As the Armenian Temporary Import Permit was about to end, we had to leave, crossed Georgia and entered Turkey. We followed the Black Sea Silk Road along the coast to the west, then southwards to the tourist hotspots at the Mediterranean Sea.
After more than 3 weeks in beautiful Georgia, time for a change: Armenia’s Silkroad and its monasteries and a state not recognized by anybody – Nagorno Karabakh.
On 29th August we revived our trip. Of course, any interruption of a journey in Central Asia is heavily penalised by the all-important immigration authorities of the different countries.
Georgia is one of the most diversified countries in the world. We had to see some towns often in a slightly significant state of disrepair if you leave the city center – and of course, the Great Caucasus with its traditional villages and its challenging hikes.
After the historic Silk Road towns in Southern Anatolia and the shores of Lake Van we moved further east – to Mount Ararat and then on to the Kaçkar Mountains.
After the tourist hotspots in western Turkey and central Anatolia we were in the need of some more exquisite adventures. We headed first to the south-eastern, then to the north-eastern parts of Turkey – east Anatolia. Thru lonely desert landscapes to towns you only imagine from the storytellers of 1001 nights.
23rd June, Çanakkale Ouranoupoli – the last night in Greece, on 23rd June we’re on the way to Turkey, to West then to Central Anatolia. The border crossing is quite fast. On the Greek side nobody bothers, on the Turkish side a stamp per person and a sticker on the passport for Prado.
In the old time before drivers in huge trucks transported all kind of goods all over the world this important business was granted to a kind of herd boys and their camels along the Silk Road. As you can imagine e. g. peanuts where cheaply grown in Chengdu (China), transported on camel back to Milan…
On 16th June finally we were ready to head eastwards to find the starting point for the famous Silk Road. Effectively there are many theories about the place this ancient trading route should start from.
After Prado´s naturalization in Swizzyland it had some additional minor cosmetic surgery to undergo: