Kuaför

I had a fascinating experience a couple of months ago when I went to the hairdresser for the first time.  My biggest obstacle living in Turkey is that so few Turks speak English, and my Turkish is limited to tell the taxi driver to go left or right,  and to say "how much does it cost?" (but I am not always sure if I understand the answer)

In our neighborhood there seems to be a hairdresser on every corner, and for weeks I had been bracing myself to go in and ask if anyone could cut my hair, and then see what happened.  Since we live in a posh neighborhood where foreigners are very common,  I was hoping I would be lucky and someone would know just a few phrases in English,  but I also had a backup plan in my bag: a picture of a haircut from a magazine.

I tried a couple of places, but they just looked at me like I had asked if I could borrow some toilet paper, so I backed out.  Eventually I walked in to a big, fancy place where they were all very service minded.  The place was swarming with good-looking employees, and they even found a customer who spoke both English and Turkish, and who had probably been in similar situations many years ago and therefore very happy to be my interpreter.

Before I knew it I was getting my hair washed by an apprentice and asked if I preferred tea or coffee.   The apprentice then showed me where to sit, put my apron on (with the name of the salon printed backwards so it could be read in the mirror), combed my hair and spread all the different scissors and combs out like we were getting ready for brain surgery.  Finally everything was ready for the "master" to enter the scene, while the apprentices (yes, plural) ran back an forth to serve him hairpins, water spray or anything else he needed.

Never before has my hair been cut so thoroughly, and never before  have I felt like a movie star getting my hair done.  The place was buzzing with female customers that looked like they were getting their hair ready to meet their girlfriends for lunch, and a swarm of employees with beautiful hair.  In Turkey it seems like most hairstylists (or apprentices) are male and the females are taking care of manicures and pedicures (or making coffee, sweeping the floor or simply holding the hairdryer)

After about 45 min. of cutting, the stylist started drying my hair.  This time he had a female assistant, and again I was reminded of the fine tuned interaction between a brain surgeon and his nurse, as she was holding all the different brushes ready for the stylist.  She was also holding the hairdryer so he could use both hands to make my hair look full, holding a strand of hair when he needed it out of the way, holding the bottle of hairspray and giving it two squirts when he gave her the signal, and so on.

I have to say I had a wonderful time at the hairdresser that day and my self-esteem got boosted by the stylist saying my hair color was perfect and "çok güzel", so I felt pretty good thinking about how funny it is that people working in hair salons all over the world are dressed in black.............until the bill came............. 

I didn't have an extra mirror at home, so I used Photo Booth to be able to see how my neck looked...

Ostrich egg

To keep bugs, spiders and even birds out of a Mosque in Turkey, they traditionally use an ostrich egg.  It sounds almost too simple to be true, but maybe some of you might want to try this to keep mosquitos out of your back yard?

I was told that you take an ostrich egg and prick one small pin hole in it before you hang it up.  The inside of the egg will slowly rot and send off a horrible odor that humans can not detect because our noses are not sensitive enough, but the bugs and spiders can not stand it and will stay away.  One ostrich egg is enough for even the biggest Mosque, and I was told that it can last for 100 years.

A side effect in a room free of insects, is that birds are not attracted because they can not find food there.  There are different reasons why birds are not welcomed in a building, and in a Mosque I guess it must be so that people don't get bird poop on their heads and also not get distracted when they pray.

Traditionally an ostrich egg hangs from the chandelier in the middle of the Mosque, but I haven't been able to go in person and confirm the story.  As soon as I have a picture I will post it!

This story was told to me by a man who sells ceramic decorative balls and ornaments, which seem to be very popular item especially as a small souvenir.

Photo Club

Last week I visited a photo club I'm looking into joining.  It was a fun experience and I met a group of very nice people.  I was a little intimidated before I went, because my camera is not big and fancy, but the first person I spoke to in the club said that it is more important with a good eye than a good camera.  I think he has a point and as long as I am having fun, who can claim that size matters?

What I also love about this photo club is that they take you to places in the city that I might not have seen otherwise, and it slows me down to notice things around me in a different way.  Last week we met at an old electrical power plant that now has been converted into a museum and a cultural center.  It was a fantastic location for taking pictures, even if the sparse light inside the big halls were a bit challenging.  It made me focus more on details, which I tend to do anyways.

I want to share some of my shots with you and hopefully you will enjoy them.

CAPPADOCIA

Cappadocia is a region in central Turkey (Anatolia) where the landscape is totally out of this world.  

It's situated on a prehistoric, volcanic plateau where erosion slowly created unique caves, clefts, "fairy chimneys" and sensuous folds in the volcanic rock.  People have lived here since the early Bronze Age.  Cappadocia became a popular spot for the early Christians and for thousands of years men have dug into the soft but firm tuff to create dwellings, monasteries, churches and underground cities.  The last inhabitants in the wild valleys were relocated for safety reasons as late as in 1952.  In the newer villages, that are milling with tourists, you can still find people living in “cones” or houses half built in to the mountain side.  

This a hotel built into (or out of) the rock.  Many of these will have 'cave rooms'  as part of their appeal.

Hot air balloon tours are very popular (and VERY expensive), there are some 18 companies.  We didn't go.

Camel rock!

This is 'pigeon valley', a very quiet and beautiful place for a hike

UNDERGROUND CITIES

I have read that there are actually 40 or so subterranean settlements in Cappadocia, although only a few are fully excavated and open to the public.  They were largely made and used by early Christians as hiding places before they became an accepted religion.  The biggest underground city in this area could house 20.000 people and is 8 floors deep, but only 4 of them are open to visitors.  It’s a very strange feeling crouching down to get through these tunnels and being slightly claustrophobic while imagining people living here in hiding for months at the time.  We got caught between some tour bus groups, and that was very annoying, but they were small groups for a short time compared to thousands of scared people stuck together and not knowing for how long.

We could still see huge mill-stone shaped doors that could only be opened from the inside, to prevent invaders from entering.  There are deep wells to provide water, tall chimneys to provide ventilation, and they were fortunate the rock itself is so porous that it absorbed the smoke from cooking and heating.  They had wine presses, food and oil storage, livestock pens, kitchens and even elaborate churches carved out of the rock so that the inhabitants could live for weeks or months underground 

Does it mean something when you find a camel with your name on it?

The local police station (and this is not a joke!)

This is in Zelve Open Air Museum.  These cave and dwellings have seen a good deal of erosion.  Enormous slabs of rock will crack off leaving ahem faces of rock exposed that now display the inside of someone's old living room

Cappadocia is also known for quality rugs, beautiful pottery and traditional cuisine.

M made his own small pot which now sits on his desk in his room

M is breaking open a clay pot filled with his lamb stew dinner