Republic Day

This morning we got a wake-up call from an air force jet buzzing my apartment building, a friendly airborne advertisement for the military air show that will take place on Saturday. October 29 is Republic Day, Turkey's national holiday celebrating the founding of the Turkish Republic in 1929.

Usually this is a joyful day when the Turkish people burst forth in a collective display of patriotism and gratitude to Ataturk, the man who single-handedly brought Turkey out of the age of empire and caliphate and guided it into the 20th century as an independent, Westward-facing secular democracy.

But this year the commemoration will be a little more somber, and the city's transformation into a panorama of red and white flags occurred a couple of weeks early, reflecting the fact that the nation is mourning in the wake of two tragedies last week.


The first happened last Wednesday, the latest chapter of a conflict that dates back to 1984 and which could be called a civil war of sorts. Twenty-four Turkish soldiers were killed in southeast Turkey in a strike by the PKK, or Kurdistan Workers' Party, a Kurdish separatist group based in northern Iraq. People here were devastated by the news, and the flags immediately went up to commemorate the "martyrs," a word Turks use to describe any soldier who dies in defense of his homeland, not only those who die for a religious cause. Thousands gathered at Ataturk's mausoleum here in Ankara to mourn. Others took to the streets, carrying flags and shouting chants of indignant fury calling for the government to avenge its citizens. Last Friday while walking to the park I encountered no less than five separate protest marches, many of them schoolkids.


As a citizen of a country where loss of military personnel is a tragically routine occurrence, and where groups of people have been protesting our current military actions since they started, I was sympathetic to their emotional response. However, I was a bit surprised by the desperation in people's voices when they spoke of the martyrs, and the extent to which the general population rose up in anger. It would be as if the entire United States jumped up after a bomb in Baghdad and went to Washington to shout, "This is enough! We have to end this now!"

To contextualize a bit, the PKK has been wreaking havoc in Turkey for decades, and is considered a terrorist organization by the United States, the EU, and a number of other countries. Southeast Turkey is practically a war zone. More than 30,000 people have lost their lives since 1984, both Turkish soldiers and Kurdish rebels, as well as several thousand civilians, according to Wikipedia. All Turkish men are required to serve in the military, and therefore run the risk of being sent willy-nilly to areas where they are likely to face combat. This last attack seems to have been the last straw for a number of people who are simply tired of a conflict that has gone on far too long.

But if that wasn't enough grief for the country, the eastern city of Van, near the Iranian border, was struck by a 7.2 earthquake on Sunday, killing at least 500 so far and leaving thousands of others homeless. I'm sure you've seen news reports, as it seems to be a major story around the globe, but in case you're wondering how this has affected me, let me try to put this in perspective.


Turkey is a big country, much bigger than I tend to think it is, and the distance from Ankara to Van is over 850 miles, meaning that I'm safely far removed from both earthquake and terrorists. I first learned of the earthquake via a Facebook post from a family friend wanting to know if I was all right, so no, we didn't feel it here and everything is okay. But in Van, the situation is bad, as rescue workers are now at a point where there isn't much hope of finding more survivors, and the government has discovered they don't have enough tents to shelter all those whose homes were destroyed.

The government here is finally starting to accept some foreign aid, and I know the U.S. has pledged to send money for relief efforts. The Red Crescent, Turkey's equivalent of the Red Cross, is also working diligently to send donations of money and winter clothes to those who need it. But, as with any disaster area, the cleanup and recovery process will not happen overnight and help will be needed for a long time to come.

If you feel moved to help relief efforts in Van, you can donate to the International Red Cross Foundation here, or to Catholic Relief Services here. These groups are sending relief workers and also providing supplies to families who have been left homeless. As far as I know there are no U.S.-based organizations collecting donations of supplies, but it's possible that local groups are starting to do so.

In the meantime, please remember Turkey in your prayers this weekend. Republic Day will be marred by a lot of pain tomorrow, and as much as people need blankets, they also have spiritual needs as they turn to God for comfort in their distress. So please pray for the hope and comfort of God's grace to be evident in the midst of disaster. Also thank God for the rescue workers and for the lives that have been saved through their hands in the days following the earthquakes, and pray for their continued strength as they search for others and begin rebuilding.

And thanks to all of you who have been so concerned about my safety recently- it's always good to know that people are thinking about me and praying for me while I'm over here as these things happen.

Istanbul- safer than you think

It has been a while since my last update, and that is because I spent much of the month of September zooming across continents, from Ankara to Missouri to Florida and back again. But the first part of the journey was one long overdue- after living in Turkey for nearly a year, I finally visited Istanbul for the first time.

Former capital of the Byzantine and Ottoman Empires- lots to see here, and it's still a bustling, vibrant city today.

How could it possibly have taken me so long to take such a glaringly obvious trip? Well, Istanbul is a good seven hour bus ride from Ankara and is so full of history and incredible sites that you need at least two days to explore. My schedule is such that I never have two consecutive days off, and occasionally no days off at all, which makes getting out of Ankara more complicated than it seems. But as my flight to the USA departed from Istanbul, and I was already taking ten days off of work, I thought, "What's another two days?" and spent a weekend in Istanbul before leaving.

Now the thought of me traveling alone in Istanbul sends my parents into paroxysms, and is something I, unable to completely rid myself of stereotypes, would never even have considered until just a few months ago. But I have learned a few things in my time here, one of which being that Turkey is generally a pretty safe place and that while Istanbul, as in any big city, has its share of pickpockets and psychopaths, it's not a den of America-haters waiting to pounce on any light-skinned Christian walking the streets.

It is, however, very densely packed, so hang on to your purse.

And my experience only served to further my positive impressions. Far more impressive than the architectural splendors of Istanbul's historical peninsula was the warmth its inhabitants displayed in welcoming me during my two day visit to their city.

The generosity began even before I arrived. Back in August I received a casual offer of a free place to stay in Istanbul from a friend-of-a-friend that I met at a dinner party. In the USA I would feel awkward calling such a person up a month later, but this being Turkey, the land of hospitality, my new friend (as I must now call her) was thrilled when I called to take her up on her offer.

And the people of Istanbul went far out of their way to make my life easier from the moment I stepped off the bus. In my first half hour in Istanbul, I was approached by a man who saw me struggling with the subway ticket machine and offered to help, a woman who pointed out to me that the wheelchair exit would be easier than lifting my 50-pound suitcase over the turnstile, and a man who accosted me at the top of a staircase and took my suitcase down the stairs despite my protests.

I should have known that an offer of a place to sleep would be more than a simple hello in the morning and good night in the evening. My host insisted on including me in her weekend plans, which meant two birthday parties, brunch on a pier overlooking the sea, an afternoon walking tour of the coast, and introducing me to most of her friends. Her marvelous idea was to give me a taste of Istanbul life beyond what most tourists see. So while I missed a few of the main touristic sites this go-around, I was most certainly introduced to the heart of the city and the people who live there.

Perfect spot for a relaxing walk with friends, no?

On Saturday my friend had to work, which was no problem for me as serendipitous city-crawling is one of my favorite pastimes, in cities and countries where I feel safe doing so. Istanbul is the perfect city for wandering with no agenda, no map, and no hurry. Turkish people are very sociable, and while window-shopping in the historical peninsula I discovered that it was not possible to simply browse and walk out without a chat and a cup of tea with the shop owner. I'm not naive- there are plenty of shrewd merchants looking to empty the pockets of foreign tourists who don't know better, but as in any tourist area, a foreigner able to hold her own in Turkish can avert some of the deviousness. Turks are hospitable by nature, and proud of their country, so they're extra welcoming to a guest who seems interested in learning about Turkey. By the end of the morning my notebook was full of scribbled travel advice from people I met along the way who recommended their favorite locations and were kind enough to give me directions.

Haggling is a must at the Grand Bazaar, although I discovered that prices tend to drop and shopkeepers become more chatty if you can speak a bit of Turkish.

Even on my last night in Istanbul, when a couple of my new acquaintances heard that I was planning to take the midnight shuttle bus to the airport and spend the night there, there was a cry of outrage at the thought of a guest stuck alone at the airport for six hours. They insisted on driving me to the airport at 3 am, and when we arrived they sat and kept me company for about an hour before finally deciding that it was time for me to go and check in for my flight. And so I departed in good company, a bit overwhelmed with gratitude, not only for their willingness to help me out, but also for their enthusiasm in doing so.

So yes, I will write more about the fantastic sights that Istanbul has to offer, but even with all the splendors of a city considered one of the most beautiful in the world, this was the main impression I took with me.