We left Bursa early, stopping briefly at the towel outlet (think Burlington Coat Factory) and meandered through the hills and valleys to Iznik, another old Turkish town known for its painted tiles. Tile-making was huge in past centuries and can still be seen on display in palaces and mosques throughout the country. It was only about 25 years ago that a retired professor chose to invest time, money and effort to revive the lost art, to the pleasure of individuals and companies far and wide who now have them in their homes and workplaces for every day viewing pleasure. Iznik tiles are special and highly valued because they are made from ground quartz, which helps make the finished tiles more vibrant. We toured the factory to see how each tile is made, baked, and painted. My mouth dropped upon entering the showroom, but it was more about the prices than the beauty of the tiles (although they we beautiful). A collection of exquisite tiles suitable for a lucky shower wall somewhere back home ran upwards of $2000. Gulp. Not the best place to shop for the nonprofit man.

On the way out of town, we ran through an archaeology museum, salivating at the site of a tourist trip tile shop we could not visit, and set out for the restaurant where we were to have lunch, which was 30 minutes away. Nearly two hours later – and after a circuitous journey around Lake Iznik (didn’t I see that same sign 20 miles ago?) and through groves of friendly olive trees, we arrived at our destination – a small fish restaurant right by the lake called Rahmi Baba. I had a moment of “Who in creation would’ve known this place was here?” We dined on grilled fish kabobs and sour cherry juice (which is actually very sweet), then hit the road.

Somewhere between the outskirts of Iznik and Istanbul, my stomach joined the circus and began doing somersaults. Too bad I didn’t realize it before I had that fourth glass of tea on the ferry ride from Asia to Europe. Could it have been the organic fig I plucked and ate just before boarding the bus in Iznik? Or was it simply “my turn” to have a bug?

Whatever the reason, I went light on dinner and hoped for better things in the morning.