Akbil ve ekmek

Generally, it's pretty easy to find the things you need--or some approximation thereof--in Istanbul. When you want a new faucet, you go to the faucet district. Need some towels? Oh, hey, there's a whole row of stores selling the exact same ones. But, occasionally, you need to look in some unlikely places.

I recently filled up my Akbil (a kind of electronic bus pass) at a little sidewalk stand selling loaves of bread.

And when I need to send a fax, I walk up the street to a store where the walls are full, ceiling-to-floor, of cubicles holding various colors of yarn and boxes of pantyhose. The fax machine sits in one of the cubicles, surrounded by stockings.

Now if only we had that classic American quirky-combo--Chinese food & donuts.