Turkish Elections Coverage - Live from Istanbul
Someone told me that because Turkey lost to Spain in the World Cup qualifier, that people would be disheartened and not vote as much. It was also a beautiful day yesterday. Despite the weeks of constant buses driving by with loud speakers and party songs, flags hanging across every street, and commercials galore, AKP didn't do to hot. I'm sure everyone one of my students will be thrilled. Last night I watched results come in and everyone was glued to the tv, CNNturk's graphic was literally a wall of flames.
This morning while waiting for my computer to be repaired I sat next to a prayer bead salesman " bismiallah, kokalar!" (in the name of God, prayer beads) named Ibrahim and talked about the elections. You know, the word on the street. He made his political views very clear from early in our conversation (he broke the ice with me by spraying me with a syringe full of rosewater perfume, another of his wares) by making the Takbeeratul-Ihram motion with his hands, and then spitting on the ground, then showing me his CHP (national people's party) key chain. He talked about how if you took a picture on your cell phone of your vote for AKP and then texted it to a party office, you would get a small piece of gold. Mind you I was sitting in a public square with benches which in Istanbul means it will usually be full of old men wearing three piece suits, fisherman type hats, canes and prayer beads. They are "geveze" (chatterboxes) looking to talk to anyone. They heard the word AKP or "election" and they hobbled over in droves. It got pretty heated between the Kemalists and the Islamists but then the call to prayer broke things up. Then me and Ibrahim talked about Obama and after profusely agreeing about what a shithead Bush was, he gave me some prayer beads as a gift.
This morning while waiting for my computer to be repaired I sat next to a prayer bead salesman " bismiallah, kokalar!" (in the name of God, prayer beads) named Ibrahim and talked about the elections. You know, the word on the street. He made his political views very clear from early in our conversation (he broke the ice with me by spraying me with a syringe full of rosewater perfume, another of his wares) by making the Takbeeratul-Ihram motion with his hands, and then spitting on the ground, then showing me his CHP (national people's party) key chain. He talked about how if you took a picture on your cell phone of your vote for AKP and then texted it to a party office, you would get a small piece of gold. Mind you I was sitting in a public square with benches which in Istanbul means it will usually be full of old men wearing three piece suits, fisherman type hats, canes and prayer beads. They are "geveze" (chatterboxes) looking to talk to anyone. They heard the word AKP or "election" and they hobbled over in droves. It got pretty heated between the Kemalists and the Islamists but then the call to prayer broke things up. Then me and Ibrahim talked about Obama and after profusely agreeing about what a shithead Bush was, he gave me some prayer beads as a gift.
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