Today, I will tell you about an interesting and equally impressive lady I met in Gökçeada.
News: Eylül Aşkın www.instagram.com/eylulaskinofficial/
From the outside, Zoi Ahu Talyaduro is one of many talented dancers raised in Turkey. What makes her special is not so much that she dances in the Salsa discipline or that she is a dance instructor, but rather her perspective on life, her educational vision, the culture, mindset, and dreams she comes from and wants to pass on to her two-year-old daughter…
Zoi, who says, “Dance is the safest space where I can express myself. That’s why dance is my identity,” is first and foremost an instructor who made us dance Bachata with sleepy eyes at 10:30 in the morning and, moreover, managed to make us enjoy it. While we were condemned to do whatever the schedule dictated on Gökçeada, where we went for an assignment, thanks to her smiling face, hospitality, and her way of making everything seem so easy and achievable, we found the opportunity to start the day energized and with joy.
Zor Ahu Talyaduro, who comes from a family of dancers, was introduced to dance at a very early age. While her mother and father were involved in social Tango, Zoi developed a passion for Salsa and improved herself in this field. After first coming to Gökçeada as a tourist in 2006, she started coming back every year, met her current husband, and settled on the island. She has a small hobby studio open to anyone who wants to dance, but she is particularly eager to work with children. What I liked most was her vision. “There are really very talented children, very talented people on the island,” says Zoi. “Gökçeada is not yet a place that has made a name for itself with social Latin dances. My biggest goal is to raise children from here as good dancers and make their names known as the Gökçeada Sports Club.” Zoi desires to present dance to her students as a space where they can be happy and unwind, and she aims to get everyone dancing by reducing the pressure and anxiety of “Can I do it?”
An unusual feature is that she often dances with her two-year-old daughter during classes. “I see my daughter as my own childhood. She’s two years old, maybe I don’t know because she’s my own daughter, but I see her as very talented. It makes me very happy that she is growing up within dance. In fact, my primary goal when setting up this hobby studio was for her to grow up with dance. I think she’s getting used to it,” says Zoi. She is actually another example of what Hanna Steinmüller, a Green Party member of the German Bundestag, has recently been advocating quite prominently: that women can work and go to work with their babies/children, and that having children does not necessitate a choice between having a career and hiring a nanny. She, too, is running after her own dreams and ideals while holding her daughter in her arms, running together with her child.
For those who say, “I am aiming to build a career in the field of dance,” this might not be the right place, I don’t know. But for those who say, “I want to get away from my problems a little bit in the enchanting atmosphere of Gökçeada, and have fun doing it, while learning new things, swaying with the music a little, doing a little Salsa, Bachata, Waltz, or Modern Jazz, smiling, spending time in a family-like warmth,” I highly recommend that anyone whose path leads to Gökçeada visit her at her hobby studio.
For those who want detailed information about Zoi and her classes: They can reach her via her Instagram account @zoihobbystudio.
