“Good morning sunshine! Yallah, dress up, shoes on. Let’s go out, explore and flourish some more!”
That’s what my usual inner voice sounds like every morning rejoicing about the fact that it’s another wonderful day for me to be waking up in my favorite city.
For the past few days, I just woke up thinking: What the fuck is going on; someone take me back to reality. Cause this shit can’t be it…
Italy is shut down. France is following up. Germany similarly. Last flights in and out of countries, border controls. Did I fall asleep and wake up in the worst episode of Black fuckin Mirror ?
So, I did not fly to Izmir. I’m still here. I rush down the stairs to the main kitchen on our floor. Mustafa and Wendy come out of their rooms; Question of the day: “Hey, you guys leaving?”
No one is quite sure whether to leave or stay, me neither. My friend working at the German embassy told me there were flights going directly out of Turkey back to Germany, German citizens could take until the 18th of March. That gives me two more days to think about whether I should leave or not.
I’m going to Shok. I need to buy some groceries in case I’m staying. So there go 70 liras for food. I do not even know how it got to 70 lira. I did not buy much honestly. But whatever. The struggle of being a student and consequently broke, most of the time. Anyways. I’m on my way back, entering the main kitchen there is Mustafa, Walid and Fairouz. I decide to cook some coffee for everybody and see how the situation is developing. Fairouz, working at the embassy said things are getting serious and we will soon be put in quarantine entirely, such as Italy. Batu decided to go back to his hometown, which is somewhere on the countryside, so definitely the wiser choice, trying to flee overcrowded spaces. Only Ali told us he went down Istiklal Caddesi (for some, forever incomprehensible reason) since Istiklal Cadessi literally resembles a huge wave of people coming at you – imagine staring at that huge tsunami wave, you think you can run and somehow swim through it without being harmed but trust me the power of the water shattering you down at some point is uncontrollable. That’s Istiklal Cadessi,the Mecca of virus transmission.
Mehmet said it was the first time he realized he should actually be worried, since avoiding contact in a metropolis like Istanbul is almost undoable, especially when living 400 m from Taksim-Square and Istiklal Caddesi.
Great talk honestly. I was set. I called up my friends to say goodbye and on my way I would pass by a pharmacy to get gloves, masks and sanitizer.
Arriving at out meeting point in Besiktas in front of Deniz müzesi, a museum on everything connected to the sea… and again: how fuckin appropriate. My wish had always been to magically transform into a mermaid and live under the sea, having dolphins as my best friends. Together we’d explore the endless oceans, the depths of the seas, taste the salty water. I do admit that Disney’s “The Little Mermaid” had a fair impact on me as a child. Fortunately I always refrained from dying my hair red… I spared myself and everyone surrounding me that specific disaster. Nevertheless I would dive as deep as I could and dive up in twirling movements when reaching for the surface, just like Arielle would do in the movie.
Anyhow, now I really felt ready for this. I do agree with Sebastian, the Crab when singing “Under the Sea”, he states that (yes this is a scientific article, I am quoting a crab): “Arielle, listen to me, the human world is a mess. Life under the sea is better than anything they got up there.” – Preach, Sebastian, preach.
Anyhow, we met at the usual coffee shop, talking about the increasingly uncertain situation. I opened up about my options, saying that at the moment I am considering going back home and self-quarantining, in order to avoid a potential risk of contaminating my parents, in case I had already been infected. (This sneaky virus may already inhabit you without you knowing it. You may be contagious without showing any symptoms for 14 days).
My friend Mehmet suggested I may as well stay with his family in Antakya, since it is a village and the risk of infection will be lower than in Istanbul. Although I do appreciate this kind offer reflecting on the tremendous sense of hospitability people in Antakya have, I had to refuse.
We said our goodbyes, I got into a taxi and drove up to Harbiye where I rushed into my room, calling my parents. I told them I needed their advice on whether or not to stay. My dad, who usually always supports me in my decision of living the life of a displaced bird uttered his wish for me to come back home.
00:30 am: Boba Marley’s Three Little Birds playing in the background, I have started to pack my suitcase. I assured my parents I would call the embassy and my university in the morning and decide accordingly whether or whether not to fly back, since tomorrow would be the last day to do so either way. “Don’t worry about a thing cause every little thing’s gonna be alright….” – Oh Bob. You so calming. Thanks and Good short night I assume.