Turkey, Alanya- 11.10-16.10.2021.
Turkey is a very mystical and exotic country that we have always imagined as something unreal, like a country like Narnia that we only had the chance to get to know superficially through small screens. Turkey is a source of beauty and magic, a link between East and West, a separate story surrounded by seas and proud mountains. , full of ancient cities, minarets, domes and warm people.

Turkey is a very mystical and exotic country that we have always imagined as something unreal, like a country like Narnia that we only had the chance to get to know superficially through small screens. Turkey is a source of beauty and magic, a link between East and West, a separate story surrounded by seas and proud mountains. , full of ancient cities, minarets, domes and warm people.

On Monday, October 11, we left for Alanya. Halfway to the city, at the resort, we were fascinated by the show that the ice cream seller put on. Namely, Turkish ice cream is called dondurmu, and when buying it, the sellers make sure to make a small show program to attract as many tourists as possible. Whoever survives gets an ice cream for free. After a 2-hour drive, we arrived at Hotel Justiniano, where we were warmly welcomed by our hosts and other partners. After settling in, we immediately took advantage of the sunny afternoon for the beach and swimming pools.

The next day was reserved for a visit to the school and the official start of the work week. The hosts treated us at school with an incredible welcome, flags, song, dance, organization, various experiments, traditional food and sports activities. Namely, in international teams we competed in jumping in bags, running with an egg on a spoon and pulling a rope. The director of education in Alanya also visited us and officially opened the "Bringing Life Skills into the Classroom" project. While the professors attended the international meeting, we toured the school.

We returned to the hotel for lunch, after which a trip to the banana plantation was organized. Bananas are grown in greenhouses because frost and cold can destroy them. The temperature in the greenhouses is from 30°C to even 45°C. We learned that banana plants were first brought to Turkey in 1750 by a wealthy family with ties to Egypt. Originally, the banana tree arrived in this country as a garden plant. When it was seen that the plant also produced fruits that were quite tasty, people started planting banana trees after 1930 to sell their fruits. We also had the opportunity to try bananas, and we concluded that they taste much better than the ones we buy. Then, group by group, we took a boat ride on the Alara River, which is very important for Alanya's agriculture.

The next day started at school. Each country represented its school, country or region from which it comes. This is how we got to know our partners from Poland, Romania and Portugal better. After that, we were divided into international teams for a competition in rolling traditional Turkish sarmi from vine leaves and rice. However, in the end we were all winners and therefore awarded medals with the logo of the new project. Lunch was organized at the school and, among other things, we ate our sarmica.

In the afternoon, we visited the medieval castle from the 13th century, from which there is a stunning view of the city and the marina, where we went down a little later and which is decorated with interesting tourist boats inspired by the famous movie "Pirates of the Caribbean".

On one such pirate ship, the next day we went on a one-day cruise along the coast of Alanya to the already mentioned marina. We were also caught in a brief storm, but it soon cleared up again, and we continued to enjoy the beautiful view of the coast and the music. We anchored several times for swimming, and when we arrived at the marina, we used our free time for a walk and a coffee. Our pirates organized lunch, a dance competition and a foam party for us on board. It is an extraordinary and special feeling to see the city and the rocky coast from the open sea. We also saw the Pirate's Cave, which reminded us a lot of our Blue Cave because of the crystal clear turquoise blue sea. Our pirates deftly climbed the high rocks, got out on the other side of the cliff and performed various acrobatics to entertain us. It was a truly interesting and wonderful experience.

On Friday, the last day of the working week, we headed to the ancient city of Side. First we visited the ancient amphitheater of Aspendos a little further from the city of Side, and then that ancient Greek city on the coast, one of the most popular Turkish summer resorts and a historical site on a peninsula surrounded on both sides by the azure Mediterranean Sea. Side was an important trading city. It served as a port for merchants who traveled to trade with other countries, was a slave market and a center of piracy. Side means pomegranate or pomegranate in Turkish, so it is not surprising that the city is full of pomegranate trees. Legend has it that the goddess Taurus, who lived there, brought her daughter Side to Manavgat to play with the nymphs. At one point Side saw that it was not a real tree but a nymph that they had turned into a tree. As punishment, Side was turned into a pomegranate tree. Today's city of Side is a combination of old and new, it is characterized by narrow streets with souvenir shops, shops, sandy beaches, and numerous luxury hotels, cafes and restaurants overlooking the sea. It is rich in the remains of temples and amphitheaters from the Roman era. We visited the Temple of Apollo, 5 fascinating columns that have stood proudly for two thousand years. On the tops of the pillars of the temple are the heads of medusas. Legend says that it is the image of one of the three sisters who lived in the temple - Medusa, because in that temple she had relations with the sea god Poseidon, which made Athena angry and she decided to turn her into a medusa. According to stories, jellyfish turn to stone anyone who looks into their eyes, and they are known for their hair made by snakes.
In the evening, we organized a farewell dinner with the hosts and partners, which was attended by the directors of education for Antalya and Alania. Certificates were awarded, and we exchanged good wishes and hopes with our partners to meet again, either as part of the project or informally.