I was not
in the mood for writing an entry, not at all. However, my friend Maria from
Lisbon sent me an email with words of encouragement after reading my blog
entries. Then, another lovely email from a student from Northern Cyprus who celebrated
the Women's Day in her unique manner arrived. She made music & danced in
the ancient olive grove right by the campus. She must be a secret shaman, gypsy
and my spiritual daughter. She just does not know it yet. I miss ancient olive
trees of the island and they know it. I want Beth Moon to come and take their
pictures for her next exhibition, I promise to be her guide for free: http://bethmoon.com/
Having her
autographed book with the most wonderful ancient tree pictures as a present from
John Scanlan (Santa Fe) was just amazing. Thank you!
The problem
with Istanbul is the pace of life. It is so fast (at least for me who has been spoiled
in the easy-going Mediterranean island and then in artsy Santa Fe where amazing hikes were
just a short drive away). I could hardly
prevent my laughter when Santa Feans kindly warned me of the reckless drivers
whenever they heard that I rented a bicycle to ride in/around the town. I
simply answered: "Thank you but believe me there is no traffic here and I feel
very safe." Well, I did. I loved riding my bicycle there. Any time of the day
including the midnight with full Moon guiding me after she learned that I had
more than two glasses of sangria on that particular Friday at El Meson.
Today, on
my way out of the Gayrettepe subway station at around 4 pm, a very polite man
stopped me to ask how to cross to the other side of the road. If he did not
have that Istanbul Turkish and fine clothes, I would say, he acted like he just
came from a village and looked so confused in the big city. Well, it turns out
that he did! He lives in a small town in Bodrum peninsula for the past 27 years.
He asked me (just as I was thinking about it by myself) how we can deal with
this chaotic city. He comes for family visits (mother & sister) since he is
originally from Istanbul. He was very
thankful that I showed him the way. I was exactly in the same confused state of
mind and felt quite idiotic only two months ago. Now, at least I know how to
get in and out, which directions to go after being underground. I refrained
from using the phrase I am getting used to it because I don't want to get used
to it and I have no plans of getting used to it. If someone donates me a house
in Bebek and I can use it as my home-office, that is another story. However,
just because you are in Istanbul you want to go out and follow stuff. The Istanbul Film Festival is coming soon (two other film festivals were over IF & Film Mor),
there is always something going on in Pera Museum or Istanbul-Modern and
many other galleries. I won't even go into the live-music scene! There is
always someone who recommends a new restaurant or café; a
friend who wants to meet and do something different. You come home exhausted; resenting & asking your body: "Why are you so tired?" I actually have friends who
suggested Skype meetings so that each one of us can stay at home, sip our
drinks and chat. That may be one practical solution but it also sounds so absurd to
me since I use Skype for chatting with my friends in Toronto and Santa Cruz.
You must
have noticed that I did not even mention the money-issue. It is depressing. If
you really want to enjoy the city, you need to be rich not just in money but
also in time. You need them both! I feel sorry for the rich ones who work
so hard and for too many hours, come home exhausted, and cannot even spend the
money they earn when they want to. Their
leisure time coincides with the rest of the city, the weekends! There is
something so weird about that relationship (money, the same 48 hours, traffic
jam, shopping mall jam). One example: Last Sunday, at around noon, the line in
Starbucks Bebek was so ridiculously long, I mean you would think that they are
giving out free coffee or latte for everyone (even in that case no way I'll wait for it!)
Yet, if the
whole country has a heart and brain they are both located right here in
Istanbul. Everything is here. Everything becomes possible if you are ambitious,
strong and patient. If your life style is going in the direction of a Sufi
(simple, modest, clean, no-ego) then you are in the wrong place my friend! You
will be devoured or unhappy in this city. Consider Bodrum or at least one of
the Princess islands if Bodrum sounds far away. The gentleman I met today looks
very healthy and enjoys a glowing tan year-round. Just for the record, he told
me life is much cheaper there and for some reason, he mentioned parsley. He
said: "The parsley is so green in Bodrum. Its scent remains in your palm when
you touch it. Farmer's Market is so lively and colorful". Just like the scent of
fresh parsley, his words and the excitement in his voice in reference to Bodrum-life remained with me for the
rest of the day.
Hiç yorum yok:
Yorum Gönder