Update from the road: Tekirdağ

I traveled two hours outside of Istanbul today to interview Ahmet Okutan, the mufti of Tekirdağ.  He was incredibly helpful both in terms of providing information about sermon preparation in his province and in terms of setting up additional interviews in the region (tomorrow I’m going to Edirne and tomorrow night it’s off to Çanakkale). 

Thanks to him I’ve also had a driver shuttle me around and am now staying in the guesthouse of the Tekirdağ Diyanet Education Center.  This is where imams receive 40 days of training before beginning their assignments at mosques around the country.  I’ve been warmly received here, have had great conversations with the director, and have a whole apartment to myself.

 All for now…