At a hostel in Meteora, I met Tommy, a guy from Cuneo who lives in Australia a perfect coincidence since Australia is part of my future plans. We talked for a while and immediately got along. His journey is incredible: he’s heading to Mongolia and then all the way to Japan. I said goodbye to Luis, who decided to stay another night in Meteora, and set off with Tommy. In a few days, between gyros and long travel talks, we crossed Greece and reached the Turkish border. The crossing went smoothly, and we parted ways with a promise to meet again in Australia. I continued toward Istanbul. The city is immense, full of culture and stunning mosques. There, I met Michele and Mirta, two friends from Trento who had helped me a lot with preparations for my trip—truly amazing people, the kind you rarely meet.

After Istanbul, I headed to Pamukkale, with its white rock pools. Two nights later, I moved on to Tuz Gölü, a vast and beautiful salt lake, perfect for camping. Then came Cappadocia, where I took a hot air balloon ride over a surreal landscape. I rode through Dark Canyon on a spectacular off-road track that wasn’t too challenging. My journey across Turkey continued until I reached Erzurum, my last stop before Iran. I stocked up on four liters of oil (since my Transalp has basically started running on a mix) and withdrew some cash, knowing that ATMs wouldn’t work in Iran. In Turkey, I met some of the most genuine people happy, curious, always ready to help, and incredibly generous. Now, I’m ready for Iran, the country I have the highest expectations for.