Riding along the Turkish Coast

nerudarider · 09-07-2007, 05:59 AM

Here are pictures from two trips I took this summer (2007) around the Turkish Mediterranean coast. Enjoy!

The 1st ride began from Istanbul around 16:00h (i was late as usual) with the target of reaching Öludeniz on the Mediterranean coast before midnight.

View from modern Iznik, ancient Nicea:

Here the First Council of Nicea was held and resulted in the first ever declaration of a Christian Doctrine:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Council_of_Nicaea

Here are pictures from the fields where the Battle of Dumlupinar took place in 1921 between defending Turkish and invading Greek armies during the Turkish War of Indepence.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Dumlupinar

If you look close you'll see the monument

The sun set was near

and soon I had to ride in dark. Which is generally OK.

This time, however, it caused problems. I hit a dog. I didn't even slow down because I thought 'the dog is not dumb enough to cross the road when I'm passing by'. But it did. It was me who was dumb to expect a logical behaviour from an animal. Now I know...

I was going around 140 km/h and the animal just jumped in front of me so 1-2 seconds of braking means I must have hit it around 80 km/h. The bike flew in to a ditch and I was lying on the road. Some people helped me and an ambulance arrived.

View from the ambulance

I was extremely lucky and I'm utterly grateful that I got away alive. My foot was hurt bad but it wasn't broken. I suppose the dog died...

After first doctor examination and some anesthetics they sent me with ambulance to a bigger hospital for x-rays. On the way, I asked the ambulance driver to stop where my bike was. Luckily the bike wasn't damaged, not even any scratches thanks to the crash bars. The Turkish Gendarmerie was securing the bike and I just told the ambulance and the soldiers that I'd ride it myself to Denizli hospital. It was a painful ride...

zadok · 09-07-2007, 06:30 AM

Nice 1. Great historic country. Would love to visit sometime.

nerudarider · 09-07-2007, 12:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zadok

Nice 1. Great historic country. Would love to visit sometime.

Don't know where you are writing from, but you are always welcome Zadok

nerudarider · 09-07-2007, 12:54 PM

Next day I was going to be more careful and try not to hit anything

Some pictures from the road towards the coast.

Closing in to Mugla, I took a shortcut through some smaller village roads.

It was beautiful

To be continued...

Borinott · 09-07-2007, 01:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nerudarider

To be continued...

Yes, please

nerudarider · 09-07-2007, 01:57 PM

The sea at last!

Actually this isn't the sea, it's the Köycegiz lake just next to the sea!

Moving on, I met a biker couple, stopped for a chat and decided to meet in Öludeniz for a drink. Hello Attila

. I'm looking forward to news from your ride to Katmandu!

Enjoying the view once in a while

and moving on..

Finally I reached Öludeniz, which actually means 'dead sea', due to a lagoon next to the beach. It is not dead however, on the contrary it's very lively. See for yourself.

I'm sending a salute to my Lithuanian paraglider friends Andrej and Aleksej from here!

They told me Öludeniz is a famous spot for paragliding

Taking a swim in Öludeniz, I decided to move on to Marmaris that day.

I arrived just around sunset. This night I was determined not to ride

to be continued...

Parigi · 09-07-2007, 02:15 PM

Hi Nerudarider,
Thanks for sharing. It reminds me of one of the best rides I took in the the reverse direction back in ’99. By the way, the best dish I ever had

was in Kutahya at a restaurant on the exit towards Istanbul. It was some sort of a casserole with eggplant, ground beef, sour cream and cheese. If you stop over there, can you please ask them for the recipe?

nerudarider · 09-07-2007, 02:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by paris

Hi Nerudarider,
Thanks for sharing. It remind me of one of the best rides I took in the the reverse direction back in ’99. By the way, the best dish I ever had

was in Kutahya at a restaurant on the exit towards Istanbul. It was some sort of a casserole with eggplant, ground beef, sour cream and cheese. If you stop over there, can you please ask them for the recipe?

Hi Paris

Eggplant, or auberguine some may prefer, or patlican in Turkish and Persian and maybe Greek (anyone?) is very common in Turkish cousine. From your description I'd guess it was the dish called 'Alinazik' (literally meaning 'Gentle Ali

) which is one of my personal all time favorites too. Or maybe I'm just hungry

.

If it is, and hoping you know anyone speaking Turkish, you can find the recipe in Turkish:
http://yemektariflerimiz.blogcu.com/...+Nazik+Tarifi/

Enjoy!

Parigi · 09-07-2007, 03:02 PM

I don’t know anyone who speaks Turkish but if you told me the name, I found a few translated recipes.
Thanks!

nerudarider · 09-07-2007, 03:06 PM

Next day I decided to take a ride towards Datca as I'd never been there before. But first I needed breakfast and had my bike washed while I was eating some 'gözleme' together with 'ayran'.

The road to Datca is beautiful and very curvy

Riding around the area the whole day I moved on to the really touristic Bodrum and spent the night there...

On the way I could take another sunset photo

To be continued...

nerudarider · 09-07-2007, 03:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by paris

I don’t know anyone who speaks Turkish but if you told me the name, I found a few translated recipes.
Thanks!

You are welcome anytime

VDG · 09-07-2007, 03:16 PM

Great pics. Keep it going, show us more pics of your country.

nerudarider · 09-07-2007, 03:23 PM

I had to ride back to Istanbul, so after taking a fast tour around Bodrum I moved on.

Breakfast near the Bodrum Fortress

On the way you pass through the Bafa Lake. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Bafa

You can see ancient settlements on the small island.

The way back through Izmir was boring so I thought I'd go heavy with the throttle

and got this!

Near Akhisar ca 120 km from Izmir my differential broke down

This was the second time it happened, the first time I was somewhere near Kozani in Greece but I managed to take the bike back to Istanbul before I got stranded. It was not a great way to end this trip. Or maybe it was a suitable finish to its unfortunate start... I don't know, I was just ....

I took a flight back to Istanbul and had the bike towed to BMW Service in Izmir. I would have to wait 20 days in the middle of my holiday before I got my bike back

To be continued...

nerudarider · 09-07-2007, 03:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VDG

Great pics. Keep it going, show us more pics of your country.

OK VDG, but only if you promise to show some of yours!

Deal?

VDG · 09-07-2007, 04:08 PM

Deal. Have not much but here are some:
http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=127311
and
http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=264188 where I'm just posting my last trip.

Quote:

Originally Posted by nerudarider

OK VDG, but only if you promise to show some of yours!

Deal?

09-07-2007, 05:59 AM	#1
nerudarider ^OP nerudarider Joined: Feb 2006 Location: Istanbul, Stockholm Oddometer: 327	Riding along the Turkish Coast Here are pictures from two trips I took this summer (2007) around the Turkish Mediterranean coast. Enjoy! The 1st ride began from Istanbul around 16:00h (i was late as usual) with the target of reaching Öludeniz on the Mediterranean coast before midnight. View from modern Iznik, ancient Nicea: Here the First Council of Nicea was held and resulted in the first ever declaration of a Christian Doctrine: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Council_of_Nicaea Here are pictures from the fields where the Battle of Dumlupinar took place in 1921 between defending Turkish and invading Greek armies during the Turkish War of Indepence. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Dumlupinar If you look close you'll see the monument The sun set was near and soon I had to ride in dark. Which is generally OK. This time, however, it caused problems. I hit a dog. I didn't even slow down because I thought 'the dog is not dumb enough to cross the road when I'm passing by'. But it did. It was me who was dumb to expect a logical behaviour from an animal. Now I know... I was going around 140 km/h and the animal just jumped in front of me so 1-2 seconds of braking means I must have hit it around 80 km/h. The bike flew in to a ditch and I was lying on the road. Some people helped me and an ambulance arrived. View from the ambulance I was extremely lucky and I'm utterly grateful that I got away alive. My foot was hurt bad but it wasn't broken. I suppose the dog died... After first doctor examination and some anesthetics they sent me with ambulance to a bigger hospital for x-rays. On the way, I asked the ambulance driver to stop where my bike was. Luckily the bike wasn't damaged, not even any scratches thanks to the crash bars. The Turkish Gendarmerie was securing the bike and I just told the ambulance and the soldiers that I'd ride it myself to Denizli hospital. It was a painful ride... __________________ Ida Mountain - Turkish west coast 2005 Moscow detour - Istanbul to Stockholm via Moscow 2006 Meteora Sunset - Istanbul to Larisa and back 2007 Historical Balkan - Istanbul to Stockholm via Belgrade, Budapest and Warsaw 2007 Tatar Rush from Trakai to Yalta to Istanbul 2007 Turkish Coastline - Riding in the Aegean and Mediterranean Coastline 2007 Heaven at the Gates of Hell - Chapadas in tropical Brazil 2008 nerudarider screwed with this post 09-07-2007 at 03:08 PM

09-07-2007, 06:30 AM	#2
zadok Studly Adventurer Joined: Jul 2007 Location: Port Kennedy, Western Australia Oddometer: 956	Nice 1. Great historic country. Would love to visit sometime. __________________ Marty F '13 Triumph Sprint GT; '04 Triumph Tiger 955i http://www.triumphrat.net/memberalbu...4275.html?sl=z

09-07-2007, 12:54 PM	#4
nerudarider ^OP nerudarider Joined: Feb 2006 Location: Istanbul, Stockholm Oddometer: 327	Next day I was going to be more careful and try not to hit anything Some pictures from the road towards the coast. Closing in to Mugla, I took a shortcut through some smaller village roads. It was beautiful It was beautiful To be continued... __________________ Ida Mountain - Turkish west coast 2005 Moscow detour - Istanbul to Stockholm via Moscow 2006 Meteora Sunset - Istanbul to Larisa and back 2007 Historical Balkan - Istanbul to Stockholm via Belgrade, Budapest and Warsaw 2007 Tatar Rush from Trakai to Yalta to Istanbul 2007 Turkish Coastline - Riding in the Aegean and Mediterranean Coastline 2007 Heaven at the Gates of Hell - Chapadas in tropical Brazil 2008

09-07-2007, 01:57 PM	#6
nerudarider ^OP nerudarider Joined: Feb 2006 Location: Istanbul, Stockholm Oddometer: 327	The sea at last! Actually this isn't the sea, it's the Köycegiz lake just next to the sea! Moving on, I met a biker couple, stopped for a chat and decided to meet in Öludeniz for a drink. Hello Attila . I'm looking forward to news from your ride to Katmandu! Enjoying the view once in a while and moving on.. Finally I reached Öludeniz, which actually means 'dead sea', due to a lagoon next to the beach. It is not dead however, on the contrary it's very lively. See for yourself. I'm sending a salute to my Lithuanian paraglider friends Andrej and Aleksej from here! They told me Öludeniz is a famous spot for paragliding Taking a swim in Öludeniz, I decided to move on to Marmaris that day. I arrived just around sunset. This night I was determined not to ride to be continued... __________________ Ida Mountain - Turkish west coast 2005 Moscow detour - Istanbul to Stockholm via Moscow 2006 Meteora Sunset - Istanbul to Larisa and back 2007 Historical Balkan - Istanbul to Stockholm via Belgrade, Budapest and Warsaw 2007 Tatar Rush from Trakai to Yalta to Istanbul 2007 Turkish Coastline - Riding in the Aegean and Mediterranean Coastline 2007 Heaven at the Gates of Hell - Chapadas in tropical Brazil 2008

09-07-2007, 02:15 PM	#7
Parigi Hoinar Joined: Dec 2002 Location: Calgary, Canada Oddometer: 232	One of my best rides ever Hi Nerudarider, Thanks for sharing. It reminds me of one of the best rides I took in the the reverse direction back in ’99. By the way, the best dish I ever had was in Kutahya at a restaurant on the exit towards Istanbul. It was some sort of a casserole with eggplant, ground beef, sour cream and cheese. If you stop over there, can you please ask them for the recipe? Parigi screwed with this post 03-31-2009 at 01:24 PM

09-07-2007, 03:02 PM	#9
Parigi Hoinar Joined: Dec 2002 Location: Calgary, Canada Oddometer: 232	I don’t know anyone who speaks Turkish but if you told me the name, I found a few translated recipes. Thanks!

09-07-2007, 03:06 PM	#10
nerudarider ^OP nerudarider Joined: Feb 2006 Location: Istanbul, Stockholm Oddometer: 327	Next day I decided to take a ride towards Datca as I'd never been there before. But first I needed breakfast and had my bike washed while I was eating some 'gözleme' together with 'ayran'. The road to Datca is beautiful and very curvy Riding around the area the whole day I moved on to the really touristic Bodrum and spent the night there... On the way I could take another sunset photo To be continued... __________________ Ida Mountain - Turkish west coast 2005 Moscow detour - Istanbul to Stockholm via Moscow 2006 Meteora Sunset - Istanbul to Larisa and back 2007 Historical Balkan - Istanbul to Stockholm via Belgrade, Budapest and Warsaw 2007 Tatar Rush from Trakai to Yalta to Istanbul 2007 Turkish Coastline - Riding in the Aegean and Mediterranean Coastline 2007 Heaven at the Gates of Hell - Chapadas in tropical Brazil 2008

09-07-2007, 03:16 PM	#12
VDG Beastly Adventurer Joined: Mar 2006 Location: Brazil Oddometer: 1,136	Great pics. Keep it going, show us more pics of your country.

09-07-2007, 03:23 PM	#13
nerudarider ^OP nerudarider Joined: Feb 2006 Location: Istanbul, Stockholm Oddometer: 327	I had to ride back to Istanbul, so after taking a fast tour around Bodrum I moved on. Breakfast near the Bodrum Fortress On the way you pass through the Bafa Lake. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Bafa You can see ancient settlements on the small island. The way back through Izmir was boring so I thought I'd go heavy with the throttle and got this! Near Akhisar ca 120 km from Izmir my differential broke down This was the second time it happened, the first time I was somewhere near Kozani in Greece but I managed to take the bike back to Istanbul before I got stranded. It was not a great way to end this trip. Or maybe it was a suitable finish to its unfortunate start... I don't know, I was just .... I took a flight back to Istanbul and had the bike towed to BMW Service in Izmir. I would have to wait 20 days in the middle of my holiday before I got my bike back To be continued... __________________ Ida Mountain - Turkish west coast 2005 Moscow detour - Istanbul to Stockholm via Moscow 2006 Meteora Sunset - Istanbul to Larisa and back 2007 Historical Balkan - Istanbul to Stockholm via Belgrade, Budapest and Warsaw 2007 Tatar Rush from Trakai to Yalta to Istanbul 2007 Turkish Coastline - Riding in the Aegean and Mediterranean Coastline 2007 Heaven at the Gates of Hell - Chapadas in tropical Brazil 2008

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