What is Karabük Ovacık Camp?
Karabük Ovacık Camp is a nature and sports camp site. I got the chance going there for a 4 day Summer Camp Program this year. This was my first ever summer camp experience and I had an amazing time. It was a sports and nature camp that had different activities for students from high school and university.
Details of Journey
I went with the Anadolu Eğitim Kültür ve Bilim Vakfı (Anadolu Education, Culture and Science Foundation) with around 50 other people. The camp was organized by the T.C Ministry of Youths and Sports. The camp was a 4 day program from 9th to 13th August. The trip to Karabük was around 3 hours long from Ankara by bus.
The camp was surrounded by beautiful hills and forests with no buildings seen for miles. There was a main building where the students had accommodation, a cafeteria and a sports gymnasium. The best thing about the experience was the chance to meet other Turkish students and practice my Turkish. I also had the chance to play different sports and learn more about Turkish culture.
Activities and Events
I got to participate in activities like archery, volleyball, basketball, cycling, golfing, table tennis, tennis, zip lining, hiking in the hills, making bracelets, making bonfires, Turkish folk dancing, and different Turkish games. We had a cinema night and attended a seminar which was organized by the Youth Camp leaders. We got the chance to meet with a professor from Karabük University and also met the author of Bilge Aliya, Osman Arslan and got the book signed by him. On the 4th day of the camp while heading back to Ankara we took a 4 hour detour to Safran Bolu.
The overall experience was memorable and I got to learn so much about Turkish culture and tradition. I’m not specially a sports enthusiast but being around people who were made me want to get more involved. I think it’s the most exciting thing I did this summer and I’m looking forward to participating in other nature camps in the future.
Learn more about the Anadolu Eğitim Kültür ve Bilim Vakfı : https://anadoluvakfi.org/
Learn where you can sign up for different camps:
Go to their website https://genclikkamplari.gsb.gov.tr/.
Or follow GSB on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gsbgenclik/
Learn more about the camp: click here