#crowdlitbus diary: Zeynep Köylü “Can a bus contain a world or a world of words?”

Turkish #crowdlitbus author Zeynep Köylü (you can read her One is a CROWD interview here) thinks about the role of language and possibilities of expression on the way from Tekirdağ to Kavala. As we close in to Friday and the closing event of our epic tour, let us reminisce a bit and slow down the flow of time. Look forwards in the next days for short and insightful journal entires, essays and thoughts by our #crowdlitbus authors on their journey from Istanbul to Athens!

As we were heading from Tekirdag for Kavala, we, a number of poets were playing a game of words. Everybody says a word in his or her language and the others are trying to guess what it means. The timbre of all these different languages are resonating in the air. We are so enchanted by the magic of the sounds, we do not even mind not understanding them.

When we arrive in Kavala, we are still preoccupied with the language game. We are greeted by a theatre company in this lovely town. The Kouinta Theatre Company take us to their venue and present us various performances. All of them are truly impressive. In the first performance, a dancer erases the words written on the floor such as human, racism, peace, passion and poetry through his dance movements. Once the words are erased, the hidden voice of the body fills the space.

Then we are asked to write our lines on a wall. Everybody writes and reads in his or her own language. We can see our differences in style and form. Finally, the lights are turned off and in the darkness we see the words “from the shade into the sun” appear on the wall.

Can a wall contain a world or a world of words?

If we are talking about poetry, yes it does.

While driving from Tekirdag to Kavala and as border crossing sunflowers along the road were whispering the language of the wind, I was murmuring:

inside my mouth wanders the wind’s tongue
I asked the skylarks my name
they kissed me with a moment’s song

Zeynep Köylü
CROWD OMNIBUS Traveler in week 10
On 07. July 2016, Kavala

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