March 2017

Lake Ohrid, Macedonia

Best of the Month

I took a four-day trip to Macedonia with my darling friend Simone. She lives in Germany, but spent the summer of 2015 in Istanbul, when we went on a heart-expanding trip to Cappadocia. We’ve been talking about doing another trip ever since, so I pitched a few suggestions and we landed on Macedonia.

Matka Canyon, Macedonia

What a dreamy time. From hiking through a canyon in colorful miniskirts to chasing concrete and kitschy statues in Skopje to a few days of pure bliss at Lake Ohrid, the whole brief trip was simply splendid. We had such a wonderful time that we’ve decided to make our little adventures a yearly thing– we’ve already started dreaming of where we could meet in 2018.

Yenikoy, Istanbul, Turkey

Back in Istanbul, I was mostly busy with Turkish classes, but I did go on an early-morning jaunt to Yenikoy with Emma to try the best borek in Istanbul and sip real sahlep. The quiet seaside was lovely, and reminded me how much I love morning adventures. It’s like you have the world to yourself.

Istanbul, Turkey

Worst of the Month

The relentless-seeming rain and cold and gray this month made me absolutely desperate to get out of the city. A quick bike trip with Nacho had to be cancelled and I spent many gray days looking up plane tickets to ANYWHERE warmer. I survived the month, but I’m ready for springtime to stick around.

I also ended up on antibiotics for the third time in six months– for three different reasons!!– and it prevented me from drinking wine in Macedonia. Which is a minor drag, but a drag nonetheless.

Lake Ohrid, Macedonia

What I’m Loving

Reads: I finally finished Bleeding Edge by Thomas Pynchon, a book that I never quite managed to get into. Oh well! I have an awfully large stack on books I’m looking forward to reading, so onwards and upwards.

Music: Apparently I didn’t listen to a lot of new music this month. This must change! What tunes have been making you happiest?

In honor of the Macedonia trip, I listened to a lot of Balkan music, including the famous Macedonia singer Esma Redzepova. She died recently, and I highly recommend you listen to her music.

Istanbul, Turkey

Movies: I continued my happy habit of going to see films in theaters; I caught Moonlight (which I loved) and Paterson (which I didn’t love as much).

Podcasts: I’m loving the Dead Blondes series on You Must Remember This, especially the three-part miniseries on Marilyn Monroe. I also really enjoyed this interview about logos from 99% Invisible and this episode from my friend Jonathan Hirsch’s podcast ARRVLS about Armenian refugees.

Lake Ohrid, Macedonia

The Film Files

I didn’t manage to make it to the photo shop to get anything developed, but I did manage to shoot a lot more this month– I even broke out the Holga again, a camera I love and have neglected for a long time.

Matka Canyon, Macedonia

Ephemera

This was a month for laying seeds, and there are many exciting potentially upcoming projects that I don’t want to say too much about here yet. March is transitioning into springtime and blooming, after all…

Skopje, Macedonia

Upcoming

April is my favorite month (it includes my birthday!) and I plan to make it as exquisite as possible… including, I hope, a return to the Lycian Way. I’m ready!