TURKISH SPEAKING ARMENIAN IN BEIRUT

Hurriyet
Dec 16 2008
Turkey

BEIRUT- One of his grandfathers is from Turkey’s southeastern province
of KahramanmaraÅ~_, while the other is from the eastern city of
Harput. His mother and father were born in Lebanon, as too, was he.

He learned Turkish from his grandfather and then years later, when
he met and fell in love with a Turkish girl in Beirut, his desire to
speak Turkish reappeared in earnest.

Varto is a 22-year-old Lebanese police officer with Armenian
ancestors. I met him in Hamra, in western Beirut, where mostly Sunnis
live. While I was taking photos in a street, a police officer suddenly
came up to me. "You cannot take photos here," he said in English.

I said: "I am a journalist. I come from Turkey, that is why I am
taking pictures," he then started speaking in Turkish. With great
astonishment I asked him how he knew Turkish. "I am Armenian,"
he answered, his tone highlighting that for him, speaking Turkish
was extremely natural. With that answer, our conversation proceeded
and he started to tell me about his family, his grandfather and his
Turkish love.

‘I loved a Turk’ "I loved a Turkish girl," he said, before looking
away, "But her family would not allow us to marry." They fell in love
after meeting last year and Varto made his mother accept he was going
to marry a Turkish girl, but the girl’s family would not allow them
to do so.

"Let me introduce you to my family," he said after we had talked. We
went on his motorbike to Bourj Hammoud, the Armenian neighborhood
in Beirut. As we entered the house, he told his family that I was
Turkish. "HoÅ~_geldin," (Welcome) his mother Zovik said, as she hugged
and kissed me. I suddenly realized that everyone in the family spoke
Turkish.

"I made rice with chicken, you should eat," she said insistently,
before we started talking. As I said thank you, she said, "We should
offer you something," and brought us some berry-wine.

Her dream is to visit Turkey Varto, his mother, father, sisters,
grandfather and grandmother all lived in the same house. The greatest
fun the family have is watching Turkish soap operas via satellite
in their modest home. They talk about the famous Turkish TV series
"Yaprak Dökumu," "Binbir Gece" and many others I did not know.

"My greatest dream is going to Turkey one day," Zovik said. She wanted
to see Harput, KahramanmaraÅ~_ and Istanbul. Other members of the
family showed me their Christmas tree. We took pictures near it.

"Let me show you Beirut, I will take you anywhere you want," Varto
said and took me for a ride around the city. We saw the Armenian
neighborhood, the marina and the market and then turned back to Hamra
where I had met him. Before I left, Varto, who did not allow me take
photos at first, whispered to me, "If you want to take pictures again,
just tell me. You are Turkish, I will allow you to take pictures."

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