Internships

Today was our second day of our internships in Istanbul. We were all talking today about how not many people can say that they participated in an internship abroad. Many of the Turkish people we are working with have never even worked with or interacted with an American. What an honor it is to be representing our not only N.C. State( Go Pack!) but our country as well in such a booming city. The privilege of being fully immersed into a culture is an experience that can never be replaced. We are all still a little rocky on our Turkish because it is such a different and unique language but we are slowly getting there! Tonight we took a group consensus and our favorite thing about this program so far is our internships: meeting new people, communicating, and sharing common interests makes us realize that although our cultures are different, we are all similar in some way.

My personal favorite activity of today was visiting Dr. Ozturk's University: Istanbul Commerce University. It reminded me of Hunt Library if that gives you a mental picture: modern and beautiful! Two of his students were more than excited to take us around the university, tour the library, and other areas of the school right on the Bosphorous. Below is a picture of the girls in the group with Dr. Ozturk and his students that graciously walked us around. We look forward to the days to come and growing in our cultural knowledge and outlook of this unique country.

From left to right: Dr. Ozturk with his N.C. State students and his Istanbul Commerce University students. 

We have arrived

We are here! The 10 of us have officially made it to Istanbul..Dr. Ozturk and Dr. Appling made sure they were there on time to pick all of us up at our various times yesterday. I believe they went to the airport 7 times...now that's dedication. 

The city of Istanbul is said to be 3 times larger than New York City, which is far from difficult to see while flying over the city. It seems as if Istanbul stretches on farther than the eye can see. This can be seen through the fact that Istanbul is one city separated by the Bosphorous in 3 sections: 2 sections are considered Europe and 1 section is considered Asia. We are staying in the European part of Istanbul that is known as the old city. It is full of history which contains a myriad of mosques, artifacts, and people... Lots and lots of people.

There is so much to learn in a city full of this much history, culture, and people. Today we toured the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, and the Basilica Cistern. Each place built with so much intricacy and beauty. In the Blue Mosque, the women had to cover their heads, shoulders, and legs out of respect of the Islam religion. We learned that this enormous and extravagant mosque was built in a mere 7 years and is one of the 3,000 mosques in Istanbul. Hagia Sophia was my personal favorite: a unique spectacle to say the least.  Hagia Sophia, meaning "divine wisdom" was first a church, then a mosque, and is now a museum which portrays the overlapping of 2 religions: Christianity and Islam. Lastly, we walked through the Grand Bazaar, filled with stores of rugs, pashminas, jewelry, souvenirs, etc. 

Between jet lag from traveling from the United States, as well as a day of touring, everyone is now taking "siestas" preparing for our first day of internships tomorrow. 

Until next time from Istanbul...

The Wait Continues

Tuesday, April 30th began the next phase of anticipation for Istanbul. We began our meeting with a Skype call from Dr. Ozturk, our Turkish professor who is awaiting our arrival. Looking around the room I could see nothing but smiles. I could sense feelings of anticipation, excitement, and apprehension in the smiles of my fellow classmates.

As we sat there and each introduced ourselves and what our interests are to Dr. Ozturk, I realized that each one of us has been given such a privileged opportunity to make a difference in Istanbul: whether that be teaching disabled children English, urban planning, or government based work.  The options are endless and we each hold the power of making a difference in the Istanbul community in the palm of our hands.

After our meeting, we ventured to the Divan Center: a welcoming Turkish community who were thrilled to teach us more about their unique culture. We ate Turkish cuisine and talked to Turkish natives about their experiences, what we can expect, and any questions we had. It was a special time filled with students, faculty, and Turkish natives joining together around one cause: learning and growing in sensitivity and comprehension of the Turkish culture. I can only imagine what it will be like when we get to Turkey, but until then we can remember our time at the Divan Center.

Turkey, here we come.

The Road to Istanbul

Istanbul, Turkey: A booming metropolis that stands as one of the largest cities in the world with almost 14 million people. Istanbul has been named the European Capital of Culture, as well as the tenth most popular tourist destination.

Yesterday began the road of anticipation and excitement that leads to Istanbul. 76 days. 76 days to prepare for the journey of a lifetime. 11 students. 11 students seeking to learn and grow in a place completely different from the United States of America. 1 month. 1 month to learn about the Turkish culture and how it is completely different, but equally valuable as our own.

Each time a student travels abroad, a new lens is opened. Study abroad is necessary to enable students to see the world from perspectives that do not appear until you are immersed and exposed to a culture different than your own. This is the opportunity we have: to be immersed into such a powerful culture. Dr.Kearney mentioned a phrase that caught my attention about the Turkish culture. He called it a “muscular culture,” which is full of powerful beliefs, values, and customs. Although these may be different than my own, the purpose of leaving the United States of America is to gain an understanding of Turkish culture from the people’s perspective, not my own.

My classmates and I look forward to the opportunity to learn the history, beliefs, and values of the Turkish culture. We are fortunate to have this opportunity and we are excited to step foot on Istanbul ground.