With the prospect of a 9 hour mountainous marshrutka ride, full to the brim with people and no air-con and perhaps no guarantee of a seat, we opted to fly south instead. Flying is surprisingly cheap which makes it even harder to resist. Ever since we arrived in Kyrgyzstan, we had heard great things about … More Kyrgyzstan Part 2: Exploring the South
Our arrival in Bishkek was rather brutal. After a sleepless night in the glum terminals of Novosibirsk, Russia, our plane landed in the cold and damp capital of Kyrgyzstan at 3am. We were still wearing our light summer clothes after the glorious Armenian weather and spent three hours shivering in the tiny arrivals hall, waiting … More Kyrgyzstan – Bishkek and trekking in Issyk-Kul
We began our ‘Armenian journey’ in Yerevan, arriving by sleeper train from Tbilisi. We instantly fell in love with this bright and cosmopolitan city, so modern and chic. We were delighted to see a variety of international restaurants, buzzing cafés and beautiful modern sculptures adorning the city centre. The prices, however, were less appealing. Although … More Hitchhiking in Armenia
After two wonderful volunteering experiences in Turkey, we were keen to find some volunteering opportunities in Georgia. Staying and working with locals gives a real insight into countries’ or regions’ cultures and is by far the best way to travel if you have the time. We had been travelling for nearly two months and were … More Wwoofing in Georgia
We set out to Mestia on a little minibus from Batumi. At the onset we had the bus to ourselves, so Kirsty immediatedly sprawled out across the backseat and fell asleep. Her idea of a nice nap was shattered once the driver got started across the bumpy twisty roads. The state of the roads was … More Hiking in Svaneti
After a month travelling in South East Turkey it was time for us to head North. We were originally really keen to visit the beautiful area around Lake Van and take our time travelling up to our next stop, Georgia. However, with the current disturbances involving the Kurdish PKK we were strongly advised to skip … More Crossing from Turkey to Georgia: a change of scenery
Our next stop was in the ‘prophets’ city’ Şanlıurfa, commonly known as Urfa. Our host this time was a young man called Oktay, who we had previously met in Çirali. We only met him for one evening at the guesthouse, but with the typical Turkish hospitality, Oktay immediately offered to host us in his hometown. … More Part four: Şanliurfa and Mardin
On the 31st of August we celebrated a month since we left our homes in London and ventured East with all our belongings on our backs. Having sold many valuables and worked hard several months we put together a small budget and crossed our fingers it would last us some while. As the date of … More A month backpacking in South eastern Turkey
We left Mersin smelling of cow and headed for Antakya (Hatay). On the map this doesn’t look like one of the best places in Turkey to go right now, but from what we had read we found it hard to resist; at least just for one night. We had a Couchsurf arranged as well, which … More Antakya and Gaziantep: reaching the Middle-East
Volunteering on an organic farm in Mersin, southeastern Turkey Our next volunteering job found us further east in rural Mersin, being picked up by a young, lively 27 year old, Murat. Having grown up in the centre of Mersin, Murat studied engineering in Poland, but came back to his homeland and decided to live his … More Wwoofing in south eastern Turkey
