Neşe ve Karikatür Müzesi … Turkish Humor

Friday, 19 October

With the end of our trip to Turkey fast approaching, Mui bid his family good-bye and flew to İzmir this morning to spend the weekend here before we fly off to the US on Monday.  We had a busy three days planned, starting with lunch today at Dönerci Orhan [website in Turkish] … with Aylin and Murat.  I didn’t take any photos, so a collage from images I captured from the website will have to do. 

Döner — gyro, in English — can be ordered as İskender (top left), Dürüm (top right),
Ekmek Arasi (bottom left), or Sade (bottom Right).  It’s tasty no matter how you order it.

After lunch, we headed over to a boutique museum operated by the Konak municipality.  Knowing that it would tickle Mui’s funny bone, I had left visiting the Neşe ve Karikatür Müzesi [website in Turkish] (Museum of Mirth and Caricature) until he joined me in İzmir.  It was the right decision.  Thanks, Murat and Aylin, for treating us to an hour or so of hilarity.

I debated writing this post since the humor is quintessentially Turkish, and the museum is not necessarily geared to foreign visitors.  But then I decided to go ahead and write a piece for the blog anyway since this is my travel journal — albeit a public one.  Besides, I do have some readers from Turkey, and the rest of you might get a chuckle or two out of the translated captions.

The museum, which is located in Alsancak Çarşısı (the shopping promenade), is housed in an old building that was restored by the municipality in 2011 and opened to the public shortly thereafter.  Its mission is to create an archive of cartoons drawn by Turkish and international artists.

The exhibit we saw consisted of a collection featuring Porof. Zihni Sinir [once again, the website is in Turkish], a cartoon character created in 1977 by caricature artist İrfan Sayar.  The name of the character sort of translates as “brainy geek” — perfect for a moronic inventor with a practical and inquiring mind, and a quirky sense of humor.  The caricatures feature the various “Proce” (projects) invented by the professor.

With that brief introduction, I’ll move on to some of the “Proce” that gave rise to a chuckle or two as we wandered around the museum.

Left: The 0 km banged up car “Proce”
so you won't have to worry about the dings and scratches your new car might get.

Right: the improved minibus "proce"
Comes with sunroofs for standing passengers; accordion doors that expand to provide additional
space to squeeze in more passengers; a hydraulic wheel to trip vehicles passing on the left;
horse brakes; and an undercarriage emergency exit in the event the bus topples upside down.

Left: The sleepwalker’s Bed "Proce”
Allows sleepwalkers to walk without getting out of bed.

Right: A One shoe fits all your footwear needs “Proce.”

Left: the velcro shield "proce"
to ensure a safe ride for motorcycle passengers.

Right: a public transportation "proce"
utilizes  existing underground sewer channels to double passenger capacity
without having to build light or heavy rail systems.

Several of the professor’s “Proce” had actually been realized and were on display in the museum as well.

The hide-a-lounger park bench “Proce”
perfect for cuddling with your sweetheart.

The Sewing-Machine Operated Bicycle “proce”
for the housewife that doesn’t want to leave her sewing behind when she goes out .

The funny x-ray machine “proce”
Is that a stick to your bones shish kabob?

Winding up our visit to this light-hearted museum, we strolled back home along Kordon, the waterfront promenade.  After debating whether to have adult beverages at one of the café-cum-bars that line the waterfront, we decided to head over to Sir Winston’s just down the street from mom’s apartment for afternoon tea instead.  A quick phone call was all it took for mom to join us for a sweet end to our day.  No photos, I’m afraid.  And I didn’t find a website from which to create a collage either.  Maybe next time.