Hot Water, part 2

I really hate to revisit a subject, but in fact, life without a working water heater is dominating my life. Since last Monday, I have had a repairman in every day (except for the weekend of course) and we still don't have hot water. On Monday, I had two different sets of repairmen in fact. One set to take out the heater, and another set to haul it off to the shop. Yesterday, it arrived back at our flat, with the assurance that all was well. Thirty minutes later, a repairman arrived to re- install it.

I will admit to being a bit nervous during that installation. He had tinkered for more than an hour, when I began to hear a strange noise coming from the kitchen. A noise that sounded rather like a pressure cooker hitting full steam. A few minutes later, the smell of gas seeped into the living room. “Oh my God, I thought, I have flown 3000 miles from home, just to die in an gas explosion." The smell of gas didn't dissipate, and I tried to figure out how far I would have to run in order to escape certain death. Surely if my water heater blows, it will take down at least my building, but will there be a domino effect? Will it take down the row of buildings surrounding us? Will it reach my only safe haven, Istinye Park Mall? Having no answers to those questions, and reminding myself that my imagination was working overtime, I forced myself to remain calm, opened the patio door and continued reading my book. A few minutes later, I heard the shrill and relentless sound of an alarm in the distance. Hoping that it was a smoke alarm in another building, I opened my front door, only to hear the sound rachet up several hundred decibels. Great. Now at least I know what the alarm for gas leaks sounds like.

I kept an eye on the repairman, figuring that if he yelled or ran, I would follow. Some things just don't need to be translated. Unbelievably, he stayed calmly working another half hour or so. I continued to hear scary sounds & smells, but he called me into the kitchen a while later and between a mix of Turkish and sign language, explained that it was fixed, and to keep the windows open for awhile. (actually, that didn't need translation either, as the smell of gas was still pretty strong) I was delighted and excited to find the water pouring into the sink was steaming hot. I thanked him kindly, and sent him on his way around 2:30 (oh wait, I mean 14:30) By 17:30, the hot water was cold once again, and I was confronted once again with the bleak realization of cold morning showers for all.

So I am again sitting at home, waiting for service. In fact, much of my time in Turkey so far, has been spent in waiting. I am anxious to get this water heater problem taken care of, so I can get out and actually have some experiences worth blogging about. In the meantime, I will practice my Turkish so I’ll be ready.

By the way, I spoke to Emily this morning, and she has had hot water for 3 or 4 days running now. Last week, the contractor came by and repaired some holes in the a/c ductwork that squirrels caused (at least we hope it was squirrels) I’m keeping my fingers crossed that he fixed it, because I have this strange idea that somehow our fates our linked in this no hot water situation. If she has hot water, then surely I can’t be too far behind.