A very snowy Baghdad Street
Up until recently, we have had a very mild winter in Istanbul. This changed dramatically in the last few days when temperatures plummeted and the rain turned to snow. 20cm fell in one day! The transformation was quite dramatic! Fortunately, the Turks are not fazed by snow. Everyone pitched in to clear the pavements - council workers, the caretakers from the apartment blocks, shop workers, restaurant waiters, and even the street sellers helped. Soon the pavements were clear and life resumed in Baghdad Street. Everyone felt it was their responsibility to clear their immediate areas - unlike broken Britain where no one feels responsible for anything any more, and shopkeepers were advised NOT to clear the snow, in case someone slipped and sued them.
You can see, from this restaurant table, just how much snow fell.
A council employee sets to work clearing the snow from our street. Notice the tiled area that has already been cleaned by the waiters in the restaurant next door.
Tomorrow (Thursday) David and I will leave winter behind as we jet off to South Africa so that we can spend some time with Jane and family. David will only go for a week as he has work to do, but I will stay to enjoy the warmth until March 18 (my planned return date). Oh, the joys of family and friends in far-flung places.
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