FROM THE TRAIN 4: STONES
1980s Storks – Land in marshes – Ground squirrels – How quickly it disappears – Dam – Çatalhöyük – We are 6 hours late due to delays, even though the Minister of Transportation was involved in planning this trip. Very little time left to see the village, all of us activists who would save it – There is some feeling that “it was sabotaged because the government supports the dam, which will destroy our international heritage & ruin thousands of lives & make 100 people rich” – How novel! A river with water in it! – Big excitement as the train is hit by rocks in and after Diyarbakir – Malcontents hurling rocks- A mud barn thatched w/hay, and many ducks, but now we must close the shades – Buket saw 3 little boys throwing rocks just before we got hit the 2nd time – Pulling down the shades is a drag. They got 3 windows so far.
TIGRIS VILLAGE
-All and everything is gold – The Tigris Valley – Cradle of Civilization – Rounded mountains on one side, magnificent walls on the other, a fantasy landscape carved by the Tigris over millenniae-—-When I drew this, there were still people living in this village, a few miles from Hasankeyf.