Boy am I glad I'm not in Egypt

Well, you're just going to have to accept the erratic layout of this post, because I have neither the time nor the patience to resolve this right now. I started this over an hour ago, and this internet cafe is closing in less than an hour. I've been in Delhi for four days now, and I've been so busy enjoying myself that I haven't had time to post. Also, quite frankly Egypt is the worst place I have ever visited in my entire life, and I'd really rather not dwell on it. OK, well maybe a little. It's not just that it is overpopulated, polluted, and messy; I've been to several countries that would easily fit the description. It's more that the Egyptian people themselves are the nastiest, greediest, most short sighted, thoughtless, shiftless, most disengenuous people I've encountered. It's "every man for themself" there. And I do mean man, because you simply do not meet Egyptian women. Ick. Oh sure, there's the Pyramids, the Sphinx, all of those ancient statues, which are all really amazing, but somehow the whole experience was ruined for me by the general unpleasantness of the place and the people. I will never go back.

India, on the other hand, despite being overpopulated, polluted, and messy, is so much more relaxed. There's a much better vibe here. As my sister said, the Indians just have better karma.

Talkin Turkey

As I look through these pictures I realize that they say a lot about friends. Friends saved my trip to Turkey: meeting new people on a tour through the countryside, then getting together again in Istanbul. Or getting to spend time with Ozlem, who not only seems way happier now that she's in Turkey, but her overwhelming hospitality more than makes up for the constant barrage of Turkish scam artists.

My post two days ago was about my time in Istanbul. This is about a trip around the countryside in Turkey: the extensive Roman ruins at Ephesus; swimming in a thermal spa at Pamukkale with ruins under foot; sleeping in cave house in Goreme; and surveying 20,000 years of human artefacts with Ozlem at the the Anatolian Museum in Ankara. It was action packed week, what with two nights accomodation on a bus, but it was also more relaxed and friendly than Istanbul. If you're going to Turkey, don't forget to get out of Istanbul.

My last day in Istanbul I made the sketch above of the Blue Mosque. I gave the sketch to Cigdem, who works at the Hotel Sultanahmet, for all of her help to me. While writing and sketching in the park, Ibrahim, an elderly gentleman sat down next to me and struck up a conversation. For some reason the accursed carpet came up, and as we were talking about it, Emre, the man who sold me the carpet, showed up with his American girlfriend Maureen. I asked Maureen when they were getting married. This was news to her. Emre had never proposed to her, he only used this line as a sales pitch on me. Immediately after this Ibrahim suggested we go to the Grand Bazaar and change some dollars into turkish lira. He knows someone who sells lira at a great rate. I could exchange the dollars, then change them back at a regular currency exchange and make a neat profit. If Ibrahim thinks I don't smell a scam here, then he's even more naive than me. And why he felt he needed to add his own scam on top of the carpet story, well, that's just pathological.

I'm going to have to face the fact: my trip to Turkey may have been great because of friends, but it was also heavily scarred by the constant scheming.

It's Istanbul not Constantınople

Even though the Brıtısh, to thıs day, stıll sometımes call ıt Constantınople, ıt's Istanbul, and ıt has been for over 650 years. Even when ıt was Constantınople, the people who lıved here thought of themselves as from Byzantıum; that's why ıt was called the Byzantıne Empıre. Istanbul has been a major world cıty for over 2,500 years. It straddles two contınents. It has been sacked or taken over by the Persıans, Alexander, the Romans, and the Ottomans. It's locatıon ıs so ımportant that ıt has played a part ın most of human hıstory.

I thınk that the people of Istanbul consıder themselves to be European. Unlıke other parts of Turkey, most women here do not wear the veıl. Men do not grow long beards. The style and clothıng, the stores, the pretty parks, the modern tram lınes; these look lıke any other European capıtol. But Istanbul ıs not the capıtol, and ıf you look ın a Turkısh hıstory book, the past ıs decıdedly Asıan; the homeland and lınguıstıc orıgın of "Turkıshness" lıes soemwhere ın Khazakstan.

I've had mıxed feelıngs about thıs place. It's a nıce bıg cıty; easy to get around; there's a lot to see and do; and people can be quıte frıendly. But, lıke any other tourıst cıty, the schemeıng can get you down. I hate the fact that I got rıpped off ın a kılım store (or the fact that you are not allowed to shıp carpets vıa the post offıce so I'm goıng to have to carry the damned thıng ın my backpack). I fınd the whole street scam thıng ınvolvıng some guy who starts talkıng to me ın Turkısh, then acts surprısed that I don't understand and swıtches over to Englısh sayıng "Oh, I thought you were Turkısh" to be so annoyıng that I sımply walk away from ıt as soon as ıt starts. I'm sure I'm beıng quıte rude, but ıt happens several tımes every evenıng. I stıll don't understand what the scam ıs (I thınk ıt's about gettıng free drınks), but anyone who thınks I'm goıng to belıeve a lıne lıke "Oh, I thought you were Turkısh" ıs more gullıble than me.

Sorry I haven't posted ın a whıle. I headed out ınto the countrysıde last week, and couldn't get my act together to post before I left Istanbul. It was probably for the best because I was feelıng kınd of down on the cıty, and a whıle out ın the country was just what I needed to cement the feelıng that Turkey ıs a pretty amazıng place. But I am gettıng ahead of myself. I'll try to post about Ephesus, Pamukkale, Kappadokıa, and my vısıt wıth Ozlem ın Ankara, tomorrow.