Around Ankara

The other night we attended an American BBQ hosted by the Chargé d’Affaires in Ankara. The US Ambassador to Turkey has yet to be confirmed by the Senate, so he's it. The event was really great. An insane lightening storm fortunately ended by the time we got there. He and his wife offered a warm welcome and the dinner consisted of a mixture of American and Turkish food. The ice cream strangely was like cake batter ice cream. While there, a woman who works for the Fulbright Commission offered to show myself and a friend around the Bahçelievler (houses with gardens) neighborhood of Ankara. It was really nice to just enjoy an evening with the "State Department Suits" and it definitely ended too soon.

Yesterday we visited the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations which was in the old city of Ankara. A couple friends and I then walked around the citadel and shops for a few hours before making our way back to the hotel. While walking here though, I finally felt like I was in Turkey. I guess it finally felt authentic. (I understand this is an awful statement since all of Turkey is Turkey and therefore authentic.) The pebble stone streets were tiny and hard for cabs to maneuver in. Friendly shopkeepers tried very hard to get us in their stores. And then of course the afternoon call to prayer rang through the streets. It was the first I had been here in which I could actually hear it and it didn't just sound like a muffled voice over a loudspeaker. We were also the only foreigners in the neighborhood the entire time we walked around. It was simply beautiful.