Merhaba Turkiye

For those of you who don't know me, hi I'm Claire and I'm one year in to a two year Masters degree program at Boston University.  My focus is religion and society in Turkey and the Middle East.  For the past year, I have been in the somewhat awkward position of studying Turkey without ever actually having been there.  Fortunately, that will soon change.  I will be living and learning Turkish in Istanbul from May 26 to June 30.  I will be posting pictures and updates not only about my experiences but also current events in Turkey.  June 2011 should prove to be an interesting time to be in Turkey as there is a general election scheduled for June 12, which could open the way for changes to the Turkish Constitution that would make it more fair and democratic.  The NGO behind the Mavi Marmara's voyage to Gaza last June has scheduled a sequel for exactly one year later.  I hope to not only improve my Turkish language skills but also gain some insight into the current state of Turkish politics and society.  In the United States, Turkey is largely misunderstood and its importance in current geopolitics, economics and culture vastly underestimated.  I hope this blog will help in some small way to debunk stereotypes and stimulate an interest in this multi-dimensional, contradictory and fascinating country.