In the Heart of Eurasia: 2 ITLSIG Committee Members’ Istanbul Rendezvous

By Dr Josephine Deguara

Introduction

Dr. Fahimeh Farjami, who serves as a committee member and Co-Secretary for the ITLSIG, resides in Istanbul, Turkey. She recently learned that Dr. Josephine Deguara, a fellow ITLSIG committee member and the Research Coordinator, was attending a conference in Istanbul with her colleagues from the 24th to the 30th of June, 2024. Until this exciting development, Dr. Farjami’s collaboration with the ITLSIG had been exclusively online, making the prospect of in-person networking a welcome and significant opportunity. In this post she shares her wonderful experience with Jo in Istanbul. Several photos have been shared, a great opportunity to see Istanbul from afar!

Fahimeh’s Experience

I could not wait to meet  Josephine in Istanbul. Therefore, I got in touch with her a month before their arrival to tell her how excited I was to host her and the colleagues from Malta University. I informed her about the culture and life style in Istanbul, recommended areas for accommodation and weather forecast, etc. I tried to plan the most practical itinerary to visit around top ten places in the city for their two day-holiday before the Conference.

Just like how cooperative and informative Jo has been in our committee meetings, she gifted me quite valuable information about their research work with colleagues, the Higher Education system and life in Malta, extending an invitation for me to visit their beautiful country. Every minute I spent with her and her lovely colleagues brought me joy and I appreciated her company the most. We had captivating discussions about ethnic backgrounds, cultural differences between the two countries. I must confess that I had such a brilliant experience, thanks to ITLSIG! I am so blessed to be a part of such a cross-institutional network. It goes beyond educational exchange aiding academics to build up strong social and cultural ties above everything, and this definitely is what we all need today to boost our sustainable engagement and cooperation in the education world.

During her stay, I took Jo and her colleagues to Bebek area (photos no 1&2), Galataport (photos no 3&4), Maiden Tower (photo no 5), Sultanahmet area, Grand Bazar, Fatih, Eminunu, Karakoy Bridge, Taksim (photos no 6&7), Sishane area, Galata Tower (photo no 8), and Bosphorous Bridge (photo no 9), Blue Mosques, Basilica Cistern (photo no 10).