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The financial situation of my family was mediocre. The house we lived in had one room. Our house was like a large commercial building. When you went up one flight of stairs, there were lots of rooms. Every family lived in one room no matter how many people. There was no bathroom, no kitchen, there was a hallway, let me call it a corridor. There was a shared space there for all the rooms, and we would cook our food there.
There was a Turkish style toilet on the first floor, we shared it. The bathroom was a neighbor’s, we went to her house to use the bathroom, we shared it. We did not have running water. We carried it in buckets from the fountain. We carried water to clean the bathroom. Cleaning was done by turns, everyday one of the neighbors did it. There were huge huge mice in the bathrooms, we would make noise, bang on the door so they would scurry away and we could go in. There was a big tree right across our house and there was a source of water around this tree, it wasn’t a fountain, it was like a stream. Because we lived together with Turks, they always had their turn first, the Jews were last. But they would feel pity that I was so young, they would give me permission to fill the buckets. This water was only used for cleaning and the bathroom. We bought water for drinking and cooking from the water-seller. We heated up bucketfuls of water to bathe. We poured water with a bowl over our head. For heating, there was a stove, a brazier, we used coal. That is how it was many years ago. There was poverty then.
We did not have a garden. Our neighborhood was a poor neighborhood, there were no luxuries. We lived alongside Turks. The Turks loved us, we loved them back. We would visit them on holidays, they would visit us on our holidays. We had no pets in our home. We did not have helpers like servants, maids, nannies or laundry women.
We had books at home. We had religious books and French books. My mother was partial to French novels, usually she read romantic novels. She liked reading. She would recommend books to me, she wanted very much for me to read. I used to read. When my mother became ill, I could not continue. At the time the middle one of my older brothers was in the military and sent a letter. For whatever reason, he asked for 30,000 liras as emergency money. I was around 8 or 9 years old then, I don’t remember well. My mother found a way to find and send the money but she was so scared that the fear paralyzed her legs, she couldn’t walk. There weren’t many doctors then. There was a pious woman then, she healed with prayer and said to my mother “I will cure you but you cannot leave the house for 9 days, noone can see you”. I don’t remember what she did, but I was obliged to leave school and stay in that room. They would bring us food from the outside. The neighbors would bring us meals and no one saw my mother for those 9 days. On the ninth day she got up in the morning, went to the hamam and returned home walking.
We didn’t read newspapers at home. They did not have the habit of going to the library either. They did no have active duties in the community. The poor ones, they struggled to earn enough money to live on . My mother struggled to raise us.
There was a Turkish style toilet on the first floor, we shared it. The bathroom was a neighbor’s, we went to her house to use the bathroom, we shared it. We did not have running water. We carried it in buckets from the fountain. We carried water to clean the bathroom. Cleaning was done by turns, everyday one of the neighbors did it. There were huge huge mice in the bathrooms, we would make noise, bang on the door so they would scurry away and we could go in. There was a big tree right across our house and there was a source of water around this tree, it wasn’t a fountain, it was like a stream. Because we lived together with Turks, they always had their turn first, the Jews were last. But they would feel pity that I was so young, they would give me permission to fill the buckets. This water was only used for cleaning and the bathroom. We bought water for drinking and cooking from the water-seller. We heated up bucketfuls of water to bathe. We poured water with a bowl over our head. For heating, there was a stove, a brazier, we used coal. That is how it was many years ago. There was poverty then.
We did not have a garden. Our neighborhood was a poor neighborhood, there were no luxuries. We lived alongside Turks. The Turks loved us, we loved them back. We would visit them on holidays, they would visit us on our holidays. We had no pets in our home. We did not have helpers like servants, maids, nannies or laundry women.
We had books at home. We had religious books and French books. My mother was partial to French novels, usually she read romantic novels. She liked reading. She would recommend books to me, she wanted very much for me to read. I used to read. When my mother became ill, I could not continue. At the time the middle one of my older brothers was in the military and sent a letter. For whatever reason, he asked for 30,000 liras as emergency money. I was around 8 or 9 years old then, I don’t remember well. My mother found a way to find and send the money but she was so scared that the fear paralyzed her legs, she couldn’t walk. There weren’t many doctors then. There was a pious woman then, she healed with prayer and said to my mother “I will cure you but you cannot leave the house for 9 days, noone can see you”. I don’t remember what she did, but I was obliged to leave school and stay in that room. They would bring us food from the outside. The neighbors would bring us meals and no one saw my mother for those 9 days. On the ninth day she got up in the morning, went to the hamam and returned home walking.
We didn’t read newspapers at home. They did not have the habit of going to the library either. They did no have active duties in the community. The poor ones, they struggled to earn enough money to live on . My mother struggled to raise us.
Period
Location
/İstanbul
Türkiye
Interview
Zelda Ers