A Turkish Delight!

“Marhaba,” my friend Ayfer said as I made my way out of the Ataturk Airport in Istanbul. Instantaneously, a vague song that went like “Marhaba, Marhaba...,” went on in the back of my head and I realized it was the Turkish way of saying hello. I reciprocated her gesture.

Traveling is not just going to different lands, seeing the historical and famous buildings there, trying out new cuisines or meeting new people. There is more to this very popular activity. An important element of travel is communicating with the new people from these new cultures and lands. Language crisis is something that can change the very experience of a journey. For some it can put a damper on their much wanted vacation, while for others it can be the spice of a trip. I guess I fall in the latter category.

Born and brought up in India and studied in an English medium school, I was very confident of my verbal English skills and never gave a thought about communication troubles when I planned a trip across the world. But it did not take me much time to realize what I had missed. Reality bites hard, and for me, it was indeed very hard. This was my first brush with non-English speaking community and I was at a loss. Full of enthusiasm and zest, I made my way out of the Ataturk Airport in Istanbul. But soon I was lost to the core. There were no hoardings in English and hardly anyone spoke my language!

Soon it turned out that spending time with Ayfer was not going to be as easy as I thought. My host’s English was just as good as my Turkish! And my mind raced with ideas how I was going to manage in this Middle-Eastern country. After the cordial exchange of greetings, we did not know how to strike a conversation.

It is said that actions speak louder than words, and soon we discovered the pleasures of the sign language. Ayfer would compliment the signs with her broken one-or-two-word English and I would try to respond back in the same manner – not going too fast and breaking my sentence into words so she could understand. I was convinced that by the time I left Turkey, I would have forgotten English grammar!

My nightmare came when I boarded a night bus to get to Bursa and meet my friend Melek. To my horror, there was not a single English-speaking soul on the bus. Forget about speaking, they wouldn’t even understand! The bus got delayed ‘cuz of heavy rain and I was starting to worry if I had missed my stop. What was I going to do if this thought was true! Trying to inquire from the bus attendant was futile and I decided to go with the flow. In my mind, planning different strategies what I was going to do if I had really missed the stop. It was my good luck that I had not and that they did spell out the town’s name in English at the bus terminal. Even the bus driver tried his best: “Ladies and Gentleman, we have landed Bursa Terminal. Our take-off time is 12.20 am”. I knew it was time to disembark.

Melek had smartly planned my visit. Anticipating the language problem, she had an English-Turkish digital dictionary handy. And, this was going to be our lifeline for the next three days. It was then I realized how she had managed to write me letters in English for the past three years.
Each time we wanted to talk, Melek would open the dictionary and we would key in what was to be said. And our kind dictionary would obligingly give us an instantaneous English translation, saving us the torture of making stupid actions or trying to decipher what the other was trying say.

The language crisis made my visit to Turkey an everlasting memory!

God save your hands

I often think about this phrase. More often when I am in the kitchen. I learnt it in Istanbul, Turkey. My friend Ayfer had explained the Turkish tradition: "When someone cooks for you, you kiss their hands and say God save your hands." Basically you appreciate and honor his efforts to cook for you by doing this.

So I kissed Gulzaan's hands and repeated what I had just learnt! She had made veggie shorba for me..Turkish style.

But I think of the phrase not due to the tasty food that my friends cooked for me... going out of their way to feed me with something vegetarian for the many days I stayed with them...but because of their sensitivity. That one must thank the chef for the delicious food that one might be savoring.

For generally I can only associate "Bon Appétit" with good food habits. But that is essentially to say...enjoy your food...thanks to whom? the person who cooked...right?

I have often advised my friends to compliment the chef in kitchen for the great food on the dinner table. Precisely... this is for all the wives and mums who cook the delicious food day after day..for years! Until we ourselves take charge of the kitchen... God save your hands!