As we planned this grand adventure there were several things going through my mind. The overarching rationale was to train teachers and guest conduct music festivals in schools and regions that often lack the type of musical and educational opportunities more easily accessible in the United States. However, we also wanted to experience day-to-day living in foreign countries, and to take Tommy to some of the sites around the world that we already love or want to see. The role that Turkey would play was not clear. It sounded both exotic, a bit scary, and Ankara had enough educational needs to justify our inclusion. What I did not expect, was that living in Ankara, and working with the students at the school district would be a highlight of my life.
After our initial forays into the part of the city where we live (a neighborhood called Çankaya), we started to build community. I became a regular at the local market and made sure to only buy one day’s supplies so that every day after work about 5:00 or 5:30 I would go to the market (Tuncerler Supermarket) and get olives, cheese, wine, and beer. They began to greet me using the family terms for someone, and they even started to gather what I needed before I asked. Turkish beer is not that great, but I tried to be local and so they always had a couple cans of cold “Efes” ready for me. It was wonderful.
The same feeling is true of the teachers and students (especially Elia the music teacher). Elia would shepherd us through both the Turkish and American checkpoints on the base and then give us rides back to our apartment. We took cabs to work because of the difference in location between our apartment and hers, but even then, she indicated she felt bad. The students were also incredibly warm, and we learned spoke highly about us even when we were not around. This is genuinely a wonderful community, and I don’t want to leave.
Oh and did I mention the cats and dogs? The Turkish people love and care for their stray dogs and cats. We have a couple cats who visit our kitchen window several times a day. At first we wondered if they were strays, but given their clearly well-fed appearance and good behavior we figured they were just someone’s outdoors cats. Turns out everyone leaves food out and is friendly to the creatures living on the street. The dogs appear to even be marked on their ears and we saw the animal police keeping track of them. This really is a city I could embrace.
However, we have a train booked for Istanbul and the chance to see the sites from my music and art history textbooks I never thought I would see in person. And knowing we will return is making the leaving a bit easier!
3 responses to “Living in Ankara”
We named one stray who we saw a lot Kede that’s Turkish for cat! The other cat was Kedes friend.
Tommy, when my husband Tom and I were in Ankara, there was a dog that would be at the door to our little hotel. It would follow him until we boarded a bus. The next morning the same dog would be there. He called him Dog!
I was thare once. I liked it all the cats.