It was an interesting day. We packed up our things and headed outside to wait for Avto. He was a bit late but got there with more than enough time to take us to the bus station and boy I am glad he did. There was some confusion as to where our reservations were. His girlfriend, Eka, reserved the tickets under the company “Metro bus service” but when we went there, they didn’t have them. Apparently there is a subsidiary company where our reservations were held. This would have been a huge mass of confusion had Avto not been there because Michael nor I know Georgian. He got everything figured out for us.
We put our things on the bus and waited to leave with Avto. He was really nice to come out and make sure that we got on our way. The bus was really great and as I write this in Trabzon, Turkey I can’t believe how fast the 12 hour bus ride took. It was a very modern Mercedes bus with screens in the headrests and air conditioning the whole way. More than enough leg room for me and reclining seats made it that much better. A long cry from what we took from Yerevan to Tbilisi. Marshutnis are just no match.
We slept most of the way from Tbilisi to Batumi and then rode along the coast of the Black Sea after that. It was really beautiful. Everyone was super friendly and helpful along the way. We got to the border and got our exit stamps for Georgia and then walked over to the Turkey side.
This is where things got interesting. We got in line for the turkey entry stamp knowing that we had to purchase a visa. With what results in complete reverse intuition, we actually had to by-pass the passport control, go into Turkey, buy our visa and then go back to the Georgian side to get it actually stamped. It made no sense. The first policeman explained this to us and I think he thought it was counterintuitive as well. He gave a chuckle. The visa office was not easy to find either and some of the other policemen we asked along the way made it seem like it should be easy. But when you don’t speak the language, and there is an apparent lack of signs, it makes it all the more difficult. Whatever, we got across.
We were 100km from Trabzon when Michael became suspicious of the place we were staying. No where on the reservation form did it say “Trabzon” but some other city. Mike didn’t think twice about it until we were this close. We asked the bus driver where the city was and he said that it was on the other side of Istanbul, a mere 15 hours away from where we were at that moment. Mike had messed up. Fortunately for us, we had my computer and there was wireless interest at one of the stops. We found a hotel. We wrote down the address.
We got to Trabzon at 9pm. The bus dutifully pulled over and we both got out. We got Turkish Lira out at the ATM that was next to the bus pullover. (Because we didn’t have Lira before, I had to pretend I was marveling the beauty of the Black Sea while taking a pee since you have to pay for bathroom usage here. Fortunately the sun was almost down and it was dark so no one really knew what I was doing. Mike and I are close enough that he stood next to me because really, who would stand next to their buddy while they were peeing… Mike would. It added to the disguise. Anyway, we found another hotel but lost internet when the bus started moving.
We asked a store owner pantomiming and showing him the address of the hotel. He yelled at a bus driver to take us to the hotel. We got off and the bus driver told one of the other patrons to take us to the hotel. We got to the hotel. The shadiest place I have ever been other than the hotel we stayed in in India. We dropped off our bags and went out to look for something to eat. When we were walking we realized there were prostitutes everywhere. They kept whistling at us. We got to a tea place and sat down. Yes, we were a bit worried.
As we sat there, Mike realized the owner was speaking Armenian. So in Armenian I asked her if she was speaking Armenian. She was. That really made me feel so much better. We explained to her we had lived there for two years working for Peace Corps and that’s why we knew Armenian. Mike just sat there. I asked her about the right prices for everything, how far it was to the city center and asked her if it was dangerous in this area. She told me everything truthfully saying that she was Armenian and that she wouldn’t lie to someone who lived in Armenia. We found out later that she was a madam. Ha. I figured because her face was about 6 inches away from mine and every chance she got, she kept touching my exposed leg. Whatever, I got the answers I needed. I asked her about the hotel, she said it was fine. She just said that we shouldn’t go outside past twelve and other than that, there is nothing to worry about.
Needless to say, we will probably change hotels tomorrow night. You probably won’t be reading this until we have left Trabzon so Mom and Dad, don’t worry, everything is (was) fine. Another story to add to the list.
Things are usually better in the morning anyway, but how fantastic to run into an Armenian so willing to help out. They all do. That made us feel much better.
So that was today…
Day 2 in Trabzon
We woke up surprisingly early. I watched a bit of the Real Madrid/ Barcelona soccer game on TV since that does not require the knowledge of the Turkish language then fell asleep late. I didn’t sleep well because I was freaking out about our things getting stolen from our room when we left. Mike and I decided to carry around everything of value. Actually I left my computer in the room but locked it up in my bag with a lock that could be cut probably by a pair of scissors if you really wanted to. (everything was fine when we got back...)
We left around 9 because we wanted to go to the Sumela Monastery about an hour outside of Trabzon. It was awesome because it is built into a mountain side and is huge. However, today was some huge Christian holiday in Turkey so no buses were going out there because they had all been chartered. Mike and I took the public transportation after being directed in circles for about an hour. It was fun though and we weren’t really in a hurry. We found the bus, which happened to be right in front of our hotel after walking around for roughly an hour.
We waited a little while and then left. We got to the Monastery and due to some processions at the Monastery, we had to wait at the bottom of the hill. Mike and I decided we would just eat lunch. I don’t know what I ate. It was labeled “meatballs” but they looked like small hamburger patties and as you all know hamburger patties do not resemble meatballs. It was fine.
When they opened the gate, Mike and I walked up the 3km road to the Monastery. It was at a very strict grade and we were wearing sandals. People were staring at us. That’s fine. The Monastery was really cool (see attached photos… you probably already have). The inside was being renovated so we couldn’t really see much there but there were some amazing frescos on the inside. I don’t think I will ever figure out why people would want to scratch the frescoed walls. Anyway, we then walked back down.
On our way up on the trail, I stood next to the archbishop of the Russian Orthodox Church. I tried not to make eye contact since his bodyguards looked like they could do some damage, but I did get a shot of him walking down the trail.
At the bottom we waited for everyone from the bus to get back before heading back. After we got back, we walked around Trabzon and then decided to get something to eat. Burger King. We were really tired from our day so here we are back at the hotel contemplating on going back out for a music festival on the other side of the town at 9pm. Probably not going to happen.
We didn’t make it to Ataturk’s house but maybe tomorrow we will make it before our 2pm flight to Istanbul. That is when the trip should get much more exciting. Certainly more to come.
Baklava here is amazing. Dad, I wish you could be here to try it becaue I know you rave about it, but I think even if I FEDEXed it there it might not be that great….
Until next time...
No comments:
Post a Comment