After an eternity, I am back on stage! I mean this quite literally. Today Milliyet published an article by Business Writer Serpil Yilmaz, and I am in it:

She actually joined us in one of our informal round tables in Washington a week ago, up-close and personal. We chatted about what not as she was taking notes and asking questions, both personal and professional: why Turkish businessmen are a rarity in the US, why there are a lot of small businessmen but not 'fabrikators' in the Washington area, our challenges as Turkish-American businesswomen and businessmen... We also did our share of gossip: where does Kemal Dervis hang out in lunch time (in that cozy Italian Restaurant in Bethesda), did anyone met Recep Erdogan at the IMF (he has other circles and plays Turkish football in the area but his circle apparently does not overlap with ours)....

Of course, this is business. As for entertainment, Levent and I attended the absolutely unbelievable piano concerto of Fazil Say, the Turkish pianist, with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. Suffice it to say that he was elegantly casual, he enchanted everyone, and the audience called him back to stage 6 times. Here is a piece of publicity about the event: Pianist Fazil Say joined Yuri Temirkanov and the BSO to perform Gershwins Rhapsody in Blue to sold-out houses in Baltimore in 2002. The pianists interpretation of this Gershwin work is one of Maestro Temirkanovs favorites, and is beautifully paired on this program with Gershwins An American in Paris and Dvoraks brilliant, American-inspired New World Symphony.

We enjoyed the two elderly primadonnas seated right across us, they were equipped with binoculars. We also laughed at his name: Fazil Say is pronounced in english as FEYZIL SEY. And here goes the magic. :)