Being streetwise in Istanbul

I know, I know..i promised sometimes back that I would write about what to look out for while you are in Istanbul. I guess i was having too much fun to be paying any attention to the "devil's advocate". To be honest..some people have requested that i write about these 'negatives' that one should look out for in Istanbul.

Its really about being streetwise and it doesn't differ much from being in other parts of the world but nonetheless...we still need to be alert and cautious when in strange and foreign land. So..lets start with something synonym and what Istanbul is famous for.

0803hrs Sept.24' 11.. was doing my workout by the Bosphorus when I saw this submarine..cool !!!  how often does one do a workout with a submarine in your attendance...he he...only in Istanbul!
someday..i'll gather enough courage to swim in the Bosphorus like what most Turks do....
ok...this is a decoy..er...divergence....back to the posting....

Driving in Istanbul

Actually, this topic alone require one whole posting so i will elaborate more in later posting but suffice to say that in Istanbul, everybody accepts the "Supremacy of Automobiles" and Pedestrians and/or other mortals have no rights whatsoever and are just mere nuisance on the roads.  And...the drivers hands remain permanently glued to the honks. So...get my my drift...its actually quite fun..depending on which automobiles you are in. Cars..really are an extension of the Turks. More to come later.

what a beauty...a cool US$1.7 million....no....I didn't mean the guy....I meant the CAR! The Veyron that I normally see in Istanbul is in electric blue....Cool ! If you happened to be the owner...please PM me...i want to see if you deserve to be in it....and i want to take a photo,too. This guy? well...he drives a bigger wheel...a Boeing 777-300 to be precise ! Thanks Taib, for lending me the photo.. 

Shopping 

Someone once told me.."they are so sweet when they do their sales talk, but if  you didn't buy, they'll start to grow horns". Precisely. The rule here is....if you are not interested to buy, do not start to bargain and haggle for the price! It is BAD taste to bargain till you go blue in the face...and then to walk away without buying when he agrees to your offer. I guess that's pretty much the same elsewhere. I heard that in China, if you did that...they'll chase you out of their shop but at least, in Istanbul..you get to drink some cay or elma (apple) cay....seriously! The rationale is....he has "wasted" time in bargaining with you..and agreed to your offer and the only decent thing is for you to buy it. This is the very reason why I refused to bargain on behalf on my guest or friend. They can forget about the whole thing and go home but I am here to stay, and these people can remember me easily he he. I can be the translator but not the negotiator.

Tourist spots : Taksim Square and Sultan Ahmet

Ahh...Taksim! The ever so busy tourist spot. Its the happening place and you have not been to Istanbul if you have not gone to Taksim Square. Being a tourist spot...be wary of the usual tourist trap. Be careful when you take the taxi from Taksim as the driver would try to fleece you by refusing to use the meter or by asking for an exorbitant fixed rate or both. A friend of mine was asked to pay TL35 for a journey that would have cost her TL5 back to her hotel! So..if the taxi driver refused to use the meter, walk out of the taxi and hail another one. Its illegal for the taxi not to use the meter and there are plenty of other taxis around.

The other day, my friend bought a dondurma (ice cream) from a shop here ....and being in a joyous mood, we forgot to ask for the price. Imagine our shock and we almost choked when he said that it cost TL7 per CONE. At the same time, another (caucasian) man went pale when he was told that his dondurma cost TL15 per CONE! Granted.. the boy who prepared the ice cream was doned in the Ottoman garb and he did  a few trick of the hands while handing out the dondurma.....but at TL15 per cone? When a whole meal could cost less than that? I wanted to argue with him but my friend had taken a lick on the dondurma...so its "lick beyond refund'.

I just felt pity on the "TL15 a piece dondurma man" as i'm sure it would leave a bitter taste of Istanbul on him. So..stay away from this shop. Its the 1st dondurma shop that you'll see to your left as you walk towards Istiklal Caddessi as you come out from the Metro Underground or Bus depot. Or..to be safe, ALWAYs ask...ne kadar ( how much)? Most of them at the tourist spot will know how to speak English. And..buy from a place that display the price. It simpler and they can't scam you if you knew the price before hand. And get yourself familiarized with the Lira. Some smart and quick traders can play tricks with the Lira. Sometimes, you'll hear them saying "million", thats because prior to 2002, the Lira was in Million Lira until the authority knocked off the 6 zeros from the currency.

 

its normal for the dondurma seller to be donned in this type of garb.....but this is another man selling something else, normally...the younger 'boys' would be the mischievous ones trying their luck in fleecing the tourists..

Look out for those "paws"

This is especially important for Ladies. When you are shopping in the Old City, meaning Grand Bazaar, the Egyptian Bazaar, anywhere near the Sultan Ahmet area and other tourist area,...be cautious while trying on clothes or the like. The traders (almost always men) will insist on helping you to put it on..and that's when you must try to decline the offer. Soon..you'll realise that almost always you'll end up being 'touched' by the traders. It could be so subtle that you would only realise it after you are long gone from his shop. By then, you can only be angry with yourself for failing to react accordingly when he was 'pawing' you.

Another no-no is to take photograph with the men (traders or otherwise). Again..while you are having photos taken with them...their "paws" could be anywhere and everywhere...and you'll only realise it much later. So...be like me and stay behind the camera, not in front of the cameras even if they requested to have photos taken with you. Its much safer than way..remember what i said about Yabanci (foreigners)  being 'fair game'? I had had occasions when women requested to take photos with me but i'm yet to find out the reasons for that!? Hopefully its because I look different......from them!

Checking out counter

Very often, being short-changed by the shopkeepers are normal to any tourist. Ok..so you are a foreigner and you are not familiar with the notes and coins, thats understandable. And since you're only going to be there for couple of days..why bother,right? And it happens everwhere...Istanbul, Australia..even in my country. I know it because i use my shopping trips as a time to sharpen my mental maths by calculating the total amount to pay mentally as i pick up the stuffs. So that..by the time i reached the check-out, i would know how much is the total to pay, to the nearest cents..on a good day he he!

When I was living in Australia, i caught a few cashiers off when i went back to them to collect the short-changed back. How do I know they were trying to fleece me? Because they had the exact amount ready for me...to collect, in case i came back, which i did. Well..ok...its not the amount..its the principle. Once..a parking attendant at Victoria Market (Melbourne) short-changed me and when I drove back to complain...he had the exact amount ready for me..to give back! If you didn't return...its theirs to keep.

So..how different is it in Istanbul? Well....in order to understand it, you need to know some statistic on Turkey. About 40% and 25% of female and male of age 15 to 19 respectively, are either not in school or not working in Turkey. And about 1 in 4 cannot understand simple mathematics and other basic knowledge. So..what does that tell us? To me...I know enough to give them the benefit of the doubt if they short-changed me. Meaning...I put it to their level of education, rather than bad intention on their part for the short-change. Of course, for the first few weeks I was furious...until I noticed that they were struggling to get the figures right. At times...they even give me more change than necessary....sometimes...it could work out that I'm getting the products for free! READ MORE HERE

So..when you're in Istanbul (or other part of Turkey) and you think that you've been short-changed....please give them the benefit of your doubt...its not their intention, its their level of  education. But you can sense that they meant well and they are really honest people. Perhaps..the most valuable lesson here is ....... how important Education system of the country is. Turkey is beginning to revamp its education system and more people are now interested to learn English. Its a major step but something that they will persevere, I'm sure. But if they asked for my opinion, I think....they should stop 'dubbing' the English movies or series into Turkce and let the Turks learn English from the TV or cinema. My 2 cents-worth.....

Thank You and Sorry

One of my expatriate friends cited "rudeness" as one of the reasons why he left Turkey. On this score...I must say that I do agree with him, to a certain degree. How and when are they rude? Well..for one, they do not know how to say "Thank you" and "Sorry". Can you imagine a society who do not say those words often enough? Plus..they are a bit like their 'neighbors' who bumped or brushed against you without even a blink of an eye, let alone say sorry. Its as if you are..infidels who deserve no respect or acknowledgement. The arrogance of "I am holier than you". 

The Turks would not say 'thank you' when you let them pass through (either on foot or while driving), when you open the door for them, when you did a kind gesture to them, even when you bought something and paid for the goods, when you hand in your payment etc. etc. in fact, i can't think of a time when they did say 'thank you'. Maybe because the words "tessekuler" or "tessekur ederim" is too long or a mouthful for them to say often? Maybe because they think its a sign of 'weakness' to be saying these words??

It still baffles me to this day but it has been a point of contention among the expatriates or foreigners here. There have been numerous 'fights' between the locals and Yabanci due to this lack of "thank you" or "sorry". I am yet to study the reasons for that. Maybe someone would like to do a PhD research on this? Then..maybe...we can learn to understand them. For now..we can only put it to "it" not being taught when they were young by their parents because the parents were not taught by their parents before them...hmm...fair enough, you think??

Don't pick a fight

Its as simple as that! Why not?? For one..they're burly and big and probably stronger than you are.! They have exercise equipment everywhere in the public park..and they are fit and muscular. More logical reason is...about 20% of the people has and carry a gun (either legally or not) and they all know how to use it. You see...all males of a certain age must go for the compulsory National Service for two years where using firearm is one of the prerequisite. So..bear in mind...even taxi drivers might carry a gun, drivers may carry a gun, shopkeepers may carry a gun.....literally all males are suspects. There have been numerous shooting incidences whenever they got into a fight...so please stay away from any confrontations and you should be safe and okay in Istanbul.

READ MORE HERE

being a country used to fightings and war for centuries...it is safe to assume that the Turks still have the warrior blood in them....that could explain how they could 'explode' when confronted with 'unsavory' issues....so just stay out of confrontation with them...

Archive......we had M16 and guns at all times during one of our construction projects (late 90's) at suburb of Makati, Phillipines.....i have nothing against guns, as long as its not pointed at me....at times, its the necessary evil !!

Falling in love

When in Istanbul.... fall in love with Istanbul....BUT..don't fall in love IN Istanbul. Just as you shouldn't  pick a fight in Istanbul..at the same time, do not fall in love.

Let me depict a picture of how romantic (and adamant?) Turks are. They are very expressive in their emotion and before long you'd noticed that both men and women will hug and kiss (on the cheeks) when they meet and on saying goodbyes. Its is also a common sight to see both men and women holding hands and with arms around each other when they talk or walk. That's part of their culture and its so refreshing to see such expressive people. Plus...they're gorgeous and its wonderful to see them in love with their respective partners.

fall in love with Istanbul for its beauty and whats inside it.....but make pretty sure that you don't fall in love in Istanbul . . . .i can't help you there with "matters of the heart".....

the intersection of The Bosphorus and The Marmara Sea.....it can really calm the nerve and soothe many aliments...but I'm not sure if it can heal a broken heart.....if it happened here...so consider yourself 'WARNED" !!

Please be warned again. Turks are very friendly, very helpful and very 'amorous'. They will be-friend you but you don't have the time to analyse whether or not his attention, friendliness or charm is genuine. It is always, always safer to err on the safe side and walk away as fast as you can. No need to be flattered by the attention 'cos 99% of the time, they just see you as a Yabanci (foreigner) and fair game. 

To all those ladies travellers out there......be very careful. You can fall in love with Istanbul and all its beauty but don't fall in love in Istanbul! It is not safe to fall in love here. The handsome and charismatic men may look European, very modern and manly but unless you are locals, its a bit more complicated than that. They can be so romantic ( just look at them with their girlfriends on the street), very suave and charming........but better err on the SAFE side! Grr..what a shame. I was told that Turkish men are good husband materials as they always do the cooking. Even at home! That explains why the ladies are immaculate and well coiffured all the time. Since hubbies are cooking, they have more time for themselves......what bliss !!!

Take care of your heart. Otherwise.....enjoy yourself !!

p/s I hope you don't mind the long 'read'.........take your time...no hurry.....there are plenty more "lookouts" but maybe next time...