Turquoise

Girls in white dresses with blue satin sashes

Snowflakes that stay on my nose and eye lashes

Silver white winters that melt into spring

These are a few of my favorite things!

So sings Julie Andrews in “The Sound of Music.” It seems that all of my favorite things are turquoise. I got my first turquoise earrings at the age of 7 when my Mom asked me to follow the family tradition and have my ears pierced.

A lot of water’s gone under the bridge since then but I’m still attracted to turquoise, not just the stone, but also the color in general. It awakens such a variety of feelings in me.

Turquoise has long been appreciated as a holy stone and a good-luck-charm that promotes good fortune, success and love. The stone comes in sky-blue, blue-green and apple-green. Sky-blue is the most popular color, though green is the rarest. Pure blue colored Turquoise is rare as well. And though i don’t really believe in myths, some people still think that a change in color of the stone is a sign of physical or mental changes.

The word turquoise, which dates back to the 16th century, is derived from the Old French word for “Turkish”, as the mineral was first brought to Europe from Turkey.

As for Turkey and traveling through the Middle East, I feel that there’s this bridge between the two worlds of Modern and Ancient times and it’s made out of mint green turquoise like the landscapes of these beautiful countries.

There’s no better example of turquoise than the blue lagoon of the Aegean Sea, Ölüdeniz. It’s famous for its shade of emerald green and is an official blue flag beach. It’s frequently rated among the top 5 beaches in the world. I ‘ve been to Ölüdeniz many times and just can’t get enough of the visuals not to mention the water sports, as I’m a fan of jet skiing, diving and boating. Paradise on earth!

As long as were on the subject of pleasure, Pamukkale is a must see. Turkey’s favorite spa salon as we call it. Indeed, it’s a mineral-bath spa because of its hot calcium-laden waters that spring from the earth and cascade over the cliffs. As they cool they form dramatic travertines of hard, brilliantly white calcium that form pools of sky-blue turquoise water.

Our next stop is the Sultan Ahmed “Blue Mosque” in Istanbul with it’s fascinating interior that reminds me so much of my roots. The upper level walls are adorned with blue tiles which gives the appearance of the azure sky.

The night view of the mosque is divine.

This entry was posted on Sunday, July 31st, 2011 at 11:37 am and is filed under Lifestyle. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed or trackback from your own site. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

About the author

Leyla Salavatova grew up in the Republic of Dagestan in Southern Russia. She developed her love of fashion from her grandmother, an established fashionista. She has traveled the world since the age of six, experiencing other cultures and traditions. Leyla chose to follow elder family members and attended the prestigious Lomonosov Law School in Moscow. Upon graduation she decided to follow her dreams and move to Los Angeles to pursue a career in the fashion world. Leyla recently graduated from the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in Los Angeles. Leyla Salavatova