Notes: Episode 13

This post includes some notes and explanations for Episode 13. As always, feel free to let us know anything else that you want to be explained.

Your requests will be noted and explained either within the comments section or in a seperate post.

Hope you enjoy reading it.


BANA BAK (LOOK AT ME)

This is a signature phrase of Mukaddes like "Eyvahlar Olsun", that explained before in "Notes: Episode 2".

Often she says "bana bak" at the beginning of her sentences to get the attention.

Although "bana bak" literally means "look at me", its meaning leans more towards "listen to me", "give my your ears" or who knows "prepare yourself to doom!"... Since well, she is Mukaddes.


BILEZIK

Bilezik is derivation of a compound word in Turkish, that includes two words "wrist" (bilek) and "ring" (yüzük).

It's a wrist ornament, generally made of gold and given as a gift to the bride in the weddings.

In this episode, when they are going to go to their landlord's house, Mukaddes wants Fatmagül to wear some jewelry, at least some bileziks to look like a newly married girl.


HAY ALLAH, YA

"Allah allah" was an expression of suprise (As explained in "Notes:Episode 2"). "Hay Allah, ya" has also a bit of suprisedness(?) but the main feeling it expresses is "sadness" or "being sorry" upon hearing something (bad).

EMRE: You were late because of me. I am the reason of it.
ENISE: A little bit.
EMRE: Is it still tense over there?
ENISE: A little bit.
EMRE: I guess you are not able to talk right now.
ENISE: Mhm.
EMRE: Hay Allah, ya. Sorry to hear that.


ERDOGAN: It happened at work before my eyes.
ERDOGAN: A man (strong) like a mountain, fell.
ERDOGAN: I couldn't do anything.
ERDOGAN: Hay Allah, ya.

Note: "Hay Allah, ya" or "Hay Allah" are the same. "Ya" is a meaningless word really. When I think about it, I don't see a reason as to why we use that word. But we just do, as an habit. Adding or removing "Ya" in/from a sentence doesn't change the meaning. Just makes the sentence perhaps slightly informal.


LOKMAN HEKIM

MUKADDES: The Lady who knows it all. She thinks she is Lokman Hekim.

Hekim is "Doctor" in Turkish.

In the legend, it is said that Lokman was a man of great wisdom. He knew about all kinds of plants and herbs in the nature and what they were good for. With this knowledge and the countless recipes in his book, there wasn't any illness he couldn't cure.

Listening Lokman's advices and using his mixtures, townfolks lived a healthy life. But as greed has always been in humans nature, the healthy townfolks seeked for more. Asking of Lokman something even better. Something to make them live even longer. Forever!

According to legend, Lokman Hekim didn't refuse his folks and actually found the "elixir of life". But he somehow lost his book in which the formula of the elixir was written. A shame, really.


"ROSES BLOSSOMING ON YOUR FACE"

Mukaddes says to Fatmagül: "There is something strange with you since yesterday. Roses blossoming on your face."

Most of you already know but I'll remind you anyway that Rose is "Gül" in Turkish. But "Gül" has a second meaning in Turkish, which is "to smile, to laugh".

So "Roses blossoming on ones face" is a way of saying "a person is smiling" with a pun, in a playful way.


"I CAN TELL BY YOUR BEAUTY"

FATMAGUL: I'm from Izmir.
ASU(as ENISE): I can tell by your beauty.

In Turkey, there is a (not written) consensus about women of Izmir being "beautiful". In their conversation, Asu makes a compliment to Fatmagül, letting her know that she is not an exception.


TURKISH TEA

I don't know if two stacked kettles are used in Turkey only. But since I saw Dana's question about two pots, I wanted to include it as well, in this post. This is how a two stacked kettle looks like. We call it Çaydanlık in Turkish. (Çay: Tea)

A çaydanlık

The below pot includes only water which is to be boiled initially. When it's boiled, we transfer some of this water to the upper pot which is filled with tea leaves. Then we let the steam of lower pot continue the steeping of tea in the upper pot. This is not the last of lower pots jobs, though. When the tea is ready to serve, you'll use the water in the lower pot to dilute the tea of upper pot in a tea glass.

It is up to your own liking how to decide the ratio of liquids that you want to pour from each pot. Some people like a lighter(weaker) tea with more water from the lower pot and only a little bit tea from the upper pot in their glass; while some others (like me) prefer even amounts of liquid from each pot :)

Who knows. Perhaps you will like a stronger tea with dark red color.