Nostalgic Harassment: Part II

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Bosphorus looking north

At 7:15 am, I would take the ferry across the Bosphorus from Kadıköy to Beşiktaş. The trip (still) lasts half an hour and it is very scenic. If it is a nice day, it is lovely to sit outside: get a simit (bagel) with çay (black tea) -served on the ferry-, eat half the bagel and feed the other half to seagulls that form a tail behind the ferry. Well, at least this is the fun part. The not-so-fun part is getting on-and-off the ferry... 

While getting on, a huge crowd piles at the gates, and as the gates open the pressure of the crowd forces you from behind into the water. You try to hold onto something for dear life as you get groped, touched and pushed in the butt for a thousand times. I would scoff at a random guy, make a scene, kick his butt or yell out “what the fxxk are you doing?” as I try find the steps to the ferry... Sadly, I would always be left to wonder whether there is a school for these guys, teaching them how to talk back to women they harass in public. Because every single one of them would reply with the same phrases: “Oh, you are upset?" or "I didn't touch you, mam" or simply "Heeey, woman! It wasn’t me!"

One for Kozyatağı, please?

The trip back home from school would only be a little different with the added stress of parents waiting for you at home. Back then, there were no cell phones; so, if I am a little late because I hung out with friends, to shorten the trip, I would take the Dolmuş (literally meaning stuffed) from Taksim all the way home. The dolmuş operate similar to the minibüs, only that they pick you up from a starting station and drop you off wherever you want -along a (semi) fixed-route. This is a great transportation method for crossing the Bosphorus: since all passengers are traveling to the other side, the driver finds alternative routes to avoid traffic until he crosses the bridge. The dolmuşes have 11 seats as well, but since they are only a little bigger than a taxi, they don’t have any stand-in space like the minibüses. They are also a bit more expensive and attract “better” men; hence, they are always harass-free. You wouldn’t have cramped muscles from sitting next to a guy or be pulling your skirt down to avoid the staring at your bare ankle. The only thing you have to avoid in a dolmuş is to sit in the front row, because you will be the designated money collector for people sitting in the back and be poked for this: “Can you pass one for Kozyatağı, please?”

On a lucky day, dolmuş takes only half-an-hour from Taksim to Kozyatağı. But on those unlucky days, -either the driver is not familiar with the traffic or his alternate routes are also busy-, I would come home to see my parents sitting in the balcony, watching the street with worried eyes. My heart would be throbbing with the stress of the awaiting berate: "Where were you out so late? Who were you with? What do you think you are doing? You. are. not. a. GUY!”