Şırnak

Understand

thumb|375px|One of the best views in Southeastern Anatolia is no longer: [[Hasankeyf was swallowed by the Ilısu Dam on the Tigris in 2020]]

Culturally, linguistically, and geographically, Southeastern Anatolia has a lot in common with its southern neighbours, namely Syria and Iraq, and is the most Middle Eastern part of Turkey.

The southern half of the region is fairly shadeless plains (in part sprawling uniformly flat into the distance); this area is dominated by steppes that are bright yellow in summer. The northern half is relatively rugged, but is nevertheless mostly barren.

The two major rivers of the Middle East, the Euphrates (Turkish: Fırat) and the Tigris (Turkish: Dicle), begin from the snowy mountains of Eastern Anatolia, and flow through the region before crossing Turkey's southern border into Syria and Iraq. Many Southeastern Anatolian cities and sites are on or near the banks of either.

While you may occasionally come across a tout in relatively touristy parts (e.g., Urfa) or kids asking for money — which seems to be pretty much the full extent of their English vocabulary, apart from the ubiquitous hello — the local people are extremely hospitable and friendly (often to a fault) and are willing to help you in any way they can. They are just proud that, after so many years of armed conflict and political instability, travellers from faraway places are now making the effort to see their hometowns.

Get in

While not on the same level as the buses in western Anatolia, the bus service into and throughout Southeastern Anatolia is decent enough. You'll find buses running from and between most major destinations daily (oftentimes more than once daily). In the very deep southeast around Şırnak, Beytüşşebap and Hakkari, dolmuş (shared van-taxis) and minibuses are far more common but do not run as frequently or on as tight a schedule.

Major regional airports with domestic connections are in Gaziantep, Urfa, and Diyarbakır.

Diyarbakır and Batman have three times weekly train services (Güney Express) from Ankara, the national capital, with a number of stops in Central Anatolia.

Gaziantep is connected to the west by a motorway. There are also other major, but occasionally pot-holed, highways from the north, south, and southeast into the region.

Get around

Bus and minibus service is generally robust, although schedules are not closely adhered to and you may find yourself waiting an extra hour or two for that minibus that everyone has been promising will arrive soon. Private vehicles often serve as taxis but for fees that are higher than one would expect. Be ready to haggle. Hitchhiking is far easier than anywhere else in Turkey, with lift offers generally coming from the first vehicle passing by. It's pretty much safe, too, as long as you stick on the main roads at least. In the past, however, it's known that PKK have raided private traffic on roads in deeper southeastern Anatolia.

Many roads in the region are full of potholes and locals drive somewhat recklessly, even more so than the rest of the country, so be extra careful if you are the one who is driving actually.

Eat

thumb|250px|Freshly harvested pistachios, Gaziantep

The region, Gaziantep in particular, is nationally renowned for its culinary offerings. Many of the restaurants elsewhere in the country are established and run by people from the area, supplying versions of the local meals, often retrofitted and tamed to the taste of non-locals.

Drawing on the Middle Eastern to a great extent, the local cuisine is heavily dependent on meaty fare; Gaziantep and Urfa particularly are famous for their local varieties of kebabs and lahmacuns. Çiğ köfte is another local specialty that can nowadays be found at joints nationwide. Despite the name ("raw meatball"), the modern recipe no longer includes meat (uncooked, originally) to avoid raised eyebrows from the health authorities, and is mostly a mushy mixture of bulgur wheat, and a series of fresh vegetables and spices. Speaking of which, the locals love to use many different spices on their meal, you've been warned. Vegetarians will have a tough time in the region and should prepare themselves for spending a lot of time between supermarket shelves looking for canned food and eating lots of boring pastry.

A major agricultural product is pistachio, grown in the countryside surrounding Gaziantep and Siirt, in the southwest and northeast of the region respectively. While its standard Turkish name is Antep fıstığı ("the nut of Gaziantep"), the people of Siirt vehemently object to this association, and instead prefer to call it Siirt fıstığı ("the …

Drink

Tea (çay): it's everywhere. Be sure to add copious amounts of sugar to blend in with the local population. Anything less than three cubes just won't do.

Menengiç coffee or Kurdish coffee is a caffeine-free hot beverage made from roasted wild pistachios.

Boğazkere is a local grape cultivar grown in the Tigris valley near Diyarbakır. It is processed into a red wine with high tannic levels, and a strong body. Bulk of this wine used to be produced in Ergani in the past, and this factor influenced the city's traditions.

Furthermore, the Syriac population of Mardin also has a winemaking tradition; the product is marketed under the name Süryani şarabı ("Syriac wine").

Stay safe

Stay abreast of the news in northern Iraq and southeastern Turkey before and during your visit to the region. The politics of the region is very fluid with the Turkish government threatening military intervention into northern Iraq and the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) making raids on military outposts as well as attacking civilian targets like minibuses. The Turkish military will sometimes declare security zones in the area, making civilian travel to the region impossible. It is often best to talk to fellow travelers in Istanbul, Ankara or, even better, Diyarbakir before making your way into the deep southeast. Don't trust the Istanbulites who will suggest that you won't live through any visit east of Ankara. A vast majority of them have never left Istanbul. A trip to southeastern Anatolia is very much feasible and, for the most part, safe. The deep southeast should be done with more caution, but it too is possible for the hardy traveler.

On some non-major routes, you may run into a few military checkpoints, though all you need to do is showing your passport (therefore keep it handy during rides, not buried deep in your backpack). Keeping a short list of cities on your itinerary in mind may save time in case of further questioning at checkpoints.

Stay healthy

The arid climate in Southeastern Anatolia can quickly dry your skin, particularly your hands, and especially if you have a sensitive skin and/or are living in a humid, coastal climate. So don't forget to pack along some kind of moisturizer if you intend to stay more than a few days in the region.

Being not accustomed to heavily spicy/hot food, in addition to the fact that some food is prepared in less than perfectly hygienic ways, may lead to stomach trouble in some travellers whilst in the region.

Go next

Don't: It's far too beautiful.

But if the travel bug keeps you from settling in a place for a prolonged period, heading west from Southeastern Anatolia, if you have not already arrived from that direction, will make you meet warm waters of the Mediterranean, a totally different world. But if you rather prefer to chill than to sunbathe, then head north and east into the mountainous realm of Eastern Anatolia.

Iraqi Kurdistan and Syria are also nearby, but not advisable to visit because of ongoing wars. For the record, though, the border of Iraqi Kurdistan can be crossed via the Habur border gate near Silopi, southeast of Mardin and the Syrian border, which is to the south, can be crossed via a number of border gates south of Gaziantep, Urfa, and Mardin. As of September 2019, all border crossings with Syria are closed.