YOUNG VIEW // GENÇ BAKIfi

MARINE&COMMERCE JULY 2008044

D‹LDAR ÜNDE⁄ER

Think of two sisters; they are both Libra and they were born on the same day 4 years apart, and they have

characteristic features and tastes which complement one another. I am talking about Arzu and Serap

Taflkent sisters. Of course, one more word was added to the surnames of both sisters, and

one of them became Arzu Taflkent Dinçer and the other Serap Taflkent Yenal.

‹ki kardefl düflünün; ikisi de Terazi burcu, üstelik 4 y›l arayla ayn› gün do¤mufllar ve

birbirlerini tamamlayan karakteristik özelliklere, be¤enilere sahipler. Arzu ve Serap Taflkent

kardefllerden bahsediyorum. Tabii her ikisinin de y›llar önce soyadlar›na birer kelime daha

eklenmifl ve biri Arzu Taflkent Dinçer, di¤eri de Serap Taflkent Yenal olmufl.

TWO PANS OF THE BALANCETERAZ‹N‹N ‹K‹ KEFES‹

Arzu Taflkent DinçerSerap Taflkent Yenal

Arzu and Serap Taflkent sisters are two of the 4daughters of Çetin Taflkent, the bitter-sweet figureof the sector, and of Mrs. Saliha Taflkent whose

smile on her face never disappears. They are also the newgeneration managers of Taflkent Tourism.

Mrs. Arzu states that her most typical feature is herintolerance against injustices. She studied statistics-mathematics, and she took over the financial responsibilityof their company in the tourism sector. She is creative.Although she knows how to enjoy life, she does not feel atease without performing the last step in the practice stageof her work. She prefers running after the works andresearching to sitting in her office. As for Mrs. Serap; she alsodoes not tolerate injustices, but she thinks herself slightly moreaggressive. She studied tourism and she runs the sales section ofthe business. However, unlike her elder sister, she prefers spendingtime in the office by listening to classical music. Her philosophy isto leave work at the workplace. The favorite color of one of them isblue and white, while the other’s is green and black. Both of themactualized successful achievements in other companies beforestarting to work in their family company. Moreover, both of themlove their family lives. In short; these two sisters who were born onthe same day 4 years apart equalize the two pans of the balance bycomplementing one another.

Of course, a talk made with beautiful people on the sea isenjoyable. That day, many hours passed; we shared, laughed andtold our worries to each other… Our talk started with “boss-father” conversation and continued with the adversities of thesector and concluded with the evaluation of the place of woman inmaritime. As in every interview, there were some crucialstatements in my interview with Taflkent sisters. Here are the twosisters’ most crucial statements which preoccupied my mind;

• “We consider our father as our ‘spiritual leader.’”• “Serap calls me and my father Hacivat and Karagöz.”• “We take 15-20 thousand people to show around in one season

and most of these are tourists. That means we are a firm thatmakes a remarkable contribution to tourism.”

• “I’m sorry to say that people of Istanbul are uneasy to get on aboat in winter. In fact, the gray clouds, rain and snow of theBosphores are viewed more spectacular on the sea.”

• “Unfortunately, as a country, we do not have the imagination toexperience different things.”

How do you see your relationship as “Boss-father and hisdaughters”?

Arzu Taflkent: We consider our father as our “spiritual leader”. It is enough for us when he is at our side even though he may not doanything. Unlike his tough appearance, he is such a softheartedperson… He is not resentful; he is outspoken and he says everythingfor the goodness of his addressee. As a matter of fact, he is loved forthese features of him. In fact, people liken him to Hulusi Kentmen. I see myself as a small-size model of my father. I experience manythings with my father. For instance; when there is an organization onthe boat, we never sleep before the boat is moored and everybody

Arzu ve Serap Taflkent kardefller, sektörün tatl›-serti ÇetinTaflkent ile yüzündeki sevecen gülümsemesi hiç eksik olma-yan Saliha Han›m›n 4 k›z›ndan ikisi. Taflkent Turizm’in de

genç nesil yöneticileri.

Arzu Han›m, en tipik özelli¤ini haks›zl›klara karfl› tahammülsüz-lü¤ü olarak tan›ml›yor. ‹statistik-matematik okumufl, turizmde deflirketlerinin finans sorumlulu¤unu üstlenmifl. Yarat›c›. Her ne ka-dar hayattan keyif almay› sevse de iflinin uygulama k›sm›nda sonnoktay› koymadan rahat etmiyor. Ofiste oturmaktansa koflturup,araflt›rmay› tercih ediyor. Serap Han›ma gelince; o da haks›zl›kla-ra tahammül edemiyor ama biraz daha fazla fevri oldu¤unu düflü-nüyor. Turizm e¤itimi alm›fl ve iflin sat›fl k›sm›n› yürütüyor. Ancakablas›n›n aksine klasik müzik dinleyerek ofiste vakit geçirmeyi deçok seviyor. Felsefesi ifli iflte b›rakmak. Birinin rengi mavi ve be-yazken, di¤erininki yeflil ve siyah. Her ikisi de aile flirketlerinde ça-l›flmaya bafllamadan önce, baflka flirketlerde baflar›l› ifllere imzaatm›fllar. Ve yine her ikisi de aile hayatlar›n› çok seviyor. Özetle;4 y›l arayla ayn› gün do¤an bu iki kardefl birbirlerini tamamlaya-rak, terazinin iki ayr› kefesini dengede tutuyor.

Denizin üstünde, güzel insanlarla yap›lan sohbet keyifli olur elbet-te. O gün de saatler saatleri kovalad›; paylafl›ld›, gülündü, dertle-flildi... Sohbetimiz “patron-baba” muhabbetiyle bafllad›, sektörüns›k›nt›lar› ile devam etti ve denizde kad›n de¤erlendirmesiyle nok-taland›. Her röportajda oldu¤u gibi Taflkent kardefllerin röporta-j›nda da baz› kilit cümleler vard›.

‹flte iki kardeflin benim zihnime tak›lan en kilit cümleleri;• “Babam›z› “ruhani liderimiz” olarak görüyoruz.” • “Serap, babamla bana Hacivat ve Karagöz der”• “Sezonda 15-20 bin kifli gezdiriyoruz, bunlar›n ço¤u da turist.

Demek ki biz turizme ciddi katk›da bulunan bir firmay›z.”• “‹stanbullu k›fl›n tekneye binme konusunda maalesef tedirgin.

Oysa k›fl›n bo¤az›n gri bulutlar› da, ya¤muru da, kar› da sadecedenizden güzel.”

• “Ne yaz›k ki ülkece farkl› fleyler yapma hayalperestli¤imizyok.”

“Patron baba ve k›zlar›” olarak iliflkinizi nas›l görüyorsunuz?

Arzu Taflkent: Biz babam›z› “ruhani liderimiz” olarak görüyoruz.Hiçbirfley yapmasa bile yan›m›zda bulunmas› yeterli. Sert görünü-müne ra¤men öyle yufka yürekli bir insan ki... Asla kinci de¤il, sö-

YOUNG VIEW // GENÇ BAKIfi

ULUSLARARASI DEN‹Z ve T‹CARET TEMMUZ 2008 045

Arzu Taflkent Dinçer Serap Taflkent Yenal

gets off. Of course, when we work together, sometimes we get intoconflict. Serap even calls us Hacivat and Karagöz. Indeed, there issuch kind of a relationship between me and my father. When myfather says something, the conversation is over. Since I have thesame manners, sometimes we differ in opinion.

Serap Taflkent: In fact, the cordiality between me and my fatherhas increased since we started to work together, of which I amglad. I would keep more distance with my father in the past;indeed, I was afraid of him. As for Arzu, she would not hesitate tospeak and she would say anything she wanted. In fact, since ourchildhood, we were brought up being always conscious about ourresponsibilities. We were never able to be at ease and we thoughtthat we had to do our best in whatever business we engage in.Accordingly, my father enjoys this, too.

Tell me about a regular day of yours?

Arzu Taflkent: I am not a person who can spend the work hours inthe office environment. I have a restless personality. Suddenly,what must be purchased for the boat decoration comes into mymind and I spend hours in Grand Bazaar or Eminönü which I enjoyvery much. I even joke around by telling Serap, “You sit in yourglass mansion, and make business connections and let me spendthe money.” In our share of work, Serap steps in during the stageof sale and I take the responsibility of other stages. I can say thatI am a good housewife besides my business life. I am good atkitchen and I very much love spending time in the kitchen when I come home in the evening.

Serap Taflkent: Naturally, I make visits to the agencies during theday, but I love spending time at my office as well. The section forwhich I am responsible is sale, but I am the type of person who leaveswork at the workplace. I think that the work must be finished before I go home, and I get bored if I have to experience the opposite. In comparison to Arzu, I can isolate myself from the work more. I believe that I fondly and deliberately conduct the tourism business.

What are the challenges of your job?

Serap Taflkent: The primary challenge is where the boats are

zünü sak›nmaz, herfleyi karfl›s›ndakinin iyili¤i için söyler. Zaten buözellikleri yüzünden çok seviliyor. Hatta Hulusi Kentmen’e benze-tirler babam›n tav›rlar›n›. Ben kendimi babam›n küçük bir mode-li olarak görüyorum. Birçok fleyi babamla beraber yafl›yoruz, ör-ne¤in teknede bir organizasyon oldu¤unda tekne ba¤lanmadan,herkes inmeden kesinlikle uyumay›z. Tabii çal›fl›rken arada bir güççat›flmas› da yaflar›z. Hatta Serap bize Hacivat ve Karagöz der,gerçekten de aram›zda böyle bir iliflki var. Babam bir fley söyledi-¤i zaman noktay› koyar, genelde ben de o yap›da oldu¤um için ara-da bazen fikir çat›flmalar›m›z olur.

Serap Taflkent: Asl›nda beraber çal›flmaya bafllad›¤›m›zdan beribenim babamla olan samimiyetim artt› ki bundan çok memnunum.Eskiden babama karfl› daha mesafeliydim, hatta biraz korkard›m.Arzu’ysa laf›n› sak›nmaz, içinden ne geliyorsa söylerdi. Asl›nda bizçocuklu¤umuzdan beri her zaman sorumluluklar›m›z›n bilincindeolarak yetifltirildik. Hiçbir zaman çok rahat olamad›k ve hep ne iflyaparsak yapal›m, en iyi flekilde yapmal›y›z diye düflündük. Tabiibunu ifl hayat›m›za da yans›t›yoruz. Dolay›s›yla babam da bundankeyif al›yor.

Rutin bir gününüz nas›l geçiyor?

Arzu Taflkent: Ben ofis ortam›nda mesai saatini doldurabilecektarzda bir insan de¤ilim, yerinde duramayan bir yap›m var. Birdenakl›ma tekne dekorasyonu için al›nmas› gereken bir fley gelir ve Ka-pal›çarfl›’ya ya da Eminönü’ne gider, saatlerimi geçiririm. Bundanda çok büyük keyif al›r›m. Hatta Serap’a; “Sen s›rça köflkünde oturiflleri ba¤la, ben de paralar› harcayay›m.” diye tak›l›r›m. ‹fl payla-fl›m›m›zda sat›fl› yapma aflamas›nda Serap devrededir, ben de di¤eraflamalar›n sorumlulu¤unu üstlenirim. Kendi iflimin d›fl›nda iyi birev han›m› oldu¤umu söyleyebilirim. Mutfa¤a yatk›n›m ve akflameve geldi¤imde mutfakta vakit geçirmeyi çok severim.

Serap Taflkent: Gün içinde acente ziyaretleri yapar›m elbette amaofiste vakit geçirmeyi de çok severim. Sorumlulu¤unu üstlendi¤imkonu sat›fl ama ifli iflte b›rakanlardan›m. Eve gitti¤imde ifl bitmelidiye düflünürüm. Ve aksini yaflamak zorunda kal›rsam, s›k›l›r›m.

YOUNG VIEW // GENÇ BAKIfi

MARINE&COMMERCE JULY 2008046

The responsibility we undertake is very enormous. We have theunderstanding of achieving the best and the finest for the“Taflkent” which has existed for 30 years and is known byeveryone. Of course, this is difficult in these economicconditions, yet we still have such a vision.

Ald›¤›m›z sorumluluk çok büyük. 30 y›ld›r yaflayan ve herkes taraf›ndan bilinen ‘Taflkent’ ismi için, en iyiyi en güzeli yapmaanlay›fl› içindeyiz. Tabii bu ekonomik koflullar içerisinde flu aniçin zor ama yine de böyle bir vizyonumuz var.

Arzu Taflkent Dinçer Serap Taflkent Yenal

Arzu’ya göre kendimi iflten daha çok soyutlayabiliyorum. Turizmiseverek ve bilerek yapt›¤›m› düflünüyorum.

‹flinizin s›k›nt›l› yönleri neler?

Serap Taflkent: S›k›nt›lar›m›z›n bafl›n›, teknelerin ba¤lanma yeriçekiyor. Devlet teknelerin ba¤l› durduklar› yerden kald›r›lmas› ka-rar›n› al›rken, bunlara yeni ba¤lama yerlerini de göstermeli. Buyönde s›k›nt›lar›m›z var, hiç teflvik olmad›¤› gibi özellikle flu sondönemlerde köstek olma durumu söz konusu. Oysa sadece Taflkentolarak biz sezonda 15-20 bin kifli gezdiriyoruz ve bunlar›n ço¤u daturist. Demek ki biz turizme katk›da bulunan bir firmay›z.

Avrupa Birli¤i’ne girifl sürecinden dolayı, uyulması gereken bir diziyeni normlar getiriliyor ve bizde bunlara uymak için gerekliçalıflmaları yapmaya özen gösteriyoruz. Ama mevcut teknelerin sa-hip olmas› gereken belgelerle ilgili öyle zor ve enteresan talepler devar ki, bazen yeni tekne infla etmek daha kolay diye düflünüyoruz.Sisteme iliflkin tüm zorluklara, bir de toplumun denize karfl› ürkek-li¤i eklendi¤inde isyan etti¤imiz dönemler oluyor do¤rusu. Dünya-n›n birçok ülkesinde insanlar küçücük bir kanal› gezdirirken, biz bukadar güzel bo¤az›m›z› de¤erlendiremiyoruz. Bütün bir k›fl oturup,

YOUNG VIEW // GENÇ BAKIfi

MARINE&COMMERCE JULY 2008048

Yes, we run a restaurant, but the shipping aspect of this business differs somuch. Its connection to age and experience is very significant. We want ourfather to come to office and he may do nothing but accompany us, which stillcreates a very great energy. We sometimes go through a conflict ofgenerations, but this is very normal. Our vision is much broader and we wish tocatch many trends. After our father has seen this outlook of ours, he quitinterfering and provided us with more opportunities.

moored. When the government decides that the boats be removedfrom their moorings, it should designate new places for those. Wehave problems related to these issues. As there is no incentive putinto effect, particularly in the recent period there are evidentobstacles. However, as Taflkent, we take 15-20 thousand people toshow around and most of these are tourists. This means we are afirm that makes a contribution to tourism.

There are some norms to be complied with due to our transitionperiod to European Union and we accept this fact. Yet, there aresuch challenging and interesting demands related to the certificateswhich the present boats must obtain that sometimes we think it iseasier to construct a boat from the scratch. When all the hardshipsconcerning the system are coupled with the timidity of the societyagainst the sea, frankly, there are times when we go nuts. Whilepeople in many countries show their visitors small canals, we cannot make use of such a beautiful strait. Sitting all winter andworking for only 5 or 6 months is so tragic. I think that as tourismagents it is necessary for us to have different visions. When wespeak out the necessity of organizing strait tours, I come acrosssuch interesting questions as “Can tsunami occur in theBosphores?” or “Do the lengths of waves overflow the boat?” thateven though we answer these questions, it nevertheless remainsineffective. Not only us, but also the other boats wind downthrough the winter which is a very awful thing.

Arzu Taflkent: All in all, Taflkent boats were made by my father.We renewed these boats and operate them. We think that our nextmajor achievement should be to construct and operate a new boateven if it won’t have such a large size. But there are no mooringspots for the boats, as there are no places for their maintenancewhen they enter the shipyard period. Until today, my father hasalways taken the boats to maintenance through his friends. What Imean is that we are two dynamic women and when we want o builda boat, we face way too many obstacles. These need to beeliminated urgently.

We have all kinds of facilities present in our boats. They are safeand cozy. But for some reason, it is almost impossible to attractpeople to the sea in winter. This is because the people of Istanbulare not familiar with the Bosphores and do not feel it.

So what is the solution? What kind of a method should befollowed?

Serap Taflkent: First of all, people should be made familiar withthe sea, it should be imposed that there is no need to be afraid of itin such an extent. These kinds of boats obtain a certificate ofseaworthiness. I visited a canal in Dusseldorf. Even though mudwas flowing in, the queue before the boats were incredible. Also inParis, people queue up to see tiny canals at -30C. Our country mustreceive a similar demand, too. I believe that the promotion shouldbe primarily initiated by tourism companies and agencies. Whenwe go to the agencies, they say “We do not organize boat tours inwinter”. But, why? In fact, the gray clouds, rain and snow of theBosphores are viewed more spectacular on the sea andunfortunately 3 or 4 tours in February in comparison to 50-60tours in May can hardly create a motivation.

Arzu Taflkent Dinçer

Will your other two sisters join the family company?

Serap Taflkent: My younger sister who is number three among thesiblings is presently engaged in tourism business. She worked withus for a period of time, and if she wants to rejoin us, we’ll be morethan happy and become more powerful. She prefers to take care ofher kid for a while since he is yet very little. Number 4 who is achemical engineer is not interested a bit in this business norfancies it. She is different in nature and she has an analyticalpersonality. She helps us in technical issues. Presently, she worksin a textile company.

What about “woman in the wea”?

Arzu Taflkent: Unfortunately, courtesy and kindness are notconcepts that are frequently seen in the sea.

Especially, in the berthing spots of the boats, very unpleasantincidents occur. Yet, the situation is different in shipyards. I gothere frequently and enjoy it very much.

Serap Taflkent: Our sector is dominated by men. I can say thatthere are only two of us in Taflkent type boats. I, like Arzu, alsothink that women are not treated with respect in our sector.

YOUNG VIEW // GENÇ BAKIfi

ULUSLARARASI DEN‹Z ve T‹CARET TEMMUZ 2008 049

&&

Bir restorant iflletiyoruz evet fakat bu iflin denizcilik baca¤› çok farkl›, yafl ve tec-rübe ile ba¤lant›s› çok önemli. Babam›z hiçbirfley yapmas›n fakat gelsin ofiste bi-zim ile birlikte olsun o bile bizim için çok büyük bir güç. Bazen kuflak çat›flmas›yafl›yoruz ama bu da çok normal. Bizim vizyonumuz daha aç›k daha çok trend ya-kalamak peflindeyiz. Bu bak›fl aç›m›z› gördükten sonra babam, hiçbirfleye kar›flmamaya bafllad› ve önümüzü daha çok açt›.

sadece 5-6 ay çal›flmak çok ac›. Turizmci olarak vizyonumuzunfarkl› olmas› gerekti¤ini düflünüyorum. K›fl›n da bo¤az turlar› ya-p›lmal› derken, “Bo¤azda tsunami olur mu?”, “Dalga boyu gemiyiaflar m›?” gibi öyle ilginç sorularla karfl›lafl›yorum ki... Sorular›her ne kadar cevaplasak da, etkili olmuyor. Sadece biz de¤il, di¤ertekneler de bütün k›fl yat›yor ve bu çok ac› birfley.

Arzu Taflkent: Sonuçta Taflkent gemilerini babam yapm›fl, biz ye-niledik ve iflletiyoruz. Bundan sonraki esas baflar›m›z, bu kadarbüyük olmasa da yeni bir tekne yapmak ve iflletmek olmal› diye dü-flünüyoruz. Fakat teknelerin ba¤lama yeri yok, tersane dönemindebak›mlar›n›n yap›laca¤› yer de yok. Bugüne kadar hep babamdostlar› arac›l›¤›yla gemileri bak›ma çektirdi. Yani biz iki dinamikkad›n›z ve tekne yapmak istedi¤imizde, pek çok engelle karfl›lafl›-yoruz. Bunlar›n acilen kald›r›lmas› gerek.

Teknelerimizde her türlü imkan mevcut; güvenli ve s›cak. Ama ne-dense insanlar› k›fl›n denize çekmek imkans›z gibi bir fley. Çünkü‹stanbullu denizi, bo¤az› bilmiyor ve hissetmiyor.

Peki çözüm ne? Nas›l bir yol izlenmeli?

Serap Taflkent: Herfleyden önce insanlara denizi anlatmal›, bukadar korkulmamas› gerekti¤ini empoze etmeliyiz. Bu tip teknelerdenize elverifllilik belgesi al›yorlar. Düsseldorf’ta bir kanala git-tim. Çamur akmas›na ra¤men, teknelerin önünde oluflan kuyrukinan›lmazd›. Yine Paris‘de -3 derecede küçücük kanallar› gezmekiçin herkes s›raya giriyor. Ülkemizde de böyle bir talep olmal›. Tan›t›m ifline de önce turizm flirketleri ve acentalar›n bafllamas›gerekti¤ine inan›yorum. Biz acentalara gitti¤imizde ‘K›fl›n tekneturu koymuyoruz’ diyorlar. Peki neden? Oysa k›fl›n bo¤az›n gri bulutlar› da, ya¤muru da, kar› da sadece denizden güzel. Ve ma-alesef fiubat ay›nda yap›lan 3-4 tur, may›s ay›nda yap›lan 50-60tura nazaran ancak motivasyon olabiliyor.

Di¤er iki k›z kardefliniz de aile flirketinize kat›lacaklar m›?

Serap Taflkent: Benden sonraki kardeflim yani 3 numara olan daturizm ile meflgul. Bir dönem bizimle çal›flt› tekrar kat›lmak ister-se de çok mutlu oluruz ve gücümüze güç katar›z. fiu an çocu¤u kü-çük oldu¤u için belli bir süre onunla ilgilenmeyi tercih ediyor. 4numara ise kimya mühendisi, bu ifllerle hiç alakas› olmad›¤› gibihofllanm›yor da. Yap› olarak daha farkl›, analitik bir yap›s› var.Bize teknik konularda yard›mc› olur. fiu anda da bir tekstil firma-s›nda çal›fl›yor.

“Denizde kad›n” desem...

Arzu Taflkent: Nezaket ve kibarl›k denizde pek rastlanan bir kav-ram de¤il maalesef. Özellikle tekne yanaflma yerlerinde zaman za-man çok çirkin olaylar yaflan›yor. Ama tersanelerde durum farkl›.S›kl›kla gidiyorum ve büyük keyif al›yorum.

Serap Taflkent: Bizim sektörde erkek egemenli¤i var. Taflkenttarz›ndaki teknelerde bayan olarak sadece ikimiz var›z diyebili-rim. Ben de Arzu gibi, bizim sektörde kad›na sayg›l› davran›lma-d›¤›n› düflünüyorum.

Serap Taflkent Yenal