{"id":2681,"date":"2024-05-27T09:31:17","date_gmt":"2024-05-27T09:31:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/oldschool.travel\/?p=2681"},"modified":"2026-07-18T02:02:48","modified_gmt":"2026-07-18T02:02:48","slug":"eastern-turkey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/oldschool.travel\/index.php\/2024\/05\/27\/eastern-turkey\/","title":{"rendered":"Eastern Turkey"},"content":{"rendered":"
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This area has a special place in my heart.<\/h5>\n

On 10th May we got off the ferry from Cyprus, and two weeks later we crossed the border into Georgia on foot. In between it was all buses.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column css=”.vc_custom_1779684504690{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”][vc_raw_html css=””]JTNDaWZyYW1lJTIwaWQlM0QlMjJnb29nbGVfbWFwJTIyJTIwc3JjJTNEJTIyaHR0cHMlM0ElMkYlMkZ3d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbSUyRm1hcHMlMkZkJTJGZW1iZWQlM0ZtaWQlM0QxaXhhanZ2NDd4aWVqTjJramZNREFEZDlHODJITUppZyUyNnVzcCUyMiUyMHdpZHRoJTNEJTIyMTAwJTI1JTIyJTIwaGVpZ2h0JTNEJTIyNDgwJTIyJTNFJTNDJTJGaWZyYW1lJTNF[\/vc_raw_html][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row thb_full_width=”true” thb_row_padding=”true” thb_column_padding=”true” bg_gradient_direction=”0″ css=”.vc_custom_1779708883066{background-color: #F9F3ED !important;}” bg_gradient1=”#E1C9A7″ bg_gradient2=”#F9F3ED”][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]\n

The Transport<\/h2>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text css=””]The bus network made travel effortless. We used large long-distance coaches that served tea and coffee, small mini-buses full of local farmers, as well as local taxis. We had nothing arranged in advance but fate and the local population seemed to know what we needed and we surfed on a continous wave of buses from the Mediterranean to the Black Sea.[\/vc_column_text][vc_raw_html css=””]JTVCcmxfZ2FsbGVyeSUyMGlkJTNEJTIyMjc5MiUyMiU1RA==[\/vc_raw_html][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”45px”][vc_separator color=”orange” border_width=”2″ css_animation=”none” css=””][vc_empty_space height=”1px”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row thb_full_width=”true” thb_row_padding=”true” thb_column_padding=”true” bg_gradient_direction=”0″ css=”.vc_custom_1779708883066{background-color: #F9F3ED !important;}” bg_gradient1=”#E1C9A7″ bg_gradient2=”#F9F3ED”][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]\n

The Accommodation<\/h2>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text css=””]We used the usual apps (Airbnb, Booking.com, etc) as well as a bit of wandering the streets. I was impressed by the quality of the places we stayed at. Many of the hotels were hundreds of years old and full of character and charm. They were always in good locations and were surprisingly affordable (even for a budget traveller like me).[\/vc_column_text][vc_raw_html css=””]JTVCcmxfZ2FsbGVyeSUyMGlkJTNEJTIyMjgwMCUyMiU1RA==[\/vc_raw_html][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”45px”][vc_separator color=”orange” border_width=”2″ css_animation=”none” css=””][vc_empty_space height=”1px”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row thb_full_width=”true” thb_row_padding=”true” thb_column_padding=”true” bg_gradient_direction=”0″ css=”.vc_custom_1779708883066{background-color: #F9F3ED !important;}” bg_gradient1=”#E1C9A7″ bg_gradient2=”#F9F3ED”][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]\n

The Food<\/h2>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text css=””]Varied, fresh, delicious and plentiful.[\/vc_column_text][vc_raw_html css=””]JTVCcmxfZ2FsbGVyeSUyMGlkJTNEJTIyMjgxMCUyMiU1RA==[\/vc_raw_html][vc_column_text css=””]And not a single kebab![\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”45px”][vc_separator color=”orange” border_width=”2″ css_animation=”none” css=””][vc_empty_space height=”1px”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row thb_full_width=”true” thb_row_padding=”true” thb_column_padding=”true” bg_gradient_direction=”0″ css=”.vc_custom_1779708883066{background-color: #F9F3ED !important;}” bg_gradient1=”#E1C9A7″ bg_gradient2=”#F9F3ED”][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]\n

The Cities<\/h2>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text css=””]Our usual routine was to stay in a place for two nights. There was always plenty to see in all of them. This region has played a significant role in world history, and every city was atmospheric and interesting. I found \u015eanl\u0131urfa (Urfa in Kurdish) to be particularly enchanting.<\/p>\n

I regret that we missed the city of Mardin, but we were short of time. I would like to go back one day.[\/vc_column_text][vc_raw_html css=””]JTVCcmxfZ2FsbGVyeSUyMGlkJTNEJTIyMjgwNSUyMiU1RA==[\/vc_raw_html][vc_column_text css=””]The only thing that marred the beauty of the cities (and elsewhere) was the earthquake damage.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”45px”][vc_separator color=”orange” border_width=”2″ css_animation=”none” css=””][vc_empty_space height=”1px”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row thb_full_width=”true” thb_row_padding=”true” thb_column_padding=”true” bg_gradient_direction=”0″ css=”.vc_custom_1779708883066{background-color: #F9F3ED !important;}” bg_gradient1=”#E1C9A7″ bg_gradient2=”#F9F3ED”][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]\n

The Earthquake<\/h2>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text css=””]Just over a year before our visit this area was struck by an earthquake. It was centred on the region of Gaziantep and was felt as far as Egypt and the Black Sea coast.<\/p>\n

The devastation must have been staggering at the time, and evidence of destruction was apparent wherever we went. The Financial Times reported widespread damage in an area about the size of Germany. I was amazed how far we travelled and still saw extensive seismic damage to buildings and infrastructure.<\/p>\n

More than 50,000 people were killed. There were more than 30,000 aftershocks in the three months that followed the initial quake. An estimated 14 million people were affected, and about 1.5 million people were left homeless.[\/vc_column_text][vc_raw_html css=””]JTVCcmxfZ2FsbGVyeSUyMGlkJTNEJTIyMjgwNiUyMiU1RA==[\/vc_raw_html][vc_column_text css=””]I never heard a single person complain about it the whole time we were in Turkey.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”45px”][vc_separator color=”orange” border_width=”2″ css_animation=”none” css=””][vc_empty_space height=”1px”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row thb_full_width=”true” thb_row_padding=”true” thb_column_padding=”true” bg_gradient_direction=”0″ css=”.vc_custom_1779708883066{background-color: #F9F3ED !important;}” bg_gradient1=”#E1C9A7″ bg_gradient2=”#F9F3ED”][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]\n

The Scenery<\/h2>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text css=””]Breathtaking, vast, lovely.<\/p>\n

I hope these pictures paint a thousand words.[\/vc_column_text][vc_raw_html css=””]JTVCcmxfZ2FsbGVyeSUyMGlkJTNEJTIyMjgwOCUyMiU1RA==[\/vc_raw_html][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1779963022940{padding-right: 9px !important;padding-left: 9px !important;background-color: #FFFFFF !important;}”]Bonus Scenery<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

The road from Kars to the Black Sea town of Hopa is an experience. Traversing the rugged landscape of the Caucasus Mountains and featuring bridges, lakes and tunnels (one of which is more than 5 km long), it remains one of the most memorable bus trips of my life.<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”45px”][vc_separator color=”orange” border_width=”2″ css_animation=”none” css=””][vc_empty_space height=”1px”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row thb_full_width=”true” thb_row_padding=”true” thb_column_padding=”true” bg_gradient_direction=”0″ css=”.vc_custom_1779708883066{background-color: #F9F3ED !important;}” bg_gradient1=”#E1C9A7″ bg_gradient2=”#F9F3ED”][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]\n

Side Quests<\/h2>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text css=””]Some of the remarkable locations to visit outside the cities include:<\/p>\n