The Mongols are and wre a powerfull horsbackriding nation and you can stil see taht in many faces of tourists and local peol,e there along southturkies coast. You will see much less horses but on tv here and then.
The Mongols are friendly people and they take you anywhere in Kyrgisthan in their car, for good mony over some 3-4 hrs. Which is very different to EU pr US lands. Usually the old pirate castles are open for touri and foreigners, as is less the case with lets say Maedchenburg or the area where some barbarosse drawned in a river near Adana.