More Turkey!!!!

                  The “excursions” in Turkey the last couple of weeks have been a blast!!!  Many thanks to the Turkey group, who have let us experience tastes of Turkish culture!  The Turkish and Armenian dishes that the girls brought last week were wonderful!!!

                  The film on the rising importance and influence of Turkish music was a new topic to me, as were the many of the images of Istanbul.  It was rather strange seeing the modern city of Istanbul, especially the parts of the city where the night life was very active.  It actually saddened me, wondering if the West’s influence in the country has mainly revealed itself through rebellious teenagers and wild music.  This would be sad, but it may be true.  It is also sad to see the images of some parts of modern Istanbul, compared to how beautiful parts of the city were during the Ottoman Empire.  Maybe there are still parts of the city that maintain this beauty, but the images that stuck out to me were the ones that looked like run-down parts of Chicago.

It was also wonderful to have Dr. Mirzeler come to speak last week.  He is very eloquent and it was neat to hear him talk about some of the wonders of the Ottoman Empire, especially during the Tulip period.  The images he showed us were beautiful, and I loved the history he gave about the old bridge that is seemingly indestructible!  The signature /seal of the Sultan was also fascinating, and it would be neat to learn more about its history.  I don’t know about everyone else, but his stories made me want to travel back in time to see the wonders of the Ottoman Empire myself! 

Thanks, Turkey group!