I have, it turns out, just returned from a trip to Istanbul.  I have a dear friend there, who has been trying to get me to visit for quite a while.  It was my first vacation in a long long time, and the city was just the right place for me.

As I stumble through my jet lag and give out little bags of apricots, I still have my own mispronounced Turkish phrases in my head.  The city is still with me.

People keep asking me why I went to Istanbul.  It’s not Disneyworld, or a warm island, or Paris.  Although I think if you have been to Istanbul, you have some idea of why I would go.

I went to Istanbul to drink tea and find the right baklava, to visit my dear friends, to see old and round buildings . To travel just to travel for the very first time since I went to Europe drunk and depressed and looking for a tattoo artist. Because when we talked about it, my husband  said, "go! I will feed the children for a while." I went to Istanbul because travel makes my cells hum, and I had just enough for the plane ticket with a little more to pay for my older daughter to go to camp this summer. I went to hear the call to prayer as I walked down the street. But mostly, I went to Istanbul to come home again.

I’m not religious, although I have my moments. But when I go other places, I see the connection of things more than when I am home. People are always kinder than I think they will be. When I travel I complain less, because awe takes over. Other languages and patterns make me feel part of something bigger, and the world takes on, well, I don’t know how to say it, but something like a different color.

I travel so rarely, but it stays with me for a long time, and for that I am so thankful.

I ate very well in Istanbul.  The Turks take there produce and their sweets very seriously,  and I agree with them on both counts.  But I think my favorite thing might be Turkish breakfast.

I arrived in Istanbul in the morning, and after a tumultuous and dramatic cab ride, my friend stuck his head out of the eight floor apartment, and ran down the stairs to finish off my argument with the cab driver over our agreed price. As I stumbled in to the apartment, my friend put together a little plate of foods to revive and replenish me. It seemed random; an egg, some wrinkly Turkish olives, chunks of cucumber sprinkled with salt and pungent oregano. There were a few dates, I think, and slices of soft smelly cheese that I would come to love over the next week. There was simit, a little Turkish bagel,  and a little bowl of honey. It was perfect, and as I was falling asleep on the couch after breakfast, I wondered why I had never thought of that particular combination.

As I saw these arranged plates day after day on every Turkish table, I learned that my friend had not created the idea. There were variations, maybe a spread for the bread or a bit of radish, and there was always parsley. But with every Turkish breakfast, I grew more convinced that this is the best breakfast…ever.

Yesterday, in my jet lagged stupor, I tried to make dinner. I forgot about what I had started, I almost started a fire, and I ruined my favorite pot. So I abandoned my original plan and boiled a few eggs. It seemed that it was time to have our first of many Turkish breakfasts, for dinner.

Turkish Breakfast

Like most good things, this one is up for interpretation. But as far as I have been able to learn, there are a few necessary elements:

1. an egg. just one- probably soft boiled, but maybe hard boiled, or even fried if that brings you more pleasure.

2. olives. luckily, I came back with some. but any good olives will do.

3. soft cheese. if you are not in turkey, the most authentic would be feta, sliced.

4. cucumbers. i know that they are expensive and out of season. but if you can do it, do it.

5. parsley. not just garnish. eat it.

6. a bit of bread, not too much, with honey to dip.

Optional elements are endless, but a little arugula salad is nice, or a few dates. Tomatoes if you’ve got them. A dolmas if you are in Turkey or innovative. Some sort of spread made of carrots and dill and walnuts and feta that I am trying to figure out.

Start with tea.  Finish with coffee.  And then you have your own Turkish breakfast.