Basketball

Merhaba!
   So, my school in Kayseri wasn't really into sports. I'm sure they had them, but it wasn't a school activity. But here in Aydin, the boy's basketball games are absolutely a school activity. Most students either get permission to leave school or just ditch on the game days. The sport salon where the basketball games are held is always full, one side for our school, one side for the other school. There aren't cheerleaders in Turkey, well, at least not in the sense of American cheerleaders. Here in Turkey the twelfth grade boys (and if there are no twelfth grade boys to do the job, the younger boys take over) stand up on the wall separating the seats from the court and lead the crowd in cheering on their team. It looks something like this; each side of the gym is full, each side has a pack of boys, and some girls, yelling, singing, waving their arms, holding lighters, holding signs, yelling at the other group of cheerers, and at least once in a game getting into a fight. The energy is awesome, and it gets everyone into the game. Soccer games are this way as well, but worse. There are full on riots in the stands, sometimes people die, and always the police are called. But our games are just high school games, so luckily it doesn't go that far. I have been to three basketball games in the past month, and I'm sorry to say, but the schools here have got team spirit down better than my school does back home. I think this energy comes from the fact that Turks are very emotional. They hug, they kiss, they laugh, they sing, they dance, on the street there are people honking, yelling, etc. In the States people are usually more subdued, quieter with their feelings, but it's all out in the open here (for the most part. There are of course people who aren't as emotionally loud). Seeing an American sport taken and added to with the great energy of Turks was a great experience!

On the far side of the court is the other team's cheer squad

Our squad!

The boys leading our fans!!! ADMAL!!!!