An oasis of peace

In the penultimate summer weekend of my stay in Istanbul, we decided to go for the Princes' Islands. I did not know what to expect, but even message about the flow of ship made me happy. It seemed to me that the island, which in fact are in Istanbul, can’t be very different from the city - maybe a little less populated ... Verification of my ideas came very quickly, already on board I realized that everything what I will see will surprise me.

 
The weather was very nice, but not as scorching as the beginning of August. We boarded the ship and we took my favorite place on up. Light breeze reminded of the coming autumn, and the moody sun showed up and hid behind the clouds. The ship, like at the weekend, was crowded and noisy - the essence of Istanbul.

 
I must admit that before I had no idea Princes' Islands exsist. Perhaps this is ignorance or lack of knowledge (I've never been interested in geography), but it was nice to experience such a surprise.

Among the people, who had the same idea on Saturday as we had, and decided to sail to the island, were foreigners too. Apparently some of them have their homes there. Americans, Germans... Tanned by Turkish sun and happy with life.

Ferry, which takes passengers on each of the inhabited islands, gave me an awesome experience so I could see everything from a distance. We decided to go to Heybeliada.

Turks called Islands archipelago Red. It’s official name however, in common use functions Princes' Islands name. Why? The name dates back to the Byzantine era, when there were sent members of the imperial family (later Sultan family). It is expected that the atmosphere was not very friendly, and the islands became a symbol of political struggles. The situation changed in the XIX century, when wealthy Turks began to "acquire" the land and build a beautiful and expensive villas. The reason why this happened, it was probably a desire to escape from the growing city, from the noise and crowds, and also an awareness of the beauty of nature.

Princes' Islands is not only a nine scenic lands, where nobody destroys nature and tradition, but also amazing picture of Istanbul from distance. Five islands are inhabited, but best known are four of them. In the summer population increases of 20 000 to 120 000 The best known islands are: Kınalıada, Burgazada, Heybeliada and Buyukada.

It is easy to find online information about the places that you should visit during your travel to the islands, because of that I will tell you a little about my impressions and hopefully I encourage you to similar trips.

 
The islands are a paradise where you can relax after a tiring travels through Istanbul. The silence, the smell of flowering shrubs and trees, color palette, which Monet would desire, and above all, the climate of the old Turkey - forgotten by many people, but still breathing here.   

Architecture of Ottoman times, white bunk villas (unfortunately often neglected) in the middle of large gardens. Between the houses narrow streets, followed by walking people. There are no cars, because they are banned, and the only transport are: ferry, cab or bike. People less in a hurry, less screaming and somehow seem nicer. Everywhere flies smell of fish recently caught by fishermen. Along the shore extend numerous cafes, restaurants, hotels and pubs - all at your fingertips, all in close proximity. For fans of the bath (sun or water) there is the beach, where you can spend the whole day.

In private homes, people eat meals on the large terraces adorned with flowers. Breathe green air, meet with friends and colleagues on the after-dinner coffee or tea.
Heaven on earth ...

And if I had more comfortable shoes we would stay longer there!