Part of being in a foreign country means embracing new traditions.
Since we�ve been living in Istanbul, I�ve always taken part in an least one iftarmeal during Ramazan.
Iftar means �breaking the fast� which occurs each evening during Ramazan, often with a large meal with family and friends. In most Muslim countries, it is quite common to have feasts that last all night and run from iftar to suhur �the morning meal� before dawn.
Restaurants are packed here around 8 p.m. every night as people wait to hear the call to prayer letting them know it�s time to celebrate iftar.
I have a lot of respect for anyone who is fasting during this hot summer. I can�t imagine it�s an easy task to do, especially not being able to drink water either. I�m always buying water bottles from the street vendors while I�m out and about.
Last week, I met 12 friends through the Professional American Women of Istanbul (PAWI) and the American Women of Istanbul at IT� Vakiftepe Sosyal Tesisleri in Baltalimani, a neighborhood near Emirgan. The restaurant was offering a special set menu for Ramazan for 40 TL and featured an amazing view of the Bosphorus and the second bridge.
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| The fabulous view from Vakiftepe Sosyal Tesisleri in Baltalimani in Istanbul with a full moon coming up in the background. |
We waited until about 8:30 p.m. to eat with the rest of the Turks. Then, we each started with an individual plate of iftariyelikler, which included zeytin (olives), pastirma, sucuk, domates (tomatoes), salatalik (cucumbers), peynir (cheese) as well as various toppings for the pide.
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| Gotta love Turkish lentil soup no matter what season it is! |
For dessert, we had g�lla� � a traditional Ramazan dessert of milky layers of yufka sheets, lightly rose scented. By this point, it was too dark to take any decent photos.
Celebrating an iftar meal with my American friends and enjoying the spectacular view was certainly a great way to spend a night.
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| Ideally, I would have brought my tripod to take better photos of the lit-up bridge in Istanbul. |
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| The Turkish flag at dusk on the restaurant's grounds. Looks like it's a great place for weddings and other special occasions. |