Ataturkalore

July 5th, Sunday: A day of rest and reinvigoration. We both managed to get some decent sleep on that train last night, and enjoyed breakfast rolling through the wheatfields and undulating hills of Anatolia as the train approached Ankara.

And – I am back at the Dedeman Hotel. Nothing spectacular, but it did have a few essential selling points I recollected from my stay here last year: (1) the sauna and (2)the breakfast. I had also hoped to recreate the remarkable dinner narrated in my blog entry “Sea Bream” from last June – but sadly the place is closed on Sunday.

Beyond the routine sort of stuff – find the hotel, get settled, nap, find lunch - the only remarkable things was our trip to the Anitkabir (the burial shrine and museum devoted to Kemal Ataturk and the Turkish revolution). Many photographs of the pavilions and courtyard of the mausoleum. The museum withstood a second look nicely. I've been wanting to learn about that shift – at exactly what point does the Ottoman Empire die and the Republic emerge.

I gather the quick answer is May 19, 1919. At least that is the summer/spring when what used to be the Ottoman army more or less moved over to the leadership of Ataturk – who resigned his commision and said that his allegiance to the Sultan was getting in the way of his duties to the Turkish people. Peace treaties and concordats followed – but this is when the Turks and Ataturk decided they were their own nation and that the Ottoman rulers (at least the current ones) were a major disappointment and they had to act in their own interests.

Returning to the hotel I was reacquainted with the sauna and the pool, then dinner. As mentioned, the nice fish place was unavailable so we ate at some tapas bar. I liked it well enough – my assistant seemed less impressed.

Not much more to report from today. Between the nap, the comfortable shower and great sauna, it really was more a day for rest and restoration rather than insight. So, I'll leave it at that.

Most Remarkable Thing: We are sitting in this tapas bar - eating a nice little arrangement of grilled vegetables, fish and roast potatoes with a nice tarragon sauce - and two big plasma screens over the bar are playing footage of car accidents. Most of the footage was from various security cameras. So we eat our grilled eggplant and admire the mayhem. My photodocumentarian and assistant found this immensely engaging – he hardly could speak a word all dinner for his fascination and amusement. I am beginning to think that he is, in fact, a Turk.

Photo: My photodocumentarian bravely taking on the combined military forces of the Turkish Republic in order to practice his craft.