Confessions of an Expat's Wife
from one country to another,thousands of miles earned, different languages to get by with, cultures and expectations to live with plus millons of photos taken to tell the adventures of my lifeFebruary 24, 2006
I Keep Coming Back To...
First there was the Wowowee Tragedy, then the landslide in Leyte, and now it's the State of Emergency back home.
The Philippines always has something going on.
Will this stop me from coming home tomorrow? Not at all!
Be back in three weeks. Don't count the days coz' I won't (winks!).
February 23, 2006
Red Wine Stains?
I have had a nasty experience with red wine stains in our flat back in HK. Same situation. We were drinking in the flat and a friend accidentally spilled his wine. I ended up going to the grocery looking for the best stain remover. Someone suggested I put some soda water and it will all be gone but this didn't work for me. I bought this nifty spray that claims to take out all kinds of carpet stains. So much for truth in advertising. I still had a brownish spot on the carpet after.
This time, I tried our friend's suggestion and placed some iodized salt on the red wine spot. I left overnight and was excited to see the result. It really does work ( jeez... I sound like a commercial spiel). I took out the salt and just rubbed the stain with plain water and voila! stain gone! I was ecstatic!
Ahhh the joys of being a wife.
It's good to discover new things in our daily lives.
February 21, 2006
No More Casino For Me!
My husband got a CD mailed by William Hill. It's a disc that opened the doors to online casino gambling for us. At first I was watching the games and playing some of the with my husband. We were winning! I was beginning to love it.
Then I had this idea of surprising my husband with more winnings so I went on and gambled online yesterday afternoon.Three-card Poker and Carribean Stud were my games. I won a couple of hundred dollars but due to my greediness and lack of control, I ended losing two thirds of what I won.
With that. I had my taste of fire and now I know better that it burns. I hated how I felt and I knew if I carried on I would have felt worse in the end.
No more casino for me. Thank you.
February 20, 2006
SAMARKAND
Pray tell the purpose of a sinless life
If with evil You punish the evil I have done
Pray tell, what is the difference between You and me?
OMAR KHAYYAM
(adapted from Samarkand)
I just finished reading Samarkand . It is the story of the Persian poet Omar Khayyam and his famous quatrains written in the Rubaiyaat. This book transported me back in time and made me see clearly how the Orient was in those days. More importantly, it introduced me to the literary genius of Omar Khayyam.
I once heard a poem read by a boy from in Iran in two languages. He read the original text in Farsi and the English translation after. It was sweet music to the ear and the words were all in the right places. After this experience, I took it upon myself to discover more about the poets and literary genius of the Middle East.
I can't wait for my next book!
February 16, 2006
Kurtlar Vadisi-Irak
A lot has already been said about the US invasion of Iraq. Saddam's "weapons of massive destruction" has yet to be found (or is it because there really aren't any?!). When will this all end? Aren't we supposed to be more wary about Iran's nuclear weapons ? Surely, there's more to life than fighting wars.
February 11, 2006
Topkapi Palace
Topkapi Palace finished its construction 25 years after Mehmet occupied the the city now known as Istanbul. Instead of a single building, they built Topkapi Palace as a series of pavilions within four large garden courts.This became the Sultan's official residence.
Inside the Palace grounds, there are many buildings to visit. There is The Harem which is the palace built with rooms and baths ( think Hamam or Turkish bath) for all the sultan's wives and concubines. The Treasury where you can see gold, silver, and precious metals and jewel-encrusted ornaments in exhibit. They even have a Circumcision Pavilion where they hold and witness the act in the olden days. The Kitchen is another must see visit with it's amazingly huge collection of chinese and japanese flatwares.There was also a building full of exhibit of the all the Sultan's Costumes, another for all the arms and armour used in war, and a building miniatures and manuscripts of Islam.
Topkapi Palace ceased to be the Sultan's official residence after Dolmabahce Palace was constructed in the 1800s. Even with this, In its almost 600 years of existence, it still holds the grandeur of the past. As we walked along the corridors, looked at the exhibit and strolled in the park, we realized how Istanbul will always remain a must-see city.February 07, 2006
Discovering Istanbul
Back in the Philippines, before I came to Istanbul, a friend of mine asked me which country I will be living in. I told her, I was on my way to live to Istanbul, Turkey. Her reaction... " Yaaaaakkk! kadire! di ba puro mabuhok mga tao doon at mababaho? Malapit pa sa Iraq!" I did not know how to react and answer her question. I asked her if she ever went there and she said no. She has never been to any part of the Middle Eastern and European side of the world except for a couple of places in Asia and the United States. I was annoyed at my friend for passing judgement so quickly without knowing what is in this country but then again, I cannot blame her. I also do not know whether what she said was true or not.Then she started rambling about how nice it would be to go to Europe and shop in Dubai plus do bargains in Bangkok, Thailand. Hmmmnnn.. so much for being fair and open minded, I was thinking.
At the back of my mind, I was already wondering how is it in Istanbul, Turkey. I looked at a map and checked if it was near Iraq. Apparently there are still some brave Pinoys who illegally cross the border to find work in Iraq ( makes me wonder, is it worth it?heck! they even stamp the new Philippine passports with "not valid for travel to Iraq", but I digress...). It turns out, Istanbul is the modern name of Constantinople and the great Byzantine empire. This brought me back to my world History classes in high school.Constantinople was then conquered by the Turks and introduced Islam as the religion replacing Christianity that was being spread by Constantine.
Turkey itself is a big country and it is bicontinental. Most part of it lies in the Middle East and a portion of it is located in Southeast Europe. The capital, Ankara is on the Asian side and Istanbul is divided into Asia and Europe. It has two European neighbors mainly Greece and Bulgaria. For its Asian neighbors, it has Georgia, Armenia,Azerbaijan,Iran, Iraq, and Syria.
Well, that's basically the facts I know about Turkey. Other than that, I learn more and more about this country by living here. Below are some things I learned while staying here in Istanbul.
1. Merhaba literally means "hello". It's the equivalent of "Mabuhay" in Filipino.
2. The traffic in Istanbul is as bad as Manila. The drivers are mostly Schumacher or Alonso wannabes!
3. The food is fantastic even without pork. I've never eaten so much eggplant in my life ( and they cook it really well!).
4. The city is a mixture of up and down roads. Sometimes while walking in the street, you will feel like you are hiking a steep mountain.
5. Do not expect to find tropical fruits like mango, pineapple, and bananas. They are mostly imported from South American countries ( thus, the exorbitant prices). The fruits to go for here are cherries, quince, oranges, and apples.
6. There are quite a number of Turkish who can speak German and French. It is not hard to find a bilingual and trilingual Turk. There are many turkish universities that has French and German as the mode of communication.
7. Pirated DVD's already has found it's niche in Istanbul.
8. There are many beautiful ( and I mean beautiful) women here. I believe they are greater in number than the men. Although some ladies have a tendency to put on heavy make up ( think drag-queen do) , brown themselves in a tanning salon and dye their hair blonde.
9. There are many cheeky cab drivers. Just like anywhere else in the world, if they can milk money from tourists, they would. It helps to know or pretend that you know how to speak Turkish.
10. Almost everyone in this country can dance! It's a national past time. Turkish music has these irresistible beats that just make you groove. I love the way the women do their belly dancing and the black sea dance of the men (moving their shoulders up and down while they are all in a line) .
11. Turkish hospitality is phenomenal. They would go out of their way to invite you for a cup of coffee or tea in their homes even if you are a foreigner. Shops would offer you some turkish tea when you come inside.
12. The nightlife is awesome here even if the alcohol is expensive (being a Muslim country.. it makes sense). Bars are packed on weekends not just with yabancis or foreigners like us but with locals as well. The best of it all, we all just blend in and have a good time!
February 01, 2006
On Choices
Everyday, from the moment we wake up, we are presented with choices and decisions. They range from trivial matters such as bacon and eggs for breakfast, coffee and cigarettes or just plain skipping morning meals to the more difficult choices such as firing thousands of employees in a company, choosing the life of a mother or a child during birth, or deciding when to start or stop war resulting to thousands of lives changed forever.
When we reach a certain age, we start realizing how all these little things matter. That every little choice we make contribute to the bigger picture no matter how trivial they may be. Conscious or unconsciously done, these choices change the outcome of our priorities.
When I was younger it was so easy to list down my priorities. Now, I need to weigh in a couple of factors before I give an answer. I guess now I know better that the world does not revolve around me just like when I was a child. I am now part of it and I need to make my own decisions just like everybody else. I'm just grateful that I never had to make choices that will affect more lives other than the ones within my circle. I'm just a small potato compared to everybody else. My everyday decisions involve going to the grocery, choosing the right cheese for pasta, deciding whether to take a taxi or a dolmus, or choosing which book to read for the day.
My life is not complicated and my goals and priorities are more simpler than I imagined when I was younger. No matter what our priorities in life are, it all goes down to us being happy or unhappy with the choices we make.
Am I happy with my choice? I would never trade it for the world!
About Me
- Name: duke
- Location: Istanbul, Türkiye
A first time mom to baby A living as an expat in Istanbul, Turkey.
TOPS on my list
- Routard
- UP Alumni
- Blogarama
- My Merhaba
- Fashion Style
- Rice Bowl Journals
- Rock Ed Philippines
- Arsenal-Go Gunners!
- Airlines and Airports
- Let's Play YAHTZEE!
My Indulgence
Recent Thoughts
- Moving On...
- PMSing
- Two to Tango?
- The New Ipod
- Hunting Season
- Hen Night Gone Bad
- Surf's Up!
- That P Word
- Le Taxi
- Dreamt
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My Daily Reads
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