Newsday - A musician's 'horrifying' tale of crossing the sea to Greece - BBC Sounds

Following the tragedy of the boat that sank off Greece last week, a spotlight has again been shone on the conditions that refugees arriving in Europe can endure. It is estimated that 25,000 people have drowned in the Mediterranean over the past ten years while making the perilous journey from north Africa and the Middle East to Europe.

But some do get through. One such migrant is Serkan Hakki, who fled the Syrian city of Aleppo almost a decade ago as it was consumed in the country's brutal civil war. He crossed into Turkey, and eventually got on a small boat to Greece before heading back to settle in Istanbul a few years later.

Serkan is an accomplished musician and is about to release an album that speaks to his journey through life since war broke out in Syria:

“That journey has been insane. The war in Syria happened so rapidly. So we had to find a safe place."

"In a moment you find yourself in the middle of the sea... it's really a terrible experience. A part of myself always remembers... [It was] horrifying."