Dervish Dancers Mesmerizing

Our second night in Istanbul, we went to see the traditional whirling Dervish dancers at the Sirkeci train station.  Kind of a quirky venue.  The performance was totally not what I expected.  These 4 men (one of them quite hot) spun for a good 40 minutes straight!  They first spin with their arms around their shoulders and slowly raise up their arms in receiving position, to symbolize spiritual enlightenment.  Their heads uniformly tilted to their right and all spin at a very similar speed without opening their eyes.  They remain expressionless and "weightless" as they spin around the space in a possessed-like state.  As a dancer myself, I know how hard it is to to turns and spins without spotting (keeping your gaze on one location as your head spins); however, these men spun with their eyes CLOSED.  Not to mention that after they finish spinning, there's no noticeable change in their breathing pattern or facial expressions.  They all just simultaneously stop and can stand still.

There are a ton of these ceremonies and I hear they're all pretty much the same.  I would highly recommend going to one just because it's just mesmerizing to watch.

Of course, I had to try it out when I got back to my hotel.  And of course, I felt like I had to vomit while running into bed corners.  Not cute.