My first few days in Ankara are days I will always remember:“We’ll visit a park, a castle, a tomb and a museum and go tomorrow to Atatürk’s mausoleum, which is called Anıtkabir,” said Ayşe, my new Turkish friend.
The first thing I noticed about Ankara after driving from İstanbul to Ankara on the old highway, which was narrow and curvy and took double the time it takes now, was that Ankara had wide streets and orderly traffic.
I moved there in July, and it was hot! No air conditioning and no ice cubes were to be found anywhere except at five-star hotels. Ankara residents went to Gençlik (youth) Park and Kuğulu (swan) Park to cool off. My friend Ayşe insisted we must stroll through Gençlik Park. We did and enjoyed everything around us. The shades of acacia and wild chestnut trees on the sidewalks cooled the air some. I was pleased to see how green the park was even in July. The park had a small lake, and we crossed over the footbridge and watched the small boat sailing around. I was beginning to warm up to Ankara -- in more ways than one!
Another observation I made was that there were few cars on the roads and that traffic noise was minimal. Most people used public transport or walked to where they wanted to go. I had never been much of a walker before coming to Turkey as I always drove everywhere back home. But I remember walking from my home, which was not far from Kuğulu Park, to Ulus!
I used to spend hours sitting with Turkish friends drinking lots and lots of Turkish tea from the little tulip-shaped tea glasses. I had never been much of hot tea drinker before coming to Turkey. I missed having iced tea and filter coffee. Neither was obtainable.
We sat in the tea garden with a big teapot, which was called a semaver. It was my first time seeing one of these. How different it all was…
Next we walked to the Ankara Castle, which looks down on the city. On the back slope, I noticed tin roof shacks that looked as though they were almost built on top of one another. Ayşe explained to me that these were gecekondu houses. This word literally means “to be built in one night” in Turkish. Gecekondus form the slums. Turkey has experienced deep socio-economic and cultural changes. Turkish cities have experienced sweeping demographic changes and developmental challenges. What I saw looking down from the castle hill was evidence of this change and challenge. Beginning in the late 1960s -- and carrying on into the early 1980s -- major population shifts from rural to urban dwellings occurred.
Unlike İstanbul, the castle is one of the few tourist places you must visit!
“The construction date of the castle is not know,” explained Ayşe. My Turkish friend, acting as a tour guide with her foreign guest, added, “The Seljuks had the damaged parts repaired, and there are more than 20 towers.” I did not want to appear uninformed, so I did not ask who the Seljuks were but went home and read up on the subject. Of course, I could not google it back then. I went to the library at the US Embassy in Ankara and arranged to check out a book.
Walking down the hill and enjoying every minute of it, we stopped at the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations. It was late in the afternoon, and we had grown thirsty. Ayşe ordered a drink called ayran (a yogurt drink). To most foreigners this sounds absolutely disgusting, but if you are brave enough to try it, you’ll feel refreshed. The last stop was to visit the tomb of Hacı Bayram-ı Veli. According to Ayşe, the Byzantines used the Augustus Temple as a church, and the Ottomans used it as a medrese (religious school). Jokingly, she said, “This concludes our tour for the day!” We had had a wonderful day.
I have lost touch with Ayşe, but another friend of mine from those days found me on Facebook recently. My, how times and places have changed!
Note: Charlotte McPherson is the author of “Culture Smart: Turkey, 2005.” Please keep your questions and observations coming: I want to ensure this column is a help to you, Today’s Zaman’s readers. Email: c.mcpherson@todayszaman.com
