Turkey: East Meets West

The city of Van on the Silk Road in eastern Anatolia, Turkey. It was hit by an earthquake on Sunday 23 October 2011. People were killed and many more made homeless. I went there a year later to see how well the city is recovering. Scharlie, my wife, came for the first week in Izmir where we stayed with Bahar, a former PhD student of mine, and her parents. With the help of a guide, Harun, I visited Van and Ergiş, which had suffered severe damage, and interviewed local Governors, urban planners, engineers, geologists, business people and residents about what is being done to boost the economy, deal with social problems and to plan for the future. I also made contact with engineers and planners in Izmir, Ankara and Istanbul to better understand how Turkey manages recovery. On my weekend off I hired a car and drove north up the Armenia border passed Mount Ararat as far the Kars, featured in Orhan Pamuk’s book ‘Snow’ and the ruined medieval capital of Armenia, Ani.