I’ve covered around 2000km in Turkey, along both the Aegean and Black Sea Coasts. It’s been an incredible month of endless sweet cays, fascinating historical sites, new friends, and enough Turkish hospitality to cherish for a lifetime. Between pushing on the pedals I struck the balance between quant fishing villages and the enthralling metropolis of Istanbul, symbolically at the crossroads of Europe and Asia. It’s truly with a heavy heart I will be leaving such a beautiful country to cross into Georgia tomorrow, where I will reach higher inland altitudes to explore the Caucasus.
The Aegean Coast
When I reached the shores of Turkey at the beginning of the New Year, the cultural differences where at once profound; from my cheeky camping place hidden beside the knights’ fortress in Bodrum, I nearly jumped out of my skin when the mornings call to prayer began. Lesson one for Turkey: don’t pitch the tent underneath a mosques minaret!
I decided to push the miles to Istanbul so I could give my tender knee ligament a test. The physio had ordered me to rest the knee, but with Istanbul being the last place to pause before expensive visas, I decided to ride hard and check that the ligament will manage the winter haul along the Black Sea to Iran. Thankfully this somewhat idiotic reasoning paid off, and the ligament stretches each morning and afternoon have now become part of my daily routine.

My ‘wildest’ new years ever… not a drop, and asleep by 8pm
In just one week I think I managed to see the remains of three of the seven wonders of the ancient world. Despite sporadic rain, the sun kept shining when visiting the famous ancient sights of Ephesus and Pergamum, as well as the Gallipoli Peninsula.

The Great Theatre in Ephesus

The Library of Celsus

The perfect place for a quick naked swim and clean at dawn!
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