CESME TURKEY 2018 - 6 - WEDDING DAY WITH BEAUTIFUL AND KIND PEOPLE

I get up early in the morning of the wedding day. This is the big day for Gulce and Oguz, for all of us. Gulce will be our that is Coluk Combalak’s first child to be married. In 6-8 hours we will all gather at this facility to load into vans and cars to head to Aya Yorgi, the beautiful cove where the wedding will take place. After the festivity of last night, everybody is asleep except for the hotel staff as I come down in my beach attire. They offer me coffee right away, but I would like to visit the beach first.

 

One of the bartenders volunteers to take a picture of me against my beloved Aegean

 

The water is as serene as can be. The couple feet high waves of yesterday afternoon have disappeared in the deep blue of the Aegean. Chios is more sharply defined in the crisp blue sky of the morning. I stroll along the beach, listening to the cacophony of the sea gulls; I love it. Faint music of the ripples the Aegean makes when it lands kisses on the beach is almost a lullaby to my ears. Nothing else audible. The bar staff is indeed combing the beach and clearing it of yesterday’s residue from not-so-environmentally-sensitive customers. I walk into the water with light mini-steps, almost letting the water take me in. When the water reaches my waist, I let my body float over the water before starting to cut the Aegean with my loving strokes. 

Another love of mine along the Aegean, Foca, which I visited couple days before the wedding 

 

One can never have enough of the Aegean and what its meandering coastal line may offer. However, after a half hour of dancing with the Aegean, I have to say good bye for the time being. Soon, the hotel residents, who are all my friends will start coming down to gather at the breakfast terrace. I’d like to spend as much time with them as possible. Couple of them are already coming down as I walk up to take my shower. By the time I return, most of them have come down and are already having deep conversation along with a rich Turkish breakfast spread.  

 

An internet picture of our breakfast spread at Smart Rooms Luxury Hotel: breakfast was indeed to die for...

 

It is interesting, when we were growing up some 40-45 years ago, Levent and I each had a father, who were both carpenters. With their small business, they barely made ends meet with their wives being stay at home moms. But… each one of our fathers made sure their cumulative eight kids all had higher education and became competent professionals. With such little income... It was doable. In today’s world in Turkey, children of families with the income our fathers had can in no way obtain higher education, they would be lucky to finish high school…

One of the breakfast lounges, adjacent to the outdoors swimming pool; nobody uses the pool of course, when The Water is so close by...

On by one, couples are coming down to join us on this lovely terrace for breakfast. Everybody gets an egg dish of their choosing prepared in an authentic tin plated copper egg pan, our regular cheese-olives-tomatoes-cucumbers-butter-jam and of course Turkish bread is plenty scattered in platters on each table. And sucuk, Turkish sausage that can be just roasted, fried in its own oil, or cooked along with the eggs... Sucuk is one of the reasons I couldn't convert myself into full blown vegetarian!

The best part of eating sucuk with eggs indeed, is dipping your bread into the yolk for the first time!
 
I recall, how foreign Ohio was to me the first year I arrived in the US. How homey Brooklyn Heights had felt. How foreign again Iowa City was until internet made Turkish breakfast items available to us, the kinds of cheese, olives, and sausage and pastrami we were used to. Brooklyn Heights had the largest middle-eastern grocery store of New York City, walking distance from our house. And I warmed up to Iowa City, once I was able to have Turkish breakfast at least couple times a week in my own house if not anywhere else.

Gulce and Zeynep in each other's arms, so happy and content in sisterhood at one of the terraces of Alavya Hotel, an old Greek home converted to this beautiful place

After breakfast, which is almost noon, we visit Gulce and Oguz at the Alavya Hotel in Alacati, where they are staying. What a treasure. An old Greek home renovated and expanded into this beautiful boutique hotel with inner yards and terraces, even a swimming pool is installed without disturbing the ambience too much. Gulce and her maids and Oguz and his best men are all around in their simplest shorts and shirts, injecting the energy of youth with their laughter and gay conversation.

Gulce and Zeynep catching up when Levent is looking on or listening?

I look at my dear girl, Gulce, she has matured to have a law firm of her own and get married and start a family… I look at Suzan and Levent, all I see is love and love and more love in their eyes, even when they discuss bits and pieces of last minute tasks to be taken care of about the wedding. I have never been to a Turkish wedding so close-up that everything was so peaceful. At least on our end it is, what a blessing… After savoring top quality Turkish coffee served with chocolate and a flower on the side, I start strolling through the courtyard that consists of multiple paths and mini terraces.


Can a mother and daughter look into each other's eyes with more love and joy than this?

As I marvel the vegetation in and around beautiful antique looking Turkish pottery, I hear Zeynep my daughter and her boyfriend Mike chatting about the dilemma around our human wants and responsibilities to mankind: Mike is a minimalist, who would like to work little, make little, and consume little, one of 60s hippies. Zeynep is ambivalent, she also is a very earthy young woman, but with a twist; she likes the juices of life, too! I know she would have loved to spend a day or two at a place like this every now and then, although, she can also very easily rough it. I smile to myself as I listen to them: She now is about to join the medical field as a psychiatry resident. By the time she finishes residency, she might have a family, perhaps a child, and I will affectionately watch her evolve as a partner and a mother with her loving heart and wise mind and soul. 

Zeynep and Mike on another terrace of Alavya Hotel courtyard

As the young generation head to a luxury hair salon, I return to our hotel with Levent and Gursel, Levent’s brother to spend the afternoon by the beach. Although, initially, I was planning to go to the beauty parlor with everybody else just to be part of the festivity, the Aegean’s pull turned out to be stronger. Whatever they do to my hair is not going to do much difference to my wild curls unless I let them totally straighten my hair out, which I don’t want to. Since I quit dying my hair, I want everything to be natural. I am all too happy to put on my swimming suit and claim the beach when everybody else is having their hair done and face made up.  

What good could any hairdresser do to my wild hair in the wild Cesme breeze

 

 A little after I am done with my love affair with the Aegean and go to my room, Zeynep arrives, an authentic beauty with her hair beautifully done. She is unhappy with her overly made up face, but that is what weddings are for. By the time, we are all showered, dressed up, and go downstairs, several of the couples from Levent’s side of the family have arrived on a day trip from Izmir. It is such a reunion: Ibrahim, Levent’s oldest brother and his wife Jale and their son; Bulent, Levent’s twin brother and his wife Umran are some of those I hadn’t seen for several if not many years. Mehmet, Saniye, their son Baris, and their daughter Ekin’s boyfriend David have also arrived. Ekin is with Gulce and her maids in Alacati. Unfortunately, Yildiray, Aysegul, Umut and his fiancée Franzie will join us at the wedding site in Aya Yorgi, driving from their hotel directly. What a bummer that they couldn’t stay at the same hotel with us.  

 

Zeynep and Mike dressed up for the wedding

 
All the women are strong (but also elegantly beautiful), all the men are good looking, and all the children are above average as Garrison Keillor would have recited at the end of his shows from Lake Wobegon…. I can’t take my eyes off of the warm, peaceful beauty all of my kind-hearted friends are emanating across the terrace. There is such beautiful, positive, heart-melting energy in the air. I can’t help but recall Maya Angelou’s “Have courage to trust love one more time, and always one more time.” There is so much love in the air, with its healing power, I fully trust in the love we all have for each other. There are no kids to speak of since our young have not produced any kids, yet, Gulce being the first of our five getting married. None of Levent’s side of the nephews that are here today have kids, either. I take pictures of each mini group that start forming.

 
Zeynep, Mehmet, his son Baris, and his daughter Ekin's boyfriend David, having fun  

Ekin’s boyfriend David is embraced by not only Ekin’s family but by all of us, a beauty to watch. Mike, Zeynep’s boyfriend also comes down in a suit, for the first time I have known him. He is good looking! But his pants are falling down since he left his belt back home! The boys surround him to find a solution to his beltless-ness, what a loving scene. Soon, whatever they did, he is now able to keep his pants on!

Levent, the bride's father taking care of Mike's belt problem

We finally get on the road in multiple cars toward Aya Yorgi, the serene, calm, peaceful slice of beauty carved out of The Water, Aegean. It has been over two decades since I have not been to Aya Yorgi since before I left Turkey in 1998.  I recall my history with Aya Yorgi from about 25 years ago. When I was swimming from the Isbank recreational facility to Aya Yorgi, after about 45 minutes how I had heard an announcement coming from the camp, echoing across The Water "Dr. Oral, please call the operator". How I had frozen in the water, worrying about what a chaos my absence would have caused on the camp, surely some people having seen me starting swim... How I had rushed the nearest house and asked them whether I could call the camp or not. Of course after the call, I had decided, I couldn't take any other chances and swum back to the camp. Thus, Aya Yorgi reminaed in my heart as the place I couldn't complete my swim to... Who knows I may someday... There is an almost childish excitement in my heart both for the wedding, but almost more so for my reunion with Aya Yorgi, knowing how beautiful sunsets are in that little cove.   

Levent's sister, Gunes, oldest brother Ibrahim, his wife and son, and youngest brother Gursel's wife and her sister and brother in law

 

Saniye with her son Baris and her daughter Ekin's boyfriend David

Suzan in red, Gulce, the bride's mother, the queen of the wedding, Gursel, the youngest uncle, Levent's brother joined in the above group

Is there love and joy in these eyes or what? The best picture I was able to catch of Levent and Suzan

 

 Levent's family members with the bride and the groom, a beautiful tradition still continuing with every wedding: Family photos...