Minibar

Here we go with a brief special about the "minibar" phenomenon in Ankara, the Turkish capital.

Ankara has a large population of educated, affluent youth, and their constant longing for quality nightlife is rarely satisfied. Without many nice bars or nightclubs to go, they have taken matters into their own hands, and began drinking in the streets. But this is a special kind of drinking-in-the-street, and it has acquired its own name, "minibar."

This picture shows my friend Neco and some other people having a good time at the corner of Bestekar street. Notice the posh bars and nightclubs in the background, none of which are preferable to drinking in the streets.

Minibar blues on the corner around the Vakif Bank in Ankara. Minibars can form anywhere and everywhere young people hang around. You can see foreign ambassadors' kids and true-blue Turkish punks making out, or puking on the same sidewalks in perfect harmony.

Surprisingly, a similar phenomenon used to exist in Istanbul until recently. Though nowhere as popular as the Ankara minibar, hundreds of street-drinkers would concentrate in the infamous "Back Street" near the Nevizade in Taksim. Unlike Ankara's minibar crowd, the "Back Street" people hailed from less wealthy segments of the society. Their retort to the streets was a consequence of desperation rather then self-imposed boredom.