Slow Food is a global organization with the objective of combatting the fast food culture by promoting local food cultures and educating people about the local cooking traditions. This movement, for good, clean and fair food started in Italy and now more than 160 countries are a part of it. Villages that are interested in becoming a slow food village get in contact with the organization and if they fulfil the requirements they become a slow food village.
Villagers from Germiyan, a small village in the Aegean coast of Turkey applied to become a slow food village and they received their certificate in 2015. One of the traditional foods of Germiyan is the sourdough bread that the villagers cook themselves. You can also find it in nearby villages.
So now you know that this little village in the Aegean coast of Turkey is a slow food village. But this is not the only thing that makes it stand out amongst other villages nearby. Germiyan is also known for its houses covered with drawings made by a local woman, named Nuran Erden. She first drew the Slow Food’s logo onto a wall in the village, which is the symbol of a snail, then she started to draw on the walls of houses, which first annoyed the other villagers. However, they all ended up loving her works. All they need to do is to paint the walls of their houses all white and wait for her to pop over and decorate them.
We were lucky enough to chat with Nuran Erden while we were visiting. She gave us a warm welcome and showed us her works that we missed in the small streets. It’s amazing how the talent inside people can come out no matter where they live or what they do. If you come visit Germiyan one day, don’t hesitate to say hi if you see a lady drawing on the walls.
Germiyan is about 20 minutes away by car from Çeşme, a more touristic town of Izmir.
