Waking in my perfect little campsite feeling great, I'm ready to make the push into Ankara. The walking is easy and within a few kilometers the road starts it's decent.Coming around one of the cuttings I'm snapped out of my daydream by a pile of rocks cascading down the hill. Checking to ensure more aren't to follow I realize one of the rocks has it's legs in the air kicking! It was a tortoise trying to scale the cliff which set the whole thing off and now he's not looking in such good shape :)Watching in amusement to see if he will be able to right himself my conscience soon gets the better of me and I go to help...
No sooner than he is on his feet he is once again on his way to the top. Some tortoises never learn :) I want to wait and see how far he gets this time because the last two meters are vertical, but tortoises being tortoises it looks like its going to take him a while. So wishing him well I set back off.
Stopping for breakfast at a truck stop in the middle of nowhere, I'm impressed with the amount of customers milling around this early in the morning. An old woman works away, bent over a big hot-plate pumping out pancake looking things filled with cheese. They disappear into the mouths of the hungry patrons as fast as she can dish them out...there's no way I'm missing out on one of these ;)
And I'm not to be disappointed, the are great and I'm left wondering why more shops along the way haven't caught on...
Once again they refuse to let me pay and I leave with a full belly and in great spirits.
My couchsurfing hosts this evening have told me they will be visiting their parents till 8pm so I'm in no hurry and take my time, stopping regularly. The service station staff are looking after me extremely well today with plenty of tea, baklava (mmmm mmmmmmm!!!) and even a hat! :)Arriving at the meeting place a couple of hours early I sit down for another fermented carrot juice (yes, sucker for punishment I know ;) ) and catch up on my blogs.
Omer soon shows up and guides me back to his apartment which he shares with his wife Havva. The two of them are great and are extremely eager to make me comfortable and enlighten me on the subtleties of Turkish culture.
I find out the white berries I've taken a liking to are called dut and the best in Turkey come from Ayas, the village I passed through yesterday. Omer goes on to explain the best nagile comes from Beypazari, the best manti (what Havva is preparing us for dinner) is from Kayseri and the best girls from Izmir...Bugger!!! Should have taken the coastal route after all ;)
Dinner is awesome and after a little raki its time for bed. Thanks guys, wonderful evening! :)
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