We were just ahead of Boko Haram while traveling through Mali, and in Egypt just before the Cairo demonstrations. Similarly, Aleppo was just beginning to seethe while were there, so of course, an attempted coup in Turkey equated to perfect timing for a visit. We were a bit apprehensive from all the scare coverage on TV but reality didn't match the hype. Our ultimate goal was to get into Iran before the next presidential election because maybe this was the last chance for an America to see Tehran for a while?
We stayed in the old part of Istanbul, and there are demonstrations in the plaza between Hagia Sophia & the Blue Mosque in the evenings, lots of flags & patriotic murmur among the locals but not much of a threat to us. Turkish immigrants feel compelled to hang a conspicuous Turkish flag as proof of their patriotism. The more recent the immigrant, the larger & more conspicuous the flag. Businesses of known foreign origin, such as McDonald's, are especially conscious of the riot threat, so they had multiple flags, by the door & by the sign.
There was a young woman trying to get help in the Iranian embassy. She was a journalist & the Turkish police had confiscated her camera, passport & residency visa. The embassy staff sent her away crying, but we got our visas. The border out of Turkey was bedlam. It took 5-1/2 hours to get through customs & as foreigners, not coup plotters, we got cuts in front of 1000s of people, I don't think we'll be going back to Turkey again anytime soon.
Turkish Border August 11, 2016
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Martin Hash
- Posts: 18255
- Joined: Wed Jan 20, 2010 2:02 pm
Turkish Border August 11, 2016
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