I chose this title because in 2004 I wrote, in MySpace, a blog called “Dentistry in Japan”, about my adventure while working in Japan, at an amusement park called Huis Ten Bosch, or “House in the Woods” in Dutch. Because Huis Ten Bosch is a “Disney-ish” replication of the city of Amsterdam on the southern Japanese island of Kyushu. Why? That’s anyone’s guess. But they sank a bunch of money into it and after years of basically cherry-picking the entertainment talent on display at the park, they decided to create, from scratch, an integrated entertainment program, much like a Disney or Universal. So they brought 40 or so American performers and an equal number of Japanese performers together . As a cultural experience for the performers involved, it was marvelous. As an effective, well managed entertainment program, not so much. After a year they went back to cherry picking and most of the performers, including yours truly, went back home.

I LOVED Japan. The people, the food, the culture, the whole enchilada, or bento box, if you will. But one of the less than entirely charming episodes involved what eventually turned into, after multiple visits to multiple dentists, a root canal. It was an interesting and eye opening lesson in cultural differences involving, among other things, pain medication.

After such an experience, you’d think that someone who started with a healthy aversion to the dentist’s chair would try to limit his time there.

You would be wrong.

My teeth are healthy. Long about the early 2000’s, a good health plan and just maybe a little maturity has kept me on regular terms with the dentist. My teeth are healthy. But not particularly attractive. I have fangs on top, and a crowded house on the bottom. I have never liked my smile. So I don’t, at least not often. And when I do, it’s usually a half smile, most of the time with my mouth closed. It’s just 2nd nature after 60+years.

But lately I’ve been doing a lot of press, because of the show. So I’ve seen my face way more than I need to see my face. And honestly, the only thing I see when I gaze at myself on any screen is, yeah, you guessed it, my teeth. Doesn’t matter how well or badly I dressed, how well I expressed myself, if I was funny, or whether or not I got the messaging points out. I just see the misalignment, if you will. And I know that’s what others see all the time. So I’m going to do something about it.

I know. “Why now Bob?”. Good question. There’s not a woman involved. There hasn’t been a woman involved for years. That’s a different blog, btw… It’s just for me. And my way of saying that I’m 65, but I’m not done. It’s kinda like the running & fitness. It’s my way of saying that I’m not coasting to the finish line. When you’re close to the end of a running race, you often hear the words “Finish strong!!” Maybe that’s what I’m doing. I’m gonna run through the tape. Whenever that is.

Why Turkiye?

I’ve heard about “Turkey Teeth” for years. And yeah, it’s often not a positive descriptor. There are a lot of examples of oversized, impossibly white and unrealistic looking smiles out there ( I’m looking at YOU, Jurgen Klopp) . It’s a very popular option in Europe, Asia and almost anywhere but here in the US of A. We tend to see all other countries as somehow inferior to “made in the USA”. But I’ve spent enough time outside of the U.S. to understand that it’s not always the case. Don’t get me wrong. I’m not putting us down. I’m not an American apologist. Not in the least. And yeah, I know that this is where I should put the obligatory putdown of the current political administration. But I’d rather just vote, thanks for asking. I’ll leave the bombast and virtue signaling to others….

….but I digress…

Turkiye has a fairly long track record of doing quality work, if you actually do your research. Yeah, there are a LOT of players and some of them are bad. But I’ve decided that, based on what I’ve seen, heard and read, that I’m m making a good choice. And why not have the work done here in-country?

I had my checkup at my local dentist during my last hiatus from work and after my check up and cleaning I asked the dentist. “If I wanted to have some cosmetic work done, would I be a good candidate?” She immediately said ” I was just thinking that!” And I mean quick, like she didn’t have time do think about funding her summer vacation before she answered. But then I think that occurred to her and she said

“Would you want a quote?”

“Nah, I don’t want to make anybody do any extra work.”

“No, it’d just take like 10 minutes.”

“Well, OK, if you want to.”

10 minutes later I got a quote for basically the same work I had been quoted for by the clinic in Turkiye;

US – $21,000

Turkiye- $5,000

Now, you have to throw in flights and a resort hotel. It seems that one of the main cities for this kind of work is Antalya, which is a resort city on the Mediterranean. So throw in $2000 for that. And they actually promote the idea that it’s a vacation in addition to the dental work. I personally think that any stay that involves dentistry will probably not be a “vacation”. But it will be a country I haven’t visited before, which, if you know me, you know is an attraction.

So. I’m doing it.

I leave Wednesday. I get back a week from Friday, supposedly with a new smile and definitely a few new stories, hopefully pleasant but definitely entertaining. Until then,

Talk later,

Bob

(END OF PART 1)