Dave’s Reise nach Osten

Last Saturday, I was cycling the whole morning without seeing a village. Cycling up a hill and down again and up the next one. The last one was really tough, it took me a long time to master it. Most of the time I was not cycling because the road was too steep. Sometimes a truck would overtake me in first gear making these funny noises of an old vehicle in first gear, but most of the time I was alone, wood around me and heat. Because of the forest I had no clou how long it would take me until I am on the top or in a village, you always see only the next turn, you master it just to see the next one that is even more steep. Not very good for my motivation. So after hours I was really happy to see that minaret at the horizon that told me that there are humans, a village, fresh water and, no matter how small the village: çay!

It was noon and I sat myself in the çay evi (tea house). The men there were nice, interested in me but not intrusively. After twenty minutes or so and some çays, they asked if I am hungry. I said only a little. After some minutes they asked again, same answer, but this time they wanted me to follow them. Curious about what will happen I did so. Behind some houses there was a small place in the village where they had put up some benches and tables and ate a meal prepared for the whole village! They made me sit down and brought me a plateau full of food. It was an interesting site. In the tea house, you only see the men; there in the heart of the village where women, kids, a table full of old men and one with the young ones. After eating and thanking them I went back to the tea house, had some talk and then started reading a book.

Not for long. Zafer, a young student with a good English approached me and told me he is interested in me. We spoke for a while and he told me I have to stay, there will be a wedding in the village this evening. How could I say no to such an opportunity?

We went to his parents house where I stayed two nights. It was pretty traditional, we ate on the floor, his mother in the kitchen. But there was also a glance of modernity like we had seperated plates, they had a car and a washing machine. A lot of people in this village still have donkeys and once I saw a lady handwashing clothes at a well, with cold water!

I did not really work out how a Turkish wedding works normally, as it was a bit unusual due to the groom coming from another place and the couple was not there Saturday night which they would have been normally. So, Saturday night there  was a musician and dancing, all the young men, later on the other side of the place also the young women. I got invited soon and tried some Turkish dancing, it was fun. Normally the couple would also dance together at this evening. For me the most curious thing was how the scene was set up. There was the tea house where all the men were sitting on the porch and where the musician was located. There was a lot of space for dancing and of the other side of the place where benches for the women and kids. The next day some important people from the village went to pick up the couple, everybody was waiting for them to come back, they arrived, village kids trying to hinder them to arrive, candy for everybody, a short prayer by the Imam and it was over. A short thing especially if you take all the waiting into account. Sunday evening after the last prayer of the day all the men went together to the house of the brides family, the were singing, accompanying the groom. Candy again, a shot from a gun, and they went to have their official first night together.

My friend told me that the house will be watched during the night. Why? If the girl had something with another guy before, he would not like that she gets married and throw a stone in the couples window. And then everybody would talk. People in the village don’t want her reputation to be befouled, so they watch the house. Later that night we were passing by the house in some distance, I did not see any guards and told my friend. They are camouflaged!

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