Celebration

It was time to leave Cappadocia, and I have to say it is an amazing place. I didn’t know much about it before coming here, and I can really recommend everyone to visit the place. And I think spring is a good time to be here. There are tourists here, but not at all as much as it is in high season. And the weather at this time of the year is great for hiking around the area. I think it would be really hard in the middle of the hot summer. 

When I left Göreme I headed for Kayseri and when I came closer I could see the majestic Mount Erciyes rising up in front of me. I was early in town and had some time before meeting my host. The first thing I did was to find a bike shop and by a new chain for the bike. In the afternoon I met up with Mehmet, and as I have learned 50% of Turkish med is named Mehmet. He showed me around town before we took the bus back to his flat. The first bus driver didn’t want to take my bike on the bus, but the next one reluctantly agreed to it. It was a little difficult getting it on the bus and when the bus started to fill up with people I felt a little bit in the way with my big bike. Eventually we came to our stop and got the bike off the bus. Mehmet cooked a great dinner and some friends of his came by before the big game started. Fenerbahce against Plzeň In the Europa League. Mehmet was a big Fenerbahce fan and was happy when they won the game and eliminated Plzeň.

After taking a look at the weather forecast I decided to leave the next day. There would be a strong wind, but most of the day it would be in my advantage. And even if I didn’t leave Kayseri until 11 I still cycled 95 km during the day. And at lunch time I reached a big goal of mine. 10.000 km!!

After riding the wind and reaching a new top speed at 79.4 km/h down a hill I started looking for a place to sleep. I came by an abandoned house on top of a little hill. I decided it would be a good place to sleep and set up my tent inside to keep warm in a house with a couple of broken windows and to keep the cockroaches away. On my way up to the house a dog started following me, he was scared of the bike at first but when I leaned it against the house and had a look around he followed me everywhere. This was my birthday, and beforehand I didn’t imagined spending it in an abandoned house with a stray dog as my only company. But I had cake the day before with Mehmet and didn’t feel a need to spend money on a hotel just because it was my birthday. I’ll rather do that when the weather is bad and I can’t find another place to stay.  I gave the dog some bread and apple peels before calling it a night.

In the morning a tried to put on the new chain only to discover that the man at the store had sold me a chain that was too short. Even though I showed him the bike and tried to explain what I wanted. But I was lucky that morning to find a bike shop in the first little town I came to. And they had one that was the right length and put it on for me. The wind was with me today as well and I was flying. The plan of the day was to reach Sivas and maybe get a hotel room. But I was in Sivas at lunch time and had done 100 km by then, the most I have ever cycled before lunch. And since the wind had done most of the work I wasn’t even tired. So I decided to continue on, taking advantage of the tailwind for a little longer. At four a clock I found a little barn that looked like it wasn’t being used. I cleaned the floor and set up my tent on the stone floor. It was great to have a roof over my head again, and a great shield from the wind.

When I woke up the next morning I was surprised to see snow on the ground. It had been a cold night, but it was still surprising to see. I put on more clothes then I had ever had when cycling and headed out on the road. The snow stopped and the sun peeked out for a little while. But at midday it started snowing again, and this time it was snowing a lot. I fought against it for a while until I heard someone shouting çay, çay from a restaurant by the road. It was exactly what I needed and the tea warmed nicely. The friendly owner even gave me lunch and then told me that I shouldn’t continue on cycling in this weather, and told me that I could sleep in the restaurant for the night. It was a 24 h restaurant so there where people coming and going and the TV were on all the time. But I still had a good night sleep and woke up to another cold day. It wasn’t snowing but it was white everywhere from yesterday’s snow. And I had to knock off some ice from the bike and thaw my water bottles that were frozen solid. 

At first it was easy to keep warm since I had to cycle uphill to a top at 1690 meters. But it got really cold going down and afterwards I had an icing headwind. So when I after just 25 km came by the town of Imranli I looked up a hotel. It was cheap but still nice, so I decided to stop for today. Because from here I’m going further up in the mountains to about 2200 meters and I didn’t want to do that on a very cold day since it’s still going to be cold there anyway. 

Cappadocia

When I left Bor I thought it might take me two days to get to Göreme since it was 110 km and I wanted to stop by Kaymakli to see the underground city. But I was off early in the morning and was really happy to feel a strong wind in my back. So I cycled on at high speed with the most amazing wind most of the time going the same way as I. Sometimes I had it in the side and had to lean in to it to stay straight on the road. This was my fastest day so far on this trip and I had done 80 km at about twelve a clock and stopped in Kaymakli and had all the time I needed there to explore the amazing underground city. It was really cool to a long way down into the ground and walking around all the corridors and rooms. At some points the roof was so low that I almost had to crawl.

I spent more than an hour underground and when I came up again it had started raining. But I only had about 20km left to Göreme where I had booked a nice but really cheap hostel. On my way there I passed by the castle in Uchisar and could see Göreme in the valley below. And the landscape was just amazing.

The next day I started early to see as much as possible. I hitchhiked up to Uchisar and was the first person at the castle. And for an hour I had the place to myself. The view of the valley below from the top of the castle was great and I spent some time there walking around in and around the castle.

After that I walked the Pigeon Valley back to Göreme. Like in the castle there was no one around and it was really peaceful and a great break from the touristic places. And at one point it was really difficult when I had to walk on a very narrow path next to the rock and the gravel was slipping under my shoes. And since I was the only one there I took it slow and got safe to the other side. I don’t think I have a career as a rock climber.

After Pigeon Valley I continued on walking the amazing landscape near Göreme. I walked in the hills and through a narrow gorge and got back to the hostel with tired legs after a day of a lot of walking. I’m used to cycling long distances, not walking this much.

Tomorrow I’m cycling on to the city of Kayseri where I have a couchsurfer to stay with.

More pictures from Cappadocia at www.thebikeadventure.com/Photos

Up and over the Taurus Mountains

I was lucky to find a last minute couchsurfer host in Tasucu when I arrived with the ferry at about 11 at night. And since Tasucu is a small town I managed to find my way through the dark. The next day continued on towards Marsin. The road was flat and I had a tailwind for the first time in a while, so I had a nice bike ride to too Mersin in record speed. The people that I had stayed with in Alanya had arranged for someone that I could stay with in Mersin. On my way in to the center of town I met two other cyclists who showed me the way to a bike shop so that I could by some new brake pads and have a look at the chain. I stayed there and waited for the guy that I was staying with to show up. I had tea and met some nice people while I was there. One man gave me his phone number and told me to call if I needed anything. At about seven a clock the guy showed up and told me that he was too busy to host me. But he bought me dinner and then showed me a place where he thought I could set up my tent for the night. It was a narrow park between the water and a big street. There were a lot of people in the park and I didn’t really feel comfortable setting up camp there. So instead I called Ulas, the nice guy that I had met in the bike shop and he was happy to host me. I cycled on for a while and found his place where I was welcomed by him and his family. I had a great time with them, got some advice on what roads to take and had nice conversations in to the night.

The road between Mersin and Tarsus was really bad. A lot of traffic and most of it was big trucks going by fast. But after passing Tarsus I cycled on a smaller much nicer road that headed up towards the mountains. I cycled on for a while up the hill before setting up camp on a little hill. The “road” up to where I set up my tent was rocky and bad, but it was worth it and I had a great night’s sleep and prepared for the big hills in the morning. The road would go up to 1370 meter, but I thought it would we worse than what it was. The road was good all the way up and the weather was great with sunshine and a light breeze in my back. I met some other cyclists on the way, but they were not going all the way up. But it was nice to have some company for a while. And the funny thing was that they had heard of me through Ulas since they were also working at the university.

I reached the top sooner than expected and from there the road went down for a while towards the town of Pozanti. I set up my tent not far from there in a valley. It was hard to find a nice flat surface in a place where the road goes through a valley since there is not much space on the sides. The only problem with the place I was sleeping at was that the railway was just next to it with many trains passing by. And it was also the coldest night in the tent for me so I had to put on extra clothes and a hat for the first night.

The next day I thought it would be easy cycling. But the road just kept going up more and more. The scenery was just beautiful with the big snow covered mountain so close. By midday I was at the top at 1600 meters with snow by the side of the road. And after that it was downhill to the Anatolian Plateau and mostly flat landscape with mountains surrounding it.  

After a cold night in the tent it was great to know that I had a couchsurfer to stay with in Bor. I arrived there earlier than him and waited in town for a while. While I was there more and more people came by and after a while I was surrounded by curious people who were trying to figure out who I was and what I was doing. Some of them knew some words in English, but not at all enough to have a conversation. But it didn’t stop us from having a nice time and as soon as I finished my tea more was on the way. In the afternoon I met up with my host and could wash off three days of climbing uphill and sleeping in a nice and warm couch.

Finally leaving for Turkey

The first thing I did when arriving in Girne two days ago was to go to the port to find out when the ferry was leaving for Tasucu. The answer I got then was that it was leaving at 23:00 the next day. So I went to the hostel and in the morning I walked to the tourist information to double check the time for the ferry. The woman there made a phone call and told me that the ferry for Turkey was leaving at 14:00 and that I had to be there two hours before. But I had some time before then and went with Daniel, a guy I met at the hostel up to the castle on top of the mountain. He had a rental car so we could get up there and back before noon. It was an impressing place with an amazing view of Girne a long way down by the sea and the mountain right next to it.

When we got back I went down to the port where I was told the ferry was leaving at 3 or 4, so I sat down and waited for it. But when the clock was 3 and I was the only one in the departure hall I knew something was wrong. I talked to someone who told me that the ferry had already left and that it wasn’t for passengers, only for trucks and cars. I was told that the passenger ferry was maybe leaving the next day and that I should come back in the morning to check with them.

I cycled outside of the city and found a beach restaurant that didn’t look to have been used in a while. The door was open so I took a beach bed and a mattress and made it comfortable inside. After a great night sleep I cycled back to the port and got the good news that the ferry was leaving. And right now I’m sitting in the ferry and was glad to see that the wi-fi was working fine. I would prefer to leave at midnight as I did on my way to Cyprus, because then I arrived in the morning. But this time I will be stepping off the ferry at night and will have to find somewhere to set up my tent in the dark. Maybe the park will do fine.

Two weeks in Cyprus

Last time I updated the blog I was in Tasucu waiting for the ferry to take me to Cyprus. And this time I’m also waiting for the ferry but on the other side of the water. 

Two weeks ago I got on the ferry at midnight but had to wait another two hours until the ferry left the port. But I had interesting company with Earthian, a man on a peace mission. He had managed to get himself from England to Cyprus including a trip to Iraq without spending any money. He is strongly against borders and only showed his passport as a last resort. We had interesting conversations on the trip over to Cyprus and had a little lunch together before I had to get going because I wanted to get to Larnaca before sunset and the clock was already 11.30.

Visit Earthians blog to read more about his epic journey. http://earthianblog.wordpress.com

The day started with a long uphill with a strong headwind. And it felt very strange cycling on the left side of the road for the first time. But after the climb the lad flattened out and pushed on towards Lefkosia. The plan was just to pass through the capital but it was difficult because a minimal amount of signs showing the way. I had to ask around to find my way over to the south side. Eventually I found the checkpoint to cross over and it felt a little strange cycling through a big city and suddenly finding yourself at a checkpoint. But they let me back in to the EU and I continued on towards Larnaca. I just managed to make it in to the city as it was getting dark. Even though I had a flat tire just 20 km outside of the city. My couchsurfing host Nicola met up with me and showed me back to his place where I had my own guestroom with a big bed. I stayed there two nights and had a nice time with good company and some advice on what to do on our vacation in Cyprus. Nicola also had another guest the next night from USA. Chris was on a one week vacation in Istanbul and squeezed in a trip to Cyprus also.

On Friday I left Nicola and headed down to the sea and to the hotel my parents had booked for us. I checked in and couldn’t wait until they would join me. Eventually I heard some familiar voices outside of the door. It was amazing seeing them again after almost seven months apart.

We had a great vacation together with a lot of good food and just the fact that we were together. We wanted to see more of Cyprus after a weekend in Larnaca so we rented a car for four days. As a cyclist it felt like stepping over to the dark side, but it was a great way to see more of the island. And at this time of the year a rental car is really cheap. I had driven a car on the left side before in New Zealand, but that was eight years ago so it took a little time to get used to. Our first day on the road we went to the capital Nicosia or Lefkosa, depending on what side of the border you are on. It felt even stranger crossing the checkpoint this time when we were walking down the main shopping street and suddenly having to show our passport and enter the Turkish side. We walked around inside the castle walls and visited and old cathedral that was turned into a mosque. And of course we had to eat a kebab before crossing over again. I was happy to be out of the big city which was a little stressful when I’m not used to drive on the wrong side of the road and in a city where you sometimes have to guess where to go because of the lack of signs.

The next day we drove up in to the “Troodos” mountains and after pushing the KIA up the hill we came to the top of Mount Olympus where the ground was covered with snow. Not at all like back home but it was still nice to see some snow again. After Olympus we drove to Kykkos monastery not far away. It was a beautiful place but in my opinion to much gold and bling bling when the church claims to be helping people in need, they could do so much more.

The next two days we took trips along the cost and had a good time seeing Cyprus. But as all vacations do this one also came to an end and my dear mother and father had to catch a flight back to Sweden. But they are already planning for the newt visit which might be in China.

And I was also back in the “office” cycling towards Famagusta where I had an invitation from a couchsurfer. I hadn’t looked close enough on the mat and ended up at a road that was closed off by military. In front of me was the part of Famagusta called “The Ghost town”, an area full of houses and hotels abandoned and closed off in 1974. So I had to turn around and go around to another road where I could cross over. Again it felt very strange cycling past military areas, British military camps and seeing UN vehicles passing by. Just as I entered the Turkish side the sky opened up and it started to pour down. I found cover and waited for the rain to stop before continuing into Famagusta and the university to meet up with my host. My host Mohsen is a PH.D student from Iran. And since I’m going there soon it was great to get some good advice on where to go and what to see. The next day me, Mohsen and his girlfriend Vofe got on our bikes and cycled outside of the city to an ancient site. After that I went back into town to the beach to get a better look at the ghost town. There where military lookouts right at the beach but you could walk to the edge of the closed off area and look at what once was a beautiful place full of hotels right by the ocean. Right next to the sealed off area new big hotels and casinos where up and running like nothing had happened next door. I also went for a visit in the old town and another cathedral that was converted into a mosque. The old town was completely dead with just me and a few others walking around. And the reason was a massive sale on the city where I met up with my friends who were in the middle of some serious shopping.

Yesterday I left Famagusta and cycled into a terrible head wind. First I planned on cycling longer on the Karpass peninsula, but the wind was too much and a man who invited me in for tea told me there was road work up ahead. So instead I went to the north cost and set up my tent away from the wind. Today when I woke up it was raining so I slept a little longer since I didn’t have much longer to cycle today to Girne. I arrived here at the hostel earlier today and tomorrow night I’m leaving on the ferry back to Tyrkey.

I have had two great weeks here in Cyprus and from here awaits a lot of uphills towards Erzurum.