Turkey is certainly a fascinating country and here I have witnessed the most amazing acts of hospitality and kindness in the most unexpected of situations. That said, as everywhere, people are different and some will try – and, I’m afraid, succeed – in taking advantage of you, the enchanted tourist.
Last week, I was walking towards Maçka park, which is close to Taksim square, Dolmabahçe Palace and the upscale area Nişantası. A man who was clearly trying to make a living as a shoe shine walked past me, hurriedly. He dropped one of his brushes and continued on his way. I called after him: Pardon, pardon! (Excuse me, excuse me!) and pointed towards the brush. He thanked me from the bottom of his heart and offered to clean my shoes, which, to be fair, did need cleaning. I had previously had this done when visiting the town of İznik and was amazed at the care and effort that the shoe shines there put. My shoes had never looked better; the effect lasted for a whole week. All this, for 5 Turkish liras (TL). So, I thought to myself, why not. Of course I knew I would have to pay and, as, after all, this is Istanbul, where the cost of living must be double, if not triple, of that of İznik, I estimated that he would charge me 10-15 TL.
This gentleman did not do as thorough a job. He took a couple of minutes and then demanded 25 liras. Now, if you are converting this to US dollars, euros or British pounds, it may not seem a lot. But I assure you, the Turkish reality is different. With this sum, you could eat a main meal in a decent restaurant, or you can buy 20 loaves of bread (1.25 each). If you do the maths (and I sure did), his hourly rate is an impressive 500 TL ($ 80 per hour).
I was really rather annoyed at myself. All I wanted to do was help the poor guy – and I ended up paying for it, quite literally. I talked about this to some friends and was amazed to find out that I had become the victim of a common trick. I was lucky, they said, that I didn’t touch the brush. Apparently, if you are as nice as to pick up the brush from the ground and give it back to its owner, he may start an argument, in Turkish – loud Turkish – and demand money. Unsuspecting tourists will not want any trouble, especially in a foreign country, so they would pay pretty much any price, just to be left in peace.
I know that they certainly are many decent shoeshines and other people in Turkey and that they wouldn’t dream of taking advantage of a person who has come to visit their country. They will be generous and hospitable, and will make every effort to ensure that your visit has been an enjoyable one. Sadly, not everyone is like this. Take my advice – don’t pick up that brush. You will find another opportunity to be kind. Hopefully, in a situation where it will be appreciated.
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Photo by Dom J on Pexels.com
Purple Travel Path 