Wings

Elina, a local dancer, called me about maybe doing a hotel gig next month where she needs 3 gaijin. Good, easy pay...

Except she asked if I had Isis wings. I said nope. Well, I said "No, I hate isis wings." but when pushed said I would be willing to learn a move or two and use them if need be and she said it would be simple.

I know some people love Isis wings, but I think the biggest technical point I will have to be coached on in using them is to resist the urge to flap them up and down while jumping madly and yelling "I'm a motherfucking butterfly!"...'cause that's my basic urge when faced with wings.

Wings

Elina, a local dancer, called me about maybe doing a hotel gig next month where she needs 3 gaijin. Good, easy pay...

Except she asked if I had Isis wings. I said nope. Well, I said "No, I hate isis wings." but when pushed said I would be willing to learn a move or two and use them if need be and she said it would be simple.

I know some people love Isis wings, but I think the biggest technical point I will have to be coached on in using them is to resist the urge to flap them up and down while jumping madly and yelling "I'm a motherfucking butterfly!"...'cause that's my basic urge when faced with wings.

Istanbul pictures

Day five and six. How many of Bella's cats can you count?

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=137228&id=644629953&l=1189335a99

Link fixed!

Istanbul pictures

Day five and six. How many of Bella's cats can you count?

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=137228&id=644629953&l=1189335a99

Link fixed!

The lovely Farasha at Japan

Yeah, Eshe's party rocked so hard.

The lovely Farasha at Japan

Yeah, Eshe's party rocked so hard.

'cause it's so ugly

I am writing about day three now.

I thought you should know: I am wearing a very ugly shirt.

I bought it in Istanbul with my last fiver. It is a style I saw many Turkish women wearing, but their shirts were more often lights blues and whites...mine is browns, greens and yellow. I didn't try it on, but it was a strange point of pride that I had enough money to buy it, and a set of zills, on my last day...I'd waited until the last day, hoping to have at least that much cash.

I didn't try it on. I bought it knowing it would either look fab or horrid and only cost 5 lyra.

It's not doing me any favors. It's basicly a large rectangle with a V neck cut into it and some elastic to bring it in under the breasts.

In fact, it makes me look pregnant. I will never let you see me in this. I probably won't wear it out of my bedroom often (where, because it is comfy and gives me a memory, I will wear it...but not infront of any lover)...but today only my co-workers and some people on the train will see it...so why not?

I have paired the insane print of the shirt, which looks like a butterfly voilently errupted on me, with chunky jewely and black, skinny pants. My hair is in a bun. I look like an insane librarian in an ethnic-studies library. And, even knowing how absurd I look, I walk at lunchtime with a swagger. It's a swagger that says "Yeah, I'm a jet-set international type who takes vacations in places like Istanbul...and buys absurd shit while there...how'd you spend your vacation?"

'cause it's so ugly

I am writing about day three now.

I thought you should know: I am wearing a very ugly shirt.

I bought it in Istanbul with my last fiver. It is a style I saw many Turkish women wearing, but their shirts were more often lights blues and whites...mine is browns, greens and yellow. I didn't try it on, but it was a strange point of pride that I had enough money to buy it, and a set of zills, on my last day...I'd waited until the last day, hoping to have at least that much cash.

I didn't try it on. I bought it knowing it would either look fab or horrid and only cost 5 lyra.

It's not doing me any favors. It's basicly a large rectangle with a V neck cut into it and some elastic to bring it in under the breasts.

In fact, it makes me look pregnant. I will never let you see me in this. I probably won't wear it out of my bedroom often (where, because it is comfy and gives me a memory, I will wear it...but not infront of any lover)...but today only my co-workers and some people on the train will see it...so why not?

I have paired the insane print of the shirt, which looks like a butterfly voilently errupted on me, with chunky jewely and black, skinny pants. My hair is in a bun. I look like an insane librarian in an ethnic-studies library. And, even knowing how absurd I look, I walk at lunchtime with a swagger. It's a swagger that says "Yeah, I'm a jet-set international type who takes vacations in places like Istanbul...and buys absurd shit while there...how'd you spend your vacation?"

Istanbul, Day 3 (August 10th) Morning and afternoon.

Sometime in day two or three I emailed Sema. I said I was a student of Mishaal’s and a friend of Nourah’s, that I’d attended her Tokyo workshops and would like to do a private lesson with her while I was in Istanbul.

I’d been on the fence about Sema Yildiz, because she’ll be coming to Tokyo again in October. I’d emailed Hale Sultan about privates but hadn’t heard back from her. Mishaal, in her email to me, had suggested maybe one lesson with Sema as it often involved being brought to her house, cooked for, and a bit of experiencing a show or music with Sema afterwards. In short, it might be more about the Sema experience than simply a lesson with Sema. By day two or three I wanted more lessons to be happening or to be cooked for.

But day three, Monday the 10^th, would feature my first lesson! Reyhan! I’d wanted to line up more lessons for as soon as I arrived, but with Ahmet out of the city and no reply from Hale, this would be my first lesson. I was dead right in thinking it might be best to start with lessons early on. Lessons gave me a daily set point where I needed to be and gave me structure when I was feeling my way around the city. In the future I would rather do lessons early (before my body is exhausted) have a weekend and one side trip mid-trip to unwind/refresh/process and then maybe do some follow-up privates at the end.

I can’t tell you what I did the morning of the 10^th. It may have involved the bazzar, as there is a picture of some graves that I know where on the way to the bazzar. I do know that I had made reservations at The Orient House after checking if their head dancer, Birgul, would be dancing. I tried to get my hotel to make the reservation, but Suleman was obviously not used to the hotel-roll in such a thing and just called them and handed the phone over to me when someone answered. I negotiated a reservation with no dinner. I now know the way to do this is to have Sema, or someone Turkish who knows the scene, to call and argue the best price for me…not the hotels/tourguides who will take a cut and not your lonesome (because no one calls for themselves…every place I went to knew EXACTLY who I was). Sema yelled at me for not having gotten her involved in my first two restaurant show trips…but I didn’t know then! I just knew I that part of my trip was Dancer Safari wherein I see dancers in the “natural habitats provided for them here.”

 

( Dilek, Reyhan, and Tram B.O. )

 

Istanbul, Day 3 (August 10th) Morning and afternoon.

Sometime in day two or three I emailed Sema. I said I was a student of Mishaal’s and a friend of Nourah’s, that I’d attended her Tokyo workshops and would like to do a private lesson with her while I was in Istanbul.

I’d been on the fence about Sema Yildiz, because she’ll be coming to Tokyo again in October. I’d emailed Hale Sultan about privates but hadn’t heard back from her. Mishaal, in her email to me, had suggested maybe one lesson with Sema as it often involved being brought to her house, cooked for, and a bit of experiencing a show or music with Sema afterwards. In short, it might be more about the Sema experience than simply a lesson with Sema. By day two or three I wanted more lessons to be happening or to be cooked for.

But day three, Monday the 10^th, would feature my first lesson! Reyhan! I’d wanted to line up more lessons for as soon as I arrived, but with Ahmet out of the city and no reply from Hale, this would be my first lesson. I was dead right in thinking it might be best to start with lessons early on. Lessons gave me a daily set point where I needed to be and gave me structure when I was feeling my way around the city. In the future I would rather do lessons early (before my body is exhausted) have a weekend and one side trip mid-trip to unwind/refresh/process and then maybe do some follow-up privates at the end.

I can’t tell you what I did the morning of the 10^th. It may have involved the bazzar, as there is a picture of some graves that I know where on the way to the bazzar. I do know that I had made reservations at The Orient House after checking if their head dancer, Birgul, would be dancing. I tried to get my hotel to make the reservation, but Suleman was obviously not used to the hotel-roll in such a thing and just called them and handed the phone over to me when someone answered. I negotiated a reservation with no dinner. I now know the way to do this is to have Sema, or someone Turkish who knows the scene, to call and argue the best price for me…not the hotels/tourguides who will take a cut and not your lonesome (because no one calls for themselves…every place I went to knew EXACTLY who I was). Sema yelled at me for not having gotten her involved in my first two restaurant show trips…but I didn’t know then! I just knew I that part of my trip was Dancer Safari wherein I see dancers in the “natural habitats provided for them here.”

 

( Dilek, Reyhan, and Tram B.O. )

 

Istanbul: Night shows with Bellydance.

Maybe the best way to tackle my trip to Orient House on the 10th  is to tackle all my evenings spent at “cultural” dinner shows.

They shows are not great. I recommend them only if there is a specific dancer whom you want to see and you've confirmed that they are performing or if you really want to get an indepth feel for how what we love is mostly relegated to cheesey nightclubs and the performances are all over the map. I imagine it's how Anime fans in other countries, who have created these great mental naratives about how Japan really loves Manga/Anime and it's held in high regard and myths and blah blah feel when they reach Japan and learn...yeah, its a popular part of life, not unlike tabloid newspapers are, but it's not held in high regard by most.

In all, I attended shows at Orient House, Kervansaray, and Istanbul In.

( Three for one. )

 

Istanbul: Night shows with Bellydance.

Maybe the best way to tackle my trip to Orient House on the 10th  is to tackle all my evenings spent at “cultural” dinner shows.

They shows are not great. I recommend them only if there is a specific dancer whom you want to see and you've confirmed that they are performing or if you really want to get an indepth feel for how what we love is mostly relegated to cheesey nightclubs and the performances are all over the map. I imagine it's how Anime fans in other countries, who have created these great mental naratives about how Japan really loves Manga/Anime and it's held in high regard and myths and blah blah feel when they reach Japan and learn...yeah, its a popular part of life, not unlike tabloid newspapers are, but it's not held in high regard by most.

In all, I attended shows at Orient House, Kervansaray, and Istanbul In.

( Three for one. )