the island

This is the first entry here, hopefully it will pioneer the rest of you into writing as well.
It was a strange and somewhat stressful dream....

Place: Around Istanbul, an Island, an urban coastal road
Time: Present
People: Esin, my parents, a young Altan, my grandmother Renan, Irmak, Jordan

I have a recurring theme in my dreams that I have a hide-out house. It's always the same, set in an Ithaca-esque neighborhood but is ultimately always close to the sea. Upstairs are two or three bedrooms, walls painted white, and downstairs is a garage with a wardrobe area and a bathroom. There is a green garden off of the driveway. In previous dreams, I've stayed with Helen there, run away from my parents to live with a boy, and barricaded against an impending tsunami.

Last night, from what I first remember, I walk through narrow streets with a backpack full of cash; at one point I say farewell to my parents and continue walking with a boy -- I'm not sure who he is but is someone I know well and have good trust with as a friend--. It suddenly occurs to me that we have reached our destination (after travelling for what seems like a very long time, perhaps spanning months). I clearly recall that I make a point of thinking, "I still have enough money, I haven't spent any of it yet". Our destination appears to be an island with old Greek houses, a crumbly neighborhood and a nice neighborhood, and a stretch of waterfront buildings that reminds me of Bebek. I tell my companion that we can stay at my grandmother's house and we find it; I am delighted to see that she is expecting us. The house itself looks like my aunt's house in Chula Vista and the interior is quite American. It smells like soap. All of a sudden, Esin, Irmak and other friends join us and I proceed to put down backpacks and show the rooms to all. Downstairs, at a sub-ground level, I go to show them the swimming pool. Things start getting strange: where there should be one small antre/shower area leading to the pool there appears to be an underground-garage sized compound of showers. I am confused. I try to find my grandmother but cannot. Sensing some sort of danger, I gather everyone and promptly leave the house to find that the neighborhood has changed. I remember that this happens sometimes on the island and that we need to find safety elsewhere. At this point Jordan disappears. We walk towards the 'nice' area of the island. On the way, I get dangerously close to the waterfront and notice the sea has swelled. We somehow float, as in flying, toward the commercial/Bebek area. On the way I notice the sun ha s lit up a romanesque municipality-type building in a golden shade. The building is tall but the interiors are hollow, just glass halls, except the topmost attic floor which has some rooms. At one point, I enter alone into an apartment that belongs to a friend of my grandmother's, it is dark and golden and there is noone there. I get back out on the street, it seems that I am taking all to the hide-out house, I can visualize it but I cannot catch up with Esin, who cannot help. I can't run fast enough. I see Altan from a distance, it seems that Irmak and some boys are helping him. Finally, I see the hide-out house, then I wake up.