Mustafa Kemal Ataturk died 73 years ago today and still every year on November 10, the
Turks commemorate his life and death. He is modern Turkey's greatest hero and representations of him are EVERYWHERE. He is so revered that it is illegal to insult him, even if you are
outside the country; YouTube was blocked here between May 2008 and November 2010 because of four posted videos that insulted him. He died at 9:05 a.m. at Istanbul's Dolmabahce Palace - the clocks there are always set to that time - and on this date, the nation sets off sirens for two minutes starting at that time. Traffic comes to a complete standstill and even people walking are supposed to freeze and bow their heads.
Sounds really interesting, right? Yeah, I totally missed it this morning. I was home and awake and didn't hear a thing. Alas. I guess there's always next year...
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