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Cultural Immersion Trips to Turkey

Trips to Turkey for Americans organized by the Turquoise Council of Americans and Eurasians and the Atlas Foundation are more than just another vacation.

These US-based organizations strive to provide a deeper, more accurate understanding of Turkey by offering foreigners a unique cultural immersion experience.

The Turquoise Council is an independent umbrella organization that works to foster interactions between Americans of Turkish and Eurasian descent and the wider community.

The Atlas Foundation is one of its member organizations in Louisiana. Both organizations coordinate trips to Turkey for Americans who desire an authentic, well-rounded experience.

As far as cultural exchange programs go, these trips may appear short -- typically nine to 10 days -- but Turquoise Council President Kemal Öksüz said that “our trips provide an intensive, informative view of Turkish society on a broad scale.”

July 11, 2011
Published in Culture & Art

Bon Jovi Shakes Istanbul Stage

Photo by AP

Bon Jovi came back to Istanbul to make the Turkish girls scream, as the frontman said during Friday’s show. And the American rock giant deservedly got what it asked for

Bon Jovi’s opening song was ‘Raise Your Hands,’ which was, in a way, the perfect way to kick start a stadium show. But the show was not only about songs. An eye candy screen and a light show also helped. AP photo

There is only one reason why Bon Jovi came back to Istanbul, “to make the Turkish girls scream.” After a triumphant performance, the band deservedly got what it wanted. Before Friday, the Bon Jovi show was dubbed as “the biggest concert of the year,” and it lived up to expectations, if not crushed them, as the 35,000 people present for the American rock giants’ performance at Türk Telekom Arena would tell you.

July 11, 2011
Published in Culture & Art

A Turkish Choreographer Inspired by New York

Korhan Basaran and Dancers at the Ailey Citigroup Theater.Julieta Cervantes for The New York Times.

The Turkish choreographer Korhan Basaran isn’t interested in beating around the bush: the title of his evening-length show last Tuesday night at the Ailey Citigroup Theater was “I am Korhan, this is my dance!” He began “On Life,” the final section, which was inspired by New York, chatting with audience members while wearing an “I ♥ NY” T-shirt.

There’s something charming about this, even (or especially) if it might cause a grizzled New Yorker to raise an eyebrow or two: Mr. Basaran ended that section alone onstage, dripping with sweat, his intense mien slowly softening into an earnest smile. You want to root for this immigrant artist, whose breathless program biography describes him as “based in the mighty New York”; “On Life,” with its buckling, collapsing phrases set to Philip Glass, pushes the dancers to drenched exhaustion in a clear emulation of chaotic, at times alienating, urban life. (The dancer Jenna Otter is particularly effective here.)

June 30, 2011
Published in Culture & Art

Angelina Jolie Visits Syrian Refugees in Turkey

Angelina Jolie, center, waves as she leaves from a Syrian refugee camp in the southern Turkish town of Altinozu in Hatay province on June 17th,2011. Umit Bektas/Reuters

ALTINOZU, Turkey — U.N. envoy Angelina Jolie traveled to Turkey's border with Syria on Friday, sharing fruit and desserts with some of the thousands of Syrian refugees who have fled their government's bloody crackdown.

The Hollywood celebrity and goodwill ambassador for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees arrived in the Turkish province of Hatay on a private jet with boxes of toys for the refugee camps.

Jolie spent two-and-a-half hours with the refugees, asking how they were in Arabic and then speaking with them through an interpreter, Turkey's NTV television reported. It said she took notes, showing particular interest in the women and children.

Nearly 10,000 Syrians have sought refuge in camps in Turkey.