Lara Adrienne

My first New Year's Eve performing in Istanbul consisted of four shows. The first was on the Asian side of the Bosphorus. It was in a mansion so lovely that the tile floor in the garage was nicer than what most people have in their kitchens.

I hired a driver to take me there (it sounds glamorous, but it's basically a taxi), wait for me, then take me to a seaport where I was picked up by a yacht just before midnight. There was enough time before my show for a quick dinner in the captain's cabin while watching a firework show. During my performance, the boat traveled toward Örtaköy, where it docked just long enough to allow them to transfer me to another yacht for my third performance of the night. (This was pretty glamorous.)

When the boat docked in Beşiktaş, I headed for Taksim. My fourth show was more of a favor to one of the places I dance regularly on weekends than anything else. I squeezed them in at the end of the night, although by that point, I would've preferred to go home and hang up my sequined armbands.

Today I slept until 4 pm.


Follow my nomadic belly dance adventures at La Vie et La Danse.