I’ve been neglecting my diary-keeping since Greece, although I have been blogging.
I have now left the EU! Crossing into Turkey was a significant step, both in my head and the environs. I am in the world of Islam.
The border crossing was easily the most involved crossing I’ve endured to-date, but it was still fairly painless. A group of bikers on BMWs, all kitted-out with their GoPro cameras, were subjected to a much more involved crossing than I was. I don’t know if there was a reason, or just luck of the draw. I like my no-fuss way of travelling though – simple kit, nothing flashy, paperwork to-hand. Easy.
Istanbul.
I would like to see Istanbul properly one day – it is massive, lively, and has some lovely sights. Rush hour traffic is not the most lovely of these things, especially wearing a leather jacket in the raw heat.
Crossing the bridge was the goal, and I managed to set off an alarm as I went through the far side of the toll booth. Apparently I needed some sort of ‘magic card pass’. Oh well, the traffic police didn’t show any interest in me so I just pootled out of town heading north east.
“Giris” in Turkish means “Entry”, so it is a prevalent sign by such facilities as cafes. With light fading, however, approaching road-side cafes this tends to read as “Girls”. I’m thinking, “These can’t all be strip clubs”. I only wanted a coffee and thought I’d have to be fending off scantily-clad ladies each wanting 20 Euro from me. Gladly, or sadly, these cafes were NOT full of temptresses, and Turkish coffee turns out to be rather good, as is their chai (tea).
After camping in a rabbit-filled carpark at one of these cafes I was free to start exploring Turkey.
I like it here, very much.
To say that the hospitality is awesome is to underestimate things. Every time I stop in a village to check the map, someone tries to offer me tea, cigarettes, etc. It really is odd. The bike is a big attraction – with admiration heaped upon it and wanton eyes soaking up its lines.
It’s Friday now, and I crossed into Turkey on Tuesday.
I’ve been on the road for 30 days now.
I’ve been told that the town of Samsun should be good for tyres, so I’m going to head that way tomorrow. Unsure as to whether shops open on Sundays here, I’ll just camp my way along the coast nice and leisurely (I’m at a cheap hotel at the moment).
I’ve not used my cooking stuff for a while now so I’m going to gift it to some other camping folk, but I’m going to keep the tent :).
The bike is holding up very well, and I’ve adjusted the chain tension today. I’m toying with the idea of getting a new chain and sprockets in Samsun so I don’t have to worry about it Slackening through Russia.