I miss Europe’s big sights. But I also miss exploring off the beaten path. And one of the most vivid places for that is in Eastern Turkey.

Even though we’re not visiting Europe right now, I believe a daily dose of travel dreaming can be good medicine. I just published a collection of my favorite stories from a lifetime of European travels. My new book is called “For the Love of Europe” — and this story is just one of its 100 travel tales.

I’m in Kastamonu, five hours northeast of the Turkish ca...