Compilation of Thoughts about Istanbul and More

It was interesting to be in a country, where I didn’t speak the language. I didn’t feel lost because I had the friends who are studying in Istanbul and know at least basic sentences in Turkish. But, what was weird and cool was that my automatic responses were in Spanish. I had to stop myself many times from replying in Spanish, which I hope is a good sign that my Spanish is becoming more natural. Two other times, not in Istanbul, I have looked at menus in Spanish and thought, “That’s weird. The menu is in English”.

I have also noticed that my English, including spelling, is rapidly deteriorating (you may have noticed from these blog posts), but not necessarily at the same rate that my Spanish is improving. But overall, I feel confident with my Spanish, and I understand mostly everything, although people speak so much faster in real life than in my sheltered Spanish classes. I have an intercambio (translation: exchange), who is someone who wants to improve their English. We have an exchange of speaking in both English and Spanish, so it works out perfectly. My intercambio is 35 and works for the military, teaching people how to fly helicopters. He’s extremely nice and funny, and also talks very fast, which should help me improve my comprehension in the long run, despite the struggles I have and blank stares I give him in the present.

Random thoughts about and observations of Instanbul:

·         It was much less conscious about saving energy than Spain and probably most of Europe.

·         I saw a lot more larger vehicles, but not close to the amount in the States. I saw my first luxury truck (i.e. not used for practical purposes), and there were also a ton of expensive car dealerships, such as Maserati and Porsche.

·         There were a lot of stray dogs, but most were had ear tags, which indicates that the government has spayed/neutered them and given them shots. I heard that this is required to become a part of the EU (i.e. they don’t want a lot of rabid dogs roaming the country in an EU nation).

·         Turkey is largely dominated by a Muslim population (as we noticed from hearing the call to prayer five times a day all over the city), but the constitution has a separation from religion. It is also not a part of the Arab world. Thus, I did see Muslim women wearing hijab, or head scarves, but a large portion (I almost want to say the majority) did not. In fact, it is banned to wear hijab in government and university buildings.

·         The working world is dominated by males, though. At least, everywhere I went, the store owners and shop keepers were male, but that’s probably truer for smaller, private or family-owned businesses. But, I did see female waitresses in cafes and places like that.

·         It’s interesting to think about other cultures’ perception of nudity, but not the nudity in movies or advertisements—the daily routines of being naked, like changing clothes or bathing. For example, I never get completely naked when I’m changing in the same room as my roommate(s). But, at my hostel, my friends and I shared a room with four German girls, who would change with no shame. This was fine with me, but it’s just not something that is done in the States, at least commonly. I feel like I am more uncomfortable for the way that my roommates feel seeing me naked than for the actual way I feel when I am naked in front of them, and I think that is a cultural norm that we’ve grown up learning—that we shouldn’t be naked in front of anyone. I felt that way at the Turkish bath. I was with two friends, who are very modest and were not very comfortable with a strange Turkish woman touching them. Whenever I was rinsing myself between the abrasive and soapy scrubs, I felt uncomfortable being topless around them because I knew they were uncomfortable with it. On the other hand, the other people in the bath were completely used to nudity, so I felt more comfortable around the strangers, which I think makes sense just in that fact, as well. The baths used to be (and still are, but not as much today due to the availability of water in the home) a huge part of the culture, where socializing and complete freedom was, especially for women. So, that’s something different to think about. I haven’t been around a lot of nude Spanish men or women, so I can’t compare their views on nudity. 

Other food I ate in Turkey (but I don’t remember the names):

·         Flatbread with this tomato spread with meat and lettuce and cilantro that you rolled up like a wrap—very fresh and only cost 1 euro!

·         A mixture of tomato sauce, meat, and pieces of bread that you mixed with yogurt—sounds really weird, but was good.

·         Turkish ice cream—very thick; it can be served in slices. Comes in different flavors, like dates, hazelnut, and pumpkin.

·         Turkish coffee—very strong, but good with sugar.

·         Turkish meatballs—just like meat balls

·         Doner Kebab—the type of lamb or chicken that is on those large pyres and is thinly sliced off and put in wraps or whatever dish