Turkey Tour Leaders

Dr John Basarin is Australia’s pre-eminent Gallipoli expert. For six years he has led evocative ANZAC Day tours to Turkey’s long silent battlefields. A popular speaker, Dr John’s extensive contributions to WWI history and Turkish-Australian culture have been acknowledged by 2010 ANZAC Peace Prize, 2005 Victorian Premier's Award for Excellence in Multicultural Affairs and participation in the AE2 Australian submarine project.

Born and raised in Turkey, Dr John settled in Melbourne during the early ‘70s. Although a successful engineering career took him around the world, his passion for travel, history and Turkey have always shone through. Dr John is the co-author of six books, including: Gallipoli-The Turkish Story, Beneath the Dardanelles and The Australian Submarine at Gallipoli.

Dr John has recently completed a doctorate degree at Deakin University, working with Prof John Hall. His PhD thesis was entitled “Battlefield Tourism: Anzac Day Commemorations at Gallipoli”, which relates to motives of attendance of Australians at the Anzac Day events at Gallipoli.

Members of Dr John’s ANZAC tours enjoy an insightful commentary that is both informative and undeniably human. Dr John leads our Gallipoli 2015 team arranging ANZAC centenary tours.

World travellers Peter and Glenda Pekish have a great love for all things Turkish. Having lived in Turkey and travelled to many remote historical sites, they guide visitors to savour delicious cuisine, marvel at history and embrace Turkey’s vibrant modern culture.

A native Turkish speaker, Peter was born and raised in Istanbul before migrating to Melbourne. He and Glenda, a librarian and ESL teacher, returned to live and work in Turkey during 2005. That made pursuing their interest and study of Turkish culture and historical sites possible. Several of these are among the fascinating places Peter and Glenda explore with tour members.

Jill has had itchy feet since the age of 20. It is a fascination with Turkey though, that combines her passions for travel, photography, bushwalking and life-long learning. A true global citizen, Jill has lived and worked on five continents. But Turkey reveals more each time she visits.

From tantalising glimpses of lost Roman and Greek worlds, to the astonishing city of Istanbul, Jill shares the rare natural wonders of Turkey’s landscape and culture. You will explore the world’s earliest human settlement, and perhaps great architectural feats of the early Christian and Ottoman Empires. Jill will guide and enlighten along the way.

A professional photographer for over 40 years, Michael Silver worked in newspapers both in Victoria and Western Australia, as well as in Fleet Street, before starting his commercial photography business, Photonet in 1987.

While on the staff of the Sun newspaper in Melbourne he won the Press Photographer of the Year Special Merit Award in 1986 for a photograph of BLF boss Norm Gallagher.

His currently photographs for clients such as State and Federal Government departments and Vice-Regal offices; universities; industries – including Toyota, BAE Systems and engineering group SKM; hospitals and health organisations; not-for-profit groups and several charities. His photographic work takes him regularly to Europe, South-East Asia and the USA.

Michael is a member of the MAP Group of photographers whose documentary work includes group projects in several rural towns and a major documentary on the drought that produced the exhibition and best-selling book “Beyond Reasonable Drought”. He is currently involved in a number of photographic publications.

Together with his wife Susanne, Michael is a Director of Photonet Gallery (recently known as Newnorth Gallery) in Fairfield, a dedicated photography gallery that hosts exhibitions and seminars throughout the year as well as an annual photography prize.