Turkish Paradoxes
During the first month I was here I attended an Aiesec cultural seminar in which all of us, Turkish Aiesecers and trainees, discussed several issues, the most interesting being the paradoxes of Turkey. Here are some of paradoxes brought up. If anyone else has any other ideas...post it!
Paradox- a self-contradictory statement that at first seems true
1. For a 99% Muslim country, headscarves are banned in government buildings, educational institutions and in some businesses.
2. Music videos showing a lot of skin and people kissing where those acts are not common or tolerated in the society.
3. Turkish gay singers who rise to popularity in a country where homosexuality is not tolerated.
4. The best university in the country is a public one, but in order to have the required qualifications for acceptance, private schooling is necessary.
Bosphorus University
5. The working class can afford cell phones which are pretty expensive.
6. Having many fair skinned blondes TV personalities in a culture where those characteritics are not common.
7. In a country that is so noisy, public transportation is relatively quite.
Paradox- a self-contradictory statement that at first seems true
1. For a 99% Muslim country, headscarves are banned in government buildings, educational institutions and in some businesses.
2. Music videos showing a lot of skin and people kissing where those acts are not common or tolerated in the society.
3. Turkish gay singers who rise to popularity in a country where homosexuality is not tolerated.
4. The best university in the country is a public one, but in order to have the required qualifications for acceptance, private schooling is necessary.
Bosphorus University
5. The working class can afford cell phones which are pretty expensive.
6. Having many fair skinned blondes TV personalities in a culture where those characteritics are not common.
7. In a country that is so noisy, public transportation is relatively quite.
7 Comments:
It s not a paradox, but something which appeared to be stupid to me when I was there...
In Istanbul, all the shops sell the same things in one block...
That mean that if you search for food and you are in the iron-made stuff block, you ve got to walk kilometers before finding what you want.
Furthermore, all the shops sell the same thing, so they cannibalize themselves.
If you wanna get rich in Istanbul, just open a different shop from the others in the block you are!
Renan
By Anonymous, at 9:09 AM
So true and so frustrating! For example, sleeping bags and thermuses seem to be impossible to find. There's a business idea....although I wonder if anyone actually buys sleeping bags and thermuses besides me.
By monicastravels, at 12:37 PM
Awesome stuff Monica. Sounds like you're having a great time. I'm very jealous of the climate you're in right now hehe :P. It was -20 C in Toronto the other day.
- Will
By RoninKengo, at 1:31 AM
Hi Renan,
Let me explain this. Yes, you can find several places in Istanbul that all of the shops sell the same goods in the same street or block. But they are famous for this in Istanbul.(Actually That's historical roots come from Ottoman Small Business & Craftsman Organizational Structure, anyway) For example if you want to buy lightning equipment for your new home, you go to a street near Golden Horn, there are at least 50 shops sell only lighting stuff. Strange? Yes , but Istanbul's population is about 12 million, bigger than most of the countries. Of course there are always similar shops in the nearby mall, but you can not find so many diffrent products, comparable prices, huge selection in just a 5 minute walking distance. Now think about this, which one is wiser? Selling sandwidches to customers who don't come to eat there, or sharing a market of 12 million people city with 50 neighboring shops? :)
Mehmet
By Anonymous, at 3:40 PM
That is a great list!
About similar shops being in the same area:
I believe this phenomenon is related to the conformity in Turkish society. New ideas and divergent thinking have traditionally not been promoted. People are more than happy to copy an idea rather than improving upon or changing it. This is slowly beginning to change, though.
Great blog. I will add a link to yours on mine.
By Joe, at 8:12 AM
Hey guys, good point Mehmet. I guess once you know where the shops of what you want to buy are, then it's quite convenient. It would probably be better for us foreigners to first ask a Turkish person for the best place to buy the item and then go out and search for it rather than wondering around aimlessly at the Grand Bazaar...lol halla halla.
Hi Joe, thanks for the post and for linking me. Nice to 'meet' you. I'm going to check out your blog now...
Monica
By monicastravels, at 7:50 AM
Hi guys!!
Mehmet, thank you for the precision... That's right, I didn't think about that.
But you know, for having spent like 3 days searching for a uktu tulumu (I hope I spell it right, it's "sleeping bag"), this organisation was quite frustrating!!! Unable to find a sport shop, we finally bought it in an armoury !!!
Anyway, I loved your country and your hospitality!!!
Thank you for all!!!
Renan
By Anonymous, at 4:51 AM
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