Düzce: Observation

When I landed at Istanbul’s airport I knew zero Turkish, had no SIM card, and no WIFI. I reached Istanbul at 13h00 and Duzce at around 20h30. No one spoke English on the bus and for some reason the driver dropped me by the highway close to Duzce; I understood through his gestures that I had to wait there for my pick up. After having waited for nearly an hour, I decided it was best if I walked to a rest stop, which was about 300 meters away, and ask for help. Having assumed that youngsters speak English in Turkey, my target was a group of teenagers. Alas! apart from hello they spoke no English at all. We somehow managed to communicate through hand gestures and Google translation and they used their mobile phone to call my pick up, who showed up shortly afterwards. And so the adventure begins.

Düzce is located in the province of Western Black Sea Department of Turkey in the Black Sea region. It is a small city with old buildings with simple red ridge tiles and is surrounded by mountains on almost all sides. It is a very calm city: the people are calm, the music is calm, and even the stray dogs are calm. Apart from the many coffee-shops and the few parks, the city has only two pubs and cinemas. In one week only I`ve seen everything that there is to see here. But the city's location is strategic, in the middle between Ankara and Istanbul and close to the Black Sea, so I am hoping to move often and discover new places.

On my first day at work as a teacher, I went to the school's rooftop and as I stood there looking at a full void, the adhan announced the call for Juma prayer and people were rushing into mosques, leaving everything else behind: their homes, shops, wives, and pets. In the middle of this seemingly orchestrated weekly routine, what caught my eyes was a pigeon. The pigeon landed calmly on one roof and stood there, fiercely, proudly, like a Turkish. 

My first week felt rather long, I had no friends, spoke no Turkish, and the lessons haven't started yet. I had nothing to do except sipping black tea all day long. I was surprised that many Turkish people preferred the tea to their well renowned Turkish coffee. Although I disliked the black tea (and to my discontent I was offered a lot of it and it felt rude to refuse), I loved the tulip-shaped tea glasses and saucers, and I've taken so many photos of the so many different glasses I chanced upon. 

By the second week I made a few friends. Mostly Turkish. They were exceptionally nice, quite friendly, and truly ambitious. They offered to show me around the city, and told me some interesting facts about it. I genuinely appreciate their company and I hope we remain in touch. I sense that I can learn a lot from them: their humble experiences in life, and their courage and patience. I also wanted to meet other foreigners nearby but it was almost impossible to find any (if you are a foreigner in Düzce feel free to text me☺). Couchsurfing is of no use in this city unless you plan to visit other places nearby; but then again, it will be difficult to communicate if you have poor Turkish. 

My very first encounter with the black sea was at Akçakoca at night. After having had some tea with friends, I mentioned how eager I had been to visit Akçakoca, and a Mexican friend said: “let’s go now then!” I wasn’t sure whether he was joking or not but I expressed my excitement about the idea. And so we went! The black sea was, indeed, pitch black! I couldn’t see much in the absence of the moon, but the sound of the waves penetrated my heart and carried with it a lot of nostalgia. The next day, as I walked past some school boys wearing plain beige t-shirts, my nostalgia deepened. It was and still is difficult to live in a society where nobody speaks your language. as a fluent speaker of three languages: English, French, and Arabic, I have always believed that I can visit any country in the world without having to fear the barrier of language. Unfortunately, that was both naive and utopian (in a way). And here I am, a month later, still learning how to count. Bir, iki, üç, dört, beş.

My first month in Düzce has come to an end. Time, indeed flies. I will be posting more observations on Turkey here, for me: something to remember later on. For my students, if they wish to read about my experience. And for future visitors to Düzce. I hope the next few months will be better, and I hope, somehow, I will make the most of it. If you are reading this, feel free to leave a comment and suggest a few places I can visit. And if we have never met, ask me out ☺.