Reaching Turkey, the world completely changed as we entered the realm of Islam. At
last it felt like we’d reached ‘somewhere east’, from the wail of the Imam calling the
faithful to prayer five times a day, to the appearance of Fez, Turban and Bhurka and the
mouth-watering change in provisions and table fare. Our first stop was to experience
the heartbreak of the Gallipoli battlefields; an utterly ridiculous, pointless and horrific
military gamble that expunged the lives of so many thousands of young men for no real
gain. From the Dardanelles we set out on a trail of antiquities and natural wonders that
make Turkey such a first-rate country for motorcycle travel. We spent long sunny days
wandering the splendid ancient Greco-Roman city ruins at Pergamon, Selçuk and Ephesus
before riding into the Anatolian hinterlands to be amazed at the calcite travertines of
Pamukkale. A relaxing break in the Turkish Lake District at Egirdir preceded a weeklong
stopover at what must be one of the all-time wonders of Planet Earth; the utterly
bewildering and stunningly beautiful rock formations and cave dwellings of Cappadocia.