I never thought of that!

Having lived in Turkey for so many years, I expected to be familiar with most of the issues presented in Aksoy and Candan's papers. While I was aware of the issues with entering the EU, I was not aware of the extremity of globalization in Istanbul. I spent most of my time in Ankara, which I wish we could see, because it's so different from anywhere I've been. The streets are always dusty and cracked by stubborn and knotted tree roots, the streets are sparsely populated, and the people are friendly and eager to offer tea. When I picture Istanbul, I do picture the busy metropolis that was described in the papers, but sadly, I don't want to picture this. Turkey is so rich with culture that I fear it's turning in the wrong direction. Why should Istanbul expand and become more of a metropolis? Yes, it will attract more tourists, and it will continue to be, as was said, a 'microcosm of Anatolia,' but will this really please visitors? Visitors who come to see the true Turkey and end up seeing the Starbucks and Burger Kings that pepper the streets of their homelands? I fear that Turkey is concentrating so much on its entering into the EU that it's forgetting where it comes from. It's forgetting that it's culture and landmarks are arguably more rich with history than many other European countries. Why would Turkey want to lose the Lira, or want to join up with an organization that is clearly reluctant to accept it? I'm very interested to hear about what the speaker today has to say, because after the readings for today, I'm left thoroughly confused.