The Land of the Free (?)

This is my first contribution to this blog and I want to share my reflections of a trip to the magnificent US and A. I was there for and with my work, but had a lot of free time to see the city and interact a bit with the people of this world city. Although New York is the biggest city in USA something tells me it's far from the most american city. The population is very international and that has had it's influence on the city. Before going to New York I was a bit tired of hearing about the city, every news paper you read has a column of someone telling us about "My New York"... Maybe it's a Swedish thing, but I feel like the hype is incredibly strong. A lot of people going there and returning to plan their next trip to go back instead of seeing other parts of the world.

Reunited with my friend from China, in Chinatown

American sized frappuccino

View of Empire State Building  from the rooftop bar 

230 Fifth - Great rooftop bar!

I had a good time but I don't feel a need to return. In fact I see a lot of similarities with other big cities like Shanghai and Hong Kong, and if I want to have the same experience in New York I would prefer to go to a big city that I haven't been to yet. 

"Liberty". "Freedom". "The country where dreams come true". These are just a few of the words that are paraded around in this country to make the Americans think that they live in a special and especially great country. I beg to differ though. "The land of the free" - compared to what? Syria? North Korea?   

View of Central Park from the top of Rockefeller Center

Freedom Tower taking shape

Something I was struck with from the first encounter with working Americans is that they all seem to hate their jobs. They all carry this look of being tired of life. When you ask for help at a help desk, expect a rude and indolent answer sprinkled with the attitude of "why are you talking to me?".

On the other hand, if you ask someone whose job isn't to help you, they will go out of their way to help you while being nice in the process.

Walking on the elevated park "High Line"

While walking around it's quite obvious that this is the city of bad smells and loud noises. Everything, and I mean everything, is built with iron. There's

even a whole bunch of cast iron buildings that are made to look like they are made of stone. That's also a cute American obsession, to make fairly new buildings look like they are old and have a rich history behind them. It's cute because they don't really succeed. Roman like architectural details often clash with modern style on the same building. Anyhow, back to the point, New York smells and sounds. There's an almost constant smell of sewer and if you enter the subway it intensifies at the same time as you get tinnitus for life.

The subway is a bit of a story of it self, but to summarize it is the worst subway I have seen. Much worse than the ones in eastern Europe, Egypt, etc.  

 

Walking on Brooklyn Bridge towards Manhattan

Saturday in Central Park

The shopping was quite good with fairly cheap prices and a lot of stores. You just have to avoid the american style clothes. Food was not fairly cheap though, and as a Swede I also had a bit of a hard time accepting the system for tips and taxes. They are both added on at the moment you pay so you never know how much you will pay until you actually pull your wallet out. A nasty surprise every time.

Me and my work colleagues went out to a student district a few times at night and that was pretty cool. Cheap beer, free stand-up and of course american students being just as you imagine them to be. Ordering cheap jugs of Coors Light or some other beer that tastes like it's been diluted with water while playing beer pong and flip cup in the bar. The beer pong was the most intriguing game as they played it with extreme seriousness. 

It's a nice city. I had a great time. And for all I care, go visit New York. But I would urge you not to carry the hype as blindfolds to what the city really is.

MERHABA TURKEY !!!!

While sitting by my desk and drinking a cup of Turkish tea I can't help but think of the unforgettable week I had in Turkey. I had the privilege of staying with my friend and grandmother in Ankara and attending her henna night and wedding. We then spent two days in Istanbul to round off an experience that had left me feeling that Turkey is a place you really need at least a month to fully explore.

In Ankara I learnt that Turkish people are very patriotic and that they love Mustafa Atatürk like the Thai love their King and more than the world loved Michael Jackson. The biggest flags can be seen flying anywhere you look and be rest assured every Turkish family has a flag to stick on their windows or balconies on a national holiday. I also learnt that Turkish people are as loud as Brazilians and have big family ties like we do in Africa.

My friend’s wedding, which was an averaged sized wedding had about 200 guests compared to Swedish weddings that have a handful of people, not that I have ever been to a Swedish wedding but from what I have gathered I imagine so. I admire the respect they have for their elders but I do think it was taken to the extreme at Arlanda airport when we had to wait for about twenty senior citizens on wheel chairs to board the plane before we could go on. They sat in their wheel chairs with so much pride while they passed us as if they had just come back with medals after fighting in a war of independence. It wasn't surprising to see them walking quite capably after we collected our luggage at the Esenboga airport.

Henna night

Being in Ankara felt like a meeting point between South Korea and Egypt and that was probably because of the large population and the loud calling/singing from the mosques. Almost everywhere you look there are building or renovating buildings and it is a bit sad because so many apartments don't make any place look too homely. Notwithstanding if you look at a distance from a high building you can see the beauty of the untouched land and undulating green hills that the city of Ankara is built on. Having said that Ankara is a calm and big city that would be nice to live in compared to the more beautiful Istanbul. Actually on second thoughts I don't think I would mind living in the outskirts of Istanbul, it would be worth the commute knowing the variety of treats the city has in wait for you. Ankara has an assortment of Cafés that provide entertainment for the more laid back Ankara people, you find play station Cafés, water pipe, card and board game Cafés and some for older men to just chill and relax throughout the day.

I didn't spend so much time in Istanbul but it was enough to make me fall in love with the city. I regret not having read more about the history of Turkey before going there cause there are some places you may visit such as the Basilica Cistern that are so ancient, as are most buildings in Istanbul, and feel so sacred that you feel as if a Roman God will just manifest itself in front of you. I did however find the older buildings away from the tourist areas more capturing because they show a purer picture of the story the city has to tell.

Basilica Cistern

Medusa

Hagia Sophia Church turned Mosque turned museum

Do eat everything you can get your hands on. You can try a new dish for every meal. I loved staying with a Turkish family because I got to eat unspoilt modernised food. The amount of olives we ate didn't surprise me but I was shocked to find out how much cheese they ate. If you want to develop a good taste for Turkish food have ayran with your meals and if you are low on cash fear not there are some cheap meals such as the wet burger ( it doesn't sound too good but it tastes better than any burger I’ve ever bought at a fast food place).

Turkish Coffee and other food I had....mmm don't remember what it was all called 

If you are going to Turkey and you love shopping make sure you have enough money and that you have a solid idea of what you want to buy. There were so many Turkish brands and clothes for all walks of life. Definitely wait until you find sales cause it is always worth it and if you are patient you are bound to run into some or opt for the outlet stores or grand bazaar. For the ladies, make sure you have some smart clothes cause the Turkish women really know how to dress and take time working on their appearance.

Grand Bazaar

The beauty of any country is in its landscape and people and in Turkey I give both a 10. Not because of the numerous gifts I got from everybody or the great Turkish music and dancing we did at the wedding but because during my full stay there, there was never a dull moment, there was so much to take in from the daily life that I wished I has two pairs of ear and eyes.

Travelling in style to one of the many palaces 

Talk about Luxury buses Ankara- Istanbul

So many stray cats around this one loved pictures and was just short of putting a cup  for money in front of it