Backpacking the world overland has always been my dream from an early age on, as I have been intrigued by all the different cultures around the world and wanted to explore each of them. In addition, I have had the strong interest in crossing each continent overland from one end to the other avoiding flying. What I mean by overland […]
Is traveling solo really no fun? None of us would really like to be stranded in a foreign country and be alone. However, it is sometimes almost impossible to find a friend who would like to go to the same region at the same time as we would like to go. Should this really deter us from going there? The […]
Backpacking in Afghanistan may sound unusual to many of you, especially if it took place when the Taliban was in power. It may sound even more unusual, if it also included a detention with espionage allegations in a Taliban prison, where I got also slightly beaten – we were accused of being American spies by the Taliban, even though neither […]
Backpacking in Tibet is probably at the top of many backpackers’ to do list as one of the major dream destinations. I snuck into Tibet illegally through the mountains with my American companion Valerie from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in September 2000 and hitchhiked trucks through the Tibetan Plateau, the world’s highest plateau that’s greater than Western Europe, for three […]
New York is one of my favorite cities and after living here for more than seven years, here are my top 10 reasons to love this unique city: #1 – Phenomenal diversity New York is one of the few places in the world, where one can travel the world without leaving the city. You can immerse yourself in almost every […]
Backpacking the world overland has always been my dream from an early age on, as I have been intrigued by all the different cultures around the world and wanted to explore each of them. In addition, I have had the strong interest in crossing each continent overland from one end to the other avoiding flying. What I mean by overland […]
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Is traveling solo really no fun? None of us would really like to be stranded in a foreign country and be alone. However, it is sometimes almost impossible to find a friend who would like to go to the same region at the same time as we would like to go. Should this really deter us from going there? The […]
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I am back in New York after spending eight long years in 43 countries. I can easily say that I spent the best eight years of my life on this trip. Besides having great experiences, I learned a lot about life and myself – this also ended up being a spiritual journey within myself. Moreover, I came back speaking two […]
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Although I grew up in Istanbul, Turkey, I spent an important part of my adult life in New York City. Apart from Turkey and the United States, I was also lucky enough to live in Brazil, Colombia, Paraguay, and Germany for a while. Among other things, I have three passions in life: Traveling, photography, and learning and teaching foreign languages. […]
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Everybody has a different travel style. Some like flying everywhere and reaching their destinations in a very short time. Others, including me, prefer enjoying the scenery while mingling with locals and taking their time to go to most places overland (without flying). Traveling overland is more time consuming and usually more expensive than air travel – that is if you […]
Interviews with me about my trips appeared in several Turkish media outlets, including magazines, newspapers, and radio and television stations. In addition, some pieces I wrote were published with the photographs I took in some print media. The most recent one was an interview with Turkey’s leading newspaper Hurriyet about my five years on the road in six continents: Hurriyet’s […]
Backpacking in Asia is a great experience for every backpacker! Generally speaking, Asia is referred to as backpackers’ paradise and it is usually safe, cheap and easy to travel. Of course, you cannot say this for the whole continent, but it is valid for most parts of it. Asia is by far the largest and the most densely populated continent […]
Backpacking in Africa may be challenging depending on the region you go, especially if you are traveling solo. Depending on my limited travel experience in Africa, I saw three distinct regions: North Africa This region includes the northern part of the continent from Egypt and Morocco down to the Sahara desert. I spent time both in Egypt and Morocco, and […]
