I moved to the Van city of Turkey in 2010 to work as a lecturer at the Van Yuzuncu Yil University. Van, located in the Eastern Anatolia region of Turkey, emerges as an archaic settlement with its villages, mountains, lakes and islands. Its inhabitants take their strength from this quiet life. When you reach distant mountain villages, a life welcomes you that is unfamiliar to many of us. This life is the antithesis of the “techno-life” we live in now, where we are surrounded by objects. In the photo-series “Ladybirds” I tried to explore what it was like to be a child in the mountain villages of the East. It was gratifying for me not to see children spending time with smart phones or tablets. I think that being in touch with nature will positively affect their emotional world.