... a reason for thinking ...

Every Tuesday there is a trainee presentation in AIESEC office. Afterthat the hard core (all trainees and some of AIESECers) go to sit and have a chat on the grass on a bench of the sea. There are a lot of street sellers shouting, going around and trying to sell their staff – quite obvious for Izmir. But this Tuesday was somehow different. One of street sellers who came to our group was small girl offering us a package of chewing gum for 1 YTL (app. CZK 15 or 0,5 euro). The real price that you can bye it in the shop is 0,25 YLT.

She even was able to say the price in English. We start joking with her. It didn´t discourage her from continuing selling. The girl started talking with the only Turkish guy (Onur) who was at that time (11 pm) with us. We find out her name (actually firstly she told us fictitious name, later she confessed her real one), her age – only ten years old, the occupation of her father (a waiter) and mother (house wife). Of course several of us bought those chewing gums from her and she even sang a song for us and we took pictures with her. Smiling happy small girl. Then a trainee from China (Cassy) started playing with her.


To see a small child selling something on a coast during night is not sporadic case. When I imagine that my nieces (the same age as this girl) can devote their hobbies, can do almost everything they want, needn´t to work (except helping with household work), needn´t to go out during evening and sell something to earn money for their family…. a lot of questions comes to my mind. What´s wrong that this girl has to work like that? Can we somehow help such kind of children? If yes, how?!? – by buying a stuff from them? Is it enough, maximum we can do? Maybe play with them, spend some time together? Too many questions without correct or wrong answers….and the memory still in my mind

Pamukkale

Small town situated in the Aegean region app. three hours way by car to the south-east from Izmir.I went there for Sunday trip (13. 8.) with my colleague from work, Onur, and other trainees: Anna from Austria, Christina from Greece and Dima from Russia.


First experience: as regards entrance fee foreign students are treated differently than Turkish ones that can enter for free. Anyway this small handicap didn´t discourage us. The average age of our group was 22 years but as you can noticed from pictures we behaved like small children playing in 30 centimetres deep swimming pools.




For “experts” in history the town used to be called Hierapolis. It was established during the second century BC by “Pergam” king, Eumen II.


The town is especially known for its therapeutical hot spring and travertine terraces. You can find there terraces of various shapes as a water-lily, shell or look like rice terrace on oriental engravings. According to this appearance Turkish called this place Pamukkale which means “Cotton castle”. Not every place are available for tourist because of protecting this beauty (if they are, you have to go there without shoes) but you can also visit the local thermal swimming pool.




Nowadays springs rise from the place where the centre of Hierapolis was situated. Still you can find ruins of this Roman city commemorating his previos glory and visited museum.