Winding down on Friday June 22

We started packing and realized we needed another large piece of luggage to hold all our stuff. The boys and I went down Istiklal in search of a suitcase. I stopped one place and the woman wanted 199 lira for three bags. When I told her I only wanted the large one, she said she would sell it for 180. No thanks.
At the next place, the woman wanted 80 lira for the large bag. I told her 60 lira and she would not come down so we left. Finally at the next place, I got one for 70 lira, talking the guy down from 80.
We then went to our favorite pide place Karedeniz Pide (blacksea pide) and got three pides. More than enough for me and the boys and Fariba. We took it back for Fariba and we packed in earnest and then went down to Cihangar to Kardesler and had some kunefe and tea. We bought a couple more souvenirs and went back to the apartment to relax on the deck. We went downstairs and played some tavlah and had some nargile and then went back to sleep so we could get up at 3:30 a.m. To catch our 6:30 a.m. flight back home.

A Saturday afternoon in Cihangar

After another lazy morning, we got motivated and went over to Cihangar to the Kardesler Restaurant for lunch. This place sits on a corner in this bustling, artistic area located between Istiklal and the Museum of Modern Art. Kardesler boasts a large seating area and it is needed because it serves tasty and inexpensive food. We all tried the Ayran, which is the local yogurt drink. Here it is served from a large cooler with the foam scooped out from the top of the vat and placed on top of your mug. It makes for a refreshing and healthy drink.
We also had lentil soup and a cucumber and yogurt mixture that had a soupy complexion. Then we had a Turkish flatbread that has a meat and vegetable spread on top. This is called a lamacun. It was very tasty and only 2.5 lira. We also had a few kebaps and Troy had a meat and cheese pide. As if this was not enough, we tipped it off with kunefe, a shredded filo dough and cheese pastry that is simply decadent. And, it goes quite well with cay (tea, pronounced chai). We were completely full.
Troy and Fariba decided to head back to the apartment to lounge a bit and Darius and I decided to go to the Istanbul Museum of Modern Art (http://www.istanbulmodern.org/en). This museum was a very pleasant surprise, containing an incredibly beautiful collection of very modern works (several video installations for example) that were quite amazing. We also got to see a ship dock right next to the museum.