Episode intel from Istanbul

Turkey always struggled to find a balance between those in power and the consent of its widely-diverse population.

Lingo

Raki: Turkish anise liquor.

Işkembe çorbası: Tripe soup.

Pide: Turkish flatbread, often served with different meat and vegetable toppings.

Turkish Armenians

Tens of thousands of Armenians currently live in Turkey, but that may soon change, Sezar Dallaryan, the son of Armenian restaurateurs in Istanbul, told Bourdain.
“It’s the way that people feel now. Because of the way that our president—the way that he talks. It’s not only political issue; it’s a reality,” Dallaryan said, referring to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who is still in power today.

The AKP

Bourdain met with a supporter of Turkey’s AKP—the Justice and Development Party. Nuri Egeli, a business owner, cited economic incentive as the reason he votes AKP.
“Before the economy was so bad. No foreign investment, interest rates were so high, inflation was about 100 percent per year, so it’s very hard to make business in such circumstances,” Egeli told Bourdain. “In 2002, I had 70 employees. Now it’s 250.”