Gypsy Feet: Rule Breakers!

I confess. I'm a rule-follower. I know--this is one of many things that makes me a big square. (That phrase is another one.) So there it is. I follow rules. Well, I usually follow rules. Sometimes, though, sometimes I just can't help myself. This is one of those times. I was all set to catch up on my blog posts in chronological order: first Tennessee, then Alabama and Mississippi, then New Orleans and the other cities on the road trip. That would bring me to last summer when I could blissfully delve back into my memories of France...Paris, Bordeaux, St. Emilion, Toulouse...and all of this long before I fast forward to a meal in Barcelona, Jamaican sunsets, or 2012 and its international insanity. But I can't do it. I can't write about summertime in the southern US tonight. Hold on to your hats, folks; I'm breaking the rules. A confluence of events has left me nostalgic and scouring the web for plane tickets. Tonight it feels like winter, something which another day may be cause for discontent, is instead a reminder of wonderful moments, breathtaking places, and delicious treats. (1. Yes, it always comes back to delicious treats. 2. I am firmly on the side of summer in the summer vs. winter debate, but like I said, tonight I'm breaking the rules.) I guess it started yesterday when it was finally cold enough to spur me to buy a fall jacket and break out a scarf and gloves. Then, our heat came on today for the first time this season. It's cold and dry outside, with that crisp bite that is so welcome after the humidity we've endured for months. My cat, who's been hanging out in the window, smells like the holiday season--fireplaces, leaves, and warm fur.

She's can't wait for it to get cold enough to wear her mittens!

While I snuggled on the couch with a blanket and my morning coffee, British Airways inspired tapping in my gypsy feet with an offer to partake in some lovely European Christmas markets courtesy of a flight/hotel sale. Having been home now for three years, my travel restricted to February, April, and summer, I'd all but forgotten how much I love those markets.

Man, oh man, do I want to go to Europe. Salzburg, Munich, Zurich, Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Stockholm...and those are just some of the places I haven't been yet...when I think about the ones I've visited and loved...I'd seriously trade in my summer vacation one year to be able to traverse Europe in December! Unrelated (more rule-breaking): I've been devoting a lot of time on my blogs, this one included, as well as Facebook to the baking I've been doing. I must give credit where credit is due though, because left on my own, it's likely I'd try to subsist on refined sugar and flour claiming that the antioxidants in my chocolate are nutritious enough. Fortunately, I share my home with someone *a tad* more practical, who also happens to be a great and willing cook. This unplanned week off from work afforded us both enough time to dabble a bit in the kitchen and I have been the lucky recipient of healthy and delicious breakfasts, lunches, and dinners including macaroni and meatballs (a Sunday must in our Ginzo 'hood) and the asparagus risotto pictured here:

But I digress...my need to break the rules tonight also stems from yesterday. Last night we saw Argo, which had a brief scene set in Istanbul complete with iconic images of the Blue Mosque. Today, I logged on to Facebook and happened to see a post in my newsfeed that an acquaintance is moving to Turkey. Add to that my first foray into brewing Turkish coffee to complement today's baking experiment and the cauldron is complete.

Brewing that coffee yielded not only a delicious drink, but also a fragrance and flavor that instantly transported me back to those snowy, magical days in Istanbul and Cappadocia last February where Turkish coffee and apple tea permeated the air alongside echoes of "Chai Salep! Chai Salep!"

Turkey is one of my favorite places in the world. I've been three times. I'd go back tomorrow. I could probably spend many nights writing about it, telling stories, waxing poetic about its beauty, its history, its people. Perhaps someday I will. At the very least I'll dedicate a second blog post to it because Cappadocia deserves a post all its own. For now, I'll let some of the hundreds of pictures we took of Istanbul do most of the talking for me. Hagia Sofia