Driving out of Istanbul was definitely sweet sorrow because it meant we had left behind one of our best experiences on our entire trip – and that’s saying something! – and it also meant our time in Türkiye was near it’s end. But there were a few more surprises left for us before we crossed any borders and in Türkiye that can only be good. Our plan was to head … Continue reading →
When you think of great cities in the world places such as London, New York, Paris and Rome immediately come to mind. But if you dig a little deeper there are a few other great cities in the world that don’t get enough attention and absolutely one of them has to be Istanbul. Istanbul is the heart throb of Turkey, bridging east and west, sharing land in both Europe and … Continue reading →
I’ve said it before but it’s worth repeating – Turkey is a very large country, diverse in it’s geographical features, it’s history, even it’s culture. This big and beautiful place has many faces and to see them you have to do some driving, which isn’t too bad since the countryside is absolutely gorgeous and we love to drive! We headed a bit southward from Safranbolu on what was essentially a … Continue reading →
Türkiye had so far delivered many wonderful surprises as we travelled around it’s distant corners but as we were about to learn, not all surprises are wonderful. However, even bad things can end well and to put a unique Türkish twist on it all, during the whole horrible process we can even make some fabulous new friends. We left our beach camp near Sinop and headed further westward along the … Continue reading →
Okay, the Black Sea is huge, like really big. Türkiye’s coastline (yes, I’m using the new correct spelling of the country) of the Black Sea runs approximately 1,350 kilometres and since we’re averaging only 150 kilometres per day and if you take in our usual stops and detours and U turns that means it’s going to take us quite a while to cover the whole distance. But that’s okay, we’ve … Continue reading →
The Black Sea and the Caspian Sea are these two huge bodies of water, giant lakes really, which dominate this huge western and central Asia region. The vertically-standing Caspian Sea to the east has proved our nemesis because it sits between us and the central Asian countries collectively known as the Stans which we couldn’t get to. And the horizontally-lying Black Sea to the west is in the news every … Continue reading →
Turkey was becoming very addictive and it wouldn’t have been hard to fall deeper into it’s welcoming arms. But we needed to resist temptation and move eastward so we spent the next three days driving across the vast emptiness of eastern Anatolia to the Georgia border. Or at least that was the plan. The roads in Turkey are generally very good and out in the rural areas there are less … Continue reading →
You would need the best of Disney to dream up a place where an entire civilisation digs their homes into soft sandstone mountains which come in all sorts of fantastical cone-shaped designs, the dwellings sometimes up to eight levels deep, all of which are perfect for hot summers, cold winters and to hide from their enemies. Or just come to Cappadocia in the central regions of Turkey and see it … Continue reading →
We pulled out the map of Turkey and did some rough sums and realised, wow, Turkey is one big country! Our plan, such as it is, is to drive across the southern stretches of Turkey and then head north until we hit the Caucasus countries of Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan. But when you look at the map those mysterious countries look a long way away. Well, we’re up for the … Continue reading →
Tramp drove confidently onto the little ferry in the Turkish town of Kilitbahir and sat patiently as we motored our way across the Dardanelles to the other side and docked at the town of Canakkale. Tramp had probably done more than 50 ferries during our Follow the Sun trip but none was more symbolically important than this one. When he drove off the ferry and entered the usual chaos of … Continue reading →
Inevitably when you travel, especially in Europe, you are looking at the past. It is usually old – and amazing – timeless churches for sure, but it could also be palaces, museums, fortresses, roads, bridges, ruins…just about everything is old compared to Australia or the US. We’ve already seen a few wonders of the past on this trip but we’re about to be treated to a couple of real standouts … Continue reading →
