As I wrote about when I lived in Rome, I am a huge fan of the bidet. During the pandemic, during the toilet paper shortage, some people switched to the bidet.
Typical toilet with bidet, flush, toilet paper, and trash can.
Now that I live in Turkiye, I am back in the land of bidets. But, unlike in Rome, the bidet is a nozzle of water that is part of the toilet. Usually, it is a small spout in the back of the toilet under the toilet seat. It is activated by turning a handle on the right side of the toilet somewhere on the wall. The flush is usually a flat button (usually there is a small and large flush button) built into the wall behind the toilet.
In some countries, the seatless style of toilet where one squats over a hole in the floor, is called a, “Turkish toilet.” Some consider this more hygienic as no part of the skin makes contact with the toilet. This squat style toilet is not so common anymore in big cities in Turkiye. One still finds them in public toilets at malls and out in the countryside. Most of the toilets here have the bidet function and toilet paper for drying off. Many toilets in Turkiye cannot handle toilet paper so there may be a trashcan nearby.
A squat toilet which in other countries is often called a “Turkish toilet.”
Another thing about Turkiye is that people wash their hands a lot here. Before they eat and after. With every meal, there are wet wipes and napkins available. Plus, the “cologne” that is splashed on your hands after the meal which works like a sanitizer.
One thing to note about Turkiye is that people eat with both hands. In Bangladesh, another country with many muslims, people rarely ever used their left hand when eating.
Often outside the bathroom, in restaurants, there is a sink for handwashing. And at mosques, there are places to do one’s ablutions.
A place to wash one’s feet.
Modern Turkey is a secular country so maybe that has something to do with how things are.
All I know is that I love the built-in modern Turkish toilet, the bidet.
Türkiye, the nation, had the UN officially recognize the spelling of its name in English as Türkiye (tur-key-YAY) in 2022 to have the spelling match the pronunciation in Turkish. But it is still hard for some people to call it that. Even for the Turks, many of whom called it Turkey for decades and then had to change in 2022. By now, most remember. If one slips up, no one comments. They are forgiving.
But until then, why did the place and the bird share the same name?
The land was called, “the land of the Turks” = Turkey. Pronounced, tur-key-YAY, but in English the Y at the end doesn’t have that “yay” sound. The land, whatever its name, has had humans living on, in, it for a long, wait, really long, time. More than 12,000 years. That’s considered a long time in human history. One of the many names was “Asia Minor,” or “Anatolia” which derives from the Greek term for where the “sun rises” or “levant” which means to “rise” or “sunrise” and before that, “the Land of the Hattians.” So, even over here in Adana, all roads lead to Rome. But more about that some other time.
So how did it become “Turkey?” For that we move forward to 1077 when the Seljuk Turks set up their nation and called it the “Sultanate of Rūm” referring to the area being considered “Eastern Rome” and today rūm refers to Orthodox Christians who were in this part of the world since Christianity arose. Keep in mind that St. Paul was born in Tarsus, less than an hour’s drive from Adana. With the fall of Constantinople in 1453, Sultan Mehmed II declared himself, “Kayser-i-Rum” or “Caesar of the Romans” or Emperor. So all roads do lead to Rome… by the 12th century, Europeans, west of the Balkans, started using the term, “Turchia” which is what the modern Romans, Italians, call Türkiye. So even though the first of the Turkic groups to rule modern day Türkiye, called it something else, from this point on, the land started becoming more and more Turkish.
Chicken wing, chicken breast, and liver kebab.
Now, to the bird. By the way, as an aside, the way that the Turks give the bird is quite dramatic and done with flourish. More on that another time.
The bird, the Meleagris gallopavo, is indigenous to the Americas. When the Europeans encountered the bird, they called it guinea fowl or turkey cock/hen as they had seen pheasants and guinea fowl from Africa that looked similar. But, maybe not as big. In 1550, an Englishman William Strickland, who had introduced the bird to England (the first turkeys in Europe were taken to Spain by the Spanish from Mexico), was given a coat of arms which included the “turkey-cock in his pride proper.” Turkeys were introduced to North America by the English in the 17th century.
The bird was named after the country. Why? This article explains it well. Basically, when the birds were being traded for food, a confusion arose between the bird from the Americas with a bird from Africa…
But was it a fair trade? And should we re-name the bird? Call it the Mexican fowl? Or “huexolotl”? That’s the sixteenth-century Nahuatl, language of the central America, name. So for Americans who celebrate Thanksgiving or “Turkey-day”, they could say, “Happy Huexolotl!”
That said, here in Adana, they do not eat so much turkey. Mostly chicken.
As I do for every place I’ve lived since I started this blog, I write a “realities” article where I talk about the downsides or less than lovely things about where I live (read about Rome here). This is about living in the greater Washington,DC, Maryland, and Virginia are (the DMV).
The traffic. The commute takes over an hour.
The prices. Everything seems to be expensive.
The politics. However one feels about politics, the reality is that this is a town based on it. So it is hard to ignore.
Seven dollars with tip.
Tipping: So much tipping and on EVERYTHING. 25 percent at some places.
The size. This is a spread out city. There are pockets that are cute, but in general it’s big.
The heat: In the summer, it is brutally hot and humid here. It is a swamp, after all.
The lack of authentic Mexican food: This is not really a problem for me, but for most gringos whom I meet around the world, this is a problem.
I always try to share some of the great things about living wherever I live. This is my list of great things about life in the Washington, DC, area. (I will write about some of the “realities” of life in DC).
The historical sites: There is so much history here that one can visit for free. Most of the museums are free. There is a lot of history here even if it is not as old as in Rome.
Georgetown and Old Town Alexandria: These two small towns are part of the bigger town but they are old (for America) and were some of the first towns built in this area. They both retain that old time feel.
The national parks: So many of the parks are free.
The nature: So much greenery and nature available. There are trees everywhere.
Free things: Like the concerts at the Kennedy Center. There are many free events and that is a nice thing.
Transportation: Most cities in the United States do not have good public transportation. Washington has a metro system that is a combination of the subway and buses. It works (although slowly at times). Also, with Uber, Lyft, and Empower, it’s easy to get around without your own car. With three airports serving this city, it is easy to get a flight. National Airport is on the subway system (metro) and it is quite close to the downtown. Dulles is on the metro as well.
The immigrants: This area has some decent Ethiopian, Korean, Salvadoran, and Vietnamese food thanks to the immigrants from these countries.
The Internet: Decent speed and steady (most of the time).
Delivery: One can get almost anything delivered to one’s door.
The electricity: Same thing. Steady. Most of the time.
The water: It’s potable and most of it tastes okay.
The language: English is spoken by almost everyone.
The Roman Stone Bridge with the Sabanci Central Mosque in the background.
A few years ago, I lived in Rome, Italy. For the past two years, I lived in the “new Rome” of Washington, DC, in the USA. Now, I have moved to a place that is still connected to Rome (after all, all roads…) but it’s also near history from beforeRome. (Rome was founded in 753 BCE). I’ve moved to Adana, Türkiye.
A “simit” vendor on the Roman Stone bridge.
Despite being a city of two million people, Adana is a less famous than Istanbul (Istanbul is 575 miles/925 kilometers from Adana) but Istanbul is its own universe.
Adana kebab is minced meat. It is the most famous dish from Adana.
I’ve moved somewhere famous for its kebab (More on that later). Adana is also known for its Roman stone bridge (Taşköprü in Turkish), and more recently for being near the location of another famous bridge (Varda Viaduct) featured in a recent James Bond movie. But there are over 12,000 years of history in this area of the world including the famous Göbekli Tepe, from 9500-8000 BCE.
There is so much to explore. I look forward to the adventure!
You might wonder how, in a big place like Washington, DC, if it’s possible to shop local. Washington is a touristy place, just like Rome or Istanbul. While the shopping is not on the level of Istanbul’s market, there is shopping to be found here.
Made in DC is a local chain selling items about Washington, DC, or by artists from the greater metropolitan area of Washington, DC.
Made in ALX (made in Alexandria) is a local shop in Alexandria, Virginia. They feature items by local artists from the greater metropolitan DC area.
Shop DC, located in Adams Morgan in DC, is sort of the same type of shop, but they do not exclusively carry locally made items.
Eastern Market is the farmers market on Capital Hill and features items by local artisans. There is a food hall and market as well.
Farmers markets abound in the DC area and many feature art by local artists. There is probably a farmers market for every day of the week, but most are on the weekends.
It is often “bizarre foods” that are old traditions that no longer are available. In Italy, people asked me if I had tried “Casu martzu” which is maggot cheese. No, it’s illegal and I do not need to have maggot larvae jumping at my face while trying some cheese. I am not Andrew Zimmern. Like most of us, I was raised to try everything one is offered. But, I think that is different when offered things that are a bit on the special side. Often, I think that people are pulling one’s leg. When the situation is legit, then I will try it. Unless my gag reflex tells me not to. So I have tried moose nose and it was okay, but I was not offered the seal blubber because I was not of high enough rank. I have also tried to eat steamed aloe vera, but could not because it was worse than snot.
This is in Annandale, Virginia.
Other odd foods I have heard of are “virgin boy piss eggs” in China where eggs are marinated in urine. Apparently this was done with horse urine in Korea in the old days. Speaking of Korea, the Koreans have outlawed eating dog. Apparently there are parts of China that have banned eating cats and dogs. In several places in the world, I have seen unfortunate sign juxtaposition of Korean restaurants and veterinary practices. Was this oblivious, on purpose either from malice or humor? Whatever the reason, this will, with time, disappear as the people slowly realize that the Koreans no longer eat dog.
This is in Rome, Italy.
Because of the connection with Koreans and eating dog, I was a bit surprised when I saw what I thought was an oven for dogs… but it was a specialized dog dryer — a sign of the opposite end of the spectrum for dogs — from meat to pet.
As I did in Dhaka, Bogota, Lima, and Rome, I will write a couple of articles about the good and not so good things about living in the Washington, DC, area. First, some of the good things.
Free drinking water. You can drink the tap water.
High speed internet.
International cuisine. I will write more about this later, but in the DC area, one can get good Vietnamese, Ethiopian, Korean, Chinese, Indian, Pakistani, Salvadoran, Japanese… you get the idea.
International people. Many embassies are located here.
Public transportation. Between the train, bus, and light rail, you can get many places for 3-10 dollars.
Availability of things – Amazon is sometimes delivered the next day or faster, and some shops are open 24-7.
Free museums, free concerts, free meetings, and free libraries. The Smithsonian is a collection of 21 museums and almost all (I think only the one in New York charges an entrance fee) are free to enter.
National Airport (DCA). Having an airport on a metro line and within a mile of DC is gold. Dulles is also on the metro but 25 miles away.
People like dogs. Oh, wait, that’s not just here. But I still think it’s a good thing about being here.
If you want to see some spectacular vistas, glaciers, and cute alpine towns, try taking the Bernina Express. We went first class. We had table service and large picture windows that curved up the roof of the train carriage.
Taking this train in the spring allowed us to see both green valleys and snow capped mountains.
The best part was driving through a snow flurry which created an ethereal magical world of dancing flakes and frozen waterfalls.
The staff encouraged us to use the open windows at the end of the carriage to stick our heads out and enjoy the wind. It was refreshing, making returning to the warm carriage even cozier.
The Bernina Express is 110 years old and historic for many reasons. One can learn all about it by using the WIFI audio guide. Or you can just stare out at the passing scenery and imagine the lives lived there, far from the megatropolis of Rome. We dreamed of staying at one of those remote cottages for a few weeks…
The difficult part is that one must have both a reservation and a ticket. Make sure to screen shot those as the phone service may not be so strong up in the alps.
We took the train from Tirano to Chur. The journey was four hours long. They have various tours so one could do this more than once.
The best massage in Rome! He is professionally trained and brings the table to you. Hidekazu Terie is a professional trainer and certified remedial massage therapist. He will make you walk again, heal you, and some say, “hurts so good.” He uses acupressure along the ancient Chinese meridian lines and he will explain the anatomy of where he is working to make you better. Very professional. He bikes (with the table on his back!!) all over the city so if you are in Rome and need — want— a massage, contact him via WhatsApp, +39 345 688 7969. He works most days but not Sundays. The massage is 60 or 90 minutes and costs 60 or 90 euro depending on how long the massage is. He can send you a receipt if you need to claim for the massage. He is very chill. Speaks English and Italian. Make him part of your weekly routine!!!!
His company (of him and his bicycle) is Massage 4 Rome. Send him a Whatsapp +39 345 688 7969, and your back, hips, neck, etc. will feel much better.
With those words, Augustus (as Octavian was known from 27 BCE) declared the Roman Empire’s conquest of Egypt. As I was considering the end of my Roman adventure, I felt like I needed to go to Egypt so see that important part of the Roman world. Although Rome is modern, it seems to live on as the Rome of 2,000 years ago. Back then, Alexandria was the Roman capital of Egypt. I hear that modern day Alexandria is a very mediterranean city. I did not go there. I went to Cairo.
Cairo reminded me a lot of Dhaka. But a scarier, more aggressive Dhaka. In Cairo, I could see how as a single woman, one would feel danger. I didn’t feel scared but I was also never alone. When my friend and I were in the souk, she wouldn’t let us go into the long narrow stalls because it was too dangerous. She made the vendors bring things out to the street for us to look at. Maybe I was more oblivious back then, but in Dhaka, I never felt that the men were too aggressive. They tended to want to take photos and stare but I was not too worried about getting mugged or molested. Maybe it’s my memory changing the reality or maybe I was more naive. I was also almost never alone in Dhaka.
The oldest coffee shop in Cairo, on the right, in the Khan el-Khalili souk.
The first day, my friend took me to the souk, the Khan el-Khalili market, as that was my wish. It was hot so that trip was fast. I got my postcards and we left. We ate lunch at a place in the souk. It is a very touristy place and my friend had to insist on some of the local dishes rather than the grilled meat platters being pushed on all the other tourists. I had the falafel which in Egypt is made with fava/broad bean rather than chickpea/garbanzo, and I had the baba ganoush, and the other dips. I liked the stretchy flat bread. There was always too much food and I could see that the Egyptians are extremely hospitable. The next day, we went to a cosmopolitan bakery in the Maadi and that was also nice. That neighborhood had the same dusty streets and dusty buildings of Dhaka.
The next day, the sun was out and the sky was a pale blue color. Sort of. Another Egyptian friend, Mohamed, a former colleague who had worked with me in Dhaka, and a colleague from that time picked me up with a driver for a day out. When my friend picked me up, he had to come in and have a bit of fruit and coffee. Hospitality is king. The day turned out to be like one of those days in Dhaka which went from 9 am to 11 pm. The driver was filled with facts and his English was good. I told him that he should be a guide. He said that he was! My friends had hired him for the day. We went to the Coptic Cairo (Old Cairo). On this street, there is a famous ruin from Roman occupation times, 2,000 years ago (30 BCE when Augustus conquered Egypt). The fort was built in Babylon and years later, the Hanging Church is built on top of the Roman fortress.
From the ring road.
Finally, I had to see the pyramids. They recommended the ring road. The pyramids looked quite nice from the distance and from an air conditioned car. I remarked so. At one point, the guide slowed down so that I could get the ultimate photo of a lush green field, a camel and donkey under two palm trees, and in the distance, the only remaining wonder of the ancient world, the pyramids. For breakfast, around noon, we went to a place that my Egyptian friend chose. It was a place where they make “Egyptian pizza” or “fatayer” which is thin layers of dough with filling. One was with honey and others were savory. We had one with mozzarella, bell peppers, and thin slices of dried meat. Then we had another with smoked sausage. All beef. This dish is my favorite Egyptian food so far. The dough is fried in clarified butter and the pastry takes on the sheen of golden stain glass windows. Yummy.
Fatayer, a “pizza” of a sort.
Later in the day, Mohamed asked if we were ready for dinner. My other friend recommended “Hagooga” a local place. Very local. So new and local that even Mohamed had never been. We went around 6 pm and it was not to busy but most of the 40 tables inside were filled with families and others. Only Egyptians. We sat indoors. This restaurant was so local that even the locals ignored us, the only foreigners.
“Whisky” water made from the salad dressing.
I got to try the famous “whisky” which is the salad dressing water from making the salad. We got the grilled meats, and other dips or “mezze” – not sure what it’s called in Egypt. I still preferred the breakfast pizza. At one point, Mohamed told me not to fill up on bread because we still had dessert. When were stepped outside, the courtyard was light with string lights and every table was filled with diners. There were twenty people waiting for tables. Another entertaining thing about Hagooga’s is that everything is branded with her smiling face and name. Even the brass lamps had her name stamped out.
Hagooga knows how to brand!
Most of the local women I saw in Cairo had their hair covered. I asked if this was law and although it is not, they cover their hair. It is windy, sunny, and dusty in Cairo, so I could see why it would make sense to keep one’s head covered. My friend also told me that most of them go and have their hair washed once per week, so maybe that is another reason.
El Rehab City mall.
For dessert, we went into Rehab City, a gated city. It was like entering Miami. We went to an outdoor mall/market and Mohamed got us platters of sweets. I recognized baklava but I don’t know the names of the others. I teased Mohamed that this, the eating of dessert, was the most serious I had seen him all day. The weather was quite pleasant at this point and I can see why the Egyptians are night people. I also saw a chicken shawarma that was at least 200 pounds. After the sweets, Mohamed said that it was time for gelato. We protested but then he mentioned that they have mastic/mistica. I had to try it. I first tried mistica 20 years ago in Greece. In Greece, the mistica, a white honey like textured resin from a mediterranean bush, is served on a teaspoon in a glass of water. One licks a bit of the mistica off and sips a bit of water, each sweetening the other. This gelato was not like that.
One of the gates of old Cairo.
Finally, the fun day out was over. Just like my tour of the ancient Roman empire, and Rome.
Almost any tourist destination has them. People who have holiday romances. In some places, they even make a sort of “living” off of the tourists. Those are Romeos. I’m also not sure that Italy has so many Romeos who live off of the tourists as there are so many other ways to make a living off of the tourists.
In Italy, a “lady’s man” is called a Casanova (Casanova was so much more than just a lover of women. He was passionate about food as well and had started writing a dictionary of cheeses.)
A Rodriguez is a different thing. In Spain, in the summer, the wives and families go off to the beach houses. The married men are back in Madrid as geographic bachelors… these men are are Rodriquezzes (not sure what the plural is). Also not sure if this goes on in Italy and if there is a name for them…
In Latin America and Spain, it is quite normal for a man to have two families, one with a woman he is married to and another with his mistress. Or if he is homosexual, a wife and a love.
This is a pastry from the Amalfi Coast.
I once asked an Italian about this. He said that it was too expensive to have two families. But, in Italy, I actually met quite a few Italian men who are faithful to their moms and their girlfriends.
Italy has a dropping birth rate and currently there are fewer Italians than tourists who visit each year (59 million versus 60 million, or so). This is not related to the romancing going on in Italy. It has to do with economics. Thirty percent of women lose their jobs after maternity leave. Most jobs are contracts only so people can’t afford to own their own apartment until they have a “permanent” job and then, often, the parents help with purchasing a place. Apparently, Italians do not want to have a child until they have a permanent job. Not a surprise.
One thing I will say about Italians is that they are great flirts as in they are charming and talkative. They call you “bella” or “bello” and it is nice to be called beautiful.
