Istanbul

Day 84 (Sunday, 6th of December, 2015)

Joe and I didn’t feel too hot this morning after last night and slept in till nearly one. It was alright because Burgas historically doesn’t have too much to show. We roamed the main pedestrian square to get the cheep street food that Eastern Europe has in plenty. Two lev or about a buck and some change will buy you a small personal pizza. We then headed to the Sea to read and relax till it was dark. I finished the fellowship of the ring and now ready to get the 2nd and 3rd from home when Astrid comes over. It seems nearly impossible to get a book in English over here so they hold their weight in gold. We took tonight a bit easier and watched Casino Royal while facetiming Mom and Dad in the middle. It feels great to get contact with home. In some ways I miss home more after while at the same time I feel refreshed and happy in knowing things are going well on the other side of the world. Today I thought a lot about my route after Istanbul. I’ve made some minor changes and have decided on adding Uzbekistan after Kazakhstan and before Kyrgyzstan. I’ll have to get a visa for it in Istanbul and possibly a letter of Invitation from a travel agency.

Day 85 (Monday, 7th of December, 2015)

Leaving Burgas. We’re getting down to a lot of Joe’s lasts. His last time leaving a big city by bike. Again we had to stop by a bike shop before heading out to get an extra tube. It’s been a while since we haven’t had to. We also had to get some cheap street food for the road. The ride out was beautiful as we biked south along the bright and sunny coast of the Black Sea. We camped just as we turned inland and approach entering Turkey tomorrow. I really can’t say thank you enough to all the people supporting me back home. It’s an unbelievable feeling knowing that in hard times of the future I’ll have my home to push me on. Tonight we made a campfire while jammin to music with the speaker. It’s a clear night with the stars bright above us. Life has been feeling pretty great recently as we’re wrapping up Europe.

Day 86 (Tuesday, 8th of December, 2015)

This morning we made our way up and down many hills towards the border with Turkey. I had my first flat after assuring Joseph months ago that I wouldn’t have one throughout Europe. Three days too early but I’d say I’m pretty lucky to last over 3,500 miles without one or many bike problems at all for that matter. If anyone is planning on taking a bike tour as I highly recommend, I couldn’t give more praise to Surly. More specifically, the Long Haul trucker. It’s incredibly durable without sacrificing much in terms of weight and speed. Entering Turkey we had to use a visa for the first time. All the countries this far have been easy to enter but countries in the future may prove to be more difficult. Russia and Kazakhstan involved a complicated process of obtaining the visa. I’m hoping that’ll be enough and I won’t have to bribe any border guards. Only a couple hours into Turkey we experienced the hospitality that I’ve heard so much of ever since I started planing this trip over a year ago. In the first small village we stopped in a man in a cafe motioned me in through the window. I went in and a sweet teas was served as we had the usual conversation involving not much more than hand motions. We said our thanks and headed out to camp a couple kilometers down the road. I felt excited about the future and the time I’ll spend in Turkey. I still hold strong in thinking that good people is better than good weather. Speaking of, the wind outside is the strongest we’ve encountered at night and we struggled to put up our tents before they were blown down even with some baggage in them. Using the stove outside was without question not going to work so inside it came. I avoided death by carbon monoxide poisoning and no holes were burnt into my tent. Two days till Istanbul!

Day 87 (Wednesday, 9th of December)

The final full day of biking in Europe. We did it right. It began a little tough with the wind continuing into the morning and the hills failing ease up quite as much as expected. However the sun was peeping out between the clouds and we were quickly approaching Istanbul so it was hard to be in a bad mood. In the first village we rode through I experienced another Turkish stereotype other than their hospitality they give off. The abundance of aggressive dogs. It was Joseph’s turn to lead for the day so they targeted me behind him. As one dog turned into five they began to bark and growl while getting alarmingly close. We were riding up a hill so our speed was limited. A couple began to snarl and one sunk its teeth onto my rear pannier but failed to penetrate the material. We armed ourselves with sticks thereafter and tucked them into our panniers, easily accessible and prepared for the next time. By late morning we had gotten off the gravel roads and onto the highway where we hit a town and I withdrew a solid 800 Turkish Lira for the 3 to 4 weeks I’ll be in Turkey. We had to get a feel for how much you could get per Lira by eating a massive 12 inch hoagie sandwich (called a doner kebab) and sure enough it was 6 Lira or $2. Not much further we stopped at a vacant gas station where three puppies came out and pounced all over us. They were adorable at about 8 weeks of age. As the day went on the terrain flattened and we stopped again 25 km later in a larger town where my tire had gone flat again. Coming in I had the same incident with another dog but we dropped our sticks once we reached to highway. No damage again but I may want to keep a stick or small rocks with me whenever we’re riding. My tire was so worn out that it left a hole the size of half a dine. Initially I was going to just put another tire boot to cover the hole but decided to go to a bike shop instead and not wait to Istanbul to replace the tire. There a friendly Germany who spoke almost no English brought out a massively thick 2 inch tire with huge tread pattern . After spending north of an hour adjusting the fenders and brakes we were back out for Joe’s last night of camping. We had a fire again while reminiscing on some of our favorite moments and stretches of the past three months. It’s my last night of sleeping outside for a three week period. I know it’ll feel like a significant amount of time because even after 4 days in Rome without biking I became anxious to begin again. Tomorrow will be the last day of biking with someone. We’ll ride into Istanbul with ear to ear smiles.

Day 88 (Thursday, 10th of December, 2015)

Here it was! Last day of riding in Europe. The riding wasn’t that pleasant being on a busy highway that passed many sites of huge construction projects around Istanbul. I later found out that we rode near the area where the world’s largest airport is currently being built. The day continued through ugly roads near the freeway that confirmed people’s comments on the difficulty of getting into Istanbul. About halfway through the day we turned the corner the see a line of half a dozen dogs at the top of a hill barking at us. Joe and I gathered some rocks and thin tubes that acted as whips. It seemed to be straight out of a battle scene as we charged them side by side but they quickly surrendered and casually moved to the side. I’ve also found that yelling as loudly as I can and staring them straight in the eyes sometimes works just as well. As I was biking into Istanbul and queuing up some last songs to listen to the trip up to this point began to weigh on me. One continent down and one to go. At the present it’s time to celebrate the end of Europe rather than think about Asia. Again we were able to stay with a Warmshowers host willing to put us up for so many days. He’s even a fellow American! His name is Kirby and he moved here years ago as part of a long story but currently he’s here as a website programmer and software engineer. He has a flat on a top of a building with a terrace looking over the city. What a great start to my 8 days here.

Day 89 (Friday, 11th of December, 2015)

First morning of my three week biking break and I can’t sleep in. Tough. I headed across to the Asian side and stepping into the other continent for the first time to visit a bike shop catered specifically to bike tourers. Although Joe’s bike had taken a toll on itself more so, mine had still been quite beat up after the continent. After nearly 3 hours my bike was finally repaired and parts replaced. The only replacement that couldn’t happen was my rear middle cog. After searching another 5 bike shops I’ve decided that I won’t find a replacement in Istanbul. With the problem, the chain occasionally skips but at this point it happens rarely enough that I’m not too worried about it. I’m looking into ordering the part internationally and getting it when I come back from Greece in January. I finally headed back across the Bosphorus Straight to Europe when it was dark and in the midst of rush hour. The weaving and dodging of cars is exhilarating and the blaring horns never cease. I eventually made it back to the apartment to see Joe boxing up his bike. What wild feeling that’ll be many months from now.

Day 90 (Saturday, 12th of December, 2015)

This morning we headed out to the metro to go to the more historical part of Istanbul with the Grand bazaar, Topkapi Palace, and many incredible buildings and mosques including the Hagia Sophia. We started off at the Grand bazaar and prepared to haggle. It’s massive with over 3,000 shops crammed into a small amount of space. We bought some Christmas gift for some solid prices. There wasn’t as much diversity in products but it was a great experience none the less. The sold items mainly included jewelry, rugs, money changers, souvenirs, and bags. We arrived at the Blue Mosque just in time to get in before it closed. We took off our shoes and watched tourist females put on the required head veils in order to enter. I’ll be biking though mosque territory for the majority of the remainder of the trip. Inside it was just as different from churches as the outside. No sculptures lined the sides and it seemed comparatively simpler. The walls were absolutely beautiful and I quickly became mesmerized by it all. Unfortunately we didn’t quite get to visiting the Hagia Sofia but seeing it from afar for the first time was surreal in itself. Throughout Europe, this architectural piece of art seemed to me a far off foreign place and to finally be by it feels like quite an accomplishment. On the way back to the metro we got talked into coming into a carpet shop. We ended up talking to the owner of the shop as we sat us down for some Turkish coffee with a genuine conversation. He travels all over the world selling carpets hand made by women in eastern Turkey who sometimes take months to finish just one carpet. They had a very raw beauty and he mentioned at one point that he had a carpet worth a million dollars dating from the 15th century. His skill in selling was a piece of art itself and unlike anything I’ve seen before. He hit every criteria for a perfect sales pitch. After an hour Joe walked out with a carpet sold for $130. We kept our last night together pretty relaxed with cards, drinks, and good music.

Day 91 (Sunday, 13th of December, 2015)

Today we went to the Hagia Sofia and it was something else. We spent 2 hours in it but I could’ve been there for a couple more. The history of it is fascinating having been used by Christians and Muslims at separate times since its construction in the 4th century. For dinner we had the pleasure of eating homemade food with a foreign exchange student that went to OHS between 2006-2007. My spanish teacher, Mrs. Chan, made the connection happen. We ate traditional Turkish food and I learned a lot about their culture and what I was to expect in my 3 weeks of biking in Turkey. We left a bit later than we planned and rushed back to the apartment to get Joe’s bike box. His flight is early tomorrow but he’s going to the airport tonight. He was going to be too late to catch the last metro so a taxi it was going to have to be. It was an odd feeling as I helped bring the bike box outside to catch a taxi. I had been with Joe for practically every waking hour the past three months. I’ve had far less alone time on the trip than when I was back home. I imagine it’ll take me some time to adjust to being solo after several months of being with someone. We said our goodbyes and I stood on the roundabout watching the yellow cab disappear down the street.

Day 92 (Monday, 14th of December, 2015)

I woke up this morning feeling like a different person as it’s now only me making decisions and I’m fully in control of what I do. I headed to the metro and went to explore the Topkapi Palace. It’s massiveness allows it to be a city a city within a city for the Ottoman Sultans for over 400 years. It contains schools, a library, mint, hospital, and many other buildings. I then wondered through the Grand bazaar and back to the metro because I was starting to feel pretty sick. My head was throbbing and I had a bit of a sore throat. I’m feeling a bit homesick tonight and I can hardly wait to see Astrid in Greece. Although I won’t get to go home for Christmas I’m more than happy a part of home can come to me.

Black Sea Coast

Turkey!!

Flags are seen everywhere around Turkey and their pride is very apparent. Possibly because Turkey is such a new country established in 1923.

swarms of pupies

many many miles

The massive interior of the Hagia Sophia.

This mosaic is nearly 800 years old.

Hagia Sophia

View of the Blue Mosque from a window in the Hagia Sophia

Joseph packing up and heading home.