I know what you're thinking. ''Who needs instructions to take a shower? This Turkey we're talking about, not a third-world country!'' And you're right, in part. There will be no hauling buckets of water or building fires.
But I'd argue that's what makes it harder.
At first glance, the shower looks typical. There are probably glass doors. Possibly a curtain. Almost certainly *not* a tub. If you're American like me, you'll assume you just need to strip down, turn on the faucet, wait a couple seconds, and step into a steady stream of hot water.
But oooohhh how wrong you'll be. You'll stand there, naked and shivering, waiting for the water to warm up. How long will it take before you realize something is wrong? Will you try turning the faucet the other way? ''Maybe the taps are backward in Turkey?'' you might think to yourself as you gingerly test the water again with a toe. Still frigid.
At some point, you'll notice a strange white box with dials and stick-figure waves of heat.* ''Ah-HA!'' you'll rejoice, but your problems aren't over yet. If you happened to have the water running full force when you crank the dial to 3, you'll soon be engulfed in a jet of water ranging from just scalding to volcanic. Turn it down to 2 and you'll get barely tepid.
But if you had the water OFF when you cranked up the heat, then you'll really be in for it -- the water will run cold. Forever.
If you're lucky, your flatmate will be home and you'll throw on a robe, choke back your pride, and ask for help. If you're unlucky -- like I was the first morning at my new apartment in İzmir -- your roommate will be gone, you'll be running late for work, and your hair will reek of stale second-hand smoke from the night before, so you'll take a deep breath and plunge yourself under the icy stream.
Learn from my misfortune. Here's how to work a Turkish shower.
Now, for adjusting the temperature:
Turn the dial to change the temperature a LOT
There, now that wasn't so tough, right? You may now enjoy your lukewarm-to-scaldingly-hot shower. Assuming the government doesn't decide to randomly cut the water or power while you're showering.
(No really. I've had some close calls.)
*To be fair, I have seen ONE shower without a mini water heater. Left was hot and right was cold. It was my favorite shower in all of Turkey.
But I'd argue that's what makes it harder.
At first glance, the shower looks typical. There are probably glass doors. Possibly a curtain. Almost certainly *not* a tub. If you're American like me, you'll assume you just need to strip down, turn on the faucet, wait a couple seconds, and step into a steady stream of hot water.
But oooohhh how wrong you'll be. You'll stand there, naked and shivering, waiting for the water to warm up. How long will it take before you realize something is wrong? Will you try turning the faucet the other way? ''Maybe the taps are backward in Turkey?'' you might think to yourself as you gingerly test the water again with a toe. Still frigid.
At some point, you'll notice a strange white box with dials and stick-figure waves of heat.* ''Ah-HA!'' you'll rejoice, but your problems aren't over yet. If you happened to have the water running full force when you crank the dial to 3, you'll soon be engulfed in a jet of water ranging from just scalding to volcanic. Turn it down to 2 and you'll get barely tepid.
But if you had the water OFF when you cranked up the heat, then you'll really be in for it -- the water will run cold. Forever.
If you're lucky, your flatmate will be home and you'll throw on a robe, choke back your pride, and ask for help. If you're unlucky -- like I was the first morning at my new apartment in İzmir -- your roommate will be gone, you'll be running late for work, and your hair will reek of stale second-hand smoke from the night before, so you'll take a deep breath and plunge yourself under the icy stream.
Learn from my misfortune. Here's how to work a Turkish shower.
- Turn on the water half blast.
- Turn the heater dial to 3.
- It should warm up pretty fast, so get in anytime.
Now, for adjusting the temperature:
Turn the dial to change the temperature a LOT
- If the water is way too hot, turn the dial down to 2 to.
- Turning it all the way to 1 is probably too far for a shower, but good for hand washing...though probably not worth the effort every time you want to wash up.
- If the heater is set to 3 and the water is still too cold, well....welcome to Turkey!
- Fine tune the temperature by changing the water pressure.
- Turn down the water to make it warmer, and turn it up to cool off. I remember this by imagining there's a set amount of water coming out of the heater, and when I turn up the water pressure I'm mixing in unheated water.
- As far as I can tell, the horizontal direction of the faucet handle has no effect on temperature. So, left won't make it warmer like in the U.S. and many other countries.
There, now that wasn't so tough, right? You may now enjoy your lukewarm-to-scaldingly-hot shower. Assuming the government doesn't decide to randomly cut the water or power while you're showering.
(No really. I've had some close calls.)
*To be fair, I have seen ONE shower without a mini water heater. Left was hot and right was cold. It was my favorite shower in all of Turkey.