Nesfe Jahan, pt 30

Antep.

We get dropped off at the toll booth right in front of the city. The only reason we’re stopping there is because the baklava is supposedly legendary, and… well, it’s the best baklava in the world. So sue me for being uninformed. While we are walking up to the booth, I flash my sign at the first car to wait, and he immediately waves us inside of his car, and inside of Turkish hospitality. Aslan is a very well-educated social worker, manager of a school for handicapped children in Gaziantep (as the city is known since 1984). His English is really very good, but more importantly, he is well-read and educated. And when he learns about our mission, he immediately takes us right there, and orders for the uninformed.

And yes, it is abosultelty worth the detour. Not that it’s not a destination in it’s own right, but it’s hards to imagine doing something more important here then the baklava. Not sweet comparing to any others, but tasting very strongly of the rich flavour of pistachio. Only a small cover of flaky philo dough as a perfect feint to the nutty core. Excellent, memorable. And then the one with no filling that taste like a pastry bubble. Or the decadent one filled with EVERYTHING.

Anyway, I casually ask Aslan if there are other typical foods in Antep, and his reply is to drive us to a fast food place that specializes in chickpeas. And only that.

The only problem with Aslan is that he’s too strong to wrestle away from the cash register. He drove us back to the highway. He even offered to pay a pair of shoes my companion was gazing at. I have a lot to learn.