A Trip to Eastern Turkey

Eastern Turkey is a wild and mostly rural region with a colourful history and a rich cultural heritage. The region is the home of some of Turkey’s most spectacular nature and treasured historical monuments, as well as some of the most friendly and hospitable people any visitor will ever meet. In the southeastern part of the region Tigris and Euphrates rivers which fed Mesopotamia, has been home to many civilisations, creating a unique architectural and intellectual experience to its visitors. Eastern Turkey will also offer you some of the country’s most outstanding scenery; with its impressive snow-capped mountains, massive lakes, rivers and immense fields of wildflowers. I would like to tell you about some reasons behind my interest to this part of Turkey and why I keep coming back.

1- The Food, The Lovely Food!

Turkish cuisine is much more than street food and kebabs, however if you want to have a real kebab experience with all the mezes and desserts, I would say this trip will be a great opportunity. I must say though, it can be a little tough for the veggies and vegans, as the eastern cuisine is mostly meat based.

2- It Can Be Your Last Chance!

This region is also home to Turkey's biggest rivers and hydroelectric power stations built over them. The Turkish government is continuing to build new power stations and this construction project effects some historical cities like Hasankeyf. This ancient city will be lost forever when the power station is fully built. So it can be your last chance to visit this beautiful heritage.

3- The City of Mardin

Mardin is city which played an important role during the development of Christianity. Today the Christian and the Muslim population lives in peace together as they have lived in centuries. The city of Mardin is famous with its open minded and friendly people as well as the unique architecture and narrow streets.

You can easily take a tour from the major Western cities to the Eastern region, every city in the area has its own airport so you can also plan your own trip. Just keep in mind that the transportation in the cities are not too wide so renting a car or using taxis will be much better!