Italy-->Greece-->Turkey

[Sergiobodyweb]

Hi everybody,

me and my wife are planning a trip to Greece and Turkey, do you have any advice for Turkey ?
We will ride an Honda Varadero 1000, I'm Italian and she is american.
With an american passport we would like but gave up on go further on.

[henryuk]

I'm afraid you might have trouble riding from Italy to Greece, there a quite a few countries in the way! Turkey is easy, nice people, great culture, very respectful (apart from in the South West touristy area where they have seen to many of us and the way we behave to have much respect left). The biggest culture shock you might encounter will be in Albania, some people love it, some people hate it, I loved it.

Given that you are travelling with an American I recommend that you get the hang of spitting on the ground immediately at the mention of George Bush - scored me a lot of free tea and food in Turkey. Along with the rest of the Islamic world they are quite rightly very angry at the current US administration and Al-Qaeda dragging the planet into a religous war between the two closest religions. Luckily the Turkish model of Islam is very moderate and most people have actually read the Qor'an so can see the bigger picture.

[Sergiobodyweb]

Haha... thx henryuk

Ever heard about ferry boat ? Between Italy and Greece it's only 5/6 hours (Brindisi-Corfu), that's what we planned, then may be when we come back we will ride by ground to Romania, nice place either

Btw, about spitting on the ground, bush and so on, that's what we do constantly everyday and on religion we are quite open minded, always remembering that they could be less, so avoid if possible.

[henryuk]

I highly, highly recommend the coastal route through the balkans to Greece, there are some great spots to visit.

[Sergiobodyweb]

Originally Posted by henryuk

I highly, highly recommend the coastal route through the balkans to Greece, there are some great spots to visit.

You are tempting me man. I went there many years ago, before the war and I remember thousands of curves, triple of the distance, that's what I'm scared of, 30 km riding and 10 straight ahead.

[kobold]

Hello Sergiobodyweb,

If you like hot weather, touristy places, Historical sites like ephesus, beaches and more hot weather, Aegean coast and Mediterranian Coast is good for you. Ephesus, Bergama, Troia, Asos are a few well known places from Aegean Region.

Black Sea Region is less touristy, less hot and more scenic but even in August, there may be rain showers. There are lots of historical sites in Black Sea Region too but fewer are available for visiting. Sumena Monestry is a nice place to visit.

Central Anatolia is hot, arid plains, and also historical sites. Cappadocia is a must see place in Central Anatolia. Also Hattusash is a nice place.

East Anatolia is a bit higher than other regions so cooler and less touristy. It is kinda scenic also. You can find lots of historical sites there too as Black Sea, a few of them are museums or open air museums.

South East Anatolia is another hot region. Mnt Nemrut and Old Mardin City are the must see places in South East.

Every Region has its regional cousine. Aegean, Mediterranian regions' food are more vegetable and fish oriented. Black Sea Region foods are fishes, meat and kinda vegetables. In Central Anatolia, it is more about grain products though Konya has its own local cousine. South East is all about the Kebabs. East is more about meats.