Farewell from Ali

We left Edirne in the morning. Ali joined us for the first 25kms before we stopped in a village for a tea.

The locals were sitting at the tables, were playing cards and drinking tea. It was half lira so we had some too and also bought a large box of ice cream for 3 liras. During the break we cleaned the chains cause it was due despite they were still in working order. We said good bye form Ali, we had a good time with him, it was a nice change before three of us hit the road again.

The road was still undulating; we planned to go till Kirklareli, 60kms from Edirne, but the hills tired us out so we arrived there only in dinner time. Zita and Dani went shopping to the local BIM while I looked after the bikes. It turned out that we put the bikes in the police parking slot, the police captain warned me about it but we could stay there.

During this time I found a suitable place to cook. Along the road we saw plenty spots with chairs and tables outside where people could sit and have tea. There was one like this just behind the police station. We tried to emulate the home flavors but it wasn’t even close. We better get use to it as the farther we go the different the tastes going to be.

Hotel Petrol*** – Kizilcikdere

After the dinner the washing up was my duty. I wasn’t impressed at all and said never again. I’d rather put everything away as it is… The hygiene in the toilet of a restaurant was terrible. It was filthy. Next time I do it in the bushes using our Oertlieb bag. But we have survived that too, and decided to ride a few more miles before sunset.

We reached Kizilcikdere where the locals advised the petrol station for camping. The same place Ali mentioned us. The guy there was very kind and he even invited us to sleep in a place we could lock surrounded by walls and fences. It must have been a storage space. The place was almost perfect due to the tractors going all night long.

Rollercoaster road

We packed uor things quickly then we only stopped to have a break after 20 kms, at a petrol station again. The cheapest ice cream is half lira in Turkey so I can treat my Zita with one and a foot massage every time. We stopped in the village to eat a lahmacun for breakfast and to get wifi as we didn’t have a host in Istambul yet.

The undulating road was very tiring, physically and mentally too. At some point we stopped at a local religious building where Zita found a tap, she took the time to wash her hair. Over here we attracted a large group of kids who we befriended quickly by showing them the reflective bands they really fancied.

After some more hills we stopped again and as soon as we settled a lorry driver came to us with a 2.5l Coke in his hand. He only stopped to give us some refreshment, we are greatful for it. It’s unbelievable what kind of people we meet in Turkey.

.

After the break we were flying to the next town thanks to the long downhill. We stopped at a cafeteria where we found a wifi so we could check our mails. Unfortunately there was still no answer regarding the couches… To forget the sorrow we checked your comments. You can’t imagine how much inspiration you can give us. :) It’s great you like what we do and how we do it. Its even better to know that others try to follow the example.

There was another surprise here too, the lorry driver found us, this time he invited us for a tea. We had a little chat, got to know each other a bit more. From the money he left on the table we could have a kebab doner each before we continued the journey.