Qayerdansiz?*

[hulegu]

Today, I got spectacles after many years of squinting and people telling me, "You should get glasses." Then, a friend told me, "You know, they [the glasses] make you look like an Uzbek." This is strange, but also coincidental; last week, following the Andijan lecture I attended a SOAS, an Uzbek woman told me, "You have very Central Asian features

Comments

[river_rain44]

It's only happened very rarely--usually I think people assume I am what I am, a generalized Anglo with probably a good dose of Celt.
BUT...after I'd lived in Turkey for about 8 months, a number of Turks would start talking to me assuming I was Turkish! I loved it!

[hulegu]

Unfortunately my Turkish disguise didn't fool the carpet-sellers in Kayseri; still, I love my kilim.

[river_rain44]

I was so lucky to hit an Istanbul pazar with my good friends (who are Turkish). I discretely pointed out the kilim that I wanted and then wandered away while my friends dickered for the price and basically got me a gorgeous kilim for about $30 USD. Can you believe it?!

Re: assigned ethnicities

[hulegu]

Is that picture you? just make sure you don't get mistaken for Shamil Basayev! ;-)

[anonymous]

Happens to me all the time. I've been German, French (?!?), Russian, Italian, and insofar as it's an ethnicity, Jewish. The last one is the one that happens most often to me. Actually, it began in infancy, when curly hair and a traditionally Jewish first name was enough for most people.

Nathan @ Registan.net

[ex_lovzfoot]

im russian but in russia people think im a foreigner and are not at all embarassed to discuss where i come from apart frpm than my jordanian princess syndrome attracts all sorts of diferent people from spain to dagestan altho im fair and mildly suntanned=)

[lessesne]

There's also the fact that it's easy to see you with two long blond braids and a viking hat. but maybe that's just my take....