NICOSIA, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- Back in the 1950s, Taylan Bahceli, then a Turkish Cypriot boy, used to cycle to school in the Greek Cypriot part of Nicosia escorted by British soldiers.
Half a century later, his grandson Kaan Bahceli, takes a school bus on the same route every day to cross the UN-controlled buffer zone to attend an English-speaking school in the Greek Cypriot south.
As the last divided capital city in Europe after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the ancient Nicosia has witnessed a prevailing trend of reconciliation between Turkish and Greek Cypriot communities in the past few years.
After Cyprus won independence from British colonization in 1960,the conflicts between Turkish and Greek Cypriots escalated and ended up with Turkish Cypriots seizing one third of the northern island in 1974. Since then, Nicosia and its two communities have remained divided despite unswerving negotiations of unification.
Yet, in April 2003, the Turkish Cypriot authorities eased travel restrictions and then opened several crossings along the buffer zone.
Upon the opening up of the first crossing in Nicosia, Turkish Cypriot parents started to send their kids to English-speaking schools in the Greek side for a better education.
Kaan Bahceli, now 13, transferred from a Turkish-speaking school in the north to a private English-speaking school on the other side of the buffer zone in 2004.
Compared to Kaan's grandfather, faced with fear during the past violent times, Kaan is now in a much less hostile environment. "I am not scared at all. I think it's a good idea for Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots to study together, as long as they are willing to do it."
Kaan's grandfather recalled that, when he was young, the Turkish and Greek Cypriot kids were not encouraged to have much personal contact, such as inviting each other to their homes. But things have changed dramatically as Kaan has made plenty of Greek Cypriot friends.
"Sometimes we get together outside school, and I invite them over to my house as well," said Kaan.
Susie Panayiotides is the headmaster of the primary school of the American Academy in Nicosia, where about 85 Turkish Cypriot kids from the north (including foreign kids) are studying.
In previous years, both the Turkish and Greek textbooks used to describe each other as the "monstrous enemy," she told Xinhua in an interview.
The demonization had influenced the younger generation, Panayiotides said, and some "small problems" occurred when Turkish Cypiots appeared in the school following an absence of about four decades.
For instance, she had to talk to the parents of a nine-year-old Greek Cypriot boy who was in shock when he found a Turkish Cypriot girl in his class because this was probably the first time he had encountered someone from the rival community.
"In our school, all children have equal rights to be loved and educated," no matter what race they were or their language, she explained to the boy's parents.
All people were born equal. The school didn't differentiate among racial groups and treated all children equally and loved them all, Panayiotides pointed out.
The mixing of children at school has led to more interaction and mutual understanding between the two communities. According to a recent survey conducted by the Turkish Cypriot research company, KADEM, more Turkish Cypriots are crossing the buffer zone to meet with Greek Cypriot friends rather than just shopping.
It is believed that Turkish Cypriot children studying in the south, estimated at a few hundred, plays a leading role in bringing their parents together.
Children made friends and met each other outside school, therefore, their parents also became friends and involved in social activities, KADEM said.
Teenager Kaan has his own thoughts: "I would like to see Cyprus just one country. I don't want to hear people saying they are Greek Cypriots or Turkish Cypriots. I want to hear them say they are Cypriots," he said.
Special report: Global News Day for Children
