NSLI-Y 2025 Turkey – Week 2
This week’s blog post begins with a reflection from Norah, one of our students on the program:
Our second week in Bursa (how has it already been two weeks?!) brought exciting new adventures into the historical and contemporary aspects of the Turkish city, as well as a growing sense of familiarity with the everyday pace of life. An underlying component of our experience in Bursa, one perhaps harder for students from cooler climes to adjust to, is the weather. With a few quite hot days and minimal air conditioning, this week has given the students ample practice saying, “çok sıcak” (very hot). From language classes to time spent with host families to daily commutes, the opportunities for language practice and improvement are considerable.
Each morning, students attend language classes at a local language center. Most of our days this week have begun with sitting on the stairs outside the school, growing as a group as more students arrive. On a fairly quiet, feline-filled street, one particular new friend has graced us with their presence each morning: Yakamoz the cat. Yakamoz, referring to nocturnal bioluminescent sea sparkle, was a word learned as we sailed down the Bosphorus on our first day in Türkiye, and it felt quite fitting for the serene, affectionate white and grey cat.
The adjustment to the academic setting has been relatively smooth. As other language classes began in the building, we got to meet Turkish students and enjoy a livelier building. Though our cohort is in two separate classes, the entire group usually gets time to interact in afternoon activities. After our day wrapped up early on Wednesday, most of the cohort participated in karaoke, held in an empty classroom at the language center. Short hourly breaks from class have also given students a chance to hang out in the school’s cafeteria or on the front steps, and retrieve sustenance from the Bim grocery store nearby (a variety of Turkish snacks, sweets, and drinks have been enjoyed throughout the week).
In addition to the activities Norah mentions, we had a full week outside of class, beginning with an optional visit to the Panorama 1326 Bursa Conquest Museum on Sunday, where students and host families were able to catch a free show of Janissary band music and the local folk dance Kılıçkalkan, which relies not on music but on the sound of the participants hitting swords and shields together for its rhythmic accompaniment.
The week ended with a visit to Tophane, where students and their host siblings were able to see the tombs of the first Ottoman sultans, Osman I and Orhan I, as well as a 19th century clock tower and incredible views out across the city. We cooled down afterwards with multi-flavored gazoz (think bubblegum flavored Sprite) at a nearby cafe that specializes in nostalgic items from the Turkish 60s and 70s. The ice-cold drinks hit the spot after a hot week!
“Smile, You’re in Bursa”
Hailey checks on the greenhouse plants with her host dad
Saira and Caroline at the Panorama Museum. The fortress in the background is where Tophane stands today.
Mehteran: a Janissary band specializing in Ottoman-style military music
A Kılıçkalkan troupe performs
Puru practices his language skills before school by reading through a Turkish children’s book
Andrew works with language partners Efe and Beren
Kaitlyn visits the tomb of Osman I
Norah, Sanya, and Hailey at Tophane
Henley and host sibling Beren at Tophane
Group shot with the canons of Tophane. Nowadays, the canons are only fired to mark sunset during the holy month of Ramadan (Turkish: Ramazan).
Group shot in front of the clocktower at Tophane
Hailey, Hankyu, and Kaitlyn enjoy the nostalgia cafe
Students and host siblings toast to the end of another week in Bursa