As mentioned earlier in this blog, Turkey has been fantastic, but sometimes I just need a dose of good old America. Enter this evening, when I ate french fries, Dominoes pizza, and watched The Princess Bride.
Several of my friends (actually, all the non-Americans) had never seen the movie before so it was good fun to watch them experience the glory of ROUS, the Dread Pirate Roberts, and true love conquering all. If you haven't seen the movie, do it now.
Since I haven't given you any multimedia for a while, enjoy this clip:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3W5GDkgf2w
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Not in Tennessee Anymore
Every day, I get a little reminder that I'm not in the States. For example, in one of my classes today we were discussing the notion that there is more than one form of morality, e.g. murder versus killing in wartime are viewed very differently.
My professor gave an example from Princeton, where I guess she did some undergraduate work. Princeton apparently has a honor code similar to Rhodes': students pledge not to cheat on exams, the professors hand out the exams and leave the class, and the students don't cheat. She added that if a student in the class did cheat, the other students would turn him/her in.
She then asked the Turkish students how they would react if a student turned them in for cheating on an un-proctored exam. Apparently, the snitch would be taunted and ostracized.
Now, if this little scenario happened at Rhodes, probably not everyone would be on the same side. Nevertheless, I think everyone would agree that the person who told was following their conscience and at the very least believed they were in the right. To have students not even consider the prospect of turning another student in--and to admit this to a professor, no less-- was certainly unexpected.
My professor gave an example from Princeton, where I guess she did some undergraduate work. Princeton apparently has a honor code similar to Rhodes': students pledge not to cheat on exams, the professors hand out the exams and leave the class, and the students don't cheat. She added that if a student in the class did cheat, the other students would turn him/her in.
She then asked the Turkish students how they would react if a student turned them in for cheating on an un-proctored exam. Apparently, the snitch would be taunted and ostracized.
Now, if this little scenario happened at Rhodes, probably not everyone would be on the same side. Nevertheless, I think everyone would agree that the person who told was following their conscience and at the very least believed they were in the right. To have students not even consider the prospect of turning another student in--and to admit this to a professor, no less-- was certainly unexpected.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Rembetiko
As I've mentioned before, I'm in a class about the music of Istanbul. It's been a great way to learn about Turkish culture, and we also don't have a whole lot of homework; all together a great class for an exchange student.
One of our few assignments is that each student needs to give a presentation about a type of music. Past presentations have included military music (mehter), women in music, and entertainment music. My topic is Rembetiko, which my professor suggested since all the others were taken. He lent me a couple of CDs to help me with my research, and I've been listening pretty much non-stop as I've been doing my other assignments.
As far as I can gather, rembetiko is kind of like the jazz of Istanbul. It doesn't sound even remotely like jazz, of course, but it was the music of people who didn't really belong while they participated in less-than-legal activities. Actually, one of my CDs has the tagline "Songs of Love, Exile, Prison, and Hash Dens," which basically sums up the themes of the music. Performers were mostly Greeks who lived in Istanbul, and sometimes Greeks who had lived in Istanbul and moved back to Greece or to America. Some songs are silly, like the one about the guy who's invited into a hash den by two women. Some are sad, like the ones written by people longing for their homeland. But all in all, they're pretty fantastic. The songs also have some of the greatest titles; my personal favorite is "Min Orkizese Vre Pseftra," or "Don't Make Promises, You Lying Woman." Awesome.
Here's an example of one of the songs off my CD: it's sung by a Greek from Anatolia (Turkey) and was recorded in the US. Typical rembetiko. But this has Greek lyrics but is to the tune of a Turkish folk song. Enjoy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MM59sFH1XTI
One of our few assignments is that each student needs to give a presentation about a type of music. Past presentations have included military music (mehter), women in music, and entertainment music. My topic is Rembetiko, which my professor suggested since all the others were taken. He lent me a couple of CDs to help me with my research, and I've been listening pretty much non-stop as I've been doing my other assignments.
As far as I can gather, rembetiko is kind of like the jazz of Istanbul. It doesn't sound even remotely like jazz, of course, but it was the music of people who didn't really belong while they participated in less-than-legal activities. Actually, one of my CDs has the tagline "Songs of Love, Exile, Prison, and Hash Dens," which basically sums up the themes of the music. Performers were mostly Greeks who lived in Istanbul, and sometimes Greeks who had lived in Istanbul and moved back to Greece or to America. Some songs are silly, like the one about the guy who's invited into a hash den by two women. Some are sad, like the ones written by people longing for their homeland. But all in all, they're pretty fantastic. The songs also have some of the greatest titles; my personal favorite is "Min Orkizese Vre Pseftra," or "Don't Make Promises, You Lying Woman." Awesome.
Here's an example of one of the songs off my CD: it's sung by a Greek from Anatolia (Turkey) and was recorded in the US. Typical rembetiko. But this has Greek lyrics but is to the tune of a Turkish folk song. Enjoy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MM59sFH1XTI
Monday, March 21, 2011
My Favorite Color is Tuesday
Not much to report-- getting ready for a paper due Thursday so nothing exciting going on last week. Instead, I'll give you a funny story from last week's Turkish class.
We were learning "which" (hangi) and "in my/your opinion" (bence/sence) in class. The professor was going around asking us each questions, and I got: Sence hangi renk güzel? (Which color do you think is pretty?) Since the guy before me had already said blue and I couldn't remember the word for green, I said "Bence salı güzel," intending to say that I think yellow is pretty. The only problem was that yellow is actually "sarı," and salı means Tuesday. Which is pretty lovely as days go, I guess...
It's been so long since I started learning Spanish (and English too, I guess) that I forgot about the funny little mistakes like that. But if I get frustrated, I'll just remember that trip to Bulgaria. At least I don't have to learn a whole different script!
We were learning "which" (hangi) and "in my/your opinion" (bence/sence) in class. The professor was going around asking us each questions, and I got: Sence hangi renk güzel? (Which color do you think is pretty?) Since the guy before me had already said blue and I couldn't remember the word for green, I said "Bence salı güzel," intending to say that I think yellow is pretty. The only problem was that yellow is actually "sarı," and salı means Tuesday. Which is pretty lovely as days go, I guess...
It's been so long since I started learning Spanish (and English too, I guess) that I forgot about the funny little mistakes like that. But if I get frustrated, I'll just remember that trip to Bulgaria. At least I don't have to learn a whole different script!
Sunday, March 20, 2011
The Joys of Public Transportation
I haven't actually spent a great deal of time in Istanbul since I've been here. (I've spent two weekends traveling, one on an island, and one just hanging out.) So yesterday seemed like a great time to take advantage of my friends' expertise and finally figure out Turkish transportation. Of course, I had greatly overestimated my friends' knowledge...
To get to Sariyer, the village that my school is in, you take a minibus known as a dolmuş, a word that literally means "filled." Drivers will continue to open the doors no matter how many people are already packed in; it's up to customers to decide if there's room to get on. From Sariyer, we took another dolmuş to the metro. We took the metro to the Taksim, got on a finicular (a kind of one-stop metro, I guess), then took the tram to the Spice Bazaar. All in all, we took probably 3 more modes of transportation than we needed to. But it was educational, to say the least!
The Spice Bazaar is good fun; it's smaller than the Grand Bazaar, more reasonably priced, and generally less overwhelming. It also smells fantastic, and you can find interesting goods ranging from "love tea" to Turkish delight. I didn't buy anything, but I'm sure I'll be back before the end of the semester!
To get to Sariyer, the village that my school is in, you take a minibus known as a dolmuş, a word that literally means "filled." Drivers will continue to open the doors no matter how many people are already packed in; it's up to customers to decide if there's room to get on. From Sariyer, we took another dolmuş to the metro. We took the metro to the Taksim, got on a finicular (a kind of one-stop metro, I guess), then took the tram to the Spice Bazaar. All in all, we took probably 3 more modes of transportation than we needed to. But it was educational, to say the least!
The Spice Bazaar is good fun; it's smaller than the Grand Bazaar, more reasonably priced, and generally less overwhelming. It also smells fantastic, and you can find interesting goods ranging from "love tea" to Turkish delight. I didn't buy anything, but I'm sure I'll be back before the end of the semester!
Friday, March 18, 2011
Lights Out
Went out to dinner tonight in Sariyer (the town outside of Istanbul where the university is). As we were waiting in a cafe for the last person to arrive, the lights went out on the whole downtown. This was completely unexpected for me-- there wasn't a storm, no noticeable construction or any visible cause for the power outage. But for the other customers in the cafe, it seemed to be a normal occurrence. They continued sipping their tea and chatting as if nothing unusual had happened.
Fortunately we were able to find a restaurant that still had power. There was quite an eclectic mix of food on the menu, ranging from pasta to fish-and-chips to burritos. The music playing was just as varied-- we heard a jazzed-up song from the opera Carmen (complete with steel drums!), an Edith Piaf song that we also heard in Bulgaria, and Happy Birthday-- more than 20 rounds of it. I guess there was a birthday party in the other room, and someone felt the need to play the English birthday song repeatedly. But the food was good, and the company was better. All in all, a successful outing!
Fortunately we were able to find a restaurant that still had power. There was quite an eclectic mix of food on the menu, ranging from pasta to fish-and-chips to burritos. The music playing was just as varied-- we heard a jazzed-up song from the opera Carmen (complete with steel drums!), an Edith Piaf song that we also heard in Bulgaria, and Happy Birthday-- more than 20 rounds of it. I guess there was a birthday party in the other room, and someone felt the need to play the English birthday song repeatedly. But the food was good, and the company was better. All in all, a successful outing!
Things I miss about the US:
1. Goldfish crackers. Weird, right? I don't eat them often at home, but I've been craving them ever since I've gotten here.
2. Television shows. Hulu doesn't work over here, something about copyrights or some such nonsense. What it comes down to is I can't watch Modern Family. Sad.
3. Clean air. Everyone smokes in Turkey. Everyone. People on the street, bus drivers-- even one of my professors takes a smoke break halfway through class. Gross.
4. Not sticking out. With the red hair and all, it's pretty clear that I'm foreign, and people usually guess (correctly) that I'm American and don't speak Turkish. But this means that sometimes I'll just get ignored, like when my roommate brings friends in while I'm studying.
Don't get me wrong, being abroad has been wonderful and I wouldn't trade this opportunity. But sometimes everything feels too foreign, and all I want is a milkshake, you know?
2. Television shows. Hulu doesn't work over here, something about copyrights or some such nonsense. What it comes down to is I can't watch Modern Family. Sad.
3. Clean air. Everyone smokes in Turkey. Everyone. People on the street, bus drivers-- even one of my professors takes a smoke break halfway through class. Gross.
4. Not sticking out. With the red hair and all, it's pretty clear that I'm foreign, and people usually guess (correctly) that I'm American and don't speak Turkish. But this means that sometimes I'll just get ignored, like when my roommate brings friends in while I'm studying.
Don't get me wrong, being abroad has been wonderful and I wouldn't trade this opportunity. But sometimes everything feels too foreign, and all I want is a milkshake, you know?
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Spring!
This week has to have been the fastest transition to spring of all time. When I left for Sofia on Thursday night, there was literally snow on the ground, enough to cancel afternoon classes (well, since this is Istanbul, like an inch. But still!). This week has been nothing but sunshine and blue skies, complete with warm breezes and flowers. As a true New Hampshirian (is that right? I can't ever figure it out...), I promptly abandoned all sweaters and pulled out the flip-flops. Who cares that it's only 65 degrees in the classrooms, it's spring!
Incidentally, "spring" in Turkish is "ilkbahar." And speaking of Turkish, we'll begin learning verbs next week! I know-- a month in Turkey and I still don't know how to conjugate? Pathetic. My teacher even said that it'll be our first step beyond "Me Tarzan, you Jane." Which is exciting, but not necessarily encouraging... But after my weekend in Sofia with literally three words under my belt, I'm not complaining.
Until tomorrow, faithful readers!
Incidentally, "spring" in Turkish is "ilkbahar." And speaking of Turkish, we'll begin learning verbs next week! I know-- a month in Turkey and I still don't know how to conjugate? Pathetic. My teacher even said that it'll be our first step beyond "Me Tarzan, you Jane." Which is exciting, but not necessarily encouraging... But after my weekend in Sofia with literally three words under my belt, I'm not complaining.
Until tomorrow, faithful readers!
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Bulgaria-- Protest and Pictures
As you can probably guess from the title, I accidentally went to a protest in Sofia. As we were walking through the streets on Sunday, we noticed all the cars honking really obnoxiously. At first we figured it had something to do with soccer, but then we noticed that most of the cars and pedestrians were headed in the same direction and decided to follow them. We found a pretty large group gathered by a statue in front of the EU building; there were a couple of people speaking into a megaphone and police preventing anyone from getting too close to the EU building. Of course, we had no idea what the protest was about, so we were worried we'd get caught between the police and the protesters. As it turned out, we had nothing to be concerned about. Although there were plenty of police present, there was not even a hint of violence, it was all quite civil. After a bit, the protest moved to a major intersection where many of the protesters parked their cars to impede traffic. Later we found out that the protest was about high gas prices, so I guess the idea was to keep as much of the city from driving as possible. But it was definitely a great way to get a taste of Bulgaria and see proof that the brutality of its Soviet history does not continue into the present.
After a full weekend of walking around, we were all exhausted and slept pretty heavily on the bus. But on re-entry into Turkey, I got two more stamps on my passport; I'm starting to look like a world traveler!
A picture from the Soviet park. Apparently some people want to tear it down since Bulgaria is no longer a Soviet republic, but for now it's a place where young people hang out, skateboard, and graffiti the statues.
I don't know what's in that building, but it looks quite European and excellent.
Most of the group at the hostel.
One of the many famous churches in Sofia-- I think this is the one that got partially destroyed by Communists.
After a full weekend of walking around, we were all exhausted and slept pretty heavily on the bus. But on re-entry into Turkey, I got two more stamps on my passport; I'm starting to look like a world traveler!
A picture from the Soviet park. Apparently some people want to tear it down since Bulgaria is no longer a Soviet republic, but for now it's a place where young people hang out, skateboard, and graffiti the statues.
I don't know what's in that building, but it looks quite European and excellent.
Most of the group at the hostel.
One of the many famous churches in Sofia-- I think this is the one that got partially destroyed by Communists.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Return to Istanbul...
Yesterday was a wonderful day. This is my favorite part of traveling, when you start to get a feel for the city and begin to know your way around. Our group split up, and it was nice to go around and feel like we blended in at least a little bit instead of being the big crowd of oblivious Americans. We went around to an archeological museum with artifacts dating back to the 3rd century AD, which was a fun way to learn about the history of the region. We also stopped by the famous open-air Ladies Market, but the only thing we got was fried dough (which was delicious, incidentally). I also had my first McDonald's trip outside of the US, which was cliched but delicious.
Today will be more walking and wandering, maybe more museums and coffee shops. Then another night bus, so I should get back to campus by 9 am, in time for my 12:30 class. Wish me luck on the quiz I have this afternoon!
Today will be more walking and wandering, maybe more museums and coffee shops. Then another night bus, so I should get back to campus by 9 am, in time for my 12:30 class. Wish me luck on the quiz I have this afternoon!
Friday, March 11, 2011
Da, Merci
So far Bulgaria has been fantastic. Sofia's quite a walking city (we've been discouraged from using public transit due to pickpockets), and we spent all yesterday jut going around seeing the sights, from cathedrals to open-air antique markets. Good stuff. I think it would have been tough since I was working on so few hours of sleep but fortunately everyone else was in the same boat so we took it kind of easy.
One of the best things about being here is walking around and seeing all the Cyrillic script on the signs. Even though I've been in Turkey for a month, I still sometimes feel like I don't know much Turkish. Being in Sofia, however, has led me to appreciate how much I can say. In Bulgarian, I can say da (yes) and merci (which isn't even Bulgarian but is commonly used for "thank you"). But it's been funny to try to communicate with Bulgarians and say evet (Turkish for yes) before anything else. The language part of my brain is so confused!
Off to breakfast now, getting ready for another big day!
One of the best things about being here is walking around and seeing all the Cyrillic script on the signs. Even though I've been in Turkey for a month, I still sometimes feel like I don't know much Turkish. Being in Sofia, however, has led me to appreciate how much I can say. In Bulgarian, I can say da (yes) and merci (which isn't even Bulgarian but is commonly used for "thank you"). But it's been funny to try to communicate with Bulgarians and say evet (Turkish for yes) before anything else. The language part of my brain is so confused!
Off to breakfast now, getting ready for another big day!
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Bulgaria!
Hey everyone, just wanted to update really quickly and let you know that I'm in Sofia! The bus ride was pretty nice, only 8 hours and much more comfortable than an airplane. And I got a new stamp on my passport, though it's not very pretty. But still, filling up those pages!
We didn't get TOO lost on the way to the hostel. I don't think any of us had realized the implications of going to a country where we literally don't speak a single word of the language. It's difficult for us to even read it, since it's in Cyrillic script! But we got some directions and a tram ticket with some heavy miming and made it here.
This is my first trip to a hostel, and I know I'm spoiled. It's very welcoming here, lots of travelers of all ages. As soon as we got in, the hostel staff gave us maps and told us all the must-sees of Sofia. And the hostel is right in the city center, so we shouldn't have to figure out public transportation, which is fantastic. We also get free breakfast and dinner, linens, use of the common room... all for about $15 a night. Fantastic.
I'll update when I can, but just wanted to let you know that I'm safe and excited to be here!
We didn't get TOO lost on the way to the hostel. I don't think any of us had realized the implications of going to a country where we literally don't speak a single word of the language. It's difficult for us to even read it, since it's in Cyrillic script! But we got some directions and a tram ticket with some heavy miming and made it here.
This is my first trip to a hostel, and I know I'm spoiled. It's very welcoming here, lots of travelers of all ages. As soon as we got in, the hostel staff gave us maps and told us all the must-sees of Sofia. And the hostel is right in the city center, so we shouldn't have to figure out public transportation, which is fantastic. We also get free breakfast and dinner, linens, use of the common room... all for about $15 a night. Fantastic.
I'll update when I can, but just wanted to let you know that I'm safe and excited to be here!
My first trip "beyond Turkey"
So this weekend I'm taking a big adventure to exotic Sofia, Bulgaria! A bunch of my friends and I got together and decided to make a weekend of it-- we're taking a bus out tonight and leaving Sunday night, with Friday and Saturday nights in a hostel near downtown. Supposedly it's pretty cheap to get around there, and it'll be my first trip to the European Union! Hooray!
Unfortunately I probably won't be able to post during the trip, but get ready for awesome pictures and stories next week!
In other news, we had afternoon classes off due to snow-- I had a snowball fight and taught my friend from Florida how to build a snowman. Definitely a good trade off.
Unfortunately I probably won't be able to post during the trip, but get ready for awesome pictures and stories next week!
In other news, we had afternoon classes off due to snow-- I had a snowball fight and taught my friend from Florida how to build a snowman. Definitely a good trade off.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Snow Day!
It's been pretty cold ever since I've been here, but the past couple of days have been the coldest yet. It actually snowed a little yesterday with even more today; enough that my afternoon Turkish class got canceled! I guess Turkey is in the same situation as the South with very little snow-removal equipment. And the university is on top of a hill-- think San Francisco steep-- which makes it difficult to get to campus when it's icy. This is especially true since the bus drivers don't seem to know the definition of the word "slow." It's bad enough on clear days, but I didn't dare try it today.
But some of my professors have been saying this is probably the last snowstorm we'll get. Does that mean it's almost spring?
But some of my professors have been saying this is probably the last snowstorm we'll get. Does that mean it's almost spring?
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Best Promotion Ever
Today is International Women's Day, a bigger deal in Turkey than in the US. In fact, it's such a big deal that the grocery store on campus had a buy one, get one free sale for chocolate bars. Yes please!
Monday, March 7, 2011
Lucky me...
Every culture has a good luck charm, whether it be a four-leafed clover, horseshoe, or wishbone, there's always some kind of tangible way to ward off evil. In Turkey, it's the color blue, specifically blue eyes. People buy beads and wall hangings with a pretty abstract-looking blue eye on them which is supposed to protect one from the influence of the evil eye. (People with natural blue eyes, like yours truly, are thought to be naturally protected. Awesome.) These days the blue beads seem to be more of a tourist attraction than anything, but you can still find them on busses, houses, even the occasional necklace. And I got one on a safety pin in Cappadocia for free, so of course I pinned it to my purse. After all, it can't hurt!
Here are some samples of the charms I saw in Cappadocia-- there were a couple of trees covered in them!
Here are some samples of the charms I saw in Cappadocia-- there were a couple of trees covered in them!
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Hooray, I have a blog again!
Blogspot is now un-blocked after about four days, probably because someone realized blocking an entire website because of a couple people is absurd. The only difference I can see now is pictures are kind of hard to format, so bear with me if this post looks a little funny. So let me catch you up on my activities of the past week:
Homework, homework, homework. Now that we've gotten into the swing of school again professors are pretty serious about readings and all that. It's been pretty interesting so far, but doesn't give me much to tell you all about...
Watched Inception on Thursday with a group of friends which was good fun.
On Friday I took a homework break to go to a coffee shop in Sariyer with a friend. I got tea, of course, and this delicious pastry! Yum.
Yesterday was packed full of exciting cultural activities. I went to Dolmabahçe Palace with a group of exchange students, which was constructed in the mid-nineteenth century as the Ottoman Empire was trying to Westernize to remain relevant. As a result, it's got all kinds of European elements-- crystal chandeliers, porcelain doorknobs, Victorian furniture-- but also a harem. Unfortunately we weren't allowed to take pictures inside, but it was gorgeous. The tour finished with the ceremonial hall which is still used today for receiving foreign dignitaries (like President Obama a couple of years ago!). It's an enormous hall with decorated pillars, ceilings, and a FOUR TON chandelier! Crazy.
In the afternoon the six of us went to the Prince's Islands, about a 90 minute ferry ride from Dolmabaçe. We stayed on the big island, had a late lunch and walked around for quite some time. Cars aren't allowed on the island, just emergency and maybe delivery vehicles, so everyone uses bicycles and horse-drawn carriages to get around. It was a fun little town, if a little touristy. On the way back, we almost missed our bus and had to take a taxi back to campus, but right as we were discussing the fare with the cab driver our bus pulled up. Perfect timing.
I finished out the long and exciting day with ELEVEN HOURS of sleep. Perfect!
Okay, here are some pictures:
View of Ships from the island
Secret Garden? All the houses on the island had fences, and many had little paths like this.
Beware of the dog!
The palace from the outside.
Homework, homework, homework. Now that we've gotten into the swing of school again professors are pretty serious about readings and all that. It's been pretty interesting so far, but doesn't give me much to tell you all about...
Watched Inception on Thursday with a group of friends which was good fun.
On Friday I took a homework break to go to a coffee shop in Sariyer with a friend. I got tea, of course, and this delicious pastry! Yum.
Yesterday was packed full of exciting cultural activities. I went to Dolmabahçe Palace with a group of exchange students, which was constructed in the mid-nineteenth century as the Ottoman Empire was trying to Westernize to remain relevant. As a result, it's got all kinds of European elements-- crystal chandeliers, porcelain doorknobs, Victorian furniture-- but also a harem. Unfortunately we weren't allowed to take pictures inside, but it was gorgeous. The tour finished with the ceremonial hall which is still used today for receiving foreign dignitaries (like President Obama a couple of years ago!). It's an enormous hall with decorated pillars, ceilings, and a FOUR TON chandelier! Crazy.
In the afternoon the six of us went to the Prince's Islands, about a 90 minute ferry ride from Dolmabaçe. We stayed on the big island, had a late lunch and walked around for quite some time. Cars aren't allowed on the island, just emergency and maybe delivery vehicles, so everyone uses bicycles and horse-drawn carriages to get around. It was a fun little town, if a little touristy. On the way back, we almost missed our bus and had to take a taxi back to campus, but right as we were discussing the fare with the cab driver our bus pulled up. Perfect timing.
I finished out the long and exciting day with ELEVEN HOURS of sleep. Perfect!
Okay, here are some pictures:
View of Ships from the island
Secret Garden? All the houses on the island had fences, and many had little paths like this.
Beware of the dog!
The palace from the outside.
Friday, March 4, 2011
Oh the Irony
I had planned to write today's post about the comparative freedom in Turkey, especially in light of the revolts in the surrounding countries. I was going to write about the free debates we had in class after the recent death of Erkaban, the first Islamist Prime Minister. I was going to reassure everyone that Turkey is a well-consolidated democracy that has But as I tried to log on to write this entry, I found this message in red across the top of the page: Bu siteye erisim mahkeme karariyla engellenmistir. As you may know, I don't speak Turkish, but Google Translate helped me though. As it turns out, Turkey banned Blogspot as part of a court case by some TV company because people were streaming soccer matches onto their blogs. Clearly, the reasonable response was to shut down blogspot for the entire country...
But as I think about it, it's not out of Turkey's character. YouTube is also banned throughout the country (although not on campus, fortunately!) because of some anti-Ataturk videos posted by some Greeks. Again, a disproportionately severe response to a fairly minor grievance. Although Ataturk is still greatly revered here, I feel blocking an entire website is rather extreme.
All this is not to say that Turkey is at risk for any kind of revolution-- it's still a democratic country (elections are in June), and its citizens enjoy freedoms similar to those of Americans, at least for the most part. But the lengths that the Turkish government is willing to go is another story.
Obviously while this ban is in place, I will have a difficult time keeping up with the blog. I'll post updates as best I can through proxies, but email/Facebook me if you want more regular information.
Oh, the Irony...
I had planned to write today's post about the comparative freedom in Turkey, especially in light of the revolts in the surrounding countries. I was going to write about the free debates we had in class after the recent death of Erkaban, the first Islamist Prime Minister. I was going to reassure everyone that Turkey is a well-consolidated democracy that has But as I tried to log on to write this entry, I found this message in red across the top of the page: Bu siteye erisim mahkeme karariyla engellenmistir. As you may know, I don't speak Turkish, but Google Translate helped me though. As it turns out, Turkey banned Blogspot as part of a court case by some TV company because people were streaming soccer matches onto their blogs. Clearly, the reasonable response was to shut down blogspot for the entire country...
But as I think about it, it's not out of Turkey's character. YouTube is also banned throughout the country (although not on campus, fortunately!) because of some anti-Ataturk videos posted by some Greeks. Again, a disproportionately severe response to a fairly minor grievance. Although Ataturk is still greatly revered here, I feel blocking an entire website is rather extreme.
All this is not to say that Turkey is at risk for any kind of revolution-- it's still a democratic country (elections are in June), and its citizens enjoy freedoms similar to those of Americans, at least for the most part. But the lengths that the Turkish government is willing to go is another story.
Obviously while this ban is in place, I will have a difficult time keeping up with the blog. I'll post updates as best I can through proxies, but email/Facebook me if you want more regular information.
But as I think about it, it's not out of Turkey's character. YouTube is also banned throughout the country (although not on campus, fortunately!) because of some anti-Ataturk videos posted by some Greeks. Again, a disproportionately severe response to a fairly minor grievance. Although Ataturk is still greatly revered here, I feel blocking an entire website is rather extreme.
All this is not to say that Turkey is at risk for any kind of revolution-- it's still a democratic country (elections are in June), and its citizens enjoy freedoms similar to those of Americans, at least for the most part. But the lengths that the Turkish government is willing to go is another story.
Obviously while this ban is in place, I will have a difficult time keeping up with the blog. I'll post updates as best I can through proxies, but email/Facebook me if you want more regular information.
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Okay, so this is apparently a thing in Cappadocia-- they put pots on the trees to make homes for the pigeons that are everywhere. Or maybe this is just for tourists. Either way, pretty cool!
Awesome fairy chimneys, gross weather. I'm actually surprised I didn't get someone's umbrella in this shot...
Fairy chimneys and a cave! Note the hand-carved hand- and footholds... not something I'd want to do every day!
Beautiful Cappadocia...
How cool is this?!
I'm back...
I've been having difficulties posting this entry, so I'll try omitting the pictures for now and see how it goes.
As you may know, I went to Cappadocia this weekend with a big group of exchange students. Cappadocia is about 12 hours from school--we left at 9 Thursday night and arrived at 9 am on Friday. The bus ride was about as enjoyable as you can imagine... so Friday was spent resting up and enjoying the spa at the hotel. Some students went horseback riding, but I decided that would not be a balance-friendly activity. Good thing, too-- two kids fell off after their horses took off running. So I spent Friday night in a clinic with a friend who sprained her ankle; it was certainly an interesting way to see another side of Turkey!
Saturday probably had the worst weather I've seen here. It snowed in the morning and drizzled almost the entire day. Regardless, we continued sightseeing as planned. We began with a trip to see the fairy chimneys, surreal-looking pillars formed by the erosion of lava from a nearby volcano that was active millions of years ago. But the coolest thing about the area is not the science fiction-y landscape but the caves carved into the pillars as well as larger cliffs. The rock is fairly soft, so early Christian hermits and monks created retreats in the forbidding landscape. They even created chapels with frescoes all over the ceilings and walls dating back more than 1000 years-- indescribable. Unfortunately we were unable to take pictures as the flash damages the paint and it was too dark to take photos without flash. Sorry!
On Sunday we stopped at several points specifically for the view-- it was much nicer, almost sunny, so I got some great pictures of the fairy chimneys, caves, and dramatic vistas in general. But the highlight of the day was the underground city, began 4000 years ago by the Hittites and expanded 2000 years ago by early Christians. It was only used for short periods of time as a refuge from hostile invaders, but was complete with storage rooms, a kitchen, and two wineries. I certainly don't envy the inhabitants, since the access points to the wineries were tunnels just 4 feet high. I can't imagine climbing up and down them every day, let alone doing it with full barrels of wine and grapes!
The weather continues misty and grey. Maybe I'll see the sun sometime before I leave!
As you may know, I went to Cappadocia this weekend with a big group of exchange students. Cappadocia is about 12 hours from school--we left at 9 Thursday night and arrived at 9 am on Friday. The bus ride was about as enjoyable as you can imagine... so Friday was spent resting up and enjoying the spa at the hotel. Some students went horseback riding, but I decided that would not be a balance-friendly activity. Good thing, too-- two kids fell off after their horses took off running. So I spent Friday night in a clinic with a friend who sprained her ankle; it was certainly an interesting way to see another side of Turkey!
Saturday probably had the worst weather I've seen here. It snowed in the morning and drizzled almost the entire day. Regardless, we continued sightseeing as planned. We began with a trip to see the fairy chimneys, surreal-looking pillars formed by the erosion of lava from a nearby volcano that was active millions of years ago. But the coolest thing about the area is not the science fiction-y landscape but the caves carved into the pillars as well as larger cliffs. The rock is fairly soft, so early Christian hermits and monks created retreats in the forbidding landscape. They even created chapels with frescoes all over the ceilings and walls dating back more than 1000 years-- indescribable. Unfortunately we were unable to take pictures as the flash damages the paint and it was too dark to take photos without flash. Sorry!
On Sunday we stopped at several points specifically for the view-- it was much nicer, almost sunny, so I got some great pictures of the fairy chimneys, caves, and dramatic vistas in general. But the highlight of the day was the underground city, began 4000 years ago by the Hittites and expanded 2000 years ago by early Christians. It was only used for short periods of time as a refuge from hostile invaders, but was complete with storage rooms, a kitchen, and two wineries. I certainly don't envy the inhabitants, since the access points to the wineries were tunnels just 4 feet high. I can't imagine climbing up and down them every day, let alone doing it with full barrels of wine and grapes!
The weather continues misty and grey. Maybe I'll see the sun sometime before I leave!
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