Along
the walk to Kabatas, I notice rainbow colors painted on the Findikli stairs.
Colorful bursts brighten up the neighborhood and put a bounce in my step. I
continue on to the Kabatas bus station, where tanned street sellers in striped
shirts grill frozen Norwegian mackerel on carts. The bus stop benches smell a
bit like traffic exhaust and fish. When a bus to Sariyer arrives, I grab a
window seat, and start listening to the Turkish Tea Time podcast. Soon I doze
off, occasionally opening my eyes to traffic moving at a snail's pace. Rush
hour traffic chokes up the narrow road through Besiktas, Ortakoy, and Bebek
along the Bosphorus coast; it takes ninety minutes to travel 14.8 kilometers to
Yenikoy.
I
send the SMS "şimdi şimdi geldim!" to my Turkish friend, and wait at
the Yenikoy Shell Station. She guides me to the house and introduces me
to her family. İyi seneler! Lshana tova! I feel happy to be invited to the
family's celebration. I resolve to speak Turkish. Everybody encourages me to
continue the conversation in Turkish. In broken Turkish, I ask the young boys
about their favorite football teams: Fenerbahçe. The children ask if I can
speak Hebrew: biraz, a little. What's the new Hebrew year? 5774, beş bin yedi
yüz yetmiş dört. The parents ask why I choose to live in Istanbul. Honestly,
while the choice to move to Istanbul sounds difficult, the choice to stay feels
easy, especially with the warmth of Turkish friendships and the high demand for
English lessons. Nice to meet everybody, now let’s eat!
The
Rosh Hashana seder brings the family together with delicious Sephardic cuisine.
The fathers recite the blessings for wine, and pass around a bowl and pitcher
to wash hands. Whoever washes their hands cannot speak before the blessings for
the bread. My friend takes a sip of the wine, and winces. What is this cheap
wine, köpek öldüren (dog killer)?! Maybe the raki would be better?
Pomegranate
seeds, dates, and a homemade chunky apple sauce with raw honey bring in a sweet
new year. The mothers bring out all of the day’s cooking. I help myself to the
crisp salads with tomatoes, green onions, and olive oil dressing. My friend
asks, why do you eat the cucumbers and tomatoes with all of this delicious food
here? Wow, I did not realize there would be a second feast of tempura leeks,
spinach pancakes, fish, cubed beef brisket, and bean salads. I ask my friends
if they could cook this delicious Turkish food. No, they reply. I wish I could
cook like this!
After
a lovely evening, I thank my friends for the invitation and hospitality. What a
surprise, another family invites me over to their place for the second night of
Rosh Hashana. May the New Year be sweet like Turkish moms!