Mountains and a Shore

The Mediterranean coast of Turkey, also known as the "Turquoise Coast," is rich with natural beauty and historic remains. In the spring and summer of 1965 Michael Pereira set out to discover this region, before a government push to develop the area for tourism forever altered the landscape. Mountains and a Shore is Pereira's account of his travels.


Starting his journey in Antalya, Pereira crisscrosses the coast from Marmaris to Mersin. He travels by bus, lorry—even donkey—for he believes, "It is only by travelling in the same style as the people of the country that one can properly get to know that county and its people." Pereira speaks Turkish fluently and through his encounters with drivers and café owners, farmers and schoolchildren, he shows the Turkish people to be generous, proud, and resilient.


As David Mason writes in his new foreword, "The Turkish word for the Mediterranean is Akdeniz, the White Sea, but the land between the Black and White Seas is polychromatic, swirlingly complex, contradictory, challenging, and often heart-stoppingly beautiful. Getting to know Turkey is not always easy, even now. Time travel with Michael Pereira is an excellent way to begin."


Michael Pereira is the author of many novels and travel books, including Istanbul: Aspects of a City,East of Trebizond, and Across the Caucasus.


David Mason is the author of numerous books of poetry, the verse-novel Ludlow, and a memoir of the years he lived in Greece, News from the Village.