Strange Sights

You never know what you're going to find wandering around this city. Earlier this week as I wandered around Etiler, the area of Istanbul that I live in, I stumbled across this pet store and decided why not step inside and see what they have?

The funny thing about Turkey is that they come up with the most absurd prices for foreign things (food, clothes, and pets evidentally). This bird here was only 5000 YTL (roughly $4750 USD). And he has a special talent. He can bark like a dog :)



They also have more exotic animals if you so desire. Like this guy here. I didn't even bother asking how much he was...

'Tis the Season

Since up to ninety-nine percent of the population here in Turkey are Muslims, Christians are an obvious minority. Because it is a secular country - the only Muslim country in the world, in fact, that has no state religion - and the Constitution guarantees religious freedom, tolerance is the rule. Thus, the population includes members of the Armenian Apostolic and Greek Orthodox churches, Roman and Eastern Catholics, and Jews.

Last week, we had Wednesday through Sunday off from university for the Kurban Bayram (or Eid al Adha in Arabic), the Muslim holiday celebration of Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his own son for God/Allah/Yahweh. It also marks the end of the Hajj in Mecca.

On this day, Muslims have an animal slaughtered, then distribute some of the meat to the poor and use the rest for a big feast. Non-observers, my self included, admire carcasses hanging in public places where carcasses usually aren't and step over guts and blood in the street.

[I considered being really mean and posting pictures here, but I'm pretty sure no one actually wants to see any of it. I may still put them in my random Istanbul folder that I plan on putting on Picasa next week though. You've been forewarned.]

Sunday, I went Bayram visiting with one of my Turkish friends at his aunt and uncle’s place on the Asian side of the city. Basically, it was an excuse to eat lots of good food, practice my Turkish, and put off studying for just a little bit longer.

Monday night a few of us went to Christmas Eve mass at the French Cathedral here in Istanbul – it was one of 3 churches doing a Christmas Eve service. It was definitely an experience, seeing as it was one long (and by long I mean 2 ½ hours long) service in English, Turkish, French, and Italian. If my brain didn’t already hurt from studying for all my exams that I have this week it sure did when I walked out of the church at 2 AM from trying to follow the priests switching from one language to another continuously.

It’s hard to believe that Tuesday was Christmas. It’s a very different feeling here than it is back in the US. There is no Santa Claus, no Christmas trees, no lights, no carols, no nothing that reminds me of Christmas.



Ok, so maybe I lied…there he is, right on the Istiklal Caddesi–the skinniest Santa in the world!

But don’t let it fool you. At first his red suit and fake white beard seem out of context here, but the truth is that in Turkey, Santa is not a Christmas icon. Nope, here he is a bona fide symbol of the New Year.

Here, you have New Year trees, New Year ornaments, New Year e-greetings, New Year gifts. And to be honest, because I’ve gotten used to everything being there for New Years, this past weekend I almost forgot it was time for Christmas…almost, but not quite.

Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and have a Happy New Year!

The Tick Tock of the Clock is Painful

Wow...so after all of this, I'm only in Istanbul for 2 more weeks. I’ve got 5 finals, a 20-page paper, and loads of revisiting my favorite sites around the city to do before I fly home. I’ve gotten pretty accustomed to Istanbul; the traffic, the Bogaz, the Akbils, the random 400-year-old ruins peeking their heads out, so I'm not sure what to expect when I return. It's almost like I have to run through the whole "don't go to America expecting anything...just embrace whatever you find there," thing that I had to do before coming to Istanbul.

Which is funny, because no matter how hard I try, I'm always setting out goals and expectations to fit the stereotype of what I'm planning to experience. Even if I consciously try not to. And don't shake your head at me, you do it to. At least Marco Polo famously went East expecting to see Unicorns and ended up explaining how ugly unicorns are. Our preconceptions form our worldview, no matter how hard we try to run from them.

I think I did a decent job, though, coming to Turkey on a blank slate. I've learned a lot here without just confirming what I always thought (I'm not even sure what I always thought, to be honest. But it wasn't this). I could go into detail here, but I’d rather not bore you. If you really want to know, when I come home ask for the “lets get coffee and talk for a few hours” version of my semester instead of the “5 minute, it was great” one.

It's Been a Busy Week

Sorry for the lack of updates in the past week and a half. Istanbul's been busy but exciting now that midterms are over (although finals are quickly approaching...unfortunately).

Last weekend was one of culture and fun. Thursday night, we decided to treat ourselves for successfully completing midterms, so we set off for Georgian/Russian food in a quaint little restaurant that now inhabits the old British Jail. Borsch, hot cheese with walnuts, and Vareniki (as well as a trip down memory lane) were accompianied by the tales artfully spun by the older couple that owned/ran the restaurant of times spent in Georgia, Turkey, Russia, and Belarus (yes, they actually lived in Belarus!)

Friday night a few of us felt like enjoying a little bit of America again and went to the Blues Festival that was in town for the week. Excellent music and fun was a great way to start the weekend and get out on the town. Because who doesn't love "Sweet Home Chicago", "Mississippi Waters", or "Let the Good Times Roll"?

Sunday was Turkish day between weekly brunch at Sevgi's apartment and the accompianing Turkish conversation and an afternoon exploration of nearby Rumeli Hisar - the fortress that guards the narrowest part of the Bosphorus, right next to campus.

Last night the girls all went down to Bebek for dinner to celebrate my birthday early before people traveled for the weekend. Dinner was excellent (pomegranate pizza - sounds wierd, no? ) and was followed by picture taking on the Bosphorus and singing Christas carols (read: teaching Christmas carols to the Turks) in preparation of the upcoming holiday.

Speaking of Christmas...did I mention that I have a final exam on Christmas day?... Sad day indeed.

Hope everyone back at home finished up the semester well and is glad to finally be done with finals. See you all in a few weeks!

It's All Greek to Me

The white sand stone rises straight up towards the heavens. Separated only by a small ring of trees, keeping the city at bay, the Acropolis rests steadily upon this base, housing the Parthenon, the Temple to Athena and two theaters. It wasn’t until later that afternoon when I was perched atop a rock in the remains of the ancient agora staring out over the Acropolis, Athens and Greece, that I realized it was December first. Already? There, it was still warm and the sun beat down on my face. When I was walking among the buildings, the familiar wash of satisfaction over took me.

As I explored the Acropolis or wandered around the Agora and the Plakas, it was absolutely amazing to see these structures still standing from thousands of years ago. I found myself imagining what this place looked like in its prime, as it did when people like Socrates and Aristotle walked the streets and thought up their great works. I was a bit disappointed to see that they were in the process of restoring the Parthenon, scaffolding marring my pictures on both sides. Oh well, this just gives me an excuse to come back one day.

In Istanbul news, it's still cold and rainy...big surprise there. Thankfully, midterms are over and I can enjoy the city again. Best of luck to all you at home taking exams next week!

pictures!

As promised, pictures from my trips to Israel and Greece are finally posted on my picasa album. Enjoy!