert in all of Turkey is kadayif, a dough soaked in syrup or honey and covered with what appeared to be a fine shredded wheat.
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