By Jae-Ha Kim
Tribune Content Agency
December 8, 2015
Foreign languages have always been important to Turkish-born entrepreneur Serdar Acar, founder of the children’s language-learning program Dino Lingo.
“As the saying goes, ‘One language one person, two languages two persons,’” says Acar, 40, who now resides in Fort Myers, Fla. “Before I moved to the United States, I did some backpacking in India and Nepal. My English was not as good then as it is now, but English was the only language I could communicate with when I was traveling. I made lots of friends and gained a great experience from it. That same year, I went to Morocco for business where Arabic is the official language. Everybody also spoke French. I realized that being able to communicate in those two languages opened new doors and opportunities for me.”
To learn more about Acar and Dino Lingo, check out their Facebook feed.
Q. How lucky are English-speaking tourists?
A. Each language has its own advantages. But when it comes to traveling, I think English speakers are a bit luckier, because you can find an English-speaking person most of the time, especially if you stick to the tourist routes. That is why most people in other countries learn English.
Q. What is your favorite vacation destination?
A. The Turkish Mediterranean Coast, which is a very diverse place where tourists from all over the world enjoy the sun, the sea and food that is unique to Turkey. This summer, my six brothers and their families and I all decided to have a reunion here for our parents’ 40th wedding anniversary. We rented an amazing villa with seven bedrooms. We came from all over the world. It was one of the most memorable vacations in my entire life. We did everything together from swimming, walking, shopping and playing soccer. And we also enjoyed lots of delicious, fresh food.
Q. To someone who was going there for the first time, what would you recommend that they do during their visit?
A. The area is famous for the sun and sandy beaches. But it also offers lots of culture and history. There are a lot of well-preserved remains from the Romans and Greeks: Aspendos, Termessos, Olympus, Perge are just some of them. There are also some caves with jaw-dropping views. When you visit the towns, you will notice fresh fish restaurants. There are also leather, carpet and jewelry shops. If you have some time during the day, you should visit one of those handmade carpet places. Women weave carpets in an old-fashioned way that is a nearly dead trade today.
Q. If you’ve ever gone away for the holidays, which was the best trip?
A. My wife was born and raised in Ireland. She still has some family living there right outside of Dublin. So far, I have been to Ireland seven times and six of them were just for Christmas. They own a huge bar and restaurant and it’s their family tradition for everyone to eat, drink and be merry. They also host a party on New Year’s Eve for the locals where I get to chat with old Irish guys.
Q. What are your five favorite cities?
A. My top five would be New York, Istanbul, Amsterdam, Dublin and Kathmandu.
Q. Where would you like to go that you have never been to before?
A. I have never been to Eastern Europe. Hungary and Czech Republic are on top of my list. I also want to see Cuba before it becomes a commercialized tourist destination. I saw “Buena Vista Social Club” (in 1999) and it was about the musical spirit in Havana. Since then, I’ve been wanting to see those streets, capture photos and listen to some cool music.
Q. What was the first trip you took as a child?
A. I was born in a city called Bursa, which is just three hours south of Istanbul. My father used to drive to Istanbul for business expos and fairs and take me with him. The first time he took me, I was about 7 years old. As soon as we arrived to the expo center, he said to me, “This is a very crowded place. Stay with me no matter what, but if you ever get lost, find the police, give him my phone number and our home address and tell him you want to go home.” He gave me some money and said, “The police should take you to the bus station and buy you a bus ticket home with this money.” Fortunately, I didn’t get lost. I really enjoyed my trip by just walking around the expo and looking at the amazing stuff I had never seen before. Since then, I always love going to expos.
Q. Where are your favorite weekend getaways?
A. When we were living in New York City, we used to go to the Catskills very often. Woodstock and Saugerties are great for weekend getaways — just a two-hour drive from the city. We either stayed in a hotel or rented a wood cabin, since I am not good with tents. We used to go fishing and swimming and grilled on campfires at night. They also have some really good restaurants in the area. Since we live in Florida, now we go to Orlando for weekends. We have also explored Miami, the Florida Keys and Saint Augustine.
Q. How many languages do you speak? And how did you learn them?
A. I speak Turkish and English fluently. I am originally from Turkey and moved to the United States when I was 25 years old. When I was a kid I also studied French and Arabic. When I moved to the U.S I took some Spanish lessons. Growing up, I was so fascinated by different countries and their languages. Just to hear the stories about them or hearing those foreign words, or hearing myself saying them would give me joy. I remember when we were like seven or eight years old, my brother and I would make up fake languages that were spoken in imaginative countries. I was very curious. When I was 10 years old, I asked my parents to subscribe to one of those cultural kids magazines and the magazine would arrive to my house once a month. I would look at those pictures in Asia, Africa, Europe and America for hours and hours throughout the month and I would imagine myself visiting or living in those places someday.
Q. How do you decide which languages Dino Lingo would release on DVDs etc.?
A. At the moment, Dino Lingo language-learning programs are available in 45 languages. Soon, we’ll be offering 50. That makes us the first and the largest company worldwide in the children’s category offering that many languages. We plan to keep releasing new languages as long as we are in business. There are number of reasons behind it. I will just name three of them. First one is our mission: “We believe that every child in the world should be able to learn another language if he or she wishes.” Second reason is that lots of languages and cultures are disappearing slowly. As technology is becoming more advanced, people are communicating less and less. We believe diverse cultures and languages are the real treasures that need to be preserved. The third reason is we are constantly receiving e-mails and calls from our customers asking us to release new languages. Aside from DVDs, we also offer online subscription and mobile apps to our customers.
Q. What are your favorite restaurants?
A. Since we are a full-time working family, we do not cook at home much. We either eat out or order in. Food is very important for me as I grew up in a culture where food is the center of all attractions. I also have an Instagram account where I follow food blogs. I try to be spontaneous and enjoy different cuisines all the time. It’s very hard to choose, but I have to say my favorite food is Japanese food. I’ve almost tried everything, especially when I was in Japan this year and, so far, I haven’t had a bad experience. I also love to dine in Turkish, Greek, and Middle Eastern restaurants, which remind me of home. But, there are not many of them where we live.
Q. What’s the most important thing you’ve learned from your travels?
A. These days, I mostly travel with my family. We have two children — a 9-year-old and a 2-year-old. My 9-year-old son has already been in five different countries. I need to constantly think about the practicality of traveling with small kids. So I’ve learned to do my homework weeks in advance of buying flight tickets. I search online for hotels, restaurants and family-friendly places. Sometimes I would visit some of the travel forums and ask natives. It certainly helps to know what the natives think. My wife is also a natural-born traveler, so her knowledge helps a lot.
Q. Did you adjust easily moving from New York to Florida?
A. We moved down here from Manhattan six years ago when my wife got a job. The first couple of years, it was a bit difficult to adapt to the Floridian lifestyle and we constantly thought about moving back to New York City. But throughout the years, we started liking this small town. Now, we love it. I believe aging also helped. (Laughs.)
Q. What is your best and/or worst vacation memory?
A. When I was 17 years old, my friend and I wanted to go to the Turkish Mediterranean for the weekend. The bus trip was about 12 hours long. We arrived early around 6 a.m. After we settled in a cheap motel, it was time to go to a beach. We got into a small minibus that took us to a public beach. We were passing these beautiful blue water sandy beaches and couldn’t wait. We told the driver to drop us off immediately. So, we walked onto this private property that we didn’t realize was private. We did some swimming and then got hungry. I wanted to find a place to eat. That’s when I saw this huge dog running towards me. I thought the dog just wanted to play, because he was not barking at all. Before I knew, he attacked me biting both my stomach and leg. I was suddenly covered in blood. It was painful. His owner came and took the dog away, but that was too late. We walked to a nearby hotel, the concierge called us a cab to the nearest clinic. Long story short, the doctor told me that I needed to be quarantined in case the dog had the rabies. I also had to have rabies shots. I didn’t have any money and my parents even didn’t know I was there. I asked the doctor, “What would be the worst thing that could happen to me”? He said, “You would either live or die. You’ll know in about 7 to 10 days.” A day later, we took the bus back to our hometown. We didn’t tell anything to anyone. I still think about that sometimes and smile at how crazy it was. At least I am alive!
© 2015 JAE-HA KIM
DISTRIBUTED BY TRIBUNE CONTENT AGENCY, LLC.
