Republic Day

October 29th was Republic Day.  It commemorates Ataturk and the forming of the modern Turkish nation in 1923.  Already the previous night, flags were being hung on storefronts.  When i went outside on the 29th, everywhere I looked i saw flags and photos of Ataturk.  Almost every storefront had a flag hanging in their front window, as did many apartment balconies.  And many of these were not small flags, but great big ones, even bigger than the ones at Perkin’s, though none as big as the ones that hang on the sides of some big government buildings.  There were some that looked to be 8 or more stories high. Some were just flags, others were flags and larger than life pictures of Ataturk.  As I made my way toward Anit Kabir, or Ataturk’s Mausoleum, the crowds grew.    Outside the front gate, there were several men selling simits (a turkish bagel), red roses, and Turkish flags.  Many goers bought a flag for their children to carry.  Once I put my bag through an x-ray machine, i walked up the hill to the mausoleum.  This is a huge place, in the middle of the city, and provides great panoramic views all around.  Hundreds of people were milling about, many posing their children, with Turkish flag in hand, in front of the rose bushes for photos.  The line to enter the place where Ataturk rests stretched across the whole plaza, as did the line to enter the museum.  After walking around, i left the grounds, bought a simit, and went to the cafe at the ice rink, where i have become a regular.

First few days...

Front of my apt. bldg. and typical view of Ankara

When my plane was arriving into Istanbul, the most noticeable sight was the many mosque minarets, which look like little rockets, jutting up all over the city.  My route was Minneapolis-Chicago-Istanbul-Ankara, and i have now been in Ankara for 5 days.  The same sight was true when arriving into Ankara, with little rockets everywhere.  The land around Ankara reminds me a bit of Wyoming, with many dry hills.  The city itself is also hilly, and once in a while, i come across a great view of the surrounding hills, most of which are covered with apartment buildings. Walking around the city also guarantees having to go up and down hills, and one of the big ones is between my apartment and the ice rink! 

My first evening here was spent sitting around in my new digs with my roommate Yeliz, who is also my teammate, and Ali, the team ‘owner’.  We had pizza delivered from Little Ceasars, and then i went to bed and slept until 3pm the next day!  My second day i went to the rink to watch my team’s practice, as they wanted to keep me a secret for a few days.  They told their friends that i was a new figure skating coach, which i think i don’t resemble at all, but they all bought it.  When i stepped on the ice last night, they were in shock.  The night after their first practice, our team and a few of the men’s team’s players that we hang out with went to play soccer as the second part of practice.  There are soccer fields all over the city, most of which are small, fenced in fields with artificial turf. They are pretty nice, and always busy.  We played for an hour, and it was tons of fun, with team chants and huge goal celebrations.  My team ended up losing in the shootout.

So far, my impressions of Turkey and it’s people are wonderful.  On my arrival at the rink on the first day, i got many hugs and the traditional greeting between friends, which is a kiss on each cheek.  The girls on the team range from ages 13-32, and all are so nice and welcoming, even if they do not know much english, they try.  Most of them are figure skaters who have changed over to hockey, so they can skate, but do not know much else about the game.  Last night was my first practice with them, and they were in awe, several of them already asking for advice on their game.  

In these 5 days, i have already hung out with the team several times, ordered food to the house, gone out to the bar to play darts and stayed up until 4am.