Greece - Western Turkey
One month of sunny weather, one continent, one major breakdown. Two out of three isn't too bad and at least it wasn't Rich or I that had the breakdown. Bob the bike is now sorted and we've had no further problems (although some slightly dodgy Turkish fuel gave us similar symptoms, which had us slightly worried).
We left Thessaloniki lighter in the pocket but full of praise for the guys at the Yamaha dealer, Moto Matakos who really put themselves out to help us and get us on the road quickly. They did a great job, bike felt far more peppy after their attentions and is in good shape now for the Asian leg of our odessy. We thoroughly recommend them to anybody needing some service in Greece - many thanks guys.We'd planned to spend a day or two beaching along the Greek coast before we headed to Turkey but as we pulled into Kavala for a coffee we realised the boat that everyone was boarding went out to Thassos. It was impossible to resist the half an hour trip for 10 Euros for the 3 of us so we raced to get the bike and 15 minutes later had set sail. Thassos isnt your typical dream Greek Island with ancient ruins or sugar cube white houses but it isnt overcrowded or overdeveloped either and is extremely laid back with some beautiful beaches so we spent a very relaxed couple of nights camping on the beach and exploring the bays.
We had no problems crossing from Greece into Turkey but had to pay 9 Euros for a temporary import licence for the bike. We headed straight down to the Gallipoli peninsula and found a beautiful campsite on the beach front of a national park. We spent a day visiting various ANZAC and Turkish cemeteries and monuments from the of the ill-fated Gallipoli campaign of World War I.
The huge number of cemeteries is extraordinary and you could spend 2 or 3 days visiting them all. It was very moving to think of the number of lives lost and the hardships the soldiers faced during the 9 months of fighting. It was also great visiting at this time of year as there were so few people around and surprisingly we were the only non Turkish visitors we saw visiting the sites that day.
We imagined it would be a bit of a headache riding into Istanbul as its such a big city and although the Turks are crazy drivers and it was very busy we didnt have any problems finding our way in. We also found a hotel in the old town around Sultanamet that accommodated Bob in the lobby so we had no security worries.
Everything is so close here that its pleasure sightseeing and wandering around and we visited the Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, Aya Sofya, the Grand Bazaar and Egyptian Bazaar and an evening cruise on the Bosphorus.
click to see both of us in the harem
After 4 great nights in Istanbul we reluctantly gave up the hotel keys and headed south along Turkeys western coast to Behramkale where we camped on the shores of a gorgeous bay under the ruins of the city of Assos. It has a beautiful little harbour with tiny fishing boats and most campers had all but left for the summer season so we almost had the place to ourselves.
The next day we headed a little further south to the Bodrum peninsula, again camped on the seashore, swam and relaxed in the warm evening as we watched the sun set into the sea as we have all along the coast, although this will probably be the last time we see this until India. We went into Bodrum for a morning for the Internet etc and it really is a beautiful town but it is extremely touristy and prices were well above our budget.
click here for Lisa at Pergamon
Visiting the ancient sites of Pergamom and particularly Ephesus were inspiring. Ephesus is huge and stunning. Lots of this ancient Roman city is still in very good condition and/or has been well reconstructed. It is also well and truly on the tour bus route. We arrived at 9am and it was already busy, by 1pm when we left it was heaving.
The last couple of days weve started to creep slowly along the Southwest coast which is lovely. We are still camping, its still warm and although there are still lots of people on package holidays we have managed to find some nice laid back spots. Turkey has surprised us for the high price of entry into sites which average around $USD7-12 and at the price of fuel which at $USD1.33/liter is even higher than England.
We will start to head inland in the next few days towards Cappadoccia, heading through the town of Konya where the Whirling Dervishes come from and where it is very religious. Well be sad to leave the coast but are excited about going to eastern Turkey as well really start to feel that weve left Europe and arrived in Asia.
P.S. Rich has been bemoaning the lack of emails that have been hitting his account (his Mum and Dad and all those offering penile and breast enlargements aside) so for those that have forgotten its in the link at the bottom of the page (copyright Richard Parkinson)