Poles facing political persecution have sought refuge in Turkey for centuries. During the Crimean War in the mid-nineteenth century, Polish émigrés even founded their own village there. Called Polonezköy, it’s located in a nature preserve just outside Istanbul.br br Even today, the village - which is called "Adampol” in Polish -features half-timbered houses, fenced-in gardens, and a Catholic church. The descendants of the original immigrants continue to uphold many of their old customs, even though they’ve now been Turkish citizens for three or four generations.