[EXPAT VOICE] A city with so much to discover

I loved the way Turkish people gathered with their families around the mosque to wait for the adhan for iftar. It showed how they appreciate their family and the mosque itself. My friends and I did not want to miss the chance to be part of the Turkish tradition of waiting for the mahya to be illuminated at the Blue Mosque, which is lit up as a sign for iftar. Apart from that we also took advantage of the opportunity to perform our prayers at the Blue Mosque. One of the items on my “must do” list was accomplished when I watched the whirling dervish ceremony; my housemate took me and my friends to a restaurant near Sultanhamet after iftar, and we were lucky because the show was just about to begin. I was incredibly excited and blown away with the semah show, which is also known as the sufi dance. Check! I had crossed off an item on my list.

When it came to day-to-day living in İstanbul there were some similarities between Turkey and Malaysia. The first thing I noticed is how Turkish people are so hooked on their çay, while in Malaysia most Malaysians are addicted to teh tarik (tea mix with milk prepared in two mugs). It never crossed my mind that two countries separated by thousand miles with different languages, culture, lifestyle and backgrounds could still share a few similarities.

Besides çay, I also found Turkish people welcome their guest as their relatives, a common practice in Malaysia. Even though we were barely knew each other, my friends and I were invited to our housemate’s aunt’s home for iftar. Aunt Fatma’s home was facing the Eyüp Sultan Mosque, and we enjoyed a savory Turkish meal for our iftar. Then we took a long walk to the Pierre Loti hill. On our way we saw a carnival grounds alongside the road. There were stalls selling kebap, sweets, drawings, corn, dolma and much much more. My housemate explained to us that it was only during Ramadan that the municipality held these kinds of activities. Upon arriving at Pierre Loti we found ourselves elevated above the marvelous Golden Horn and, even though it was late at night, the scenery from the top was absolutely breathtaking. We sat for a while at the Pierre Loti cafe, sipping our Turkish coffee down to the last drop.

To prove that were able to be independent living in İstanbul, my friends and I decided to go to the Grand Bazaar on our own — without a Turkish guide. We just followed the İstanbul map we had, which we picked up at Atatürk Airport and which featured the city’s public transport lines. However, we still we asked our housemate how to get there because the map didn’t provide enough information. And yes… we did take the wrong train from Zeytinburnu. But we managed to change trains and reach the Grand Bazaar. Here I was welcomed by some merchants who could speak my language! They said “Apa Khabar?” (nasılsın, or how are you) and “Murah-murah” (ucuz, or cheap). Despite their insistence, I didn’t spend much because it was pricey and without a doubt we were begging to be ripped off with the curious and eager looks on our faces. Afterwards we continued exploring İstanbul, guided by the map.

We were told that Eid al-Fitr (Ramazan Bayramı) was not celebrated for as long as Eid al-Adha (Kurban Bayramı) here in Turkey, which is different than in Malaysia. In Malaysia, Eid al-Fitris celebrated for an entire month, the month of Syawal. Before the end of Ramadan, Muslims in Malaysia begin preparing for the day with new attire: a baju kurung for ladies and baju melayu for men; both are traditional Malay costumes. My friends and I decided to wear our traditional costumes and, of course, we caught the attention of countless eyes on our way to a celebration at a Malaysian house in Etiler. We took a photo together as our memento of our first and perhaps only Eid al-Fitr in İstanbul at the Kabataş-Üsküdar ferry jetty with the beautiful Bosporus as our background.

As Ramadan is long over, the time had come for me and my friends to taste Turkish cuisine. Our housemate once gave us lahmacun, and ever since then we began eating it every day until we were acquainted with new foods such as iskender, tavuk kanat, beyti, tavuk şiş and much more. I also tried dolma on the street, çay on the ferry and İzmir lokma at Eminönü, the last of which is similar to “kuih keria” in Malaysia. Every day we would pass by a row of shops selling baklava, but we didn’t know which one was the best and we’d end up buying all the flavors to taste. I enjoyed baklava so much, in addition to künefe — a delight I seemed to be alone in as my friends found it intolerably sweet. There are desserts in Malaysia, but they are not nearly as sweet as baklava, künefe and lokum. I wonder if the percentage of people suffering from diabetes in Turkey is really high?

Seeing Turks spend their summer evenings with families around the Sultanhamet garden made me and my friends eager to join them. We planned picnics every weekend during summer in a different part of İstanbul. We were so fortunate that we got a free ticket from the tourist guide to enter Topkapı Palace and found the chance to picnic in the palace garden. We cooked our own meals — Malaysian food, of course — and enjoyed weekend evenings in İstanbul. Picnicking is unquestionably rarely done in the center of Kuala Lumpur as the heat will burn your skin. Usually Malaysians picnic at the beach as there are plenty of beautiful beaches in Malaysia, plus the wind from the sea cools down the warmth of the sun. But, the funny thing is we continued to picnic until the fall season came in, and we were the only people who spent our evenings in freezing weather in a garden facing Hagia Sophia. And of course people were staring at us, but it is still one of my most vivid memories of İstanbul.

İstanbul definitely holds a special place in my heart as a part of me fell in love with this city. Almost all of the items on my “to do” list were checked off, except for the hamam, and oh yes, how would I get my hands on a Cola Turka once I got home? My next Eid in the upcoming days is going to have such a big void.

Syahidah Ismail , İstanbul

ZAMAN