The following entry was originally posted on the Official FIBA “BBall” App available on Nokia mobile phones. Get the app for yourself via the Ovi Store.
Watching three games of FIBA basketball per day is no easy task (I hear your hearts going out to us!). The emotion involved in watching one thrilling basketball battle after another drains fans of vital energy. And where do they turn to replenish this? The fine restaurants of Turkey, of course.
Turkey has some of the finest and most varied cuisine in the world. Being the gateway between Asia and Europe and having the immensely rich history that Turkey does, means that the food on offer is never short of fascinating — and delicious. We have been lucky enough in our travels so far to be guided to some great eating venues (sure, we’ve been stuck with the in-arena Domino’s Pizza option a couple of times — but that is due to our dedication to basketball) with some amazing food.
Yesterday’s meal in the heart of Kayseri was no exception. Take a look at this photo and tell me that it doesn’t make your mouth water.
And this is just a sample of what has been on offer in Turkey. Lunch on the previous day was served in a cave-setting, including some amazing bean soup and kebab meat that was cooked in a clay pot (believe me, it is nothing like the kebabs you may be thinking of in other countries!).
All of this food has been greatly needed, as the action at the arena in Kayseri has been coming thick and fast, with a mixture of dominant blowouts and tight battles. To show you the stark contrast from one night to the next: Germany went to double overtime against Serbia one night and then the following night was destroyed by Australia (the same Boomers team that had managed to beat Jordan by only one point on Day One). As I said a couple of days ago, that is why they play the games. We certainly can not predict the results!
Tonight we take in the action in Ankara — the nation’s capital — with a key matchup in Greece vs Turkey. You will be hearing about this one…
