Fırat Koçak

My family has lived in Polonezköy for generations, a village originally settled by Polish exiles that most people in Istanbul have heard of but never actually visited. I trained as a guide to explain the village's odd history properly, rather than leaving it as a rumour people repeat without knowing the details. On camera I like walking past the old wooden houses slowly, since the Polish architecture still stands out clearly against the surrounding Turkish villages. I answer most questions about how the community has changed since the original settlers arrived.