Turkey: Women's Expedition

Turkey is often cited as the ultimate convergence of east and west – traditional spice bazaars and ornately adorned mosques thrown together with bustling cosmopolitan cities. On this women-only expedition, you’ll discover both the traditional and modern wonders of Turkey through the lives of the women who live here. Meet the women changing the face of the tourism industry through food, learn the art of Turkish coffee fortune-telling and even visit a women-only Turkish hamam. You’ll meet many extraordinary local women and experience what life is like through their eyes.

Activities

• Istanbul - Grand Bazaar
• Istanbul - Historic Peninsula orientation walk
• Istanbul - Topkapi Palace & Harem Guided Tour
• Istanbul - Spice Market
• Istanbul - Visit to Nahil Dukkan by KEDV Foundation
• Istanbul - Bosphorus Cruise
• Istanbul - 5 o'clock Tea & coffee in a local home
• Cappadocia - Goreme Open Air Museum
• Goreme - Cooking Class with Nuray
• Goreme - Orientation Walk
• Cappadocia - Soft Hike in Soganli Valley
• Cappadocia - Doll making with local woman
• Konya - Felt Making Atelier & artist visit
• Pamukkale - Lead Pouring by women
• Pamukkale - Hierapolis Ancient City & Travertines (Cotton Castle)
• Selcuk - Selcuk Manti Cooking Class
• Selcuk - Sultankoy Carpet Cooperation
• Selcuk - Leader-led orientation walk
• Selcuk - Ephesus Ancient City
• Selcuk - Hatice Lunch
• Sirince - Village visit and fruit wine tasting
• Adatepe - Ayvalik Copmadam (trashyteyze / Tara Hopkins)
• Adatepe - Orientation Walk in Ayvalik
• Adatepe - Village Tour & Alter of Zeus
• Assos - Temple of Athena
• Adatepe - Gozleme Demonstration and lunch
• Assos - Leader-led walking tour
• Istanbul - Turkish Hamam

Highlights

• Discover both the traditional and modern wonders of Turkey through the lives of the women who live here including your female leader, and female driver; Turkey’s first female ambulance driver and now proud founder of her own transport company.
• Meet a local mother and daughter in their home in Istanbul and try homemade borek. You’ll also learn about the traditionally female art of fortune-telling from coffee grounds, which is passed down between generations in Anatolian culture.
• Enjoy a traditional meal in a Cappadocian cave home, cooked by a local woman who is changing the face of tourism in Turkey.
• Wander through the Soganli Valley on a gentle hiking trip, taking in the arid surrounds and towering vistas, then learn how to make a popular Cappadocian souvenir, a ‘kitre.’ Local women have been making these dolls for many years now to earn a living.
• Stay in a female owned and operated hotel in Istanbul, and visit a social enterprise which supports the economic empowerment of low-income women through handicrafts.
• By travelling on this trip, you’ll learn about our Intrepid Foundation partner, CYDD (Çagdas Yasami Destekleme Dernegi). Donations help them provide scholarships and educational programs for economically disadvantaged youth in Turkey. Intrepid will double the impact by dollar-matching all post-trip donations made to The Intrepid Foundation.