Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
My Dad used to be absolutely distraught by the notion that God and Allah could be the
same. Years ago, I couldn't resist teaching my toddler Andy to hold out his arms, bob them
up and down, and say, “Allah, Allah, Allah” after table grace just to freak out his Grandpa.
Later, rather than just torture my Dad, I took a more loving (and certainly more effective)
approach to opening him up to the Muslim world: I took him to Turkey. Now—while he's
still afraid of al-Qaeda—my Dad is no longer afraid of Islam.
While violent Islamic fundamentalists represent a tiny fraction of all Muslims, the
threats they pose are real. And they get plenty of media coverage. To help balance my
understanding of Islam, I make a point to travel to and learn about its reasonable, main-
stream side. I spend time in Turkey, a Western-facing Islamic nation with a determination
to stay secular and a desire to engage the US and Europe as friends without giving up its
culture. Morocco is another good classroom for gaining a balanced take on Islam. Visiting
moderate developing nations like these, which happen to be primarily Muslim, gives us
an accessible look at our globe's fastest-growing religion, practiced by more than 1.5 bil-
lion people worldwide. Nearly one in every four human beings prays to Mecca. Through
travel, we can observe Islamic societies struggling (like our own society) with how to deal
with a rough-and-tumble globalized world. In doing so, we gain empathy.
Turkey is also a good classroom in which to better understand our world because it
gives us a peek at an emerging economy. With the frailties of the US economy and the G-8
stretching to G-20, it's smart to pay attention to the globe's new economic realities. Tur-
key—with its torrid modernization, its drift to the political right, and the rise of Islamic
fundamentalism—is a study in the cultural schizophrenia that modern change can cause,
from Mumbai to Memphis.
The predictable question travelers get from loved ones is, “Why are you going to Tur-
key?” With each visit to Istanbul, one of my favorite cities in the world, my response is:
Why would anyone
not
travel here?
When I was in my twenties, I finished eight European trips in a row in Turkey. I didn't plan
it that way—it was the natural finale, the subconscious cherry on top of every year's travel
adventures. While my passion for Turkey hasn't faded, my ability to spend time there has
been a casualty of my busy schedule researching guidebooks and producing public televi-
sion shows. But recently, realizing I hadn't set foot in Istanbul for nearly a decade, I made
a point to return to the city where East meets West. The comforting similarities and jarring
