We have arrived in Istanbul and checked in at the Four Seasons on the Bosphorus, a place I have had the honour to stay before. It is spectacular. Right on the water, full of that feeling this city carries, history everywhere, layers upon layers, the old empire and the modern chaos living side by side.

The Bosphorus itself is one of those places that is hard to explain until you see it. It is the narrow strait that connects the Black Sea with the Sea of Marmara and it divides Europe and Asia right through the middle of Istanbul. It is not just water. It is geography, trade, politics, history, all moving at once.

We went Munich to Bucharest the day before yesterday, and yesterday we came from Bucharest to here. A very long day, more than 12 hours. The drivers are exhausted, and they have done a magnificent job. Steve and Jeff. I am honestly in awe. Same with Sophie and Oli, great film work, steady and patient even when the day just keeps going and going. Meg is in another world when it comes to getting things done, a machine in the best way. April, Doug and I do what we can, and I have been Jeff’s wingman from the beginning, which has been an honour. I enjoy it.

The drive yesterday was the most beautiful and most interesting of the whole trip so far, and that was because Google Maps decided to take us on a bit of an off road route through Bulgaria.

And I loved it.

I have always been drawn east. Much of my professional life has been tied to Russia, the former Soviet world, the societies that grew out of it, the people, the landscapes, the stubborn dignity, the humour, the way life looks when it has been hard for a long time. The Balkans pull at me in the same way. Bulgaria felt familiar, and at the same time completely its own.

We curved through villages and countryside that looked like it had not changed enormously. And then the buildings appeared, the Soviet layers in concrete and brick. Stalinka, Khrushchyovka, Brezhnevka. You can see the decades just by looking at the shapes, the windows, the way they sit in the landscape. Brutal, practical, sometimes strangely beautiful in their own way.

We were split into cars. Two different worlds. Steve’s car had more discussions, more music, more party energy. Jeff’s car was calmer, more silent, which suits me, of course. And what surprises me every time is how much I enjoy the silence. Hours of it. Nobody complains. Nobody is whining. Four people in a Land Rover for 12 hours a day, try it. This is not a trip for people who need comfort, even if we end up at beautiful hotels. The real work is the road, the concentration, the long days, the constant moving.

And for me, the strange gift is the thinking time. Back home I do not often sit still like this. Here you are forced to. You sit. You watch landscapes change. You let things land. Time passes and the hours disappear. I will miss that, genuinely.

Of course, fatigue is real. Tempers rise and fall. My worst day is almost always day three. I do not know why it is so consistent, but it is. The first two days are overwhelming, people, new information, constant energy, constant input. Then it hits. And this time we also had heavy, sad, life changing news that I will not go into. It dominated my thoughts, especially on that third day, and I remember thinking, wow, how do you carry this and still keep functioning.

But that is also what these trips are. A circus, different personalities, different pressures, different private worlds in the same convoy. Sometimes you see it, sometimes you do not. And then you pass through it, you reach the end of the leg, and you realise you have done it again.

And you realise what kind of group this is.

No complainers. Hard workers. People who show up tired and still do their job. Drivers who keep their focus hour after hour. A crew that keeps filming, keeps asking questions, keeps holding the camera steady, keeps transferring files, keeps backing up footage late at night when your brain is already closing down.

Last night I was on transfers again, the simple job that is never simple, moving all the material from cameras to hard drives, making sure nothing is lost. That is part of my role here, and it takes time, and it has to be done.

Now we have a day here in Istanbul, and tomorrow it is back to normality.

So I will enjoy this as much as I possibly can.

I feel honoured to be part of this group. Honoured, tired, grateful. And I will miss those long hours of thinking on the road.