Grand Bizarre #9: Pigging Out By J.A. McCarroll June 9: 11 48 A.M While not a religious man of any sort, I can certainly cop to a deep and abiding love to depictions of Jesus christ, as long as they are done up in gold and embellished with tons of precious stones. In … Read more
Grand Bizarre #8: FREELCNC COFFE BLOGGER By J.A. McCarroll March 29: 2 48 P.M. ?So,? my barista, proprietor of Galatasaray?s Kronotop Cafe, asks as I stare frantically at the espresso machine and massage my temples, ?are you going to the national barista championship slash coffee convention this week?? Quite frankly, I hadn?t considered it, not … Read more
Grand Bizarre #7: Snowed In by J.A. McCarroll February 1: 9 52 A.M. According to wikipedia, Istanbul has been settled since at least 660 B.C.E. Presumably, each year since then has had a winter, which should, in theory, have prepared the populace for snow. This doesn?t seem to be the case, as from my … Read more
GRAND, BIZARRE #6 Maxillofacial Surgery in Nişantaşı by J.A. McCarroll January 17: 10 30 A.M. I?ve yet to develop the skills to identify the many odd instruments that get played in Istanbul Metro stations. The one that is 10 meters from me in the extraordinarily yellow Osmanbey metro station is making a plaintive, plinking, noise, … Read more
GRAND, BIZARRE #4 Saunas and Trains and Mummies, oh my! by John McCarroll December 1: 11 22 A.M. ?False alarm.? I report, trying to calm my heart rate down a bit. I?m not sure which arm is supposed to hurt when you get a heart attack, but it?s a bit moot; both of them … Read more
Grand Bizarre #3 Web of Lies and Family Ties By John McCarroll November 17: 8 22 P.M. ?These are good shrimp,? my brother in law says, wiping a bit of tomato sauce off of his chin. His face is earnest, oblong, and married to my sister. So is the rest of him. He is … Read more
GRAND, BIZARRE #2 An Inside the Box kind of weekend: Halloween and Occupy Istanbul by J.A. McCarroll October 27: 11 46 P.M. ?It?s not pizza, John.? My girlfriend stands in the doorway of our house holding nine Domino?s Pizza boxes. She is responding to my gleeful cry of ?You really do love me!? ?They?re … Read more