At the end of September while in Rome, we talked about our plans for the winter months. We knew we wanted to be somewhere warm and were hoping to housesit for a nice break from riding. Being on the bikes is simply fantastic, but having a kitchen, bed and toilet for a stint are such luxuries. Back in Germany when we met up with the Aussie's, Ron, someone Ryan has known since the early 2000's, offered for us to housesit his home in Queensland, Australia. As much as we loved the idea of heading to Australia, we were inclined to head to South America after Europe for the weather and the financial aspect. Our minds were changed after seeing pictures of Ron and Cathi's place and realizing, "why would we ever pass up house sitting since we have been hoping for this opportunity since before we even left Boulder?" We opted for beautiful Australia. The email exchange with Ron was absolutely fantastic. Neither Ryan nor myself knew much about Queensland, but here are the two emails sent from Ron:
1st Email: "What are reasonable requests for a caretaker in exchange for living rent free? Pool maintenance, general property maintenance, a bit of gardening, dealing with potential flooding and damage during and after storms, cracking coconuts."
Does it get much better than this?
2nd Email: "We are very happy for you and Lisa to caretake but we want to make sure you are aware of the downside of the tropics in the summer….hot!....Wet!....potentially cyclonic…14 km into town …only get reception for 1 TV station and that is ABC our national broadcaster…..you can’t swim in the ocean without a body suit on because of the jellyfish…you can’t swim in the rivers either because of the crocs..
The upside is the place is air conditioned, there is a pool to jump into as needed and there is normally a bit of a breeze to help, the bus runs into town every 20 minutes, ABC is the only channel worth watching at any rate, there is a beautiful free access lagoon pool in town which is great fun, the local Mexican place has shit food but cheap margaritas, two sea kayaks here and all the camping gear you would need to go out to the islands to play, etc."
Who would we possibly pass this up? And once you see the photos, you too will understand.
Once we clicked purchased, we had somewhere we had to be for the first time since arriving in Lisbon on April 1. I now realize that "have-to's" make me nervous, instantly retreating into my old ways of plan plan plan mode. Not comforting after being in the "heading wherever the road takes us" mindset for so many months. But hey, I'm not complaining, maybe the balance of the two is the best way to live.
Back to Turkey. After leaving the hog farm, we set off bright and early to the town of Bandirma in hopes of a night or two in a clean bed, and more importantly, a shower. I think we were on day 11 or 12 without one, so daydreams of water and soap often filled my mind as our legs continued to push us along. The country roads in Turkey were amazing, hills often surrounding us with forests and few cars. I'm not sure when we will have another opportunity to ride alongside donkey's pulling carts of families. Getting into the cities was a bit different with the common apartment buildings, bars, stores, and crazy drivers rushing to their destination. Just what you would expect of a city. Through our travels, we realized that staying just outside the cities tend be cheaper and have cleaner rooms. Arriving into Bandirma, the first hotel we saw was "Hotel Best". It looked newly renovated and very well kept with fresh paint and windows from floor to ceiling, so we stopped for a look. Following the English instructions posted to the door, we rang and waited for ten minutes. Darn, no luck. Off again toward downtown.
Waiting at a light to turn left toward the city, a young guy with wet hair darted across the street after us. The owner of Hotel Best! We negotiated a price for two nights and this was the beginning to one of the best experiences of our trip. The owner was young, 27, and he, with the help of his father, opened the hotel six months prior. The rooms were spacious and extremely clean. Three single beds decorated with bright comforters, white walls, a tv on the wall, a shower with an instant hot water dispenser, and a balcony. More than enough. A traditional Turkish breakfast was also incuded which consisted of a hard boiled egg, tomato slices, olives (which are mouth-watering), fresh feta, cucumber, bread, butter, local sour cherry jam and coffee or chai.
That first night, Tarik (the owner) and his father Mustafa took turns playing traditional Turkish music on the electric keyboard and singing. It was absolutely awesome! We spent the evening listening to beautiful voices and learning about the Turkish culture. Tarik had been learning English and Mustafa did not speak English, but over the course of our stay, Tarik's English improved greatly and Mastafa was even using some English words. Thanks to their knowledge, we were able to communicate.
The next morning, Tarik took the day off and showed us around the area. Wow....the means the Turkish people go to, or at least Tarik, in order to make people feel welcome is unbelievable. We have never before been treated so kindly by strangers. He drove us a hour to the Turkish Baths where we got a private room for a hour and a half with two baths for $18. Stopping at little stands for soap, special cloths used before getting into the bath, and soft back washer while in, we were set to enjoy these exquisite mineral baths. We soaked and refilled our tubs three times. I won't even begin to go into the details of the grime that came off our bodies. Oh yeah, and we even did our laundry:-) I felt like Lucille Ball stomping the grapes but instead stomping our clothes in this huge tub. These baths detoxed us and left our skin feeling soft and bodies refreshed for days.
After the baths, Tarik drove us to the surrounding towns. Bandirma sits on the Sea of Marmara, rolling hills with few towns scattered throughout. Stopping in a more touristy area, Ryan went to a barber for a straight razor shave and haircut. If you happen to visit Turkey, expect to be charged extra simply because you are a tourist and they can. We got swindled in Avylik when purchasing baklava, so Tarik made sure this didn't happen while with him and talked with the barber, restaurants and bartenders when ordering. After enjoying a delicious traditional Turkish lunch which was of course followed up by chai, we headed back to the hotel after an amazing day of touring the Bandirma area.
Although we were only planning on staying at the hotel for two nights, the weather changed for the worst and we thankfully had a roof over our heads. A storm came through causing power outages across the city and even stopped the ferry from running to Istanbul. Two nights turned into five, but we could not have been luckier. They took such amazing care of us. I'm still wondering how in the world we can possibly repay them? We ate dinner together every night, enjoyed each others company and simply talked. This is exactly what I was hoping to get out of our travels. Taking the time to get to know other cultures and learn what people are all about. I feel so fortunate and it again reinforces that people are just people everywhere. Some good, some maybe not so good, but everyone comes from different backgrounds and this is was makes all unique.
Finally the ferries were up and running again. Tarik and Mustafa took us to lunch for our favorite Turkish meal, Iskender Kebap. It is slices of the rotating meat layered over pide bread squares, topped with a red tomato sauce (tasted a bit like the enchilada sauce my grandmother used to make), drizzled with melted sheep butter and served with yogurt, tomato slices and a roasted hot pepper. It was awesome! With full bellies, we were sad to say goodbye, but hopped on the ferry for a 45 minute ride to Istanbul.
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