Stefanatos is originally from Athens and has lived on the island for four years. He explained that the Halki Theological School was founded in the monastery in 1844, but despite being an important place of learning, continuing divisions between Turkey and Greece led to the closure of the school in 1971.
“But the islanders are very friendly to us and we have a large number of Turks who visit the monastery from the mainland,” he said, adding that they can freely pray, but not teach, in the monastery. “The problem is not between Muslims and Christians, or even between Turks and Greeks. We have lived together for so many years, it is a purely political problem.”
We headed back down the hill and past a beautiful sandy beach, arriving at the port just in time to catch the next ferry to Büyükada. Ten minutes later, we disembark on “La Grande Île” where Greek-style taverns abound on the seafront.
The islands seem stuck in a time warp, and many of Adalar’s restaurants, hotels and cafes have also been painted in the blue and white colors of Greece. Acar explained that islanders like to rely on their heritage to stand out – although very few people still identify as Greek Orthodox Christians – thus attracting Turkish tourists curious about the mainland. After a lunch of hummus and vegetable skewers in a Greek-style taverna that wouldn’t be out of place anywhere in the Mediterranean, we hopped on an electric bus for a tour of the island.
“Imagine trying to keep this kind of island quiet next to a city with a population of [16 million]” said Acar as we got off the bus and walked a lonely path to an old Armenian church on top of a cliff. “I appreciate the effort. The owners of the 6 or 7 million euro houses cannot bring their BMWs and flashy cars here. The island has a culture and people must embrace that culture. »
Because no cars are allowed (and without car ferries, it would be logistically difficult to get cars here even if they were), locals ride around on electric scooters and golf carts, while tourists can rent bicycles, take the electric bus or go hiking. Electric transportation is a welcome change from my first visit in 2016, when tourists were taken by horse-drawn cart. (The horses were raised in unsanitary conditions, which is why in 2020, horse-drawn carriages were banned by the local government and replaced with electric vehicles.)