FUN FACTS ABOUT BIRDS:
1. The word for "turkey" in Turkish is hindi. There's no word in Hindi, but it'll give you dysentery anyway.
2. Storks communicate by clacking their beaks together like castanet players on the meth. They throw their heads back upside-down along their spines and rattle away, sometimes in unison with every stork for miles.
How do I know about storks, you might ask? We've got four couples outside our hostel window building nests perched atop the ruins of a Roman-era aqueduct. They're big birds, white bodies with black wingtips and vivid pink beaks and legs. These are the first storks I've ever seen, and they've come to Selçuk as part of their yearly migration to make their homes amid the crumbling columns of ancient Ephesus. And, yes, they look like they might be large enough to fly with babies in their beaks.We've come to Selçuk as part of our own migration out of India and back to The World. That migration began with a 4 AM flight last week from Delhi to İstanbul, during which I realized that my final Indian meal had given me another beautiful case of dysentery. After one day of rest and five more exploring the nooks and crannies of a city of 16 million (Bombayesque but not as thickly settled) that straddles the border of Europe and Asia, we moved south to begin in earnest the Turkish leg of this world tour.
The people of Turkey have been the warmest, kindest, most welcoming folks we've met in some time. Our first meal in İstanbul was at a joint down the road from our hostel where we were welcomed with a "Hey, bro, you want kebap and beer?" T, our waiter and entertainer, explained that his command of American street slang came from working with the good soldiers of the US air base near his hometown in Turkey's southeast. He was celebrating his 22nd birthday and practicing his Spanish with us while we ate, showing us pictures of his family and telling us about his English "fiancee" who would be visiting him again soon. He even brought us steaming cups of apple tea (elma çay) and explained that they were "in the house."
Coming from a poor country where we scarcely had a single conversation that wasn't motivated by a sales pitch or a request for money, the little extras offered as appreciation for our patronage have been the most welcome evidence that we are in a different place, a different world. And maybe it's petty to count something like that as a plus for Turkey, or to hold the lack of free shit and "buybacks" against India. But since we've arrived there has been no gawking or scheming, no blatant, bald-faced lies, no deceit, no highway robbery. Nobody's told us our guesthouse has burned down, that his "brother's" hotel is the only alternative in the area and at five times the price. We're treated like people and not walking ATMs, and (goddamn this bourgeois tirade) it's been nice to let our guard down and relax, have a chat and a cup of tea, and not worry about what trap is being laid around the corner.
India was work, even in Goa. Turkey is easy. It's a nice change. The next few weeks we'll bounce around this country on Mercedes buses rolling over paved roads, making a loop and winding up back in İstanbul to stay with some new friends before moving on to Bulgaria, Romania, and the rest of southeast Europe. They might even have storks there, too. I'll keep you posted. Peace.
