Orange Trousers, Red Jacket.

I haven't managed to post for a long time and, thanks to all the family having flu after having a stomach bug, I look like someone who is likely to have people spraying disinfectant in their wake. I feel like I am riding a horse that refuses to go at a speed I can manage, but at the same time there is great calm below the surface paddling because Ruskin is home. His arrival though, as many of you know, contained no calm at all.

Ville heroically volunteered to go alone to the airport to collect him with all of the other kiddos to give me a chance to sleep. It took well over an hour for Ruskin to emerge and so they were all getting a bit vocal about being tired and hungry as they headed for the Seabus from Bakirköy to Bostancı (on the Asian side of Istanbul and the closest part to us). The boat was so full that Ruskin, with his oversized red suitcase crammed full of Easter goodies, was waved down to the back entrance, so he was separated from the others. When Ville disembarked he realised that Ruskin had got off at  the only other stop: Kadiköy. He called Kadiköy ferry terminal and described a teenager with a red suitcase and was told that no-one of that description had got off the boat. Just after Ville told me about this strange circumstance his phone ran out of charge. The next news I had was when Ville arrived by horse and cart to unload the little ones and charge his phone. We phoned all the boat terminals and alerted the police but three hours after he got off the boat there was still no sign. Despite having great trust in Ruskin my mind started to wander down the path of what if, so when some friends offered to start searching in Kadiköy I gratefully took them up on the offer. When Ville met up with them after searching at Bostancı the mistake at the heart of this mystery revealed itself. When asked face to face the staff at Kadiköy said that there hadn't been a teenager in a red jacket only one with a very large red suitcase! A few minutes later (6 hours after he got off the boat) Ruskin knocked on the door having got on the last vapur and dragged the big red suitcase home.

Ruskin had done exactly what we tell the kids to do and sat still and waited for us. He was in full view of the staff we were in contact with, they just couldn't 'see' him. Ville speaks Turkish like a native so there was no real explanation for the fixation on a jacket rather than a suitcase of red. By the time Nemo and Ayse were walking around Kadiköy shouting Ruskin's name (and the police were looking for a Justin Box), Ruskin had gone in search of free wireless. When nothing worked and it looked like he was going to sit there all night he blagged his way on the last boat home.

At 1 am Ruskin and I cracked open some Cadbury's chocolate and I opened the red suitcase and took out the beautiful Easter tablecloth inside and laid it out. I made baskets lined with shredded paper and filled with treats. I put the tin containing fresh hot cross buns and my Mum's famous Swiss Roll on the table ready for breakfast. I felt so close to my Mum who 2000 kilometres away had prepared everything to make Easter special. At 2 am Ville got home, thanks to an expensive ride on a sea taxi, and our entire family were finally within the same walls.

One of the great things about doing the Documenting Delight photography project is that when I get a chance to look over what I shot (even through a flu haze) I see how many moments of near perfection there are for every near miss. Here there are moments of relaxed happiness between the kids while the drama of the Istanbul shoreline builds outside our boat. There is a museum visit with Finnish cousins which included a train to 'drive'. There is Ruskin baby-wearing Neve and looking handsome in Heybeliada's little fishing harbour. There is the kids, theatrically framed, playing on the day bed I made for myself in the hope of getting some rest (I hear parents laughing!). I took a picture of Anton doing what he likes best: making mixtures and my friend Suzie (you can read her beautiful writing at http://anotsoturkishlife.com/) displaying her inspiring mama-skills in Taksim's Gezi Park. And there is Ville, the person who makes all of this possible and beautiful, smiling. Good times. Now I just need to get enough sleep to properly enjoy it!


On the vapur looking out towards Büyükada

Anton and Ruskin on the vapur

Haydarpaşa from the vapur

At Koç Technical Museum, a Fiat Littorina train with the fasces in front

Anton inside the Fiat Littorina

Anton driving the Fiat Littorina

Neve seen through the train window

Ruskin in the fishing harbour at Heybeliada

Ruskin in the fishing harbour at Heybeliada

Matti and Ruskin

Ville in the fishing harbour at Heybeliada

The start of wisteria season

Ruskin and Neve on Heybeliada

Neve in the orange house

Anton and Neve in the orange house

Orange flowers, blue house

Neve

Red tights

Anton making a mixture

Ruskin

Hoop

Neve on the orange house balcony

Baby-wearing big brother

Neve and Rahima

Neve and the daisies

Ruskin, Anton, Suzie and K in Gezi Park

K in Gezi Park

Beautiful K

Suzie and T in Gezi Park

Suzie, K and T

Waiting for departure at Kabataş

Hazal entertains the boys on the way home

On the vapur home

From the balcony


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9 thoughts on “Orange Trousers, Red Jacket.

  1. Julia those photos are a set worth waiting for. Absolutely stunning. I've missed your posts like a friend I've not seen in a while. I even tweeted you (@enduringdelight) as I was worried you'd gone off the radar. My favourite is definitely the one of Ruskin wearing Neve, you are right he is a handsome yojng man. Anyway glad to hear all turned out well in the end and hope that you are feeling better soon xx

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  2. I hope you are all feeling better now. The photos are lovely, and it was also lovely to see Suzie in your photos. The internet makes the world such a small place at times, does it not? :)

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  3. Anonymous22:11

    Thank you for capturing such precious photos, dear friend. We can't wait for you to be well to see you again - gecmis olsun, cok! x

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  4. So many beautiful moments! Hope you are feeling better soon, and I'm so glad that Ruskin made it home safe and sound!

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  5. So sorry to hear you werent feeling good, beautiful images. Love ergobaby!

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  6. Anonymous13:44

    OMG!!! what a stressful time getting him home from! Glad you are altogether now and your images are just delightful. Neve's B&W in the field of flowers is beautiful and at least your day bed made for gorgeous photo opportunities.

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  7. I really enjoyed your writings today. Brought a smile to my face. Soooo very glad Ruskin found his way home safely. He seems like such a great kid. Hope you get some rest soon, I know being a mama can be so very tiring at times. Thank you for sharing a piece of your life with your DD friends. :-)

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  8. How stressful that must have been, while too sick to be able to do anything yourself. Glad it had a happy ending! I love the backlit photos of the littles in front of the curtains, and of baby wearing big brother.

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  9. oh wow, Julia, I can't even imagine how stressful that would have been and you still managed to produce the most amazing photos this week. Love the ones of Rushkin wearing Neve and the ones of Anton and Neve playing in front of the window. I hope you are able to catch up on some rest and I'll look forward to your wonderful pictures this week :)

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