April 5a: This and That and Toilets

Some thoughts while Ian sleeps.


Ian is having a slow start today, due to a sleepless night.  My sleepless night was the night before.  Turkish hotels have a tendency towards hard beds.  Hard, as in one wakes up feeling like one slept on the ground.  Roughly the same feeling as sleeping on carpeted hardwood floors.  As a result, I have been known to curl up on the loveseat, and that is where Ian is attempting to sleep now.  The fact that our current bed doesn't have sheets (it has a bottom sheet, and then two rough cotton blankets similar to couch throws from home) keeps one from that feeling of being in bed.  There is a streetlight just above our window and we only have sheer curtains, so all-in-all, it is tough to really nod off.

I keep meaning to praise Turkish toilets, however, so I will take this opportunity before I go for a walk around Kalkan solo.  Turkish toilets, like those attached to ancient systems around the world, including those in Greece and Egypt, do not like toilet paper, and little garbage cans are provided in each washroom for disposal.  However, in Turkey, each toilet is almost like a bidet.  There is a little spigot just below the seat that shoots cold water where it is most needed on one's person.  then the tissue is used only for drying purposes.  The tissue in the basket is damp, but not dirty.  It is a very clean system, I think, for a people who put great emphasis on cleanliness.  

You turn the handle to get a jet of water right where you need it.  Cold, cold water.

There is a two flush system, one for liquid (a small flush) and one for solids, which helps conserve water.  Every site we visit has a public WC, and they are almost always clean and well maintained.  We have only seen pay toilets in a few places -- the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul, for example -- which are not maintained by one authority.

I just also wanted to add that the Turkish people are amazing:  very friendly and kind.  In every village people go out of their way to show us their sites, and frequently invite us for tea or coffee.  My attempts to speak Turkish are met with delight, and if I could only remember every word they have told me when I ask "How do you say that in Turkish", I would be fluent!  

 In the cities the young people wear western dress, and in the Hilton I felt out of place in my ordinary traveling clothes.  Some of the styles they wore looked like they had come off a very tasteful runway.  In the countryside, women wear very baggy pants, or rather skirts that are gathered at the ankles, more like bloomers than anything else I can think of, and they are usually in colourful patterns.  Long sleeved blouses and sweaters on top, and most of the time, headscarves or kerchiefs. We see lots of rubber boots on both men and women in the villages, which are very practical in this muddy spring weather.  


We have (almost) stopped photographing the sheep and goats that are found along every road and even the highways, always accompanied by a shepherd and a dog or two.  We've seen dairy cows, one or two at a time, at small farms, but never beef cattle, which might explain why beef isn't usually the featured item on any menu.  Everywhere there are chickens, and we've seen lots of little chicks in our travels, as well as ducks, geese, guinea foul, and Ian's ironic turkeys.


Ian has given up on sleep now, so I guess we are on our way!