Lake Van, Eastern Turkey

Lake Van is on the far south eastern edge of Turkey, mainly inhabited by Kurdish people. There has been little to none tourist activity here since 1992 after the Gulf War with the Kurdish refugees from Iraq, the struggle between the Kurdish and the oppressive Turkish government, and the tensions by the Iranian boarder as well. The leader of the PKK (Kurdish revolutionary movement, a bit similar to the IRA of Ireland) was captured a few years earlier, which has put an end of tensions and terrorist activity in the region. My visit here was delightful with the warm hospitality and breathtaking scenery.

This big guy with the moustache is Mahmet. He's the self appointed super host of the town. He met us at the tourist information at 9 am waiting for us, as everyone knew two tourist came to town at 6:30 am. (a bit like the "Truman Show" movie. He owns a lot of land and has many houses in the country, so he loves to put up tourists for free in his home, or let them camp in his yard and pick apples right out of his tree. Having many daughters, he has a built in welcome wagon to make breakfast and serve tea to everyone. He was our tour guide for several days. Every town should have a Mehmet.