If you told me a few months ago I’d be here – teaching English in a Turkish coastal town, sipping tea stronger than my willpower, laughing with students and teachers around campfires – I probably would’ve laughed.

But here I am. And it’s the best decision I’ve made all summer.

The gig? Volunteering in a city that feels like it was carved from sunlight and salt water. Teaching English in youth centers, running speaking clubs that sometimes turn into therapy sessions or laughter riots. At camp, the students remind me why I started doing this professionally in the first place – to connect, not to lecture.

Every day feels like a postcard from a life I didn’t know I needed. The beaches here aren’t just scenic – they’re soul medicine. The old town and bazaar, chaotic and comforting. The food? Let’s just say I now measure happiness in spoonfuls of lentil soup, mouth watering pide and the crunch of gozleme that will make you believe in God.

Weekends are a blur of wonder. Cappadocia’s dreamscape. Pamukkale’s alien-white terraces and the pool where Cleopatra swam. Green canyon. Duden. Dusty roads, shared buses, and conversations that bridge cultures and accents.

And LIDOSK? They don’t just host you. They fold you into something bigger. Something warm and generous.

Three weeks. That’s all it took to shift the lens.

Came to teach. Stayed to learn. Will surely leave with more than I packed.

Jasna Talevska
our volunteer at team volunteering project in Antalya, Türkiye

Project partner: LIDOSK