Travel project becomes documentary

BODRUM - Doğan News Agency

The project’s brainchild Melis Özdil says their goal was to show that people can pursue their dreams. DHA photo

As part of “A Travel Project,” five young people from the Aegean province of Muğla’s Bodrum district are making documentaries and promoting Turkey in the countries they visit. The team is preparing for two months of travel in the Far East, visiting six countries beginning Dec. 28.

“We will visit 60 countries in two years. We want to show that it is not so hard for people to follow their dreams,” the project’s brainchild, photography artist Melis Özdil, said. Other team members include cook Zeynep Alphan (27), photography editor Gamze Yavuz (25), editor Çağrı Adaver (30) and cameraman Onat Arpat (27).

During a trip to Morocco last year made by three girls from the team, a 10-hour documentary featuring the historic places in Casablanca, Esuara, Fes and Marrakech and the Atlas Mountains and deserts was created. The second leg of the documentary project will include India, Nepal, Bhutan, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam.

Alphan said many travelers in the world could make their dreams come true with small budgets. She said they had received different reactions while visiting Morocco as three girls, and continued: “We have spent a peaceful and safe two weeks on the contrary to all negative reactions. We have realized that we had nonsense fears and prejudices about traveling. We have visited Moroccan deserts and the Atlas Mountains all alone as three girls. This is why the we have named the first episode of the documentary ‘Kız Başımıza Fas’ta İki Hafta’ (Two Weeks in Morocco All Alone).”

Alphan said they had chosen countries that did not require a visa. She said in their documentaries they tried to encourage viewers to become travelers, not just tourists. “We have tried to make a different, colorful and creative documentary by touching on the culture and aesthetics of a country and using current visual technology.”

The first documentary highlights interesting features in Morocco and life in the desert, she said. “We have traveled 3,000 km. We became guests in people’s houses and slept in tents.”

Photography artist Özdil said the project’s goal was to make 10 to 12 episodes of 35-minute documentaries by traveling to 60 countries in two years. She said they had initiated the project to make their dreams come true and broadcast on national documentary channels.

“We not only introduce countries but also give answers to questions like, ‘How can travelers go to the cheapest countries?’ ‘Where can they stay, and where can they visit?’ We show the alternatives to those who want to travel but don’t know where to start,” she said. Özdil said they had sent a file describing the project and its goals to the Culture and Tourism Ministry to ask for its support.

Özdil said every moment of the project could be seen at their website www.birgeziprojesi.com and on its Facebook page. She said the first part of the documentary would be aired in May on İz TV.