Ahmet (Palm Springs, California)

The Streets of Ankara

Cobblestones dance beneath my bike,

Street food calls–doner or kokoreç tonight?

Uncles argue over tea so strong,

“Two sugars, no more! Your taste is wrong!”

The air hums with spices, laughter, and song,

In Ankara’s streets, summer days feel long.

Vacationing here so far from home,

I think I’d like to stay and roam.