November 24, 2022 to December 2, 2022
Kayseri to Sivas
After the relative comforts of the last few days in Cappadocia it was time to say goodbye (again) to Sofia and set off into the 50mph wind. To be fair, when I left I was flying with ease at 30km/h+ but as I turned the corner the struggle began with crazy cross winds blowing me into the main road for hours. As the traffic got busier and the hard shoulder disappeared I became increasingly concerned of the danger of being blown into the speeding trucks. In a moment of desperation I rode with my thumb out, hoping someone would stop and drive me off the main road. To my surprise a man pulled over within a few minutes and offered to drive me and my bike to Kayseri, 30km away, what would have taken me hours was accomplished with ease. Arriving into his office I met some colleagues and joined them for food where I got to know these very friendly people over google translate.
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Heading into the city of Kayseri I visited the Grand bazaar, one of the biggest in the country. The items for sale may have changed since its construction 800 years ago but it still had an amazing frantic atmosphere inside and plenty of warm clothes to prepare me for the quickly dropping temperatures.
I met with Muchait in his fathers restaurant where he agreed to help me find a place to stay. Muchait was the cousin of Hande, whom id met previously in the Antalya region and offered to give me a place to stay if I ever passed though the region. After getting to know each other and his family over baklava, we travelled back to his friends flat where they had agreed to let me stay as long as I needed. This was perfect as the next 2 days was forecast heavy rain and snow and I suddenly really didn't feel like cycling for some reason.
Living in this flat was Tylan, Furkan, Yusuf, Emurllah and Numan. Although they were students, it really didnt feel like a typical student flat. There was a certain lack of alcohol for this thanks to the Quran. Living with them for 3 days was such a pleasure, I loved learning about their culture and religion. Moreover as a couple of people didnt speak English so well it was a good opportunity for me to teach and to learn Turkish in return. My heart once again was warmed with the hospitality of these lovely people and I will miss them after I leave.
It was sad to say goodbye to my new friends in Kayseri but I wanted to leave enough time to arrive to Tbilisi by Christmas. After much debate, I decided to take the route to the Black Sea rather than crossing into Georgia via the mountains in the North East. I am sure it would be a lot more adventurous and beautiful but if I don't have to camp in temperatures below -20°C, this would be preferable. Weaving my way through the bustling Sunday markets on the outskirts of the city I felt lost in the chaos but loving life at the same time. Craving something healthy and light I ordered all of the salads in a kebab house without meat, the man looked very confused.
Rolling into the next town after dark, I spend up to an hour heading down tracks and roads looking for a place to sleep. With no success I settled for small patch of trees off the main road and made a fire to cook as the temperatures dropped below freezing.
Another chilly but stunning day riding through the hills towards the Black Sea proceeded and I was in the same predicament as the previous night, looking for a place to camp in an urban town. Speaking to a kind shop keeper, he called up his friends to try and help me out. Moments later a group of young kids came to the shop to lead me to Hassan, a teenage farmer boy who seemed to be the leader of the group. Hasan took me to his families field on the outskirts of the town where he said I could camp for the night. It turned out most the kids in the group were family, including Pablo Escobar, their huge but friendly Kangal shepherd dog. The night was freezing so everyone helped out making a fire, the chaotic kids were a little worrying jumping over the fire and speeding around on mopeds right next to my tent. Two kids unknowingly jumped into each other over the fire and one fell directly into the flames, no harm was done though. Later in the night more family showed up including parents and grandparents who added a few tires to the now dwindling fire and in no time a huge celebration was in place for the dirty tourist on a bicycle. Eventually I was given some space so I can sleep and was surprised in the morning with a delicious bag of sweet treats from Hasan which offset the pounding headache I had from inhaling tire fumes all night.
Another free breakfast from the lovely man in the bakery in the next town and I was underway to make it to Sivas. There was a short and flat route along the main highway but I took the longer hilly scenic route through the tracks in-between the small villages. I was happy with my decision after meeting lots of friendly locals in the villages along with the stunning hilltop views from the bumpy tracks climbed.
This route did take a lot longer than expected, I could have made it to Sivas but I was in paradise and just passed a perfect camp spot in the forest. The only problem was I had no water to cook or drink so I ventured into a nearby farming village to search for a tap. The village was very deprived and run down but the locals still wanted to give so much and offered me food from whatever they had leftover from the house. More and more people showed up to join, I am not sure they have many tourists that come here. The generosity though was very heart warming and I found it funny being treated like a celebrity wherever I went with people wanting to take photos. Heading back down road to the forest in pitch black with pepper spray in hand, I passed two huge dogs but thankfully they didnt show an interest. Soon after, a Sheppard passed me with his flock of sheep and warned me of some wolves that he had just spotted ahead. My heart dropped, and filled with anxiety rode back fast and made a fire to keep away anything that might be nearby. In the morning I noticed a friendly shepherd dog had joined me and was sleeping nearby. With no rush and Sivas only 20km away I took it easy and had a peaceful morning in the camp with my new friend and another fire, eating the leftover food from last night.
Today's ride: 260 km (161 miles)
Total: 4,110 km (2,552 miles)
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