Turkey/Greece
Food & Art: Shaping the Cultures of Greece and Turkey
Program No. 24827RJ
Sample the local cuisine of Greece and Turkey on this gastronomical learning adventure that delves into the culture and history of both countries.
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At a Glance
How is baklava made? How did ancient people create olive oil and wine? What is the difference between dolmas and dolmades? The answers to these questions lead to a better understanding of Greek and Turkish culture, and they can be found on this learning adventure that will leave your mouth watering. Delve into the history and relationship between these two countries on this gastronomical journey that includes sites like the Hagia Sophia and the Acropolis, while also giving you hands-on experiences like olive oil tastings, dining at traditional tavernas and interactive cooking classes. Along the way, discover the connections between these two countries in the forms of art, history and food!
Activity Level
Keep the Pace
Walking up to 4 miles per day at moderate pace; standing up to 4 hours indoors and out; getting on and off a motorcoach several times per day; cobblestones and uneven surfaces and steps; some unpaved village/farm-like conditions for walking and driving when visiting vineyards/gardens/villages
Small Group
Love to learn and explore in a small-group setting? These adventures offer small, personal experiences with groups of 13 to 24 participants.
Best of all, you’ll…
- Explore the Hagia Sophia and the Topkapi Palace in Istanbul, with an emphasis on the kitchens of the palace and their contribution to the gastronomy of Turkey.
- Attend a cooking class to learn about dolmas and dolmades, dishes common to Greek and Turkish cuisines.
- Hear from local wine makers, olive oil producers, pistachio farmers and artists about their work and sample some of their products.
Featured Expert
All trip experts
Volkan Yazici
Volkan Yazici was born in 1980 and studied physics engineering at Istanbul Technical University. He became a professional group leader in 2005, specializing in art history and architecture. His hobbies include reading and playing basketball, chess, and bridge. He sas he loves being a group leader because it motivates self-improvement through interaction with people. “It is also very rewarding to introduce Turkey to Road Scholars," Volkan says.
Please note: This expert may not be available for every date of this program.
Sami Ozcini
View biography
Sami Ozcini has shared his love for Turkey — and his home city of Istanbul — with Road Scholar participants for more than 12 years. His on-site lectures bring a different perspective to understanding and appreciating the rich history and legacy of Istanbul. A graduate of Marmara University, Sami has a degree in English literature and enjoys traveling throughout Europe, Australia and the U.S. In his spare time, he enjoys reading and acting as a referee for amateur football games in Istanbul.
Volkan Yazici
View biography
Volkan Yazici was born in 1980 and studied physics engineering at Istanbul Technical University. He became a professional group leader in 2005, specializing in art history and architecture. His hobbies include reading and playing basketball, chess, and bridge. He sas he loves being a group leader because it motivates self-improvement through interaction with people. “It is also very rewarding to introduce Turkey to Road Scholars," Volkan says.
Kazim Uzunoglu
View biography
Kazim Uzunoglu started his travel career as a licensed national guide in Turkey in 1987. He studied economics at the University of Virginia but decided to stick to the travel business. After many years of leading educational programs around Turkey, he switched to the organizational side of the operation in 2004 and started running Baltac Tourism and Travel, the program provider for Road Scholar in Turkey. His hobbies include riding motorcycles around the world, vintage cars and motorcycles, photography, and rock and roll music.
Eleni Petroutsou
View biography
Eleni Petroutsou was born in Athens and has always been intrigued by the wider world. In school, she learned English, Italian, German and some Spanish. After studying archaeology and history at university, she graduated from the State School of Tour Guides. Her 36 years of experience as a group leader have taken her to Asia, the Middle East and beyond. She says leading Road Scholar programs gives her “the opportunity to share my knowledge with well-traveled, educated, polite and interesting people!”
Suggested Reading List
(17 books)
Visit the Road Scholar Bookshop
You can find many of the books we recommend at the Road Scholar store on bookshop.org, a website that supports local bookstores.
Food & Art: Shaping the Cultures of Greece and Turkey
Program Number: 24827
Istanbul: A Tale of Three Cities
From the Koran to Shakespeare, this city with three names--Byzantium, Constantinople, Istanbul--resonates as an idea and a place, real and imagined. Standing as the gateway between East and West, North and South, it has been the capital city of the Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman Empires. For much of its history it was the very center of the world, known simply as "The City," but, as Bettany Hughes reveals, Istanbul is not just a city, but a global story.
In this epic new biography, Hughes takes us on a dazzling historical journey from the Neolithic to the present, through the many incarnations of one of the world's greatest cities--exploring the ways that Istanbul's influence has spun out to shape the wider world. Hughes investigates what it takes to make a city and tells the story not just of emperors, viziers, caliphs, and sultans, but of the poor and the voiceless, of the women and men whose aspirations and dreams have continuously reinvented Istanbul.
Written with energy and animation, award-winning historian Bettany Hughes deftly guides readers through Istanbul's rich layers of history. Based on meticulous research and new archaeological evidence, this captivating portrait of the momentous life of Istanbul is visceral, immediate, and authoritative--narrative history at its finest.
The Bastard of Istanbul
In her second novel written in English (The Saint of Incipient Insanities was the first), Turkish novelist Shafak tackles Turkish national identity and the Armenian "question" in her signature style. In a novel that overflows with a kitchen sink's worth of zany characters, women are front and center: Asya Kazanci, an angst-ridden 19-year-old Istanbulite is the bastard of the title; her beautiful, rebellious mother, Zeliha (who intended to have an abortion), has raised Asya among three generations of complicated and colorful female relations (including religious clairvoyant Auntie Banu and bar-brawl widow, Auntie Cevriye). The Kazanci men either die young or take a permanent hike like Mustafa, Zeliha's beloved brother who immigrated to America years ago. Mustafa's Armenian-American stepdaughter, Armanoush, who grew up on her family's stories of the 1915 genocide, shows up in Istanbul looking for her roots and for vindication from her new Turkish family. The Kazanci women lament Armanoush's family's suffering, but have no sense of Turkish responsibility for it; Asya's boho cohorts insist there was no genocide at all. As the debate escalates, Mustafa arrives in Istanbul, and a long-hidden secret connecting the histories of the two families is revealed. Shafak was charged with "public denigration of Turkishness" when the novel was published in Turkey earlier this year (the charges were later dropped). She incorporates a political taboo into an entertaining and insightful ensemble novel, one that posits the universality of family, culture and coincidence.
Athens, the Parthenon
Oscar Wilde compared it to a white goddess, Evelyn Waugh to Stilton cheese. In observers from Lord Byron to Sigmund Freud to Virginia Woolf it met with astonishment, rapture, poetry, even tears--and, always, recognition. Twenty-five hundred years after it first rose above Athens, the Parthenon remains one of the wonders of the world, its beginnings and strange turns of fortune over millennia a perpetual source of curiosity, controversy, and intrigue.
At once an entrancing cultural history and a congenial guide for tourists, armchair travelers, and amateur archaeologists alike, this book conducts readers through the storied past and towering presence of the most famous building in the world. Who built the Parthenon, and for what purpose? How are we to understand its sculpture? Why is it such a compelling monument? The classicist and historian Mary Beard takes us back to the fifth century B.C. to consider the Parthenon in its original guise--as the flagship temple of imperial Athens, housing an enormous gold and ivory statue of the city's patron goddess attended by an enigmatic assembly of sculptures. Just as fascinating is the monument's far longer life as cathedral church of Our Lady of Athens, as "the finest mosque in the world," and, finally, as an inspirational ruin and icon. Beard also takes a cool look at the bitter arguments that continue to surround the "Elgin Marbles," the sculptures from the Parthenon now in the British Museum. Her book constitutes the ultimate tour of the marvelous history and present state of this glory of the Acropolis, and of the world.
Istanbul: Memories and the City
Turkish novelist Pamuk (Snow) presents a breathtaking portrait of a city, an elegy for a dead civilization and a meditation on life's complicated intimacies. The author, born in 1952 into a rapidly fading bourgeois family in Istanbul, spins a masterful tale, moving from his fractured extended family, all living in a communal apartment building, out into the city and encompassing the entire Ottoman Empire. Pamuk sees the slow collapse of the once powerful empire hanging like a pall over the city and its citizens. Central to many Istanbul residents' character is the concept of hüzün (melancholy). Istanbul's hüzün, Pamuk writes, "is a way of looking at life that... is ultimately as life affirming as it is negating." His world apparently in permanent decline, Pamuk revels in the darkness and decay manifest around him. He minutely describes horrific accidents on the Bosphorus Strait and his own recurring fantasies of murder and mayhem. Throughout, Pamuk details the breakdown of his family: elders die, his parents fight and grow apart, and he must find his way in the world. This is a powerful, sometimes disturbing literary journey through the soul of a great city told by one of its great writers.
The Greeks (Penguin History)
The Greeks were extraordinary not least because they evolved "a totally new conception of what human life was for." Justifying and elaborating on that claim, H.D.F. Kitto explores the life, culture and history of classical Greece, bringing to his subject the passion, wit and insight that have made this brief introduction a world-famous classic.
Istanbul: The Imperial City
Whether you call it Byzantium, Constantinople, or Istanbul, the “old Turkish hand” John Freely tells the story of each creation and decline up to today’s Istanbul under the Turkish Republic. Spirited and colorful, Freely gives his readers a lively account of the turmoil each incarnation brought. In addition to “page turning history”, Freely gives a complete listing of monuments & museums in the city - he has lived there for decades. This is the one to read on Istanbul if you have a short list of books and limited time to get into its history.
Birds Without Wings
In his first novel since Corelli’s Mandolin, Louis de Bernières creates a world, populates it with characters as real as our best friends, and launches it into the maelstrom of twentieth-century history. The setting is a small village in southwestern Anatolia in the waning years of the Ottoman Empire. Everyone there speaks Turkish, though they write it in Greek letters. It’s a place that has room for a professional blasphemer; where a brokenhearted aga finds solace in the arms of a Circassian courtesan who isn’t Circassian at all; where a beautiful Christian girl named Philothei is engaged to a Muslim boy named Ibrahim. But all of this will change when Turkey enters the modern world. Epic in sweep, intoxicating in its sensual detail, Birds Without Wings is an enchantment.
Tales from the Expat Harem: Foreign Women in Modern Turkey
As the Western world struggles to comprehend the paradoxes of modern Turkey, Tales from the Expat Harem reveals its most personal nuances. This illuminating anthology provides a window into the country from the perspective of thirty-two expatriates from seven different nations—artists, entrepreneurs, Peace Corps volunteers, archaeologists, missionaries, and others—who established lives in Turkey for work, love, or adventure. Through narrative essays covering the last four decades, these diverse women unveil the mystique of the “Orient,” describe religious conflict, embrace cultural discovery, and maneuver familial traditions, customs, and responsibilities. Poignant, humorous, and transcendent, the essays take readers to weddings and workplaces, down cobbled Byzantine streets, into boisterous bazaars along the Silk Road, and deep into the feminine stronghold of steamy Ottoman bathhouses. The outcome is a stunning collection of voices from women suspended between two homes as they redefine their identities and reshape their world views.
Constantinople; City of the World’s Desire, 1453-1924
Mansel is a noted historian and author of several works about the Sultans and the Ottoman World. This book focuses on the political and architectural history of the capital Constantinople (modern day Istanbul) and covers the span of the Ottoman empire. The book ends on November 17, 1922 when the last Sultan and a small party slipped out of Palace at 8 AM and scrambled aboard a British naval ship that hauled anchor for Malta at 8:43 AM. A fine work, lots of detail, very readable and helpful in sorting out the complexities of 600 years of Ottoman power.
The Histories
One of the masterpieces of classical literature, the "Histories" describes how a small and quarrelsome band of Greek city states united to repel the might of the Persian empire. But while this epic struggle forms the core of his work, Herodotus' natural curiosity frequently gives rise to colorful digressions - a description of the natural wonders of Egypt; an account of European lake-dwellers; and far-fetched accounts of dog-headed men and gold-digging ants. With its kaleidoscopic blend of fact and legend, the "Histories" offers a compelling Greek view of the world of the fifth century BC.
The Turks Today
Istanbul-born, British-based Mango (Atatürk) offers an insightful, sympathetic portrait of recent Turkish history. The first third of the book discusses the growth of the Turkish state after Atatürk's death in 1938, with a fitful spread of democracy, clashes with Greece and the departure of Istanbul's Greek community. Economic and social conflict from 1960 to 1980 was subsequently "contained" by a military-driven constitution and rapprochement with Europe. A battle over the logo of the mayoralty of Ankara, the capital, illustrates the recent negotiations between Islamists and secularists. Istanbul, whose "infrastructure does not match its size," is growing as a regional base. In impoverished, traditionalist eastern Turkey, "the Third World has not been banished," though Mango argues that integration with the state—if not assimilation—is the best hope for the Kurdish minority. Turkey today, Mango suggests, resembles the late modernizing countries of southern Europe in many ways. He sees potential for a fully democratic and secular state, but warns that it takes time to "implant Western institutions in non-Western soil." Though this volume lacks some of the bite and immediacy of a journalist's book like Stephen Kinzer's Crescent and Star, it emerges as a more thorough introduction to a less-known but increasingly vital country.
The Greek Way
n The Greek Way, Edith Hamilton captures with "Homeric power and simplicity" (New York Times) the spirit of the golden age of Greece in the fifth century BC, the time of its highest achievements. She explores the Greek aesthetics of sculpture and writing and the lack of ornamentation in both. She examines the works of Homer, Pindar, Aeschylus, Sophocles, Aristophanes, and Euripides, among others; the philosophy of Socrates and Plato’s role in preserving it; the historical accounts by Herodotus and Thucydides on the Greek wars with Persia and Sparta and by Xenophon on civilized living.
Plato For Beginners
All philosophy is a footnote to Plato. No other person so shaped the Western world and the way we think about it. Plato’s questions remain as real for us today as they were 2500 years ago, and as human beings, we can not avoid their presence nor shirk our responsibility to attempt to answer them: What is Justice? What is Truth? What is Beauty? What kind of society should we build? How do we know what we know?
Plato For Beginners introduces the reader to Socrates, Plato’s mentor whose martyrdom led Plato to formulate a new system of knowledge based on reason. Socrates was found guilty and sentenced to death for refusing to recognize the gods of the State and for introducing other divinities. He was also found guilty of corrupting youth.
Harem - The World Behind the Veil
The author left Turkey at age 18 for the US, returning 15 years later to visit her birthplace and family. Intrigued upon learning that her grandmother had lived in a harem, she interviewed aunts and other family members about their recollections. About that same time (mid 1970’s) the Harem of Topkapi Palace was opened to visitors. With thoughtful research and richly illustrated, Croutier pieces together a realistic description of daily life in the Sultan’s Harem. Her fascinating insights into customs, food and ceremony of the Palace through 450 hundred years, make this an enjoyable read. The addition of family photographs and an amusing chapter about Western misconceptions of the term “harem” sets this work apart from all other books of its kind.
A Short History Of Byzantium
No time to wade, albeit enjoyably, through his three volume Byzantium series? This recent edition is based on his Byzantium trilogy and is equally as intelligent and inspired. Norwich is, as always, ever entertaining and engaging about this subject. An efficient read without loss of style or spirit. If you can’t manage three volumes right now, this one is for you.
Dinner With Persephone
"I lived in Athens, at the intersection of a prostitute and a saint." So begins Patricia Storace's astonishing memoir of her year in Greece. Mixing affection with detachment, rapture with clarity, this American poet perfectly evokes a country delicately balanced between East and West.
Whether she is interpreting Hellenic dream books, pop songs, and soap operas, describing breathtakingly beautiful beaches and archaic villages, or braving the crush at a saint's tomb, Storace, winner of the Whiting Award, rewards the reader with informed and sensual insights into Greece's soul. She sees how the country's pride in its past coexists with profound doubts about its place in the modern world. She discovers a world in which past and present engage in a passionate dialogue. Stylish, funny, and erudite, Dinner with Persephone is travel writing elevated to a fine art--and the best book of its kind since Henry Miller's The Colossus of Maroussi.
Style City Athens
This exciting series focuses on the vitality and uniqueness of the world's greatest cities. Each volume is superbly designed and produced, yet ingeniously practical, with lavish photography, easy-to-read maps, and informed and enjoyable texts.
From offbeat cafés and cutting-edge restaurants to the most stylish stores, hotels, and neighborhoods, StyleCity uncovers all the special places where both locals and discerning travelers can find a vibrant and idiosyncratic urban experience. The guides are divided into two sections: "Style Traveler" identifies the most memorable places to sleep, eat, drink, shop, and relax; "Street Wise" divides the city into neighborhoods and provides convenient area maps.
Mother of antiquity, modern metropolis, Mediterranean mecca—Athens has many faces and many layers. Since the 2004 Olympics, the city has enjoyed a reinvigorated cultural confidence that has given rise to new talents, chic restaurants, contemporary hot spots, and vibrant self-expression. StyleCity Athens leads visitors to all the highlights of this edgy and energetic place. 400 color illustrations and 6 maps.
While we make every effort to ensure the accuracy of our published materials, programs are typically advertised more than a year prior to their start date. As a result, some program activities, schedules, accommodations, personnel, and other logistics occasionally change due to local conditions or circumstances. Should a major change occur, we will make every effort to alert you. For less significant changes, we will update you during orientation. Thank you for your understanding.
Duration
12 days
11 nights
What's Included
25 meals (
10B, 9L, 6D
)
5 expert-led lectures
21 expert-led field trips
2 hands-on experiences
An experienced Group Leader
10 nights of accommodations
Taxes and customary gratuity
Road Scholar Assurance Plan
Day
1
In Transit to Program
Location:
In Flight
Day
2
Arrive Athens, Check-in, Orientation, Welcome Dinner
Location:
Athens
Meals:
D
Stay:
Athenian Callirhoe Hotel
Activity Note
Note: Upon arrival at Athens Airport, clear passport control, claim your bags, go through Customs and the sliding doors, and look for a Road Scholar representative who will be holding a Road Scholar sign in front of the airport’s pharmacy. Walking up to 1/2 mile, mostly flat terrain, sidewalks, some uneven terrain. Hotel check-in from 2:00 pm. Rooms may not be available for occupancy before 2:00 pm.
Afternoon:
After arriving at the hotel, check-in and get your room, then take some time to unpack, freshen up, and relax. The Group Leader will be at the reception hall to assist you with safekeeping your luggage, after which you can explore the area around the hotel or just relax. Orientation: The GL will greet everyone with a warm welcome and lead introductions. We will review the up-to-date program schedule and any changes, discuss roles and responsibilities, logistics, safety guidelines, emergency procedures, and answer any questions you may have. Reviewing the up-to-date program the GL will talk about the various field trips led by the GL, the lectures given by local experts, the bus rides etc. Free time is reserved for your personal independent exploration. Evenings at leisure offer opportunities to make the program more meaningful and memorable through personal independent exploration, engaging in available activities on your own, or simply relaxing and making new friends among fellow participants. The GL will always be happy to offer suggestions. Program activities, schedules, personnel, and indicated distances or times may be changed due to local conditions/circumstances. In the event of changes, we will alert you as quickly as possible. Thank you for your understanding. We will then set out for dinner at the rooftop restaurant of the hotel, offering amazing views of the Acropolis of Athens.
Dinner:
At the hotel’s panoramic restaurant with Acropolis view. Plated 3-course dinner with wine & mineral water included.
Evening:
Continue getting to know your fellow Road Scholars, settle in, and get a good night’s rest for the day ahead.
Day
3
Acropolis and Culinary Walk, Tasting Street Food
Location:
Athens
Meals:
B,L
Stay:
Athenian Callirhoe Hotel
Activity Note
Walking approximately 4½ miles with extended periods of standing; some steep and uneven steps in combination with ramps to reach the upper levels of the Acropolis and then walk through the old district of Plaka to the Municipal Market. Bring comfortable walking/hiking shoes.
Breakfast:
At the hotel, we will have a breakfast buffet, with a variety of breads, cheeses, cold cuts, pies, plus fresh orange juice, coffee, tea, water.
Morning:
Start your educational experience with an expert-led walking field trip to the “Sacred Rock” of the Acropolis for visiting the Acropolis monuments, which UNESCO describes as “universal symbols of the classical spirit and civilization which form the greatest architectural and artistic complex bequeathed by Greek Antiquity to the world.” Continue with the Acropolis’ north slope where the old and picturesque district of Plaka is located. Walking through Plaka, learn all about the bustling heart of the ancient city of Athens, the Agora. Reach the quarter of Monastiraki and proceed to Varvakios Municipal food market selling meat, fresh fish, olives, nuts, herbs, spices, and many other delicious Greek products.
Lunch:
While exploring the market, you will have the opportunity to experience some traditional Greek street food.
Afternoon:
Return to the hotel. Afternoon meet for a lecture on the Greek Gastronomy. Rest of the day at leisure. Take this opportunity for personal independent exploration to see and do what interests you most. Please refer to the list of Free Time Opportunities. The GL will be happy to offer suggestions.
Dinner:
This meal has been excluded from the program cost and is on your own to enjoy what you like. The GL will be happy to offer suggestions.
Evening:
At leisure
Day
4
Corinth Canal, Corinth, Nafplio
Location:
Athens
Meals:
B,L
Stay:
Athenian Callirhoe Hotel
Activity Note
Drive approx. 4 hours throughout the day. Walking approximately 1½ miles throughout the day with some periods of standing. Walking on uneven grounds (dirt, paved) and some steps.
Breakfast:
At the hotel, we will have a breakfast buffet, with a variety of breads, cheeses, cold cuts, pies, plus fresh orange juice, coffee, tea, water.
Morning:
Set out from the hotel for our field trip to the heart of Peloponnese, the historic city of Nafplio led by the GL. Ride on our private motorcoach to the Corinth Canal where we will see the imposing construction of the 1880, connecting the Ionian to the Aegean Sea. Comfort stop at the Corinth Canal before continuing to the area of Epidaurus. Then, we’ll visit an awarded olive Estate and its olive groves where the olive oil experts will explain every step of the process: from harvesting and processing to bottling and storing. We’ll learn about the annual cycle of the olive tree and gain valuable knowledge about the “Yellow Gold” produced in this family-owned olive-oil factory. We’ll conclude with an olive oil tasting guided by the local experts. We’ll then proceed to Nafplio for a cooking class led by an expert chef.
Lunch:
We’ll enjoy our own creations at the cooking class venue and combine them with excellent local wines.
Afternoon:
Join the cultural walk through the picturesque alleys of the historical city of Nafplio, led by our GL. Then enjoy some free time to explore this amazing little town. Late afternoon return to Athens via the wine region of Nemea, known as the Greek Bordeaux by our private motorcoach.
Dinner:
This meal has been excluded from the program cost and is on your own to enjoy what you like. The GL will be happy to offer suggestions. Walking on uneven grounds.
Evening:
At leisure
Day
5
Field trip to the Island of Aegina
Location:
Athens
Meals:
B,L
Stay:
Athenian Callirhoe Hotel
Activity Note
Ferry ride approximately 2 hours throughout the day. Drive by private motorcoach for approximately 2 hours throughout the day. Walking approximately 2 miles throughout the day with some periods of standing. Walking on uneven grounds (dirt, paved), some steep and uneven steps in combination with ramps to reach the temple of Aphaia. A bit slippery walking up and down the ferry.
Breakfast:
At the hotel, we will have a breakfast buffet, with a variety of breads, cheeses, cold cuts, pies, plus fresh orange juice, coffee, tea, water.
Morning:
Set out from the hotel for our field trip to the island of Aegina, led by the GL. Transfer by private motorcoach to the port of Piraeus. Catch the ferry to the island of Aegina. Upon arrival board our private motorcoach and drive for approx. 40’ to the east side of the island where the awesome temple of Aphaia is located, offering fabulous views across the Saronic Gulf. Returning to the port town of Aegina, stop for a visit to a local Pistachio Estate where a local expert will explain about the PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) Aegina Pistachio nuts. Continue to the port town for an orientation stroll through the picturesque market.
Lunch:
At a traditional taverna offering fish and seafood delicacies.
Afternoon:
Free time to explore the historical port town and its lovely alleys while purchasing local products. Return to Piraeus by ferry. Upon arrival board our private motorcoach and transfer to the hotel.
Dinner:
This meal has been excluded from the program cost and is on your own to enjoy what you like. The GL will be happy to offer suggestions. Walking on uneven grounds.
Evening:
At leisure
Day
6
Field trip to Cape Sounio and to an Attica Winery
Location:
Athens
Meals:
B,L,D
Stay:
Athenian Callirhoe Hotel
Activity Note
Drive approx. 3 hours throughout the day. Walking approx. 2 miles throughout the day with some periods of standing. Walking on uneven grounds (dirt, paved) and some steps combined with ramps.
Breakfast:
At the hotel, we will have a breakfast buffet, with a variety of breads, cheeses, cold cuts, pies, plus fresh orange juice, coffee, tea, water.
Morning:
Set out from the hotel for our field trip to Cape Sounio lead by our GL. Board our private motorcoach and drive along the Athenian Riviera in order to reach Cape Sounio. Upon arrival, visit the Temple of Poseidon overlooking the Aegean Sea. Free time to further explore the remains of the ancient sanctuary. Drive for 20’ and reach the port town of Lavrio, capital of Lavreotiki, a UNESCO Global Geopark. It is an incomparable area, combining exemplary mineralogical, geological, mining and archaeological characteristics. Free time to stroll around the attractive harbor. Cross the fertile plain of Mesogeia, known for its endless vineyards, olive and fig groves. Arrive at a beautiful bioclimatic winery, a great example of sustainable architecture that is harmoniously integrated with the landscape and thus has been awarded by the National Institute of Architecture. Meet with the winery’s expert and explore the historic vineyard established in the beginning of the 1900. The winery produces different Greek wine varieties although is focusing to the Savatiano, the local “heritage variety” of Attica region.
Lunch:
Enjoy an exclusive al fresco wine tasting (weather permitting), combined with local cheeses and charcuterie.
Afternoon:
Drive back to Athens. Rest of the day at leisure.
Dinner:
Farewell dinner at a local restaurant.
Evening:
At leisure
Day
7
Acropolis Museum, an Artist’s Studio, Departure for Istanbul
Location:
Istanbul
Meals:
B,L,D
Stay:
Pera Palace Hotel
Activity Note
Drive approx. 2½ hours throughout the day. Walking approx. 2 miles throughout the day with some periods of standing. Walking on uneven grounds and some steps. 1 hr flight to Istanbul
Breakfast:
At the hotel, we will have a breakfast buffet, with a variety of breads, cheeses, cold cuts, pies, plus fresh orange juice, coffee, tea, water.
Morning:
Set out from the hotel for our walking field trip to the Acropolis Museum led by our GL. Return to the hotel. Depart the hotel with luggage, board our private motorcoach and head for an exclusive-to-RS-participants private art studio visit. We’ll meet with a known Athenian artist at her/his home where she/he lives and works. We’ll experience the Greek hospitality at its best, enjoying some homemade snacks followed by local wines and beers.
Lunch:
A light lunch with wine will be offered at the artist’s home.
Afternoon:
Depart for the Athens International Airport. Catch the afternoon flight to Istanbul. Upon arrival in Istanbul, our local group leader will be meeting us at the Istanbul Airport arrivals terminal. Transfer to our hotel which will be our home for the next 5 nights.
Dinner:
Dinner at the hotel’s restaurant. Plated 3-course dinner with bottled water included.
Evening:
At leisure.
Day
8
Hagia Sophia, Topkapi Palace, Lecture on culinary treasures.
Location:
Istanbul
Meals:
B,L
Stay:
Pera Palace Hotel
Activity Note
Drive approx. 45 minutes throughout the day. Walking approx. 3 miles throughout the day with some extended periods of standing, up to 90 minutes. Walking on uneven grounds, cobblestone streets and some steps.
Breakfast:
At the hotel, we will have a full Turkish breakfast buffet, with a variety of breads, cheeses, olives, cold cuts, pies, fruits, cereals, plus fresh orange juice, coffee, tea, water.
Morning:
Ride a short distance to the old city of Constantinople and start tour day with a visit to the splendid Topkapi Palace that was home to the Ottoman Sultans for over 400 years. The Palace is the perfect testimony to the power and wealth of the Ottoman Empire between 15th and 19th centuries. We will also visit the kitchen section of the Palace to gain a deeper understanding of the culinary heritage of the Ottomans and its influence on the contemporary Turkish cuisine. A tour of the Harem will reveal the most intimate and private sections of the Palace and shed light on the life of the royal Ottoman dynasty.
Lunch:
At a local restaurant specializing in recipes from the Ottoman Topkapi Palace
Afternoon:
Walk over to Hagia Sophia, the most powerful symbol in the city. The building is still an architectural wonder since its construction 1,500 years ago. It served as the hub of Eastern Christianity for 900 years, then a mosque for 500 years, a museum for 85 years and now this edifice is functioning as a mosque again. We will learn the stunning history of the building and its significance from our group leader who will deliver a lecture on site. We will also visit the Underground Cisterns built in 532 CE by Justinian, the same Emperor who also built the Hagia Sophia. The Cisterns were built to store water under the ground and they were reopened recently after a major restoration. Return to hotel in late afternoon for a lecture on the history of the Turkish cuisine and its interactions and influences with other regional cuisines, including the Greek cuisine.
Dinner:
This meal has been excluded from the program cost and is on your own to enjoy what you like. The GL will be happy to offer suggestions.
Evening:
At leisure.
Day
9
Galata and Pera, Street Food and Baklava Workshop
Location:
Istanbul
Meals:
B,L,D
Stay:
Pera Palace Hotel
Activity Note
Walking about 4 miles throughout the day with some extended periods of standing, up to 90 minutes. Walking on uneven grounds, cobblestone streets and some steps.
Breakfast:
At the hotel, we will have a full Turkish breakfast buffet, with a variety of breads, cheeses, olives, cold cuts, pies, fruits, cereals, plus fresh orange juice, coffee, tea, water.
Morning:
This morning we will set out on a walk in the Galata/Pera districts. We will start with a visit to the Galata Tower, one of the iconic symbols of the city. The Galata Tower was built in the 13th century as a watch tower on the city walls of the Genoese trading colony. Now it offers fantastic sweeping views of the old city and the Golden Horn. After this visit, walk the streets of this dynamic and lively neighborhood and try some local delicacies such as simit (sesame-crusted dough dipped in molasses and baked in the oven), dürüm (wraps with various fillings in them), midye dolma (mussels stuffed with spicy rice), börek (pastry made of a thin flaky filo dough with a variety of fillings, meat, cheese, spinach, or potatoes). Visit the beautiful Museum of Modern Art, situated on the shores of the Bosphorus to gain a better understanding of the contemporary art scene in Turkey.
Lunch:
Taste several different local delicacies on the go.
Afternoon:
Attend a baklava workshop at the production facilities of the most famous baklava maker in town. Learn about the history of baklava and the story of this family-owned business since 1843, witness the fascinating stages of making baklava and enjoy a tasting session after the tour of the facilities.
Dinner:
At a gourmet restaurant specializing in dishes from the ancient city of Antioch.
Evening:
At leisure
Day
10
Asian Side, multi-cultural Kuzguncuk, hands-on cooking demo
Location:
Istanbul
Meals:
B,L,D
Stay:
Pera Palace Hotel
Activity Note
Walking approximately 6 miles throughout the day with some extended periods of standing, up to 90 minutes. Taking public boats across the Bosphorus. Walking on uneven grounds and some steps.
Breakfast:
At the hotel, we will have a full Turkish breakfast buffet, with a variety of breads, cheeses, olives, cold cuts, pies, fruits, cereals, plus fresh orange juice, coffee, tea, water.
Morning:
This morning we will take a public boat across the Bosphorus to Kadikoy to explore the Asian side of the city. We will walk the colorful and lively food and fish market in Kadikoy and feel the more residential and relatively downbeat vibe of this part of town. We will also walk in this neighborhood and discover the huge wall murals painted on the sides of apartment buildings as a perfect and fitting manifestation of street art.
Lunch:
At the well-known Ciya Restaurant known for its special dishes from different parts of Turkey.
Afternoon:
We will ride a short distance to Kuzguncuk, a quiet seaside neighborhood on the shores of the Bosphorus, standing out with its cobblestone streets lined with beautiful, vivid-color wooden houses, its calmness, natural beauty, and peacefulness, where members of different religions live together. We will then drive back to the old city to attend a hands-on cooking class related to the common cultural aspects of the Greek and Turkish cuisines. After the workshop, we will sample the different food items we will prepare and cook.
Dinner:
You will eat the dishes you will cook at the workshop
Evening:
Return to hotel. At leisure.
Day
11
The old Bazaars of Istanbul, Bosphorus Cruise
Location:
Istanbul
Meals:
B,L,D
Stay:
Pera Palace Hotel
Activity Note
Walking approx. 6 miles throughout the day with some extended periods of standing, up to 90 minutes. Crowded streets at the Bazaars. Walking on uneven grounds, cobblestone streets and some steps.
Breakfast:
At the hotel, we will have a full Turkish breakfast buffet, with a variety of breads, cheeses, olives, cold cuts, pies, fruits, cereals, plus fresh orange juice, coffee, tea, water.
Morning:
This morning we will set out to explore the Grand Bazaar, often called the first shopping mall in the world. Started in the 15th century, the Grand Bazaar has always been the focal point of commerce, trading and shopping in this traditional city. With its 4,000 shops, it is still one of the most colorful and fascinating places to explore. Then stroll through the aromatic Spice Bazaar, stop at a spice shop and learn about the various dozens of different spices traded here for centuries. Also visit the most famous maker of Turkish coffee, located right outside the Spice Bazaar.
Lunch:
At the iconic Pandeli Restaurant located within the Spice Bazaar for over a century.
Afternoon:
We will visit the nearby Rustem Pasha Mosque, a gem-like mosque from the mid-16th century, displaying the most exquisite examples of Iznik tilework from that era. This mosque is regarded to be the most elegant structure built by the great architect Sinan. Then we will finish the day by enjoying a late afternoon cruise on the Bosphorus. It will be a wonderful way to end a day/program in Istanbul as we cruise past the stunning mansions, palaces and fortresses located on the shores of this beautiful strait stretching between the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara.
Dinner:
Farewell dinner at a local restaurant.
Evening:
At leisure.
Day
12
Program Concludes, In Transit From Program
Location:
In Flight
Meals:
B
Activity Note
Hotel check-out 12:00 Noon. See your program’s “Getting There” information regarding transfers. Walking up to 1 mile at the busy and large Istanbul airport.
Breakfast:
At the hotel, we will have a full Turkish breakfast buffet, with a variety of breads, cheeses, olives, cold cuts, pies, fruits, cereals, plus fresh orange juice, coffee, tea, water.
Morning:
If you are returning home, safe travels. If you are staying on independently, have a wonderful time. If you are transferring to another Road Scholar program, detailed instructions are included in your Information Packet for that program. We hope you enjoy Road Scholar learning adventures and look forward to having you on rewarding programs in the future. Don’t forget to join our Facebook page and follow us on Instagram. Best wishes for all your journeys!
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MEALS
25 Meals
10 Breakfasts
9 Lunches
6 Dinners
LODGING
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Showing Lodging For:
- Sep 15, 2025 - Sep 26, 2025
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- Sep 15, 2025 - Sep 26, 2025
- Nov 10, 2025 - Nov 21, 2025
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