northlandboy

4 days out on the bike, plenty of snow, a 2300m summit, and I’m back in Erzurum – but no longer alone.

A few days ago I headed out from Erzurum, heading towards the Black Sea, with a plan of catching up to a few other cyclists coming this way. I could have waited for them [...]

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I’m sitting next to a man with nail polish on his toes. This is particularly well offset by the orange plastic sandals he has on. We are only wearing small strips of material around our waists, sitting in the cool room at the local hamam. I am just dying to ask about the nail polish, [...]

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Well, the two things I needed to sort out in Ankara are now done, and I’m moving again. My Uzbekistan visa was sorted no problem, passport back on the same day. Doing it in advance with Stan Tours worked out well, as it meant quick processing at the embassy. I met another couple there who [...]

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Ankara’s bus station, for those who have not been there, is enormous. Multiple levels, hundreds of people and buses coming and going in all directions. Just after figuring out which direction I needed to go, and rolling out, it started to snow on me. Me still wearing sandals and fingerless gloves. Get out to the [...]

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Well, it seems that eating kebaps and simits for a week in Istanbul has not done any favours for my legs. As others have pointed out, the hills on the Black Sea coast are murderous. Fantastic scenery, but very tough going on the hills. Got a ferry to Anadolu Kavagı, then went via Sile, Kaynarca, [...]

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