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In September 2014 I will be leaving my job of 16 years at Philips to follow my dream. The last 21 years I have lived in Europe – in the Netherlands and Germany, and now it is time to go home. Home to Australia. In Europe I have learnt to love cycling. What better way to finish the European chapter of my life and enter the next than by cycling home?

After cycling through Europe to Istanbul in the last part of 2014, I will stop for a few months (waiting for the winter to pass) before continuing in February/March 2015. I plan to be in Dashanbe in Tajikistan on June 1, and so have a lot of time to explore on the way.

I am currently putting together the basic cycling route and am collecting tips and ideas for alternatives, so, all suggestions are welcome! My standard route in Turkey is along the Black Sea coast, and passing through Georgia and Armenia before entering Iran. Here is my planned route in Iran.

An alternative route would be to enter Iran direct from Turkey near Doğubayazıt. In Iran, Bernadette Speet recommends visiting Isfahan and Shiraz. Sekiji Yoshida also visited these places. I will need to spend some time in Tehran getting my visas for Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.

All suggestions are welcome!!