Finally got back on the road but not out of Istanbul yet. Pitched my tent on a hill on unused land between super-rich villas. 40.910, 29.147
Hiatus in Istanbul
distance: 65.35km
duration: 9h 47min
"My fuel-pump is on the plane to Paris..."
"Oh really, is it? Sounds good!"
"Oh, well. As it goes via Paris it probably won't be here before Friday. And i still have no information if the sleeping bag is already on its way."
"Oh, don't worry, you can stay here as long as you like"
"Really? Watch your words, you might regret it...! ;-) No, i'm actually looking forward to get back on the road soon. – But hey, i again didn't get up before 1pm today! I was up till 5am last night! My sleep-pattern is completely distorted."
"Oh, that's GOOD! Don't worry about it, you are going to remember these days. When you are cold in your tent in eastern Turkey, you'll think to yourself 'Oh boy, back then, in Jeff's place, where i could stay in my warm bed till noon, that was a great time!'"
"Yeah, you're right! 'Back then, when i had a hot shower, clean clothes and food available just around the corner...'. I'll miss it. I was so glad when i got here on that rainy friday evening two weeks ago..."
"Mhm! – that first day you came here? You looked pretty knocked up, bearded and wet. And man, you where smelly!"
*Bursts out in laughter* "Really! Was it that bad?"
"Yes, it was like..." *Motions a "stay away from me"-gesture*
"Haha! Glad you tell me that. I knew i smelled a little - but i didn't know that i was reeking really bad. But yeah, i didn't wash any of my clothes for 3 weeks back then. I myself had a shower everyday though - it was just the clothes that where dirty!"
"Haha, yes, the whole flat..." *Wrinkles his nose* "But that was just the first night..."
*More laughter* "Yeah - i was really glad to see you back then, i felt so miserable. – Oh wow, the guys in the çay-houses i was visiting on my way - what have they been thinking of me?" *Chuckles* "It's good that Serpil wasn't at home that day!"
"Oh yeah, she would have said *pretends mean voice*: 'Who's that weirdo from Austria? How comes Michael recommends such people to us?' But you where all 'shaved and pretty Christian' when she finally met you."
"Hehe, yes, i looked pretty handsome after the haircut and shave. And i even had clean clothes again after the second day :-)"
Ringing the doorbell of this flat, wet, cold, physically tired, dirty on the outside and soaked with sweat on the inside, with an exhausted mind – greeting my host Jeff and telling him how glad i am to see him in the very first sentence – it's already a distant memory.
I've been living the cushy life of an average young european in the last two weeks here in Istanbul, filled with the same activities as my most idle days back in Vienna - lots of internet surfing - reading blogs, reviews, news and threads, watching videos, viewing images, recreational coding - eating till i was thoroughly full every morning, noon and evening - going to a nearby park or down to the Bosporus when a sunny and warm day made me feel remorseful enough to not waste it in the flat clicking selected links on reddit or scrolling through soup - joining my hosts and friends of a friend for a beer at Taksim - having educated and elaborate conversations in coherent english with someone i share interests and cultural background - trying to hunt for replacements and equipment in the not so well-stocked and scattered outdoor- and bike-shops on the european and asian side of Istanbul - consciously avoiding parts of the city that reek of tourists and sightseeing - trying to blend in like a local(Not convincingly though, with a vocabulary of only 5-words).
What it comes down to - i was happily taking a break from any thoughts that wrap around my endeavour and the hardships i was facing - often feeling like waking up during short moments of consciousness which made me realize that this was not a permanent status but that i was actually on a travel and soon be moving again. But two weeks of slacking where just what i needed.
I'm actually still not done with shutting off and the subconscious digestion of my experiences of the last 2300km, but i've sufficiently recovered to be open for new adventures again. Reading other peoples recounts of their longterm-cyclingtrips has helped me align my thoughts, the most outstanding one is the blog of Tom Allen. He's a great writer and photographer and his reports on his experiences and life are a mirror of my own feelings and thoughts.
Istanbul has left a big hole in my budget as prices are nearly on the niveau of western europe - most of the money was spent on food and a small fortune on replacement/additional gear. I had a slow leak in my air- matress and assumed it was fixable - but when i finally tested it in the bathtub, i realized there where tiny holes left and right of each the valves - clearly faulty by design and i had to send it back to Austria for a warranty-replacement - which means i had to buy a new mat in Istanbul.
Also my expensive winter gloves, which i had mainly bought for their waterproofness are clearly not waterproof, they soak up the rain like a sponge. Replaced them by significantly cheaper but hopefully actually tight Marmot gloves - throw in a pair of windstopper gloves for the medium-cold days, a single pair of extrawarm wool socks and a raincover for the camera-and lens-bags and my travel budget has been set back by whopping EUR 250.-
Also my friends at Kohla/Ibex in Tyrol have sent me a down sleepingbag which should keep me warm down to -10°C, and it has arrived just in time - thanks guys! :-)
And i have finally received two replacement fuel-pumps for my stove - the producer had to recall 10.000 of these stoves due to a manufacturing flaw which led to fuel leakage - just what i experienced back in Hungaria - i had helped myself by replacing the single broken o-ring with two other o-rings that didn't exactly fit but sealed sufficiently nevertheless. I don't understand why they sent me two pumps though, either they expect them to break again or they try to compensate for the nutty EUR 60.- shipment-fee, which i'm supposed to pay(It was their fault after all!).
Thanks a million to my wonderful hosts Serpil and Jeff who let me stay at their place for two full weeks! They are a beautiful couple and they provided me with a cosy bed, hearty food and their company. I tried my best to be a good flatmate by keeping a low profile, washing the dishes and cooking food - i hope you enjoyed my stay as much as i did! :-)
Tomorrow a very sunny day is announced for the start of the second part of this journey - into the heart of Turkey and towards Asia.
Ankara, Erzurum and Teheran, i'm on my way!
Still waiting for a spare part from @optimusstoves(see http://bit.ly/bJkDpL why), so i'll start moving again in the middle of the next week.