Kurds in Van
Today is Sunday..I just learned. You can tell because the streets are empty, devoid of the honking cars and buses and seemingly hundreds of people. Its kind of nice walking around when it is like this. The Internet cafe is quiet as well, except he seems to be playing some kind of pop American country music..some girl..which I find odd...then again Turkish Pop is really annoying after awhile, so Ill take it!
Still pretty hot, even out here in the elevation of the mountains. It rains a little every night after the sunsets with the same cold rain that falls in the southwest. Actually, most everything here reminds me of the southwest...mountains, gorges, the smell of the rain, the blue skies and the adobe style villages. Even the people that reside here, predominately Kurds, have a similar attitude as that of the people of New Mexico..they consider themselves the -native people- of Turkey. I have learned, and even lived first hand some of the Kurdish culture, which was oddly my goal when I chose to come here. They are an interesting, passionate, aggressive and demonstrative people with many issues and ideals...some are very progressive and forward thinking, but there seems to be issues on the execution of these ideals that has grown a little worrisome on my part.
After the last entry, I actually met a group of university students on the street on the way back from registering my stay in Van. Being one of the only foreigners, actually, THE ONLY foreigner in Van right now, I seem to stand out even more than in Konya and Istanbul. Turks wear white, you are either English, or American. When I say that I am an American, everything seems to change. They invite me for tea, dinner or late supper, and we sit and converse about Turkey and America. This group was probably the best reprieve I could have had this trip. They are all students preparing for the Teachers exams to be teachers of either music, athletics or botany. The women made an amazing feast for dinner, and the guys and I talked about our cultures. I have spent time with older Turks, mainly men, as well as Kurdish people, so I have learned a lot about their perspective. It was amazing and refreshing to sit and learn about the younger generation, at least this one group of 20 something’s. They follow no strict religion or belief, other than equality and respect. They love music and singing, as well as literature and art. We actually had discussions about our Native Americans and how they wish to model themselves and their lives after the Native American beliefs of Earth and honor. They believe in love, the true concept, not sex and -partner hopping-. They believe in love of friends and family as all-important. They are savvy about money and economics, and very much about foreign policies and the war in Iraq. They were curious about America and our real perspective and the general stance on the war, especially on Bush. It is safe to say that there is no love for George out here, nor anywhere I have found across Turkey. It will be very interesting to see how Bush handles the Kurdish issue in Iraq as well as trying to get their own government body stabilized so we can pull out. We talked a lot of fear and travel and the future of Turkey and its culture, its people in the forward push to be apart of the EU. I think, like our own culture, or any culture for that matter, there are a set of ideals and concepts that we hold onto and carry that define us. They are beliefs and possibly idealistic values even, but we all hold onto them. These students want to incorporate more of a global awareness of cultures and lifestyles, more of their own cultural awareness, less politics and less preoccupation on money and purchasing. Yet they still wish to retain their old ways of family, respect and hospitality, rituals and holidays. These ideals are even more intensified by the Kurdish people in Turkey. These are admirable ideals for the young, but as devils advocate, I have reservations.
On the flip side, I went on a trip up into the mountains that over look Van, with an older Kurdish man and a local carpet sales man/guide. These mountains were the destination of thousands of Kurds that fled during the Armenian War, First World War, and again during the first Gulf conflict. These mountains are hellish in the summer, and brutal in the winter. They were left denude of the amazing trees that once grew there after the government burned them all down during the war to drive the Kurds out. I could still make out the paths and walkways up the side of the mountain, sometimes even old rock foundations that the Kurds had laid decades ago. These older men are part of a so-called -tribe- or association of Kurdish men that get together and revel in the old Kurdish ways. They sing old traditional Kurdish songs, they talk about the old life and discuss ways in which the Kurds will rise up slowly, but powerfully against all of the governing bodies within each of the Middle Eastern countries, similar to what the Kurds are doing now in Iraq. I am unsure how they are regrouping or uniting as of now, but there is a rise in awareness of the Kurdish culture and nationality here in Turkey. I can only liken i, as they do, to the Native Americans, or even the African Americans. They seem to associate with them in the sense of having this one whole country broken and divided, and being forced to encampments in other countries. The Kurdish were then forced to assimilate into the respective countries that were then formed, and Kurdistan was no more. They no longer had a country or nation to call their own and continue their own culture. So they are bounced around, sometimes driven out of the countries they were originally forced into, and tragically sometimes boldly attacked for no reason and euthanized, like in the first Gulf War. It is a quagmire of an issue that many nations and many cultures face. Some may even say a root cause of Americas own issues of gluttony and over consumption and waste; our own loss of who we are, since we are ourselves an amalgamation of so many other cultures. Again it’s an amazing ideal but not without its own pitfalls. When is enough, enough? What is enough?
Again, I am not posing any solutions or severe criticisms, just observations and possibly even more questions. There are still issues with all of the Middle Eastern Nations that need to be altered and advanced for anything to work. The government needs to follow some strict guidelines to be a part of the EU, removal of corruption, more accountability and ımplımentaıon of certain human rights as well as other polices. There are still concerns and a need for equal rights for woman in these nations, there are no programs or facilitation of resource recycling, little to no practice of alternative energy resources, no land conservation or more importantly management, the land is deforested and covered in rubbish and junk. There is a sense, despite limited income, rampant wastefulness. Luckily, they have very good water (lucky for me since I had to drink it on the mountain!). But we in the South West as well as Mexico know the limits of the availability and ease of contamination of our water..the Turkish people do not. One of the many benefits here is they do not use hormones or fertilizers on their land...they cant afford them! So there is a good chance that their water will remain good for quite some more time. As a result the food actually tastes like, well, FOOD! I do mean taste too, its weird. Tomatoes are everywhere and cucumbers, as well as eggplant-which I never thought really had a taste! So hooray for Turkish farming!
It is a continuing experiment as we grow in numbers, but smaller as a world, how do we remain who we were/are, and yet incorporate and accept everyone else’s ways and cultures. Maybe, over time and as necessity, we will just become a world of people..which is all we really are. We will learn as much as we can, incorporate what works, assimilate what we like and need individually, and make our bonds and groups as we may through who we meet and who we resonate the most with, as well as who we share blood with. I don’t know, but ‘it does make me wonder, but I think maybe I wonder too much...at least today!
I’m off now for lunch and then to photograph in a Kurdish village up in the mountains. I hope to have images soon for you all!
Alan
Still pretty hot, even out here in the elevation of the mountains. It rains a little every night after the sunsets with the same cold rain that falls in the southwest. Actually, most everything here reminds me of the southwest...mountains, gorges, the smell of the rain, the blue skies and the adobe style villages. Even the people that reside here, predominately Kurds, have a similar attitude as that of the people of New Mexico..they consider themselves the -native people- of Turkey. I have learned, and even lived first hand some of the Kurdish culture, which was oddly my goal when I chose to come here. They are an interesting, passionate, aggressive and demonstrative people with many issues and ideals...some are very progressive and forward thinking, but there seems to be issues on the execution of these ideals that has grown a little worrisome on my part.
After the last entry, I actually met a group of university students on the street on the way back from registering my stay in Van. Being one of the only foreigners, actually, THE ONLY foreigner in Van right now, I seem to stand out even more than in Konya and Istanbul. Turks wear white, you are either English, or American. When I say that I am an American, everything seems to change. They invite me for tea, dinner or late supper, and we sit and converse about Turkey and America. This group was probably the best reprieve I could have had this trip. They are all students preparing for the Teachers exams to be teachers of either music, athletics or botany. The women made an amazing feast for dinner, and the guys and I talked about our cultures. I have spent time with older Turks, mainly men, as well as Kurdish people, so I have learned a lot about their perspective. It was amazing and refreshing to sit and learn about the younger generation, at least this one group of 20 something’s. They follow no strict religion or belief, other than equality and respect. They love music and singing, as well as literature and art. We actually had discussions about our Native Americans and how they wish to model themselves and their lives after the Native American beliefs of Earth and honor. They believe in love, the true concept, not sex and -partner hopping-. They believe in love of friends and family as all-important. They are savvy about money and economics, and very much about foreign policies and the war in Iraq. They were curious about America and our real perspective and the general stance on the war, especially on Bush. It is safe to say that there is no love for George out here, nor anywhere I have found across Turkey. It will be very interesting to see how Bush handles the Kurdish issue in Iraq as well as trying to get their own government body stabilized so we can pull out. We talked a lot of fear and travel and the future of Turkey and its culture, its people in the forward push to be apart of the EU. I think, like our own culture, or any culture for that matter, there are a set of ideals and concepts that we hold onto and carry that define us. They are beliefs and possibly idealistic values even, but we all hold onto them. These students want to incorporate more of a global awareness of cultures and lifestyles, more of their own cultural awareness, less politics and less preoccupation on money and purchasing. Yet they still wish to retain their old ways of family, respect and hospitality, rituals and holidays. These ideals are even more intensified by the Kurdish people in Turkey. These are admirable ideals for the young, but as devils advocate, I have reservations.
On the flip side, I went on a trip up into the mountains that over look Van, with an older Kurdish man and a local carpet sales man/guide. These mountains were the destination of thousands of Kurds that fled during the Armenian War, First World War, and again during the first Gulf conflict. These mountains are hellish in the summer, and brutal in the winter. They were left denude of the amazing trees that once grew there after the government burned them all down during the war to drive the Kurds out. I could still make out the paths and walkways up the side of the mountain, sometimes even old rock foundations that the Kurds had laid decades ago. These older men are part of a so-called -tribe- or association of Kurdish men that get together and revel in the old Kurdish ways. They sing old traditional Kurdish songs, they talk about the old life and discuss ways in which the Kurds will rise up slowly, but powerfully against all of the governing bodies within each of the Middle Eastern countries, similar to what the Kurds are doing now in Iraq. I am unsure how they are regrouping or uniting as of now, but there is a rise in awareness of the Kurdish culture and nationality here in Turkey. I can only liken i, as they do, to the Native Americans, or even the African Americans. They seem to associate with them in the sense of having this one whole country broken and divided, and being forced to encampments in other countries. The Kurdish were then forced to assimilate into the respective countries that were then formed, and Kurdistan was no more. They no longer had a country or nation to call their own and continue their own culture. So they are bounced around, sometimes driven out of the countries they were originally forced into, and tragically sometimes boldly attacked for no reason and euthanized, like in the first Gulf War. It is a quagmire of an issue that many nations and many cultures face. Some may even say a root cause of Americas own issues of gluttony and over consumption and waste; our own loss of who we are, since we are ourselves an amalgamation of so many other cultures. Again it’s an amazing ideal but not without its own pitfalls. When is enough, enough? What is enough?
Again, I am not posing any solutions or severe criticisms, just observations and possibly even more questions. There are still issues with all of the Middle Eastern Nations that need to be altered and advanced for anything to work. The government needs to follow some strict guidelines to be a part of the EU, removal of corruption, more accountability and ımplımentaıon of certain human rights as well as other polices. There are still concerns and a need for equal rights for woman in these nations, there are no programs or facilitation of resource recycling, little to no practice of alternative energy resources, no land conservation or more importantly management, the land is deforested and covered in rubbish and junk. There is a sense, despite limited income, rampant wastefulness. Luckily, they have very good water (lucky for me since I had to drink it on the mountain!). But we in the South West as well as Mexico know the limits of the availability and ease of contamination of our water..the Turkish people do not. One of the many benefits here is they do not use hormones or fertilizers on their land...they cant afford them! So there is a good chance that their water will remain good for quite some more time. As a result the food actually tastes like, well, FOOD! I do mean taste too, its weird. Tomatoes are everywhere and cucumbers, as well as eggplant-which I never thought really had a taste! So hooray for Turkish farming!
It is a continuing experiment as we grow in numbers, but smaller as a world, how do we remain who we were/are, and yet incorporate and accept everyone else’s ways and cultures. Maybe, over time and as necessity, we will just become a world of people..which is all we really are. We will learn as much as we can, incorporate what works, assimilate what we like and need individually, and make our bonds and groups as we may through who we meet and who we resonate the most with, as well as who we share blood with. I don’t know, but ‘it does make me wonder, but I think maybe I wonder too much...at least today!
I’m off now for lunch and then to photograph in a Kurdish village up in the mountains. I hope to have images soon for you all!
Alan
posted by Alan M Thornton at 4:43 AM
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