ISTANBUL — In a painful fashion the chants rang out. We couldn’t fully understand what they meant but it was clear from the posters that every mention of the ABD (Turkish for USA) was another shout against our country. This scene unfolded at start of a surreal week, one which will be difficult to forget.

We heard the chants in the Turkish capital of Anakara. After being promised a free bus ride and a new look into Turkish politics, I joined two friends and a number of Turkish students on a trip there last Saturday night. Our buses boarded shortly after midnight and off we went, headed to a mass protest against the government.

ISTANBUL — It’s Sunday morning. I’ve been sleeping for the past eleven hours and wake exactly how I feared — hurting all over. This is a product of my own doing. I’ve grown up my whole life watching football and have always had a burning desire to play. When the opportunity came along, albeit in Turkey, there was no chance I was turning it down.

My first practice started a bit shaky — “Stretch your calves, Aleks!” yelled Jokson, the burly team captain leading stretches at the center of our circle. As I repositioned my legs, the whole team went up in fits of laughter, thoroughly enjoying their leader’s elementary English. “Hello by the way,” I thought after this fine introduction, “My name is Alex, pleased to meet you!”