Grand Bazaar and spice market

       The New Year brings many exciting adventures. As I look at the schedule for our time in Istanbul, I find so many amazing moments ahead of us. One experience that I am particularly looking forward to is our day at the Grand Bazaar and spice market. The Grand Bazaar is one of the oldest and largest covered spice markets in the world, and being able to stand amidst the many people as we all peruse the many trinkets, spices, and surprises of the shops will be a unique experience. The market is huge and covers an area of roughly 20 square miles that include over 3000 shops, 17 inns, 61 streets, 4 fountains, 10 wells, 2 mosques, 22 gates and several cafes and restaurants. A wonderful place to explore.

              

       Being immersed in the culture, sounds, smells and colors is something that will be a pleasantly overwhelming experience. Walking though the many streets and shops will allow me and my fellow classmates to get lost in the moment and really take in the experience of being fully part of another culture. Another new experience will be the process of haggling. Learning how to utilize the process and social custom of haggling will allow me to have a better grasp of the thought processes and ways of life in Istanbul. I am quite excited to study abroad in Turkey and am so glad to be going with such a great group! I cannot wait :)

               

KOÇ UNIVERSITY

Hello All!
        I hope your break has been relaxing and enjoyable as mine was. But, now I'm just about ready to go back to school and on to Istanbul!  While I'm sure all aspects of our journey will be intriguing and mentally stimulating, I'm most excited about going to the University.  Even though I have traveled out of the country before, I have never really considered the amount of similarities and differences in the educational system between the United States and other countries or had a chance to visit one.  Last year in French class, I briefly compared and contrasted different aspects of French and American universities such as cost, level of difficulty, and manner of education (like the amount of people who go in to trade school).  It should be really interesting to study the differences between the United States and a country such as Turkey where the yearly schedule is completely different due to different celebrated holidays and a culture that is almost independent of the United States unlike France.
        Koç University was founded very recently in 1993 due to the resources of the Vehbi Koç Foundation which has won many philanthropic awards such as Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy (the equivalent to the Nobel Peace Prize for Philanthropy). While the University has only be around for 19 years, it has quickly become of one the best universities in Turkey. So far, I have found many similarities between Elon University and Koç University.  For example, they practice many "green" actions such as all lights, heating, and cooling is controlled by motion sensors where they turn off after 15 minutes of inactivity.  Also, the University is a liberal arts college where they encourage and require courses outside of the major while also demanding a specialization in the chosen field so that the students may be well-rounded.  Finally like at Elon University and many other colleges in the United States, social media is an important factor in the Turkish education system where they encourage all students to like, comment, follow, etc on a variety of networks such as Facebook and Twitter.  
      I can't wait to learn more about this incredible university!! For more information, visit their extremely easily navigable website. http://www.ku.edu.tr/en Enjoy the rest of your holiday! See you all next year. ;)
 

Mevlevi Sema Ceremony

        One ceremony from our itinerary that I am excited to attend isthe Mevlevi Sema Ceremony. Earlier that day we’ll be at the Galata MevleviTekkesi, which, from what I gather, is a Mevlevi Whirling Dervish hall (theMevlevi are an order of Sufis).

    The tradition of the whirling dances originated Konya andeventually spread throughout the Ottoman Empire. Dancers receive 1,001 days oftraining in ethics, codes of behavior, prayer, religious music, etc. to be amember of the dancing order. Directly before the ceremony, dancers fast for a fewhours. They proceed to then whirl in white robes while reciting prayer forabout 15 minutes at a time (I think it’s remarkable that they don’t get dizzy! Icertainly would!). They keep their eyes open and watch the world blur by. Thehope is that after the training and dances, the members of the order go back totheir former occupations and resume their lives with a deeper spiritualunderstanding.

    Due to secularistpolicies, the entire Mevlevi order was outlawed in 1925 by the Turkish government. Though the orderremains illegal, the government granted the Mevlevi rights to perform. Thesedances are mostly tourist attractions nowadays. I found this tradition reallyinteresting because so many cultures have traditional dances, yet I haven’tseen anything like this before. Not only is it a cultural dance, it’s alsoreligious and philosophical and they receive nearly 3 years of instruction! I’m very excited to see this groupperform! 

    This is a link to a youtube video of another group with anarration.There is also a bit of information about this tradition in the Istanbul travelguide we have on page 47 under Winter- events.