On our way back to the apartments (home? temporary home at least) we drove along the sea of Marmara. As Ron mentioned in a previous post, there is a large strip of grass and recreation area along the coast. The city has dotted this area with playground equipment and exercise equipment, and it's a popular place for Turks to go for a little bit of green in the midst of the city. One thing that I found curious, though, was as we drove along next to this area at 11:45 pm, there were a LOT of families having picnics or relaxing on the lawn. The lighting was inadequate in many areas, but this didn't seem to be a problem. In the US one would immediately assume that anyone camped out in a park near midnight was homeless, but I really didn't get the feeling that this was the case. They were all out in the open, sitting around in circles on picnic blankets, sometimes with kids playing on the adjacent playground equipment. Some people had small fires (people here bring a small tank of propane to the park so they can heat their tea).
I was struck by several thoughts. First, it was interesting that so many people were actively socializing that late at night (and not in bars or nightclubs, but by having a picnic) and that the kids were still up. I've heard from Turks and have observed that kids often stay up very late. This may just be a summer thing when kids are out of school or it may be that families are still adjusting their schedules from Ramadan, when people stay up very late to celebrate the breaking of the fast and then have breakfast before 4 am (Ramadan ended less than a week ago, so it wouldn't be surprising if a lot of people are still shifting from night waking to day waking). I'm not sure how they do everything if they have to be at a day job during Ramadan. I think a lot of the work during the days of Ramadan just accommodates the needs of the fast, since the large majority of people here are Muslims. I've definitely known times when people were napping during the work day, and whoever was at work would call them in if they were needed.
Secondly, it was interesting to me to reflect on my own reactions to the picnics. My first thought was that I can't imagine doing that in the US, because it would be too dangerous, and that instinct is so ingrained that I carry it with me wherever I go. I immediately had an initial gut reaction that the people here were doing something dangerous, and was surprised so many people had brought their kids along. I don't know if it would actually be that dangerous or not, but in the US I don't think most people would even consider having a picnic at midnight in an inadequately lit urban park unless they were homeless or trying to do something illicit or forbidden at home (e.g. teenagers drinking or making out). I'm pretty sure that in many places in the US they would be kicked out if the police saw them, because the park is officially "closed." There were so many people out there picnicking in Istanbul, though, that it seemed like people considered this a safe and normal thing to do. Certainly late night picnics during Ramadan in Sultanahmet Square seem to be pretty normal, but the square is even more busy with Turks at night during Ramadan than it is during the day with tourists bused in from cruise ships. Even so, Sutanahmet Square thins out and becomes a bit more surly around midnight during Ramadan, and I've always tried to be out of the square by that time. These picnics on the shore genuinely looked like people just enjoying each others' company and chatting. Certainly it's not usual for women to be out alone at midnight, but these looked like extended families.
In general, I have always felt more safe here than I do at home in the US. I'm not sure everything that goes into this feeling, but the students have felt it too. I think part of the sense of greater security here is that people genuinely will help you if you have a problem, and they don't wait for you to ask. If someone is hurt or appears ill or seems to need help in some way, random strangers will approach not just to offer assistance, but genuinely willing to assist them. Countless times I've seen people intervene in situations to help strangers. This might feel invasive, but here it really feels more like a community where people consider everyone their neighbor. Also, violent crime is very low here. I suspect that even most of the police don't carry guns. We see guns infrequently, and when you do see them, they will be on military personnel, will be large and out in the open, and the military personnel carrying them will be guarding a military base or a place that is viewed as a potential terrorist target (e.g. embassy, Jewish synagogue, tourist site of high military or government significance, etc). For example, Ataturk's tomb is heavily guarded. Guns are treated in a ceremonial way, rather than being carried hidden inside a jacket. I suspect potential terrorist sites in the US are guarded equally heavily but the guns are hidden. To go into malls, one also has to pass through a metal detector and bags go through an x-ray. This feels a little silly to us, but they seem to take security seriously here.
It's been interesting to watch the students start to feel this sense of community and relative security. This group is not one to take risks, and they are generally fairly cautious, but they seem to feel relatively relaxed here and there is definitely a sense that in some way they are included in the community here, with no questions asked.
Last night Aydin also commented that he likes that we know people here. On the streets, people don't usually make eye contact, and those odd Americans who smile at passersby are viewed as slightly unhinged. Once you've met someone, though, even informally, they remember you. If you go to a market several times, the shopkeeper will start to interact with you if at all possible. If you know even a few words of Turkish or he has a few words of English you will be included in his large circle of people he knows and is kind to. The students have expressed that even if they never can exchange more than a "thank you" with the locals in their neighborhood, they have a sense that people are happy to see them and know who they are and that they belong. Since people are relatively stable, after being here for a longish time for several summers, our family has developed a large group of people who "know" us. A waiter may be working in a different restaurant or the ice cream seller may have moved his stand, but when they see us again after a year they greet us by name.
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