A motorcyclist has published a reflective piece on multiple trips to Turkey, praising its people, roads, and historical sites. The author highlights Turkish hospitality and empathy, drawing from personal anecdotes spanning years of adventure riding. Plans for a return visit in 2027 are mentioned.
In a recent article on Adventure Rider, published March 19, 2026, the author recounts affectionate memories from several motorcycle journeys across Turkey. The piece begins with the historical connection via the Gallipoli campaign in World War I, quoting Mustafa Kemal Atatürk's 1934 speech: “Those heroes that shed their blood and lost their lives… You are now lying in the soil of a friendly country. Therefore rest in peace. There is no difference between the Johnnies and the Mehmets to us where they lie side by side here in this country of ours.” The author notes unloading a Yamaha XS11 near Gallipoli and expresses eagerness to return next year if health permits, specifically in 2027 for Istanbul and beyond. Turkish empathy and generosity feature prominently. Examples include a truck driver at a çayhane warning, “Watch out on the road. The Turks are crazy. They can’t drive,” and a campsite caretaker on the Teke Peninsula offering free camping and hot showers before the season. In Istanbul, sailors questioned the author's early departure from a bar, asking, “What kind of Australians are you?” Another tale involves repairing a flipped BMW at a campsite, aided by locals with raki and truck tire levers, with no charge accepted. The author praises Turkey's riding conditions—tarred roads, gravel, and dirt—along the Black Sea and Mediterranean coasts, plus sites like Pamukkale's white stone pools, Crusader castles, Troy's wooden horse, an underground city near Urgüp, and a Roman bathhouse on sugar farmers' land. Istanbul's museums, cafés, Grand Bazaar with over 4000 shops, and bridges between Europe and Asia are lauded. A footnote notes the author's preference for 'Turkey' over the official name change and regrets Atatürk's fez ban, tying into the title 'A Fez of the Heart.'
