The Pera Museum

Sometimes I have to remind myself that I am an art history major, and that is why I am here.  When I have begun to settle into a routine of waking up, going to class, watching an absurd amount of Mad Men, and possibly getting exercise if I'm not too emotionally exhausted from watching Donald Draper's life fall apart at the seams, it is important that I take a step back and remember that I'm in Istanbul.  Despite what the weather throws at us, which has been rain for the past week, I need to keep my head above the clouds and remember how lucky I am to be here.

Yesterday my flatmate Zoe and I battled the elements to go see the Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera exhibition at the Pera Museum in the Beyoğlu district of Istanbul, a short walk from Taksim Square.  I have been familiar with both artists for a long time, but I had never seen their work in person, and I had been meaning to go since last semester.  Kahlo featured more prominently, probably because Rivera is mostly known for his murals, and they aren't exactly portable.  The exhibition space was small, but the museum managed to fit quite a lot into the confined area.  I learned that Kahlo and Rivera were actually married, which was news to me, and it was interesting seeing how they influenced each other.  One particular Frida Kahlo painting struck me, mostly because I thought it was oddly spiritual and quite strange.  Notice how Rivera is featured in the painting.

The Love Embrace of the Universe, the Earth (Mexico), Me,  and Señor Xolotl
Frida Kahlo, 1949

Kahlo was in a tragic accident when she was 18, and throughout the rest of her life underwent something like 20 surgeries.  She lived in constant physical pain, and died at a relatively young age.  She had several miscarriages that I imagine were related to her physical maladies, and these also influenced the emotional elements of her work.

Miscarriage
Frida Kahlo

The Pera Museum also has an great collection of orientalist paintings, which includes one in particular that I recognized from its prints, which are sold all over the city.  I am sorry to report that I don't really know about the history of tortoise training in Istanbul.  I don't really think it actually happened.  But it's a nice thought, isn't it?  

The Tortoise Trainer
Osman Hamdi Bey, 1906/1907

I don't think the lettuce that this guy is feeding them is really inspiring the tortoises to perform.  I know that if I were a tortoise, you'd have to give me something a little bit more exciting than lettuce if you wanted me to do tricks.  Just saying.

I have a long way to go.

Yesterday I got back to Istanbul, and stepping out of the airport in my snazzy ski jacket I immediately broke into a sweat when the 14 degree Celsius air hit me like a wall.  It is unseasonably warm, but not warm enough to wear only a denim jacket at night.  I found that out the hard way.  Apparently I really struggle with choosing appropriate outerwear.
So I was reading this article (read it!) on the TimeOut Istanbul website about how to truly integrate as an expat.  For obvious reasons the title "Expat transition tips" attracted my attention, because I am "transitioning" and I am (kinda, not really) an expat.  I got a little downhearted when I realized that according to this magazine, I am nowhere near being an integrated expat.

Since the article presents transition tips in list form (yay!), I will follow the same format in describing why I am failing at my goal.
1.  Befriend a local Manav, Tekel, and Eczane.
Wait, who are Manav, Tekel, and Eczane?  Ohhh I get it, Eczane means pharmacy.  So they want me to befriend local shopkeepers so I can make friends in the area, support local business, and practice Turkish.  While I do go to local shops and I've been to a pharmacy a couple of times, I am nowhere near being buddies with any of the shopkeepers.  From what I can tell, at least in my neighborhood, the staffs at these places are big enough so that I don't run into the same people regularly.  There is one exception I can think of, and that's the Hisar bakery where I buy my bread, and they're just straight-up unfriendly and far too busy to care about being my friend.
2.  Jump off the fence and pick a team.
I haven't even been to a soccer (football, what have you) match yet.  Oops.
3.  Learn Backgammon in a makeshift teagarden.
I know how to play, but I always forget how to set up the board, and I avoid playing against Turks because I hate to lose.  However, I do know that the Turkish word for backgammon is Tavla.
4. Leave food out for the street cats.
Why would I do this when the stray cats on campus are notorious for taking food out of your hands? They have eaten enough of everyone else's sandwiches to survive off of their own fat stores for a year.  I have the scratches to prove it, too.
5. Slow it down to a snail's pace.
I am a fast walker, even by American standards.  People tell me that it's because I'm tall, but I think it's because I'm from a cold climate and I have a hurry-your-ass-up instinct to get where I'm going as fast as I can so I can get out of the cold.  I really doubt that I will ever stop habitually passing people on the sidewalks of Turkey.
6.  Go public with a loud lovers tiff.
Not my style, thanks.  First of all, I prefer passive aggression to straight-up confrontation.  In fact, I avoid confrontation as much as I can.  In public?  Forget about it.  Oh yeah, and I don't have a lover.  So there's that element, too.
7. Make out passionately in a cafe.
See above.
8.  Join a protest.
The one time I encountered riot police, I was innocently walking with my friend Alison to a bus stop.  We both saw them marching towards us and we ran the other way.  Like I said, I'm non-confrontational.
9.  Drink Efes.
Ok, you got me.  I do drink Efes.
10.  Get up close and personal.
I guess I can work on it, but I don't really feel the need to ask people how much they weigh, what they make, and how old they are.  Maybe I will start.  Next time the crew coach Batuhan asks me how much I weigh, I'm going to turn the question around on him.  Apparently he used to be a lightweight!

So needless to say, I have a lot to work on before I am a properly integrated expat.  I wonder how many of these I can accomplish in the next four months...

biraz düşünce

On January 20th, five days from now, I will be flying back to Boston. Exams are finally over, so I guess it's time for some reflection on my past semester. And because I like to make lists.

Things (some unexpected) that I have gained an appreciation for since living in Istanbul:
1) Sleeping past noon. Because why not? Don't ask questions.
2) If I was not fortunate enough to sleep past noon, taking a nap for several hours later in the day.
3) Wearing my glasses outside of my room. I never do this at home, but for some reason (see above) I have started putting less effort into... everything?
4) Kanye West's new album, and on a completely different note, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals.
5) Findik ezmesi. Like peanut butter, but made with hazelnuts and sugar. Eat it by the spoonful, put it on bread, use it as an exfoliating moisturizer, whatever. It's all good, and by good I mean delicious.
6) Fresh baked bread. Really soft on the inside, crispy on the outside, preferably warm. Not sliced, because tearing it with your hands is just so satisfying.
7) Beyaz peynir. This translates to white cheese. It's basically feta, but better than what we have in the US. And I eat it almost everyday in one way or another.
8) Throwing random Turkish words or phrases into my everyday speech. I guess this isn't that unexpected bir şekilde.

5 months ago, I thought I would be doing the following in Turkey:
1) Eating baklava all the time. It's true, I love baklava, but there are other delicious things to eat too.
2) Taking the ferry to the other side of the Bosphorus. I've only done it a couple of times, because there is so much stuff on the European side, and less on the Asian side. No offense, Asia.
3) Hanging out in Sultanahmet by the Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque. Turns out that's only a good idea if you are a tourist, and even then it's questionable. Future tourists of Istanbul: Sultanahmet is cool, but it's not the only thing to see. And people are much less annoying in other areas of the city (generally).

5 months ago, I had no idea that I would be doing the following in Turkey:
1) Picking up and moving the cats that have jumped up on my desk in the middle of class.
2) Rowing in a single, especially on the Golden Horn. I still can't really believe I did that.
3) Studying. To be realistic, most Americans that study abroad do very little work. I haven't really had that experience. Thank you, neuroscience!
4) Getting offended when served tea in a ceramic mug. Who do you think I am, a Westerner?
5) Worrying about where the next toilet paper roll is coming from.
6) Conscientiously trying NOT to look Russian.

Things about my life here that I will never get tired of:
1) Hearing the call to prayer. If I go a day without hearing it, I get a little bit disturbed.
2) The amazing view of the Bosphorus that I see when I'm walking to class on South Campus.
3) Drinking çay after every meal, mostly as an excuse to just sit and enjoy the present company.

Please refrain from turkey jokes.

Yes, I spent Turkey Day in Turkey. And no, I didn't eat any turkey.

So yesterday was Thanksgiving (see above). And despite the fact that it is strictly an American holiday, most normal Americans would never pass up the opportunity to eat an unreasonably large amount of calorie-dense food in one sitting, even if they are currently in another country. If you can mask your binge eating under the premise of "giving thanks" for things you are "grateful" for, even better. So, as a typical American, I congregated with a whole bunch of other typical Americans last night to pig out in true American fashion. It was a great night.

There was a lot of anticipation leading up this holiday, at least in my mind. How could I celebrate Thanksgiving in a foreign country with limited access to traditional, American food, and no oven? Luckily, my friend Zoe masterminded and arranged for a potluck style get together in our very own Superdorm! Stella and I (per usual, because we are essentially a couple) opted to throw together some kind of dessert. After very little planning, we set to work on a stove-top apple crisp creation. Stella did the work, and I did the documenting. Using our fantastic hot plate skills, we actually managed to combine apples, oatmeal, cinnamon, brown sugar, and lots of butter in a fairly successful way! The result was two frying pans full of some type of apple not-so crisp.

The rest of the American students that came to the potluck provided stuffing, mashed potatoes, corn, rolls, peas, rice, and plenty of rotisserie chicken, which served as a perfectly acceptable substitute for a turkey. We ended up having more than enough food, which was fantastic! Despite the fact that we all had classes on Thanksgiving and everyone had to get creative with the cooking, things turned out great. We even had a few Europeans join us, and we managed to convince them that a holiday devoted to consuming irrationally large amounts of food is actually a great idea. What's not to love?

Below, left: Dining in the cozy and atmospheric dungeon of the Superdorm. Below, right: Dining again, candid shot. I encourage you to look closely.