Obama interviewed by Arab TV

President Obama's interview with Al-Arabiya Arab TV Network full text

"...what I've come to understand is that regardless of your faith -- and America is a country of Muslims, Jews, Christians, non-believers -- regardless of your faith, people all have certain common hopes and common dreams."

I got the same feeling in Indonesia and Turkey. The petty differences which divide the world are much smaller than the common ground, basic needs and desires we share.

Change we can believe in.
Change we are believing in!

Erdem and his family

Erdem and his family were a hub of generosity in the Turkish countryside. Erdem stops his red Golf along the side of the road, and greets us with a beer; an offer we gladly accept along with the cooling air. The weather is hot and dry, the past two days the landscape has been dry desert land with bush scrubs for the consumption of freely roaming goats and cows. Along the roads holler trucks carrying freshly dynamited rock for road construction closer to the Bulgarian border. We counted 11 trucks per minute speeding through a town now suffocating from dust.

Erdem is returning home and takes us for a ride into the Turkish forests. He LOVES Turkey, and thinks it is the Number One country. I have met many who claim their country is number one, passionate pride I am happy to share. Two herds of goats trek through the forest, goats with wise goatees and necklaces or bells marking their ranks. There is a restaurant in the forest with a fish breeding area; an articifical concrete stream bed that excites Nels much.

Ciklilli is the town of which Erdem is so proud. Here his family has a long history, here his father farms and Erdem runs the wheat exporting business. Here he also met his 22 year-old wife, who is carrying a son. Town square has a 823 year old tree and a cafe with tea for a fourth the cost in Istanbul and backgammon. Nels, an avid player, plays a couple of games with the locals, young and old, but must count his losses.

Erdem's family is Muslim, but his mother, a round tub of warmth, is not shy to show her bright red hair with streaks of grey. Her background is Bulgarian-Yugoslavian but moved to Turkey when she was young. Here she runs a fun ship, knitting wool socks by the fire with her mother-in-law a frail old lady with a broken back carrying a smile of reached enlightenment.

The courtyard holds a Turk-Fiat tractor, several robotic farming tools, a small vegetable garden and a picnic table. Erdem lives in the newly constructed top level, furnished tres moderne, fresh from the Ikea catalog with new carpets, new couches, new flat screen, new table, new everything. A home kept lovely and clean, a seven months pregnant wife who waits up for her husband's return stinking of booze. Roles are defined, leaving cafes and bar occupied mostly by males. Nels was the center of attention after Turkey suffered their defeat against Germany 2-3, and entertained a crowd of giggling men with "Ozo purdu osman" meaning "You have a beautiful smile."

During the match, the whole family came for the spectacle, each bringing their offering of food. Erdem's sister has a family of four, her eldest son celebrating his 13th birthday. She brought meat paddies made with red carrot and beetroot, wrapped in lettuce. We eat sitting on the designated eating cloth, from which we also enjoyed a Turkish breakfast of tomatoes, cucumber, cheese, olives and pillowy bread.

There was little language in between and so a great conspiracy was created right underneath our eyes. Erdem and Nels went for a long late night drive, after a day's of alcohol consumption, seatbeltless to Vize the town up from Cikilli. Nels assumed they were greeting friends, while Erdem was actually checking bus timetables, and dropped us off at the stop the following day, driving off while a bus coincidentally pulls up. Earlier we killed some time driving around Cikilli, heading back home to find the garage door opening and the birthday boy with a surprise jumping into the car. I receive a pair of knitted socks and a head scarf. Our goodbyes are heartfelt, and Mother's cheeks carried a waterfall of tears. A family with utmost generosity, who will shortly receive a large package of present from us, the only way we could possibly replensish their genorosity.

Turkey Photographs & Hitchhiking

Ceiling of the Blue Mosque

Interior of Topkapi Palace; Interior of Blue Mosque; Sophia Mosque; New Mosque by night

Our 5 day stop in Istanbul was incredible. Cafes with Turkish tea and backgammon fill the alleys while mosques with missile launcher towers define the skyline. The Grand Bazaar and the Spice Bazaar are worthy visits as well.

Breakfast with Erdem and his family

Knitting with Grandmother; Turkish Mechanics

From Istanbul we ferried up the Bosporus Strait to the mouth of the Black Sea then starting hitchhiking our way along the coast and eventually to the Bulgarian border. Picking up a ride has never been easier; but traveler beware, your ride may have plans of its own! We never encountered any danger or hostility, rather our drivers were more inclined to stop the car/truck at their favorite picnic spot to enjoy a meal or a beer with the welcome foreigners rather than make a direct route.

The first day, after a few short rides, five men in a working van took us for lunch and then out to a gypsy camping spot for drinks. "Tarzan" the camp proprietor carried an ax at his waist and a stick over his shoulder with a fur satchel with all the charm of Andre the Giant. Later, they went 10km out of their way to drop us off at the beginning of a beach trek which led us to a deserted stretch of the amazing Black Sea coast. We slept that night under the stars next to the softly crashing waves.

The following day the level of generosity was doubled if not tripled. Once again, after a few short rides in the right direction, a friendly Turk decides what we are going to do next. Erdem drives a new Volkswagen Golf with an Efes beer between his legs and a six pack at the ready. With business doing well at his bar ("Beer House") and wheat distribution center and a baby boy on the way, he felt on top of the world. The whole afternoon he wined and dined us, driving from picnic to restaurant to bar to cafe to his warehouse and finally to his home. The list of friendly introductions and full vessels of food and drink would not fit in the blog format. Suffice to say, Eline and I were both deeply moved by our time in his town and with his family.

And on to the next day! Breakfast and coffee with Erdem, then again to the road. This time, it was the project manager for a new highway to Bulgaria that swept us off our vector and into his private life. We spent many hours at Tempo Company headquarters enjoying tea and conversation before being helpfully dropped off at the Turkish-Bulgarian border.

For the first time since Istanbul the wallet has left my pocket for a room in this Bulgarian beach town. Upon crossing the border, vehicles and buildings are in much more disrepair demarcating a comparatively struggling economy. Bulgaria is a Christian country so women here are free to dress ridiculously in see-through pants and miniskirts, and do so at every occasion presented, even if their figure is not appealing.

Football Riot in Istanbul after Türkiye beats Croatia

Soccer Footbal Riot in Istanbul, Turkey 2008

The first 100 minutes of Turkey vs. Croatia in the 2008 EuroCup were terribly boring, cruising into overtime scoreless leaving Istanbul with a resting heart rate. With less than a minute to go, Croatia thought they nailed Turkey's coffin shut with a goal, but the Red Crescent Türkiye would not rest easy, scoring the tying goal with no time on the clock. After dominating in the penalty kicks, the city exploded into celebration; and we were fortunate to be at the epicenter of the human earthquake, Taxim Square.

Istanbul's Positive Impression

Istanbul sits on the Bosphorus Strait dividing West and East, Europe and Asia. The World House hostel under the majestic Galata tower is providing us with reasonably priced accommodation far from the 'typical' backpacker mecca on the other side of town by the Blue Mosque.

View from World House hostel

Our first impressions of Istanbul have been exceedingly positive. There is a deep working class pride; throughout the narrow cobble stone streets in our neighborhood craftsmen are hard at work in street level shops turning wood and aluminum or building fantastic lamps. They also enjoy sitting streetside in their small locality enjoying strong Turkish tea with cigarettes and conversation. After spending the morning in the Istanbul Modern, a loaf of fluffy bread with soft white tangy cheese purchased for an aggregate $1.50 was sustaining us when a group of men arriving for afternoon tea were suprised by the foreign intrusion, but nevertheless kindly entertained our presence. Upon leaving, one purchased a liter of fruit nectar and left it on our table as he walked away.

This is the second time we have been treated by spontaneous acts of kindness in our first two days here: last night while strolling by the Sophia Mosque and snapping photos, a three man photography crew asked us to join them for tea nearby. For the next couple of hours the air was full of laughter and cigarette smoke charged by highly caffeinated tea and Mevleviye dancing (whirling dervishes). The language barrier was tall, but paradoxically provided a subject for conversation as we were taught hello "selamin aleykum" and the appropriate response "aleykum selam" amongst many other words and phrases. Afterwards, the posse went riverside for tripod assisted night photography where I could teach them "aperture, shutter, and shutter speed". Check out Firat Okaygun's great Istanbul photography at fotokritik.com (in Turkish).

Turkish Tea

Tour thru Eastern Europe

View Larger Map

We are flying into Istanbul June 19th to begin tramping across Eastern Europe to be in the Netherlands by August 16th. This is a rough plan seeking refinement and suggestions, especially introductions to acquaintances with extra beds! Eline is using couchsurfing.com to network a friend and a bed in Istanbul. It could prove to be a valuable resource, or a dead end. If it works, there are hundreds of couch surfing affiliates registered across Europe. As for transportation, we are considering buses, trains, hitchhiking, and bicycles. Purchasing a bicycle in a country off of the Euro like Albania would almost certainly be cheaper than buying in the Netherlands and would provide free travel if only a bit slow.

Turkey: Istanbul, Black Sea Shore [$20 entry charge via travel.state.gov]
Bulgaria: Sofia
Macedonia: Skopje
Albania [€10 entry charge via travel.state.gov]
Montenegro
Bosnia-Herzegovina: Sarajevo
Croatia
Slovenia: Trieste
Hungary: Budapest
Solvak Republic: Bratislava
Czech Republic: Prague
Express to Netherlands through Germany, perhaps with stop in Berlin to be with friends.
14 countries in 2 months (8 weeks) :: 7 countries a month :: 1.75 countries a week :: 4 days per country. While this seems very quick, the upswing of the situation will be that no matter where we are when August 14th arrives, in less than two days we can be in the Netherlands by bus or train.