Dogs don't do Ramadan

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Today is the first day of Ramadan, when observant Muslims don't eat or drink anything between sunrise and sunset. I found out that this rule doesn't apply to the local stray dogs when I encountered a few on top of the old city walls and one of them gave me a nip on the ankle.

This led to an interesting involvement with the Turkish health service. The first hospital I went to doesn't give rabies shots. You may also find this surprising, given that the city is full of stray dogs and cats. They sent me to another hospital where I joined the locals in pressing myself forward for service, despite their attempt to assign numbers to each patient. I eventually got a jab and went to a pharmacy for two kinds of antibiotics. My system is going to be completely free of nasty bugs now!

Once that was all taken care of I had time to visit a Byzantine church which was full of beautiful mosaics on the walls and ceiling. And no dogs in sight.

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Photos

Chora Museum: Saint Paul
The Greek says "I don't like dogs either"

Comments

[Ali Sliman]

Funny but true.
Enjoyed your notes about dogs of Istanbul. Haven't encountered any aggressive one during my many visits. perhaps I was not as adventurous and did not climb city walls. Visits to old churches are inspiring.