Life Lessons

The Blue Mosque

My son and his wife went to Turkey on vacation.  When they got back, they showed us beautiful pictures of the Blue Mosque, pictures of old men sitting outside of shops playing checkers and pictures of people drinking steaming hot tea out of tiny tea cups.  "If a local begs you to let him 'practice his English' with you on the streets of Turkey," Josh said, "you will come home with an oriental rug."

First the Turk miraculously has "a cousin who lives near you," next he gives you tea, and before you know it, you are stepping into his "uncle's" oriental rug shop.  By the time you step over the threshold of the store, there is no turning back.  The rug is already sold. 

The life lesson is, steel yourself against charming foreign accents and don't talk to strangers, no matter how friendly they may seem.

In my life, this translates into: Don't make eye contact with the beautiful twenty-something named Jordan (from Israel) who's working at her "uncle's" kiosk in the high-end mall.  If you respond when she speaks to you, you'll be taking home high-priced sea salt scrub with minerals from the Dead Sea in it.  Or, maybe a wonderful facial mask guaranteed to make your skin look years younger.  In my case, maybe both.

I'm reasonably sure that if I ever have the pleasure to visit Turkey, it's a foregone conclusion that I'll end up with at least two beautiful oriental rugs, but at least I'll have young-looking skin on the trip.