Greetings, the second volunteering group of 2024, and the new residents of flat 3! Welcome to Turkey :)

My name is Volter and I wanted to create this small document just to say hi and to give some small tips regarding living in and experiencing this wonderful country, city, and apartment.


The practical advice concerning this flat:

The dish washer:
It works, but only barely, and only on specific settings. We recommend you to only use program number 2 and to never use the half load option (the leftmost button). Also it's a bit tricky, since after every wash, you need to:

1. turn the machine off using the rightmost button
2. turn it back on
3. use the program switch to switch to another program (1 or 3)
4. switch it back to 2
5. press the middle button to start the program.

if you don't switch to another program, but instead leave the switch on the 2nd position, the machine will not know what program is selected and will not begin the wash cycle.


The washing machine: 
Otherwise in good condition, but also comes with a trick:
After it has finished washing, the hatch will not want to open (for hours even) unless you turn the program switch to the topmost position (Acma Kapatma). After rotating the switch to the aforementioned position, the hatch will make a sound in a couple of minutes and you will be free to open it.
We recommend using the Hijyen program for bedsheets and towels, Karma 40 has sufficed for regular clothing.


The electricity might at some point disappear. At this point there are two possible solutions:
1. Check the switch box on the left side of the freezer and make sure every electric switch is in the ON-position (up)
2. Tell Enes (or whoever happens to be responsible for you at this moment) and they will figure it out


The water also sometimes cuts out. It could span from an hour to even twelve, but it only happened like three times during our two months. The issue is not ours, but the municipality's, and we aren't able to affect it.


Demre:
There are not a ton of activites to partake in this small town, but there is the Atatürk park qutie near the apartment, where you can find food and beverages, table tennis and pool tables, chess et cetera. There are obviously beaches as well, which you will get acquainted with pretty quickly. I think Çayağzı does deserve a special mention, though, as it has a lot of beautiful green turtles swimming around, especially near the river at the end of the beach.


Traveling:
I do highly suggest everyone to travel as much as possible during your free days. I think two months is a short time overall, but far too long to spend just in Demre. Expore your surroundings and find your favorite cities! For example, five of us rented a car in Antalya and drove 1200km around Turkey during Bayram, a national holiday. It's by no means necessary to do anything of that scale, most people did not go on a road trip, but they still enjoyed their stay. Just offering inspiration :) Buses take you both directions, if that feels more natural. Ask the mentors for suggestions!


Other than that, just enjoy your stay in your own way :) This opportunity is truly amazing, and I'd be happy if you enjoyed it even half as much as we did. Feel free to contact me would any problem arise, or if you have any questions. You'll find me on instagram @sstaraaa

Good luck helping those baby turtles!