Founder’s Diary: Ankara

My very last visit to an InterNations Community in 2013 took me to Ankara, the capital of Turkey. When I set out on my three-hour flight from Munich, I was a bit worried about the current political situation.

After all, since the original protests against the new development plan for Taksim Gezi Park (Istanbul) that began last May, Turkey has experienced a variety of demonstrations concerning a wide range of government policies and social issues. However, despite the travel warnings I’d read about unrest in the seat of the Turkish government, I fortunately had a very peaceful trip ahead of me.

When touching down at EsenboÄ�a International Airport, I noticed immediately how different central Turkey is from the coastal areas I’d visited lately. Instead of Mediterranean shores, I saw from above the dry, brownish and reddish plateau surrounding the metropolis. It almost looked like a desert, but then I was surprised to find that it’s actually rather cool in winter – no wonder, as the “Heart of Turkey” is located almost 1,000 m above sea level.

From the airport, I headed right away to the hotel where the InterNations Event was to take place. Tugce and Basel, our Ankara Ambassadors, had planned the perfect way of ending the old year with a bang, so to speak. They’d organized an elegant gala ball with classical live music and black tie dress code, i.e. evening gowns for the ladies and tuxedos for the gents.

The Mona Hotel – the grand event venue – had opened fairly recently, so the location wasn’t only sleek and chic, but brand-new to boot. Cem, the Mona’s general manager, gave me a warm welcome to Ankara before I was off again in order to explore the city for a bit.

The hotel is situated in KavalkÄ�dere neighborhood, with its tree-lined streets, public parks, bars, and cafés, as well as Ankara’s busiest shopping avenue, including an upscale luxury mall. In the wider area of Çankaya district, you’ll also find most foreign embassies and more of the city’s five-star hotels. Although I didn’t have much time before the ball started, I got at least a good first impression of downtown Ankara during my stroll.

Before the main event, though, I seized the opportunity to have dinner with our InterNations Ambassador team in Ankara at the Mona Hotel. Tugce and Basel have very eventful and interesting personal histories, and it was a delight to meet them in person at last.

Tugce is a self-described “free spirit” with a professional background in the tourism sector. However, her rather unusual CV includes, for instance, a job as a sommelière on a luxury ocean liner, a stint in PR, a degree from a film academy in New York, and a career change to now work in IT and digital movie-making.

Basel is a Palestinian Greek born in Gaza, who has lived in Palestine, Jordan, Greece, and Austria, before he moved to Ankara several years ago. (Actually, he claims that his skills in Turkish, Arabic, and Hebrew are now much more fluent than his Greek). He works as a medical doctor and is training to specialize in surgery at one of Ankara’s hospitals.

Both Basel and Tugce are clearly very social people, who love networking, getting to meet new people, and bringing others together. They were very enthusiastic about their position as InterNations Ambassadors, and we talked for a while about the development of the Ankara Community.

The local chapter of InterNations has now over 3,800 members, and Tugce and Basel put in a lot of time and effort to organize fun events in the citiy’s nicest venues. They shared their pride in watching the community grow, but also the challenges they face from time to time.

Around eight o’clock, we moved to the hotel’s ballroom to start our New Year’s Gala. The attendees certainly added to the glamour with their dashing suits and sparkly dresses. While canapés and champagne were being served, a string duo provided a classical soundtrack for mixing and mingling over drinks and toasting to 2014.

Among the 120 members in attendance, I had the chance to talk to people of various nationalities and backgrounds: to expats from Germany, Iran, Iraq, Moldova, New Zealand, Ukraine, Russia, and the US, as well as local members from Turkey; to diplomats, teachers, doctors, entrepreneurs, NATO staff, and even an opera singer. As always, it was fascinating to see what different kinds of people show up for our events.

In a short speech, I could officially thank Tugce and Basel for their dedication to their role as InterNations Ambassadors. I’m truly grateful for all the great events they host. Again, teşekkür ederim for bringing the Ankara Community to life! Also, I couldn’t resist encouraging the guests to “branch out” whenever they travel: In plenty of other cities around the globe, more InterNations Events and Activities are waiting for them.

When the formal part of the evening drew to a close at midnight, a group of members was keen on continuing the celebrations, so I decided to join them. We stayed out for most of the night – first at Hayal Kahvesi, a popular concert hall with live music, and later on at If, another great place for live gigs, where a band was playing Turkish and international hits.

Unfortunately, I had to leave rather early for Munich the following day. On the one hand, I was looking forward to celebrating New Year’s Eve proper in Germany, but I regretted that I had caught just a glimpse of Ankara. Oh well, since my trip was really short this time, I have all the more reason to come back to this lively city!

(Photo credit: 1) Kocatepe Mosque Ankara by Wikimedia Commons user Bjørn Christian Tørrissen 2) Mona Boutique Hotel Ankara by monahotel.com.tr 3) InterNations Ankara New Year’s Gala by Galina Haydenova-Mittermann 4) Ankara Castle by flickr user Ömer Ünlü)