Finally :)

It's been snowing in Istanbul since last Wednesday I guess. On and off. Heavy bursts followed by a brief clearing then back to huge fat flakes. (I'm finally publishing this on Tuesday and the snow seems to have stopped for good).

We thought that the snow was finally finished last night. But instead, it was like a surprise White Christmas. I awoke to my street covered in snow, cars buried. I stood awestruck in the window while I watched the head-scarved ladies navigate the obviously unplowed street to buy their fresh morning bread. But I still had to go to work.

Slumming it, I threw on my track pants and rain boots and started the trek up Istanbul's K2 Mountain to meet the driver. It was rough! Normally it' quite tiring in dry weather, but covered with snow/slush/ice, damn!

We took off at a snail's pace. He kept saying, "Çok tehlikeli" (very dangerous). We couldn't see more than 15 feet in front of us. After he said "Çok tehlikeli" about 5 more times, we decided it was time to call our boss. It was agreed that it was way too dangerous to trek out to the suburbs for 2 hours of Business English! A smart decision, and I might have made it myself had we gone any further. I don't really think it's worth risking my life for a 2 hour lesson.

So we did what any yabancılar (foreigners) would do in this situation (canceled classes, snowy day) headed to Starbucks! While we were there, we received the great news that all classes had been canceled! So after a tasty lunch and a few hours in a nargile cafe, I'm finally home. And my morning student already canceled for tomorrow - the commute will probably be awful.

Things I Noticed About Snow in Istanbul:

1. Snow plows don't exist - Don't ask me how the roads get cleared. I know for certain mine won't. The packed snow on my street has already turned into a sheet of ice. I guess the big roads must have plows...but I personally haven't seen any. But they definitely wouldn't fit down my one-way (or sometimes two-way if you are a creative type of driver) street.

2. Snow shovels don't exist - People use brooms instead. I guess this works...kind of.

3. There are no people to shovel/plow the snow - In a city with about 1 million people unemployed, you would think that the government would invest in a few shovels and hand them out and pay people to shovel that stuff up!

4. There is no drainage system in Istanbul - Snow is only nice until it melts. Then it becomes nasty slush which turns to water. And this city was built on 7 hills (or 6?) so that means all the water runs down. Unless it's on a flat street. Then it just lays there, looking nasty and leaving no place to walk. (thank god for my rain boots which leads me to #5)

5. Turkish people do not adequately prepare for the weather - Turkish man shoes (pointy leather grossness) do not work well in snow. Nor do Converse All-Stars, nor ballet slippers, etc. LOOK outside before you leave the house and you will be a lot happier (and warmer !)

6. Hills + ice = Treacherousness - I almost died about 15 times walking home and saw numerous people wipe out which leads me to the next point

7. Salt and sand don't exist - Damn the Turkish government should hire me as their Winter Weather Preparedness Consultant. (update - I guess they do exist but they aren't used as much as in the US)

Despite the unpreparedness of the city, I loved the past days in Istanbul. It showed me that life goes on even if your road isn't plowed. People (but not me) still go to work. Mothers still make breakfast. People are still everywhere in this overcrowded city. But it had a sense of life that I hadn't seen before.

The first day of snow we went out for a walk at midnight. It was so quite and peaceful, not to mention stunningly beautiful. However, as we started to return home, I noticed that the number of people on the streets was steadily increasing. I realized that they too missed the snow. They too were nostalgic for their childhood days when you could just play in the snow all day. It showed a sense of humanity that is beyond language, ethnicity, or culture - just the plain old love of snow!