Brian Underdown is an Englishman,living in Istanbul, Turkey. Born in England in 1965 and lived in Kent  until June 2009. His location in Istanbul Tarabya is situated near the Bosphorus . He has an appetite for Istanbul that grows everyday and thrives on the cities atmosphere and culture. 

Overnight the storms and the intense rain returned  with a vengeance , in sporadic periods  the rain fell often termed has flash floods . The deafening sounds has it pelted against the windows echoed around the apartment,the apartment shook many times throughout the night. Having a sleepless night and knowing full well when dawn breaks the effects would be revealed . I even heard a faint drummer of Ramadan doing the rounds before dawn break , I was thinking that is dedication but the drummer never came close to us. My wife slept through the whole night and got up for work has normal , however she was to return home with joy with having a day off work has many roads were turned into rivers and streams. However that joy turned to concern has  the News channels were all screening unbelievable pictures of chaos and destruction. I had seen TV reports of flooding back in England frequently in the last few years with much farm land and housing estates being destroyed . But I had not seen the impact it had on the main transportation infrastructure system and routes has it did here in Istanbul . I am sure here there will be critics but what I see is not people moaning and complaining but again just getting on with it and dealing with it and I am sure has the day progresses we will hear more on this almost classified natural disaster.
So it did nearly every News agency across the world had a report on this chilling event, it was a natural disaster ,it took life’s , it destroyed the infrastructure and needless to say it cost money . The more I think about the previous night the more I think I was lucky ,my wife had experienced the tragedy of the event on the way to work that morning ,has she attempted to travel to work without making it . So has my twitter friend Berke said 09/09/09 was the date ,I will let you make the combination out of that date .
Brian Underdown is an Englishman,living in Istanbul, Turkey. Born in England in 1965 and lived in Kent  until June 2009. His location in Istanbul Tarabya is situated near the Bosphorus . He has an appetite for Istanbul that grows everyday and thrives on the cities atmosphere and culture.
]]> http://istanbulaa.wordpress.com/2009/09/08/istanbul-then-the-rain-came/feed/ 6 newsdash http://istanbulaa.wordpress.com/2009/09/05/istanbul-a-wedding-the-day-after/ http://istanbulaa.wordpress.com/2009/09/05/istanbul-a-wedding-the-day-after/#comments Sat, 05 Sep 2009 07:43:00 +0000 newsdash http://istanbulaa.wordpress.com/2009/09/05/istanbul-a-wedding-the-day-after ]]> A Wedding The Day after and the Shepherd….

Ortakoy is another place myself and Figen often go when she is not working and has not planned anything, she has a bad habit of planning things and forgetting . We often say to ourselves “probably the most disorganised couple in the world” we both have have a bad habit of leaving things to the last minute but what the heck we always make it. Ortakoy a place I like to go and mingle in the crowds of the small Bazaar ,sometimes taking a boat trip along the Bosphorus and look back at just how the skyline of Istanbul is unique. A blend of history and modern architecture works exceptionally well here unlike back in London where the modern towers and skyscrapers just do not work with the historical architecture unfortunately. Yet there are still places of history of great interest in London but its just not viewable at many street levels probably why they built the London Eye.

At Ortakoy after having one those delicious (Kumpir) Jacket Potatoes filled with delights and sauces and Figen always makes sure we get it from the Besiktas lads ,why because she supports Besiktas unlike me I have began to follow Fernabache . So after leaving this small port of the Bosphorus  we always head along to Besiktas and it is here I became curious of the stunning black and white portraits lined all along the road leading to Besiktas.

The portraits are of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk a former president of Turkey who died in 1938 but yet still today he is idolised by millions of Turkish people ,even the younger generation acknowledge his importance of modern day Turkey. Back in England I struggle to think of someone we idolised and is symbolic to us and can be found in our everyday thoughts and life. I look back at modern UK history and idols of importance are war related, the name Winston Churchill is a frequent thought of someone symbolic to the United Kingdom but I do not see the patriotic displays of his image throughout the UK aligned like I do here with Ataturk  . Modern idols in England to me the last was Lady Diana who presented an image of beauty yet destroyed by modern day demands on life.

The image of Ataturk found along this road to Besiktas is a reminder and appreciation for what he stood for and what he achieved , it is not for me to write and voice an opinion or try to educate  because I have no real understanding of what he did for individuals , but I know from talking with Figen perhaps today life may not be has free . I think the quote “Turkish Youth! Your first duty is to preserve and to defend Turkish Independence and the Turkish Republic forever” sums up why there is a very strong patriotic feeling of Turkish people.


SO MUCH TO WRITE ABOUT “CAY BREAK”…

Something I had to get used to was the long following stares , frequent daytime walks along the Bosphorus alone is where I first began to feel the eyes following me. I obviously have a something that attracts there attention a full arm sleeve Polynesian Tattoo ,it is not your normal goth or traditional tattoo . A completely hand drawn symbolic design by a friend back in England .Whilst it is nothing new here and if you venture into Taksim you will see a wide variety of tattooed people with bold designs . But take an afternoon stroll along the Bosphorus which is completely dominated by fishermen and men just enjoying the fresh air drinking cay and diving into the Bosphorus. It is where I began to understand there not staring in any detrimental way they are curious and I find many Turkish men are curious and often I hear cok cok guzel with a waving gesture towards my tattooed arm .


Also of Turkish people in general is the ability to get on with daily life regardless of the situations surrounding them. It is hard to believe that in 1999 this city was devastated by an earthquake ,destroying many people life’s and there welfare. But today there is nothing to indicate that a such an event had happened it is only by delving into recent history you find out what really happened. Having found this it makes me full admiration for the people in this city and being from the UK where life is pampered and almost laid on plate for you to take at will.


In my neighbourhood here in Tarabya , daily street life is always alive with children playing games ,young lads playing football, unlike back in the UK where most districts provide recreation grounds and all streets are line with pavements. Here no such luxuries are widespread , the streets once you are of the main roads are the playground for the young kids. In our neighbourhood there are two deaf teenagers , a girl and a boy , I often think of these young people and realize that a mobile phone, an Ipod which we all take for granted and must have now are just of no use to these two young deaf people.


The boy often greets me with a smile and gestures to me for a game of football I always obliged when I can ,his eyes beaming and face full of happiness regardless of the disability to exchange any talking . He always points to my tattoos and then gesturing that one day he will have one on his arm , he cant speak , he cant hear but he knows how to tell me what he wants .Strange two people from different countries but to him I am not a foreigner to him I may be different but Im not a foreigner . Has for his sister she is the boss often keeping an eye on the kids in the street guarding them from any mischief or dangers , she is not a woman you want mess with , I often see her gesturing and waving her arms to people , just because she is deaf and unable to speak does not mean she is disabled to live a daily life like the rest of us.


Throughout the day the street has numerous trucks turning up selling fresh vegetables and produce a man will walk in front or at the rear of the truck yelling out “domates, biber,patlican”tomatoes,green pepper,egg plant. A tradition that faded away back in England decades ago , but it reminds me of local communities supporting each other , real traditional values , real culture of earning a living not just being dormant in front of a computer all day , not getting ripped off by the large superstores ,feeding money back into the community. At some stage a man and a barrow will turn up yelling “ eskici” very loudly and distinctively collecting any scrap metals and broken goods , again this is his means of income pushing a barrow up and down hilly streets all day long . Would I see this in England the answer is no , even if people are penniless and complaining of a recession they would not contemplate this has a means of income due to the pampered life they all have become accustom to. You see Istanbul is not just a tourist haven for architecture it has a estimated population of 12 million or more and there are real people hard working people getting on with it everyday.

Has the title states I was in the midst of approximately 1000 people queuing up for a boat trip to one of the Princes Islands located in the shadows of the city Istanbul . Once again it is all new to me , standing there in a terminal with a 1000 people and no air conditioning ,again the armpits rear the heads again and temperatures start to rise . Impatiently waiting for the doors to open I am thinking what the heck I am doing , Figen is this real ? Yes !! .


Thats the way it is no point in complaining because no one is going to listen and what more do you want from a boat ride that cost a mere 3 ytl (£1.20) to one of the most eco friendly Islands . Yes that is right ECO friendly it is hard to believe but there are no motorcars, no Dolmus, just Horse and Carts or you can hire a bicycle to move around the Island for the day.


What really opened my eyes to this trip is here I am taking a boat trip from Kabatas which is about 1 and half hours for 3 ytl !! 3 ytl would get me about 100 yards back in England . Whilst it is not a 5 star comfort journey it gives you the chance to mix into the way of life here . I m sitting there and eyes are staring at me from a small group of lads in there early teens . Looking bewildered at me for many reasons one was I smoke rolling tobacco instead of tailored made cigarettes.These young lads looking bemused and curious and eager to talk or perhaps try one of my rolled cigarettes (Golden Virginia) . So I offered and one lad took the bait ,within in a few minutes he probably thought he was smoking some dried cay from the bottom of the teapot because he had that pale gaunt look of what the heck is that.


Like it or not football is a universal point of conversation and being from England you could see it bursting out of them wanting to talk about Chelsea or Manchester United but what about Gillingham I wanted to ask sarcastically but I did not so we had a brief conversation with the help of Figen about Ronaldo . However what I did enjoy is how they perceive England and wanting Turkey to join the EU so they have a better life which I think the motive lies in a better job and wage overseas .These young lads spent 10 hours a day making leather wallets for a living , I did not ask how much they earnt a month but i guess it was less than a 1000 ytl per month (£400) .


But regardless of there income or my income we are no different so they do not need to stare at me curiously, we are sitting on the same boat having paid the same amount and what I really like about this city and young turkish people is there fashion sense . I would say regardless of there income young turkish people make the effort to look casually smart in the current trends of fashion . It doesnt matter whether there G-STAR RAW t-shirt is a fake what matters it looks good and I love that everyone likes to wear Levi’s albeit 95% are fake but again they look the business and cost a third of what I would have paid back in England.

When I first visited Istanbul back in the summer of 2008 Figen took me to many places which I will write about in the near future. However one place sticks to my mind and now I have lost count of how many times I have visited the Grand Bazaar . I had no idea where Figen was taking me or what to expect , a bazaar back in England always related to me has an art fair of home made ornaments and garments that looked pretty on the day but stayed in the box in the garage when you got home . How wrong I was the Grand Bazaar located in a district full of Ottoman architecture is the perfect setting for this unique market and research tells me between 250,000 to 500,000 (half a million) people visit this place everyday obviously peaking during the tourist season during the summer.


Once inside you soon come across the vasts amount of gold jewellery all lit up and shining like a christmas tree .Has you venture deeper into the maze of shops and miniature outlets selling carpets,watches,clothes,home decor in the flavour of traditional turkish style you soon become stunned and blinded without being able to focus on anything you would consider buying . It is like a city inside a city there must be some 1500 stalls and thats not counting your street sellers with a pitch in the middle of a walkway selling dodgy t-shirts .


After a few more visits to this extraordinary place I began to distinguish the good stuff and the bad stuff. The place is full of fake garments , fake watches , just about anything that can be replicated you could find here. However there are good fakes to be found and really bad fakes has I was to learn , but I did not learn quickly but I learnt .


The selling method can be aggressive and to some extent insulting , many sellers try to coax you into there shops or stalls with really poor english . Has example I was confronted with this whilst admiring the many impressive fake watches Ive become besotted with. “Hello Sir how can I rip you off today ?” this guy was totally sincere there was no laughter in his voice he was genuinely trying to talk to me in english, I admire many of them for that but sometimes they get it so wrong and I just want to tell them so but for the fear of confrontation I dont . Moreover that Figen just cant hack it she just wants to stand there and tell them and off load her frustration of hearing poor interpreted english . I dont blame her but in these places the sellers are friends and you could end up dealing with 10 or 20 of them at once . At this point I often drag her off for some Cay (tea) or some dondurma (ice cream) finished off with a sigara.


I do understand the benefits of pressure selling in this type of environment and the sellers are not fools by a long way. They can spot me and a tourist from some 50 yards before you even get near there stall, we stand out like a sore thumbs , with our pasty looking sun factor 60 pale skin and our sun-burnt noses blistering from the previous days sunbathing . So what is my defense when entering a place like this , it is YOK SAGOL (“YOK SAL”) a local phrase of no thank you .This frequent quote I use normally 99% of the time causes a startled look and I often get the respect from then on and I can browse there stall without the constant selling banter.


It is easy to be offended by the constant agressiveness of these sellers but it is there livelihood ,it puts food on the table , it pays the rent , and lets them keep up with the ever changing demands of a modern Istanbul. If you walk around with a pair of bold sunglasses and wearing a t-shirt I LOVE TURKEY and wearing a white sun hat full of badges from places you have visited, you are an easy target for these guys. There not ruthless but often the pressure of constant sales banter can reel you in like a fish on the end of a line . It is not a frightening has many written guides may make out , however you have to be vigilant because like anywhere in the world there will be people who will the exploit criminal element.

OMG what is that ?

Oh my god the DOLMUS what an experience but have learnt I cant travel about without them . The Dolmus a small bus and basically you need to understand how the Dolmus network works and learn the etiquette of using this form of transport.

Has I soon learnt whilst standing up on the Dolmus or in fact any other bus transport strangers just hand you money (the fare) .When it first happened to me I look bewildered and totally not amused until Figen explained I have to hand it to the person in front of me who then in turn they forward it the bus driver then it reverses and the change if any comes back the same route. It is a very trusting situation once you understand and experience it.

The Dolmus can be a nightmare journey especially rush hour times and summer temperatures with body odours very apparent. You can feel the cramped situation getting worse has the journey goes through a busy area and before you know it you will end up with someones armpit rammed in your face. What i do admire is the admiration and consideration for elderly or pregnant women , it is polite and correct to offer your seat regardless of the conditions , however again I soon learnt certain women think it is there right to sit . You can spot these people a mile away , they approach you with a look of no respect , these people I just ignore and play on my English speaking language.

Another situation whilst travelling to Kabatas en route to Grand Bazaar , the bus which was a larger green bus (not a Dolmus) was very crowded I gave up my seat to a elderly gentlemen which did not amuse Figen at all but im english and polite. However some minutes later trying hang on without falling into the overcrowded gangway I accidentally lost my balance and my leg ended up rubbing a womans leg , totally unaware has i was concentrating on not falling over , her husband or relative abrubtly tapped me on the shoulder to move back or away . Now easily due to the cramped conditions I could have told him to papa oscar and told him to look at the situation before making a gesture. I didnt I look down at this 60 year old woman in a full headscarf dress and long coat and thought is he joking though now I look at it think he was being protective and many Turkish men are that way in fact are we not all protective of our loved ones. The experience was a lesson for me and gave me another understanding of the culture I was in and soon to live in.

The Dolmus is still to me a unique method of public transport you do not need to be at a bus stop and you do not need to specifically get off at a bus stop. To me that is just excellent , it is like being in London and waving down a black cab it is the same here for getting a Dolmus. Without the Dolmus I would be confined to more expensives means of public transport. Lastly travelling to Besiktas to catch a boat to Kadikoy on my own , i needed to get off so I stood up and said Durak Lutfen and wow thirty people turn to look at me. I was not sure if totally got my words wrong or if I suddenly developed a stutter nevertheless the bus stopped and calmly made my way to Iskelesi.

I think Figen enjoys watching me take on the new challenges of everyday life here in Istanbul, she often laughs at me and I often give her some crap excuse of why I got it wrong. But I know what she is doing and I know she is there if I do stumble beyond my capabilities. Istanbul is all about commuting and there are many ways to do it and it is all affordable and there is no reason to just stay at home .

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