Mother's Day

What a life! Last Thursday I went to Istanbul, where I landed at around 10pm under a pouring rain, after a quite bumpy approach to the airport… An old friend was waiting for me, and I was very happy to see her after more than three years! Even though we were both tired, we went for a drink and tried to catch up with each other’s lives. It’s amazing the amount of things that happen in three years, how much one’s life can change, how much oneself can change. We chatted about those things and remembered common friends and relived past episodes of our lives, and then we said goodbye. Yesterday I woke-up early and took breakfast with another more recent friend. The sky was blue, the sun was shining, and the temperature was warm. I love it! We had our meeting, and then went to Taksim Square, where I met another even more recent friend, and had a great time strolling up and down Istiklal Avenue and around the Galata, until we headed, also with the other older friend, for a fair and tasty Ottoman meal accompanied by raki and finished with a nice Turkish coffee. When we have good friends, and we are in such a wonderful place as Istanbul, life can very easily be enjoyed up to its most! I promised myself that I'll go back soon, and I can’t get that train trip throughout Turkey off my mind! It’s interesting how much Turkey has in common with the Balkans and how much we can all learn from its history and culture. And, since I am now reading this book about that Mevlevi dervish who “lived” in Bosnia on the 19th century, it is even more interesting! I really need to be back soon! Also because this visit was definitely too short… this morning I woke-up at 6am, caught the flight back to Brussels and spent the whole day in the office attending meetings… Now, it’s time to go to sleep, as tomorrow I will be leaving again, back to Macedonia and to the beautiful city of Ohrid. I am really looking forward for it! And since I wasn’t able to spend the day of her 60th anniversary with the best mum in the whole world, I will at least meet someone else I love.