Chaos, Compassion and Weddingbells!

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Hello my fellow travellers!

So, after a couple of hectic days in Istanbul it was time for me to move on to Canakkale. I said goodbye to Abdullah at the metro station, him heading for work and me heading for the bus station. My stay with him has been a pleasure, a privilege even. I've eaten so much good food and when I hurt my leg he fixed a muscle-relaxing salve for me and when I got a sunburn he got a sunblock for me.

Still, the time was here to move on and having the ticket secured I managed to get online with wifi at the station to let my host in Canakkale know of my arrival time. Then I found out he had been forced to cancel due to work, I learned about this as I literally got on the bus!

Now began the hunt for a new place to sleep and I started sending out requests. Wifi was against me now though and I couldn't get online for many hours, but my philosophy is to not worry about things, everything will work out. And as I knew, it did work out, about 1½ hour before my scheduled arrival I got a message from Meltem who could host me! Unfortunately though the wifi went down again before I could get her location and my phone was running out of battery!

Anyway, I arrived at the bus-station in Canakkale which is actually quite a bit off from the centre of the city so I asked the staff there about how to get to Troy. They told me I had to take a minibus but it don't go to Troy directly but rather dropped you five kilometres from Troy. When I asked how to get the last bit he just made the sign for walking and hitch-hiking. I figured oh well, why not? This day was chaotic anyway, lets add on being dropped in the middle of nowhere as well, just for kicks! Let's keep the boll rolling!

So, off I went on a bumpy minibus with no clue on how to actually get to Troy and more importantly no idea on how to get back to Canakkale afterwards! We drove for maybe 45 minutes and then the driver stops and points me to a sign that says "Troia 5km". Alright, I guess I won't be back until midnight, if even then! There is a guy sitting in a car by the side of the road so I ask him if he can give me a ride to Troy but he says he's going in the other direction.

I decide to test my hitch hiking abilities and I start hailing the few cars that drive by. First one, no luck, second one no luck. Third one is a bus but nope drive by, fourth one also ignore me. Now I surrender to my fate and start walking, but then a fifth car comes along and on impulse I start waving with both arms. He stops and I get my ride to Troy!

When I arrive I find out that it isn't the open museum I'd been led to believe when reading about it. It actually has opening hours which stretched between 9 am and 7 pm and the cost to enter is 15 TRY. I happily pay it, no hesitation about that part but I know I unfortunately only have a couple of hours to visit this place. I also feel that I need to charge my phone which is running on fumes now! I go into a restaurant nearby, called Wilusa, and ask the owner if I can charge my phone. He says no problem and he also gives me the password to the wifi.

Being hungry I decide to grab a little something to eat as well as a beer while I wait, the prices here are really good in my opinion and the food was tasty as well. Meanwhile I finally manage to get in touch with Meltem and I find out she's going to a wedding at 9 pm. I tell her I don't know when I'll be back and that we can meet after the wedding.

I go to the toilet at the restaurant and just to add some extra spice to my day the button to my shorts comes off, just perfect! Anyway, I can't let something like that get me down. I laugh and ask the owner if he has a needle and thread, he don't but there is a bus driver in the restaurant (we're the only people there except for one more staff) and what do you know, the bus driver actually has a travellers sewing kit! What are the odds? Things have been chaotic for me today, no doubt about it, but man am I blessed with good fortune!

So, I stitch back the button on my shorts (looks horrible by the way, I'm terrible at sewing) and I set off to explore Troy. Before I leave the restaurant the owner asks me how I'll get back to Canakkale. I tell him truthfully that I have no idea. He then tells me to come back to the restaurant after my visit and he'll give me a lift since he lives in Canakkale. I must have been born under a lucky star!

Anyway, into Troy I go! The site is very well organised with a good route through the whole excavation site so I actually manage to see it all despite my shortage of time (I did it at a pretty rough pace though). This site is really marvellous and even though I must admit that have seen grander sites out there the heritage of this place can not be underestimated! I mean, this is Troy, this is a place of legend!

So, after my visit to Troy I meet up with the owner and the other staff member again and we head back to Canakkale. He drops me off by the ferry and I tell Meltem I've arrived early and I meet up with her and two of her friends. She's all dressed up and the wedding is about to start so she asks if I want to come to the wedding and off course I do!

At the wedding I find myself sitting next to a family of three. The daughter is a nurse, the mother a housewife/farmer and the father makes bullets. They are all absolutely charming and I really enjoy their company. After the bride and groom have danced the first dance more people join the dance floor and of course you have to dance at a wedding so I ask Meltem to dance and off we go on the dance floor, dancing both a western dance and a traditional Turkish dance. I know my moves made both the official wedding photos and the official wedding movie which feels pretty cool!

When the wedding reception is over we get a lift back from the uncle of one of Meltem's students. Beside me and Meltem there is also Halil, another couch-surfer from Turkey. Oh, what a day, what a day! I started out having no place to stay and ended up as a guest at a wedding. I tell you, this is how to live your life!

I can honestly say that this day has been one of the best in my life, if I live to be a hundred years old I will never forget this day!

Tomorrow I'm off to explore the Gallipoli Peninsula and the Cimenlik Fortress. I'll also take a better look at the wooden horse from the movie Troy (the one from the movie was donated to the city after the film was completed).

Until tomorrow I wish you all peace and happy travels!

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Photos

Guy Who Took Part in the Protests
Bus to Çanakkale