Referendum blues

Turkey is heading towards a referendum (16 April) which could change the whole political system.  It is impossible to get away from it – it fills the news, the papers and everybody’s conversations.  If you have Turkish friends on Facebook you might have noticed them posting references to the referendum, or changing their profile to ‘HAYIR’ (no – the outcome they are hoping for).

Without going into too much detail – which I don’t understand anyway - Turkey currently has a parliamentary system with an elected party whose leader is Prime Minister and a cabinet.  The President is not allowed to be a party member and officially has more of a ceremonial role.

The new system, being proposed by the current president and his supporters, will abolish the role of PM and make the President head of the Parliament.  He will be allowed remain as party leader, able to choose who runs as MP for the party and choose his own ministers without needing parliamentary approval.  More worryingly he will be able to choose more than half the senior judges in the judiciary.  Political commentators say that while many countries have presidential systems, they have checks and safeguards to ensure that one person does not have too much power.

One of the worst things is that, similar to the British referendum last year, we are not being given proper information.  Supporters claim the new system will enable them to end terrorism, reduce unemployment etc without actually explaining how.  As in the UK, discussions often deteriorate into name-calling with, at the worst, ‘no’ voters being accused of supporting terrorism.

This is apparently a rising phenomenon of modern politics, termed ‘post-truth’ politics.  It was widespread in the American presidential elections too.  It involves appealing to people’s emotions rather than their brain.  It seems that these days we aren’t so interested in policy and facts – much too dull!  We prefer the drama of a good argument, whether the claims being made are real or not (politics reduced to reality TV!).

So – it is an uncertain time for Turkey; not for holiday-makers as whatever happens in the referendum this will continue to be a beautiful place to visit but it might not be quite the same to live here and as it has been my home now for almost 25 years I am hoping it doesn’t change too much.

Enough politics!  Here is a lovely story that was in the news a couple of weeks ago...

... In the mountainous Black Sea region, an eleven-year old girl was watching over the family’s goats as they grazed.  It started to snow heavily and then she realised one of the goats was giving birth.  She took the other animals back home and returned to the goat and baby with two backpacks.   She put the baby in one and tied it to her dog’s back (large Turkish shepherd dog), then put the mother goat in the other bag and which she carried and struggled home through the thick snow.

What a strange world it is where this girl cares for the goats dressed in the traditional clothes of the region, while a picture of her taken by her brother on his phone ‘goes viral’.  Old and new worlds collide! This is one of the things I have always loved about Turkey.

By the way, the baby goat was named Snowball! 

Women in Turkey

Some of you will have seen the photographs I posted on Facebook showing women in the early days of the Turkish Republic (1920s and 1930s).  I loved these pictures of pioneering female doctors, engineers, sportswomen and politicians but it is hard not to feel depressed by the seeming lack of progress in the century since (well almost a century!)

Keriman Halis - Miss Turkey and Miss World 1934

 Ataturk said: “Society consists of two sexes. Can it be possible that a mass is improved by the improvement of only one part, while the other is ignored? Is it possible that if half of a mass is tied to earth with chains, the other half can soar into skies?”

He admired the courage of the Turkish women who had voluntarily helped in the fight for independence and he believed in the importance of gender equality and the emancipation of women in all spheres of life.   And remember this was in the 1920s when women in much of Europe still did not have equal rights.

Turkish women during the Independence war

Among the major political, legal, social and economic reforms that he implemented to transform the young Republic of Turkey into a modern, democratic and secular state were many that directly affected the position of women in society.

Polygamy was banned and divorce and inheritance rights were made equal.  The veil was not actually banned (unlike the fez for men) but women were encouraged to dress in a modern manner without covering their heads.  A unified education system offered education to girls and allowed them to teach in girls’ schools and in mixed primary and middle schools.  They could take up careers in law, medicine and public services. 

Women were granted the right to vote and be elected at local level in 1930 and at the national level in 1934 (before France, Italy and Japan, for example).  In that first election, 18 women won places in parliament.

 

Turkish women campaigning

Women also began to shine in other fields.  The Turkish Republic gave the world its first female Supreme Court judge. One of Ataturk’s adopted daughters, Sabiha Gokcen, became the world’s first female fighter pilot (Guinness World Records approved!) – hence the name of the second airport in Istanbul.

Sabiha Gokcen

So what has happened since then?  How come the status of women in some parts of Turkey is still so shameful, with domestic abuse common and even honour killings still occurring?

 Last year there was a motion in parliament proposing the removal of custodial sentences for men accused of statutory rape in the case of marriage.  It was apparently aimed at couples who marry voluntarily but it basically would have legalised underage marriage.  Thankfully it wasn’t passed.

In the last week the news has been full of the story of a 14-year-old girl found after disappearing for 85 days.  It turns out that in two villages in the Izmir region – an area known for its enlightened views – there is a tradition of kidnapping underage girls.  The girls are persuaded to marry boys they have grown up with (under the threat that nobody else will have them) and families are paid to keep quiet.  Disgustingly, the amount of money paid increases with the decreasing age of the girl - the youngest being just 12 years old.  Every year around 20 girls suffer this fate.

The biggest problem is that while you can alter laws, it is harder to change traditional attitudes and social practices.  The only cure for this sort of ignorance is education and it takes time.  The Turkish Republic is a relatively young country and it is still finding its way.  I really hope that it remembers Ataturk’s ideas about the role of women in society:

“I am convinced that the exercise of social and political rights by women is necessary for mankind’s happiness and pride.”

Ataturk’s message to the International Women’s congress meeting in Istanbul, April 22, 1935

'Modern' Turkish Women 1934

Size DOES matter! (amazing facts part 4)

I know you know it’s big but let’s look at figures....Turkey covers 783,000 square kilometres, compared to 243,000 for the whole of the UK.  It is 1,485 km (922 miles) from Kirklareli in the north west to Hakkari in the south east (the same as the distance between London and Barcelona).  Fethiye is 620km (385 miles) from Ankara and 780km (485 miles) from Istanbul.

The highest mountain, Mount Agri (Ararat), is over 5,000 m above sea level;  Ben Nevis, by the way is 1,345 m high. Fethiye’s Baba Mountain – from which the paragliders take off – is 1,969m.

view of the Black Sea Region

Turkey has 7,200km of coastline fronting 4 seas – the Black Sea in the north, the Marmara in the north west, the Aegean on the west and the Med in the south.  Along the coast are 436 blue flag beaches (including Oludeniz lagoon beach).  For comparison, Greece has 395 and Mexico just 20 (The Blue Flag is the certificate of the Foundation for Environmental Education showing that a beach meets its stringent standards).

As you would expect in an area this size, there are several different climatic zones and extremes of temperature range from -40 to 50+ °C (-40 to 122°F).  Fethiye and the surrounding area enjoy over 3000 sunshine hours a year, while parts of the north east have snow for four months of the year.

picking hazelnuts

This variation is partly responsible for an amazing diversity of plant-life – 9,300 species (compared to 11,500 in the whole of Europe).  Turkey is the world’s largest producer of hazelnuts (check the packet you buy at the supermarket – it will say ‘produce of Turkey’), cherries, figs, apricots and pomegranates and amongst the top ten producers of olives, sugar beet, tea, wheat and cotton.  It has been self-sufficient in food production since the 1980s.

There are almost 500 species of bird in Turkey, including 40 raptors.  Its location on the migratory route between Europe and Africa makes it possible to see many other species at certain times of year.

So, if you are a bird watcher or a botanist, Turkey is obviously a great place!  But here are some of the many activities you can enjoy here....

Walking, trekking, mountaineering (trekking routes include the Lycian Way which starts in  Fethiye)

the Lycian way

Skiing and snowboarding – there are about ten ski resorts

Diving, sailing, watersports (Fethiye is a great place for all of these and Calis has hosted the Turkish kite surfing championships in the past)

kite surfers in Calis

White-water rafting, canoeing, sea kayaking

rafting on the Dalaman River

Cycling, horse riding, paragliding, quad biking ....

.....and if you don't fancy any of these, just lie on one of the Blue Flag beaches and admire the view.

More amazing facts about Turkey (part 3)

Here is a random list of completely historical characters/events took place in Turkey.  See how many you knew!......

Mount Ararat where Noah’s arc is said to have landed as the floods subsided is in Turkey.  The story of the flood and Noah being commanded to build a ship also feature in the Quran.  There is a pudding in Turkey called Asure – a surprisingly tasty sweet mix of grains, beans, fruit and nuts – that is said to have been created from the provisions left on the arc!

Troy, site of the Trojan Wars and the famous wooden horse of Greek mythology, is in north west Turkey, near the Dardanelles Straits. Troy was added to the UNESCO World Heritage list in 1998.

remains of the city of Troy

And another war story...those famous words ‘I came, I saw, I conquered!’ were said by Julius Caesar after his victory at Pontus, a kingdom in the Black Sea region.

Julius Caesar at the Battle of Zela

King Midas – he of the golden touch - was King of Phrygia in central Turkey over 3000 years ago. Legend has it that a grateful god granted him a wish and he wished that everything he touched would turn to gold, which obviously seemed like a good idea until he got hungry and found that even the food he tried to eat turned to gold.  The myth is a warning against greed!

On the subject of stories with a message, did you know that Aesop – he of the fables – was born on the Black Sea coast of what is now Turkey?  He was a slave who was later freed and though he probably didn’t write most – if any – of the stories today collected as ‘Aesop’s fables’ – he was a great story teller.  Unfortunately his stories don’t seem to have impressed the people of Delphi , who accused him of theft and threw him off a cliff!

Homer – writer of the epic poems ‘The Iliad’ (recounting the Trojan War) and ‘The Odyssey’, central to Greek literature– is associated with an area on the Aegean coast, though there is actually much debate about whether the poems were written by one person or a group of people.

By contrast, Herodotus is a well-documented figure who is known as the Father of History because his investigations of the past were more thorough than any before.  Living in Halicarnassos (modern-day Bodrum) in the fifth century BC, he wrote about ancient Egypt and Persia.

Ephesus - it is said Cleopatra and Antony walked along here while on their honeymoon

And finally, though there are many other stories that could be told about Turkey, Antony met and fell in love with Cleopatra in the city of Tarsus, on the eastern Mediterranean coast of Turkey, after which they travelled to Ephesus.  Four years later they were married in Antioch.

Amazing Turkey - part 2 (and down with complaining!)

I was sad but not surprised to read last week that people are being encouraged to lie about being ill while on holiday.  Apparently a British tour operator, suspicious of the rise in claims for holiday sickness, sent investigators who posed as a family on holiday.  They were approached by a representative of a company that specialises in holiday compensation claims who suggested that photographs of a packet of Immodium were all it would take to get them a big pay-out. 

While I have sympathy for anybody who is ill on holiday, this culture of compensation for every little problem has gone crazy.  Most holiday illnesses, in my experience, are caused by change in diet or too much sun (and sangria!) rather than ‘food poisoning’ and are nobody’s fault. The fact that there are companies that exist purely to handle these complaints is revealing.

The other thing that people may not realise when they make a complaint is that they are not only hitting a large tour operator; those companies contact the hotel who then has to prove that the complaint is unfounded – or forfeit payment for the guest.  At Poppy, we haven’t had people complaining of illness but we have had guests requesting compensation.  Amongst the ‘horrors’ they mentioned were leaves on the balcony (it was Autumn), lime scale in the kettle (I do actually de-scale them but it only takes a few boils for it to be white again) and the neighbour’s dog barking.  Thankfully, none of these claims were successful!

So, let’s talk about nicer things.  Here are some more things that are amazing about Turkey.  They may not appeal to you personally but this type of site has created a whole branch of tourism – religious holidays – which Turkey is still behind in.  I have read that 60% of the places mentioned in the bible are located in Turkey, which sounds a little hard to prove to me BUT the following are certainly available for visiting...

St Peter’s Church near Antakya (south east Turkey), hollowed out of a cave on the spot where St Peter preached the Gospel;, said to be the first church of Christianity.

The Church of St Nicholas in Demre (100km along the coast from Fethiye), the burial place of St Nicholas who was Bishop here (then named Myra).  This is already popular with Orthodox Christians for whom he has special significance and it is on the list to become a UNESCO World Heritage site.

The House of the Virgin Mary (near Ephesus) where it is said she lived her last years after coming here with the Apostle John.  The Roman Catholic Church has never verified the authenticity of the house but it has never denied it either and since 1896 there have been many papal visits (the last in 2006 by Pope Benedict XVI).

Saint Paul, one of the most important figures in early Christianity, was born in Tarsus (southern Turkey) and his journeys to spread the word took him to many places in Turkey, some of which still have churches dedicated to him.  He was so successful, and Christianity took such a strong hold in Anatolia that the Emperor Constantine founded the capital of his new Christian Empire here – at Constantinople.  Istanbul still offers many religious sites – including the incredible Aya Sofia (Hagia Sophia) which was the largest cathedral in the world for almost a thousand years from its completion in 537AD.  How amazing is that?!

A little about Ankara/Angora

I spent two weeks in Ankara with Emre.  Ankara has changed hugely in the twenty-odd years I have been visiting it.  The growth seems to be continuing – the population is now just under 5 million (doubled since 1990) and there are 35 indoor shopping malls (2014 – probably 40 by now).  The skyline, once characterised by two or three tall buildings, now boasts plenty of skyscrapers.

Every year there are new roads, flyovers and underpasses – makes it hard to find your way round when you only go there once a year!  There is also now a (not very extensive) metro system and of course, this being Turkey, there are also thousands of minibuses as well as overcrowded council buses.  It used to be a relatively easy city to drive round – at least in comparison to Istanbul – but despite all the public transport and the development of the road system, the traffic is now appalling.  The driving is also appalling and to those of you who think you have seen it in Fethiye I say “you ain’t seen nothing yet”!

While Ataturk was organising the resistance to the Allied occupation of Turkish land, he used Ankara as his base.  In 1923 he named it as the capital of the new Turkish Republic. Unlike Istanbul it is located centrally in Anatolia, the heartland of Turkey.  In case you are wondering, it is a little of 600km (325 miles) from Fethiye.

Despite its recent growth, Ankara is an ancient city.  It was previously known as Angora and the goats, cats and rabbits (and wool) of that name all come from here! 

 You might know that I love to visit museums and have seen (and subjected the boys to) most of the museums in Ankara over the years.  So imagine my excitement when I found out about a new one – the Erimtan Museum.  It holds a collection that includes jewellery, coins, glass and ceramic objects acquired by a civil engineer called Yuksel Erimtan with a passion for archaeology and a desire to stop Turkish artefacts from being taken abroad.

There are some impressive pieces such as this 3000 year old Urartian belt and a collection of seal rings – with which notables would put their mark on documents – but a lot of thought had also gone into the way things were displayed.  Translations of inscriptions and letters brought the ancient civilizations to life, actually showing most effectively how little things have changed:

(In Roman times) “both males and females enjoyed perfumes and even over-wore them at times so that the famous Roman orator Cicero concluded that, ‘The right scent for a woman is none at all.’ ”

From the Roman poet Ovid’s Cosmetics for the Female Face: “But, Girls, let your first care be your manners...Age will lay ravage your figure and your pretty face will be ploughed with wrinkles.  There will come a time when you can’t bear to look in a mirror...But good manners are enough and are long-lived...”! 

Some amazing facts about Turkey - part 1

The season is over!  Poppy is closed – apart from the 17 rooms of students we have staying for the winter.  They are mostly 18-22 years old, students at the university (Fethiye has some faculties of Mugla University), studying a range of courses from landscape gardening to international business.  They seem incredibly young – though of course they think they are very grown up – and unbelievably incompetent.  They regularly call us to change light bulbs, work the washing machine and adjust the temperature on the fridge.  One of the funniest incidents was when one girl said the kitchen sink was leaking and  Kaan set off with his monkey wrench and spanner only to find it wasn’t the sink that was leaking but the jar of pickles her mum had sent her and that she was storing under the sink!

homework in the bar

It is a relief that the hotel will be earning some money through the winter after this year’s sorry season.  We didn’t suffer as much as some businesses but it certainly wasn’t a good year and it will probably take a few years for things to really improve.  I read an article recently suggesting that now, while we are kicking our heels and thinking how to attract tourists back, we should take the opportunity to rebrand Turkey – and it echoed what I have said before.  I don’t want people to come here just because it’s cheap and sunny; I want them to come because it’s an AMAZING COUNTRY!

So I thought I would use this blog to show some of the things that make it amazing.  Most of you reading are probably Turkey regulars, but there might be things here that even you didn’t know...

Turkey is the location of TWO of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world.  Actually, when these were first identified by the Greeks in the second century BC, they were referred to as the seven SIGHTS – a bit like a tour guide of the best architecture around!

The Temple of Artemis (impression)

The first in Turkey is the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus – which was actually built and destroyed several times but at its finest was 450ft long 225 ft wide and contained 127 60ft high marble columns.  Amazingly – who knew that human nature had changed so little - the second temple was actually destroyed by an arsonist seeking fame; the third temple was destroyed by the Goths, following which some of the stones were carried over 300 miles to Istanbul and used in the building of the Hagia Sophia Church!

Mausoleum at Halicarnassos

The other ‘Wonder’ is the Tomb of Mausolus, King of Caria, built at Halicarnassos (present-day Bodrum).  Almost 150ft high and decorated with marble friezes, this tomb has given its name to all above-ground burial chambers – or mausoleums.  Apart from the pyramids, it was the last of the seven to be destroyed – by an earthquake in the thirteenth century – and parts of it were also reused in the building of Bodrum Castle (and you thought recycling was a modern idea!)

Sadly, though you can visit the sites of these two ‘sights’ and find out more about their history, there is not much left to see.  In fact you can see some of the remains of both structures in the British Museum in London!  But you can find wonders of history all over Turkey and more is being discovered all the time...

 

Theatre at Arycanda (near Kas)