A year on the wagon!

Updated, 8.55pm

I'm sitting in a cafe outside a modern shopping mall on the west side of Ankara, taking a break and eating ice cream.  I set out at 9.30 and headed across country, initially to the east on narrow windy roads, passing Agva, then Kandira, and on to Sakaraya, by which time the road had opened up into a dual carriageway.  Then it was onto the motorway towards Ankara.  Temperatures climbed from humid mid 20s (yuk!) to dry mid 30s (fab!) and the landscape changed from green (rather like the north coast of Spain) to yellow/brown as the motorway climbed into a mountain range.  At one point it reached 1,500m ASL before descending gently towards Ankara which appears to be in the centre of a desert-like plain about 800m ASL.  Most alien traffic is German with the odd coach load of Poles, and the Turkish driving is lively.  On the motorway I passed a recently overturned lorry coming through roadworks in the opposite direction - he'd obviously taken the carriageway switch too fast.  There were a dozen or so cars queueing behind and people were just beginning to get out to go and help the driver. I saw 2 touring GSers coming in the opposite direction and got a hearty wave, but still very few bikers around and none to talk to. The people I meet are very warm and get excited that I've come so far on a moto, but conversations don't go beyond Manchester United, about which they appear to more than I do, even though it's my home team.

A year ago today I sipped a single glass of champagne very slowly after a concert in Rocca Massima, to the south of Rome.  It's the last alcoholic drink I had, though I'd had very little in the 2 weeks before that.  I'm in much better shape than I was a year ago and wish I'd given the stuff up long ago.  Will I drink again?  Maybe.  But for the moment I can't see any advantage in doing so and intend to stay as I am.

I'm about to set off and go through the centre of Ankara just to get a feel, then head out to the east side and look for camping.  I have the coordinates of one about 30km away so will check that one out first.  Sunset is at 7.56pm so the nights are closing in.  Will add some photos later if I get a wifi signal.

Update: the campsite I checked out to the east turned out to be a Turkish military base - the guards were most amused.  The info I was given placed it on top of this hill

which would have been nice, unless I got run over by a tank during the night.  So I headed round Ankara's M25 to one down to the south, and I'm now in a field behind a hotel overlooking a lake.  Here's how it looks right now

At last I've bumped into some fellow travellers - 2 young couples who are cycling together for a few days.   One couple started in New Zealand 2 years ago and they've just come through the east of Turkey from Iran, and the other two are going in the opposite direction until their money runs out.  The girls are both Czech, with Brit/German men.  I got some good information about the east of Turkey.  Very south east corner - troubled and avoid (Kurds setting off bombs under army).  North east, Mount Ararat worth a view, but in general that whole area they said was unfriendly and unremarkable except for the kids who threw stones and tried to steal things.  Indeed, this afternoon when I pulled over in a residential quarter of Ankara, 3 young boys tried to pull one of the BMW logos off my bike - apparently it gets worse the further east you go, and then, in Iran, it changes and people are very friendly.  So, that's helped focus my plans.  If I rode to Mount Ararat it would be 1,200 km, then to Marmaris from there (so I can cross to Rhodes) another 2,000 km, so that's another 2,000 miles.  I've got 7 days so I suppose I could do it, but it would be a huge slog and I'd have little time to stop for anything, so it's more likely I'll head towards Cappadocia tomorrow and take my time getting round to Rhodes.  If I get there early I can always explore a few more Greek islands before crossing to Athens.

Finally, a couple more photos of where I spent my rest day