Love the unexpected

Merhaba!
     My time in Turkey has taught me that not knowing what is going on is OK. I almost never truly know what my next plan is, and I have gotten home multiple times, simply to be picked right up again and driven somewhere else. I make plans for the day, plans that are derailed as I step out onto the street, surrendering myself to the whims of Turkey. If you are a future exchange student reading this, and you, like me before I arrived, enjoy escaping mixups by planning everything, sorry to tell you, but you're out of luck darling. Expect the unexpected when it comes to exchange, and bask in the glory of every beautiful moment you live in your host country.
     While the Turkish Hamam may be the most famous part of Turkey known to foreigners, it is not loved greatly by the Turkish people I know. On the contrary, some people dismiss them as dirty and awkward. Due to this, I had not attended one in the six and a half months since arriving, and I was desperate to do so. Despite my interest, a more pressing matter was that of waxing, and my exchange friends in Izmir referred me to a hamam they had been to. I set off last Saturday morning to infer about my needs, with no thoughts of actually entering the hamam section of the building. I was going to meet my friends later, and didn't want to be late. After walking to the wrong part of the city, I called my friend, walked to another part of the city, and eventually reached the hamam.

The Hosgor Hamam in Karatas, Izmir

     I entered the building with absolutely no idea what to expect. There were women wrapped in towels resting after the hot steam and water, a constant chatter between friends and the women working, the sounds of chairs being moved, of the running water in the next room. I stood by the little window looking into the office, and was attended by an older woman. While I can speak Turkish, I am not perfect, so I proceeded to ask in broken up sentences if they did waxing. The woman confirmed that they did, and led me upstairs to a small room to change. The room was about four by seven feet, had a rickety metal cot, a wooden stool, one size for all sandals, and chipped walls. I was handed a checked wrap, and told to wear only that, so I did. I undressed, wrapped myself in the towel, put sandals on, and headed downstairs. I was pointed to a room in the corner of the building, and when I opened the door, was greeted by the sight of a naked woman being waxed on every part of her body. I lay down on the opposite bed (with a cry of surprise from the woman when I took my wrap off. I guess I wasn't supposed to get completely undressed :P ), and waited for the torture I had heard about for years to begin. I will not go into detail for you. I made myself think of every hero in the books I have read, and the painful endeavors they have gone through, to get myself through it. I braced my hands on the walls, I cried out "Allah'im!!!!"/"Ohmygod!!!!" and almost had a panic attack when the woman attending me wanted to take more off. For all the pain, though, it is worth it. Absolutely worth it!
     After the waxing was finished, I was instructed to wrap myself up, and follow the woman. I guess they just decided to put my through the whole treatment, because I was placed in the hamam next to bowl of running water, and a plastic tray to dump it on myself. I sat contentedly for about thirty minutes, pouring the warm water over the stinging parts of my body, and wondering whether or not I was going to faint from the heat. The same woman who had waxed me then took me into a side room, and performed a three step cleansing process. She began by rubbing a rough scrub over my entire body, taking off the dead skin (there was A LOT more than I thought there was going to be). She then scrubbed me down with a scrubby full of delicious smelling soap, and then rubbed it in with her hands, massaging every part of my body. I was given water, and promised the woman to let her know when I got a boyfriend (she was worried that I was seventeen and didn't have a boyfriend, or anyone close to one). The whole package turned out to be thirty-six Turkish Lira, about fifteen dollars. That's less than one session to wax just the bottom half of your legs in the U.S.! These Turkish prices have turned me into a money hog, and I don't think I will like it when I get back home.
     After my unexpected two hour stay at the hamam, I was late to meet my friends, and I'm pretty sure they were complaining about it :D But they understood once I explained to them, and it made me accept the fact that I do not always have to be perfectly on time. It is better if I am, but the world will not end if I'm not!
     While the massage and water was great, the part that affected me the most was a thought I had while sitting in the steam. I was waiting for the massage, observing the other women with me, and I came upon the realization that it was a woman's world in there. The whole building was filled with women, with no, or few clothes on. In that dreamy room of mist, we lose the separations that apply to us outside. You cannot tell what their religion is, if they cover themselves, if they are married, if they are lesbian, if they are rich, poor, etc. As you sit there in the steamy air, the sound of running water masking the conversations, every woman looks beautiful, no matter their age or weight. Every woman looks like a goddess, and the societal labels that are put on all of us flow away with the dirt and grime. The self modesty that accompanies so many women cannot be applied there, not with the workers rubbing their hands over every part of your body (save the most private part), in front of all the other women. I have been attending a certain Japanese spa in Santa Fe for my entire life, a place where a bathing suit is a choice, and nakedness is the norm. My comfort with my body comes in part from my time spent there soaking in the hot water with women of all ages and sizes. But I had never realized just how beautiful a thing it is, until I had been in a place where comfort with naked bodies isn't very common, and then was thrust into a room full of half naked women. Time away from your usual makes you think about it in a completely different way!
     To close up my post, I insist that every one of you who visits Turkey attend a hamam. If you do not like it based on my description, go anyways. Every hamam is different, and everyone has a different experience. This was just mine!
   Xoxo, Izzy