Istanbul_ The Collected Traveler_ An Inspired Companion Guide - Barrie Kerper [211]
Cami
Cami (pronounced JAH-mee) is the Turkish word for “mosque.” John Freely explains that when cami appears as camii it’s because a noun is modified by a preceeding noun, so it’s Sultan Ahmet Camii, but Yeni Cami (New Mosque).
Çay
Turkish tea (çay) could be said to be the national drink of Turkey. Visitors will literally have dozens, if not hundreds, of glasses while visiting. “Conversations without tea are like a night sky without the moon” goes the old Turkish folk saying. No matter where you are in Istanbul, glasses of tea will be offered and rapidly appear. Turks reportedly have one of the highest per-capita consumption rates of tea, averaging about a thousand cups per year. Turkey is the world’s fifth-largest producer of tea, behind India, China, Kenya, and Sri Lanka. Tea bushes grow on the eastern Black Sea Coast from the Georgian border to the town of Rize—Turkey’s tea capital—and stretching to Trabzon. Teahouses are much the equivalent of cafés in France, where people go to catch up on news and gossip and simply to socialize.
Though tea may sometimes be served in porcelain cups and mugs in Istanbul and Ankara, the classic tulip-shaped glasses are by far the preferred teacup, and are one of my favorite souvenirs. I actually bought two complete sets of tea glasses, one with plain glasses and those ubiquitous white saucers with the red thumbprints along the rim, and the other with etched glasses and stainless steel saucers. On my next trip, my challenge is to figure out how to get a Turkish double teapot into my luggage.
Cornucopia: The Magazine for Connoisseurs of Turkey
This outstanding magazine, which was launched in 1991 by Berrin Torolsan and John Scott, is an indispensable resource for anyone even remotely interested in Turkey and is simply essential for Turkey enthusiasts. I wish there were a magazine like this for all the destinations I highlight in my series. Berrin, who was born in Istanbul, and John, who arrived in Istanbul thirty years ago as a student, felt there was very little cultural information about Turkey in English at the time, so they view the magazine as having filled a gap. At first, the magazine was available only at upscale hotels; later it was sold at newsstands. Today the earliest issues have become collector’s items (the very first issue, in fact, is completely sold out and unavailable).
The name derives from the Latin cornu copiae, or “horn of plenty,” a horn overflowing with flowers, fruit, and corn, and a symbol of prosperity and abundance in the cities of Anatolia. The mix of articles in each issue is timely and unique, covering contemporary issues, history, and cuisine and including book reviews, restaurant reviews, and more, all accompanied by gorgeous photographs. When you subscribe to Cornucopia, you receive much more than a magazine: you are joining an entire community of people who share a love of Turkey, and your subscriber card entitles you to special offers and discounts on hotels, restaurants, apartment rentals, travel agencies, and shops (Iznik Classics and Şişko Osman Carpets & Kilims are just two of them). Additionally, some books not readily found in North America are available through the Cornucopia Web site, and its Arts Diary is an excellent source for Istanbul art galleries and international auctions for Ottoman and Turkish arts. I can’t enthuse enough about this magazine, but I will borrow a phrase about it that appeared in Departures by Min Hogg, founding editor of World of Interiors: “It arrives and I drop everything.” Very few items that arrive in my mailbox are so eagerly anticipated