Norway, Edvard Solbak Simonsen. 18 may:

Transcription

1 Norway, Edvard Solbak Simonsen 18 may: Because of series of unfortunate happenings I missed my plain the 17 th of May and therefore, this day were the day I traveled to Turkey. (I'm really happy that there were available tickets) Because all the other participants from Norway I traveled all by myself. My parents drove me to the airport in Kristiansund, and from there I took a flight to Gardermoen, Oslo. After a few hours I finally got on a plane heading to Turkey. My route passed through Istanbul and then on to Konya. From Konya I was driven to Karaman. I was a little skeptic considering that the car I sat in got overloaded with non-english speaking people, but I shrugged my shoulders and took it with a smile. When I arrived in Karaman I met up with Erlend and Else. Right after I got introduced to Aybike, Hatice and Dilara. The whole group got along very quick, and despite the turbulent start of my journey, things started looking brighter! 19 may: Saturday- Partyday! Because the party was a black&white party, we started the day with shopping in Karaman. I looked in every store for a black shirt and ended up buying a white shirt at the end. I finally met the rest of my host-family when we ate lunch at Hatices house. We got a special Turkish dish and strawberries for dessert, it tasted very good! Hatices family was just like her; very kind and hospitable. It was very unusual to sit on the floor while eating, but they explained it was to show respect to the food. Actually, it makes very good sense.

2 At the party we ate popcorn, talked and danced. It was really nice. After an hour or so we went to a cafe (where I got to see a little bit of the Champions league final :-D). At the end of the evening we walked to Dilaras house and started watching a movie. This resulted in everyone falling asleep on the couch. 20 may: This day was the first day of the Commenius project! We met all the teachers and other students from the other countries. We presented our work from back home about responsible traveling and so did the other groups. I think everyone did well! We also had a workshop where all of us made posters with slogans in context with responsible travel. After the workshop we went on a trip to a mountain. On top of this mountain we checked out some old ruins, that used to be a church. It was interesting, but the weather was extremely hot, almost uncomfortable hot Especially for someone from the cold north.

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4 21 may: Today we traveled to Cappadocia. We took a bus and the trip took 3 hours. Cappadocia was amazing, with all different kinds of shapes and figures. After cappadocia we visited an underground city. I thought it was very cool and fantastic. At the end of the journey to Cappadocia, we ate at an restaurant. I ordered a Turkish kebab. It was OK, but I prefer the Norwegian kebab because the Turkish one was filled with mushrooms :-( 22 may: This day we visited the school in Karaman. We looked at the classrooms and had a wonderful lunch outside in the sun. During Lunchtime a band played music and everyone started to dance. That was funny! After the school visit, we went to a mosque. It was the first time I've ever been in a mosque. I thought it was fascinating and educational. Since it was our last day in Karaman all of us were together at Aybikes house. There we played Twister and had a really nice time together. But of course, everyone was a little sad because we had to leave the next morning. 23 may: Today we traveled back to Norway. We got up early and said goodbye to everyone, it was a little sad saying goodbye to my new friends. Even though it was sad to leave it was good thinking that soon I'd be home again. The trip was really nice and interesting. I think I experienced some kind of cultural shock, because everything was done a little different in Turkey. I think I will remember this journey for ever and I will never forget the things I've

5 seen, the things I've learned and the people I've met. Looking back at the trip I am without a doubt glad I participated in this project.