At dinner that evening, we talked about Turkey, my sister- and brother-in-law shaking their heads in wonder—and envy. They wished that India, in the same time period, could have made this much progress.

After living somewhere for awhile—or visiting a place multiple times—you start to develop opinions. I’ve been to India eight times, most recently this past month, and Turkey was my home from 2010 to 2013. Here, in an attempt to cross-pollinate, I present some comparisons and contrasts. Caveat: terrorism currently affects both countries, Turkey more so at this moment. That topic—and an evaluation of top leadership in both countries—is beyond the scope of this essay. So, please try to disengage from recent perceptions as depicted in the media.

Turkey, which emerged in the late 1940s from military dictatorship, strikes visitors as an orderly place. Turks enjoy smooth roads, clean air, and firm law enforcement. Few bars on windows indicate that the country feels fairly secure from petty crime. Turks revere the idea of government and laud the person who pays the most taxes each year.

India, with a democratic tradition also dating to the 1940s, appears chaotic. Garbage lies in the streets. Cities seem unplanned. The air in cities like Delhi is foul. Indians seem to expect little from their government. My husband long ago told me that his middle-class family does not vote. Why? Because their votes are swamped by the vast, poverty-stricken majority.

Turkey was never colonized. Indeed as Ottomans, Turks were themselves colonizers for centuries. India was colonized, primarily by the British, for over three centuries. Both countries, in throwing off their pasts, went through population exchanges. Turkey in 1923 expelling its citizens of Greek origin, and India in 1947, when Pakistan was created. Apprentices of the great Turkish architect, Mimar Sinan, helped design the Taj Mahal.

Nearly all of Turkey’s citizens are Muslims, and its Kurdish minority looks and worships just like the Turkish majority. By contrast, all religions reside on the Indian subcontinent: Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Sikkism, Jainism, Zoroastrianism, Buddhism. You can be on the steps of a Hindu temple and hear the Muslim ezan loud and clear. It is surely easier to govern, easier to get citizens to pull together, in a homogenous country.

Turkey is most impressive in that it accomplished so very much in the middle years of the twentieth century. While India has also made progress, what impresses me most about that country is the creativity and brainpower of the people it sends to the U.S. Surely no other immigrant group in the U.S. has been so dazzlingly successful.

Two countries with much to admire: India for its brilliant human exports and Turkey for its successful, up-by-the-bootstraps century.

I would rather live in Turkey than in India. But I do think that homogenous countries are at a disadvantage in today’s world. There is simply a dearth of different ideas, and citizens are not called on to be flexible and creative. Turkey should loosen up a little in order for the full flower of its people’s creativity to blossom. Now that you have mastered control, Turkey, start learning to embrace complexity and diversity. Open yourself to diversity, to messiness, and even to a little dirt. It will be good for your soul.

People from heterogenous countries are wizards of adaptability. That trait helps them as they go out into the world and that, I believe, is the secret of the Indian sauce. Nice work, Indians, but do try lift up those who work for your public sector. Without good government, life can be nightmarish.

The post Some Thoughts on India and Turkey appeared first on Sue's Turkish Adventures.

I like to get some background on my students, and so, on the first day I handed out a brief questionnaire. It asked how long they had studied English and how many years of education they’d received, both in their country and here in the U.S.

My Somali students hesitated on the years of education question. Instead of writing anything, Halima, with huge, expressive eyes and a big smile, told me, “Well, my brother taught me the Somali alphabet.”

“Okay,” I replied. “And what else? How about school?”

“No.”

“No school?”

“None.”

Ayan, my youngest student, nodded at this and wrote a zero down on her paper. Fatima did the same.

I collected the questionnaires in a funk, wondering how I was going to teach students who were so different from me.

Minnesotans have expressed negative feelings toward Somalis. Some years ago, it was reported that several Somali taxi drivers complained about Minnesotans returning from vacation with bottles of liquor; they didn’t wish to transport alcohol in their cabs. This caused an uproar. A small number of Minnesota Somali youths have returned or tried to return to Somalia to rejoin the war there, in violation of U.S. laws. Some people find the hijab annoying. These negatives are counterbalanced somewhat by news that several Minnesota Somalis have become community and state leaders.

Later in the class period, we were going over comparative words like “better,” “smarter,” “stronger,” etc. The words “nice” and “nicer” came up, and then the phrase, “Minnesota Nice.”

“Do you know what that means?” I asked. They didn’t. I explained that it refers to how Minnesotans usually present a calm, pleasant demeanor, but might be hiding negative sentiments. And that Minnesotans tend not to go out of their way to make new friendships. Both are generalizations.

Halima raised her hand. “Teacher, we are supposed to get to know our neighbors, but my neighbors close their doors and I don’t see them. So I don’t know them at all.”

“Are your neighbors Somali?” I asked. I was picturing all of Minnesota’s 20,000 plus Somalis living together in the same apartment complexes.

“No,” she replied. “There are only two Somali families in my building. We want to know the people living near us,” she went on. “Because if they’re in trouble, we have to help. If they don’t have enough money, we have to offer it to them.”

Ayan interrupted, “Our religion says we have to do this.” The others murmured their agreement. Clearly this issue was bothering them.

“Well,” I said, “if you see someone in your building and they look sad, you could say, ‘How are you doing?’ or ‘Are you okay?’ That would be good.”

My students nodded, but my answer didn’t satisfy them. They weren’t talking about visual clues. They were completely unfamiliar with the people next door to them and had no idea if problems existed. “In Somalia, everyone knows their neighbors,” Fatima told me. “We all help each other.”

I observed these same kinds of generous impulses during my years in Yemen and Turkey. And also the openness. Here I was, a brand new teacher, and my students were already asking me for help with a problem. Help, I realized, in dealing with “my” people.

“I can’t just go and knock on my neighbor’s door,” Halima continued. “They might not want to meet me.”

“Yeah,” I agreed, trying to think on my feet. It occurred to me that perhaps new State Representative, Ilhan Omer, and Minneapolis Council member, Abdi Warsame, are also trying to help their neighbors, but are doing it in a more formal, indirect Minnesota way. But what about my students?

“I know. What if you made some sambusas [little fried meat and vegetable pies], maybe for a holiday, and brought some of them to your neighbors. Would that help?”

Halima thought for a moment and then nodded.

“You know, we Americans are really hungry,” I quipped. But really, I felt touched. My new students are amazing! How sad that hijabs and headlines are so much more visible than hospitality.

The post This is Islam appeared first on Sue's Turkish Adventures.

Things I like better in Minnesota:

-Female hairdressers

-Enough parking spaces for everyone

-Target! Sometimes I think of all the magnificent, glorious, historical buildings in Turkey and then I put them all up against being able to walk into Target store and buy a stylish version of just about anything I need at a low price. When I think that way, Minnesota wins the comparison. But when I think of the fact that probably that Turkey could obtain Target stores, but Minnesota will never be filled with Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman treasures, Turkey wins.

< -Lending libraries -Clothes-washing instructions in English Things I liked better in Turkey: -I never, ever felt afraid: People were always watching and concerned. I didn’t realize I was so protected until I’d been in Turkey about a year. One evening I was walking up from the Sea Road to my apartment through the historic village of Arnavutkoy. At intervals on the sidewalks, foot-high pillars had been installed to prevent people from parking. Not paying attention, I swung my leg right into one of them, crashing my shin against the cement. The pain did not distract me from hearing a kind of collective “Owww,” from unseen voices all around me. People are always watching in Turkey. -The prayer call. It marked the passage of the day and reminded me of God. Things I no longer have to think about now that I'm back in Minnesota: -Twisties -Ziploc bags Foods I miss: -Eggplant: This wonderful vegetable was available in so many different forms in Turkey: roasted and mashed to form a smoky-tasting hors d’oeuvre; grilled with kebab meat; stewed with lamb; roasted and then eaten cold in salads; and cooked with ground meat to form a delicacy called imam bayildi, the imam fainted.

-Freshly roasted, low-cost pistachios

Foods I’m glad to be reunited with:

-Jicama

-Baby back ribs

-Excellent bread in many varieties, including bagels.Somehow I think this relates to diversity.

Chez Arnaud bakery in White Bear Lake

Black Forest rye bread from the general store at Marine on the St. Croix

American habits that now perplex me:

-Assuming kids hate vegetables.At a recent gathering I attended, sandwiches were offered to both adults and kids, but for children, the lettuce and tomato had been removed.

-Eating alone in restaurants. This is something Americans, including myself, don’t mind doing, but I think it would seem pitiful to Turks.

Some statistics:

-Number of days back in Minnesota before someone asked, “Weren’t you scared living in Turkey?” and then refused to believe me when I answered no: Five.

-First catalog company to find me here in MN: Orvis.(I wonder how long before the deluge.)

Ways to keep Turkey alive for me:

-My little town of White Bear Lake is soon going to have a Turkish restaurant called
The Black Sea

-There is a Turkish/Iranian cafe and grocery store near the University of Minnesota.

-My friend, Patti, has a Turkish housemate who I will soon meet.

-I can order Turkish products at Tulumba.com. Unfortunately, they are not cheap. Price for a package of Turkish tea: $9.99. Shipping: $9.61.

It is fun to do this kind of tallying. I guess what I’m really trying to do is decide which place makes me the most happy. Right now my answer would be: Both!

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