Turkey 🇹🇷 (Days 55 – 61)

Sunday – Tues (5/8 – 5/11). Over beers with Antoine, Guenola, and Simon at our hostel in Goreme, I think it was Antoine who said,“It is wonderful that even after traveling for so long, we can still be awed by what we see.” Long term travel has not produced a “been there, done that, got the t-shirt” attitude. Just the opposite!! We all agreed – the more we see, the more we want to see. The more we wonder at the sights, the more we ask ourselves, “What other wonders are yet to be discovered?”

The Cappadocia region certainly has the power to instill awe. It is not just the fairy tale quality of the landscape around Goreme. It also the vast sweep of history represented throughout this region. Everywhere you look you can imagine the presence and lives of ancient people – from the Ihlara Valley, to the underground cities, to the churches and homes carved into the stone around Goreme.

The days have passed quickly here. Filled with hiking, socializing, eating, marveling at the sunrise balloon launches, crepe making lessons, more eating, we daily consider how blessed we are to have arrived in this place. As Guenola says, “eet iz fantasteek!”  (It sounds really cool when she says it).

 

And just like that…our time with Antoine and Guenola came to an end. Bonne chance with the rest of your journey. And just like that…we made new friends. James and Jane (UK) are seasoned travelers out for a few months. We met them in the famous Love Valley. We also met Nadine and Toby (Germany) on a two year break from work world tour. Late into the night we downed Efes and swapped tales of life on the road like old friends.

Wednesday (5/11). Just as in days of old when camel trains passed through here, Goreme has proven to be a cross roads for travelers. After relaxing, exploring and enjoying this magical place for several days, eventually everyone is moving on. Binni, Chris & Patricia, Antoine & Guenola, Milli & Daniela, Toby & Nadine, James & Jane are all continuing to the “-stans” and points farther east. Rather than following the eastward migration, we will take a night bus west to Canakkale. Sixteen hours on a bus seems like one of Dante’s levels of hell. However, it will save us three to four weeks, extra time for cycling through the Balkans.

Thursday (5/12). The reality of the long bus ride was not as bad as the anticipation… even with the bus breaking down. A replacement eventually deposited us on the outskirts of town. Like many others in Turkey, Canakkale is a modern tourist town with history oozing from its pores. Nearby, ancient Troy lies close to WWI monuments to those who fell during the battle of Gallipoli. These are in the shadow of fortresses built by sultans. Simply amazing.

Friday (5/13). Sharon and I spend a lot of time together. 24/7 time. Fortunately we kind of like each other! Still, its nice to have some space once in a while. So after a lie in and breakfast, we went our separate ways to explore the city. Sharon sought out a massive produce market, among other places. I made the rounds of bike shops and neighborhoods. While it does cater to tourists, Canakkale is a real city. Tourists do not outnumber locals as they appear to in other places.

Eventually we met for waterfront beer to discuss not only our day, but our future on this trip, as well as our future travels for the next year. Normally we wouldn’t look that far ahead, but sometimes it is necessary in order to make sure it happens. It was a good day.

Saturday (5/14). As we biked north along the Dardanelles Strait, we began reflecting on our time in Turkey. Specifically, we pondered three questions. 1) What was your favorite part? 2) What was your biggest disappointment? 3) What surprised you the most? For number two, I suggested that the language barrier prevented us from really connecting with folks. Fast forward to late afternoon. We had stopped to survey a beach as a possible camp site when Cuneyt (say Ju-NATE) came over and invited us to have tea with his wife Zerrin, and daughters Azra and Beren (and parakeet Mavish). What followed was magic. We struggled with our Turkish. They practiced their English. Google Translate filled in the gaps. We talked of work, school, boyfriends, life in Turkey, life in America, travel. We laughed freely and often. My “abi” (brother) Cuneyt plied me raki and the whole family laughed at my reaction. When finally they had to leave for home, they insisted that we stay in their hut. An offer we gladly accepted. It was a perfect end to our time in Turkey. çok teşekkürler Cuneyt and family.

By next week we will have said good bye to Turkey and entered a new country. Check in next week to see which path we followed. Until then, STC!