Special Interview with Billy Watson

Antalya City Blog Has A New Surprise!

Antalya City Blog Presents the Special Interview with Billy Watson who is Scottish comedian and poet, and an expat. We Asked Him A Few Questions About Antalya and Our Blog.

Can you tell us a little about yourself?

My name is Billy Watson and I am a Scottish man who has lived in Antalya for 6 years.  I have a website called Antalya Living where I blog about my life in Antalya and also promote the region by taking photos and making videos of my travels.  I also run an Open Mic night here and perform comedy and poetry at the Edinburgh Festival every August.

What is the meaning of Antalya for you?

I used to miss Scotland a lot but after living here for a number of years that I have come to realize that Antalya is my home now.  The climate and food are of course great but this is where my friends are and that for me is what is most important.  

What is your favorite activity in Antalya?

Well, I have just started doing Open Mic Nights here and so I would say that is my favourite activity because one of the reasons I missed Scotland was because there are limited opportunities to perform here, so after six years I eventually decided to start something myself.  I hope to encourage Turkish people to come along and help develop local participation in the creative arts in Antalya and so far I’ve had positive feedback.

Do you have a memorable moment ever in Antalya?

I attended the Efes Blues Festival in 2011 with five of my lady friends and when I told them it was my 40^th birthday we went to a bar in Kaleici that has unfortunately been closed since, called Adı Bar.  I used to do a pole dance on a metal support and I had gained some fans along the way, including a couple of the ladies that were there that night.  I thought beforehand that if we went there they would ask me to do a Pole Dance, so on I had put on some interesting underwear as a surprise for them. Well, when we got to the bar they did indeed ask me to dance for them but I played it cool.  They then got the barman to play ‘You can leave your hat on’, which is a popular Tom Jones song for doing a strip tease and so I pretended to reluctantly agree.  I gave it my all and they were impressed but at the end I revealed my underwear which was a thong with a small Kilt like covering. 

The ladies burst into hysterics and all the men in the bar ran out which made them laugh even more.  I said “Gotcha!” and gave them all a ‘high five’. It was priceless and a great way to begin so called ‘middle age’. 

What do you want to see in the city of Antalya?

Although there are some great festivals here like Oktoberfest, Efes Blues and Golden Orange Film Festival I would like to see people taking a more active role in the arts from the ground up so to speak.  Lots of bands here tend to play songs they know tourists will like because that is how they will find work here but other cities like Istanbul and Izmir have bands who create their own music and style just for the art of it.  I’m sure a lot of interesting bands could be formed here because of the mix of people from different nationalities that settle here. 

Maybe if there was a festival or a monthly event where people got exposed to that type of music on a regular basis it may encourage them to experiment more themselves. 

I would also love to see good well established bands touring here. Robert Plant came a few years ago but it wasn’t very well promoted and in the end he had to let many in for free so I think that may have put other bands off.

What do you think about Antalya City Blog?

It is a very well designed and laid out blog with lots of great information about Antalya and many useful links.  It is also regularly updated with events in the region and I would recommend it to anyone whether living here or just coming for a holiday.  Antalya City Blog is really well-known abroad. I know a lot of people that, visit the Antalya City Blog before coming to Antalya. Antalya City Blog is like a digital encyclopedia and promotion office  of Antalya.

Thanks to Billy Watson for taking the time to answer these questions for Antalya City Blog..

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The 2nd of International Children’s Theatres Festival Starts

Antalya Metropolitan Municipality organizes the 2nd of International Children’s Theatres Festival between the dates of 4–9 February 2013 in order to enhance the theatre cultures of the children of Antalya. All of the plays during these 6 days of semester holiday will be free of charge.

Journey to the Other Side of the World

Date: 05.02.2013

Time: 11.00 – 13 00

Venue: Yenimahalle Culture Center

Eskişehir City Theatres

Little Prince

Date: 05.02.2013

Time: 16.00

Venue: Antalya Culture Center Aspendos Hall

Antalya Regional Theatre

Magic Game

Date: 06.02.2013

Time: 11.00

Venue: Yenimahalle Culture Center

Antalya Metropolitan Municipality Theatre

Little Prince

Date: 06.02.2013

Time: 14.00 – 16 00

Venue: Yenimahalle Culture Center

İzmir City Theatres

“3rd Page”

Date: 06.02.2013

Time: 20.00

Venue: Kırmızı Kalem Theatre

Kırmızı Kalem Theatre

The Witches

Date: 07.02.2013

Time: 11.00 – 13 00

Venue: Yenimahalle Culture Center

İstanbul Hâl Theatre

The rooster that can’t crow

Date: 07.02.2013

Time: 16.00

Venue: Antalya Culture Center Perge Hall

Gaziantep City Theatres

Look! How Easy it is

Date: 08.02.2013

Time: 11.00 – 13 00

Venue: Yenimahalle Culture Center

Uçaneller Theatre

Lost City:  Atlantis

Date: 08.02.2013

Time: 16.00

Venue: Yenimahalle Culture Center

Kırmızı Kalem Theatre

The Witches of the Kitchen

(+ 7 only for adults)

Date: 08.02.2013

Time: 20.00

Venue: Yenimahalle Culture Center (YKM)

Kırmızı Kalem Theatre

WORKSHOPS

Drama Workshop – Tamer LEVENT (for professional actors/actresses)

Dance Workshop – Mehmet ERBAĞCI

Photography Workshop - Özgür Bülent ÇUBUKÇU

Puppet Workshop – Ayten HUZUR ÖĞÜTÇÜ

Panelists

Prof. Dr. Semih ÇELENK

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tülin SAĞLAM

Academic Ayten HUZUR ÖĞÜTÇÜ

Actor-Director Tamer LEVENT

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Fikret Otyam Art Gallery

Antalya Mayor Akaydın crowns the gallery with the name of Turkish journalist-writer-painter and photography artist, 86-year-old master Fikret Otyam whose hands has been covered in paint for 70 years.

Demirciler İçi Bazaar

The Fikret Otyam Art Gallery, opened in Antalya’s historical Demirciler İçi Bazaar, played host to the screening of a documentary on Otyam’s life for the first time in Turkey. 

Fikret Otyam and Filiz Otyam

Demirciler İçi Fikret Otyam Art Gallery is to open with a collection of paintings of  Fikret Otyam and his wife Filiz Otyam who is known for her own wall-hanging, decorative works. With this new art gallery Antalya will have another important point on culture and art.

Besides Otyam the artistic works of Tufan Dağıstanlı and Himmet Öcal will be on display during the year.

Unique Works of Fikret Otyam

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The 2nd of European Children’s Film Festival

Antalya Metropolitan Municipality organizes the 2^nd of European Children’s Film Festival between the dates of 28 January and 2 February in order to enhance the cinema cultures of the children of Antalya. 

Regarded as one of the most important organizations in the world, the works for World Botanical Expo continues which will be hosted in Antalya in 2016 on the theme of “Children and Flowers”. 

This year the European Children’s Films Festival is organized for the second time with the cooperation of Antalya Metropolitan Municipality, Antalya Chamber of Industry and Commerce (ATSO) and UE Information Center on the theme of “Flower and Children" of Expo 2016. Hereby this festival the children of Antalya will have the chance to watch many children movies between 28 January and 2 February. 

All of the screenings during these 6 days of semester holiday will be free of charge. The screenings will be at Antalya Culture Center, Yenimahalle Culture Center (YKM) and Aksu Atatürk Culture Center. 

Programme

28 January 2013

11.00 Impy's Wonderland 84’ (YKM)

13.30 A Monster in Paris 90’ (AKM Aspendos)

15.00 Niko: The Way to the Stars 80’ (AKSU)

15.30 Astérix and the Vikings 78’ (AKM Aspendos)

29 January 2013

11.00 Niko: The Way to the Stars  80’ (YKM)

13.30 KELOĞLAN 80’ (AKM Aspendos)

15.00 Impy's Wonderland 84’ (AKSU)

15.30 Don Quixote 85’ (AKM Aspendos)

30 January 2013

11.00 Freddy Frogface  78’ (YKM)

13.30 Niko: The Way to the Stars 80’ (AKM Aspendos)

15.00 A Monster in Paris 90’(AKSU)*

15.30 Impy's Wonderland  84’ (AKM Aspendos)

31 January 2013

11.00 A Monster in Paris 90’ (YKM)

13.30 KELOĞLAN 80’ (AKM Aspendos)

15.00 Freddy Frogface  78’(AKSU)

15.30 Arthur and the Invisibles ‘102 (AKM Aspendos)

01 February 2013

10.00 Freddy Frogface  78’ (AKM Perge)

11.00 Impy's Wonderland 84’ (YKM)

12.00 Niko: The Way to the Stars 80’ (AKM Perge)

14.00 A Monster in Paris 90’ (AKM Perge)

02 February 2013

10.00 A Monster in Paris 85’ (AKM Aspendos)

10.30 Impy's Wonderland 84’ (AKSU)

11.00 Niko: The Way to the Stars 80’ (YKM)

12.00 Freddy Frogface  78’(AKM Aspendos)

13.30 A Monster in Paris 90’ (AKSU)

14.00 Don Quixote 85’ (AKM Aspendos)

15.30 Freddy Frogface  78’(AKSU)

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Exclusive Interview with Ellen Rabiner

Antalya City Blog Has A New Surprise!
Antalya City Blog Presents the Special Interview with Ellen Rabiner who is opera singer, recovering lawyer, and an expat. We Asked Her A Few Questions About Antalya and Our Blog.

Can you tell us a little about yourself?

I'm from New York, where I was based for almost twenty years while performing as an opera singer all over the world. Before that I was a lawyer in Los Angeles.  Since moving to Antalya my main project is my blog, Ellen in Turkey

What is the meaning of Antalya for you?

Antalya is a beautiful place to live, with good weather most of the year, many cultural attractions and several arts organizations.

What is your favorite activity in Antalya?

The activity that most displays the beauty of the area is a boat ride from the Kaleici Harbor. I think that would be my favorite activity here.

Do you have a memorable moment ever in Antalya?

I've been living here almost three years now, so I've had many memorable moments. Most of them involve strangers offering to help me.  For example, once I got  caught in the rain while looking for a friend's house.  A couple driving by stopped and offered me shelter. They then drove around with me until we found the building I was looking for.

What do you want to see in the city of Antalya?

I'd love to see the tram that goes from downtown to Beach Park extended to Baki Beach.

What do you think about Antalya City Blog?

Antalya City Blog is a great resource for anyone visiting or living in Antalya. It's very convenient to have so much information gathered in one place.

Thanks to Ellen Rabiner for taking the time to answer these questions for Antalya City Blog

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BNP Paribas World Team Cup 2013 will be held in Antalya

The BNP Paribas World Team Cup is the wheelchair tennis equivalent of the Davis Cup and Fed Cup. There are divisions for men, women, quads and a junior event supported by the Cruyff Foundation. It is held annually with a different nation playing host each year.

The ITF announced that the 2013 BNP Paribas World Team Cup, the ITF’s flagship wheelchair tennis team event, will be held in Antalya, Turkey. The event will be staged on the clay courts of the Club Ali Bey Manavgat on the Turkish Riviera on May.20-26.

Teams from over 50 countries will take part in the 2013 competition. Four regional qualifying events will determine the six men’s and four women’s teams to join the direct entries in the finals in Antalya. In Antalya, teams will contest the men’s World Group (12 nations), men’s World Group 2 (12 nations), women’s World Group (12 nations), quad event (8 teams) and junior event (8 teams).

Moreover, BNP Paribas World Team Cup European Qualifications will be held in Antalya  on March 1, March 5, 2013 in Kaya Belek Resort Hotel.

Antalya is hosting the event for the second time having previously staged the World Team Cup in 2010. The resort has a long history of hosting major ITF events and will also stage the ITF Seniors World Team and Individual Championships in 2013.

For More Information: http://www.itftennis.com

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