As a born and raised Romanian, and an experience I am sure most other people who were
raised in Romania can relate, Turkey, Greece and Bulgaria are certainly hotspots for Romanian
citizens to travel to. Of those, specifically it is among the favourites due to its inherent very unique
environment, with many influences from the Middle East and its culture, making it a simply
different experience as opposed to staying within Europe. It is true that I have traveled to Turkey
on many occasions as a result while growing up, but I have not visited in a while, and Istanbul is
very much a fading memory from my early teenage years.
When considering this, I believe this trip will be an enhancing experience both in the context of
the module Politics and Development in the Middle East and of reflecting upon personal
experiences. In terms of the module, we get to see in practice how the theories of politics and
development in Turkey truly manifest in everyday life like, for example, seeing the bazaar and
what is and is not allowed to be sold, such as alcohol, and linking it back to the reason behind
why that is that was taught in class, and Turkey’s existence as a ‘muslim democracy’. Similarly,
we will be purchasing items such as coffee, and will reflect on the price when compared to the
price of a coffee in London, we will see the currency’s power and exchange rates, all of these
putting into perspective and allowing me to think critically upon the state of their economy and
politics.
More importantly, while I have experienced life in Istanbul before, I have never delved into
academic life there, which will be an entirely new scope of experiences as we will get to learn
about Turkey from a true Turkish lens during our day of lectures there, which is exciting when I
think about how authentic that experience will be. It will be an indispensable aspect of the
module that cannot be exchanged for being taught about Turkey within our regular class in
London. Finally, in terms of my personal experience, six years ago was the last time I visited
Istanbul and I am very sure that so much has changed since my last time there. Therefore, I am
looking forward to seeing in what ways certain aspects of the city has changed – architecture,
businesses, culture – and hope I can, in equal measure, recognise some streets, vendors, cafes
and buildings that have continued to stand the test of time over the course of Istanbul’s
development.
Alessia Diaconescu