Ticks World

Translator: Mehmet Akif Acar (16 years old)

Author: Fatma Zehra Demirci (12 years old)

Illustrator: Zeynep Sevde Baş (9 years old)

As I came closer to the forest, the area around me was getting full of grass and trees. There was a tarmac between the grass and the trees, of course. It was disturbing the beauty, yes. But if it were a rocky road, we would travel while shaking.

Belgrad Forest is between Sarıyer and Eyüp in Istanbul. And as I heard, this is the biggest forest in Turkey. It's said that animals like red deer, red fox, and wild boar live there. Inshallah, I will see them.

Trees greeted me as we entered the forest, as they did along the way. But these trees were so tall and were close to each other. On some trees, there were more branches than leaves, and the branches were closer to each other.

I couldn’t tell that there was grass on the ground (even though I went there in summer). Because there was no grass (come on, it was funny!), but there was more soil. And coal… coal changes the — where did I understand it? From my shoes’ white color that turned into a milk coffee color with too much coffee in it.

This place was too big. There were too many high spots. Tree roots were sprouted out from the soil. They looked like the soil’s veins. This had a bad side. I kept falling over and over again.

And there is something that looks like a walking path. You start from a place, after a long walk you end up at the same spot. You may think you are drawing a big circle. The thing I loved about the walking path was the signs that indicated how many kilometers you had walked. What was it called? Uhh… wait I remembered! Nah I forgot…

For sure, not to forget the mosques. There was a really interesting mosque. It was made of wood. It was a bit long and it had a small minaret. It was small compared to other mosques. It was a masjid rather than a mosque in my opinion. And the name is, Belgrad Forest Mosque. And there was a drinking fountain made from stone in the garden of the mosque.

And, there is a really terrifying thing here, ticks! They suck blood by getting on your skin (this is a bad thing, I guess?). And there are plenty of them here. (As there are too many of them here, I found a good name for this place: TICKS WORLD!). That’s why I can’t say that I liked Belgrad Forest that much.

I guess I forgot to tell one of the most important things. Belgrad Forest is a good place for picnics, and in my opinion, tables and pergolas are a must. Because, ticks…

As trees are close to each other, most people tie nets and play volleyball. And I love that the most.

If analyzed generally, Belgrad Forest is a perfect place for picnics and walks (except the ticks).

And I didn’t see any animals…