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Turkey with Friends

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Spices in the background, pepper grinders in front Handled trays with sets of Turkish Coffee cups on sale at the spice market Piles of herbs, teas, and dates While we were in the spice shop, a runner, balancing his handled tray, came in with tea for some of the customers Piles of nougat and Turkish delight in the background, dried fruits and dates, and colorful tulip glasses for serving tea in front Just when I think Istanbul can't get any better, it does. Sue I began our day at the Bead Market. To get there, we had to walk through groups clustered behind their flag-wielding tour guides at the Spice Market. We stopped at her spice vendor, near the back of the market, so she could pick up some saffron for an American friend. The vendor pointed out which pepper grinders were made of solid brass, and the price was reasonable, so I bought a couple as gifts. From there we dodged the throngs and a few aggressive merchants to get to the Bead Mar...
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From the Leafy Streets of Atherton to...Little Michoacán

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We live right next door to Atherton, one of the wealthiest communities in the country. Average home price is $4.5 million, and many of the homes stand behind tall walls or iron fences. Streets are marked with signs that say “No Through Traffic.” This doesn’t mean that you CAN’T drive through...it just means that they don’t WANT you to drive through. Well, for a year I have driven through anyway, enjoying Atherton’s leafy greenness from my battered minivan. Only a part of the house shows in this last picture. They’re building a new wall to protect it from Middlefield Road. The trees are so thick along Middlefield Road, they have to be trimmed to form a tunnel for the traffic. When I bike north on Middlefield Road through Atherton, the trees give way at the Redwood City line, and suddenly you are in Little Michoacán. At the Redwood City line, the trees are gone, and we are in Mexico! This is my favorite taqueria: Gruellense #2. Tacos $1.10 apiece. And so yummy! Muffler shop and florist. ...
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Becoming Californian

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Bit by bit, we and our possessions are becoming Californian. It feels very weird to carry a California driver’s license, and to know that Arnold Schwarzenegger is our governor. I thought it wouldn’t get any weirder than having Jesse Ventura when we lived in Minnesota. Our cars both sport California plates. This is jarring to me every time I look at them. The washing machine isn’t in the basement or a utility room, it’s in the garage. I feel weird every time I walk out there to put in a load. Minnesotans know that if you put plumbing in a garage, it will freeze. Californians do not know this. Even Spicy the cat is adapting. He arrived here just after a cold Minnesota winter, bulked up with his extra layer of insulating fur. On these hot days (although it cools off at night, we’ve had several days in the 90s) he sheds copiously. Here is Gauss brushing Spicy’s winter coat. Spicy tears around the house, shedding cat hair wherever he goes. I am constantly vacuuming to try to keep ahead of i...
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