“Merhaba! Bayswater College'a hoş geldiniz!” Hello and Welcome to the student-led Turkish Cultural Celebration. An opportunity for our Turkish students to showcase the flavours, traditions and hospitality of their country to the wider school community. 

The students prepared a selection of traditional Turkish food by hand, including lahmacun, gözleme and baklava, which proved extremely popular with everyone who attended. So much so we had one of the best turn outs to a national day ever! The event created a wonderful opportunity for students from different backgrounds to experience authentic Turkish cuisine and culture for themselves. 

Alongside the food, a presentation was displayed on the student lounge screens highlighting Turkey's history, geography, population and places to visit. Traditional Turkish music played throughout the event, creating a lively atmosphere, and students performed the Halay, a traditional Turkish folk dance often seen at weddings and celebrations. Many students joined in, as did some Bayswater team members with enthusiastic participation, clapping and dancing creating a fantastic atmosphere. 

The event attracted a diverse audience. While the Turkish community led the celebration, attendees included students from Italy, France, Spain, Brazil, Colombia, Guatemala, Chile, Saudi Arabia, Japan, Korea to name just a few. The student lounge was full throughout the event, demonstrating the strong engagement across the school community. 

"Today was a great example of us celebrating different cultures within the school. Today we celebrated Turkey, but what it really demonstrates is our ability to bring people together to have an amazing study abroad experience, be inclusive of all our students and celebrate where they're from. It was a wonderful experience. The food was delicious” commented Yeliz Hussein, our Global Sales Director. 

It was fantastic to see our Turkish students proudly sharing their culture, traditions and cuisine with the wider Bayswater community. Given our strong links with Turkey and many long-standing relationships with students and partners from the region, it made the celebration particularly meaningful. The event was a great success and perfectly reflected the inclusive and international spirit of the school. As we like to say at Bayswater, we are forever connected by these events.