Gezginler Kulübü

Gezginler Kulübü (German: Traveler's Club) is the name of a Turkish association of globetrotters whose members meet on the first Wednesday of each month in the Armada Hotel near Sultan Ahmet Square in Istanbul . The purpose of these meetings is to listen to lectures on the subject of "travel" and to exchange experiences. Famous travelers, writers, journalists, poets and artists are usually invited to these events, and most of them give a small lecture themselves or give a small concert. These events are usually open to all interested non-members, depending on the available places. However, a symbolic contribution is expected from non-members. The association owns a clubhouse in Istanbul's Sultan Ahmet district and a guest house in the Dolapdere district near Taksim Square . The Benin Consulate is also located in the clubhouse.

Foundation of an association

The association was founded on November 18, 1998. The founding members were the honorary consul Orhan Kural , Nadir Paksoy , the singer Barış Manço and the journalist Coşkun Aral .

On the occasion of the forthcoming establishment, a street festival with hundreds of guests was held on September 29, 1998. Among them was the then Turkish opposition leader and party chairman of the CHP Deniz Baykal .

Members

The member profile includes people from all walks of life such as ambassadors, taxi drivers, business people, authors, doctors, housewives and young backpackers , all of whom share a passion for travel. On March 31, 2006, the association had 150 full and 26 honorary members.

Honorary members include a. Ara Güler , a prominent Turkish-Armenian photographer and the Patriarch of Constantinople Opel Bartholomew .

Journalist Hüseyin Gökçe is a member and longstanding board member.

Club goals

The association has set itself the goal of collecting and archiving information about various travel destinations in order to be able to pass it on to members. For this reason there is also a large travel library in the clubhouse. Furthermore, friendly contacts with similar associations abroad should be established and the members should be made known to one another.

The association also supports members who want to write reports about their travels. The institution also publishes travel literature. The association is very ecologically oriented, which is always strictly observed on trips and events. They try not to burden nature too much through group hikes and the like and have already published a brochure about the interaction between travel and the environment.

Club travel books

The association has so far published two books with the titles Sefername 1 and Sefername 2 (English: travel report), which were jointly written by members and guest authors. A volume of poetry with the title Cevre Antology ( Eng .: Environmental Anthology ) on the subject of the environment has also been published. Furthermore, an internal book is printed every year. 9 members of the association have so far published their travel reports.

Prices

The association has been awarding a prize for the best travel radio and television program since 2004.