14.08.2026 11:51
Expats who spent their summer holiday in Turkey created congestion at the Kapıkule Border Gate for their return journey. While the expats experienced the sadness of leaving their homeland, approximately 2.5 million people passed through the border gates in Edirne between June 22 and August 3. With the measures taken, waiting times were reduced to 29 minutes. The expats expressed that the longing and yearning for their homeland never ends.
Expatriates who spent their summer holidays in their homeland created density at Kapıkule Border Gate as they returned to the countries they live in. Saying that they feel the sadness of leaving the homeland, Zekeriye Alamış said, "Joy when we come, sorrow when we leave. It's not something words can describe, but there's nothing to do."
Expatriates living in various European countries continue to return to the countries they reside in after spending their summer holidays in their homeland. Expatriates exiting by road are creating density at Kapıkule Border Gate, which opens to Bulgaria from Edirne. Between June 22 and August 3, when the arrivals of expatriates began, approximately 2 million 508 thousand expatriates entered and exited through the border gates in Edirne. In the same period, 1 million 331 thousand expatriates used Kapıkule Border Gate. With the additional measures taken, the waiting time of expatriates in the customs area was reduced to 29 minutes.
'THIS FEELING IS INDESCRIBABLE'
Mustafa Saçar, who came from Adana and is going to France, said that they relieved their longing with their family during the holiday, "Now we are going abroad again to work. I work in a factory there. When leaving after seeing this flag, there is a sadness, a bitterness. For example, when coming here, you see this flag, it's a different pride, this feeling is indescribable."
'WE RELIEVED OUR LONGING'
Zekeriya Alamış, who spent his holiday in his hometown Kars and was on his return journey to France, stated that he could not express in words what he felt during the return journey. Alamış said, "Our holiday was wonderful. We stayed for nearly 35-40 days. We relieved our longing. Feelings are sad; we are leaving our homeland behind. Even if not every year, we definitely come every two years. Joy when we come, sorrow when we leave. It's not something words can describe, but there's nothing to do."
'LONGING FOR THE HOMELAND NEVER ENDS'
Sezer Kılıç, who came from Ordu and is going to Germany, said that the longing for the homeland never ends, "My wife is from Kayseri, I am from Ordu. We visited both places. Our holiday lasted 4 weeks. We visited Ordu, we visited Kayseri, we visited holiday resorts. It's a different feeling. The longing for the homeland doesn't end, nor does the yearning. We couldn't get enough of any place, we couldn't fit in, now we are returning."
Muhammet Özdemir, who returned to Belgium with his family after his holiday in Turkey, also said, "We stayed for about 3.5 weeks. On the way, we stayed in Bursa. My hometown is Kırşehir, my wife is from Aksaray. We did a tour of Istanbul, then we went to Bolu. After that, we moved on to Aksaray. We stayed there for about 18 days. There is a long road ahead of us. We've just started, so it seems a bit arduous for us. We are a bit sad, of course, but we are also a bit happy to be returning."