E.Turkey

Whew. It's been a helluva journey across Turkey.


I should start by saying that Turkey's bus system is certainly unique. The tickets are slightly pricey, but the buses also have 'flight attendants' that come around to splash detergent in cupped palms. On my first trip (to Istanbul) I was rather vexed by these guys, since the bus was over-sold and I was moved around four times. After all of this, the steward kept waking me up and pointing at my feet. I know now that on Turkish buses, there is No removal of shoes. Anyhow, it may be against Bus-System etiquette to do so, but it's against My etiquette to wake me up all night reminding me. Then flat tire, yadda yadda... not a great trip. At some point I struck upon the right glare that kept the stewards away.

The next trip, to Cappadocia, I tried to get on the good side of the attendants. Turns out that non-trouble makers get more than just hand-sanitizer; cookies, tea, brownies, coffee, all this came my way when I just shut up and sat. Cool. But something is amiss in the Bussing-State of Turkey. I'll come back to that.

I already mentioned a bit about Istanbul. Other than the cabbies, the city is great. Now, if I were to eat lunch in a cafe, I might have found the place rather depressing. Lonely Planet warns against travel during Ramadan for similar reasons. However, I thought the city was magical for just that reason. I already mentioned I'm keeping the Ramadan fast... this may seem odd. But to wait all day to eat, patiently waiting for sundown and the accompanying call to prayer, and then to see the "Bikir il Ramazan" light up amidst cheers of joy from the kids waiting to open up their yogurt; this is special. The long-lines waiting to go into restaurants start to move, the Hippodrome comes to life as a carnival where vendors line the streets and hock every sort of gastronomic delight... really worth it. Some amazing foods, too.

Then I hopped to Cappadoica. I would have never imagined that such a place existed on Earth. The landscape is littered with strange rock formations, some like sand-dunes, some giant "fairy chimneys", all crazy. People have carved out homes in tons of these things, and to this day you can find tons of "Cave hotels" to sleep in. Christians carved out churches and seven-story buildings a couple centuries after Christ, and there are open-air museums of these all around the region. I rented a scooter for like $6 and had a field day. My cave hostel bed was $4. Just awesome.



Then I started my little journey across Eastern Turkey. This was where I got to know how crazy buses are. It took five buses and two days, but I got to see some great stuff on the way. One bus was way oversold, and I was standing in the aisle, squeezed between to round Turks for about 2 hours. Some buses were a few hours late, screwing connections. Madness.

I also stopped in Erzerum, hiked across town to the Otogar (bus station), and then back to find an ATM. 50,000 students in Erzerum. Met a friendly/goofy young Turk on the way into the center. He had spent two months in Albany, so he was elated to chat with me. He showed me a closer ATM, too. I took the opportunity to ask about the foot of snow on the ground, and whether it was a cold-spell. "Oh no no, this is a big heat-spell. 8 degrees? Our winters are always -35 degrees with a meter of snow or more." Cornell students have no right to bitch and moan.

Made my way to Kars and finally Ardahan. The landscape is just amazing, providing you're looking out the side windows of a bus. Those who sit near the front, seeing all the wandering cows the driver is swerving around, might get frayed nerves. I spent the night in Ardahan, and I found a little "hotel"/house to stay in for a few dollars. It was really awful, but the family was very charming. The dad came in after a while, saying something about "Madame, madame, tea!" to which I politely declined. Of course, the guy looked crushed, and I spent a few minutes cursing my Slavic customs (he only asked Once!).

I did wander out, though, just catching the Mom's eye, so I was invited again. Turns out there were two daughters about my age all dressed up out there. Hmm. Anyhow, turns out they were Georgians, so I had a pear and a chat 'po-russki'. Nice, nice folks. My bed didn't last the whole night, but after the collapse I found evidence that it wasn't a new problem. I put on a pitiful pout and said to the first person I could find "too many kebap," so they all had a good laugh and found me a new bed.

Caught the 10am bus to Tbilisi, which took four hours to the border. There were four passengers; myself and three older ladies. The Georgian border guards were all rather slovenly, unkempt, and wearing a mish-mash of uniforms and random warm garments. As I was approaching (the crossing is done on foot), my fellow passengers said something to a guard about the American, to which he replied, "ahh hah, tourista". He then said something about speaking Georgian, to which I replied in Russian. He looked surprised, and then spent a few minutes looking at the stamps in my passport. He finally gave an approving nod and said, "Touristo". I was rather flattered by the amendment.

Anyhow, this was about 1500 local time. The bus then moved on to Tbilisi... on rural "roads". I think the ride on a dirt path would have been smoother; the crumbling Brezhnev-era highway we were driving on felt more like Roman Ruins. This is without mentioning the 7ft. width or the animals/crazy-tractor-driver adornments. We stopped around 20:00 to eat, and though I read for a while (I had no local currency), I was invited over by the gang to join in. I accepted some bread, but I also didn't refuse the two shots of Cha-cha (you don't refuse drinks in Georgia). This local fire-water has a very pleasant taste, and goes down smooth, but just these two shots got me very tipsy. Then I realized my drinking partner was the bus driver.

Anyhow, we finally made it into Tbilisi around 22:00 (yeah, look at the distance on a map... redic), and I crashed at the "Bus Station Hotel". The name was probably the most elegant thing about it. It was only four bucks or so for the night, but some of my pads with homeless folks at train stations have been more comfortable. Indeed, it was empty; I think the homeless shelter across the road is nicer.

So I'm off to explore the city, get visas, and find out if the Philharmonic is playing. I'll upload some shots soon. Love yall.