Got a cool, early start on the pass. Felt good. Felt even better after the Snickers bar we treated ourselves to! Most of the road was still shaded. Very nice pass. Little homesteads tucked away on steep slopes. Small groups of houses nestled high up on mountain tops. Long very very long downhill stretch (~30km) on the other side of the pass. With every kilometer the air became hotter and more humid. The arid interior gave way to lush valleys and entire hillsides covered in hazelnut plantations. Supposedly Turkey is the world's leading hazelnut producer. Took a break at a gas station just outside Trabzon. Awefully hot and muggy! The sea must be very close. Found two ripe-ish figs in the tree we sat under!!
We felt quite tired of being homeless and always having to wait out the midday heat at gas stations and other such places with no privacy from curious socializers. So we finally decided to find that nice, cheap hotel Benli where James had stayed once before. We were able to get a room for 30 lira (~12€) for both of us! Bought some nice food and had a feast in our own room! No nosy chatter boxes to listen to. No curious stares to ignore. Bikes safely tucked away in the storage room. Great!
Did no sight seeing other than window shopping at the fancy food stores near the main square. In one store we saw massive, log sized blocks of fruit leather. Another store mainly sold delicious looking, yellow, Turkish butter, also in huge chunks. So cool!
What a luxurious day!
No comments:
Post a Comment