今日も、シアトルからお届けします。
Yukakoです。
前回スイス旅行記を書いていて、
旅の原点となった離婚したばっかりだった私のトルコ一人旅のことを思い出しました。。。
以前に一生懸命やっていたトーストマスターズでそのトルコ旅行のスピーチを書いたのを見つけました。
英語で、
しかもだいぶ前に書いたものですが、
これを日本語にしてしまうとちょっと違うものになっちゃうし、
文章も簡単ですので、
英語が苦手な人でも頑張って読んでくれることを願って原文のまま載せます！！！
初の試み～～
滑った場合はこれが最初で最後になる可能性も（笑）
スイス記で使ったタイトルの”Go see the world”も、このトーストマスターズのスピーチのタイトルでした。
英語のわかる人には、旅へ出かけたくなるように。。。
英語があまり得意でない人には、私の伝えたいことがわかってもらえたら。。。
Imagine, you could go anywhere in the world you like.
No restrictions, no regulations.
Where do you wanna go?
Ask yourself.
Ask your heart
.
You must have a place you have been dreaming about for a long long time.
Madam Toasmasters, Fellow Toasmasters, and welcome guests,
I decided to go on a vacation to pamper myself.
I considered going to Italy or Hawaii, but I thought...
"Is that a place I really wanna go?"
No! It wasn't...
I.... wanted to go to Turkey,
Turkey was the place I had been dreaming about for a years.
Some time ago, I saw pictures of Istanbul.
They spoke to me.
I could almost smell the three thousand years of history from those pictures.
I could almost feel the power of the winds from Europe and Asia meshed into the one winde in Istanbul.
I knew...
I wanted to experience
the sights...
the sounds...,
the smells of Istanbul and the country of Turkey.
To be honest with you...
I was little scared to go to Turkey.
It is a country next to Iraq and some foreigners are regarded with suspicion.
But I did not worry..
I did not think a Japanese woman traveling alone looked like a terrorist.
Today, I would like to share with you my experiences and benefit of traveling to a distant land.
For me,
I found that traveling alone is better than traveling with someone.
One of the benefits I discovered in traveling alone is more freedom.
I didn't have to consider my travel partner - where they wanted to go, what they wanted to eat.
I got to decide.
What a pleasure it was to go to the place I wanted to when I I felt like it.
Another benefit I found of traveling alone is that you meet new people.
You may think you might feel lonely. but you won't be!
You NEED to talk to people!
You need to know important things like where's good restaurants, or where's the bathroom.
I remember meeting Turkish carpet shop owner.
I was walking down the street and heard somone say in Japanese
"Nihon jin desu ka?"
which means "Are you Japanese?"
I turned and looked at him and was surprised he was a Turkish guy speaking Japanese.
We became friend because he spoke fluent Japanese.
On that night,
I told my new friend I would like to go get something to eat.
He sent one of his employees to walk with me as my bodyguard.
This young cute my Turkish bodyguard who looked about twenty years old was supposed to speak English according to the owner.
We stopped at the Sandwich shop with huge chunk of meat that wasrolling in the oven.
I asked him,
"What is that?"
and he was like
"....."
I said,
"Is this lamb? You know, sheep? Mee mee??"
This time, he said the word,
"Very delicious"
I realized this was the only English he could speak.
It looked like a Kebab Sandwich.
I decided to buy it and went back to the Carpet shop.
While I was easting this, the owner came back and asked me
"what are you eating?"
I answered,
"that is what I wanted to know..."
The owner and my young cute bodygard had several conversation in Turkish language and
The owner finally told me that
"Yukako, you are eating Sheep's intestines."
I would have never eaten if I knew it was sheep's intestines....
。。。。
Actually, it was not bad at all.
It was delicious as my bodyguard said.
Anohter benefit I discovered is that you don't have to have a lot of money to travel.
There are cheaper ways to to it.
There are inexpensive lodging and cheap places to eat like my sandwich shop.
You don't have to buy a lot of souvenirs.
I saw a lot of tourist carrying bags of souvenirs, dragging them everywhere.
The souvenirs I brought back I captured were with my eyes and lens of my camera.
I went to see the places that I saw in my travel book.
Brand Bazaal, Egyption Bazaal, full of beautiful displayed fruits and vegetables.
Blue Mosk, Domachie Palace, Drenched in history.
Desert Sandstone that looked like giant mushrooms in Central Turkey.
Faces of people I 'll never forget.
Your memories will be the best souvenirs... money can't buy.
I did not have to go to Turkey.
I could have just gone to Hawaii like everybody else.
But then, Tuekey would have been in my mind forever.
I could die thinking why didn't I go to Turkey?
Life is too short to regret.
I encoureage you to go visit the places you have seen in a travel book, that you've dreamed about.
You will see more than you would ever see from the pictures.
I gurantee that you will feel great, better than you've ever felt.
So,
What you are waiting for?
It is your turn..
GO SEE THE WORLD！
The county that is call you ... will not come to you!
Madam Toastmaster
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