Guru Geri in Turkey

1982 I have been with Michael for the first time in Turkey. At that time the military had just been put into power. We arrived by bus from Alexandropolis (Greece). The border crossing was already clearly an entry into another world. Everywhere military and exact person control. This remained also the whole trip so. Again and again there were controls. At night we arrived in Istanbul. It was drizzling and we first had to find something to sleep. Have gone into a ruin of a mosque where we could put our sleeping bag. In the morning someone came and wanted to persuade Michael (long hair) to have sex (probably thought he was a woman). We threw him out and then quickly ran away. It was a dingy place anyway: shit everywhere and garbage.

In Istanbul we visited the mosques, the first of my life. We went into the underground water reservoirs and visited the bazaar. The next night we spent on a camping site (mosquito control pure by smoke bomb for breakfast). We found the city very exciting and already very strange - oriental. After Istanbul we drove with the Dolmusch (public transport with the minibus) to the south via Bursa to Izmir. Then a side trip to Pamukale, the lime terraces and Troja. I was longing for Barbara, that made my trip a little more difficult and I wasn't really relaxed.
The second time I went to Turkey with Gundi was in 1988. We drove there with her car. It was a nice trip to Central Anatolia behind Mount Ararat and Lake Van. In Bodrum we did a diving course. The highlands and the Kurdish region are very different from the more western part of Turkey. Here we got together with two people from Düsseldorf, who also made a relaxed trip to Turkey with their car. It was quite nice with them. We stayed in contact with them even later.
2004 I am with Klaudia on a conference in Kusadasi, near Ismir. There we spent 4 days in a nice hotel at the expense of Turkey. We drove with a car into the mountains and enjoyed ourselves there.
2008 I was with Klaudia, Ayla and Kim 2 days in Istanbul, on the way back from Israel to Hamburg. Are in the Haiga Sofia, Blue Mosque and of course in the Great Bazaar.
2010 I was for 8 days in August with Kim (17 years) and his friend Sirke Treutmann in Kas, 200 km west of Antalya, where they did a diving license. A very nice place. I typed my second novel "Only Oldesloe" there. I liked the nice people, the nice landscape, the silence to type.
2012 for 3 days in Istanbul, preparatory meeting for the 19th Organic World Congress, which was supposed to take place in Istanbul in 2014 and I co-led the scientific sections. It was very nice, although in December and cold.
In 2013 I was invited as a speaker to the 1st eco-conference "Black Sea" in Kelkit. From there I spent 1 day in Trabson. Beautiful city and the landscape there was surprisingly mountainous and scenically very beautiful. Everything in a clean and constructive condition.
2014 I was in Istanbul for 3 days in February 2014 to prepare with Bugday (Kaydalen) and the EGE University (Aksoy) Organic World Congress (October 2014) (I was responsible for the Scientific Congress). On this weekend there were again heavy riots on the Taksim Square, directly at my hotel. In May I was once again briefly in Istanbul on my way to Iran. Then in October 2014 8 days in Istanbul because of the Organic World Congress, where I had a central role (ISOFAR).
In 2017 I was stranded one night in Istanbul because I missed a plane to Ethiopia. I landed in Istanbul from 2015 to 2017 a total of 20 times, but always only transit. Also in 2019 I spent another night at the old Atatürk airport, which will close soon. It was good.
2018: on the journey 208 (Turkmenistan) I stopped in Istanbul, eating in the city.
2022 I have been 4 days in Izmir to attend the Mediterranean Organic Conference. The first business tour since 2 years due to Covid19. Nice to see many friends again.