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Vagabonding
  • TakeMeFurther
Currently traveling
Aug 2022 – Aug 2025

Vagabonding

An open-ended adventure by TakeMeFurther Read more
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    TakeMeFurtherTravelerVagabonding

    Winter in Europe

    August 27, 2024 in Georgia ⋅ ☀️ 35 °C

    In August I feel a lack of motivation to travel. The countries to come are more difficult to travel to than the previous ones and it's the second anniversary of my trip.
    All in all it is reason enough for me to spend time with my family and travel to Germany for a few weeks.
    I travel around and visit friends and family - there's not enough time everywhere.
    I will spend the winter in Europe. Then I'll continue in spring 2025.
    How? We'll see. 😊    Read more

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    Vacation

    July 1, 2024 in Georgia ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C

    I have rented a flat and enjoy the luxury of warm water, an all-time-accessible bed, a freezer(!), electricity and internet…
    The turks have an expression for lazyness:
    It says that the baked pears are flying into ones mouth and that is exactly my feeling here. 😇

    In the garden the small kitty of two months wants to play and nags on my toes.

    I use the time to do some photo editing and research some new hikes for the upcoming weeks. ⛰️    Read more

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    Border Crossing

    June 28, 2024 in Georgia ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    Rolling into Georgia.
    The change of country is just as relaxed as ever.
    The only difference is my doubts as to whether I've made a mistake by calculating my 90 days five times :D
    Nobody raises any objections to my departure. I'm asked to open any bag and am asked if I have any alcohol or tobacco with me.
    After a few minutes the act is complete.

    On the Georgian side they ask me where I want to go. This question keeps coming up - maybe someone can explain to me whether this is just small talk or has a deeper background - in any case, I have to pass, my navigation over the last seven days has been solely focussed on leaving Turkey. I haven't done any research on the country I'm entering.
    But the lady behind the counter doesn't seem to mind.
    *Rumms* - I hear the hammering of the stamp on my passport, which seals my entry and I am welcomed into the country.

    I make it just a few kilometres past the border post behind a thin row of trees, set up my tent there and go to sleep - a minor illness is on the horizon.
    I'm very tired, my limbs ache and so does my head. I prepare my food and my body is already shivering as the sun disappears and I crawl into my cosy sleeping bag, where I feverishly sleep through the next 12 hours.    Read more

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    A last shared Çay

    June 28, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    Exit in Kars - blatant. This is Turkey too?
    The air is cold and I pull on my jumper. The people look just as friendly and interested as before, but as I roll through the town, the familiar shouts and invitations to the national drink are missing.

    The landscape changes - it is now lush green meadows stretching over gentle hills to the mountains on the horizon. The last 100 kilometres of Turkey give it a completely new look. Here I have an even stronger feeling of vastness than before.

    For the last time, I share Çay and a meal with three locals while enjoying the phenomenal view.

    Lost in thought, I roll through small villages with cows and geese and review the last three months.
    I had no idea what to expect - certainly not that I would have such intensive contact with the culture and be so enthusiastic about it that I would now start conversations with other people on the street myself.

    That I feel gratitude in a new dimension: for the people who planted the food that I can enjoy, for the people who paved the road that I am allowed to drive on. For the privilege of being here now, at least as a guest, mostly as a friend or already a member of the family.
    For the people who accompany me for a short or long stretch of my journey. From whom I can learn something.
    A new part of my personality has come to the surface.
    I have experienced warmth from strangers and want to pass this on.
    I have travelled to the end of Turkey - further east than ever before.

    Tears of joy well up in my eyes as I realise this and think of my grandpa, with whom I would have loved to share this experience.

    Tomorrow begins a new adventure within the adventure: Georgia!    Read more

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    Patnos bus station

    June 26, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    I wake up in the morning and feel the heat of the sun that has already risen. The night was pleasant, but I was too exhausted to make high demands.
    I'm still tired but already have adrenalin in my blood. Just under 400 kilometres to the Georgian border. Everything is doable, but my stomach reacts sensitively to stress and makes me feel it. 😬
    A good breakfast follows and I cycle to the next major town on the route:
    Patnos.

    The bike gets a minimum of attention here again:
    -The chain is already really worn out and has jumped off my sprocket several times in the last three days.
    -A broken spoke is replaced and when retightening the nuts I ask the mechanic not to use all his physical strength so that I can loosen the connection myself with my own thin arms in an emergency.
    - New oil makes the chain go round

    There's also a bus station - this time I have a good feeling and buy tickets for 1 person and 1 bike. Departure tomorrow at noon, I'm also offered accommodation behind the ticket counter. Top 😍

    I spend the time until departure chatting to the shop assistant in the supermarket, the sales assistant in a perfume shop and Mohammed, who sells tea and coffee at the station.

    Bike and bus - it's as simple as that. =)    Read more

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    Adilcevaz

    June 25, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    So my stay cannot be extended. 😑

    I find a bus company that would transport me and my bike, but it doesn't leave until the day before my residence permit expires. The information they give me is sparse and doesn't give me a good feeling, so I prefer to set off on my own.
    I have no time to lose and set off in the afternoon. It's 400km to the next Georgian border point and I have 3 1/2 days left. It's going to be a tight ride if I have to do it all alone. I would probably have to do two stages a day. 😬
    On the one hand, I detest such stress (especially here, where you're invited for a çay every hour), but on the other hand I'd like to find out if I'm fit enough for it.
    I try 👍 hitchhiking for an hour, without success.
    Then I set off, I want to do 60 km today.

    I cycle through the night. There is little traffic and my safety vest and warning light are finally being used again.
    Good music motivates me and the darkness takes away the visual stimuli so that I can think and reflect more.
    A few hours pass and at some point I stop for a snack break.

    A moped pulls up next to me and two young men ask me if I'm hungry or if I have dust.
    I answer, not entirely honestly, that I don't feel anything like that. 🤥
    I would like to stay, but I have to do as many kilometers as possible to leave the country in time.
    They speed off. Meanwhile, I try to charge my broken cell phone, which has been stuck in an endless loop all day.
    While I'm squatting on the ground eating a pudding, the moped comes back - I've been caught. 😁
    We ride down to the bay, to the group's regular café. It turns out to be one of the most pleasant conversations I've had here. 🥰

    With renewed energy, I start the last hour of today's stage and finish it at the 72nd kilometer. Tired, I set up my tent next to a small hut at the edge of the field. And then a tent pole breaks 😩. So I sleep under the stars.
    It's 9 degrees, a temperature I've never experienced before... the continental climate is making itself felt.
    Wrapped up in my winter clothes, I fall into a deep sleep.    Read more

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    At the Immigration office & farewell

    Jun 25–Jul 4, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    Arrival in Tatvan. We sit down in a small café whose architecture and range of products make us wonder. There are hot drinks, but also small snacks, like in a small mini-market. A door leads into a large waiting hall. The concept is not right at all. 😵‍💫
    Bruno finally solves the puzzle and finds out that we are sitting in the cafeteria of a hospital. 😁

    We are invited on a tour, which I would have loved to do, but I have to go to the police. My stay in Turkey is coming to an end and I'm hoping to get a few extra days out of it.

    We make a few phone calls at the gatehouse there to identify the relevant authority. While we're standing there, a few colleagues say goodbye and after a few minutes, an estimated 30 people know about my intentions today.
    They give me a small piece of paper with the most important information. 85 days stay, request extension.
    I'm supposed to go to the immigration office tomorrow.

    Overnight stay at a family-run campsite. Many Kurdish families have a picnic there. One of the street dogs is so happy that his whole body wiggles back and forth. 😄
    I take a dip in Lake Van. With my head under water, I hear almost nothing and feel a deep sense of calm that I haven't felt for a long time. So many interactions, so many conversations every day.

    The water tastes salty and when I dry off I feel like I've been bathing in soapy water 😁 - an interesting combination!

    The next morning I want to take the dolmus (local minibus in and between the towns). A Kurdish family starts their picnic next to me and invites me to join them. How I would have loved to take this opportunity!
    The atmosphere is even more different from what I have experienced in Turkey so far. Men and women are mixed at the picnic and the perceived "hierarchy" (the differences in behaviour?) is less pronounced. Women look at you and you can make eye contact - that wasn't so easy in large parts of Turkey.
    There are so many questions in my head about the cultural differences.
    I realise that Kurdish women are fighting for equal rights and therefore have a different role in society. I would have loved to enrich this knowledge with conversations, but I have to move on.

    Unfortunately, they can't help me at the immigration office because visa matters are managed by a different authority. Instead, we have a great time having lunch and guessing ages. I'm pretty close to the truth with all my colleagues, but I fail completely with one 😆
    In retrospect, I would like to apologise to the colleague in question for making him look almost 20 years older. 🤗

    Unfortunately, this is where Bruno and I part ways. We've known each other for a month and have been cycling together through the sweltering heat for two weeks. A small, special chapter is closed. He will set off for Istanbul by public transport to slowly make his way home.    Read more

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    Baykan

    June 23, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☁️ 34 °C

    Tough day today. 38C and the sun. There's a lot of climbing and runter⛰️. The scenery is fantastic but the heat is sweltering. The day starts at what feels like 30 degrees and heats up to 38 degrees 🌡️.
    I take water with me at every opportunity but within half an hour it's at body temperature and no longer refreshing 🥵. Luckily they give me frozen bottles on the way. 🙏
    One person even stops and wants to know if I need food or drinks. When I say no, he wants to give me money in exchange if I don't have any! 😲

    I'm really tired and just want to find somewhere in the shade to sleep.
    They ask me if I want Çay.
    Thanks, but no, I just want to sleep.
    He persists.
    - Çay?
    - No, sleep!
    - Çay?
    - No, sleep.
    - Come, Çay!
    - Yok!

    and after the tenth "Çay?" I say yes. 😮‍💨
    An hour passes and I'm a bit fitter again, it's only a few kilometres to the town where Bruno is waiting.
    You can get almost everything you need in Turkey. But rest is sometimes hard to come by. That's why I prefer to take short power naps in front of towns, then everything is easier and you can enjoy the conversations more.

    In Baykan, I stand in the air conditioning jet of the supermarket. ❄️26 degrees, what a refreshment!

    Bruno joins me and we look for a nice garden café. We watch the thunderstorm from a safe distance. ⛈️
    We end up spending the night here too
    Room and board are all on the owner and in the morning Bruno discovers a bag of fresh bread rolls next to him ❤️

    In the evening, pleasant conversations develop with kids and teenagers aged 11-18.
    The boys are really cute. Inquisitive, friendly, very caring. They invite us in for tea and don't accept any invitation from us, not even the chocolate we want to give them when they come shopping with us.    Read more

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    Final Station Kurtalan 🚂

    June 22, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 39 °C

    I open my eyes and see the landscape passing before me. It is slightly hilly and I can see many fields where people are occasionally working.
    Our compartment is well air-conditioned and looking at the landscape is a real pleasure.

    Our compartment mate Ani looks like a ranger in his khaki-coloured clothes.
    He's a funny guy and he knows how to emphasise things so well that the lack of a translator doesn't carry much weight. Outside, Diyarbakir passes by and we see one tower block after another. They are built but then only utilised to 30%. Then a new one is built. The construction industry seems to be booming, but whether the buildings will ever be fully utilised ...

    We arrive in Kurtalan in the afternoon. The heat hits us in the face and we flee to a café.

    Finding a place to sleep is very easy this time, we are recommended the city park.
    I remember the complications with the police a few days ago... 🤭

    We've just got all the shopping ready, want to buy some fruit - and are told to stay for a little tea.
    We have a short crash course in Kurdish and I learn that Turkish is no longer fully appreciated/heard. Many people are Kurdish and understandably value it.

    We set off to find a quiet spot in the park - please what? 😨
    The whole park is full of people. Small groups are sitting on the grass or walking through the park, music is playing, children are playing, romping, riding and rolling around - a nightmare!
    Bruno and I try to find a quiet corner, but like two colourful dogs we attract a lot of attention and are often approached. 😬

    We have found a spot and a group of young people in tow. I'm dog-tired but try to hold a conversation at first.
    It's no use - as soon as one group leaves, the next one arrives.
    At some point, I concentrate on building up the time and only answer sporadically. We eat and are visited by two little girls who are very interested.
    We eat and offer them something.
    When we have finished, I politely ask them to let us rest and they leave us.

    Tired, I close my eyes and wake up not long afterwards with itchy feet - mosquito bites!
    I anoint my feet, fall asleep, wake up and itch again. I anoint myself again.
    The next time I wake up from the itching, I discover the beasts in my tent. About fifteen hungry beasts have made it into my tent and pounced on me.
    There's a brief massacre and then it's quiet - I fall asleep...
    ... until I wake up to a jet of water hitting my tent. The park lawn is being sprinkled. Tired, I sit in my tent and monitor the amount of water. After a quarter of an hour, the spook is over. 🙏😴

    I oversleep the next day. Bruno is already driving off because it's going to be 38 degrees in the shade again.
    The ride is demanding and hilly and forces me to cycle slowly. I keep cool by keeping my clothes wet.    Read more

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    Hospitality in Malatya

    June 20, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 38 °C

    We roll into Malatya and Bruno buys his first loaf of bread from a bakery. It's not wrapped up yet and someone invites us to a barbecue. 😄
    We roll through the city and see the result of the earthquake that shook this region a year ago.
    Many buildings have cracks in their façades and are still uninhabitable today. A large part of the population has been living in containers ever since. Some of them have been put together on many areas cleared for this purpose (former car parks?). Mini-markets have been positioned directly opposite, also housed in containers.
    We are told that every family has victims to mourn and we are shown some photos of the deceased. The anonymous statistics and figures from television and newspapers are given a face and make the story more tangible.

    Former landmarks have also fallen victim to the shocks. The former market hall no longer exists, but a new market, also made of containers, has been built in its place.
    The satellite map shows many newly built neighbourhoods. It is not certain whether the new buildings are now earthquake-proof, as the law on earthquake-proof construction has been in place since the turn of the millennium.

    Burak crosses our path, a bright man with whom I talk about religion - a big topic here. Many Muslims try to convince me, as a non-religious person, of Islam, but he conducts a very open dialogue and skilfully links topics of faith with those of morality. I would have loved to continue the discussion, but my days in Turkey are coming to an end. He also regrets that he doesn't have more time and, instead of inviting us to dinner, wants to pay for it. He offers us money, a bizarre situation as we are the rich Europeans who don't have to mourn any deaths in the family and who live in an economically and politically stable country.
    Normally I would have refused, but my gut feeling tells me that he feels a deep need and I overcome my first impulse to refuse.
    He offers to answer questions about religion and faith and we stay in touch.

    Finding a place to sleep that night is not difficult. We are shown a small park in the city centre, where it is nice and safe. A little strange at first, as everyone in Germany would turn up their noses. But the night is quiet.

    On the second evening, we have the pleasure of barbecuing with Turgut. He takes us to a nearby lake where some Turkish families have already started barbecuing. Smoke hangs in the air and hangs over the lake.
    Turgut doesn't give us the opportunity to join in. We are the guests and he wants to cater for us in the best possible way.
    As a farewell and for the train journey, he gives us the vine leaves made by his wife and a lot of barbecue food. He apologises several times for not being able to spend more time with us and that he would have liked to be more hospitable, but he is leaving that night for a family wedding.

    He takes us to the railway station, where friends of his are waiting. They turn out to be just as interested and welcoming.

    Finally we are alone and there are still a few hours before the train departs. The person at the ticket counter turns out to be very funny and tries to put in a word for us with the train staff. Actually, only folding bikes are allowed.
    As a memento, he gives me a 5Lira note with the date and his name on it - a little artefact for my travel diary.

    An official from the station staff shows us how to do it and we sleep a little in the waiting hall.
    The train arrives, we have our tickets 🎟️ and there's plenty of room on the train - off to bed and 😴.    Read more

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    Confused negotiation with the police

    June 18, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 32 °C

    It's hot again today, just like always. 🤷‍♂️Wir get up early and do a lot of kicking and sweating - same old story. The body has got used to it and at some point it's no longer uncomfortable, you have other things to worry about 😂.

    In the late afternoon, we look for a place to sleep and roll up to the town mosque. Flo and Julie (🇫🇷) have camped here on the lawn of the mosque and we would also like to spend the night on consecrated ground.
    An elderly gentleman greets us and shows us the meadow behind the mosque. Ideal. We sit with him, chat for a while and wait for the imam to make a decision.

    A man in a shirt and waistcoat arrives. We have no idea how imams dress here, but this could be him.
    He talks to our companion and then leaves.
    Our companion sits there and stares into the distance. Finally, I ask about the outcome of the conversation.
    He has no idea either and tells us to contact the police. 🤷‍♂️

    We trudge off to a branch of the police. Two passers-by are briefly asked for directions. They stop an expensive car and point out the driver. He nods and will probably take us there.
    Two kilometres further on, he drops us off in front of a well-secured base.

    There they suggest a campsite 7 kilometres away and in the opposite direction. Not impossible, but we already have an 80km stage tomorrow. 😬
    I remember that someone once recommended a 'really nice' campsite in a nature park. It was already dark and the campsite in question was 25 km away and 300 metres above me 😱. But it was really beautiful. Drivers estimate these distances differently. The well-known rule 'objects (in the mirror) are closer than they appear' doesn't apply when cycling 😄 .

    We bring up the municipal mosque; they would have referred us to the police.
    We are at a loss. Everyone is lost in thought. A policeman suggests we could spend the night behind the mosque (Yes! Please!🙏). There is disagreement.
    It's quiet, everyone is thinking.
    One of the policemen brings up the idea of the mosque again.
    They say 'yes, maybe we can do that'.
    Meanwhile, Bruno is told to phone a friend of a policeman and explain the situation again. This has happened to us before, the Turks seem to have relatives and friends in every region (no wonder with this openness and hospitality!)

    We are one step closer to a solution. We are told to get our bikes and then a solution can be found.
    I ask to clarify the situation: 'and then we take the bikes to the mosque?
    They reply: 'No, the mosque is closed.
    I am at a loss. I don't understand the situation. 😄

    A policeman calls an English-speaking friend and hands me the phone. They want to help us and ask what they can do.
    I explain the situation and that I think we can come to the police with the bikes.
    He explains this to the policeman.
    One of the policemen asks me:
    'What are you doing now?
    I understand the situation even less. 🤯
    We've just found a solution, haven't we? 🤣
    I reply that we'll get the bikes and come here.
    They confirm: get the bikes.
    Well, at least we've agreed on that. 🤞

    We get the bikes. A new face greets us at the police station and suggests the campsite again. By now I'm dreading the fact that all the policemen have changed shifts and we've lost the little negotiating progress we've made 🤣 and are experiencing the same situation as on Groundhog Day all over again. 🙄

    Fortunately, a familiar face comes out of the building. They briefly explain the situation and obtain authorisation for us to stay overnight.
    Then everything happens quickly: we are led behind the old police station and invited in for tea to celebrate the successful conclusion of the negotiations.
    Instead of sleeping on consecrated ground, we are now well protected behind the police station.    Read more

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    Black Canyon to Kemaliye

    June 14, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    We are following in the footsteps of Flo, Julie (2 🇫🇷) and Amelie 🇩🇪 - a group of cyclists who cycled through here months ago. They met in Turkey and spent a few weeks together before going their separate ways again.
    Bruno has been very fascinated and inspired by J+F and so we find ourselves on the roads that the trio took to cycle along the Euphrates.

    We are the only ones to get off in Çaltı. There is no raised platform but we are helped with our luggage. The train departs and moves the cabbage on the tracks one last time, proving that this station is not one of the busiest in Turkey.
    A friendly man comes to us from the station shelter and tells us that we shouldn't drink the water from the fountain. Instead, he offers us his drinking water and, fresh and soaking wet, we set off on the dusty track.

    The route first takes us 350 metres up the mountain via steep hairpin bends, where we work up quite a sweat - at around 30 degrees. At the top, we find a mountain of gold and other precious metals next to the road. (The lab confirmation is still pending, but we took samples with us to be on the safe side).
    (Dad, if you're reading this: I'll ask at the border if export is allowed! 😀)

    Then it's all downhill and after a fast descent we find ourselves at the entrance to the Karanlık Canyon and the tunnel, which has been connecting Kemaliye with the environment since 2002 and has become a highlight for tourists.
    We roll (slowly) through the tunnels for several minutes at a time and need a few hours to cover the short distance, as there are plenty of views and the air here is very pleasantly cool compared to the air soup out there.

    Kemaliye is touristy but stylish. Everything is nicely decorated with standardised wooden signs for the shops, flower boxes are dotted here and there and Atatürk stands on the small central square overlooking the idyllic village.

    Bayram, the highest Islamic festival, begins tomorrow. It lasts four days and commemorates Abraham, who was supposed to sacrifice his son Ishmael to prove his faith. Ishmael was spared, but a goat was sacrificed.
    Shops will usually remain closed and only reopen after a few days. One side of us is happy about the good supply and that we don't have to store food for several days - on the other hand, the situation shows us that even for the highest, four-day festival, only a short business break is possible. The shops have to keep running.

    Our family-run campsite is situated on a slope overlooking the small town and both banks of the river. The evening we arrive, a young woman is celebrating her birthday and we join in the celebrations with cake 🍰 and traditional dancing.

    The local restaurant serves good food every evening and the waitress is so quick to clear the table that I call 'stop' the first time to keep my half-full ayran.
    From then on, she always peeks over my shoulder with a smile to see if the cup is empty 🤭    Read more

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    🚂 to Divrigi

    June 14, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

    Bruno and I take the daily 🚂 East Express from track 9 3/4 in Kayseri and cover the distance of 260 kilometres comfortably within 8 hours.
    It could be a bit quicker, but in the end we're glad that we're travelling more comfortably than on our bikes.

    The journey takes us along a small river and we get a foretaste of the scenery to come. Behind the window panes we see bare hills rolling by. Today, for once, we are sitting in an air-conditioned railway carriage and are not (yet) struggling in the heat.

    An animal market is taking place in the city due to the upcoming festival of sacrifice and we have a few amusing conversations with the traders.
    On recommendation, we visit the large mosque in the town with its ornate door frame and learn a little about the significance of the place for the Seljuks.

    Tomorrow we will continue our journey, this time only one stop, to explore a special highlight of this area.    Read more

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    Seljuk medicine

    June 12, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 32 °C

    I roll down the mountain at a monkey's pace and convert the potential energy that I painstakingly built up yesterday back into kinetic energy in no time at all.

    The cool mountain air is replaced by the warm city air. Despite the many parks in the city, there are still plenty of tarmac or stone surfaces that store and reflect the heat very well.

    I meet Bruno again (we know each other from Konya) and we visit the Seljuk Museum. I particularly remember the great achievements in the field of medicine at that time. Even back then, illnesses were understood holistically as a combination of physical, mental and environmental aspects and treated accordingly. This is how the first hospitals (also called "House of Health" / "House of Healing" at the time) came into being. Mental illnesses were also treated back then - not by exorcising devils or other comparably fruitless methods as in Europe, but by means of music and aromatherapy, for example.

    The sounds of water or instruments were used, for example, to calm or create feelings. Concerts were regularly held in the houses to improve the healing process.
    Very interesting approaches for today's medicine in my opinion ;)    Read more

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    Animal Zoo

    June 12, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    I open my eyes in the morning - and the first thing I think of is the mountain that is out of my reach 😕

    A noise attracts my attention A pack of squirrels is marauding and plundering through the prairie, not even stopping at my property.Read more

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    A dream is shattered

    June 11, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    Ever since I saw the immensely high mountain peaking the anatolian plain, I've been super excited. I want to get up there!
    I spend the day preparing:
    Gathering information, checking the route, planning and buying food.

    It's 3900 meters high.🏔️ 🤩
    The air gets thin from 3000 m upwards, so I might as well get a few hours of altitude training in. The route is strenuous but not technically demanding and I'm in very good shape.
    This is going to be an adventure!

    At the end of the day, I get into position and ride up another 1000 meters - to 2200 m above sea level. At the beginning I'm still having fun and ask the mountain if it has any more up its sleeve - a 9% gradient won't stop me!
    An hour and a half later, I concede a draw to the mountain and use my breath for pedaling rather than for complaining 😄
    After two and a half hours (exactly my estimate!) I arrive at the top pretty exhausted and see how the sunset bathes the whole plateau in an orange-red color.

    I roll up to the person I want to entrust my bike to the next day when I climb the mountain.
    I'm sitting with Mehmet in his container and we talk about our families, his work and our lives. Two dogs scurry up and down in front of his container and get an idea of my 17,500 km adventurous ride while they sniff at my bags. 🐕🐕

    The evening before the ascent, I report to the police, who guard the mountain and register the climbers for safety's sake - and don't get clearance. 😔
    The latest regulations say you have to apply for a permit. This would be possible in Kayseri (27km away and 1200m lower) from tomorrow. And I would need a guide anyway. 🥺

    The end of the story for tonight: I made a detour that lasted several days and had to carry food for a whole company up the mountain today. 😩
    The brief dream of the brilliant view and the experience at this altitude with a mega view of the Anatolian plain has been shattered.    Read more

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    The day of laughing Childs

    June 10, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    I start a little earlier today to escape the heat of the day. In this part of Turkey it's now usually over 27°C and even if the heat isn't so bad due to the wind, it's more fun to get a bit of fresh air.

    My route takes me through a small canyon. ⛰️⛰️
    While the landscape above is rather steppe-like, a river has created a small and peaceful paradise. A great spot for camping!

    I did not have a flat tire for weeks and changing it only takes 20 minutes. The nearby water sprinklers regularly spray me with water, which makes the heat more pleasant.

    During my lunch break, a couple of kids come up to me and we have a really nice chat that ends in test rides on my bike. One of the boys even does better than me on my first few meters. Maybe I've convinced the next offspring to cycle today 🤭

    The children leave and are replaced by a group of young people. They also want to know a lot and then pose for a photo. They want me to do a wolf salute. Knowing what it means, I leave out the greeting.
    They want to invite me for a cup of tea and I accept. Then they take me to the party headquarters of the MHP, an extreme right-wing and arch-conservative party. 😓
    Portraits of Atatürk and the party's founders hang on the walls. Behind the large desk sits a man my age, perhaps the local chairman. Half the kids are around 13, the rest around 17.
    We have Çay and baklava. I can easily avoid the questions that revolve around politics. I don't think there's any point in having a discussion here, the opinions are too different for that.
    I think it's a shame that I'm once again being presented with the typical (memorized?) opinion that there are only terrorists in eastern Turkey. What a nonsense.
    The meeting leaves me perplexed and somewhat hopeless because I can already see the next generation of children growing up with hate images in their heads.    Read more

  • TakeMeFurtherTravelerVagabonding

    Derinkuyu

    June 8, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    Historians and archaeologists disagree on whether the underground city of Derinkuyu was dug to protect it from attackers or from adverse climatic conditions. What is certain is that I definitely visit it today to protect myself from the climatic conditions. 😁

    Whatever the cause, the city is impressive. The caves were only discovered by chance in 1965 and it is estimated that only a fraction of them have been uncovered.
    It is uncertain how many people lived there and estimates vary widely between 3000-50000 inhabitants. What is certain, however, is that it was possible to live down there for some time.

    The small, shoulder-width tunnels lead deep underground.
    Below, there is everything a city needs: Storage rooms, stables, living and communal areas, churches and more.
    The city was closed off by large stone gates.

    Dozens of these cities were built in the region and it is assumed that not all of them have been found yet.    Read more

  • TakeMeFurtherTravelerVagabonding

    Cappadocia!!

    June 5, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

    Arrival in the highlight of Turkey: Capadocia!
    The heat continues and has forced me to get up earlier. I get used to it and from 8 o'clock it's as warm in the tent as in an oven anyway, so I get out of my sleeping bag and prefer to spend the time outside where the wind is blowing.

    Shortly after my supermarket shop, a young woman jumps out of the car and speaks to me. That's how I meet the hitchhiking duo Robin and Natalia, with whom I end up on the edge of a cliff right next to the balloons.
    I am woken up at the crack of dawn by loud fans. The balloons are being filled with air. Shuttle buses roll up and disgorge their human cargo at the launch site. The balloonists giggle and cackle nervously. One by one, they climb aboard and take off.
    A few wedding couples remain behind, not wanting to miss out on the scenery, a few ladies in red dresses (I count about 7) who are perhaps still searching, and of course us travellers.
    I hike through the gorges for three days - three days with different and amazing rock formations in front of me.
    As we prefer to get a good night's sleep, we retire to rock caves in the evening, which are very well air-conditioned.

    The area on which these highlights are concentrated is smaller than expected: there are only a few small tourist villages and the gorges in between that attract people. Everything is super easy to get to by bike - that gives it plus points in my rating!

    I'll let the pictures speak for themselves, which I'm sure everyone has seen a thousand times - just without the bearded catweasel ;)    Read more

  • TakeMeFurtherTravelerVagabonding

    Çok sicak! / Heat 🥵

    June 3, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 32 °C

    The proverbial weatherman is lying boiled on the ground today. It's 31 degrees, the sun is beating down and drawing hard shadows on the ground. There are 45 kilometres behind me and the mountains ahead.

    I find a particularly playful pack of dogs and indulge my play instinct once again. Marvellous! 😁
    I spend the rest of the day simmering away in the shade and warming up inside with one çay after another. Friendly villagers sit down with me, we talk all day and exchange ideas. I've almost got the hang of the translator, but unfortunately it's still a bit complicated.

    We have a few beers in the evening, but unfortunately I turn down two invitations to stay - the migratory bird has to move on...    Read more

  • TakeMeFurtherTravelerVagabonding

    Çatalhöyük

    June 1, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    Anyone who knows me also knows my gaps in historical knowledge. For me, a visit to a normal museum has to start with the basics: what is it all about? What time period are we in? What will I learn?

    When visiting the Neolithic settlement of Catalhöyük, my lack of historical knowledge does not limit my ability to learn much this time.
    Overarching geopolitical contexts simply don't play a role here and even if I were asked for a date, it wouldn't matter if my estimate was 1000 or 2000 years off. :D

    What amazes me is the timeline of human civilisations shown at the beginning of the museum. All the great empires are represented here - you read names like Sumerians, Hittites, (they were once mentioned in the Bible, weren't they?), the Egyptian pharaohs, the Han dynasty, the Mayans, the Merkel era ... but they are all far off in the ‘near’ past.
    In the photo you can see the orange ray that describes the civilisation that Catalhöyük built. The Sumerians follow a few thousand years later and then all the names of the others far behind. :o

    At that time, people began to settle down and combined the familiar methods of gathering and hunting with sedentary eating methods. Animals were domesticated and crops were cultivated.
    At the height of the settlement, several thousand people lived here. Remarkable, if one remembers that the total estimated world population at this time is around 5-10 million people.

    The town was made up of many rectangular houses and had no streets. People moved from one roof to another and entered the houses via roof hatches. The life of the settlement probably also took place on the roofs.
    (I think this could be an inspiration for modern urban planning - we've already lost the streets to cars, so at least we could open up the roofs to pedestrians ;) )

    Inside, there were lying areas, a fireplace and the first household items - people decorated their homes and painted the white walls with symbols and pictures. The houses were reused several times and stood for an estimated 400 years - in between, people may have moved and then taken the remains of the deceased buried in the ground with them - an unusual custom from today's perspective, but people wanted to be particularly close to their ancestors back then.

    Back then, people must have really fought against superhuman monsters, because the murals always had a scale on them. ‘Animals on the wall are bigger than they appear!’ :O

    Inspired by the millennia-old tradition of sleeping in solid walls, I also find four suitable walls to set up my bed in tonight.    Read more

  • TakeMeFurtherTravelerVagabonding

    Konya

    May 20, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☁️ 26 °C

    I've made it as far as Anatolia!
    From now on I'm further west than ever before. I've been to Turkey before, but only to Belek, a tourist centre. The holiday was nice, but there was absolutely no cultural exchange to speak of, because we spent our days at the breakfast buffet in the morning, by the pool in the afternoon and in the bar in the evening. Times are changing. 😊

    Just had a nice chat with Mohamed at the hostel reception. I asked him about the ingredients for breakfast and he looked deep into my eyes and then said in a whisper: ‘Breakfast is - he cleared his throat - and got even quieter - bad’. He said he couldn't speak out loud and nodded his head in the direction of the surveillance camera. I nodded knowingly and went on my way. I found my favourite breakfast at Sofi's around the corner - a delicious omelette with cheese and vegetables.

    There's a Turkish proverb that says: ‘May the pears fly into his mouth roasted.’ It means that someone is very lazy. I'm not that lazy when I sit and work for hours in Ümit's Té, but the dough rings still fly into my mouth when they're fried. Every day the seller comes round and brings them to the table. It's marvellous.

    Shortly before I leave, I watch the whirling dervishes of Konya. They belong to the Mevlana order, which was named after the mystic Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Rūmī (1207-1273).
    He is one of the most important Persian-language poets of the Middle Ages and a central figure of the Mevlevi order, a brotherhood of Sufis.
    They try to reach ecstasy and transcendental states by performing gyrations. One hand is always directed upwards to receive the divine blessing and the other hand points towards the earth to distribute it. Today, however, nobody goes into ecstasy.

    What I find quite funny in Turkey is that I receive a text message from the government every few days. Sometimes it's congratulations on Mother's Day, Ramadan or sporting events, and once there was a request to donate blood and an invitation to a wedding.
    I didn't go to the wedding because I thought it was inappropriate to turn up without knowing anyone.
    I didn't go to the blood donation either. I have a big heart but there's always not enough blood in it. 😛    Read more

  • TakeMeFurtherTravelerVagabonding

    Beyşehir

    May 14, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    I've been eating apples with walnuts for a few days now. The huge mountain of food is slowly diminishing and I can also treat a few people to something healthy from Aunt Şükriye's food bag.
    The place to sleep in Beyshir is great. I drive here every evening and pass the dog packs that sound the alarm every time I appear on the horizon. Day by day, some of them become more trusting because they have realised that sometimes there is some cheese. One remains stubborn and continues to bark, while all the others scurry around me wagging their tails.😮‍💨

    Beysehir is home to the best-preserved wooden mosque. It was built in 1296-1299
    by Esrefoğlu Süleyman Bey during the rule of the Seljuks and is definitely worth a visit. The swallows liked it too, they happily chased each other in it.

    At night, my tent is lit up by a car headlight and I stick my head out of the tent.
    I don't understand the words and I can't make sense of the gentleman's intention. I offer to pack up my tent, which he firmly denies and gets out.
    He shakes my hand and introduces himself as Suleyman. After an invitation to çay, he drives on to the lake. It's funny - I suppose I would have been chased away in Germany.    Read more

  • TakeMeFurtherTravelerVagabonding

    A Day with Aunt Şükriye

    May 12, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☁️ 16 °C

    Today I was invited for tea and more at breakfast. A friendly lady appeared behind me and spoke to me. She wanted to know if I wanted to come round for a cup of tea. Conveniently, she lived right next to the playground. So she was able to show me directly where I needed to roll to after breakfast. No sooner said than done - I was now sitting outside her house on a small bench. They had even laid out an extension cable for me so that I could work 😄 but I found it more exciting to talk to the family, watch the birds they had there and everything around me and let the day come to me.
    Instead of work, it's çay and entertainment today.
    Yasin takes a look at the bike and when I tell him that it needs a bit of repair, he won't let me stop him. 🛠️🔩The kickstand is fixed, everything oiled. The lamp, which has been broken for four months, gets a bracket.
    They won't let me spend the night in the tent and a friendly neighbour offers me an empty flat.
    Before I leave, Yanis and his mum come out of the kitchen with a large food parcel and strap it onto my porter. Fruit, sweets, walnuts (which is fine, I still have the hammer I was given), a bag and a rain jacket. 🥰
    Shortly before I leave, a pair of chicks hatch. Tiny, these little quails.

    I roll out of the city with Yasin - he on his Mondial, me on my bike. We take a look at his apple trees and I taste ripening almond kernels for the first time, which are still liquid in their green skins.
    He also has an apple cold store and we take a look at the huge cold rooms in which tonnes of apples are stored. He gives me a big bag of apples which I somehow manage to get on my bike and then roll off into the distance. I don't know how the bike carries it all, but it rolls.
    Gelendost covers about 20% of the Turkish apple requirement and today about 3000% of my daily requirement 😁

    I roll and roll and can hardly get the laughter out of my face at my first break. I manage to save about 100 bees from swimming and finally find my personal guardian angel Ramazan, who has stopped to make sure I'm okay and don't need any help. Germans are like brothers to Turks and he offers to help me with any problems, from finding my way around to official matters and difficult situations.

    I am not a tourist here, I am among friends.    Read more

  • TakeMeFurtherTravelerVagabonding

    Sagalassos

    May 9, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ ☁️ 14 °C

    I'm standing on the Lower Agora, one of the city's main squares, and somehow I can't comprehend that this place was supposed to have existed thousands of years ago.
    The first settlements in this area date back to 8000 BC and Hittite documents point to a similar mountain settlement around 1400 BC. At the time of its conquest by Alexander the Great in 333 BC, the city was already in full bloom.

     People have lived, loved and hoped here. Children ran through these streets playing. Traders sold their goods, festivals were celebrated. All that remains are stones and broken pieces.

    I have visited a few archaeological sites but the size and condition of the site is impressive.    Read more

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