The weather officially turned rainy and very cold when we got to Turkey–but the people there are perhaps the warmest in the world. We had heard from other travelers that the hospitality in Turkey is like no other place in the world. The rumors are true.
We only cycled four days to get from the border with Greece to the endpoint of our European journey–Istanbul. Istanbul is a popular destination for cyclists… a large percentage of people who do bike tours in Europe finish their trip in this historic city. It offers a certain completeness, as the city itself occupies the area where Europe and Asia meet. That said, the people in Turkey have seen their fair share of travelers, whether they be cyclists or backpackers or hitchhikers.
From the first day, we were blown away by the genuine kindness of these people. Men working at gas stations would see us coming and start waving us down, trying to entice us in to pull off and share a tea with them (on the house, of course!). The first offer came from guys who were actually driving past us in a van. They pulled off and waved us in as we rode past a small restaurant. We pulled in, as I also needed to use the restroom. When I came out of the bathroom, I was greeted by this sight:
Quick on the draw… in just moments, these guys had ushered Dave over to a table to enjoy a tea together. They barely spoke any English at all, but were obviously thrilled to give a warm welcome to a couple of random Americans!
It wasn’t long before they had ordered us food as well! Since Dave couldn’t eat his grilled cheese sandwich, we packed it up for me to enjoy later! What a treat.
We quickly realized that we couldn’t accept every offer for tea, or we’d never make it to Istanbul! But we still tried to wave and smile at the many guys who tried to lure us in with their shouts and motions of drinking tea.
The day we rode into Istanbul was cold, windy and rainy, and the terrain was quite hilly. We were on a nasty big highway with loads of (fast) traffic, and then, to finish it off, Dave got a flat tire. We were frustrated and tired, not feeling particularly triumphant as we finished a 7,000+ kilometer journey through Europe. But, our day finally brightened when we arrived at the home of our amazing warmshowers host, Kerem. I knew from reading his reviews that he might actually be the most popular host in the history of warmshowers (he had 30ish reviews from past guests!), and he proved himself well! Kerem was such a genuinely nice guy, and he hosted us and SEVEN other cyclists in his apartment! (And somehow it never seemed crowded!) Once again, Kerem was an incredible example of Turkish hospitality.
Definitely not the best picture, but you can see the room full of cyclists! And bicycles… haha. There were five in the living room at one point! That’s Kerem, on the right in between Dave and me. We had a blast at his place!
Dave and I have talked a lot about what the next season of our life will look like, and how we very much want to show to others the kind of hospitality that has been shown to us on countless occasions. And in Turkey, we realized all over again that we have a lot to learn from a country that so eagerly embraces those who take the time to wander within its borders.
We wished we could have spent longer in Istanbul, as many of our days were consumed with the tedious and careful packing of the bikes and all our gear. But we did take some time to be proper tourists. Here are some of our highlights from our time in this beautiful city at the crossroads of Europe and Asia:
We visited the Grand Bazaar and the Spice Market. The latter was full of booths like this one, with wonderful and strong aromas floating in the air all around. A great experience!
The spice market was also full of Turkish delight! Fortunately, this tasty gelatin dessert is naturally gluten and dairy free!
Our time in Istanbul included our first trip to a mosque–the Blue Mosque in the heart of the city. We wanted to learn more about the culture and religion of this country which is, by some surveys, 99 percent Muslim. We are both Christians, but we desire to be respectful of other religions, and try to understand more of what they teach and what their people believe. We also visited (only the outside!) of the Hagia Sophia, which was for 1000 years a church and for 500 years a mosque–an intriguing history. It is the oldest building in Istanbul. It now serves as a museum. We took pictures, but somehow they did not save to our camera! Technology fails us.
One of the tall minarets from within the courtyard of the Blue Mosque.
We’ve decided Turkey is a top-notch country for cycling, and would highly recommend it to other travelers. However, we wouldn’t necessarily recommend it in December! Several heavy storms and cold nights led us to get more hotel rooms than we prefer. Even so, we thoroughly enjoyed our short time there!
Awesome sign in one of the hotel bathrooms. I love English translation in the world at large!
