Turkish people are really cool. First of all, they look so different from each other. Secondly, there is this exotic blend of the east and west: are they European, are they Asian? Secondly, they are very aware of the world outside their shores, which is rather unusual. For instance, Vix and Vinoo attracted a lot of attention due to the star they had on their caps (sourced from Shanghai Tang). People used to inevitably stop them with the enquiry as to whether they are communist. And the relationship was not tracked back to China but Cuba! According to them China is not communist, its rank capitalist! (Try saying that to President Hu) And then there would be a big discussion around the history of communism, the religion of Indians, and the connection between Turkey and India through the silk route, et al. Very informed people.
What was most interesting was that they were so chill that they would take the time to talk to you. After getting used to Hong Kong, where time is evaluated in money terms, this was refreshing and reminiscent of an older more halcyon era where people communicated with each other rather than with their blackberries. Their sense of humour is fantastic. Makes business transactions such a pleasure. Fully enjoyed our spice buying session in a shop in the Spice bazaar, and trinket buying in the Grand Bazaar! The shop owner in the Grand Bazaar told us a lot of stories of his experiences in India (he goes once in 6 months to buy gems from Jaipur), and actually took out his passport and showed us the stamps. Also gave us a crystal bracelet each for good luck after we had concluded the sales. Of course that makes you wonder whether he overcharged you so much that he threw in the bracelets for free out of guilt! That’s the only thing I personally don’t like about Turkey: they love to bargain, and everything must be negotiated. Which always leaves you wondering whether you’ve been taken to the cleaners in every transaction…
Showing posts with label Istanbul. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Istanbul. Show all posts
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Turkish cats and dogs and their interactions with people
Turkish cats and dogs seem to be very much like the Turkish people, exotic, of all kinds, quite laid back, playful/humorous, and very friendly. We had the good fortune of interacting with them in a family setting in Cappadocia in the hotel where we stayed, whose hosts managed a menagerie of different dogs and cats. This was the first time we saw these animals actually having a “personality”! there was a Garfield cat which lay around oblivious to all that was going on around him, but was not at all averse to putting out his paw to take your food unless you showed him a hand and said “no” rather forcefully. Then there was a dog (pup really) – all he wanted to do was to play with the cats but the cats were acting coy and deliberately irritating the dog by jumping and whirling from pillar to post. Vix had this strange thought at the time: wouldn’t it be a disaster for a cat that had agoraphobia and a fear of jumping!!! Then there was another cat that played football with us for a whole hour. We would throw a wine cork at her, and she would bound after it and kick it back to us! And then the cork would go under a heavy cupboard, she wouldn’t mind flattening herself to get underneath to retrieve it! And there was this really unwell cat: she was breathing like she had asthma and then we learned she died that night. So sad. We also met a cat in one of the shops – all she wanted to do is to rub herself against anyone’s legs that would let her, purring all the while. I don’t normally like cats, but Turkish cats were a delight. An animal lover’s paradise.
Turkish Hammams
Didn’t know what to expect, but we were told that hammams (Turkish baths) were staffed by these massive topless women who (wo)manhandled you and treated you like a piece of cloth: washed you very well but made you feel like a rag while doing so. We didn’t have much time except in our hotel in Kappadocia where the ladies decided to try it out. . The reality was very different. First of all, it was quite unnerving to walk into the spa and when asking for a masseuse, to be confronted by a man all ready to service our request! After insisting upon a “for women, by women” kind of framework, we got to the next step - stripping and wrapping ourselves in a scrap of cloth - with tassels! Pray why the style in a bathroom??? Did nobody tell them that its coverage we want, not fashion?? We almost sashayed out of the changing rooms only to find the aforesaid male masseuse lurking around. A few hurried pidgin Hindi internal confabulations later, we banished this poor male from his own hammam before we were ready to walk out like queens. The point at which we gave up and were bent into submission was when we walked into the sauna and found it to be co-ed!
After that it was totally easy. If you can philosophise that everyone has the same bits and bobs, you can be ready for anything. But not male therapists please! Anyway, we first baked ourselves in the sauna in the attempt to “open our pores”, then lay on a slab of marble like a piece of meat waiting to be scrubbed clean. The “madam” of the hammam (hamster?) was a totally petite and svelte young thing, completely different from what we were told to expect. Wondering whether that made the difference: wasn’t exactly painful or invigorating, or anything at all. We did feel like we were the laundry though when we got a whiff of the familiar laundry detergent that they put in tonnes onto our body, and scrubbed us with a loofah like a veggie! Incidentally all the bazaars carry such a variety of bath sponges, its like you can decide the quality, pressure, and shape of the rub you want on any day! Have to say that managing the tassled bath robe in this situation makes you ready for any costume changing challenge! And we did look suitably “chastened” and clean when we dripped and hopped our way into the changing room.
After that it was totally easy. If you can philosophise that everyone has the same bits and bobs, you can be ready for anything. But not male therapists please! Anyway, we first baked ourselves in the sauna in the attempt to “open our pores”, then lay on a slab of marble like a piece of meat waiting to be scrubbed clean. The “madam” of the hammam (hamster?) was a totally petite and svelte young thing, completely different from what we were told to expect. Wondering whether that made the difference: wasn’t exactly painful or invigorating, or anything at all. We did feel like we were the laundry though when we got a whiff of the familiar laundry detergent that they put in tonnes onto our body, and scrubbed us with a loofah like a veggie! Incidentally all the bazaars carry such a variety of bath sponges, its like you can decide the quality, pressure, and shape of the rub you want on any day! Have to say that managing the tassled bath robe in this situation makes you ready for any costume changing challenge! And we did look suitably “chastened” and clean when we dripped and hopped our way into the changing room.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
A Sunday in Istanbul
As luck would have it, this was the day of the Istanbul Marathon. The places that we'd lined up for a visit today were all inaccessible. But that wasn't going to prevent us from venturing out. Neither were the rain and dark clouds going to keep us indoors. So off we went, map in tow, to the Ortaköy area where, in addition to numerous cafes and restaurants, we found an interesting store selling motorcycling gear. We browsed there for a while as we tried to stay out of the rain but eventually made our way to The House Cafe across the street where we got our first experience of Turkish style casual dining.
As we watched the scene around us in the restaurant, we began forming some instant opinions... the Turks were big on moustaches! They were also big on smoking. But more than anything else, the Turks seemed to be cool, quite chic, and fashionably conscious. And English... no problem!
After lunch, we walked around in the neighbourhood, checking out the big Bosphorus Bridge that connects Europe with Asia, before making our way back to Taksim where our hotel was. We decided to view a performance of the Turkish Military Band at the Istanbul Harbiye Military Museum & Culture Center. Our moustache theory was re-confirmed during this very-well attended performance. Most of the musicians had thick hairy growth above their upper lips. Their uniforms were from the early-20th century. And the music they played was a mix of martial and local folk. The performance was in a hall inside a Military Museum. We didn't have the time to check out the museum but we're sure they would have had an interesting collection of exhibits. After all, Istanbul - Constantinople - Byzantium... it has a rich and diverse military history. Even during WWI and WWII, Turkey was a key front in the war between the Allied and Axis powers. In fact, one of the only dates I remember from my history lesson is 1453 - the fall of Constantinople!
Anyway, several pictures later, we got into a taxi and made our way to a shopping mall called Istinye Park. He he... while the rest of Istanbul was busy burning calories in the Marathon, we were busy burning plastic! And to conclude a long day, we had dinner at another outlet of The House Cafe in the mall.
As we watched the scene around us in the restaurant, we began forming some instant opinions... the Turks were big on moustaches! They were also big on smoking. But more than anything else, the Turks seemed to be cool, quite chic, and fashionably conscious. And English... no problem!
After lunch, we walked around in the neighbourhood, checking out the big Bosphorus Bridge that connects Europe with Asia, before making our way back to Taksim where our hotel was. We decided to view a performance of the Turkish Military Band at the Istanbul Harbiye Military Museum & Culture Center. Our moustache theory was re-confirmed during this very-well attended performance. Most of the musicians had thick hairy growth above their upper lips. Their uniforms were from the early-20th century. And the music they played was a mix of martial and local folk. The performance was in a hall inside a Military Museum. We didn't have the time to check out the museum but we're sure they would have had an interesting collection of exhibits. After all, Istanbul - Constantinople - Byzantium... it has a rich and diverse military history. Even during WWI and WWII, Turkey was a key front in the war between the Allied and Axis powers. In fact, one of the only dates I remember from my history lesson is 1453 - the fall of Constantinople!
Anyway, several pictures later, we got into a taxi and made our way to a shopping mall called Istinye Park. He he... while the rest of Istanbul was busy burning calories in the Marathon, we were busy burning plastic! And to conclude a long day, we had dinner at another outlet of The House Cafe in the mall.
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Turkey!
Autumn 2009 - Turkey beckons us. And we simply could not refuse! So off we were on the direct non-stop Turkish Airlines flight from Hong Kong to Istanbul. New aircraft (Boeing 777-300) with contemporary livery, individual touch-screen entertainment systems and of course, our specially ordered Indian Vegetarian (AVML) meals! :-)
We were fortunate to have 3 seats for the two of us - it helped make the 11 hour flight just a little more comfortable. The flight path had us fly over China, Myanmar, India, Pakistan, and Iran before the final stretch over Turkey. Tehran glistened in the night, and on the flight, I saw we were flying not too far from cities like Qom, Isfahan and Shiraz - places that we've read and heard so much about because of their rich cultural and religious heritage!
The arrival in Istanbul's Kemal Ataturk International Airport was the smoothest in recent memory! We didn't even have to fill up an arrival form! Short immigration queues, quick scan of our passports, and before we knew it, we were legal visitors in Turkey! Wow!
The early morning taxi ride from the airport was smooth and quick - it had rained overnight, and the pre-dawn drive along the coast had us in awe as we passed by some of the monuments bathed in white lights... the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sofia... places that we had only read of before... In fact, the very fact that we were in Istanbul - Constantinople - Byzantium... so much history and so much geographical importance lies nested in this city - we had to pinch ourselves to realise that we were actually visiting this place. How fortunate we feel about this!
We were fortunate to have 3 seats for the two of us - it helped make the 11 hour flight just a little more comfortable. The flight path had us fly over China, Myanmar, India, Pakistan, and Iran before the final stretch over Turkey. Tehran glistened in the night, and on the flight, I saw we were flying not too far from cities like Qom, Isfahan and Shiraz - places that we've read and heard so much about because of their rich cultural and religious heritage!
The arrival in Istanbul's Kemal Ataturk International Airport was the smoothest in recent memory! We didn't even have to fill up an arrival form! Short immigration queues, quick scan of our passports, and before we knew it, we were legal visitors in Turkey! Wow!
The early morning taxi ride from the airport was smooth and quick - it had rained overnight, and the pre-dawn drive along the coast had us in awe as we passed by some of the monuments bathed in white lights... the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sofia... places that we had only read of before... In fact, the very fact that we were in Istanbul - Constantinople - Byzantium... so much history and so much geographical importance lies nested in this city - we had to pinch ourselves to realise that we were actually visiting this place. How fortunate we feel about this!
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