CURATING IDEAS AND EXPERIENCES
Anoushka Shankar released an album in response to the Syrian refugee crisis. I listened to the whole album played during a live performance in Seattle a month ago. It was fantastic. I do not want to call it "world music" because I hate the term and because it reveals nothing about the type of music you … Continue reading Music Recommendation: Anoushka Shankar/Land of Gold
Kilis is next to Gaziantep. One of the vibrant regions for food in Turkey in the Southeast next to the Syrian border. Unfortunately there has been grave political unrest in the city recently. This is my tribute to the area from distance. I was originally going to make homemade adana kebabs - however, the true … Continue reading Ekin Cooks: Kilis Tavasi
This song is about something that we often forget about: our pending doom an upcoming end to what we know as life. Blackstar is about that, death, I think. It is a complex and beautiful song. The song jumps melody and rhythm and evolves. It is part rock, part jazz. It escapes words. It … Continue reading Music Recommendation: David Bowie – Blackstar
When I was in college I discovered Philip Glass. I spent the four years of college collecting Glass's albums. That was my first introduction to minimalist classic music (although Glass' all music would not qualify as such). I think I spent about a month where I listened to Glass' Solo Piano everyday: These days, … Continue reading Music Recommendation: Minimalist Classical Music
I have been thinking about ways of creating a global classroom: that is a classroom that makes the least amount of assumptions of students background and also a classroom that turns student diversity into an asset. I have prepared a poster for the annual Symposium on Teaching and Learning at University of Washington which was … Continue reading Teaching and Learning: BUILDING GLOBAL CLASSROOMS: SOTL 2016 Poster
I am going to collaborate with Caffe Torino of Seattle this summer again for an event. We are thinking of an aperitivo evening - a late afternoon event of drinks and bites. We tested some of the combination recipes with the owner of Caffe Torino, Andrea this past weekend. At the event we try … Continue reading Pop-up Chronicles: Tasting Aperitivo Bites for Summer 16 Event
This was my second dinner at Caffe Torino located in the South Lake Union neighborhood of Seattle. This time the task was a bit more challenging - I had to cook for 41 people. In honor of the upcoming elections - I blended the meal with spices arriving from Southeast region of Turkey. The real … Continue reading Pop-up Chronicles: Caffe Torino June 6th Dinner: A Night of Friends, Turkish Food the day before the Turkish elections
We organized the first Seattle YogaTreat yesterday (February 7th 2015) These treats combine an enriching yoga session with a meal. The yoga session was envisioned and led by Sweta Saraogi and I cooked and curated the meal. We asked Richard Kinssies of Seattle Wine School and Wine Outlet (whose classes are a must attend) to … Continue reading Pop-up Chronicles: Seattle YogaTreat: Food, Yoga and Friends (2015)
I cooked my first pop-up dinner in Seattle at Caffe Torino last night. It was an enchanting experience. Even if it is taxing in the body- making and sharing food is exhilarating. The dinner was for 35 people. My friend Ruchika was my sous-chef and helped me throughout the process. The photos are taken by … Continue reading Pop-up Chronicles: My First Pop-up (2014)
Very early in the morning, during a quest to see the sunrise we climbed to the antique city of Amos- built in 200 B.C. Located in Turkey's Amos coast, next to the city of Turunc - 20 km from Marmaris, the ruins are fairly desolate. We reside in the summers in the town next door … Continue reading Amos: The Antique City of Ants