Jon G. Crawford

Omer Faruk Genckaya

The Fulbright Visiting Specialists: Direct Access to the Muslim World Program experience opened up the possibility of learning more about Islam, the Middle East and the points of contact with the European West for students and faculty at Roanoke College, while trying to convey genuine interest and respect for Turkey to our visitor.

Aspendos Theatre, a Roman theatre near Antalya

Reciprocal visits to the home university of an exchange partner should be attempted whenever possible. After an exchange of numerous e-mails I accepted Omer’s invitation to visit Ankara, along with several other destinations on a recruiting trip to the Levant. No amount of previous study and Internet browsing could prepare me for what I found on my first trip to Turkey.

I experienced first-hand the renowned Turkish hospitality. Omer was in the midst of preparing a manuscript for publication, but he managed to meet me at the airport and we spent several days together in Ankara and again in Istanbul. After a full day of business, we met on Friday the l3th of October (apparently not an evil omen in Turkey!) for a wonderful meal with his colleagues in his apartment on the campus of Bilkent University. I learned much that evening about Ankara, the prospects of joining the EU, the brittle relationship with the United States during the Iraq War, and the role of modern women in Turkish society. The evening was spent with younger scholars who are experts on the Ottoman Empire, modern Turkey, comparative legislatures and Byzantine history.

St. John's crusader castle, Bodrum

Visiting a good friend in his academic home was both enlightening and rewarding, since Omer was able to show me aspects of modern Turkey that are hidden from the view of casual visitors. For example, we went up to the old citadel quarter, high above Ankara, where we met the eccentric author of a little book on the impact of modernization in her ancient urban tangle of lodgings and shops. Omer offered to introduce me to some of the ministers in Ankara and he was able to bring me into a sustained dialogue with over 50 students and nearly 20 professors in a period of only two days.

Bilkent University is a modern institution, founded by a wealthy donor and devoted to high standards of scholarship and teaching. The students are energetic and worldly, the facilities are strikingly contemporary in design, and there is a substantial commitment to international education. The vice rector, Dr. Erkan, provided a full introduction to the workings of the institution and recalled his student days in the United States fondly. We discussed the possibility of exchanges and the future of inter-institutional linkages worldwide. While I was there, Omer invited me to discuss my research on Irish history with an audience of Turkish students, and I tried to keep them interested by using some comparisons on the experience of empires, both British and Ottoman. The core question aroused some attention: How can an alien nation dominate a region of the world where it does not share the same language, culture, values and religion? There was a lively question and answer afterward.

Suleimaniye Mosque, mosque in Istanbul

Ankara and Istanbul present different faces of Turkey to the first-time visitor, and it is essential to have an expert guide. Omer was a conscientious host, putting up with a thousand questions about Ataturk, the Hittites, Christian minorities, the Kurds, kilim design, and sundry other issues. The astonishing varieties of Turkish culture and civilization were on display in its two largest cities, forming an impressive pastiche of this country of 73 million people and its rich heritage.