Kas to Fethiye

Days 166 - 170

The house that Mark and Teresa are staying in is on the peninsula, a few kilometres from town. Dotted on the hillside are fancy hotels and even more fancy houses. There is a great view across the ocean to a Greek Island. 

In the morning I laze about on the patio, admiring the view, soaking up some sunshine and eating a lazy breakfast. The day continues in the same manner and apart from a quick trip to town for some food I don't do a lot. In the afternoon Mark and I enjoy a couple of sunset beers. 

The following morning it is time to leave.  It's another perfect winters day - clear blue skies, light breeze and warm enough for shorts and sandals. 

The cycling continues to be spectacular, winding along the edge of the water, steep hills or cliffs on my right. Eventually the road turns inland and thankfully isn't as hilly as I thought it would be. I find spot to camp under a large olive tree in an empty field. 

The following day I make quick time to Fethiye, the cycling is not the most interesting but it's mostly fast and fairly flat. The most intersting thing I pass is a BIM (Turkish equivilant of Aldi) situated underneath a mosque. 

I am little earlier than my warm showers host expects so I spend the afternoon cycling around the harbour. The harbour is full of large gullets, many covered in tarps for the winter. 

My host Kathy is an English woman that has been living in Fethiye for the last 6 years with her two daughters. Last summer Kathy and her older daughter, Kirsty cycled from Fethiye to the UK. We sit and drink tea and trade cycletouring stories. 

At one stage Kathy mentioned that her daughter brings her a cup of tea every morning in bed. I mentioned that I love getting tea delivered in bed - not expecting it of course. 

In the morning at about 7am I am lucky enough to get a cuppa in bed. Lucky me. Amazing! The sun is out and after Turkish breakfast Kathy and I cycle to the market for some veges. 

I am not sure if I have mentioned Turkish breakfast yet. I love them. It usually consists of a range of olives, cheese, honey, butter, eggs, tomato, cucumber, jam, piles of bread and of course endless cups of tea. 

After the markets Kathy, Kirsty and I pack a picnic and head for a ride around the peninsula. There were a few sharp, short hills to make sure we earned our lunch. 

In the evening Ishbel, another cycle tourist showed up. She is planning on cycling around the world but got sidetracked in Turkey when she adopted a street dog. Since then she has been raising money for animal welfare and has found her adopted dog, Lucy a home in the UK. 

The next day I have a lazy day, typing my blog and making plans for where to go next. I want to go south to Ölüdeniz and Faralya. The beaches that way sound nice and there might be some backpackers I can spend Christmas with. 

The next day it is raining. Kathy kindly let's me stay for another day. In the evening Ishbel, Kathy and Bec (her younger daughter) attend an expat trivia night.  It's a little strange. Mostly full of old English people that live in the region. A lady on our team insists that everything in life is a competition and proceeds to cheat during the music section of the quiz. We still don't win. 

14/12 Kas - Gölbent: rode 63km, ODO 5303km

15/12 Gölbent - Fethiye: rode 59km, ODO 5362km

16/12 Fethiye: rode 29km, ODO 5391km

Antalya

Day 150 - 157

I enjoy breakfast with my host family, take a few photos and head towards Antalya. Despite the head wind I arrive in town by lunch time. 

My host for the night is Bryan, an American that lives with his Turkish partner. He lives in Caleçi, an old area of town full of narrow laneways, bars and fancy hotels. Whilst eating lunch he informs me that it is thanksgiving back in the states. 

Within a few minutes I have convinced him that I will cook roast chicken and veges for dinner. His partner is a little confused about this, I am only the second warm showers guest she has hosted.  In Turkey the guest is usually waited on and not expected to do anything, including help cook, clean up after dinner, make tea etc. Bryan and I let her know that sometimes this is how it works with warm showers. By the time dinner was served she seemed to be a little more relaxed about the situation. 

The three of us enjoyed a lovely roast chicken with baked apples for desert. Not exactly classic thanksgiving but pretty good considering the plan wasn't conceived until late in the afternoon. 

Bryan was busy for the weekend so after a lazy Turkish breakfast - honey, cheese, olives, fresh tomato and bread with a western twist - coffee and OJ, I packed my bike and headed to Hassan's house, a host I lined up through couchsurfing. 

I spent the day lazing around at his apartment before cruising back into town to visit the bike shop. I have had a clicking sound coming from my bottom bracket for the last 1000km. Bryan reccomended a good bike mechanic and I figured it was about time I got my bike serviced. The first thing the bike mechanic said to me was 'you need to wash your bike'. Three hours later I had a new bottom bracket installed, gears tuned, brakes adjusted, wheels trued and drivetrain scrubbed clean. The bottom bracket was only $50 and labour $25. Pretty good value I think.

Hassan is a keen rock climber and on Saturday I was lucky enough to be able to join him and his friends climbing. I havn't climbed for about four or five years so I was interested to see how I went. I top roped a couple of climbs. My arms are very weak but I enjoyed myself. Hassan and his friends are very relaxed and seem to stick to the easier routes which suited me fine. 

One of Hassan's friends invited me out to dinner with her friends for a 'girls night'. We enjoyed delicious Turkish mezze with a little too much Raki (kind of like ouzo - liquorice flavour). The restaurant was full of locals and had live traditional Turkish music. People were dancing inbetween the tables. 

Later on we met up with a few other friends in Caleçi and went bar hopping until 3 am. Definatley not what I am used to! 

Before I knew it Sunday afternoon had rolled around. Hassan and his friends went rockclimbing and were kind enough to drag me along. After another top rope I managed to lead a (very easy) climb which was more enjoyable than I expected. 

I had intentions of leaving Antalya on Monday but with such a busy weekend I really needed a rest. A planned rock climbing trip on Tuesday didn't eventuate and all of a sudden it was wednesday. 

Neil, a cyclist I met in Tajikistan and toured with in Iran sent me an email letting me know he was arriving on Thursdsay. All of a sudden I have been in Antalya for a week! 

Whilst hanging around Hassan's house during the week I did manage to drink beer on the beach, cook dinner, enjoy lazy breakfasts and visit the local museum. The Antalya museum is full of a huge number of marble statues that were found locally.

Once Neil arrived we hatched a plan to leave Antalya on Friday and make our way down the coast at a relaxed pace. He only has a couple of weeks before he has to get to Istanbul to see his wife so we figure we will see how far he gets and then he can bus the rest of the way. 

27/11 Serik - Antalya: rode 51km, ODO 4978km

Antalya cycling total: rode 27km, ODO 5004km

 

Van

Days 114 - 117

Van was like another mini holiday. I arrived quite anxious about the upcoming winter and fairly exhausted from the previous few days. I also wanted to drink beer. Van was perfect. 

The first day I head to the local hospital where Levent, my warm showers host works. While he is busy working I take over his computer and do the usual catch up of emails, Facebook, news and blogs. Lunch is a kebab at a nearby restaurant followed by çay in the doctors lounge. It turns out that Levent gets an hour and a half for lunch!  He then finishes work at 3.30pm. A little different to the hours I see the doctors working back home. 

That evening we catch up with Selçuk and a couple of other friends and have beers at a bar that overlooks the lake. This is followed by dinner with different friends and more beer. 

I head out of town on a bus the next day to Akdamar island. There is a beautiful Armenian church on it that was built about 1100 years ago. I spend quite a few hours wandering around the church and the island. If it wasn't for the snow capped mountains surrounding the lake it would be easy to forget about the crazy snow I went through just a few days ago. The sun is out and it feels like a very cool brisbane winters day. 

I spend the following morning at a western style cafe, paying far too much for a coffee but also using their wifi for two hours.  

In the afternoon I move all my stuff to Selçuk's apartment - Levent's girlfriend is visiting and he understandably wants the place to himself. After the move Selçuk and I head to the castle. On the way we visit some cats that have an interesting mutation and can only be found in Van. We wander around the castle and then watch the sunset over the lake. Awesome. 

That evening a few of us go out for dinner. I have my first Pide (pronounced piday, not pied as I thought!) and it does not disappoint. Dinner is followed by beers with more people at the smokiest bar I have been to in years. 

Saturday is the day I have been waiting for, the famous Van breakfast. Levent, his girlfriend, Selçuk, Özgen and I head out on our bicycles to a hotel that overlooks the lake. 

Breakfast is a smorgasbord of many different dishes, bread, cheeses, honey, jams, olives, dried fruit and endless cups of çay. I feel like I am about to explode.  Someone may have to tow me back to town on my bike. 

We sit in the sun on the deck, admiring the view for a good couple of hours. We eventually ride back to town, through the back streets, pick up some beer and go to the castle. It's a perfect afternoon lazing in the sun, enjoying the view. 

My plans for a quiet night and a small dinner are abandoned once we head to Özgen's house for dinner. A quiet dinner turns into a dinner party followed by a party proper. I drink far too much red wine. 

That night I say goodbye to many of my new friends. I plan to catch the ferry to Tatvan the next day and won't see them. I am very sad to say goodbye to this great group of people that were so welcoming and showed me a great time. 

Total cycling van: 99km, ODO 3567km