So, being a Tuesday night, the bar was literally empty when Alex and I got there. After a couple of awkward attempts to communicate with the bartender, Anna and Turkner arrived, and Turkner asked if we could change the channels (lots of big, pretty flatscreen tvs) to the inauguration- and they did. However we then had to go back and ask nicely if they could turn on the inauguration... in English. Forgot about that detail. We ended up watching BBC World News coverage. It's strange, I never cared much about seeing political events- speeches and debates, sure, but at this point everything is decided, so why bother? Or at least that has been my perspective in the past. But I realized yesterday while talking to some of my coworkers that I really wanted to see it, to experience it- that being so far away from home and from Americans makes this sort of thing much more valuable. It's very easy to forget that you're an American when you walk down the streets of Boston or New York or San Diego- not that there isn't history, especially in Boston, but it's just no big deal. Where as here, in Ankara, I am faced with my American-ness every moment of the day- I can no longer eavesdrop on strangers, I can't ask for no onions, I can't find a hardware store- or anyone who quite grasps the concept. I can't pick up an iced coffee and a bacon egg and cheese sandwich on my way to the library where I'll find thousands of books I can read, all in my language and all for free. Conversely, I find myself feeling a little more proud of where I come from, standing a little taller when I catch people staring. After the inauguration we had a great discussion about how Americans are constantly defining themselves by their ancestry: Irish American, African American, Italian American, etc. And the majority of the time, we leave out the "American" bit. I can't count how many times I've called myself Irish. Because I am! And I'm proud! And the American part, well... that's a lot less interesting. Not the case in Turkey. Turks take immense pride in the homogeneity of their culture. They insist that their ancestors came out of Asia- that they are all, individually, 100% Turkish. Which is a bit comical when you're talking to someone with blue eyes, blonde hair- and a sincere belief in his or her pure Asian ancestry. It's not okay to be part Greek or European or Arab- it's not Turkish. Having a culture, religion, ancestry, or opinion that differs from the accepted national norm is viewed as unpatriotic, and therefore unacceptable. But, (I hate myself for this, but I've gotta do it...), as Obama said last night, Americans view "our patchwork heritage as a strength, not a weakness."
Being the only people in the bar had its advantages. Commandeering use of the televisions, for one, and being able to sing our national anthem while watching Americans sing it live during the inauguration was another. I don't think I've ever taken it as seriously as I did in that moment. Four Americans, from very different backgrounds, in a little bar in a country very far from home, singing words written almost two hundred years ago about a flag that hadn't been around very long and didn't yet represent very much at all.
Y'know, despite everything, sometimes I'm rather proud of where I come from.
Anna, Alex, Keith, Turkner, and I
No comments:
Post a Comment