This Saturday was my first week-end staying up here at Koç. I went with my flatmate, Ayşe, to Anadolu Kavağı. We took the boat from Sarıyer to cross the Bosphorus- just about 10 minutes. We climbed steps, pass fish restaurants to the ruins of a Byzantine fortress. The view is superb- clear view of the Black sea and lots of large and small boats traversing the Bosphorus.
We had a delicious fish lunch at a restaurant on top of the hill. The wood-burning stove felt great. Ayşe insisted on buying me a very nice blue glass disk - a symbol to ward off the evil eye- which is in most Turkish homes. We wandered around the village, had 25 min to wait for the boat, so went to have more tea. When we returned to the ferry landing we were told the next ferry was in 2 hours! We missed the boat by 5 minutes. We had enough tea, but it was rather cold. I suggested we return to the store where we purchased the present and wait there.
The owner was happy to see us. He works as an engineer in Russia for 6 mos of the year. He thinks Putin is doing a great job. When I mentioned that I thought corrupt oligarchs control the country, he said after a year of getting the state companies, the rich have to pay 35% tax and this is distributed to the poor.
Then things got more interesting. This guy was happy with Obama. He then said Jews didn't vote for Obama because he was Black and they thought he was Muslim. I corrected him on that. Then Ayşe and him claimed that the US is supporting the PKK (the Kurdish separatist group.) I chimed in that I didn't think that was correct because Turkey is a strategic ally for the US. He said the US woke up to Turkey only after they were turning toward Russia. Then he asked why the US didn't get a peace deal in Palestine. I asked him to what period was he referring. I said things are complicated- the Palestinian Authority is fıghting Hamas. (little did I know that at that moment Israel was bombing Gaza.) Then the guy said- why is Hamas considered a terrorist organization and the PKK is not?
We moved on to 9/11. Ayşe, a post-doc in chemical engineering, said that perhaps the US was behind the bombing of the WTC. There were 4000 Jews in the building and they did not die. A plane crashed into the Pentagon, but that was planned because it didn't do so much damage. Needless to say I told her she was incorrect. She said it was reported in the news. Sightings from extraterrestrial beings are also reported in the paper was my response.
They then asked if I think there was an Armenian genocide. I felt uncomfortable even though I was asking this same question to Turks. I said yes. Ayşe said, "we lived with the Armenians for 600 years. Why didn't we massacre them during this period?" (I was thinking- the Serbs and Bosnians didn't massacre each other when they were under the iron fist of Tito.) Then she said- "They say 1.5M were massacred. But, I am from that region. There were not that many Armenians in the area." They both said it was war time. People naturally defend their homes and people. There were atrocities on both sides. Archives must be open and "objective" historians need to review the material. They insist that the Armenians are not open to reviewing the Turkish documents. They agreed that the Germans committed a genocide on the Jews. Then they said the Germans never admitted this and that they did these atrocities because of Hitler. I again corrected them on this score!
We touched on the American Indian massacres, killing Iraqi civilians and WWII. Of course we parted friends and again putting our hopes for a better world on Obama.
We caught the ferry this time. Back in Sarıyer for my last time, we went to the pudding shop where they serve a special cream pudding with rose water and sugar. Then on to the best borek shop where the man ceremoniously raises his cleaver to cut the cheese pastry.
As I write on Sunday, I have just returned from Kilyos, a small town on the Black Sea. It is a holiday resort for Turks- quite a few hotels and lots of restaurants with big lawns and picnic tables. I dipped my toe into the sea and then walked up to the point. Reminded me of the headlands north of San Francisco. Windy, quiet, abandoned - hearty plants clinging to the rock cliffs. Unfortunately Turks have a very undeveloped sense of the environment. There was litter everywhere. Lots of abandoned property on this beautiful coast and most of the structures standing were quite ugly.
I leave Koç now and head to the city center- Asian side. I am staying in Istanbul for my final week. I contemplated going to the Black Sea coast- east of here. But, it's raining here and that area is the rainiest in the country!
I hope you all are enjoying your time off. Hopefully I will do some final postings before I leave on Saturday. Tomorrow I am talking to some H.S. students in Üskadar- a little recruiting for Emory.
Saturday, 27 December 2008
Final Party
December 26 was my last day at Koç. The library staff and I shared a mutual feeling- I felt like part of the staff, it was so natural to be there, it seemed impossible that my time was ending. The day before Didar (the library director) and I met with the provost. He is the man that made this adventure happen. He was at GA Tech for 9+ years so I gave him a painting of Hot Atlanta. He mentioned how he tried in the past to establish a relationship with Emory and nothing happended. I said I would report back on my positive experience and hopefully we could make things happen this time. He requested a short report from me.
I took Mithat, my office mate, up to the clock tower for tea. This is the jewel of the campus. Robin- you would love this room. It's like a large sun room, Ottoman style. Upholstered benches, marble fountain in the middle, delicate china in recessed shelves and 2 walls of windows looking out onto the Black Sea.
Due to the economıic crisis, the big faculty and staff party at the Koç museum was cancelled. Our party was in the staff area of the library- tables set up in horseshoe with a XMAS tree in the middle and presents underneath. The cleaning staff were given huge presents (I didn't see the contents) and then left. One cleaning woman stayed as the waitress and ate by herself. I thought this was reminiscent of the South in the 60s.
I lit the menorah before we sat down and briefly explained the origins of Chanukah. Figured this was a first of Koç library. Different people lit the 6 candles. Didar then mentioned how much they enjoyed and benefitted from my visit. She gave me a bag of presents.
The dinner was catered by a local restaurant and featured a whole turkey and wine.
We all bought a present for 20 lira. Each present was labeled with a number and then numbers were drawn from a hat. If my present was selected, I was next to draw a number. Everyone seemed to enjoy the process- scarves and various tea mugs were the prevalent presents. After taking a smoking break, people lingered and helped clean up. Everyone seemed to enjoy the evening.
I took Mithat, my office mate, up to the clock tower for tea. This is the jewel of the campus. Robin- you would love this room. It's like a large sun room, Ottoman style. Upholstered benches, marble fountain in the middle, delicate china in recessed shelves and 2 walls of windows looking out onto the Black Sea.
Due to the economıic crisis, the big faculty and staff party at the Koç museum was cancelled. Our party was in the staff area of the library- tables set up in horseshoe with a XMAS tree in the middle and presents underneath. The cleaning staff were given huge presents (I didn't see the contents) and then left. One cleaning woman stayed as the waitress and ate by herself. I thought this was reminiscent of the South in the 60s.
I lit the menorah before we sat down and briefly explained the origins of Chanukah. Figured this was a first of Koç library. Different people lit the 6 candles. Didar then mentioned how much they enjoyed and benefitted from my visit. She gave me a bag of presents.
The dinner was catered by a local restaurant and featured a whole turkey and wine.
We all bought a present for 20 lira. Each present was labeled with a number and then numbers were drawn from a hat. If my present was selected, I was next to draw a number. Everyone seemed to enjoy the process- scarves and various tea mugs were the prevalent presents. After taking a smoking break, people lingered and helped clean up. Everyone seemed to enjoy the evening.
Thursday, 25 December 2008
Excursions to other libraries
İstanbul Ticaret Odası
December 3 Gurbet, Mithat (the 2 new Koç business librarians) and I were scheduled to visit ITO. We researched the ferry schedule in order to avoid the horrific traffic and settled on our meeting time. Then Gurbet informed us that the library director had arranged a driver for us. I said let's take the ferry anyway, but Gurbet said that wasn't an option now. (the driver then just waited all day for us to finish our meeting...so much for Turkish productivity)
It was very boring when the librarians started out by explaining their thesaurus terms. Gurbet had to translate because the librarian would not speak English. I was there to learn about ITO- what I thought was the Istanbul Trade Organization. I asked to speak with a researcher and when I proceeded to ask about how they support businesses who want to import to Turkey, I learned that we were at the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce, who just support local businesses! They produce a lot of sector reports on the major industries such as textiles, automobiles and agriculture. So if you want to know how many red apples are grown on the Black Sea coast - this is your address.
They invited us for lunch. Gurbet hesitated, thinking we needed to be back at work. I said I will take responsibility for the decision- we're staying for lunch! Most places of employment provide lunch. The food is basically the same, it just varies whether or not there are waiters and tablecloths.
Our host warmed up when we visited their publications department and started talking English. He was very generous and gave me a cd of traditional music, Istanbul guidebook and more. Then he proudly gave me a paperback book and explained to all that this was written by the first prime minister of the independent Armenian Republic. The intro states: "this is a full fledged documentary ...historical document..entire facts about the 1915 Armenian issue. It is a silent cry against the unfounded Armenian genocide claims made by Armenia and in particular the Armenian Diaspora with the purpose of embarrassing the Republic of Turkey..." This opinion is in sharp contrast to the 200 Turkish intellectuals that apologized on Dec. 15 for the Armenian ethnic cleansing.
Sabancı University
Mithat, Gurburt and I visited the rival university on 18.12.08. About 3 families control Turkey, Koç and Sabancı being 2 of them. Sabancı is located on the Asian side- quite remote from the center of activity. The campus is not as pretty as Koç, but it has some nice architecture. I felt like a visiting dignitary from the EU when we arrived! Librarians greeted us at the door and ushered us into the Director's office. He was a bit obnoxious saying how much better they were than Koç, listing all their firsts.
The librarians gave powerpoint presentations of all their services. Their mission: Access vs. Ownership." So they want other libraries to purchase the materials and they will just borrow!They have a proprietary database of Ottoman Culture images - some from the Topkapi Palace. Students are given free laptops so very few computers in the library. Library staff does more manual labor than us- clipping articles, etc.- we are more automated.
I was blown away by the MBA Director who came straight from the hospital to deliver his talk. His first child was born the previous night- talk about dedication to your work!! Sabancı,like Koç, is a new school so they are very proud of their accomplishments.
Freshmen are required to be involved in a civic project. This is not for credit, 40 hrs in the semester, work as a group, a significant percent continue with their project after fulfilling the requirement.
They were very proud to show the stats of how they attract the top students. Turkey has a very antiquated education system. High School graduates take an exam and depending on their grade, get placed in a university. Students must list 20 preferences- specific university and major- their scores determine their placement. University is free, but there are few good public schools. Koç and Sabancı are private, they provide scholarships for the top students. Some rich students attend Engish, German, Italian or French private hıgh schools where they acquire very good education. Most universities offer a year of preparatory English. Sabancı is unique in allowing students to choose their major in the 2nd yr.
CAFE- Center for Applied Finance Education has a simulated trading floor- real-time date from Istanbul stock exchange, Bloomberg and Reuters terminals- to support teaching and research. This is the only trading floor in the Middle East, except for the one in Israel. It started in June 2008- 25-50 M dollars to set up. Most interested in energy trading.
Turkey strives to be an international player, but now they are a regional actor in the Middle East and E. Europe. Turkish companies are now investing in Russia, E. Europe, Romania, Ukraine and Egypt. Challenge for companies in this region to find competent management. Sabancı wants to attract students from these countries.
It was great to learn that Sabancı has signed on the the UN Global Compact. They have committed to integrating principles of human rights, anti-corruption, labor and environmental issues into their curriculum. "By doing so, business, as a primary agent driving globalization, can help ensure that markets, commerce, technology and finance advance in ways that benefit economies and societies everywhere." Seems like more US companies need to get on this bandwagon.
SINAİ KALKINMA BANKASI
23.12.08 we visited the TKSB- the Industrial Development Bank of Turkey. It is a private investment and development bank whose mission is to grow investment in Turkey and the surrounding region. The researchers and economists create sector reports, mainly in the areas of textiles, banking, energy, automobiles, education, health, paint, metals, mining, scientific fibers, transportation, logistics, renewable energy, meat, poultry and tourism. The librarian reads 13 newspapers daily and scans relevant articles into a database. This is something we did 30 yrs ago, but Turkish newspapers are not in a database so users cannot easily conduct their own research. The World Bank helped create the library. They don't have databases, mostly purchase paper reports.
They are proud to be the first Turkish Bank to obtain an ISO 14001 environment certification. "TSKB has been involved in important environment related activities in Turkey through the loans extended for the projection of the enviroment as well as the loans provided for investmentsin renewable energy."
I asked to speak with a researcher and was pleased that an Economist came down. This man was very smart and knew well the global economic scene. They track US, China and then Europe. Of course he knew that Nouriel Roubini (a Turk) at Stern was most correct with his predictions on the economic crisis. He said Turkey is in recession now and they predict negative growth for '09. They are in the worst position since 2001, when they experienced a macroeconomic crisis. The World Bank took over and reformed the banking system. Turkey does not have a direct exposure to the mortgage crisis because they only started offering mortgages in 2004 and they have a 5-7 yr maturity. They'e waiting to see what kind of government intervention Obama will take. He thinks the entire financial architecture must be restructered. He noted how Hyman Minsky was right. He proceeded to give us a short history of the mortgage crisis. If there is going to be a short recession, we should see positive signs by April- watch commodities- oil should rise. If this doesn't happen world economy could recover in 2010.
Of course they took us to lunch and our driver joined us.
December 3 Gurbet, Mithat (the 2 new Koç business librarians) and I were scheduled to visit ITO. We researched the ferry schedule in order to avoid the horrific traffic and settled on our meeting time. Then Gurbet informed us that the library director had arranged a driver for us. I said let's take the ferry anyway, but Gurbet said that wasn't an option now. (the driver then just waited all day for us to finish our meeting...so much for Turkish productivity)
It was very boring when the librarians started out by explaining their thesaurus terms. Gurbet had to translate because the librarian would not speak English. I was there to learn about ITO- what I thought was the Istanbul Trade Organization. I asked to speak with a researcher and when I proceeded to ask about how they support businesses who want to import to Turkey, I learned that we were at the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce, who just support local businesses! They produce a lot of sector reports on the major industries such as textiles, automobiles and agriculture. So if you want to know how many red apples are grown on the Black Sea coast - this is your address.
They invited us for lunch. Gurbet hesitated, thinking we needed to be back at work. I said I will take responsibility for the decision- we're staying for lunch! Most places of employment provide lunch. The food is basically the same, it just varies whether or not there are waiters and tablecloths.
Our host warmed up when we visited their publications department and started talking English. He was very generous and gave me a cd of traditional music, Istanbul guidebook and more. Then he proudly gave me a paperback book and explained to all that this was written by the first prime minister of the independent Armenian Republic. The intro states: "this is a full fledged documentary ...historical document..entire facts about the 1915 Armenian issue. It is a silent cry against the unfounded Armenian genocide claims made by Armenia and in particular the Armenian Diaspora with the purpose of embarrassing the Republic of Turkey..." This opinion is in sharp contrast to the 200 Turkish intellectuals that apologized on Dec. 15 for the Armenian ethnic cleansing.
Sabancı University
Mithat, Gurburt and I visited the rival university on 18.12.08. About 3 families control Turkey, Koç and Sabancı being 2 of them. Sabancı is located on the Asian side- quite remote from the center of activity. The campus is not as pretty as Koç, but it has some nice architecture. I felt like a visiting dignitary from the EU when we arrived! Librarians greeted us at the door and ushered us into the Director's office. He was a bit obnoxious saying how much better they were than Koç, listing all their firsts.
The librarians gave powerpoint presentations of all their services. Their mission: Access vs. Ownership." So they want other libraries to purchase the materials and they will just borrow!They have a proprietary database of Ottoman Culture images - some from the Topkapi Palace. Students are given free laptops so very few computers in the library. Library staff does more manual labor than us- clipping articles, etc.- we are more automated.
I was blown away by the MBA Director who came straight from the hospital to deliver his talk. His first child was born the previous night- talk about dedication to your work!! Sabancı,like Koç, is a new school so they are very proud of their accomplishments.
Freshmen are required to be involved in a civic project. This is not for credit, 40 hrs in the semester, work as a group, a significant percent continue with their project after fulfilling the requirement.
They were very proud to show the stats of how they attract the top students. Turkey has a very antiquated education system. High School graduates take an exam and depending on their grade, get placed in a university. Students must list 20 preferences- specific university and major- their scores determine their placement. University is free, but there are few good public schools. Koç and Sabancı are private, they provide scholarships for the top students. Some rich students attend Engish, German, Italian or French private hıgh schools where they acquire very good education. Most universities offer a year of preparatory English. Sabancı is unique in allowing students to choose their major in the 2nd yr.
CAFE- Center for Applied Finance Education has a simulated trading floor- real-time date from Istanbul stock exchange, Bloomberg and Reuters terminals- to support teaching and research. This is the only trading floor in the Middle East, except for the one in Israel. It started in June 2008- 25-50 M dollars to set up. Most interested in energy trading.
Turkey strives to be an international player, but now they are a regional actor in the Middle East and E. Europe. Turkish companies are now investing in Russia, E. Europe, Romania, Ukraine and Egypt. Challenge for companies in this region to find competent management. Sabancı wants to attract students from these countries.
It was great to learn that Sabancı has signed on the the UN Global Compact. They have committed to integrating principles of human rights, anti-corruption, labor and environmental issues into their curriculum. "By doing so, business, as a primary agent driving globalization, can help ensure that markets, commerce, technology and finance advance in ways that benefit economies and societies everywhere." Seems like more US companies need to get on this bandwagon.
SINAİ KALKINMA BANKASI
23.12.08 we visited the TKSB- the Industrial Development Bank of Turkey. It is a private investment and development bank whose mission is to grow investment in Turkey and the surrounding region. The researchers and economists create sector reports, mainly in the areas of textiles, banking, energy, automobiles, education, health, paint, metals, mining, scientific fibers, transportation, logistics, renewable energy, meat, poultry and tourism. The librarian reads 13 newspapers daily and scans relevant articles into a database. This is something we did 30 yrs ago, but Turkish newspapers are not in a database so users cannot easily conduct their own research. The World Bank helped create the library. They don't have databases, mostly purchase paper reports.
They are proud to be the first Turkish Bank to obtain an ISO 14001 environment certification. "TSKB has been involved in important environment related activities in Turkey through the loans extended for the projection of the enviroment as well as the loans provided for investmentsin renewable energy."
I asked to speak with a researcher and was pleased that an Economist came down. This man was very smart and knew well the global economic scene. They track US, China and then Europe. Of course he knew that Nouriel Roubini (a Turk) at Stern was most correct with his predictions on the economic crisis. He said Turkey is in recession now and they predict negative growth for '09. They are in the worst position since 2001, when they experienced a macroeconomic crisis. The World Bank took over and reformed the banking system. Turkey does not have a direct exposure to the mortgage crisis because they only started offering mortgages in 2004 and they have a 5-7 yr maturity. They'e waiting to see what kind of government intervention Obama will take. He thinks the entire financial architecture must be restructered. He noted how Hyman Minsky was right. He proceeded to give us a short history of the mortgage crisis. If there is going to be a short recession, we should see positive signs by April- watch commodities- oil should rise. If this doesn't happen world economy could recover in 2010.
Of course they took us to lunch and our driver joined us.
December 25
I was interested in doing some recruiting for Emory, mainly to have an opportunity to meet another demographic- high school students. Scott Allen at Emory gave me the name of 4 schools he recruits from. I called Üsküdar Amerikan Lisesi and the college advisor knew Emory well and was happy to arrange a time for me to meet with the students. Before I knew it, Tara sent me an invitation to her Open House on XMAS eve. Last night I met a delightful group of people, mostly teachers at her school. One was close to retirement and looking for an adventure for 2 years. Another woman fell in love with Turkey and claims she wouldn't live anywhere else. I have a date with a friendly Australian woman for drinks New Year's eve. The neighbor upstairs invited us all to hear her daughter play piano, after serving us the best spinach boreks! A former water official from Idaho explained why you can't drink the tap water. (It is pumped from tanks on the roof that are unregulated and most likely filled with trash, cats, etc.) In Atlanta, I don't think I would travel 2 hours for an evening party, but I'm so glad I met Tara - a new friend and guide to Istanbul.
Woke up today to a dusting of snow. The sun was shining brilliantly, the roadways were a bit icy. I had my 30 min. walk to school and took some nice photos (see below.) Despite the Christmas decorations, it was a pretty normal day here. I finally met with the Provost - the man who made this all happen. He was very friendly, asked me to write up a report for him and hopes that Emory and Koç will have an ongoing relationship.
People are busy with year-end projects so my other meetings were cancelled. The Black Sea is down the street, but I had not been there yet. I hopped on a city bus and feasted on one of the most spectacular views of the Bosphorus - we were high on the cliff, passing a narrow strait and on the other side were ruins of a fortress. We rode through the Belgrade forest, thick with pine trees. Koç was built in this forest and the lawsuit, by environmentalists opposed to the construction, is still pending. We descended to the small village of Garıpçe and then climbed the hill again and headed straight down to Rumeli Feneri. Californians would be in shock to see the crumbling houses on this spectacular coast! Just your normal Turkish village with a few apartment houses in descent condition and many in a state of disrepair. There's a small marina and the ruins of a fortress. Casting your eyes to the north, you see many boats on the horizon. Big tankers make their way slowly down the Bosphorus. Large fishing boat are anchored right at the mouth of the strait. The women are conservatively dressed, all in headscarves. Not much happening in town, nevertheless there were 3 teahouses for the men to hang out in. I went to purchase some glue and only had a 50 lira bill. The proprieter replied, "sonra"- later. This man never saw me in his life, he knew I was a foreigner, yet he was telling me- just come back when you can. Then he went back to his tray of food that his wife brought him for lunch. I had time until the bus was coming so I wandered around and found change in the grocer. I think the guy was almost insulted when I returned with my one lira for the glue. He simply offered me a date from his tray.
Sunday, 21 December 2008
rain and underground mosques
Saturday it was pouring rain. Luckily there was a short film festival and a festival of refugee films on Istiklal Cadessi. I met Ozge at 12 - she was an Exchange student at Emory, now studying in London. The shorts were pretty bad. Ozge partially translated a Bosnian refugee film for me. Then I saw a Palestinian film with English subtitles. It took place in Nazereth and was quite critical of the Palestinian Authority.
Sunday it was still raining. An Exchange student from Rutgers told me his Istanbul history class would be having a field trip. I asked if I could tag along - the professor agreed and they met right by my hotel. The professor is Austrian- she did her thesis on hamans (Turkish baths!) I was happy that she brought the students to the Jewish museum. Even those who grew up in Istanbul had never been there. The man who wrote the Jewish guide to Istanbul gave us an introduction. There are 4 groups of Jews in the city: 1. came after the destruction of the Temple in 70, 2. Eastern Jews - from N. Africa, 3. Russian Jews and 4. Sephardic Jews- came after expulsion from Spain in 1492.
All along the route we saw Genoese buildings. We visited churches. (Earlier in the day I entered a church and saw mostly Africans males and Asian women. It was pretty sad because you realize all these people are far from their families- ın the country just to earn a living. I talked with a Tanzinian who works on cargo boats.) The underground mosque- Yerali Cami- was the most amazing. I think it had been a Genoese prison. From here they put the chain across the Golden Horn to prevent unwanted ships from entering. Nearby was the Arap Cami- the Arab mosque- a former church of Dominican monks that was given to the Hispano Arabs. It is a miniature of the Aya Sophia.
A highlight of the field trip was lunch at Namli in Tophane - like Zabar's. Huge array of prepared foods, lots of Turkish and exported cheeseş candies and more. The professor was laid back- giving everyone enough time for a nice break.
When I returned I had a message from a Turkish man that invited me to a Chanukah celebration in Örtaköy. The consul was there. Unfortunately he only called yesterday- so I missed celebrating the first candle. Happy Chanukah to my family and friends.
Sunday it was still raining. An Exchange student from Rutgers told me his Istanbul history class would be having a field trip. I asked if I could tag along - the professor agreed and they met right by my hotel. The professor is Austrian- she did her thesis on hamans (Turkish baths!) I was happy that she brought the students to the Jewish museum. Even those who grew up in Istanbul had never been there. The man who wrote the Jewish guide to Istanbul gave us an introduction. There are 4 groups of Jews in the city: 1. came after the destruction of the Temple in 70, 2. Eastern Jews - from N. Africa, 3. Russian Jews and 4. Sephardic Jews- came after expulsion from Spain in 1492.
All along the route we saw Genoese buildings. We visited churches. (Earlier in the day I entered a church and saw mostly Africans males and Asian women. It was pretty sad because you realize all these people are far from their families- ın the country just to earn a living. I talked with a Tanzinian who works on cargo boats.) The underground mosque- Yerali Cami- was the most amazing. I think it had been a Genoese prison. From here they put the chain across the Golden Horn to prevent unwanted ships from entering. Nearby was the Arap Cami- the Arab mosque- a former church of Dominican monks that was given to the Hispano Arabs. It is a miniature of the Aya Sophia.
A highlight of the field trip was lunch at Namli in Tophane - like Zabar's. Huge array of prepared foods, lots of Turkish and exported cheeseş candies and more. The professor was laid back- giving everyone enough time for a nice break.
When I returned I had a message from a Turkish man that invited me to a Chanukah celebration in Örtaköy. The consul was there. Unfortunately he only called yesterday- so I missed celebrating the first candle. Happy Chanukah to my family and friends.
Meeting the Radical Left
Friday I had a mind-stretching day talking with some incredible individuals who are working to make Turkey a true democracy.
I took the boat from Sariyer (the town down the hill from Koç) to Besiktaş. I saw the sun rising over massive ships heading to the Black Sea. From Besiktaş I jumped on another boat to cross to the Asian side and disembarked at Üsküdar. Thanks to Professor An-Na'im at Emory Law School, I had a meeting with Recep Senturk who was a Human Rights fellow at Emory. Recep earned his PhD at Columbia in Sociology. He teaches at the Center for Islamic Studies (ISAM) and Fatih University. I could have talked with him for days, but he was preparing for a conference that evening- so I was lucky to have an hour of his time. He is an engaging man who I enjoyed speaking with from the moment I met him.
Recep is focused on the legal and moral issues of Islam and human rights. I had a crash course in Islam, learning that Islam has multiple truths. Imans in the same city can rule on issues differently. He said there is a convergence of religion and human rights. Now some minorities in Turkey are fighting for their rights, but Recep said they should be fighting with the Muslims who are advocating for human rights. The government will never give the minorities rights that the Muslim majority does not enjoy.
Recep defines a secularlist as one who is against religion. He defines himself as secular; he believes in God, but wants a separation of religion from the state. When the Turkish republic was founded, Islam was the religion of the state. In 1937, the state accepted secularism. However, secularism is not defined in Turkey. In America, we define it as a separation between church and state. In Turkey, there is some freedom of religion, some separation of religion from the state and some control over religion by the state.
Today thanks to the Internet and other media, Turks are aware of what is going on in the West. No longer can the state say - we are emulating the west in order to be progressive - and this means that religion plays no part in society. Turkey's concept of secularism does not exist anywhere in the west. 88% of Turks want freedom of religion. The EU is requiring Turkey to redefine their relationship with religion. Religion needs autonomy while the army needs less autonomy and should come under the control of the elected government.
Currently the elite in the country- those in control- the wealthy, the army, the highly educated such as university rectors, etc - do not want to enter the EU. Entrance into the EU will require them to obey the rules. Right now they are the ones who are writing the rules. They will lose their power with EU entry. I was confused because I know Koç is involved with an institute that is working on EU acceptance and supposedly I heard that the business community is pro-EU. Recep claimed that they are just playing the game, really they are not interested. The typical response I hear from many Turks is that they are receiving unfair treatment. Croatia and Romania are in worse condition than Turkey, yet they sailed through the process.
When I said to Recep - maybe Europe really doesn't want to admit 70M Muslims to their community - he responded by saying I do not expect them to love us. Protestants and Catholics do not get along - we need to be realistic and look at the broader picture. The extremists on both sides get the media attention, so those are the views that we hear.
My head was spinning as I left. Mats were being laid in the central atrium for the upcoming prayer. Recep gave me a lot to think about. Turkey is a young country undergoing many changes. I have been learning a lot of negative things about the country, but Recep gave me hope that things are moving in the right direction.
I took the boat over to the European side to meet with Surreya, the Fulbright director in Istanbul. He brought me to a Russian restaurant, but alas - this is Turkey - so the food was the same Turkish food (just the eggplant salad was yellow.) Surreya had just returned from NY so unfortunately he was telling me about the tough economic situation. He mentioned that the Fulbright program might be affected. Germany has the largest Fulbright program because the government gives 90% of the funds. Turkey is number 2, with the government providing 25% of the funds.I tried out my new ideas that I learned from Recep on Surreya. He didn't exactly agree; I think he may be a Kemalist!
Then I tried my luck with walking into a hotel to get a good rate and once again my luck held. I wanted to stay in Taksim/ Beyoğlu area. This is the center of the modern, European side. Istiklal Caddesi is a 1.5 km pedestrian shopping area. It is packed day and night. At first I thought I didn't need to be around Western shops, but the side streets are amazing and this is where all the action is.
At 5:00 I met Selma, thanks to David Montgomery at Emory. He organized the International Summer School on Religion and Public Life. Selma just started talking, as if we had been friends for years. As we waited for the bus to Bilgi University, I learned that she is finishing her masters. She is analyzing people's attitudes about being Turkish. She found her interviewees on Facebook and Yahoo Groups! Now she is really interested in making documentary films. She was in Teheran in October and would like to do a fim about everyday life in Iran, using the upcoming election as a focal point. Recently she did a bike ride for peace in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and Palestine. I asked why no Israelis and she said Israelis would only be able to enter Jordan - not even Palestine. (I want to explore this more with her.)
Bilgi is like the Antioch of Istanbul- real free-thinkers. I only saw it in the dark, but it is amazing. We were on the new Santral campus. Bilgi started out in a poor neighborhood - the philosophy being that the university should be situated in needy neighborhoods and then students could work on projects to benefit the community. This new campus is situated where the Ottoman electric works were located. Now this building is an fascinating hands-on science museum. The library is just half of one floor, but the campus boasts 3 restaurants! We also visited the modern art museum which had an exhibit on 1968- photos from Germany.
Gülnaz joined us at 8- she was also at the International Summer School. She just graduated and is a dynamo of action. She is currently involved in a youth congress. I wish I had a tape recorder (and that I was 30 yrs younger!) These young women are very passionate and active about making Turkey a better place. They stated that there was an Armenian genocide, but they didn't think it was the US business to get involved in the issue. They did not think passing a resolution in the House would promote matters. They talked about Turks being complacent. Soldiers die in the East and no one - not the families, etc. ask why. We talked about the similarities between Israel and Turkey. I asked if they knew about any planned solidarity protests with Greece. Selma responded, "Turkish people are killed every month by police, but no one says anything."
Gulnaz would like to work with NGOs, but the money is not enough. She is Kurdish, first university graduate in her family. A beautiful, articulate young woman who will go far in life. As we parted I knew two new friendships had just begun to blossom.
I took the boat from Sariyer (the town down the hill from Koç) to Besiktaş. I saw the sun rising over massive ships heading to the Black Sea. From Besiktaş I jumped on another boat to cross to the Asian side and disembarked at Üsküdar. Thanks to Professor An-Na'im at Emory Law School, I had a meeting with Recep Senturk who was a Human Rights fellow at Emory. Recep earned his PhD at Columbia in Sociology. He teaches at the Center for Islamic Studies (ISAM) and Fatih University. I could have talked with him for days, but he was preparing for a conference that evening- so I was lucky to have an hour of his time. He is an engaging man who I enjoyed speaking with from the moment I met him.
Recep is focused on the legal and moral issues of Islam and human rights. I had a crash course in Islam, learning that Islam has multiple truths. Imans in the same city can rule on issues differently. He said there is a convergence of religion and human rights. Now some minorities in Turkey are fighting for their rights, but Recep said they should be fighting with the Muslims who are advocating for human rights. The government will never give the minorities rights that the Muslim majority does not enjoy.
Recep defines a secularlist as one who is against religion. He defines himself as secular; he believes in God, but wants a separation of religion from the state. When the Turkish republic was founded, Islam was the religion of the state. In 1937, the state accepted secularism. However, secularism is not defined in Turkey. In America, we define it as a separation between church and state. In Turkey, there is some freedom of religion, some separation of religion from the state and some control over religion by the state.
Today thanks to the Internet and other media, Turks are aware of what is going on in the West. No longer can the state say - we are emulating the west in order to be progressive - and this means that religion plays no part in society. Turkey's concept of secularism does not exist anywhere in the west. 88% of Turks want freedom of religion. The EU is requiring Turkey to redefine their relationship with religion. Religion needs autonomy while the army needs less autonomy and should come under the control of the elected government.
Currently the elite in the country- those in control- the wealthy, the army, the highly educated such as university rectors, etc - do not want to enter the EU. Entrance into the EU will require them to obey the rules. Right now they are the ones who are writing the rules. They will lose their power with EU entry. I was confused because I know Koç is involved with an institute that is working on EU acceptance and supposedly I heard that the business community is pro-EU. Recep claimed that they are just playing the game, really they are not interested. The typical response I hear from many Turks is that they are receiving unfair treatment. Croatia and Romania are in worse condition than Turkey, yet they sailed through the process.
When I said to Recep - maybe Europe really doesn't want to admit 70M Muslims to their community - he responded by saying I do not expect them to love us. Protestants and Catholics do not get along - we need to be realistic and look at the broader picture. The extremists on both sides get the media attention, so those are the views that we hear.
My head was spinning as I left. Mats were being laid in the central atrium for the upcoming prayer. Recep gave me a lot to think about. Turkey is a young country undergoing many changes. I have been learning a lot of negative things about the country, but Recep gave me hope that things are moving in the right direction.
I took the boat over to the European side to meet with Surreya, the Fulbright director in Istanbul. He brought me to a Russian restaurant, but alas - this is Turkey - so the food was the same Turkish food (just the eggplant salad was yellow.) Surreya had just returned from NY so unfortunately he was telling me about the tough economic situation. He mentioned that the Fulbright program might be affected. Germany has the largest Fulbright program because the government gives 90% of the funds. Turkey is number 2, with the government providing 25% of the funds.I tried out my new ideas that I learned from Recep on Surreya. He didn't exactly agree; I think he may be a Kemalist!
Then I tried my luck with walking into a hotel to get a good rate and once again my luck held. I wanted to stay in Taksim/ Beyoğlu area. This is the center of the modern, European side. Istiklal Caddesi is a 1.5 km pedestrian shopping area. It is packed day and night. At first I thought I didn't need to be around Western shops, but the side streets are amazing and this is where all the action is.
At 5:00 I met Selma, thanks to David Montgomery at Emory. He organized the International Summer School on Religion and Public Life. Selma just started talking, as if we had been friends for years. As we waited for the bus to Bilgi University, I learned that she is finishing her masters. She is analyzing people's attitudes about being Turkish. She found her interviewees on Facebook and Yahoo Groups! Now she is really interested in making documentary films. She was in Teheran in October and would like to do a fim about everyday life in Iran, using the upcoming election as a focal point. Recently she did a bike ride for peace in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and Palestine. I asked why no Israelis and she said Israelis would only be able to enter Jordan - not even Palestine. (I want to explore this more with her.)
Bilgi is like the Antioch of Istanbul- real free-thinkers. I only saw it in the dark, but it is amazing. We were on the new Santral campus. Bilgi started out in a poor neighborhood - the philosophy being that the university should be situated in needy neighborhoods and then students could work on projects to benefit the community. This new campus is situated where the Ottoman electric works were located. Now this building is an fascinating hands-on science museum. The library is just half of one floor, but the campus boasts 3 restaurants! We also visited the modern art museum which had an exhibit on 1968- photos from Germany.
Gülnaz joined us at 8- she was also at the International Summer School. She just graduated and is a dynamo of action. She is currently involved in a youth congress. I wish I had a tape recorder (and that I was 30 yrs younger!) These young women are very passionate and active about making Turkey a better place. They stated that there was an Armenian genocide, but they didn't think it was the US business to get involved in the issue. They did not think passing a resolution in the House would promote matters. They talked about Turks being complacent. Soldiers die in the East and no one - not the families, etc. ask why. We talked about the similarities between Israel and Turkey. I asked if they knew about any planned solidarity protests with Greece. Selma responded, "Turkish people are killed every month by police, but no one says anything."
Gulnaz would like to work with NGOs, but the money is not enough. She is Kurdish, first university graduate in her family. A beautiful, articulate young woman who will go far in life. As we parted I knew two new friendships had just begun to blossom.
Friday, 19 December 2008
Anıt Kabir
Ankara is a modern city- not a whole lot to do as a tourist. Atatürk made it the capital when he founded the republic so visiting his tomb is the main attraction in the city.
The main entrance is guarded by Hittite-style lions. Turkish history is chronicled differently, depending upon who you are talking to. Ataürk reached back to the Hittites as the direct ancestors to the Turkish people. A colonnade surrounds a massive courtyard with the mausoleum in a neoclassical temple at one end. Turks were proud to have their pictures taken at this site, some said a prayer by holding out their cupped their hands.
The museum had some battle scenes (replete with sound effects) of the Gallipoli campaign - similar to the Cyclorama in Atlanta. You get the sense of what life was like in the trenches. Further exhibits were of Atatürk's possessions- everything displayed except his underwear- including his stuffed dog.
Other exhibits documented the founding of the republic. Atatürk changed the alphabet from Arabic script to Western. He opened adult schools; officials were required to learn the new script within 3 months. Previously illiteracy was high partially due to the fact that the written language was different from the spoken language. He also changed the day off from Friday to Sunday and changed the calendar from lunar to Gregorian - all to accomodate the West. He wanted to push Turkey forward and he was emulating the West as the center of progress. I was thinking of how Israel did things quite differently - even though they were faced with similar challenges of quickly forming a state and unifying the populace. Israel revived an ancient language that no one else was speaking in the world and observed Saturday as the day of rest. (Certainly there were many differences between the founding of the State of Israel and the Republic of Turkey, but there are some interesting similarities- plenty of material for PhD theses.)
There were many oil paintings about the War of Independence, women were prominently featured. Scenes showed villagers donating linens to the war efforts and women making bullets. A scene of Greeks pillaging a town stated that they had documentary evidence that the clergy was involved- and in the background you see a priest holding up a cross.
Saturday night dined with Louise and Steve friends- a Fulbrighter from Baylor U. who is researching Atatürk's transition from military commander to politician. On the way home we passed "Abu-Ghraib Santa," as Steve pointed out- blown up Santas hung by their hands from a store's awning. (still waiting for Steve to post this video)
Sunday I visited Hasan and Elif who I had met in an Emory law class. Elif is a professor of Political Science at Ankara University and Hasan is completing his PhD. They have a cute 1 yr. old. As I discussed politics with them they told me they had voted for AKP- the current party in power, but are now disappointed with them. AKP was representing the masses, but now that they are in power, they act elitist. Hasan and Elif immediately recalled an incident where a party member had insulted the common folk- they took this as a great offense. When I asked about their "democracy" Hasan responded by saying- "what kind of democracy do you have with just 40% or so of the people voting?" I would have loved to talked with him longer and take notes as we talk...I'm struggling now to remember all he said. He is a thoughtful, introspective young man. I look forward to corresponding with him as more issues come up. Elif was interested in having the Fulbrighter scholar come talk to her class.
Sunday evening we dined with a couple (he's British and she works for the Italian embassy) and their French neighbors. Luckily a fresh shipment of Italian wine had just arrived from the embassy. Sebastian, the French neighbor, works for the United Nations Development Program on designing a new police program for Turkey, to comply with EU standards. I would have loved to hear more details- he just said they will have some successes- not all of their recommendations will be implemented. When I mentioned this to my flatmate, she was not as impressed as me. She said- didn't you hear the news....she thought the EU was close to dissolving because Ireland had vetoed something. Turks often bring up their unfair treatment compared to Croatia and Romania. They resent the fact that they are forced to jump through many hoops. They think they are in a better position than many E. European countries and the EU simply does not really want to admit Turkey.
Monday all planes were delayed for 3+ hours due to heavy fog. Didn't get to work at 2, as planned. Arrived home about 6.
The main entrance is guarded by Hittite-style lions. Turkish history is chronicled differently, depending upon who you are talking to. Ataürk reached back to the Hittites as the direct ancestors to the Turkish people. A colonnade surrounds a massive courtyard with the mausoleum in a neoclassical temple at one end. Turks were proud to have their pictures taken at this site, some said a prayer by holding out their cupped their hands.
The museum had some battle scenes (replete with sound effects) of the Gallipoli campaign - similar to the Cyclorama in Atlanta. You get the sense of what life was like in the trenches. Further exhibits were of Atatürk's possessions- everything displayed except his underwear- including his stuffed dog.
Other exhibits documented the founding of the republic. Atatürk changed the alphabet from Arabic script to Western. He opened adult schools; officials were required to learn the new script within 3 months. Previously illiteracy was high partially due to the fact that the written language was different from the spoken language. He also changed the day off from Friday to Sunday and changed the calendar from lunar to Gregorian - all to accomodate the West. He wanted to push Turkey forward and he was emulating the West as the center of progress. I was thinking of how Israel did things quite differently - even though they were faced with similar challenges of quickly forming a state and unifying the populace. Israel revived an ancient language that no one else was speaking in the world and observed Saturday as the day of rest. (Certainly there were many differences between the founding of the State of Israel and the Republic of Turkey, but there are some interesting similarities- plenty of material for PhD theses.)
There were many oil paintings about the War of Independence, women were prominently featured. Scenes showed villagers donating linens to the war efforts and women making bullets. A scene of Greeks pillaging a town stated that they had documentary evidence that the clergy was involved- and in the background you see a priest holding up a cross.
Saturday night dined with Louise and Steve friends- a Fulbrighter from Baylor U. who is researching Atatürk's transition from military commander to politician. On the way home we passed "Abu-Ghraib Santa," as Steve pointed out- blown up Santas hung by their hands from a store's awning. (still waiting for Steve to post this video)
Sunday I visited Hasan and Elif who I had met in an Emory law class. Elif is a professor of Political Science at Ankara University and Hasan is completing his PhD. They have a cute 1 yr. old. As I discussed politics with them they told me they had voted for AKP- the current party in power, but are now disappointed with them. AKP was representing the masses, but now that they are in power, they act elitist. Hasan and Elif immediately recalled an incident where a party member had insulted the common folk- they took this as a great offense. When I asked about their "democracy" Hasan responded by saying- "what kind of democracy do you have with just 40% or so of the people voting?" I would have loved to talked with him longer and take notes as we talk...I'm struggling now to remember all he said. He is a thoughtful, introspective young man. I look forward to corresponding with him as more issues come up. Elif was interested in having the Fulbrighter scholar come talk to her class.
Sunday evening we dined with a couple (he's British and she works for the Italian embassy) and their French neighbors. Luckily a fresh shipment of Italian wine had just arrived from the embassy. Sebastian, the French neighbor, works for the United Nations Development Program on designing a new police program for Turkey, to comply with EU standards. I would have loved to hear more details- he just said they will have some successes- not all of their recommendations will be implemented. When I mentioned this to my flatmate, she was not as impressed as me. She said- didn't you hear the news....she thought the EU was close to dissolving because Ireland had vetoed something. Turks often bring up their unfair treatment compared to Croatia and Romania. They resent the fact that they are forced to jump through many hoops. They think they are in a better position than many E. European countries and the EU simply does not really want to admit Turkey.
Monday all planes were delayed for 3+ hours due to heavy fog. Didn't get to work at 2, as planned. Arrived home about 6.
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