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Published: October 22nd 2006
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... But mind the step
The bus was taking me from Elazig to Nevishir. Although this was 20km beyond Goreme - my destination for the next few days, by the sounds of things it was the only practical route. And anyway, the bus company had it all under control "No praahblem, no praahblem". Needless to say I was a little surprised, quickly confused, then really pissed off as we sailed past a sign saying Goreme 2km and pointing to a side road that the driver refused to stop at.. that's 20min walk - easy!
It was dark, 9:30 at night, we had been travelling for 9h. There had been nothing but carbon copy Turkish pop videos and a dubbed copy of "Rocky - First bood" to break the dim monotony since dinner at 6pm. My cold wasn't working out and the drugs made me tired but I couldn't sleep - I just wanted ths ride to be over! At least eeryone who was aware of my plans seemed relaxed, they do this every day - it'll be sweet.. but 20km is a long way to have to backtrack, I hope the connecting dolmush is complimentary.
"I wonder why
Octobus stop
Around 2am.. the buses insist on stopping every few hours through the night to provıde.. sleeplessness? we're stopping here?"
"oh me? No, I'm going to Nevishir"
"What the Fuck? This is the middle of no-where! Where's the bus station?"
"Dolmush, Goreme?"
"Motherfucker."
Imagine driving into Christchurch from the Old West Coast road, you pass the "Christchurch" sign and then get to the Caltex station at the first major intersection with the roundabout on Russley Road.. Paddocks on one side, the first scraps of suburbia on the other. Only everything was bigger, more lanes, more stories, and more space. It was dark, I felt like shit, and I needed somewhere to stay - or at least some street lights to hitch back under.. there was no way I was getting back to Goreme tonight. What the fuck were they thinking!
I've develped this way of looking after myself, i'd describe it as "just be yourself and someone around you is going to end up sorting the shit out for you", or the "Sit back and relax" method for short. It's worked almost without fail 'till now.. how can it work in Russia and not here!?
I wasn't liking the chances of finding a hotel nearby and started to walk to the lights by
the petrol station to thumb a ride back the way I'd come. I passed a family on the way standing around a car, I figured there was a 50/50 chance they were going my way..
"Merhaba. err.. machina goreme?"
"Do you speak english?"
"What!!?"
"Do you speak english? I think you're looking for me"
"Man i'm so lost. Where are you from? I haven't spoken to a girl for weeks!"
Out Of The Frying Pan
It's true, i hadn't spoken to a single girl since Trabzon, if it weren't for Lalei and her friends I could extend that statement for all of Turkey. In Muslim culture women just don't hold positions that provide contact with strangers...
It all got a little surreal when I decided to go and grab a hamam (Turkish bath) to kill some time in a no-where city called Elazig. I've had a bit of a cold since arriving in Turkey and it was getting worse. the bus trip from Tatvan to Goreme was going to be too long to face feeling as I was. I figured I'd split it in two and put a random town in between, take a day
to recover and explore and then head off again.
Only with 1/2 a million people Elazig wasn't really a town. To continue the NZ analogy, It was more like Rangiora on steiroids, certainly not a tourist haven. Even the locals had difficulty recommending anything to do to pass a day. I spent a lot of it wandering around the block around my hotel trying to find a map and then someone who understood it and could tell me where I was. In a city this size I didn't want to go too far and get lost. one wrong turn and for all intents and purposes my hotel and everything I owned would compare very well to the needle in the proverbial haystack.
The Hamam was an attempt to improve my spirits and give my health a foot up. Initially a form of low-cost communal bathing for the underclass, the beautiful old hamam buildings ae now steamy indoor marble oases in stark dirty towns or cities. I didn't really know what was going on, but the old guys sitting in the foyer were quite enthused t have a young fellow from Yenni Zealandia in their hamam. I asked for
Breakfast anyone?
The beautiful view from the balcony of Travellers Cave Pension some soap.
After about 20 min one of the guys came in dressed in a sarong with a scrubber on one handand soap on the other. He sat me down and went to work peeling (literally) off weeks of backpacker grime. Then another guy came in, bigger this time, and lay me down on a marble bench and went to work massaging away all the dirt holed up under my skin.
Looking back over the events of the previous week later that night I felt further from my life and my world than I have ever been. If it weren't for the fact I felt so amazingly clean and rested I might've felt a little lonely.
...And On To The French Toast
I took the bus from elazig at lunchtime the next day, you've already read the next chapter.. What was een more of a shock was what happened AFTER I extricated myself from that situation and found myself walking into the pension (hostel) sick, dazed, and exhausted.
The place was clean, the owner spoke perfect english, there was a bar with whiskey, wine, and cold beer and a table with a couple of American
Istanbul waterfront
Kinsey, Simon, Val, and our fantastic Turkish host, Cem chicks playing poker with an Aussie guy. Stunned, I sat down with a beer, I could hardly talk. The act of walking through a doorway had seemingly transported me back to a nice safe western country three long months ago.
Arriving ig Goreme I'd hit the tourist trail, the sight was both a relief and a disappointment. right then I needed a break to go my way, but things were only going to get more western from here on in.. I'll miss Asia.
Goreme itself has to have some of the most spectacular natural beauty in the world. Combine ths with a long history of people diging holes for accomodation and it makes a fantastic place to crash for a few days. The pension I stayed in was only 5min from the centre of the village and the rooms were in caves dg into the sie of the cliff. Their breakfast menu was incredible.. meusli, yoghurt, fruit, cooked, and the biggest softest French toastI'e ever tasted! I'm not sure I've seen eggs or proper cereal since NZ - certanly not for breakfast.
I took things slowly in Goreme, not really wanting to leave. By the time I
Mmm... delightful!
Turkish delightful! My weakness :) finally did have to move on I still had only half the thins crossed off on my "to do" list - there will be a next time 😊 I spent the days hiking or scootering around the landscapeand checking ot some of the more notable dwellings. Cutting the ash that makes up the stippled landscape is a little like cutting Christmas cake and peple have been remarkably industrious over the last few milennia, building entire cities accomodating 30,000 people! The cities were used by Christians to hide from arious ravaging hordes, I felt like setting up my tent in the park just outside the village to hide too, but when the weather started to pack up and my nice comfy bed was only costing me $6 a night, I... just ever quite got round to it.
With places to be and people t see I couldn't stay as long as I wanted. I'm in Istanbul now, big city, most people speak english, ate BK for dinner the other night :/ Despite that it's quite beautiful and i've been staying with the american card sharks and a German backpacker at a Hospitality Club hookup. We're off to Bularia tonight -
can't wait!
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elfreda
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ah, it takes me back
Arrgh, the old hamam bath in turkey - all I can say is that all the moles on my back were not intact after my experience! You travel in my footsteps just about a year ago.... it was pretty freezing when I was there! Haven't been to Bulgaria so am interested what you will have to say. Hope the cold is getting better... happy and safe travels