Why Turkey?
I think I got the question more than any other before I left for Istanbul on the 17th of May. Out of all the places I could choose to study abroad, why not?
It's actually more than that. I've held an odd fascination with Turkey ever since I posed as Empress Theodora (she of 6th cent. Byzantium) and have heard stories from my father's business trips there in the 90s.
Any book you may read about Turkey, or Istanbul specifically, will talk about how it is uniquely situated. On one side, there's Europe. On another, there's Asia. It's just a stretch of water (the Bosphorus) separating it. The country boasts a rich history as a cradle of civilization (to be cliched) and has held a number of identities. Byzantine Empire, Eastern Roman Empire, Ottoman Empire, Christian, Muslim, Eastern Orthodox, Turkish Republic, the center of the universe, etc. But seriously now, let's move on before this starts turning into a really really dry lecture by somebody who isn't even qualified.
Anyway, so I decided I wanted to participate in the Burch Field Research Seminar in Turkey. And here I am.
--I do have a penchant for stating the obvious.
The journey here was an interesting mix of hot guys, attempts to learn Turkish, and general lack of sleep. And the inflight movie choices weren't the most entertaining: Mad Money and the Golden Compass. Oh Delta, you disappoint me. But I can't really complain about my nonstop flight from NYC-JFK to Istanbul. That was nice.
I did stress a bit about arriving and finding whoever would pick me up. Everything went by smoothly though. My flight got in on time at 10:00 a.m.. After searching for my luggage, exchanging some money, etc., I found Professor Shields aka Sarah. Instead of a taxi or a bus, we took a tram from the airport to our flat's neighborhood.
Hello Istanbul.
I would love to say my initial impression of Istanbul was of amazement and awe.
Even though I believe the tram provided great views and people of all sorts. I was way too jet-lagged and desiring of a shower to appreciate any of it.
After some trekking uphills pulling my 70 lb luggage and wandering around a bit, we found the apartment. Sarah, unfortunately, has, by her own admission, a poor sense of direction. I was in the zone though. A bit of an adrenaline rush and I was good to go. Though I about gave out on the five flight of stairs even without directly carrying the luggage.
I could have just chilled out at that point. But damn it, I was in Istanbul. It was time to explore.
Here's where I would insert a brief video of my first day and say enjoy, but our internet is beyond frustrating with ten people trying to work off of one router not made for the heavy traffic of constant file uploads.
What really struck me and still remains most prominent in my mind is the the winding narrow streets. Though the main road we traveled, Istiqlal, provided a view of a diverse group of Istanbullus, music, speciality stores, bars, restaurants, businesses. It's pretty amazing when you see a woman in a black burqa walking next to a woman in a tank top. Tank tops are pretty rare, but you do see them. Or, as Zoe captured in an image, a woman in a burqa carrying Converses in hand.
Speaking of amazing, how about the view from our flat? Or well, the terrace of the flat. We have the Boshporus, Topkapi Palace, Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, Galata Bridge across the Golden Horn, etc. Not to mention the fact that the Galata Tower - a famous historical watch tower built first in the 6th century Byzantium and rebuilt by Genoese merchants in the 16th century - is right next door to us and provides an amazing panoramic view of Istanbul.
We did climb Galata Tower today (Monday). Well, I suppose we didn't really climb it so to speak. There were elevators. But we did have to hike it up two flights of stairs. So yeah, we conquered Galata Tower.
Afterwards we crossed the Galata Bridge. I was slightly afraid of the fishermen lining the railing, simply because I kept picturing a fish hook landing in my eye and somehow or another being thrown over the side.
On the other side, through throngs of people we ended up in a colorful market where we - us women that is - purchased headscarves and grabbed a bite to eat. Kristina, Zoe and I also had an encounter with leeches. Awesome. There was no major blood sucking involved.
Speaking of the food; they use a lot of oil in their cooking. It takes some getting use to.
After the market we visited our first mosque, Yeni Camii. It was fascinating, but at the same time, I had a hard time comprehending it and Islam. We were allowed in during prayer, so we observed the praying Muslims. To be completely honest, it reaffirmed my Christian faith, which I suppose is a good thing for my personal religion. I felt entirely disconnected from God as men were placed up front and women shuffled to the back and sides. My headscarf aggravated my hair. It was stuffy in my jacket. My feet felt naked in just their socks.
It's hard to described a reading of the Koran unless you've ever heard it yourself. It's almost sung, almost like a poem, and almost like someone's putting a performance on for you.
I didn't feel like I was missing out on anything as the Istanbullus prayed around me, bending down to touch their foreheads to the floor. But I'm glad I experienced it; the Muslim dedication to prayer is a far cry from the agnostics and somewhat practicing Christians that surround me back home. It's my firm belief that a lot could be made for the better in the world if everyone witnessed another's faith. I would gladly sit through a prayer session again.
We explored more on our own afterwards, winding our way through city streets, taking the tram for ease as well.
More musing later...because I'm about to pass out. Hopefully the internet well let me post videos later. It's really spotty for big file uploads...much to my frustration.
