Dirikköy

Before leaving the gas station, our personal "gas station guard" brought us coffee. Then we cycled about 20km on a main road, turned off the highway and stopped at a small gas station to have more of Şeref's homemade sourdough bread for breakfast. An older man invited us for tea to his house, but we understood what he wanted to say too late. So we missed out on this.
Instead, we continued a hilly ride on some quiet secondary roads. It was extremely hot, so even those 50-100m climbs were really exhausting. After another 35km, we had to go back on the main road as there was no other option in our direction. The highway here has a wide shoulder and smooth asphalt, so it's safe. But it's no fun sharing the road with all the fastmoving cars and the noise they make!
We stopped for a second breakfast at a restaurant that Şeref had recommended. It was one of the best breakfasts EVER! And even with our need of calories, we were completely full afterwards.
From here, it was one more climb in the heat and then we could see the sea - FINALLY! We had to fight against the strong headwinds, even on a downhill, but eventually reached our campground and jumped into the clear turquoise water. What a luxury after a sweaty day!!Read more