GSA’s Turkey spring break this year took place from March 26th to April 4th. Our group had 3 parent, 2 student, 4 staff members, total of 9 individuals. We spent 10 days in Turkey visited Istanbul, Izmir and Nevsehir. It was a wonderful trip, a lot of fun, a lot of joy. We got to see a lot of historical places in Istanbul from 1500 years old Hagia Sophia which was dedicated the second person of the Holly Trinity to Sutan Ahmet Mosque.The mosque is 400 years old and popularly known as the Blue Mosque for the blue tiles adorning the walls of its interior. From Topkapi palace which was the primary residence of the Ottoman sultans for approximately 400 years (1465–1856) of their 624-year reign. And in which there is Moses’ stick and Prophets’ foot print and from there to Maiden’s tower while drinking our Turkish tea on the see side. In Izmir; from House of the Virgin Mary where Virgin Mary was taken here until her assumption and it maintains a steady flow of pilgrimage since its discovery to Ephesus -The city was famed for the Temple of Artemis (completed around 550 BC), one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.Ephesus was one of the seven churches of Asia that are cited in the Book of Revelation. The Gospel of John may have been written here. In Nevsehir, from The Derinkuyu underground cityis an ancient multi-level underground city in the Derinkuyu district in Nevşehir. It is large enough to have sheltered approximately 20,000 people together with their livestock and food stores. It is the largest excavated underground city in Turkey.But there are still some places that we visited that are worthwhile to mention. This was a great experience for our parents and students and myself to see the beauty of the see sides hill tops and the Bosporus. Actually you can see Mrs. Meyer’s poem below summarizing the trip in a funny way:
How can I express
My love and awe for Turkey?
It’s a land of such contrasts
From the mountains to the sea.
From Ephesus to Aya Sofia
And signs saying “Genuine fake”
We’re setting the record
For how many photos we can take.
The sounds are beeping in traffic
To “Special price for you”
The call to prayer
Could be for Muslim, Christian, Jew.
The food is just amazing
Lentil soup to Turkish delight
Plentiful and tasty
All until the final bite.
The meal is not complete
Without some Turkish tea
Drunk everywhere –
Hilltop, garden, Bosphorus ferry.
Cats and dogs are all around
And look quite at ease
Fed by random people
They just do as they please.
From Taksim to Izmur
We hit the tourist site
Yet my favorite places were where
Locals grab a bite.
We’ve been lucky with the weather
Mostly sun, a little rain
It’s just a guarantee
We’ll visit Turkey again.
We met Mehmet on our travels
Who made us smile
He shared his pretzels with us –
It was all worthwhile.
Shopping is overwhelming
Not just at the Grand Bazaar
Here is a list of items
That I know of bought so far:
Perfume, tree, tea pot, headphones and a Kinder Surprise car…..
Suitcases have been purchased
To carry all our stuff
Someone needs to tell Sarvar,
That is enough!
This group has great synergy
From Salih to Hatice
We’ve really become a family of ten
Along the way.
Jessica 1 & 2,
Abdul and Yusuf
Karen & Ted & Sarvar
And also myself.
My memories are magical:
“Open door next door”
“Soup, more soup”
And so many more.
Special thanks to Salih
Who has touched our heart
And thanks to fish heads
We are now all really smart!
Susan Meyer
April 2015
And also Mrs Briers’ and Mr Meyer’s comment for the trip;
Mrs Brier;
Mr. Celik,
I don’t even know where to begin… The trip was AMAZING!! I’m having a hard time deciding what my favorite thing was: wishing wall at Mary’s house; the ferry ride; seaside tea looking at Maiden’s Tower; the cable car ride then tea at the hilltop and the walk down the cobblestone path next to the cemetery; Ephesus; the fairy chimneys in Cappadocia; sitting on the rocks in Izmir looking at the Aegean Sea; the dinner with the host family the night before we left…it goes on and on and on.
Salih was fantastic!!! He watched over us and kept us on track. He helped with any special requests (like no fish :-)) and was very patient when we stopped to take pictures. (And we took a LOT of pictures. But so did he.) We truly couldn’t have asked for a better guide/organizer/leader.
Our group was great. We had a lot of laughs together.
Mrs Meyer;
Yes, it was tiring, yet also a lot of fun adventuring. It also confirms that we want to visit again. Given that there were only 10 in the group, it meant that there was room to be flexible to stop somewhere for the post office or markets (e.g. to look for Hobby chocolate) and this made it more meaningful. The food was excellent, and we enjoyed the restaurant choices as well as the home dinner. There was always plenty to eat, and it was healthy and tasty. We enjoyed having Turkish translators at the family dinners. The hostel was clean, modern and even had wi-fi.
Staying one night at the Hilton hotel was a real treat, a lovely surprise and much appreciated, especially as we had woken at 3 am to catch our flight that day. Having tour guides was a great idea, and helped us skip the long lines to enter in Istanbul. The guides in Istanbul and at Ephesus were especially educational and fascinating. Salih was a great choice as tour leader, and works so well with people of all ages, and had a positive attitude the whole time.