Turkish Delight

#17 Posted by Banjaara on July 18, 2003 6:31:07 pm

ally,
I am giving below telephone, fax and email address of Mr. Nur Dogan, who is a wonderful person and would arrange for your visit to the Mehfil-e-Sama, which is usually held on Mondays in Istanbul. He will charge you about $25.00 for transport and guide, who will brief you about the do`s and dont`s of the mehfil.The dance it self is free of cost. I suggest you send an email, giving your itinerary to Dugan and make your arrangements with him. Hope to see your travelogue on Turkey in your ilog or on Chowk.
Tel: 90 (212) 520 77 43
Tel: 90 (212) 511 75 56
Fax: 90 (212) 520 77 43

nurdogan@lesartsturcs.com

#16 Posted by Ally on July 18, 2003 7:14:57 am

Banjara, where did you go to see the Mehfil-i-Sama was it in Istanbul, where abouts in Istanbul can i go to see them?

#15 Posted by Banjaara on July 17, 2003 9:34:18 pm

temporal & dost-mittar,
Aap ka hukm sir aankhoN per...Insha Allah some time in the near future.

harimau,
It is the same Djellaba, pronounced as Jelabiya/Jilabiya. Enjoyed your humour which tends to make you more humane than your previous avatar. It must be old father time having mellowed you.

Saminasha,
I attended a Mehfil-e-Sama of the Whirling Dervishes and was amazed at their unbelievable trance-like state which seems to engulf the entire assembly of people with the help of the accompanying music composed of Violin, Percussion instruments, Drums, Ney, Reed pipe, and a host of other Turkish instruments. The whole performance reverberates with the ``Zikr`` which is the repetition of La Ilaha Illallah and the 99 names of Allah. The ambience, the music, the movement, they all seem to merge into one, transposing the visitor to a cosmic experience which is broken by the sudden stoppage of the dance.

ally,
Thank you for your comments. You would love Istanbul.

khamkhwa,
I also felt a lack of warmth and personal touch in the narrative. Thank you for your positive criticism. Will try to improve in the next travelogue.

ana-dobarah,
I appreciate your feedback on the travelogue,hope you`d read it too. :)

ZahraJ,
Did you expect me to disclose the recipe of Baclava? Seriously though Turkey is a delightful treasure trove for any kind of visitor/tourist. It has history, Mountain ranges, Sun , Sea and Sand, Excellent shopping for the wonderful Hareke and Killims, Crystals, Silver and Gold Jewellery, exquisite leather work etc. No other museum comes close to Topkapi Seray. I could go on and on. You must visit Turkey, it is better than what I could describe.

#14 Posted by ana_dobarah on July 17, 2003 2:57:46 pm

khamkhwa...

you believe in miracles and santa claus?!? i`m very happy for you! does that mean.....naah, forget it! : - )

#13 Posted by Ally on July 17, 2003 10:16:55 am

Temporal,

thanks for the tips, i have been to BCN before but never got to see everything, i would like to go the hill top this time, but the main purpose of the trip is to meet my friends coming from Canada, i`ll see what plans they have and tag along, we`ll probably spend most of the time catching up....

#12 Posted by temporal on July 17, 2003 7:21:04 am

ally:

from your ilog gather that you are travelling via barcelona to istanbul...great...break the journey for a day or two to explore barcelona...(alberto) gaudi`s buildings are all over and they are a must see...go with an experienced guide...they add wealth of information...in particular must mention the two or three buildings on the `mall`...the still under construciton cathedral and the hill top unfinished residential complex that is now turned into a park...

rgds,

t

#11 Posted by Ally on July 16, 2003 9:32:01 pm

ana, khamkhea,

the `miracle` happened

#10 Posted by ZahraJ on July 16, 2003 9:32:00 pm

Banjaara:

From the name of the article, it seemed that you were to discuss a special dessert`s recipe; but you actually took the reader on a tour of Istanbul. Thank You!

I have been meaning to explore this city on several requests of a dear old Tur`k friend/colleague who went back to Turkey. A lot of times, one gauges the places by the kind of people one runs into. My Tur`kish friend gave a very rosy and romantic picture of Turkey in general. Sadly, I didn`t fall for it. Some day I may just take a wandering trip or a stop over on my way to Pakistan.

Thanks again, it was a very succinct but informative piece.

Samina: I have heard them live at the City Center in NY City almost 5 years back. The display was unique, but it`s not everyone`s cup of tea. The whole City Center was jam packed with people from different parts of the world. Some were tourists, some had certain aqeeda, some were simply mesmerized and some were awestricken by the performance. Interestingly, their instruments were simply amazing and you felt like your spirit leaves the confines of you and travels to a far away place, but you were physically seated in your chair. I must mention that their recitals were very different. The performers were indeed deely engrossed in their steps and performance, but the musicians happened to recite as well while playing the instruments. That was slightly different. And, I personally did not like it and couldn` relate to it. The recitation had no comparison to the recitation I`ve heard from a Palestinian born and bred almost 9 years ago. That was the best recitation I have ever heard in my life. It was also something that told me how deeply someone was in love. But probably, every person has a v.ery different way of expression. I will give the troupe the benefit of doubt. In short, it was an experience to watch and hear the Whirling Dervishes from Turkey at the City Centre. Without disappointing your curiosity and interest, I would just say that it did nothing for me. Next time, I would just pass by but will never sit and watch.

#9 Posted by khamkhwa. on July 16, 2003 3:52:16 pm

ana,
i do believe in miracles and santa claus...;)

#8 Posted by ana_dobarah on July 16, 2003 2:50:41 pm

zor kis pe hua? `miraculously` par! ; - )

#7 Posted by khamkhwa. on July 16, 2003 2:23:01 pm

....a little less technical, and a bit of warmth would have certainly improved the already excellent narrative.surprisingly only yesterday, having read ally`s ilog ,was making plans with a friend to visit istanbul sometimes in the future when enough money was somehow
saved miraculously....

#6 Posted by ana_dobarah on July 16, 2003 10:01:12 am

jalebi-like treats in Arab restaurants are called mahallabiya. i remember being in a lebanese restaurant and a server telling me how sweet that name sounded and how she`d want to name her daughter that!!!

apologies for the digression.

#5 Posted by Ally on July 16, 2003 10:01:12 am

thanks for the guide, hoping to go there in september for 10 days, to see some friends, have been before but only for 2 days, and didnt see much, hoping to see alot more this time, and take some nice pics too... you should write another article telling us about the rest of the stuff to see... thanks

#4 Posted by harimau on July 16, 2003 8:05:11 am

Banjaara wrote , ``The chief purser of the Emirates, a stunning red-head from Canada, looking pretty but incongruous in a Jilabiya bade farewell to each alighting passenger with a refrain to see them again on board Emirates flight and thanking them profusely.``

Do you possibly mean a Djellaba. My Persian friend, upon finding jilebis in an Indian restaurant, exclaimed, ``Zulebia! I want some!`` So, jilabiya sounds like the plural of jilebi.

On the other hand, a delectable redhead wrapped in jilebis: now, that is what I call a treat good enough to eat!

#3 Posted by dost_mittar on July 16, 2003 7:45:24 am

Banjaara:
Istanbul is one of the `to-do` cities on my list. So, your detailed description of the places to see will be quite useful when I eventually make that trip.
``The space limitation restricts me from describing the grandeur and beauty of The Sulemaniye and the Eyup Sultan mosques,the architectural wealth and affluence of the Dolambahce and Topkapi Seray Palaces``
....there is always the next article for chowk.