Diplomat Sergei Koritsky, who worked in Turkey for more than six years, wondered: what do Turks know and think about Russia and Russians? “What are the first three words, phrases, associations that come to your mind when you hear about Russia?” Among Koritsky's interlocutors are entrepreneurs and waiters, taxi drivers and police officers, artists, students and many others. The answers he heard were both familiar and unexpected and interesting.
Moscow. Very cold. Tourists. - Do tourists from Russia buy carpets? - Almost none... - Would you like me to send you photos by email? - I don't have an address Email. (Doğan Tudun, salesman in a carpet store, 19 years old)
Aralov. Yesenin. Mamaev kurgan. - Why Aralov? - This is the first ambassador Soviet Russia in Ankara. Along with Frunze and Voroshilov, he played an important role in the history of the Turkish Republic. - Do you know Yesenin’s poems? - “Goodbye, my friend, without a hand, without a word...” When I was in Konstantinovo, I saw an autograph of this poem in the museum. I was very impressed. - Have you been to Volgograd? - Certainly. I was also on Mamayev Kurgan. This is the place where the history of the world was made. We must not forget the cruelty of Hitler's fascism and the heroism of Russian soldiers. - It’s a little unusual to see your UAZ on the streets of Antalya with the “Guard” sign on the door. - I really love this car. I also have a white Volga, hello from the 1970s, but it doesn’t drive, it’s parked in the hotel courtyard under the palm trees. (Aziz Dincher, hotel director)
Vodka. Beautiful girls. Visa-free regime for Turks. -Have you ever been to Russia? - No, but I really want to go. - Are you a musician? - Music is my hobby; in the evenings I play in a bar. And so I am a student, studying at the Faculty of Management of the Mediterranean University. (Mustafa Tumer, student, 26 years old)
Moscow roads have five or six lanes. Pavel Bure. Maria Sharapova. - The roads in Moscow are really wide, but traffic jams remain... - Unfortunately, this is true, but it’s still impressive. (Umit Gokdas, tennis coach, 41 years old)
Literature. Rich story. Bargain. - Why bargaining? - Russians love to bargain. - Do you know anything from Russian literature? - I read Dostoevsky’s Notes from Underground four times. (Bulent Isik, manager of a coffee shop on wheels, 28 years old)
Snow (I came to Antalya from Germany three years ago, I haven’t seen snow since then, I miss it). Majestic historical buildings (I’ve never been to Russia, but I know). I also know that Russian is a very difficult language. - Why did you come from Germany to Antalya? - Fate, probably. - Are you satisfied? - Very. (Eda Su Sezer, waitress at the bar)
Friendly people. Democracy. Decency. - Do Russians buy anything from you? - Yes, I have many buyers from Russia. (Atilla Bakhchivan, small shop owner, 60 years old)
Vodka. Beautiful girls... - More? - (in Russian) Board immediately. - ??? - I worked at the local airport for a long time, I will never forget these words. (Umit Chinar, 23 years old)
Lenin. Stalingrad. Gorbachev. - What comes to mind when you remember Gorbachev? - His birthmark For some reason, the one on my head always reminded me of a map of the island of Cyprus. (Onder Felek, restaurant manager, 29 years old)
Nazim Hikmet*. Saint Petersburg. Dostoevsky. - Have you ever been to St. Petersburg? - Yes, this city made a great impression on me. And in general: three words about Russia are very little. (Jan Emiji, member dance group“Fire of Anatolia”, 40 years old) *Nazim Hikmet - famous Turkish poet, last years lived his life and was buried in Moscow.
A country that is friendly to us. Sochi. Red Army. - Have you been to Sochi? - No, but I watched the opening ceremony of the 2014 Olympics. It was great. - Why the Red Army? - I would like to see the Red Army Choir perform in Antalya. I also want to ask a question: do they shave in hairdressers in Russia? straight razor? (Sedat Gundogdu, hairdresser)
Kazan. Grey colour. Train. - Have you ever been to Kazan? - No. - Why grey colour? - I feel so. - Why the train? - About 30 years ago I watched it on Turkish television documentary about Transsib. I still remember. (Agyah Gargun, coordinator of Antalya Harley-Davidson Club, 47 years old)
Hospitality. Mafia. Russian tourists- without them, our hotels and pockets would remain empty. - Have you traveled to Russia? - Twice, I lived in Moscow with friends, I really liked it. - Did you see the mafia there? - No. (Baki Kefes, taxi driver, 49 years old)
Samara. Putin. Leningrad. - Why Samara? - My son is an engineer, he worked in Samara for some time. (Selcuk Sodim, 72 years old)
"Dynamo Moscow". Volleyball player Ekaterina Gamova. Happy men. - Why do you think Russian men are happy? - Because Russian women are beautiful. (Atilla Turkyilmaz, former teacher physical education, pensioner)
Kars*. Natural gas. Kremlin Palace. - Why Kars? - I served there. They say that Kars is very similar to ancient Russian cities. Even today there is a lot that resembles Russia. - Do you want to wish anything to your Russian colleagues? - To the police in Russia, and in other countries, I would like to wish patience. (Osman Bashtug, policeman, 43 years old) *Kars is a city in northeastern Turkey, in 1878–1917 it was part of the Russian Empire.
Friendly people. Hospitality. Red Square, which we really want to see. - Do Russians come to your restaurant? - Yes, often, Russians are very fond of Turkish cuisine. (Muharrem and Sibel Iyioz, owners of the Beydagi restaurant)
Moscow. St. Petersburg... - Third word? - (in Russian) “Come on!” (Buse Gundogan, member of the dance group “Fire of Anatolia”)
great country. Art. Freedom. - In your opinion, in Russia people of art are free in their creativity? - I have many friends in Russia - artists, sculptors. I know that in their creativity they feel free. I’ll add separately: Russian sculptors are the best in the world. - Is that your portrait in the back? - Self-portrait. (Savash Altai, artist, 59 years old)
Russians are our friends. Snow. Nuclear power. - Why did you name nuclear energy? - The Russians are building the first nuclear power plant in Turkey. - Where are you from? - From Trabzon. (Ali Shahinkaya, cafe manager, 37 years old)
Rich culture. Saint Petersburg. Along with the USA and Great Britain, the leading power in the world. (Ramazan Zerdali, restaurant worker, 25 years old)
Siberia. Borsch. The Kiev's cutlets. - Of the dishes mentioned above, what do you cook most often in Turkey? - Sometimes we arrange a “Russian evening” in a restaurant, then we make sure to cook chicken Kiev. (Erkan Ashci, 31 years old, Erdem Arici, 32 years old, cooks)
Our good neighbor. Great civilization. A country I would like to visit. (Talat Aktash, sea taxi captain, 44 years old)
- Moscow. Very cold. Tourists. — Do tourists from Russia buy carpets? - Almost none... - Would you like me to send you photos by email? — I don't have an email address.
- Vodka. Beautiful girls. Visa-free regime for Turks. — Have you ever been to Russia? - No, but I really want to go. - Are you a musician? — Music is my hobby; in the evenings I play in a bar. And so I am a student, studying at the Faculty of Management of the Mediterranean University.
— Moscow roads have five or six lanes. Pavel Bure. Maria Sharapova. — The roads in Moscow are really wide, but traffic jams remain... — Unfortunately, this is true, but it’s still impressive.
- Literature. Rich story. Bargain. — Why bargaining? — Russians love to bargain. — Do you know anything from Russian literature? — I read Dostoevsky’s Notes from Underground four times.
— Snow (I came to Antalya from Germany three years ago, I haven’t seen snow since then, I miss it). Majestic historical buildings (I’ve never been to Russia, but I know). I also know that Russian is a very difficult language. — Why did you come from Germany to Antalya? - Fate, probably. — Are you satisfied? - Very.
- Friendly people. Democracy. Decency. — Do Russians buy anything from you? — Yes, I have many buyers from Russia.
- My girlfriend. Vodka. Cold climate. - What does your girlfriend have to do with it? — She herself is from Georgia, but she speaks Russian. — Do you work somewhere? — Not yet, at the end of the year I’m going to serve in the gendarmerie.
- Vodka. Beautiful girls... - More? — (in Russian) Board immediately. - ??? — I worked at the local airport for a long time, I will never forget these words.
- Lenin. Stalingrad. Gorbachev. — What comes to mind when you remember Gorbachev? “For some reason, his birthmark on his head always reminded me of a map of the island of Cyprus.
— Nazim Hikmet*. Saint Petersburg. Dostoevsky. — Have you ever been to St. Petersburg? — Yes, this city made a great impression on me. And in general: three words about Russia are very little.*Nazim Hikmet is a famous Turkish poet, the last years of his life he lived and was buried in Moscow.
- A country that is friendly to us. Sochi. Red Army. — Have you been to Sochi? — No, but I watched the opening ceremony of the 2014 Olympics. It was great. - Why the Red Army? — I would like to see the Red Army Choir perform in Antalya. I also want to ask a question: do they shave with a straight razor in hairdressers in Russia?
- Kazan. Grey colour. Train. — Have you ever been to Kazan? - No. - Why gray? - I feel so. — Why the train? — About 30 years ago I watched a documentary about the Trans-Siberian Railway on Turkish television. I still remember.
— Hospitality. Mafia. Russian tourists - without them our hotels and pockets would remain empty. — Have you traveled to Russia? — Twice, I lived in Moscow with friends, I really liked it. — Did you see the mafia there? - No.
- Samara. Putin. Leningrad. — Why Samara? — My son is an engineer, he worked in Samara for some time.
- Dynamo Moscow. Volleyball player Ekaterina Gamova. Happy men. — Why do you think Russian men are happy? — Because Russian women are beautiful.
- Kars*. Natural gas. Kremlin Palace. — Why Kars? - I served there. They say that Kars is very similar to ancient Russian cities. Even today there is a lot that resembles Russia. — Do you want to wish anything to your Russian colleagues? — I would like to wish patience to the police in Russia, and in other countries.*Kars is a city in northeastern Turkey; in 1878–1917 it was part of the Russian Empire.
- Friendly people. Hospitality. Red Square, which we really want to see. — Do Russians come to your restaurant? — Yes, often, Russians are very fond of Turkish cuisine.
- Moscow. St. Petersburg... - Third word? - (in Russian) “Come on!”
- Great country. Art. Freedom. — In your opinion, in Russia people of art are free in their creativity? — I have many friends in Russia - artists, sculptors. I know that in their creativity they feel free. I’ll add separately: Russian sculptors are the best in the world. — Is that your portrait in the back? — Self-portrait.
- Aralov. Yesenin. Mamaev kurgan. - Why Aralov? — This is the first ambassador of Soviet Russia in Ankara. Along with Frunze and Voroshilov, he played an important role in the history of the Turkish Republic. - Do you know Yesenin’s poems? - “Goodbye, my friend, without a hand, without a word...” When I was in Konstantinovo, I saw an autograph of this poem in the museum. I was very impressed. — Have you been to Volgograd? - Certainly. I was also on Mamayev Kurgan. This is the place where the history of the world was made. We must not forget the cruelty of Hitler's fascism and the heroism of Russian soldiers. — It’s a little unusual to see your UAZ on the streets of Antalya with the “Guard” sign on the door. — I really love this car. I also have a white Volga, hello from the 1970s, but it doesn’t drive, it’s parked in the hotel courtyard under the palm trees.
- Our good neighbor. Great civilization. A country I would like to visit.
This is where our story ends, but I would like to emphasize that in addition to the beauty of the Russian woman, about whom the Turks willingly admire for hours, since they consider themselves “experts,” they also have a good understanding of the history of the two peoples, love our poetry, and respect to Russian-Turkish projects. via
Dear blog readers! I salute you and just say hello!
The day before, my article was published in the Internet version, and today in the version of the printed newspaper "Aydinlyk" (that is, "Enlightenment") in Turkish, where in the center are Russians and Turks, as two peoples.
The article - not scientific and academic, but practical in life with elements of humor - was published under the heading "We are united in our feelings and in what we eat...".
In an interesting way, the article was published in Aydinlyk in a section called “Freedom Square”. While my Turkish column in MK is published under the heading " Free theme"What's not a good sign? :)
I can’t help but say “Thank you very much!” Erdem Atay and Ozge Yahsi for the speed with which they picked up several thoughts I dropped in our conversation and offered to write an article. Which was brought to Turkish readers by one of the most recognizable newspapers in the country. The article, over 6 thousand characters long (!), was published almost instantly and with minimal, exclusively technical editing.
So, as you understand, the focus of the article is Russians and Turks. For those who know Turkish, here is a link to the original. For those who don’t know, but are still interested, I give the translation below.
"We are united in our feelings and in what we eat"
Believe it or not, Russians are very emotional people. It's just that the Russians and the Turks - different ways expressing your emotions...
(Illustrations for this post are taken directly from the article in "Aydınlık" at the link to it)
I have been living in Ankara for fourteen years. During this time, my view of Turkey and the Turks has undergone a noticeable evolution: from the first impression of how different we, Russians and Turks, are, to how similar we are. Even if we ourselves don't realize it...
Of course, any country and the people inhabiting it are too complex a subject to make any generalizations about. There is an old joke from Soviet times about how in a hospital ward, where half are dead and cold, and the other half are in a fever, average temperature is 36.6 degrees. In other words, how can one make a generalization about 140 million people (the population of Russia) or about 80 million people? (population of Turkey)?
However, I leave my main thesis unchanged. Centuries of proximity between Russians and Turks have made our peoples closer, making them very similar to each other in many ways. Starting from everyday habits and proverbs and sayings - to the habit of building empires over and over again on the territory entrusted to them, no matter what they are called.
Let's start with the language. Of course, the Turkish language is very different from Russian, as well as from all European languages. You can imagine that putting the verb last in a sentence is, you know, not for impatient people. My advice to them: let them use a different language. Otherwise, 7/24 they will have to listen to “who, with whom, when, how, at what time” and only at the end of the sentence will they find out “what exactly”.
You need to have a huge reserve of patience to listen to the sentence to the end, where everything will become clear. But, be that as it may, different estimates There are up to several thousand common words in our languages. A coat is a coat, a hat is a hat, a samovar is a samovar. We wish all foreigners learning Turkish a huge supply of patience. For this work is beyond the capabilities of people who are not accustomed to this and who are not geniuses. However, despite the structural differences, according to various estimates, the Russian and Turkish languages contain not hundreds, but thousands of common words: coat, hat, samovar, etc. That is, our chances of understanding each other are very high.
Russians and Turks are two very hospitable people. You can say that the Russian people smile little and, in general, look gloomy. This is true. But imagine yourself for a moment as a resident of Moscow, where is the number sunny days last December, according to official data, it was... Do you think this duration was expressed in days? No - in minutes. And it was only six minutes. Six long minutes. So, Russians need the Turkish sun to come to their senses and show their real, attractive nature. This process was mistakenly included in Turkish history books under the name “exit (note: Russians) to the warm seas.” We say “occupy Antalya”. At least for two weeks a year. We have enough of this.
Let's talk about emotionality. There is this (note: in Turkey) famous expression: “The Russian fell in love, but Russian love is different”...
Believe it or not, Russians are very emotional people. It’s just that Russians and Turks show their emotions differently, but that doesn’t make them any less. True, if you compare us with bombs, the length of Russian and Turkish fuses will be different. For the Turks it is short, the bomb explodes quickly and in bursts. The Russians have a long fuse and this bomb only explodes once. The first and the last. In general, we strive, in a European way, to live by logic, but we still remain very, very emotional.
IN major cities of our countries, be it Moscow and St. Petersburg or Ankara and Istanbul, people like to repeat: “We are Europeans, our country is part of Europe!” When Europe clearly and clearly agrees with this statement, we are pleased. Of course, there is a subtext here: “We are modern!” However, at every opportunity, we do not forget to repeat that our understanding of modernity differs from the European one. Traditions and traditional values are very important to us. We are modern conservatives, identifying ourselves as “Eurasians”. After all, purely from geographical point In our opinion, there are only two countries in the world that belong to both Europe and Asia. And these countries are Russia and Turkey.
The relationship between the Turkish and Russian peoples with the law is similar. There is a concept of law, there is a concept of justice, and they do not always coincide. That is life.
Our citizens believe that it should be possible to “explain” to an official the reasons for one or another misconduct. And, as a rule, this works out. And if he, in human terms, understands you, he will take a step towards you, of course, within the limits of his capabilities. At least that's what we believe.
Because we are not “European robots”. We have everything for a person... Laws cannot provide for all the characteristics and living conditions of a particular person. In Russian there is an expression for this case: “Rules are made to be broken.” I sometimes hear analogues in Turkey, but in traffic Ankara - I already see this every day.
In an interesting way, like ours national economies complement each other, so both Russians and Turks, being similar to a friend against each other - complementary peoples. If this had not happened, there would not have been a huge number of happy mixed families, the number of which amounts to hundreds of thousands. And people who are not connected by anything would not be able to overcome the deepest crisis in relations that erupted in November 2015 in just seven months. And in seven years they couldn’t...
We ourselves are not aware of how similar we are as peoples. Despite the fact that we communicate closely, especially during the summer tourist season, unfortunately, this is not particularly talked about or written about either in Russia or in Turkey. In fact, among the major Russian newspapers there is only one permanent column that tells Russian readers about Turkey - in the newspaper Moskovsky Komsomolets, whose daily circulation averages 600-700 thousand. And this is my three-year work.
A few days ago in “MK” I published, the main idea of which boils down to the following: “In world gastronomy there is a brand of Mediterranean cuisine, but there is no brand of Black Sea cuisine.” This is a very sad situation, since we ourselves are not aware that regional countries, primarily Russia and Turkey, have a common gastronomic space. Vegetable soup, anchovy pilaf, corn bread, cabbage rolls, etc. found on the tables of almost all countries surrounding the Black Sea.
Considering the Black Sea cuisine as a project, in order to create its brand, last year the Federation of Restaurateurs and Hoteliers of Russia together with our (note: Russian-Turkish) Project Development Association (TUR RUS) took an important step by officially contacting the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (note: headquarters in Istanbul). And our project was included in the relevant protocols.
It’s time to explain that we live in a single cultural space. After all, 2019 has been declared a cross year of culture between Russia and Turkey. Until then, we have a lot of work to do...
Russians and Turks: instead of the author's conclusion
As I understood my friends (Erdem and Ozge), the newspaper “Aydınlık”, having just published an article, is already waiting for a continuation. This means that in the near future we will continue to analyze Russians and Turks, coupled with Russian-Turkish relations, not only for Russian viewers, listeners, readers, but also for Turkish ones. And we will talk not so much about politics and economics, but about people. What is much more important and, frankly speaking, more interesting...
By the way, literally the next day the continuation of the topic was heard on TV - on the Sputnik channel. Here is a link to the material with a YouTube video.
See you again on the blog and subscribe with one easy movement of the hand! It's always interesting here...
Sergei Koritsky, who worked as a diplomat in Turkey for more than six years, wondered: what do Turks know and think about Russia and Russians? “What are the first three words, phrases, associations that come to your mind when you hear about Russia?” Among Koritsky's interlocutors are entrepreneurs and waiters, taxi drivers and police officers, artists, students and many others. The answers he heard were both familiar and unexpected and interesting.
Moscow. Very cold. Tourists. - Do tourists from Russia buy carpets? - Almost none... - Would you like me to send you photos by email? - I don't have an email address. (Doğan Tudun, salesman in a carpet store, 19 years old)
Aralov. Yesenin. Mamaev kurgan. - Why Aralov? - This is the first ambassador of Soviet Russia in Ankara. Along with Frunze and Voroshilov, he played an important role in the history of the Turkish Republic. - Do you know Yesenin’s poems? - “Goodbye, my friend, without a hand, without a word...” When I was in Konstantinovo, I saw an autograph of this poem in the museum. I was very impressed. - Have you been to Volgograd? - Certainly. I was also on Mamayev Kurgan. This is the place where the history of the world was made. We must not forget the cruelty of Hitler's fascism and the heroism of Russian soldiers. - It’s a little unusual to see your UAZ on the streets of Antalya with the “Guard” sign on the door. - I really love this car. I also have a white Volga, hello from the 1970s, but it doesn’t drive, it’s parked in the hotel courtyard under the palm trees. (Aziz Dincher, hotel director)
Vodka. Beautiful girls. Visa-free regime for Turks. -Have you ever been to Russia? - No, but I really want to go. - Are you a musician? - Music is my hobby; in the evenings I play in a bar. And so I am a student, studying at the Faculty of Management of the Mediterranean University. (Mustafa Tumer, student, 26 years old)
Moscow roads have five or six lanes. Pavel Bure. Maria Sharapova. - The roads in Moscow are really wide, but traffic jams remain... - Unfortunately, this is true, but it’s still impressive. (Umit Gokdas, tennis coach, 41 years old)
Literature. Rich story. Bargain. - Why bargaining? - love to bargain. - Do you know anything from Russian literature? - I read Dostoevsky’s Notes from Underground four times. (Bulent Isik, manager of a coffee shop on wheels, 28 years old)
Snow (I came to Antalya from Germany three years ago, I haven’t seen snow since then, I miss it). Majestic historical buildings (I’ve never been to Russia, but I know). I also know that Russian is a very difficult language. - Why did you come from Germany to Antalya? - Fate, probably. - Are you satisfied? - Very. (Eda Su Sezer, waitress at the bar)
Friendly people. Democracy. Decency. - Do Russians buy anything from you? - Yes, I have many buyers from Russia. (Atilla Bakhchivan, small shop owner, 60 years old)
My girlfriend. Vodka. Cold climate. - What does your girlfriend have to do with it? - She herself is from Georgia, but speaks Russian. - Do you work somewhere? - Not yet, at the end of the year I’m going to serve in the gendarmerie. (Yusuf Durmush)
Vodka. Beautiful girls... - More? - (in Russian) Board immediately. - ??? - I worked at the local airport for a long time, I will never forget these words. (Umit Chinar, 23 years old)
Lenin. Stalingrad. Gorbachev. - What comes to mind when you remember Gorbachev? - For some reason, his birthmark on his head always reminded me of a map of the island of Cyprus. (Onder Felek, restaurant manager, 29 years old)
Nazim Hikmet*. Saint Petersburg. Dostoevsky. - Have you ever been to St. Petersburg? - Yes, this city made a great impression on me. And in general: three words about Russia are very little. (Can Emiji, member of the dance group “Fire of Anatolia”, 40 years old) * Nazym Hikmet is a famous Turkish poet, the last years of his life he lived and was buried in Moscow.
A country that is friendly to us. Sochi. Red Army. - Have you been to Sochi? - No, but I watched the opening ceremony of the 2014 Olympics. It was great. - Why the Red Army? - I would like to see the Red Army Choir perform in Antalya. I also want to ask a question: do they shave with a straight razor in hairdressers in Russia? (Sedat Gundogdu, hairdresser)
Kazan. Grey colour. Train. - Have you ever been to Kazan? - No. - Why gray? - I feel so. - Why the train? - About 30 years ago I watched a documentary about the Trans-Siberian Railway on Turkish television. I still remember. (Agyah Gargun, coordinator of Antalya Harley-Davidson Club, 47 years old)
Hospitality. Mafia. Russian tourists - without them our hotels and pockets would remain empty. - Have you traveled to Russia? - Twice, I lived in Moscow with friends, I really liked it. - Did you see the mafia there? - No. (Baki Kefes, taxi driver, 49 years old)
Samara. Putin. Leningrad. - Why Samara? - My son is an engineer, he worked in Samara for some time. (Selcuk Sodim, 72 years old)
"Dynamo Moscow". Volleyball player Ekaterina Gamova. Happy men. - Why do you think Russian men are happy? - Because Russian women are beautiful. (Atilla Turkyilmaz, former physical education teacher, retired)
Kars*. Natural gas. Kremlin Palace. - Why Kars? - I served there. They say that Kars is very similar to ancient Russian cities. Even today there is a lot that resembles Russia. - Do you want to wish anything to your Russian colleagues? - To the police in Russia, and in other countries, I would like to wish patience. (Osman Bashtug, policeman, 43 years old) *Kars is a city in northeastern Turkey, in 1878–1917 it was part of the Russian Empire.
Friendly people. Hospitality. Red Square, which we really want to see. - Do Russians come to your restaurant? - Yes, often, Russians are very fond of Turkish cuisine. (Muharrem and Sibel Iyioz, owners of the Beydagi restaurant)
Moscow. St. Petersburg... - Third word? - (in Russian) “Come on!” (Buse Gundogan, member of the dance group “Fire of Anatolia”)
Great country. Art. Freedom. - In your opinion, in Russia people of art are free in their creativity? - I have many friends in Russia - artists, sculptors. I know that in their creativity they feel free. I’ll add separately: Russian sculptors are the best in the world. - Is that your portrait in the back? - Self-portrait. (Savash Altai, artist, 59 years old)
Russians are our friends. Snow. Nuclear power. - Why did you name nuclear energy? - The Russians are building the first nuclear power plant in Turkey. - Where are you from? - From Trabzon. (Ali Shahinkaya, cafe manager, 37 years old)
Rich culture. Saint Petersburg. Along with the USA and Great Britain, the leading power in the world. (Ramazan Zerdali, restaurant worker, 25 years old)
Siberia. Borsch. The Kiev's cutlets. - Of the dishes mentioned above, what do you cook most often in Turkey? - Sometimes we arrange a “Russian evening” in a restaurant, then we make sure to cook chicken Kiev. (Erkan Ashci, 31 years old, Erdem Arici, 32 years old, cooks)
Our good neighbor. Great civilization. A country I would like to visit. (Talat Aktash, sea taxi captain, 44 years old)
Diplomat Sergei Koritsky, who worked in Turkey for more than six years, wondered: what do Turks know and think about Russia and Russians? “What are the first three words, phrases, associations that come to your mind when you hear about Russia?” Among Koritsky's interlocutors are entrepreneurs and waiters, taxi drivers and police officers, artists, students and many others. The answers he heard were both familiar and unexpected and interesting.
Moscow. Very cold. Tourists. — Do tourists from Russia buy carpets? - Almost none... - Would you like me to send you photos by email? — I don't have an email address. (Doğan Tudun, salesman in a carpet store, 19 years old)
Aralov. Yesenin. Mamaev kurgan. - Why Aralov? — This is the first ambassador of Soviet Russia in Ankara. Along with Frunze and Voroshilov, he played an important role in the history of the Turkish Republic. - Do you know Yesenin’s poems? - “Goodbye, my friend, without a hand, without a word...” When I was in Konstantinovo, I saw an autograph of this poem in the museum. I was very impressed. — Have you been to Volgograd? - Certainly. I was also on Mamayev Kurgan. This is the place where the history of the world was made. We must not forget the cruelty of Hitler's fascism and the heroism of Russian soldiers. — It’s a little unusual to see your UAZ on the streets of Antalya with the “Guard” sign on the door. — I really love this car. I also have a white Volga, hello from the 1970s, but it doesn’t drive, it’s parked in the hotel courtyard under the palm trees. (Aziz Dincher, hotel director)
Vodka. Beautiful girls. Visa-free regime for Turks. — Have you ever been to Russia? - No, but I really want to go. - Are you a musician? — Music is my hobby; in the evenings I play in a bar. And so I am a student, studying at the Faculty of Management of the Mediterranean University. (Mustafa Tumer, student, 26 years old)
Moscow roads have five or six lanes. Pavel Bure. Maria Sharapova. — The roads in Moscow are really wide, but traffic jams remain... — Unfortunately, this is true, but it’s still impressive. (Umit Gokdas, tennis coach, 41 years old)
Literature. Rich story. Bargain. — Why bargaining? — Russians love to bargain. — Do you know anything from Russian literature? — I read Dostoevsky’s Notes from Underground four times. (Bulent Isik, manager of a coffee shop on wheels, 28 years old)
Snow (I came to Antalya from Germany three years ago, I haven’t seen snow since then, I miss it). Majestic historical buildings (I’ve never been to Russia, but I know). I also know that Russian is a very difficult language. — Why did you come from Germany to Antalya? - Fate, probably. — Are you satisfied? - Very. (Eda Su Sezer, waitress at the bar)
Lenin. Stalingrad. Gorbachev. — What comes to mind when you remember Gorbachev? “For some reason, his birthmark on his head always reminded me of a map of the island of Cyprus. (Onder Felek, restaurant manager, 29 years old)
Nazim Hikmet*. Saint Petersburg. Dostoevsky. — Have you ever been to St. Petersburg? — Yes, this city made a great impression on me. And in general: three words about Russia are very little. (Can Emiji, member of the dance group “Fire of Anatolia”, 40 years old) * Nazym Hikmet is a famous Turkish poet, the last years of his life he lived and was buried in Moscow.
A country that is friendly to us. Sochi. Red Army. — Have you been to Sochi? — No, but I watched the opening ceremony of the 2014 Olympics. It was great. - Why the Red Army? — I would like to see the Red Army Choir perform in Antalya. I also want to ask a question: do they shave with a straight razor in hairdressers in Russia? (Sedat Gundogdu, hairdresser)
Kazan. Grey colour. Train. — Have you ever been to Kazan? - No. - Why gray? - I feel so. — Why the train? — About 30 years ago I watched a documentary about the Trans-Siberian Railway on Turkish television. I still remember. (Agyah Gargun, coordinator of Antalya Harley-Davidson Club, 47 years old)
Hospitality. Mafia. Russian tourists - without them our hotels and pockets would remain empty. — Have you traveled to Russia? — Twice, I lived in Moscow with friends, I really liked it. — Did you see the mafia there? - No. (Baki Kefes, taxi driver, 49 years old)
"Dynamo Moscow". Volleyball player Ekaterina Gamova. Happy men. — Why do you think Russian men are happy? — Because Russian women are beautiful. (Atilla Turkyilmaz, former physical education teacher, retired)
Kars*. Natural gas. Kremlin Palace. — Why Kars? - I served there. They say that Kars is very similar to ancient Russian cities. Even today there is a lot that resembles Russia. — Do you want to wish anything to your Russian colleagues? — I would like to wish patience to the police in Russia, and in other countries. (Osman Bashtug, policeman, 43 years old) *Kars is a city in northeastern Turkey, in 1878–1917 it was part of the Russian Empire.
