If you tell someone, whether it be your old cranky neighbor, a shop assistant, or some guy in the street, "Türkçe bilmiyorum," which means "I don't know Turkish," they automatically assume that you must be lying since you knew enough Turkish to say "I dont know Turkish" in Turkish.
I guess I am lying a little bit. I definitely do know enough Turkish to get by and enough to have a conversation with them. But, for instance, last year I didn't know enough and people still said the same thing.
They can't seem to grasp that foreigners might just memorize a few phrases to throw out here and there when necessary.
Also, I have had numerous people argue with me when I say "Türkçe bilmiyorum." "Bilmiyorsan abla?" (You don't speak Turkish sister?) Maybe it's because I look Turkish. Maybe it's because I seem to be the #1 person to ask for directions in every neighborhood. Maybe it's because even though Istanbul is billed as a "cosmopolitan" city, it's really not..
I have recently started to answer their questions. Give them directions. But they either get frustrated and walk away or find their "friend who speaks English" (aka he knows like 5 sentences) to translate.
Other observations:
It has suddenly become summer. It will take a while to get used to the lack of air conditioning pretty much everywhere and sweating non-stop again.
2. Guess what the current favorite game of the neighborhood kids is? Kick the soccer ball at: a) cars b) satellite dishes c) window grills or d) all of the above. You guessed it, D. Ooh, they just hit my window grill. Twice.
3. I had some other observations but I forgot them...
I'll post the next set of pictures this weekend.
Saturday, May 17, 2008
"Türkçe bilmiyorum" and other observations
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6 comments:
learn more turkish and the problem is solved! a duh.
where have you gone?!?
me gusta mucho tu blog lo visito todos los dias visita tu el mio y si t gusta deja un comentario y nos linkeamos los blogs
In the bakkals they think you know Turkish because they are surprised to hear a single word from a foreigner in Turkish. So, when you use one word they assume you know quite a lot. If you watch early Turkish films they always show the foreigners as dumb asses with nothing of interest to say apart from "Hello Johnny!"
Izmir-2-Blogger
http://izmir-blog.blogspot.com
Check out my poem I wrote years ago when I first came to Turkey.
http://nomadicjoe.blogspot.com/2009/03/to-unknown-construction.html
Hi,
Apologies for the message out of the blue. I am developing a series of Expat city guides, www.expatarrivals.com, and are looking for local expats to help build them up, and in return benefit from advertising revenue and promotion of their blog/website. In most cases the core content has been developed and we now want the useful details that resident expats can provide.
The project is designed to be beneficial to all parties: you get exposure, ad revenue and the enjoyment of sharing your knowledge, while expat readers benefit from your expertise when planning their big move.
Would you be interested in contributing, or do you know of any other local expats who may like to get involved? If so please get in touch.
Best regards,
Dave
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