22 November 2006

Getting a haircut

My degradation in basic monthly needs has reached new heights. First of all, I have sacrificed the monthly ceremonial luxurious escape of a Turkish Haircut saloon; where one is actually free in the realm of pure testosterone: Explicit Slang, cigarette smoke embedded atmosphere, endless refills of overbrewed black tea and some outdated weekly magazines....Now this is what I have to face every month: Unisex Russian Hairdressers! That means, I will be in the same salon with women...hmmmmm

Russian beauty salon with optical illusion style

Normally every Turkish guy has his barber for at least half of his life span. He can change his city, job or wife...but changing a barber is an unbearable torture. Since the barber will go through a painstaking learning curve to perfect the style that will converge to the one that you like, you must allow some lead time to him and a lenghty applause for your hair style.

So a turkish expat will first look for a Turkish barber and if not available, go to a local one. After 6 months, language is not a problem to describe what I want (my style is maybe the most straghtforward and easiest...to be a beginners template for the barber school) but I still cannot understand the shifting timetables of the hairdressers in the same salon. I have been served by a total number of 7 hairdressers in a single salon and thinking that each one has just started their journey through the learning curve of my style gives me nightmares...

After resisting natural hairgrowth and a worsening style for a month (and some whisky) I asked Oguz 2-Run (a strict manager with a touch of style and also an acclaimed barber when drunk) to give me a haircut in his bathroom.


We had so much fun (in the beginning)

I was fairly content with the result (but had to visit my local hair salon later for some minor adjustments for a more contemporary look)

Here is a comparison of Russian and Turkish Hairdressers:

Turkish:
-Male barbers
-They know what you want
-Explicit Turkish slang for everything
-Endless refills of tea (and even something to eat, if arrived on lunchtime)
-Male customers
-Cheap! (12 ytl ~ $7.5)

Russian:
-Mostly female hairdressers
-They ask why you have come to the beauty salon at all
-Russian language
-No treats on the house
-Diversity of customers (from epilators to nail polishers)
-Expensive (650R ~ $24)

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Normally every Turkish guy has his barber for at least half of his life span.

Well said.. First thing I do when I go back home is paying my barber a visit. I virtually have not been to another barber during my time in Turkey.

US? Dissappointing if not horrible. Expensive, not personal and -of course- no quality what so ever.. It is much better to learn how to cut your own hair!!!

Anonymous said...

photo looks gay like hell

Dinc Arslan said...

gay? no way! :)

Anonymous said...

Здравия желаю товарищ командир!

Dinc Arslan said...

Спасибо!