The Column

Turkish Delight

Modern transport links allow people access to distant parts of the world with relative ease. The concept of an early breakfast in an English grease-pit followed by a late lunch at the New York Hilton is perfectly feasible. In spite of this, I find even the shortest journey by air to be a struggle, both mentally and physically. From the patronising and pedantic airport security check, where they confiscate your bottled water in order to sell it back to you in the departure lounge, to the overblown dinner-ladies who plough the aisle of the aircraft, harvesting a bloody crop of knees and elbows whilst vending sludge, the whole experience is truly archaic. The fact that a physically acceptable amount of legroom is a cost-option says much about how modern economy airlines operate; being a passenger is tantamount to doing work experience as a battery-hen.

Turkey old and new

And so it was, as I arrived last month in Malatya, Turkey, that I felt completely frustrated by my journey and was compelled to head straight to the hotel for a beer. Having done my research prior to going, I knew that the best local beer was called Efes, but given that Malatya is a strict Muslim area, I suspected the chances of getting one would be slim-to-anorexic. Luckily, the hotel did serve ice-cold Efes which was delicious and took away the pain of the journey, although the cost (equivalent to £5 for a small bottle) left something of a bitter after-taste. The price was soon forgotten though when I moved to a table outside and was able to sit and enjoy the warm air, in spite of it being midnight.

Turkey is split into East and West by Istanbul; itself divided in two distinct halves by the Bosphorus Strait, making it the only metropolis in the world which sits on two continents. The province of Malatya is a mountainous rocky area containing one million people and is located in Eastern Turkey, the Asian half of the country. The city of Malatya is the capital of the province, and has a population of approximately 400,000. The city-centre is a battle of the blocks in design terms; late-twentieth-century western office-block architecture contrasts boldly with breeze-block terraced buildings, many of which are just empty shells without doors or windows. There seemed to be building projects going on everywhere, but never a builder in sight; Malatya is work in progress to the optimistic eye, although a cynic might suggest that the locals are merely waiting for an earthquake to do the work for them.

Deserted building site

It was a new experience to be somewhere where I felt conspicuous due to my skin colour. Putting aside the odd weekend spent in London, I am used to being in the majority when it comes to the ethnic mix, so it was quite disconcerting to feel the local eyes staring at me as I meandered through the streets. The people were extremely friendly and keen to chat though, with many making great efforts to converse in English. The Turkish middle-classes are all very keen to learn (and teach, for the more proficient) English; in fact it is taught as a second language to all students at primary school, and many of the older generation are now taking it up at college too.

The social and familial structure of the local people was clearly defined and easy to spot, even to a casual observer. This was never more obvious than at meal-times, when the elders would sit at the head of the table, flanked by younger relatives/colleagues who treated them with earnest respect. Eating out in Turkey is very much a communal affair. Numerous appetisers of salad, chopped vegetables, dips, fresh bread and spiced meats are served with every meal, and are generally shared with at least two of the people sitting near you in a restaurant. Sharing and discussing the various dishes is a highly social element of the meal and takes place before the main course arrives. This is a far cry from English restaurants, where people territorially guard their prawn cocktails, refusing to share a single drop with the person opposite them, especially if they happen to be married.

The sense of community on display was very inspiring at times and seemed slightly old-fashioned when compared to life at home; more post-war than post-Blair. Turkish people are very proud of their lively folk music, which originated on the steppes of Asia, and it was quite regular to see random groups singing along together to old favourites at meal-times. There seemed to be five or six songs which frequently cropped-up in Malatya, presumably regional favourites of some kind. I enquired as to their meaning and was told that the over-riding theme was ‘just life’, although I fear this definition was slightly simplified in translation. Admittedly, to the untrained ear it was difficult to differentiate one song from another, but then the same could be said of many western bands back-catalogues’.

Turkey fans celebrating

During my stay, Turkey beat Czech Republic in a Euro 2008 football match which ensured that they qualified for the next round. As a result, there were people dancing in the streets, horns blazing, guns being fired, fireworks being launched and the atmosphere was absolutely fantastic. There was no sense of threat hanging in the air (aside from the odd stray bullet-shell) like there is with such celebrations in England; the Police just stood back and let events unfold. Many large groups of Turkey fans were keen to have their photograph taken with our group and made a great effort to include us in their celebrations, which says everything about the level of hospitality on offer. As a nation, Turkey may have some way to go in terms of workers’ rights and male-female equality before it is allowed into the European Union, but you can be sure of a good celebration once it is.