July 20th

  Istanbul, Turkey
Tuesday, July 22, 2008

We began our day at the offices of Zaman (Times in Turkish) newspaper.  It is a national newspaper with the largest circulation of any newspaper in Turkey; 800,000 copies each day.  Zaman also publishes a weekly news magazine like Newsweek and runs a news service.  It also publishes an edition of their newspaper in 6 languages around the world.
We met the Foreign Desk Editor.  Below is a synopsis of his comments:
-Turkey is in a state of transformation
-Zaman, unlike many Turkish newspapers is a "serious" not sensationalist publication
-They have won 42 international design awards for their layouts
-Unlike most Turkish newspapers they separate news from opinion and mark it as such.
-They incorporate divergent viewpoints (op-ed) in the paper from across the spectrum
-They editorially support Turkeys drive for EU membership and see it as a crucial watershed event which must be reached.
-They support increased freedom for the people of Turkey.
-They support increasing the standard of living in Turkey
-They support increased educational opportunities for the young people of Turkey
-Turkey is a young country; it has a population of 70 million people and 70% of that population is under the age of 35.
-Modern Turkey has a history of military coups.  Most recently they had had a non-violent military coup resulting in a revised constitution; a 1997 non-violent coup; last year an "electronic coup" in which the judiciary threw out the ruling party.  At the next election, the people re-elected those people with the same principles as the party that had been removed by 48%-which is a landslide in a multi party democracy.

It is clear that Turkey is at a major political and social crossroads.  The direction this country takes will greatly impact the middle east, the Muslim world and Europe.

We then visited the Turkish Jewish Museum housed in an alleyway in an older part of Istanbul in what was once a synagogue.  The Jewish heritage runs deep in Turkey even though the population has been small.  Turkey has served as a refuge for Jews over the centuries, staring in 1492 when the Jews were expelled from Spain.

We then went to Tamik Hill.  It is the entertainment district.  It is filled with modern shops, hotels and lots of cafes.  I ate in an alley cafe.  I had what they called toast.  Specifically I had what the cafe called "Festiva Toast", the signature toast of that little restaurant.  It is a cross between a panini and a grilled cheese sandwich.  Mine had lambs cheese, salami, tomatos, olives and onions on it.  It was delicious.  I also had some Turkish fries.
While we ate in the alley,to our side in an enclosed area of the cafe, there was a bar and some tables.  The walls were covered with large video screens blaring out one video after another of Queen Songs.
Three young people were drinking coffee to our left and puffing on a hookah.  Our hostess was a bouncy red haired girl with an engaging smile who tested her English on us.
I stopped by a bookstore for awhile-looking mostly at the English section.  At one point in the background I could hear Gogol Bordello singing "Start Wearing Purple."
The bookstore and cafe were located on what is billed as the busiest pedestrian street in the world (I think of Peking and have my doubts).  Shops on both sides are swarmed by a mass of humanity, with alleyways jetting off to both sides filled with quaint cafes and more shops.
I bought an ice cream cone of mixed flavors,,,all natural and home made.  When the vendor handed it to me he manipulated the cone, turning it completely upside down.  I thought he had dropped it, but he quickly recovered it and smiled at me.  I then went back to the top of Tamak Hill.  I ate my ice cream on the memorial to Ataturk, the founder of the modern Turkish Republic, on the spot where the military had conducted their own "Tinnamen Square" event a few decades ago.
Back on the bus and on to the Asian Side of Istanbul.  We walked along the Bosphorus seeing families spending their Sunday afternoon by the sea in local parks- picnics, fishing, swimming.  Then we went to the top of tower hill for dinner.  It is a huge hill with a very large park at the top.
There were circumcision parties (those two words next to each other sound strange to me), wedding parties, picnics and family outings atop this hill in which you could see a grand vista of the European side of Istanbul.  Following a dinner of lamb and the usual turkey accompaniments

Lauren's Birthday

we drove to an ice cream / dessert shop for a surprise birthday cake for one of our group, Lauren.  We also presented Kamil with a present from the group.

Our gift to Camil

Our final day in Turkey had come to an end.