Paid Parking

It seems the end has come to the free-for-all that was parking around town. You'll recall my brush with the parking police a few weeks ago (if not, you can read all about it here); and you'll recall too my surprise that anyone even cared where I parked. After all, for the past four years I've watched my husband park in all sorts of places I suspected he shouldn't and he's never received a single parking ticket.

Image by compscigrad via Flickr

But don't let my recent forays into lawlessness fool you; polite parking is "in my bones." I've on more than one occasion spent over half an hour circling a few blocks looking for a legal spot in Toronto; I've gotten out of my car, only to get back in and move it after seeing an 'exception' on a Toronto sign and realizing I'd parked illegally; and goodness knows I've rushed to get back to my car before the meter expire, knowing that in Toronto, two minutes can cost you. Even now, an ocean away, the sight of an advertisement printed on yellow paper stuck to my windshield momentarily makes my heart sink into my stomach.

But lately, I'd been timidly testing the waters on the wild side, leaving my car in dubious places. Imagine my surprise, then, when a few weeks ago, I found myself with my pick of parking spots on busy Ziyapaşa Bulvarı in Adana. As a young woman smartly clad in short slacks and a turquoise short-sleeved shirt smilingly approached and typed my license plate into a small wireless credit card machine, I realized the municipal government had finally realized they needed to regulate parking and eliminate chaos in one of the city's most congested areas. The 1 Lira per hour fee was nothing compared to the convenience of having my choice of parking spots.

Two days ago on a walk through town, I noticed that here in Tarsus officers had likewise appeared every hundred meters and were collecting parking fees from people as they returned to their parked cars. I was left with an odd undecided feeling: am I glad that Tarsus is "growing up," or am I sad that it's losing its village charm?

More Lawlessness

I'm a hypocrite. But does it make it any less bad if I know it and admit it? You see, for all my complaining about the lack of standards and regulations here, the truth is that I like the lawlessness here. As long as it suits me.

Here's what happened last Monday:

• Baby was really out of sorts and wouldn't stop crying all morning (could happen anywhere);
• I called his pediatrician on her cell phone (not likely to happen in the organized world), who agreed to see us right away (would never happen in the organized world);
• The receptionist tells another patient (who was there without an appointment! gasp!) the doctor is at lunch (in the organized world, the receptionist would be at lunch too), but then calls the doctor to tell her we've arrived;
• The doctor appears one minute later (would never happen in the organized world);
• There are two policemen standing beside my car when we get outside (in the organized world, policemen travel alone. And parking officials write parking tickets);
• One of them had my husband on the phone (gasp!) (why on earth would this ever happen in the organized world? Oh. It's registered in his name. Not so alarming after all);
• It seems I'd parked illegally (could happen anywhere, although not likely to happen to me in the organized world, where there are clearly marked 'no parking' signs);
• I gave an excuse, hoping to get out of the ticket (who'd even bother in the organized world? Parking police are definitely proponents of the tough love philosophy. Come to think of it, who'd even have the chance in the organized world; the ticket would have been swiftly written and left on the windshield, the officer long gone);
• To my surprise, one of the officers asked for my license (was I really going to get a ticket?);
• I retrieved crying Baby from the car and made sure the officers understood why I'd parked where I had (I don't think mothers in the organized world would stoop so low as to use their children that way; I think there was a time when I wouldn't have either);
• The officers gave me my license back and told me to take that poor sick child home before they became the cause of any more distress!

No ticket.

I drove to the pharmacy to pick up Baby's prescription, and left the car right out front with the hazards flashing. I was only going to be a minute ...

Baby's just fine, by the way.