Etiquette Matters: Beachwear Is Not Streetwear

Summer holiday season is upon us and visitors from all four corners of the world come to Turkey to enjoy the splendid 3S: sea, sand and sun, and all three are to be had in abundance.
But in order to guarantee that vacationers and their local hosts get along well, it seems appropriate to point out one detail in particular. The issue at stake regularly tops the expat as well as tourist etiquette-related agenda, and dare I say, for a reason. In a nutshell: How much or how little clothing is appropriate in which locations?
My own attire-inspired initiation happened during one of my first stays along the southern Aegean coast many years ago. I was in a café and soon another guest entered the premises. He started a friendly chat, as a fellow international traveler. Here is my issue: All would have been fine with me, if only there had been one piece of fabric covering his bare and sweaty chest.
No, this was not on the beach, it was not on the promenade and it was not in a waterfront beach locale, either. It was in a side street well away from the coastline. Later on that afternoon, clothes-wise things deteriorated even further. I spotted the same man approximately two kilometers inland, and not on his private terrace but while crossing our main and busy boulevard.
I am not arguing that we must act like the fashion police, as everyone is free to wear what she or he prefers. But hidden in the word “wear,” at least to me, is the notion and understanding that we actually do wear the appropriate types of apparel while holidaying, visiting or living in a different country.
And so my exposure to this ideally non-existent subject continued year in and year out, including following debates on social media and chat forums, reading articles in the expat-oriented local media and, of course, putting pen to paper myself with unintended regularity. However, this is the first time I chose to discuss it in a national broadsheet, as the situation apparently is getting out of hand.
It has resulted in town halls asking visitors not to enter in swimwear or without at least a T-shirt plus shorts; it has resulted in restaurant owners discreetly but nevertheless unmistakably asking customers not to enter in wet and/or beachwear, regardless of whether they are male or female. And many foreign guests seem to agree with those procedures, as they themselves prefer a certain amount of clothing instead of going semi-nude once away from sandy shores or beach bars, where all is certainly more relaxed.
It could all be so easy!
First, take a look at any Turkish seaside resort and try to spot a local man walking or shopping away from the beach who is not wearing normal pants plus a polo or other shirt, no matter the temperature. The same holds true for Turkish women, of course, with different types of adequate, light summer women's clothing.
Second, would you really want to sit on a wet cushion in a restaurant where a previous swimwear-clad guest had sat just before you?
Third, swap hats: How would you feel if you as the owner or staff of a restaurant or shop far from the beach zone and you encounter vast numbers of incorrectly (un-) dressed visitors, no matter whether they spend money in your business or not? To be honest, would you not feel uneasy yourself? Respecting the traditions and customs of a different country is one thing, employing our common sense another. If we pair both, we can make sure that tourists and hosts get along well.

KLAUS JURGENS (Cihan/Today's Zaman)