Phillip and Rebecca Mefford

Aa Atatürk, Anadolu Apart from Trakya, or Thrace, a portion of land on the European Continent, most of Turkish soil is lovingly known as Anadolu, or Anatolia. This expanse of land, the Turkey that we know and love, would not be, were it not for one man, Mustafa Kemal Atat ü rk. In a nutshell, here is the history: At one point in time the Ottoman Turkish Empire spanned all the way from the tip of the Arabian Peninsula as far north as Vienna, Austria, spreading its domain, West to East, from Morocco to Iran. However by the beginning of the 20th century, the waning Ottoman Empire, who had sided with Germany in World War I, was defeated by the Allied Powers. Ottoman land was then parceled out to various countries, leaving only a small portion of what is now Central Turkey for the Turks. This would have been a dire time in Turkish history had it not been for the military genius of General Mustafa Kemal. Mustafa Kemal inspired the remains of the Ottoman army to ste

ABCÇ's Turkey, Turkey far away. I don’t remember how to say, “Merhaba” and “Görüşürüz” Forgetting Turkish gives me the blues. It is hard to keep up our Turkish when we are not surrounded by it all day, every day. We are reading Turkish books, Skype-ing with friends back in İstanbul, and even attempt to speak with each other in Turkish, even though it feels really silly. Will you review with us some important words in the Aa…Bb…Cc…Çç’s? Just like the letters of the alphabet are building blocks for words, the words we will talk about are the building blocks of Turkish culture. We start next week with Atatürk and Anadolu . Note : Remember that Turkish is a phonetic language, with each letter representing only one sound. For example, “A” always sounds like the ‘a’ in all , never like the ‘a’ in apple. See our pronunciation guide on the side for the letters that differ from the English alphabet.

Haziran - Temmuz June - July     The Mefford Family have become trained professionals at traveling this summer. Our comings and goings have brought us close to family, allowed us to see some beautiful countryside, taken us to two very helpful and refreshing conferences, and seen us through sickness, happiness, tiredness, and rejuvenation.  Thanks Uncle Dave and Aunt Carolyn for letting us stay at your house! Helmet heads in Glenwood Canyon!  Lincoln helps Aunt Sue cook up some delicious dinner. We finally got to meet our sweet little niece!

Yetmişyedi 77 Yalova Erol I was there when the earthquake hit. The pavement looked like it was doing belly flops. Entire apartment buildings collapsed like a house of playing cards. That phrase, “my life flashed before my eyes” seemed cliché until that moment. Even before the earthquake of 1999 Yalova wasn’t really anything special—just an industrial town across the Sea of Marmara from İstanbul—but after that it was no more special than a box of burnt matchsticks. I had nightmares for years. I guess the positive thing that came out of it for me was a new intensity for life. Ask my buddies, I cheer the loudest at the futbol matches—and I go to every home game of Turkey’s best and most successful professional team. I was almost able to quit smoking; still working on that. I’m a little more serious about religion, at least I don’t think it’s a bunch of baloney anymore. I’m motivated to stop being a dead-beat and finish out my education, and hopefully get a decent job. Although my job ri

Yetmişdört 74 Bartın Emre Bartın is the most beautiful place on Earth. It is on the Black Sea, 6 hours east of İstanbul. The fish and fruit and tea are fresh and delicious. The city is adequately stocked with all the necessary conveniences, the surrounding villages full of charm. The people are honest and friendly. They won’t slander you or scam you. Bartın is them gem of Turkey. But then again, I’m a little biased. I had to move to İstanbul for school and then work and then I met my wife here. It sounds like my whole life is in İstanbul, but the whole time my heart has remained in Bartın. I know it’s not on the tourist’s top 10 list and maybe it shouldn’t be. They would only trash it. Let’s keep Bartın as our secret. My harbor. My home. The hospitals in İstanbul are good though. That is another reason why I stay here. Last year I found out that I have cancer. Unexpected for a twenty-five year old, isn’t it? I felt healthy until they started treatments. My poor wife…she is so graciou