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Turkey Our first impression of Turkey was that there were more traffic lights than squeaky beds in a brothel. We had been told to avoid the toll roads, which turned out to be a bit of a mistake. You save about $1.60 but spend considerable time and fuel hitting towns that measure their importance based on the number of traffic lights they can fit on one stretch of road. There are even lights on and in round-a-bouts Our plan for Turkey was to cross the boarder from Syria near the Mediterranean and then continue along the coast all the way through. Any plan was better than no plan so off we headed. The boarder crossing into Turkey took longer than we expected. We had to contend with people trying to push their way in front of us, we were sent from person to person while they argued weather we needed a carnet or not (in the end we didn’t) and the exaggerated red tape of insurance. The process was no worse than some African countries but the Turks somehow found a way to make it harder than it needed to be. Apart from the proliferation of traffic lights, the second thing that you notice is the shear number of service stations and the astronomical price of the fuel (Around USD $2.50/L), which was a shock compared to the USD $0.12 that we payed in Syria. Our first night was spent camped in the driveway of a BP service station as we could find no campsites within several hours drive of the boarder. While being somewhat noisy due to the highway noise, the toilets were clean and we got a good nights sleep. Plus it cost us nothing. The drive along the coast is beautiful. Once you get out of the industrial section near the boarder, the road winds up mountain passes, along cliffs, through forest, all the while looking down over dark blue oceans. It reminded us somewhat of the Great Ocean Road in Victoria. While it is slow driving and you cant afford to lose concentration, it is a beautiful and scenic route to take. Wildflowers are everywhere in the fields and by the side of the road. Red poppies tend to stand out the most and make a nice contrast against the green grass and wheat fields. There is no desert, just rolling green fields and forest. Fishing villages in the postcard bays are filled with wooden boats and you often hear the clunk clunk of the old inboards (usually older than the old salt preparing the nets) as the wooden boats make their way along the shore. For us the highlights of turkey came down to Istanbul and Gallipoli. The former would have to be one of the great cities of the world. It straddles Europe and Asia and crams its cobblestone central streets with so much history that you have to spend several weeks there to do it justice. The Blue Mosque, which dominates the city centre, is one of the great buildings in the Middle East if not the world. Gallipoli on the other hand appears understated, but as soon as you set foot on ANZAC cove, the emotion of the place overwhelms you. It has an energy that is tangible and it is hard to hold the tears back as you tour the battlefields. You get a sense for the creation of the ANZAC legend as you begin to survey the terrain. The terrain is difficult, mountainous and unforgiving. The cemeteries while incredibly peaceful (all you hear is the wind and the sound of birds chirping) are emotionally powerful places. You can feel the presence of the soldiers and almost still hear the sound of the shells and gunfire in the wind.