From Macedonia to Turkey

14

Sunday 14 September, 2014 by Uncle Spike

My wife’s maternal grandparents hailed from Macedonia, having been forced immigrants to Turkey after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire.

A few weeks ago we took my wife’s 94 year old granny back to the home she grew up in, and spent some lovely time together with her ‘baby’ brother, who is in his mid 80s, but bright as a button, and still living in the family home.

When we married some 8 years ago, this very same Great Uncle just ‘turned up’. Nobody had seen him for years after some 50 year family rift, but the guy just knocked on my door the afternoon of the wedding. We then found out that he had travelled six hours, taken four buses, even found our village, and then asked around until he found the house – a resourceful old chap 🙂

Anyway, my wife had never seen the house her Great Uncle and Granny grew up in either, so it was a special day for all of us. These are some images of their home, in which we were made to feel so welcome.

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The inner courtyard

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The sitting room

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On old lamp in the bedroom

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Simplicity

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The kitchen

Yes, it’s tiny; no more than 2 people can stand up in it
but we were served a feast prepared right there.

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The ‘garden’

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Under the siting room and bedroom is now a storage area,
but years ago it was a safe place to hide the family

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