Wedding, Round Two
(Written last night 10:32)
So tonight was the second night of the wedding party. That or this place is booked solid for midsummer night weddings. Sunday night meant nearing the end of my it's-the-weekend-so-I-have-to-pay-for-food fast so I was feeling a bit hungry, and the smells drifting in weren't helping my trying to sleep at the absurdly early hour of eight thirty. So I hesitated, waited for the music to really increase in volume (I'll talk about the music in a bit) which probably meant most people had been served and were now dancing, and I headed out towards the smell of delicious food. This had to be the longest I've waited and the most fun I've had getting a meal that I shouldn't legitimately be having. Walking over to the line was simple enough, as I suspected most people were on the dance floor, I just strolled along (barefoot I might add) looking like I had every reason to be there. Any eye contact was met with my best I-know-these-people-and-I'm-so-happy-for-them smile and I got into line next to the cooking station, a line of charcoal cooking bins with skewers over them and a table for making wraps with lettuce and seasonings.
So far so good, I just waited, three older men were talking in front of me, I kept picking up numbers along with names of currency and units of length, meter and kilometer. So I still don't really have a clue what exactly it was about. This line was moving slowly, I mean slow! There was some cooking difficulties, the charcoal didn't seem to be hot enough or something. That didn't stop my smiling, no sir. Two Turkish girls on cellphones joined the line after a bit, your usual ultra-cute bourgeoisie Turks. They figured out right away I didn't belong and kept tittering to each other about it.
Somewhere around two meters being covered in half an hour one of the men in front of me decided to throw sobriety to the wind and approached the nearby bar. A glass of red, followed by four glasses of white ensued over the course of our time together. He kept turning to me (especially when his buddies started getting bored with his quickly becoming inebriated) and asking me little questions, or making jokes. Now, I've said it before but it's really worth saying again, 90% of communication really is nonverbal. I just laughed when I should, and agreed the rest of the time. When he asked where one of his buddies went I pointed vaguely towards the beverage shack and said "Bira" then grinned. Another half hour follow of the girls behind me very keen on my ploy and this fellow enjoying me as a conversation partner.
Then he asked something I had no way of responding to that I knew. And he asked again. Then in a soft voice he asked, "You don't speak Turkish, do you?" My jig was up! I confessed with a grin and he started laughing, asking me where my home was, what I was doing in Turkey the usual things. As it turns out he is a science professor at Baçeşehir U. Then he turned to his friends and explained to them how this whole time he thought I spoke Turkish (much to my credit I suppose) by only answering him simply.
After another not so short wait in which I was introduced to his wife and all his friends, given business cards for spare auto part salesmen and the usual conversation about football the food was ready! I had a steaming hot wrap in my hand, prepared by a cook who made some ornate speech where I only understood "Turkish" and "English" while the girls laughed. And one of the bourgeoisie girls even worked up the party spirit to go ask the bartender for two cans of beer. Good on them, it was a fun evening to get a bite to eat. It's just past eleven now and I should sleep but the music is still going strong despite the steady trickle of exiting guests.
So tonight was the second night of the wedding party. That or this place is booked solid for midsummer night weddings. Sunday night meant nearing the end of my it's-the-weekend-so-I-have-to-pay-for-food fast so I was feeling a bit hungry, and the smells drifting in weren't helping my trying to sleep at the absurdly early hour of eight thirty. So I hesitated, waited for the music to really increase in volume (I'll talk about the music in a bit) which probably meant most people had been served and were now dancing, and I headed out towards the smell of delicious food. This had to be the longest I've waited and the most fun I've had getting a meal that I shouldn't legitimately be having. Walking over to the line was simple enough, as I suspected most people were on the dance floor, I just strolled along (barefoot I might add) looking like I had every reason to be there. Any eye contact was met with my best I-know-these-people-and-I'm-so-happy-for-them smile and I got into line next to the cooking station, a line of charcoal cooking bins with skewers over them and a table for making wraps with lettuce and seasonings.
So far so good, I just waited, three older men were talking in front of me, I kept picking up numbers along with names of currency and units of length, meter and kilometer. So I still don't really have a clue what exactly it was about. This line was moving slowly, I mean slow! There was some cooking difficulties, the charcoal didn't seem to be hot enough or something. That didn't stop my smiling, no sir. Two Turkish girls on cellphones joined the line after a bit, your usual ultra-cute bourgeoisie Turks. They figured out right away I didn't belong and kept tittering to each other about it.
Somewhere around two meters being covered in half an hour one of the men in front of me decided to throw sobriety to the wind and approached the nearby bar. A glass of red, followed by four glasses of white ensued over the course of our time together. He kept turning to me (especially when his buddies started getting bored with his quickly becoming inebriated) and asking me little questions, or making jokes. Now, I've said it before but it's really worth saying again, 90% of communication really is nonverbal. I just laughed when I should, and agreed the rest of the time. When he asked where one of his buddies went I pointed vaguely towards the beverage shack and said "Bira" then grinned. Another half hour follow of the girls behind me very keen on my ploy and this fellow enjoying me as a conversation partner.
Then he asked something I had no way of responding to that I knew. And he asked again. Then in a soft voice he asked, "You don't speak Turkish, do you?" My jig was up! I confessed with a grin and he started laughing, asking me where my home was, what I was doing in Turkey the usual things. As it turns out he is a science professor at Baçeşehir U. Then he turned to his friends and explained to them how this whole time he thought I spoke Turkish (much to my credit I suppose) by only answering him simply.
After another not so short wait in which I was introduced to his wife and all his friends, given business cards for spare auto part salesmen and the usual conversation about football the food was ready! I had a steaming hot wrap in my hand, prepared by a cook who made some ornate speech where I only understood "Turkish" and "English" while the girls laughed. And one of the bourgeoisie girls even worked up the party spirit to go ask the bartender for two cans of beer. Good on them, it was a fun evening to get a bite to eat. It's just past eleven now and I should sleep but the music is still going strong despite the steady trickle of exiting guests.
posted by Alex Gray at 06:06
4 Comments:
I really lucked out in having the opportunity to live in Turkey. The food here is incredible and lots of different preparations if you're willing to try things on the menu that don't end in "Shish" or "Kebab" Not that the various kebabs are bad, and often you find restaurants where they are prepared in exciting ways. Also Istanbul is between two seas, the black sea and the sea of Mamara, and down by the water front it's easy to find a fish sandwich fresh off the boat or oysters being sold next to the Bosphorus.
I was a vegetarian for five years so I can sympathize with any who visit or live here. Good vegetarian food I just haven't found yet. Not that I've gone out of my way to ask...
You couldn't find a good vegetarian food? You know, Turkish cuisine is so rich in both cold served (with olive oil mostly) and hot served dishes of fresh vegetables, leguminous seeds and even fruits! We don't siply cook peas, lets say, in boiling water and serve it next to steak, we make various kinds of meals out of peas.
One day go to dinner to one of your friend's mother, she'll show you what kind of miracles can be cretaed with vegetables:) (I'm vegetarian and if I had believed in God, I'd thank him for this cuisine!)
Ah, I also have to say my exposure to different cooks while in Istanbul has been limited by my wallet. (mostly the free meals at the university cafeteria or a kebab place that did just that.)
Last night I had an amazing stew made of tomatos peppers and squash. It was ınfinitly better than anything I was having in Istanbul, and no meat in it either. Apo told me he`s already gained three kilos in the two weeks he`s been back home!
Home cooking I had completly missed out on while in Istanbul, much to my regret now. (my regular meals seemed to have been designed to be consumed in under two minutes) If anything my love of the cuisine has grown since I arrived in the southeast.
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