Erik CP4

For our first official meeting, Ozan and I decided to meet at Café Shisha. I had heard that hookah was popular with the Turkish students, and when Ozan agreed to meet there, I thought it would definitely be a success. But when we got there, Ozan seemed a little confused. As we went through the flavors, Ozan asked how there could be so many flavors, and when I explained how Hookah worked, a light bulb flickered. “Ohhh, I don’t smoke!” he exclaimed. “I thought we were here to drink!” Ozan explained that whenever he went to a Hookah store, he only went to drink with his friends. Unfortunately, I’m too young to drink, so we agreed that he could drink while I smoked from the Hookah.

We mainly talked about the differences between Turkey and American culture. He said how a party in America seemed to be focused more on drinking and hooking up than a Turkish party, which was mainly for a communal purpose. We talked a lot about how some of the stricter Muslims behave in Turkey. Although alcohol is legal, it’s looked down upon by the older generations.

By the time we were about to leave, I could tell Ozan was a little more comfortable with me, and he began to ask what certain gestures meant to Americans. He asked about a boy and girl holding hands, and if that meant the two were married, dating, or just friends. I explained it usually means the two are dating, but many married people do this too. He said how in Turkey that wasn’t really seen, except for the occasional elderly couple helping each other walk.

Before Ozan and I bid farewell to each other, Ozan was tripping over his words a bit, and I could tell the alcohol made him want to retreat to Turkish. As I drove him home, he tried explaining the difference between traffic in America and Turkey but couldn’t find the words he needed, and just ended his point at “Ohh nevermind, the traffic is just different, ok?”