Pavlos Tsakonas, the Principal of 1st Geniko Lykeio Salaminas, Stavroula Kyriakou, co-ordinator of the project at our school and the students Anastassia Lykou, Katerina Daouti, katerina Kroustali and Katerina Doumeni left the country feeling overwhelmed.

Of course Istanbul became the love of our lives. It is such a wonderful city that all of us said that we want to come back and visit it not only once, but many times. To be honest, everywhere we went was wonderful. Not only the sites but also the sights filled us with emotions. And the people were so hospitable that we felt “at home” each and every day. Everywhere we went we were welcomed with a nice glass of tea and a wonderful smile We enjoyed the food very much and we discovered that many dishes are the same in Greece. We were impressed by the shop windows, especially in restaurants, where we saw lovely ladies preparing pasta or pies.

The journey to Ephesus was another memorable experience. That ancient city, full of tourists today, revealed all its glory to us. It was not hard to imagine what life would be like back then. We were moved by the fact that we were able to read everything written on the marbles and the statues there. Our students spent most of their time studying the inscriptions feeling proud of their inheritance.

During our stay in Eskisehir we enjoyed the warmth of everybody there – the students’, the teachers’, the principals’, the owner’s, the mayors’ and of course the parents’ and the rest of the people we met. Listening to the music at the restaurant during the farewell party we understood how much we have in common with the Turkish people. In such a few days we, the Greeks, the Turks, the Germans, the Spanish, the Italians and the Hungarians, became friends for life. We saw the connection and the bonding among all of us growing and we realized that our project is doing well. Just imagine what it would be like during our forthcoming visits to the other countries!