June 2018

Kas, Turkey

I have overbooked myself this summer, something I realized partway through this mad month— and the pace doesn’t stop until mid-August. But oh, what exciting adventures! I was in four countries in June and took a trip outside of Istanbul too, and it’s all a bit of a whirlwind.

Zanzibar, Tanzania

Best Of The Month

Of all the places I visited this month, the most special was the most familiar. I went to Kas, a city on Turkey’s Mediterranean coast, to visit a couple of friends who are living there for the summer. I’ve been through twice briefly on hikes, but this was my first extended stay and it was just heavenly. We swam laps in the clear turquoise sea in the morning, we worked in the afternoon from trendy seaside cafes or on boats or at beach clubs, we spent the evening swimming again and feasting on meze and drinking raki at sunset. Plus, it was a very productive week. What bliss.

It was also pretty delightful to swim in Zanzibar, while dhows floated by at sunset.

Kas, Turkey

On our layover in Oman, we attempted to walk to a shop in 105° humid heat to buy scarves. The walking was a misery but the scarves are absolutely beautiful.

And the last highlight of this month was the St Peter’s Fiesta that I attended in Gloucester (GLOSTAAA), MA. St. Peter is the patron saint of fishermen and the event is a celebration of Gloucester’s maritime heritage. They celebrate it with a “greasy pole” competition, where a bunch of guys try to grab a flag at the end of a pole slick with bacon fat, crisco, coconut oil, and fish guts. All while the audience whoops and cheers in their big ol’ Boston accents. There’s also a carnival and Sicilian street food and a shrine-like stage set up just under the Ferris wheel. What a true Massachusetts delight.

Zanzibar, Tanzania

Worst Of The Month

We had some issues with our Omani visa. The website of the Royal Omani Police says there’s is an “air transit visa” that allows you to stay in Oman for 24 hours. But it no longer exists and we were forced to buy a much-more-expensive monthlong visa for our 20-hour layover.

Also, we had a lot of strange and off-putting experiences in Zanzibar, but hopefully we’ll be writing more about that soon.

Kas, Turkey

What I’m Loving

Reads: I read a second novel by Jesmyn Ward, Salvage the Bones. It was gorgeous, lush; I highly recommend it.

Music: Pesha and I put together a mix of jams for our Zanzibar adventure; you can listen to it here.

Film/TV: I’ve been trying to see the Mr Gay Syria documentary for a while now, but the festival showings sold out or I was out of town during one-night engagements. I finally saw it and it was delightful and moving. My good friend Bradley is a minor character in it (he was photographing the contestants) so it was also a thrill to spot him in the finished movie.

Kas, Turkey

Podcasts: I’ve been listening to the podcast Atlanta Monster while I run, as an incentive to get out the door— it’s suspenseful, and I only let myself listen to a new episode during a run. I finished it finally, and am looking for some new 40ish-minute true crime podcasts that might be riveting enough to run to. Any suggestions?

I also started listening to the show Welcome to LA, per my LA-based sister’s suggestion. I’ve only heard the first episode but am looking forward to delving deeper into a show about one of my favorite cities.

Zanzibar, Tanzania

The Film Files

I’ve been shooting so much this month but have had no time to get anything developed. Hopefully I can process this pile of film in July.

Kas, Turkey

Ephemera

Remember back in March when I visited Ukraine twice? The purpose of that second trip to Lviv was to conduct interviews for my piece for October, a Condé Nast publication about beer and culture. You can read my piece about Ukrainian patriotism and craft beer here.

In Kas, my friends convinced me to try out scuba diving for the first time! It was slightly terrifying, but once I chilled out a little, it was thrilling.

In Massachusetts, I arrived just in time for the Harvard Bookstore warehouse sale and bought six beautiful books for myself. Hooray!

Muscat, Oman

Upcoming

The summer of relentless travel continues. There’s more Boston, plus New Hampshire and NYC, before I leave the US. Then I need to make a quick bureaucratic trip to Ankara, before finally spending some time in sweet sweet Istanbul.