Through the mountains and above the clouds

I spent 2 nights in Malatya, with one full day to relax. And relax I did. A whole day in my hotel room to watch Turkish soaps and U19 International football. A cocktail of neat Nutella spread and various carbohydrates were enough to recharge my thighs meaning it was time to leave. My friend Volkan had sent me an email informing me about a special historical place 100km away, another "must-see". It was further south than planned but what the hell. I later discovered that this attraction was 2,000m up a mountain. So here goes...

Arriving in Malatya, it was raining, so I headed for an ice cream parlour. The patron insisted on taking a photo.

Malatya itself is nestled in a valley deep in the heart of Anatolia. It's most famous export is the humble apricot, immortalised here in the centre of a roundabout. Actually, it is quite impressive; 75% of the World's dried apricots come from Malatya. My father, a lover of dried fruit, would definitely appreciate this.

My rest day was a Friday, the holy day in the Islamic faith, so the central mosque was very busy. For those that didn't fit inside the mosque, they'd laid down mats outside upon which to pray. One of the more impressively decorated mosques I'd seen.

Before prayer men and women are expected to wash their feet.

So I left Malatya a day later. I took the main road east out of town and after 20km or so whilst cycling through the foothills I came across a cyclist. Followed by another, then this lot- Inonu university cycling club. Here I am giving it their club salute. They loved my story and offered me a load of energy snacks. I of course duly obliged.

I continued on and up along winding switchback roads. The rain had cleared by now but the legs had started to burn a bit. It was reasonably manageable and I felt pleased with my accomplishment.

Towards the top, this guy heckled me and pulled over his truck. He walked over and warmly offered his hand. He was a bit bonkers and referred to himself as "The Sultan" but I liked him. He also gave me some biscuits.

And off he went. The mountain was being used to mine rock so I was passed by a long line of these trucks.

As the sun was falling I made it over the top and down the other side, tired but chuffed to have tackled my first proper mountain. However to my dismay I was faced with another equally long climb before the day was through. You cannot escape that sinking feeling when you career down a mountain side with glee and then spot that the road goes up the other side. It's very bittersweet. Actually just bitter.

In the village of Tepehane I pulled into a tea house where they kindly gave me some food and one of the men there offered to put me up. He was a dolmus driver (minibus) so drove me back to his for the night. Here it is in the morning.

My plan for the day was to climb Mount Nemrut to visit an ancient tomb. The men warned me the weather was turning and it wasn't a good idea. I ignored them and carried on. Here at the foot of the mountain.

It was the toughest climbing I'd ever done and no matter how I pedalled it was like having hot pokers thrust into my muscles. At various points I was barely travelling at walking pace. It just went up and up, through the clouds and into the fog. I didn't pass anyone else until the top. But after a couple of hours, I made it.

And it was all for this. Shrouded in the mist, these statues once formed part of a palace and later a tomb built by King Antiochus of Commagene in 62 BC. The statues are sculpted from local marble with other reliefs hewn from granite transported from 100km away. He was believed his burial place should lie above where the sun rises and sets.

I could barely see in front of me so I got a lift down the other side in a van.

Below the clouds again I headed south towards the town of Katah. Mercifully these roads were only slightly hilly. But by now I was knackered and cursed any climb. It was more like an off road track and I shuddered going over the large rocks.

This was truly breathtaking and I struggled to take it all in. Times like this you wish you had someone to share it with. A really memorable moment.

After 100km that day, I was absolutely exhausted. Nothing left. So in the dark I weerily cycled along a valley to the nearest road side stop. Again the only place you'll find is a petrol station but it's sanctuary at least. I was not alone though as this was the evening of the biggest football fixture of the year: Galatasaray vs Fenerbache. Fanatical is an understatement. I supported Fener - FYI they won 2-0.

My "room" inside a "room" for the night.Very post modern 

I woke early to reach the ferry port. This would take me across the lake towards Diyabakir, my next proper stop. It was used by everything from trucks to foot passengers. And now bicycles. These two kids stared at me for at least half an hour. Turkish people love to stare.

By now I really felt I was heading East...

So I made it over the lake safely and carried on. The bad weather had passed and the sun was out again. I sweated a lot that day as I climbed up the other side  of the valley. At the top though it was beautifully flat - at last - I'd been salivating at the thought of flat roads for days and finally I enjoyed the almost weightless feeling. It was a wild and rugged plain with only granite boulders and the odd tented community and sheep farmers. That night I again stopped in a petrol station where I slept on a mattress amongst some open fuel bottles. The noxious gases sent me straight to sleep...

And finally, this morning I arrived in Diyabakir. The largest city in south-eastern Anatolia. It is considered by the locals as part of Kurdistan and the PKK want to keep it that way. I'll add a proper post soon once I've had a sit down.

In the meantime, and finally, it turns out my interview made the national news! Perhaps my only ever tv appearance and I spoke in a mock Anglo-Turk accent. Truly embarrassing but here's a screen shot of the clip. It's visible on my Facebook page (which should be open to view) and I will find a way of adding it here... 

Ridiculous but enjoy 

See you ;)