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Go East
  • Herbert E
  • Meike Grothe

Go East

175-päiväinen seikkaillu — Herbert & Meike Lue lisää
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  • Go East
    Lunch stop in Çat2 high passes todayCampspot at a river

    Entering Kurdistan

    10. lokakuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    Our hostel offered a buffet for breakfast. Pretty uncommon in Corona times, but we didn't complain as we could eat enough to get going. But we saw straight away that Herbert's tyre was flat again. So we had to stop at the next gas station and fix it again. Luckily, this time it seemed to be ok.
    Today's route profile was similar as yesterday's. But today, we had no headwinds! What a huge difference as we could actually enjoy our surroundings a lot more. For a couple of kilometres, one of the truck drivers even gave us a "ride". He passed us and drove so slowly that we could hold tied to some handlebars at the back of his truck. We took the invite but let go once the road was a little flatter again.
    In this part here, we are at an altitude between 1800 and 2300m all the time. It's mountaineous, but with almost no vegetation. People live of farming, mainly cows, sheep and goats. So we see many shepherds with their herds around here.
    We stopped in a village to get some lunch. There's only very few women on the road. And the ones you see, are completely covered. I feel most men stared at me, but they are all friendly and ask us where we are from.
    After almost 100km, we stopped at a spring to fill up water. A man invited us for a tea, he even spoke some German and told us that we are in Kurdistan right now. The inhabitants of most of the cities and villages here are half Turkish, half Kurdish.
    As it was time to find a campspot anyways, we decided to stay here and camp at the river behind the man's restaurant. It's good to have running water at the camp as it makes washing much easier. We love camping here as you can see so many stars and the milkyway as soon as you are away from the cities.    Lue lisää

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  • Go East
    Breakfast at the gas station with the hospitable owners
    A shepherd with his herdLunch stop1Last downhill1Campspot with a view

    Cold and hot

    11. lokakuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

    The first time on this Europe trip, it was below 0°C during the night and our tent was frozen when we got up. It was hard to get out of the warm sleeping bag, but we hurried up to start cycling.
    After about 20km, we reached Karliova where we bought some bread for breakfast. People greeted us in a language that didn't sound like Turkish, so we assumed it was Kurdish. At the exit of the village, we saw a gas station with a bench, so we stopped here to eat our breakfast. The guys at the gas station were so friendly. When they heard our story, they brought us tea to warm up and some cake.They even got more bread from the bakery for us. One of them used to live in Hamburg, so he could translate. He told us that the majority of the people in Karliova are Kurds and speak Kurdish. When we finally left, they gave us a bottle of water each.
    The next 45km were rolling, up and down all the time, but with nice tailwinds from the North. Then, the wind changed to South unfortunately, so the rest of the day was harder. There's also much more police and military presence in this area. Unlike anywhere else in Turkey, we got stopped twice today for a passport control.
    We stopped in Genc for lunch before conquering the hardest part of the day: 3 steep climbs (around 10%) of about 200m each. And by now, the afternoon sun was burning, so we sweat a lot. Shortly after the top of the last pass, we found a spring to fill up water. And as we like camping up in the mountains, we decided to pitch the tent nearby, have dinner and watch the sunset. At least, it's already a lot warmer than last night.    Lue lisää

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  • Go East
    Sunrise at our campspot
    Still in the mountaineous regionMilitary checkpoint no. 4Getting into the flat and dry regionWith the crew in the bicycle club

    Checkpoint adventures

    12. lokakuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    Today, we had to cross 5 military checkpoints on our way. At the first one, they looked serious and checked our passports. At the second one, they just waved and asked us where we were going, at the third, where we were from. And at the forth, they invited us for cold Fanta and buiscuits. They were even happy to take a photo with us (where they put on their mask 😉). At the fifth checkpoint, all of them stopped all other activities and came for a chat. But when they only had Turkish, Russian and Arabic to offer which didn't match with German, English, French nor Spanish, we all laughed and they wished us a good day.
    We also left the mountaineous area and came into a rather flat and dry region. It was really hot again. What a difference to those freezing temperatures just a day ago! At one of the gas stations, we were invited to tea and buiscuits again. However, we were happy when we arrived in Diyarbakır where we relax in the shade in a park to wait for Atakan. Atakan is a German teacher at a private school and member of the Diyarbakır bicycle club. Firat, our host from Güzelyani at the coast, had organized this contact. And we experienced Turkish hospitality at it's best: First, he took us to his apartment to have a shower and do laundry. Then we went back to the bicycle club, where we could stay. The manager of the club had already ordered food for delivery for us. Then, one by one, more members of the club joined our round. They knew from their WhatsApp group that we were in town and wanted to get to know us. We had tea and fruits and many nice talks. Some spoke a little bit of English and Atakan was busy translating.    Lue lisää

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  • Go East
    In the castle of Amed
    KervansarayThe big wallMinaret on 4 feet, so Herbert can stand underneathSpice market and blacksmith at workThe Great Mosque by night (before it was a church and before that a temple of sun worshippers)

    Big wall

    13. lokakuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    This morning, we had a very special tour through Diyarbakır or Amed, how the Kurds call the city. Fırat grew up in the impressive old town and showed us the most interesting places, cafés and viewpoints. The old town is surrounded by a huge wall. It's the second biggest one in the world after the Great Wall of China and dates back some 2000 years. It's massive, when you stand in front of it.
    First, we visited the castle with some typical Diyarbakır style houses and had coffee with a view over River Tigris. Fırat gave us some background information about the history of Amed and Mesopotamia. Next, we saw the markets, some blacksmiths, mosques, a minaret on 4 "feet" and a Kervansaray. We had tea at a couple of places, talked to Fırat's friends who gave us some delicious spiced bread and ended up in another tea shop at the South gate of the city centre. We overlooked Hevsel Gardens that are - as the city itself - UNESCO world heritage site. Here, agriculture has been practices for some 8000 years.
    In the afternoon, we relaxed at the bike club before meeting again in a Kervansaray for a glass of wine and some cheese. Fırat had invited some friends as well as Atakan and his dance partner. The atmosphere in the bar was great - lots of young people, almost everyone drinking wine and laughing. Could have been in a wine bar in Germany (in summer though...) 😉    Lue lisää

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  • Go East
    10-Eyes-Bridge
    Breakfast on the bridgeRiver TigrisHerbert with a watermelon in front of a cotton fieldWith Mustafa in a spice shop

    Batman sweets

    14. lokakuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    Our destination today was the city named "Batman". We passed by the "10-Eyes-Bridge", an ancient stone bridge across River Tigris where we had our breakfast. The rest of the route led through a relatively flat and dry landscape. Again, we received quite some invitations for tea. We turned down most of them, as we didn't want to cycle too long in the afternoon heat. One car stopped and insisted we take one of their watermelons. They are definitely no cyclists because watermelons are very heavy and way too big to pack. We still took one and ate it a little later.
    We passed many cotton fields and sheep and cow herds. There's also many turkeys and gooses running around. The people are rather poor and kids usually take care of the animals rather than being at school.
    We arrived in Batman early afternoon where our host Mustafa welcomed us. He's one of Fırat's friends and treats us like some special guests even though we can only communicate via Google Translate. He made sure we got enough to eat and took us to a kebab place first. Afterwards, we went to a spice shop where we drank coffee and tried almost all of their sweets and dried fruit before buying some dried apricots in the end. Although we were already full, he also took us to an icecream place. At the end of the night, we had tea and chips at his apartment and watched football: Turkey against Serbia.    Lue lisää

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  • Go East
    Breakfast at Mustafa's
    Hasankeyf: The mausoleo, the new houses and the rebuilt bridge1Mesopotamia regionFixing the tyre againMidyat

    Cycling through Mesopotamia

    15. lokakuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    Mustafa spoilt us with a huge and very delicious breakfast this morning - Kurdish style on the floor. Then we left to discover more of the Mesopotamia region. Our first stop was Hasankeyf. Until February this year, Hasankeyf was an impressive site of cultural importance with an old castle, cave houses and ancient mosques. However, the current Gouverneur built a dam and flooded the area, so that about 90% of Hasankeyf is under water now. They saved the mausoleo and are rebuilding some other buildings like the old bridge in a cultural park. They also built many new look-alike houses for the population. All of "new Hasankeyf" appears more like a ghost town and it's difficult to imagine how it looked before. It's really sad this formerly impressive site got destroyed!
    After Hasankeyf, we had to climb up the mountains again. Herbert suddenly had a flat tyre - caused by his favourite metal pieces. He had to repair it straight away as the hole was quite big.
    Then we rolled into Midyat where we found a hotel. They told us they won't have electricity until tomorrow, so we got a very good price for the room. Exploring Midyat was fun as it's very different from other cities here in Turkey. It has a Christian origin with current Arab and Kurdish influences. The ancient houses are very cool, especially the ornaments, and walking around the small streets was good fun. Food is delicious here with all the Arab spices used. And you can also get some nice wines that are special in this region.    Lue lisää

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  • Go East
    Houses in MardinCoffee with Mehmet and his friendsA mosque and a Protestant church1Evening view over Mardin and Mesopotamia

    Mardin

    16. lokakuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    For breakfast, we got soup this morning. It was good, but definitely not enough for a day of cycling. So we bought bread at a bakery and had a second breakfast after just 15km.
    Shortly after, we stopped again. This time, Abdullah invited us for a coffee and some water. He insisted quite firmly, so we had no chance to decline the invitation. He spoke some German and told us proudly about his farm, explained that this region is mainly Arab and showed us videos of his daughter riding the horses on his farm.
    Just about 2 kilometres later, a family stopped us. They gave us maybe 2kg of grapes and a glass of green peppers. Just like that... In order to actually make it to Mardin today, we declined the upcoming invitations for tea 😂
    When we arrived in Mardin, we were very impressed. It's like an outdoor museum and a great setting for any Arab movies. Many old buildings, markets, spices everywhere. We checked into one of those stone house hotels and just walked around to discover this huge maze. Small streets, tunnels, stairs everywhere. A great city to wander around!
    In one street, we met Mehmet, a film director who invited us for coffee at his workshop. He also invited us to his apartment later to have tea on his terrace overlooking Mardin and Mesopotamia. Before, we had dinner and enjoyed some excellent Syriani wine from one of the roof top bars. Hard life!    Lue lisää

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  • Go East
    Breakfast in Mardin - 5 seconds later, the cat was sitting on my plate eating the cheese...
    Our stonehous accommodationcontemporary witnesses of the SilkroadTime for a turn - closest point to the Syrian border (about 10km away)Looks like they are building a silkroad railway here

    On the Silkroad towards West

    17. lokakuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    Time to go West again. After breakfast, we left for what would be a relatively boring day. We are heading towards Şanlıurfa and follow a Southern arm of the ancient silkroad. It's a highway, it's flat and it's dry, so we just try to get some kilometres in.
    The people here live of agriculture, mainly corn and cotton, and animal farming. They are still friendly and invite us for tea. But in general, they seem to be more serious and smile less.
    One truck driver stopped and offered us a lift - all the way to Antalya if we wanted. He absolutely could not understand we wanted to continue cycling. We actually were a little bit tempted to accelerate the boring part and take a lift to Şanlıurfa, but declined in the end.
    After about 100km, we stopped in Viranşehir, which is half way to Şanlıurfa from Mardin. The city is ugly and some people are very conservative and pushy and only talk to Herbert. The first hotel we checked required a marriage certificate to give us a room, the second one was dodgy and rundown, so we continued our search. We ended up at a more expensive, but Western standard hotel which feels a lot better than the ones before. For dinner, we went to the centre and found a restaurant run by a super nice family who prepared some delicious food for us.    Lue lisää

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  • Go East
    KervansarayBaliklıgölü

    Şanlıurfa - Abraham City

    18. lokakuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    The breakfast at the Western hotel was so huge that we didn't even have to stop for lunch on our 90km stage to Şanlıurfa where Abraham was born according to some sources. We cycled through a dry, rocky landscape with only few tiny and very basic villages.
    As we arrived early, we had some time to explore the city which was really cool. It has an old centre whoch feels very Arabic with its maze-like streets and stone buildings. Most writings on the doors are in Arabic, too. There's countless mosques, a castle, Kervansarays and markets all around, so you can probably spend weeks in the city without getting bored.
    The most important site here is Baliklıgölü, basically a fishpond and an important place for pilgrims. According to the legend, when Abraham was going to get burned at the stake, the fire turned into water and the embers into fish. So now the fish in the pond are holy and don't get eaten. Therefore, even in Corona times, it was very busy at the pond and the surrounding sites.    Lue lisää

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  • Go East
    Excavations at Göbekli Tepe
    Road in reconstruction - gravel and dustJust desertHuge solar parkWaiting for the dark to set up the tent

    Cradle of civilization

    19. lokakuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    Our first destination today was Göbekli Tepe, the "civilization zero" site. It is about 12,000 years old and said to be the first religious temple in the world. The excavations themselves are quite small and not too impressive, but its historical significance is enormous.
    After having visited the archeological site, we headed further North. We wanted to get away from the main roads and travel on secondary roads instead. However, we weren't too lucky. The first road was in reconstruction and had lots of loose gravel. Plus, work was going on, so there were lots of trucks going back and forth. At some points, locals indicated that the road did not lead to where we wanted to go, so we had to take a very long detour. We struggled with bad asphalt and headwinds until we reached the highway again. It was busy and we still had to fight headwinds. So when we found a nice picnic area with grass, tables, a spring and toilets, we decided to call it a day.    Lue lisää

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  • Go East
    Breakfast along a quiet road
    Cycling along Atatürk lake - Euphrates bridge in the backgroundCrossing River Euphrates1And here we are back in the mountains :)Dinner between the pomegranate trees

    Crossing River Euphrates

    20. lokakuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    Next try: after 14km on the highway, we had enough of the busy highway and turned into secondary roads. What a great choice! We could cycle on decently paved roads with no traffic, nice scenery and many sheep and cows. A bit on the exhausting side with some steep hills, but we enjoyed it.
    We cycled all around the East side of Atatürk Lake until we crossed a fancy new bridge at the North of the lake. This is where River Euphrates comes into the lake. So after the Tigris near Diyarbakır, we now saw the other one of the two important rivers of Mesopotamia.
    The rest of our cycling day was exhausting. We could feel we were low on calories, there was just nothing on the way and the white bread and snacks just wasn't enough. However, we made it to Damlacık, where we wanted to stay for the night. Just before the last corner, the landscape changed dramatically all of a sudden. From smooth hills to rough mountains and volcanoes. What a view!
    The owner of the campground was super nice. Even though we asked (and paid) for a campsite, he offered us a room with a bed and an ensuite bathroom. We accepted the offer but still cooked our dinner in their garden, surrounded by apple and pomegranate trees, cows, hens and a squirrel.    Lue lisää

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  • Go East
    Arsamaia attractionsCendere bridgeLunch breakPirin Ancient CityHakan playing some traditional music on the bağlama

    Exhausting climbs to ancient cities

    21. lokakuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    Today, more sights were waiting for us to explore, so we left early - as most days. Our first stop was Arsamaia, in Mount Nemrut National Park. It's located on a hill and we had to cycle up a very steep road to get there. However, it was a super interesting place: an ancient city (over 2200 years old) where you can still see a cave used for food storage, a 156m-long tunnel and the ruins of the houses. It is most known for two reliefs, one of King Antiochos and Herakles shaking hands and one of the Sun God Mithras. We could also see Arsemia castle from here, a castle built on a narrow rock. Plus, the views of the surrounding mountains were stunning.
    Next on our route was Cendere Bridge, a Roman bridge dating back to the 3rd century. We stopped here for breakfast and enjoyed the scenery. Many dogs of all ages (including 4 young puppies 😍) joined us and hoped for some snacks.
    After some more exhausting kilometres on steep rolling roads, we found a Lahmacun bakery in one of the small villages. The owners were very friendly and told us about the tobacco industry in the area. Most people around Adıyaman work in this field as it's good money. At this time, dried tobacco plants are hanging everywhere - in shops, bakeries, sheds. People are waiting for rain to be able to pack it.
    In the North of Adıyaman, we stopped at the ancient city of Pirin. It was excavated just over 10 years ago. The area is huge and you can easily walk around the ruins. Most of the excavated area is the former Necropolis, so you see a lot of graves. It's impressive how well this 2000 year old city is preserved. It was carved into the rocks and during the excavation they basically just took out the dirt.
    We then continued to the centre of Adıyaman where many people talked to us. Again, we experienced Kurdish hospitality at its best. Hasan welcomed us in a friend's apartment and took us out for dinner and tea with a couple of friends. Afterwards, we had a short stroll through the shopping centre before going back to the apartment. His friend Hakan is a phd student in music and played some traditional music for us on the instrument called bağlama.    Lue lisää

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  • Go East
    1Breakfast with Apo and Hasan
    A tobacco shop at the bazarIn a music school drinking raki1Desert time

    Day to relax

    22. lokakuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    After those exhausting days in the mountains, we decided to have a rest day in Adıyaman. There's not much to see in the city, so we spent the day eating, drinking coffee and tea and meeting people. Hasan and Apo were amazing hosts and took is to all those nice places.Lue lisää

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  • Go East
    Picknick area in PazarcıkCampspot for the night

    Fully recovered towards the West

    23. lokakuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    Fully recovered, we continued our ride West. The route wasn't particularly interesting, as we followed a highway. But at least, traffic wasn't bad. People were very hospitable as usual. We could have stopped for tea about every kilometre. Some even offered us food. We accepted two invites at gas stations where we had to stop anyways. Other than that, we politely declined. In this region, there were many food stalls with grapes or dried fruit along the road.
    In the afternoon, we found a picknick area at a lake where we cooked our dinner. We thought about camping here, but on a Friday night, there were way too many people. So unfortunately, we had to turn down another invite (the family at our neighbouring table offered us tea and desert) and get back on the bikes. It was just before sunset, so we had to hurry up to find a campspot before it was dark. About 10km later, we found a place in the bushes. You could still hear the noise from the road, but no one could see us from the there.    Lue lisää

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  • Go East
    Leaving our campspot with the first light
    Stop for tea at the bakery before the big climb"Dolmar" for dinnerThe cycling crew at the club

    Leaving the mountains and "Kurdistan"

    24. lokakuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ☀️ 32 °C

    The wind usually comes from Southwestern directions in this regions - so exactly where we are heading to. Therefore, we left our campspot with the very first light when the wind is not that strong yet.
    We stopped for breakfast after 40km and again after about 70km, just before the only big climb for today. Some guys at a bakery had invited us for tea here which was perfect timing.
    Climbing up the hill was relatively fast and not too hard. 2 guys from Ankara stopped for a chat, a video and photos as they were impressed by our tour.
    Once at the top, the rest of our trip was mainly downhill - against the wind though. The scenery had changed a lot: The mountains on this side are fully covered in trees. What a difference compared to the dry mountains we had been seeing in the past days. The majority of the people here is also mainly Turkish, so we are out of "Kurdistan" again.
    We arrived in Osmaniye where Savaş, the president of the local cycling club, welcomed us. We can sleep in the club house. He also cooked a local dish for dinner and brought it to the club house for us. Some of his cycling friends also came by for tea and a chat, so we had a nice evening together.    Lue lisää

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  • Go East
    On the way to Adana; the fortress on the right side dates back some 7000 years
    Central MosqueOld Roman bridgeOld mosque and Big mosqueAdana kebab for dinner

    Big city ride

    25. lokakuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ⛅ 32 °C

    Before we left Osmaniye, Savaş brought us pide for breakfast. Thus, we had enough energy for the ride to Adana. The route was flat and not particularly interesting, but we could stay on small roads for most of the time. As it was Sunday, the villages we passed were quiet. We also passed lots of orange and lemon tree orchards and hope to catch at least the beginning of the season in November!
    We arrived in Adana early. The city is huge and cycling in the traffic is not too much fun. We did a little tour through the centre visiting, among others, the Central Mosque, Big Mosque and Old Mosque, the markets, a church and an old bridge. Afterwards, we headed to the North of the city where the guys of the local bicycle club welcomed us. Asiye took us out for Adana kebab and local desserts. She even organised a taxi, so that we could see the huge lake park North of the city. It was lit in colourful lights and it obviously THE place to be at night for the locals here.    Lue lisää

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  • Go East
    Breakfast with Asiye and Tekin
    Old houses in TarsusRoman churchOur tour guide Mehmet AliToo much traffic!!

    Cradle of civilization 2.0

    26. lokakuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    Cycling was terrible today, as traffic between Adana and Mersin is a pain! And there's not really any secondary roads to avoid it.
    However, we experienced Turkish hospitality at its best again. In the morning, Asiye took us out for breakfast. Tekin, the leader of the cycling group came by to say goodbye. He asked us, if we want to have a look around in Tarsus and meet one of his cycling friends. And as Tarsus is about half way and we knew the way to Mersin was relatively quick, we agreed. Because, why not stopping for a tea for an hour and meeting a local?
    But here, we had ignored all our previous experience again. The hospitality was overwhelming again. Of course, the guys in Tarsus had prepared a full program for us. It started with a reception at a primary school, the workplace of Göghan, our contact. The director of the school invited us for coffee, biscuits and tea, another teacher and cyclist brought lunch and we also got a tour around the school. They tried eagerly to convince us to stay in Tarsus for a night and were very sad when we insisted on continueing those 30km to Mersin.
    After the school, Mehmet Ali, another cyclist came by to show us around the city. The first stop was at the American Koleji where we met the director who spoke fluent English and gave us some background information Tarsus. The settlement itself is already some 10.000 years old and has been populated ever since. And centre of Tarsus is really quite nice: some excavations, old stone houses, covered markets, a Roman church, and a waterfall. So instead of 1 hour, we spent about 4 hours here and met many nice people again.
    In Mersin, we were welcomed by Süleyman, another friend of Tekin's. We had coffee at his wedding dress shop in the centre where we also met his girlfriend and her son. Afterwards, all of us had fish and Köfte for dinner at a supermarket where they prepare your meet on the bbq straight away. Maybe not the nicest place to sit, but the food was awesome! We finished the evening with a picknick at the sea before going to their apartment.    Lue lisää

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  • Go East
    In the wedding dress shop with Süleyman and Cansu
    Riding on the new bike path along the seaFinally, we went for a swim again

    Finally at the Mediterranean Sea

    27. lokakuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    Turkish times... Instead of our usual start around 7am, we adapted to the Turkish rhythm today. Around 10am, we left the apartment and drove to the wedding dress shop where our bikes were waiting for us and where we had breakfast. Before leaving, Süleyman had a surprise for us: Each of us got 4 (!) bike shirts designed and produced by him and his girlfriend. This more than doubled the number of shirts we carried with us for the last 14 months 😂
    Dressed in the new shirts, we left the shop. Süleyman then had another surprise for us. He took us to the townhall where we got to meet the major of Yenişehir, one of the 4 districts of Mersin. This was quite an experience as he came out of the townhall with his security personnel and a professional photographer and journalist. We shortly talked about our trip, he wished us all the best for the rest of our journey. They promised to send us the pictures, so hopefully we can add one later.
    Afterwards, Süleyman cycled with us on the 15km bike path leading out of the Mersin before waving goodbye. It was now past noon, when we hit the road - Turkish schedule 🤷‍♀️
    Finally back at the sea (now by daylight), we first had some icecream. Then we went on for a while but didn't feel like biking too much. So we stopped at a campsite after only 45km, set up camp and went for a swim.    Lue lisää

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  • Go East
    Kız Kalesi
    HellChurch in HeavenAsthma CaveCampspot

    Heaven and Hell

    28. lokakuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    Finally, we got out of the very busy traffic and into a more quieter area. As most of the time here in Turkey, there were some sights on our way as well. We saw "Kız Kalesi" (Girls Castle) which is in the middle of the sea, about 500m from the shore. Next, we visited "Cennet - Cehennem", the Caves of Heaven and Hell. The caves are a natural phenomena and quite impressive. There's an underground river that had formed a cave system. And when the roof of the caves collapsed, those two big "holes" were left and you can now visit them. The "hell" is a 130m deep hole, 50m in diameter which you cannot access but admire from a platform at the rim. "Heaven" cave is bigger and accessible, so we walked down the stairs to explore. There's also a little church built inside which looked kind of cool. And of course, there's also a Greek myth around Zeus related to these caves which gave them their names.
    Afterwards, we visited Astım Cave ("Asthma Cave") with its colourful stalagmites and stalagtites which is believed to cure asthma, hence its name.
    We then continued cycling until it was time to find a campspot, go for a swim and cook dinner.    Lue lisää

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    1

    Tunnels and hills

    29. lokakuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    Today's route took us along the Mediterranean coast. It was a really beautiful but also exhausting road, as it went constantly up and down. We also passed some tunnels and the Turkish Government is building even more. We think that in maybe 3 years, cars can basically go to Antalya in a straight line through the mountains.
    We ended up staying at a small hotel, had dinner in the center of the village and watched the sunset. And of course, we jumped into the sea to cool down after a day of riding!    Lue lisää

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    Marmure fortress
    The beasts in the moatCycling along the greenhousesAncient city of AnamurHaving some food at our private beachSunset time

    Fortress beasts and night guards

    30. lokakuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C

    Our day started with breakfast at the hotel and a swim in the sea. Not bad! We had decided to take it slowly today, so no rush. Our first stop was after 10km only. We visited Marmure Fortress after Recep, the gardener of the site had invited us to a glass of tea. The fortress is huge and you have a great panoramic view from the top of the tower. The moat is full of turtles guarding the fortress.
    Afterwards, we cycled along the beach of Anamur. There's a long sandy beach and some hotels, so not too appealing to us. The city itself - like pretty much all villages around here - is full of greenhouses for banana plants.
    Our next stop was an ancient city again. We had our lunch here with the ruins in the back and a view of the ocean - what a nice place!
    Before setting up camp, we wanted to cycle a bit further and climb one of the upcoming hills. On the ascend, a scooter stopped on the other side. The driver indicated us to stop and handed over some bananas. On the other side of the hill, we followed the old road and reached a bay again. The village and the beach looked deserted. Cars don't usually pass here anymore as the new road with its tunnels leads through the mountains. However, there was a police station, so we asked them if it's ok to camp at the beach. Of course, it was. The police men also gave us food and water and offered to watch us during the night. And indeed, once it got dark, they checked if everything was ok, if the fishermen bothered us and if we needed more food.    Lue lisää

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  • Go East
    Imam and a picknick lunch on his car

    The hilly road to Almanya (Alanya)

    31. lokakuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    We had two big climbs lined up today, so we left early. Unfortunately, we hadn't slept too well as some locals also camped at the beach and talked loudly until about 4 or 5am. However, in the cool morning hours without winds, our legs got us up the hills easily.
    The road itself was perfect for cycling! Not much traffic, ok asphalt and stunning views of the sea and the mountains!
    When we stopped for a picknick lunch, Imam and his wife arrived shortly after at the same spot. As Imam spoke German, we started a conversation and he invited us to their bbq and some schnaps.
    Afterwards, we headed to Alanya where we checked into a hotel. The city is very touristy and full of hotels, bars and restaurant. As there's many retired Germans around, people call it "Almanya". It definitely feels different compared to what we've seen in the past few weeks. However, we decided to slow down a bit, went for a swim and bought some dinner to have in our small apartment. We are going to stay another day and visit the main sites tomorrow.    Lue lisää

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  • Go East
    Red Tower
    Exploring castle hill1Dinner at the harbourOld city in lights

    Exploring Alanya

    1. marraskuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    Today, we had a relaxed day exploring Alanya. After sleeping in, breakfast and a short yoga session in our apartment, we went to the old part of the city and climbed the castle hill. Next, we went for a swim at Kleopatra Beach, had lunch in Atatürk park and went swimming again. It seems like there's 90% Russian tourists here.
    In the evening, we bought some beers and had a picnic at the harbour. The old city walls are all lit which looked really cool.    Lue lisää

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  • Go East
    Big resorts West of Alanya
    Artificial lake East of SideResort area with trees - East of SideAt Side harbourApollon temple SideWestern beach of Side

    Hotels, Resorts and Shopping Malls

    2. marraskuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    After more than two months in Turkey, the road from Alanya to Side felt like we'd be in a different country. One hotel next to a resort next to a shopping mall. Many resorts with their own aqua park. Many of them right next to the busy 6 lane highway. At this time of the year, more than half are closed. But we really can't imagine spending a holiday in one of them!
    At least the road was flat (thanks to all the tunnels) and we made it to Side quickly. Just before Side, we turned away from the highway and cycled in another resort area. Again, one resort next to shopping malls next to more resorts with aqua parks. Even an artificial lake. At least, there was no noise from the highway and the resorts had grassy and shady areas. Some even looked more like apartment buildings. So a bit better than before.
    When we arrived in Side, we were pleasantly surprised. The ancient ruins are well preserved and freely accessible. The old town and the harbour are also very nice. We just had a quick look as we are going to visit the ancient part of the town tomorrow. Today, we headed to a small apartment hotel outside of the center. It belongs to a friend of one of our contacts in Adana, so we got a good price. The hotel is only a few hundred meters away from the Western beaches of Side, so we went there for some beach exercise and a swim. Again, there's one resort next to another one and most of the long sandy beach is private, i.e. belongs to a hotel. Luckily, some resorts are already closed, so those stretches are empty and we can easily access the amazingly clear and refreshing water.    Lue lisää

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  • Go East
    Old theater
    Old houses in the city center of SideLederhosentraining at the beach

    Rainy Side and a "Lederhosentraining"

    3. marraskuuta 2020, Turkki ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C

    Yoga and swimming at the beach followed by breakfast on our terrace - definitely a good start into the day! Afterwards, we explored the old center of Side by foot which was really cool. We walked around the ruins and discovered nice old houses. Guesthouses are lovely, too. Some had amazing details and beautiful gardens.
    After our city tour, we headed back to our hotel. There's a walking path along the beach. Suddenly, it started to rain very heavily. Luckily, we were right next to a fruit juice shop, so we watched the pouring rain under the roof drinking fresh pomegranate and orange juice.
    Once it stopped raining, we had some bread for lunch at our hotel and went back to the beach for some exercise, an online Lederhosentraining.
    While the tourists in Alanya were mainly from Russia, we would say that in Side it's half Russian and half German. At night, a German guy checked into our hotel and we had a drink at the pool bar. He told everyone his stories about money and women. It's very shameful how some of our compatriots act out in foreign countries.    Lue lisää

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