Southern Turkish city defiant over its raki and kebab
Although Adana province banned a raki festival for reasons of safety, locals rushed to the bars to celebrate their culture of raki — accompanied by turnip juice — and kebab.
In the middle of December, on a rainy weekend in the southern city of Adana, fruit clung abundantly from countless citrus trees and purple flowers remained in full blossom. Palm trees stood tall and proud against the dismal gray sky and pattering rain. In the heart of Turkey's most fertile lands and home to an enviable cultural legacy, Adana is a city of resistance, when it comes to its nature and its people.
As such, it should be no surprise that a famed festival based around drinking raki, Turkey's alcoholic beverage of choice, continues to be celebrated in spirit by the city's rowdy, kind-hearted residents even though the governor has banned the event the past two years.
The province canceled the festival just days before the event was to have taken place, saying it made the decision in order to prevent terrorist groups from targeting attendees.
“The festival was canceled after it was evaluated that the safety and property of our citizens attending the festival could be put into danger by some terrorist organizations, and people and groups with bad intentions, who could engage in actions aimed at disrupting public order and safety,” the province's government said in its statement.
