Newsletter Turkey



 Newsletter day 1

Newsletter day 2


Day 2: Tuesday 19th November 2013
Second day of our project meeting was very busy.
First part was official so everybody tried to look "chic". At 9:00 we arrived at school. Our bus was ready to take us to visit some VIP's. There were three bunches of flowers prepared, so we were supposed to visit three persons
responsible for education in Antalya Region.
First we visited Mr.Turan Eren – vice Governor.
We drank Turkish tea (çay ) and listened to
information about education in Antalya Region.
Second person was Mr. Hakan Tütüncü – Mayor of Kepez.
He is one of the the youngest mayors but he is very reliable
person. We were warmly welcome and we got some
presents – surprises. Inside the bag were jars of jam – to
have sweet memories from Kepez.
Third person was Mr.Hüdai Vural – National Education
Director of Kepez.
 He gave us tea, sweets, cookies and presents: Art of Turkey
(pieces of woollen clothings) to present in our own schools.
As we were hungry we went to a local restaurant
to have lunch.


Then we went to see Antalya Museum established
in I922 by a teacher Süleyman Fikri ERTEN.
The museum building was carried to its present location in
1972. Today covers area of 30 000 square meters with 13
exhibition galleries: The Child section, Galleries of the
Prehistory, Potterys, finds from tbe region excavations done
by the museum and Universities, Gods statues, Mosaics,
Icons, statues of Perge Theatre, Sarcophagi, Coins and
Jewellery , Ethnographical Collections.
The museum has also a garden and open-air galleries.
After so rich day we came back to rest at school and drink tea or coffee, of course!  
 
 
 
 

Day 3: Wednesday 20th November 2013

 


In the beautiful and sunny morning of the 20th of November, we went to Akev Koleji to collect Isabella’s pupils and we got on our “private taxi” to goand visit the Düden Şelalesi. We were all very excited to get there, but we had to stop so that some teachers could exchange their money into Turkish liras. A very short stop transformed itself into a long one…
On our way to the şelalesi (the Turkish word for waterfalls), we could admire the landscape, where there are lots of greenhouses scattered all around the fields.
When we got to the waterfalls that we were supposed to visit, we were surprised: the park was closed because it was being reconstructed. While Derya (our hostess) tried to solve the situation, some of the pupils and teachers got to ride a camel that was nearby, as if it was there, waiting for us…
After learning where we were going next - Kurşunlu Şelalesi Tabiat Parki – we got on the bus again and Gosia gave us some very tasty Polish snacks and chocolate bonbons. Yummy!!!
The park was very beautiful, with amazing, bluish green waterfalls! It was a very relaxing moment, really peaceful.
Because our stomachs were already growling, we went to a fish farm where we had an exquisite Turkish meal next to a lovely waterfall at the Arkadaş Restoran.
Some of us ate fish, but others chose chicken, always accompanied by amazing loaves of Turkish bread. Everything was delicious!
Some of the kids got to play with a really cute puppy that was there, and we could see the happiness on their faces!
But we had some shopping to do!!! So we travelled to the old city centre of Antalya, where we visited the bazaar and bought some souvenirs.
Sadly, it was time to leave. We met near the equestrian statue of Ataturk and got back to Akev Koleji. It was a pleasant day.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Day 4: Thursday 21st November 2013






Our Final Day in Antalya
Visiting the Classrooms in AKEV KOLEJI, Antalya, Turkey
Thursday began with a short walk, in the warm sunshine, from our hotel to Akev Koleji where we were given the opportunity to see the teachers and children in their classrooms. As teachers, we are always intrigued by other schools and keen to compare them to our own. This was certainly the case for us this morning.
In many ways Akev Koleji is the same as other schools across the world. The children sit in rows of desks with books on the table and the teacher directs the lesson. There’s something rather comforting about visiting schools and seeing that despite the obvious cultural and economic differences we are all essentially doing the same job in the same way. Certainly the level of technology available to assist the teacher may vary and the quality of the school
environment may change but we are all doing our best to prepare the next generation so they can contribute positively to an ever-changing world. Sadly our visit to the classrooms was all too short as we had to make our way to the bus and on to the ancient Amphitheatre at Aspendos.
As we made our way through the countryside enroute to Aspendos we had the opportunity to see enormous polytunnels devoted to the growing of flowers and tomatoes. It was particularly exciting for two teachers from Ireland to see so many orange groves laden with oranges growing at the side of the road – certainly not something we are likely to see by a roadside in Ireland!! The amphitheatre at Aspendos is an awe-inspiring sight. That such an impressive structure could be conceived and built almost two thousand years ago is
testament to the sophistication and ingenuity of Roman society at that time. It also brings to life, very vividly, the long and rich history that has contributed to the creation of
modern Turkey.
The amphitheatre is one of the most well-preserved of its kind from the Roman era. It was designed by the architect Zeno, son of Theodoras, in the reign of Emperor Marcus
It is understood from the inscriptions at both sides of the entrance, written in both Latin and Greek, that it was built by two rich brothers named Curtis Crispnus and Curtis Auspictaus.
Everyone in our small group viewed the interior with a sense of wonder. We all imagined the theatre being filled with 7,000 – 8,000 people cheering and enjoying the numerous events that must have been staged there over many years. We had plenty of time to wander through the ruins. Climbing up through the seating to the top gave us the chance to view the sheer enormity of the structure. We also explored the area behind the façade and imagined
what it must have been like for the performers as they prepared to entertain and enthral the thousands gathered before them.
Again we boarded the bus; this time to visit the ancient city of Perge. It was early afternoon when we arrived at the city of Perge, another legacy of the Roman occupation of Turkey.
The city is 17km east of Antalya and is believed to have been founded at the end of the Trojan wars (1275 BC) although there remains some debate about this with evidence suggesting that it may have been founded as arly as the 3rd century BC.

Regardless of when it was actually founded upon entering the city you can’t help but marvel at the magnificence of the Romans capacity to conceive and construct such highly sophisticated settlements at a time when most of the rest of the world was relatively primitive in comparison. Again we were given lots of time to wander around the ruins of the city. We were able to immerse ourselves in the history of the city from the Hellenistic period of the 2nd and 3rd Centuries BC to the time of the Roman Empire during the 2nd and 3rd Centuries AD.
Being able to participate in this type of visit during a Comenius meeting is a very valuable way of getting a sense of the country, its history and some of the factorst hat have influenced the culture and society of modern day Turkey.
We all thoroughly enjoyed the sightseeing and gained a lot from the experience but this was not the end of our day. Our hosts had very kindly booked us a special Farewell Lunch in one of the most beautiful restaurants in Antalya. When we arrived at the restaurant we were
overwhelmed by the stunning setting. The location was idyllic and we were all made to feel so welcome. Traditional Turkish food was on the menu and once again we felt like we were truly experiencing the “real” Turkey. The starter consisted of a range of salads, dips and
hummus accompanied by warm flatbread. This was followed by a delicious mix of traditional Turkish kebabs together with rice and mashed potatoes. The dessert was also a traditional selection of fruits with a particularly appetising sweet pumpkin topped with pistachio.
When lunch was finished we had a presentation ceremony where all the participant teachers were presented with a Certificate of Attendance along with a number of gifts from
our hosts. We were all made to feel very special by our hosts and very welcome in Antalya and in Akev Koleji.
We finished our final day in Antalya with an impromptu musical session in the music room in Akev Koleji. We began the week as strangers and ended in singing and dancing together!!!


Friday, the 22nd of november




After seeing off our new made friends from Portugal and Northern Ireland and
Italy in the morning, we left for school. Our students, together with their friends from their
hosting families had to do an art project together. We made 17 pairs, including our students from the Netherlands, and the all got a big piece of paper. All 17 were given a letter to drawn. They could draw whatever they liked...because art is of course in the eye of the beholder...they had to discuss together what they would draw and how.
It was a nice rumour in the classroom, and very nice tomwatch all differnt children, although
handicapped by language, making their art ogether.
The final product was all letters together saying European Graffiti. We took a nice photo.
Also the teachers joined in, and made a nice poster with the subtitle the way of expression.
After the project the students and their teachers from the Netherlands had a
nice closure together for their stay in Turkey. They went bowling



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