Gulce Guctekin gives her Wisconsin volleyball teammates a history lesson

The subject matter was something with which she was quite familiar — her home country of Turkey and, in particular, her home town of Istanbul. Her lessons ranged from the nation’s politics, culture and cuisine to some commonly used words and phrases.

It is no coincidence that Istanbul will be the first stop on the Badgers’ two-week European tour that also will take them to Maribor, Slovenia; Venice, Milan and Lake Como, Italy; and Zurich, Switzerland.

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When UW coach Kelly Sheffield started thinking about the desired destinations for this trip, Istanbul was at the top of the list.

“It’s a place we thought about four years ago but it was a no-brainer with Gulce here,” Sheffield said. “Some of the best pro teams in the world are located in Turkey. We’ve had (former) players who have played over there. It’s different than what we did last time but it makes sense.

“Istanbul is the population of New York, Los Angeles and Chicago combined. It’s on two continents. There’s not a lot of those. It’s such a huge city, a very old city and because you have the Asia side and the Europe side, there’s a totally different personality to each of those that we’ll be able to explore. It’s a great place to start.”

And to Guctekin it’s home, a place she’s only been once — for winter break — since arriving at UW last August.

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“I’m so excited,” she said. “I miss being home and I’m so excited to show my teammates around. I know pretty much everywhere so I will be kind of like a tour guide.

“I want them to see how people are very friendly and allowed to talk to them. I think the Turkish people love foreigners. They always try to teach them some Turkish things, so I hope they will enjoy this trip.”

No worries, as her teammates are enthusiastic about experiencing Guctekin’s home turf.