Winter Wonderland on the Silk Road

This weekend I took a trip to the mountains near one of the cities that was significant on the Silk Road. We stopped to do some silk shopping in a caravansarai (a large building used as an inn/rest stop for caravans traveling on the Silk Road) that had been converted into a small bazaar. In the center of the caravansarai was a small building used for prayer, both in previous eras and today, and an outdoor cafe area. Then we headed into the modern shopping mall next door for some Starbucks! As we wandered around, we saw the ruins of sultans' tombs and an old city gate that was originally used by politicians.

After we had our fill of sightseeing we headed up the mountain. When we got there, we were disappointed by the lack of snow, but when we woke up the next morning, there was a foot of snow waiting for us with more on its way! We went out and played in the flurries--snow ball fights, sledding (or sliding around on trash bags in our case). Unfortunately my time in the snow didn't last very long. My high-heeled leather boots, while very warm, have no tread in snow. I didn't get very far up the hill before I was forced to slide down. The drive away from the hotel was beautiful, though. Everywhere there were trees covered with snow. We took a minibus from the hotel to the teleferik, something like a giant ski lift. We took the teleferik down the mountain and enjoyed the eagle's-eye view above the trees, even if we didn't have much visibility. It was the closest I've ever come to a white Christmas.

Bloody Holiday

After living here for almost 2 years, I've gotten pretty used to this place. The extent of my culture shock now is the mild annoyance that I don't understand everyone all the time. I don't have a lot of new cultural moments anymore. Yesterday was a new experience for me here. I went to my friend's house to watch her family sacrifice sheep.

Last year my Turkish teacher had invited me to go to her house to witness this, for my learning. In a round about way, I explained I probably wouldn't be comfortable with that. Now she's not my teacher anymore, but we're still good friends. This year she invited my new roommate, who's still taking classes with her, to come see and take pictures. Since I'm the roommate and friend, I also was invited by extension. So I went to spend time with my friend, who I hadn't seen in a while, and provide moral support for my roommate. And besides, I should see it once while I'm here, right?

I went there early and they served us breakfast. As we finished breakfast, they let us know that the men had returned with the sheep. My friend lives next door to 2 other homes full of aunts, uncles, cousins, and second cousins. Since they all share a garden area, it's a perfect place to do the sacrifice. So the men came back with 7 sheep, one for each household, as well as for the friends who came to use their garden. The sheep stayed in a makeshift pen while they waited, and one by one the head of the household recited a short prayer, cut the throat of the sheep, and drained the blood into a hole in the dirt. They hired a butcher to take over after that, and he made quick work of turning the animal into a fresh supply of meat. I watched them carry the live sheep to the prepared sacrifice place, and I watched the butcher work, but I couldn't bring myself to watch the actual killing of the animal.

After the sacrificing is complete, they prepare a big meal and gorge themselves on mutton. My roommate and I weren't very hungry after watching the activity surrounding the sacrifices, but in this culture, we could leave without eating. So my friend quickly prepared some meat and bulgur pilaf for us, because we hadn't planned to stay long enough for the family feast. The holiday continues through Thursday, and people will celebrate by giving away meat to friends and relatives, and to the poor who can't afford an animal. They will visit each other and eat chocolate, and freeze any meat that is leftover to cook for visitors.

If you want to know more official details on the holiday, wikipedia is a good source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurban_Bayram

So, as promised, here are the photos. They're not the beautiful images I typically aim for, but as this blog is a record of my cultural experience, I wanted to give you the opportunity to see some of this holiday as I saw it.