{"id":316,"date":"2019-03-28T16:28:41","date_gmt":"2019-03-28T16:28:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.rockandrollcaravancafe.de\/?p=316"},"modified":"2019-03-28T17:01:06","modified_gmt":"2019-03-28T17:01:06","slug":"vakifli","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.rockandrollcaravancafe.de\/index.php\/2019\/03\/28\/vakifli\/","title":{"rendered":"Vak\u0131fl\u0131"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

It is said to be the last Armenian village in Turkey. Approximately 70 people still living here. Once there were 7 villages in this area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The village of Vak\u0131fl\u0131.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

When the tensions in 1912 in the then\nOttoman Empire rose, people fled from here, one village has remained.\nWe spent a few days here to find out what happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

The events were carried by word of\nmouth, from person to person and from generation to generation.\nThat’s why it’s hard to say what actually happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What people have told us is that the Armenians in this area have fled over the mountains towards Arsuz on the Mediterranean. The French were in Hatay at that time and a French boat has taken the Armenian refugees and saved them from the exodus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After some time, when the situation\ncalmed down for the Armenians, some returned and settled in Vakilfi\nvillage. Today there are still 3 families living here permanently.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The main business is citrus fruits.\nIncidentally, the women of the village produce wine, liqueur, honey\nand oil. Everything (almost) organic and in a collective. 30% of this\nincome goes to a study fund of the children of this village.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The local organic store with wine, liqueur, honey and oil.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The older generation is concerned about the future of this village. The business with citrus fruits does not bring enough and the successful study fund has a „bitter“ aftertaste. 90% of Vak\u0131fl\u0131’s young adults attend universities. It can be assumed that most of them see in Vak\u0131fl\u0131 no future and will like many others already migrate to the big cities of Turkey, Europe or the US.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Manuk was born in this village and has lived in Germany for 45 years. At the beginning of our conversation he tells me, „I have to come here every year“. When we walk through the village and he tells me with sparkling eyes what he has experienced in every corner of this village, I understand why he „has to“ return to this village every year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We stop in front of a yellow house. He tells me how his parents went to Germany, he and his siblings could not go with them in the beginning. His great-grandmother lived with the children in this house. For 10 months of the year, he could not see his parents. `It was hard, ‚he says. They did not have much, but everything they needed. When they were ill, the great-grandma made tea with different herbs for the children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

„After that, we were well again\nand did not get sick all winter.“ He beams, he points his finger\nto one leg and says to me, „That’s why a part of me is always in\nthis village.“<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He left Vak\u0131fl\u0131 at the age of 12,\nlived in Lebanon for some time and now lives in Osnabr\u00fcck in\nGermany. He says goodbye, he wants to visit his parents in\nIskenderum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The church of Vak\u0131fl\u0131 <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

We continue with Kirkor. He takes us on\na walk through olive and tangerine trees. He is also from this\nvillage, a cousin of Manuk. Today he lives in Istanbul, but he comes\nevery year to Vak\u0131fl\u0131, at least for a month. He tells us stories\nfrom the village, mainly how he shot countless wild boars in the\nmountains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Notorious among the farmers, he\nsometimes gets requests to help the farmers. There are too many wild\nboars that damage the fields.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Surrounded by green.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Mainly Duygu talks to him, I run\nbehind, enjoy the view and let my thoughts wander. Below us is the\nsmall town of Samanda\u011f, Samanda\u011f is located on the Mediterranean,\nsouth of the city are the mountains, behind them is Syria. Many\npeople in Samanda\u011f speak Arabic, there are many Orthodox Christians\nand many Alevitas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Samanda\u011f with the Kelda\u011f<\/em> mountain in the backround. <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Kirkor gives me a mandarin, Duygu tells\nme about 40 Armenians who came from Syria to Vak\u0131fl\u0131 in 2014. The\nresidents helped them, as well as they were helped in the past. These\nArmenians have found asylum in Europe today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When we get back to the village and\nwalk to the tea house in the evening, someone just comes back from a\nsuccessful hunt, he shot a wild boar. It should be the best wild boar\nmeat of Turkey in this village. A few hours later I have a good kilo\nof this pig in the fridge. I will see tomorrow if it is the best pig\nin Turkey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Barbecue with the most famous hunters of Vak\u0131fl\u0131, Kirkor and Mohammed.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It is said to be the last Armenian village in Turkey. Approximately 70 people still living here. Once there were 7 villages in this area. When the tensions in 1912 in the then Ottoman Empire rose, people fled from here, one village has remained. We spent a few days here to find out what happened.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":""},"categories":[43,5,37,2,28],"tags":[74,61,86,59,84,87,77,73,75,79,81,78,9,72,15,80,11,85],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/saMWFm-vakifli","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.rockandrollcaravancafe.de\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/316"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.rockandrollcaravancafe.de\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.rockandrollcaravancafe.de\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.rockandrollcaravancafe.de\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.rockandrollcaravancafe.de\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=316"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"http:\/\/www.rockandrollcaravancafe.de\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/316\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":333,"href":"http:\/\/www.rockandrollcaravancafe.de\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/316\/revisions\/333"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.rockandrollcaravancafe.de\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=316"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.rockandrollcaravancafe.de\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=316"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.rockandrollcaravancafe.de\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=316"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}