Turkey bummer

We were driving along the mountain today, sightseeing, and I saw an old man kick a dog, hard. Not a dog, a puppy, maybe a year old. The dog did nothing, it was, like the old man, just walking. I really wanted to jump out of the car, kick the old man in the stomach and shout profanely but I couldn’t and I was so in shock that I could barely explain to my TFolks what happened. It was really difficult for me to hide my tears and not completely break down as they were trying to show me a good time. I already knew that animals in Turkey are prone to this treatment but this was the first time I saw the act first-hand with such severity, and without reason (but really, is there ever a reason?).

Disappointed.

Bursa, part trois

So I am in Bursa again. I visited last summer (see previous Bursa blog) and maybe about two months ago with Estéban and our dear friends Chris, Yasi, Amanda and Jeff (now all returned to the great land we call ‘Murica). This time I am here for eight weeks doing another language program and living with a Turkish family (me Turkish Ma and Pa)-I really lucked out. They are warmhearted, funny, liberal (they buy me wine and drink with me) and my Turkish Ma makes excellent food-I have probably gained a few pounds already. Must. Go. Running.

Bursa is pretty alright. Food is good, there is plenty of green space and the people aren’t too bad, aside from the creepy old men who sometimes stare too long and the jerk-face douches who honk their horns at you. Also, Ramazan has already started and Bursa being a bit more on the conservative end has made enjoying a night out somewhat complicated. But because Ramazan has started I have had a couple of good opportunities to go to parties and meet people (folks knocking out all of the partying before the holiday began). Some events of note:

Went to a Henna Night: My TM’s niece came to pick us up and her car broke down before we even left. After failed attempts my TD drove six of us, in a very small car, to the party. Redonc. The bride had her done up in a way that could only remind me of Alien and changed her dress a couple of times. I felt entirely underdressed compared to some decked out in gold and ball gowns, but not too bad as there were others even more underdressed than me. Strange. And Turks like to call dancing ‘playing’, oynamak. I played and all were impressed at how a yabancı (foreigner) such as myself could pick up so quickly and do it so well. That’s right, iyi oynadım.

Went to a Sunnet Party: I wrote about a sunnet party in a previous post. It’s a party for the boy who just got circumcised and it is, in part, supposed to make him feel better (let’s be honest, it’s really for the adults). He gets to dress up, there’s food and cake, in this case a lady in a red dress singing, and dancing. There was also no general rule for how to dress here but I think if I had purchased and worn a ball gown I would have been alright. Needless to say I didn’t. I also had no desire to ‘play’ (see above) and everyone was disappointed because they heard about my mad skillz. Really, I want to move more than this kind of dancing allows, and really, I wasn’t feeling all of the high expectations.

I’m still in Bursa.

Went to Cumalıkızık, again: Went to this small Ottoman village last summer only this time I ate breakfast.

Went to the U20 Semi-Final, France vs. Ghana: France won. I almost didn’t see it because security insisted I could not take my professional-looking camera into the stadium. I really wanted to see the game so I entrusted it to security returning at halftime to have the nice guy give it back on the condition I leave the battery (which was my original suggestion. Whatever.). More interesting than the game, though, was our quest to find a beer to drink before. We failed at a street where we were told we would find beverages. Following a bar sign we crossed the street to inquire and found it closed. Having already struck up a conversation with the small shop owner about our quest, he offered to let us hang out at the back of his shop and have a beer there. We all agreed and it was awesome. Also really good Turkish practice.

I did Ebru (paper marbling). Nothing too exciting about that. Sorry. I can respect it as an art but I have no interest in it.

I have a Turkish language buddy and I am supposed to do stuff with her. This will be difficult now that Ramazan has started. She is fasting so I can’t really ask her to explore the city or have a tea. Good times.

Here’s to hoping my Turkish actually improves.

Judgmental Activism

The other day a former Turkish classmate* commented on one of Steban’s facebook photos. The comment came as a surprise and disappointment, as well as bothered me enough to dedicate an entire post to it. This person has made comments in the past that have questioned both the validity of my work as well as how I have spent the last year here in Turkey. Normally I pay little attention to these comments because I have given the person the benefit of the doubt-she is being facetious and likely unaware of ‘what’ dissertation research is and how one goes about conducting it, specifically someone in my field. In any case, to the aforementioned slight.

In case you are unable to see, the comment reads “So this is how you’re protesting? Nice work.” It is on a photo of myself and two colleagues in Iznik, studying a map. In addition to the obvious tagged date of January 23, a skilled observer would also see that we are all wearing heavy coats-clearly this photo was taken months earlier, in the winter. It is spring now.

It is not just her obliviousness that annoys, but the judgmental tone of her comment. Was she being flippant? Or is this another underhanded assessment of my actions. In her opinion, I am not doing enough to support those in Gezi Park and across Turkey who are protesting an increasingly authoritarian government and abuse of power and human rights.

Here’s the rub. I live in Turkey. I live in Istanbul. I live in very close proximity to Taksim Square and Gezi Park. From our home you need only to cut through a few back streets to arrive at Istiklal Caddesi. These are all locations of protests as well as police brutality, enacted with the help of tear gas and water cannons (and more). I was in Antalya when protests broke out there. And I was in Ankara when police attacks on protestors was at its height. I smelled the remnants of tear gas in the metro and because I was staying so close to both of the protest locations, I had to plan routes accordingly, as well as maintain a curfew for fear of being caught in a cloud of gas, or being beaten by police for merely walking. I have a gas mask and go out with a scarf.

I have seen first-hand the bruises of people hit by tear gas canisters or a police baton. I have sat with them as they listen to live feeds and updates. I have listened to their stories and the reasons why they are doing what they do. They have asked me to spread the word and create awareness with my friends outside of Turkey.

But I suppose this is not enough. Perhaps my ‘friend’ wanted to see photos of me marching. Or better yet, I should have a bruise. If I had my eye shot out by a tear gas canister I’m sure that would have definitely legitimized my actions and the role I have tried to play in these events.

It is certainly fine for one to talk about politics and social justice. It is acceptable for one to go to a conference where you discuss issues related to these topics (as my ‘friend’ did). But one should not believe that because they can talk about political and social activism, or meet ‘important’ people at conferences, that they are an activist and a particularly knowledgable one at that. And one should most definitely not judge someone else’s efforts (especially on photos taken five months earlier, at a different time and place).

This is not a contest. Move to Turkey. Live here. Live in any other place in the world that is currently politically unstable, away from the comfort of your home, your government and your democracy-for an extended period of time. You can name drop and discuss past and current events all you like, but until you experience it for yourself, you are better off refraining from making such naive and insulting criticisms.

*First, I do commend and appreciate this person’s efforts in spreading the word of events in Turkey via Facebook. I did not intend this to be an attack on her character but I did feel compelled to address the slight on mine. On a final note, the day the photo in question was taken she was a guest in our home, in Istanbul.

Review: Pictures – Phaselis

26 September, 2012 – cont.

My birthday started in Antalya, but by lunch we were off to Phaselis. This leg of our jouney began as a seaside drive but soon led into the mountains and valleys of the hinterland. By the afternoon we were in the midst of towering pine trees, and heading back down to the coast. Turkey’s geographical and topographical variety is astounding.

Phaselis was founded by colonists from Rhodes in 690 BCE. It is an amazing settlement centered on two excellent harbors. The Persians were here, as was Alexander the Great and as a Roman city, Hadrian visited as well. Now we were here, too.

We swam. It was impossible not to. We hiked through the absolutely empty city. We walked through houses with hypostyle floors. We climbed the skene of the theatre. We barged through Hadrian’s Gate. We had been largely alone in the cities in the Troad, but those sites were in the first stages of excavation. Comparatively, Phaselis was Pompeii. It was like a Roman theme park, without any hint of kitsch. Little did I know that Turkey is filled with such sites, just waiting to be explored.

We were on the move before the light faded. I was kind of devastated to leave, but there was so much more to see, and we had a reservation in Olympos. With one last roadside panorama we were off. Not a bad birthday.

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Review: Pictures – Antalya

26 September 2012

My (Stéban’s) birthday. Probably the best on record. We arrived in Antalya the night before. We payed nothing for the room. You get what you pay for (and less). I really wish we had taken some pictures, if only for the laughs. We were still laughing when we woke. After a birthday breakfast beverage, we set out.

First on the list was the Antalya museum. This was a pretty big space with lots of material (far more than what is being presented here). And like Side the day before, most of it was Roman or Hellenistic Greek. Archaic material was scarce. On the one hand, I (Stéban) love that stuff. It is deliberately dramatic. On the other hand, I know that we set out to look at more ancient material. But it seems Turkey has determined that the average tourist wants to see the naturalism and accessibility Roman Art. In fact, there were some Spanish tourists who were accessing the statues of Trajan pretty liberally.

This was a truly fun start to the day, which would next take us to Phaselis. More to come.

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Review: Pictures – Alanya, Side

25 September 2012

After recharging in Istanbul, we boarded a plane to the Lycian coast. This is where the real journey began. Two months of living out of a suitcase, stopping at every tomb, every temple, every museum we could, as we made our way west, through the forests and mountains and fruited plains of Turkey.

Our first stop was Alanya, and it was a brief one. The museum was unexpectedly closed. Indefinitely. The moral: call ahead. The bright side was we lost only a couple of hours on what was essentially a seaside-Sunday-drive, and we had a pleasant lunch near the water. Other important lessons included learning not to trust the car rental agency and finding reverse on a late-model Fiat.

We did manage to make it to Side, which is a remarkable Roman city, in its present state of preservation. The excavation made our previous visits to places like Alexandria Troas seem very rudimentary. In addition to the many fountains and baths, there is a major theatre, apparently fully-functioning, with modern lights and sounds in the spirit of Epidaurus in Greece. The museum is built into one of the bath complexes and features many fine Hellenistic and Roman sculptures and sarcophagi, but very little Archaic material. This was a bit of a harbinger for the weeks to come.

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Review: Pictures – Çanakkale wrap-up

19 September 2012

With our paperwork secured, we made a final sweep of the Çanakkale Archaeological Museum. Çok teşekkürler Tuna! We returned to Istanbul the next day, to prepare for the journey ahead…

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Review: Pictures – The Troad

18 September 2012

Having seen Naomi off at Bandirma after our adventure on the walls, we next took a tour of the Troad, driving down the coast to see a few ancient sites. Our first stop was the almost invisible Alexandria Troas, a Hellenistic city whose ruins are only now being excavated, in fact, a team was at work when we arrived. Although its walls and crumbling baths have long protruded the earth, the site is otherwise orchards and brambles.

Our next point of interest was the valley settlement of Apollo Smintheion, another ongoing excavation, which just happens to be sponsored by Efes, the ubiquitous Turkish beer. The postcard-ready restoration was a bit jarring, but the site was extensive and there were pomegranates everywhere for snacking.

Finally, we made our way back up the coast to Troy. The Troy. Letty warned me that the site is sadly not very photogenic, and belies very little of the glories that we all know from Homer. However, it was kind of a mandatory visit, and I was glad to have done so, especially early in our trip. In retrospect, all three sites we saw that day were, by comparison, dwarfed by the incredibly advanced states of excavation and restoration of the sites we would visit in the weeks to come.

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Review: Pictures – Biga

As the review continues, I realize that some dates might be helpful.

17 September 2012

As our Çanakkale sojourn continued, we teamed up with Naomi to visit the Byzantine sea walls of Pegea, also called Pegai, now called Biga. This excursion involved renting a car, and it was kind of a honey. We arrived at the Sea of Marmara on a bleak and incredibly blustery afternoon. The photos reveal (I hope) a truly Romantic landscape, and by Romantic, I am talking the Sublime, an almost heart-crushing, all-encompassing panorama. From the enormous waves, to the foreboding cliffs, to the massive crumbling ruins, this place was awesome (as I tell my students, ‘fear of god awesome,’ not ‘these pancakes are awesome’).

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Review: Pictures – Çanakkale, Assos

After our day on the beach, our pal Naomi arrived, and Tuna treated us to a very interesting breakfast on the water, literally. We then set out as a group to ancient Assos (modern Behramkale), where we met with the excavation director and were granted a personal tour of the archaeological site. We had a candid look at some newly unearthed objects, brand new excavations and newly cleared structures. After, we made our way down to the harbor where several pensions and restaurants offered superbly fresh seafood. Then it was back up the mountain to catch the sunset from the acropolis.

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