Many years ago I am thinking, dreaming about travelling to the east by bicycle for a few months. Now it becomes true - from june to august I got a 3 months break from my job.
Several months ago the big route should have been "around the black sea", meanwhile it is much more focused on the turkey as I decided to start learning the turkish language in november and will continue it with second course in february.
I will be on tour with tent and cooker and want to have enough time to enjoy nature, culture and people without need to travel long distances each day, i.e. average coverage about 40-70 km a day.
I would like to meet somebody, to enjoy together the travelling and living - please contact me, perhaps we will find a common way !

roland

Hello Roland - For a long time, I am thinking to travel across a beautiful country like Turkey, and like you say : see the peolple and culture ... My name is Saad and can take maybe 3-4 weeks in the summer. send me an email and tell me more about yourself/your trip : saad_bike (ät) yahoo.com

Ahoi Saad,

I will start in june this summer and have to be back at the end of august to continue my job as electrical engineer and to be back with my family, i.e. my wife and three children in the age of 16, 18 and 20.
The route itself is not yet fixed, in general I will pass the south areas in the starting summer and will return more in the north when the summer is at maximum.
Where you are from, nobody of my family knew this suffix ".ät" of your email-adress. I am still very interested to find somebody, to travel, to live together for a while.
all the best
roland

Hey Roland - I am from Jordan. I have travelled Southern Turkey 2 times along the coast - great beaches, scenery an weather. but I would also like to see the Northern part along the Black Sea or in the middle of the country as well like cappadocia which is less touristic and probably more interesting. I have a good mountain bike and I am comfortable doing upto 75 K/day depending on terrain of course. You will be most probably flying into Istanbul and starting from there, right ? Let me know, and we can discuss further. You can email me directly : saad_bike@yahoo.com

Ahoi Saad,

on tuesday 31.january I wrote to your direct email adress. As I didn't receive an answer from you until today, I ask you if you got this email respectively if you are also still interested to travel together in turkey ?

all the best
roland

Hello Roland and sorry for my late reply. Firstly, I did not receive your email to my yahoo account - sometimes these emails dont work properly! I am travelling in Dubai at the moment and will get back to you in a week about Turkey plans/dates. Thank you. Saad

Ahoi Saad,

thanks for your immediate answer to my inquiry in the globike-forum.
Did you meanwhile find my email I sent to saad_bike(ät)yahoo.com on 31.01.06 ? Do you have another adress or should we communicate further through this forum ?
Something more to my actual plans. Most probably I will use the "orient express" to get to turkey, to Istanbul. Altogether I have a 3 months break from my job as elecrical engineer starting from the beginning of June until the end of august. Besides travelling, cycling I'm looking for a place to stay, to be together with people for about 3 weeks. Most probably it will be an biological producing farm ('rapunzel-project turkey'), where I will work and live. The time period there is also not yet fixed.
I will take a tent and the sleeping bag with me to be free where and when to stay and sleep. According to information from other turkey-bikers it should be no problem for wild camping.
My route isn't fixed, however I intend generally to start in the south at the beginning summer, passing to the north and east (van-sea!) when it gets more hot in july and august.
In November last year I started learning the turkey language. It's an interesting language with clear grammar - Do you understand this language, is the arabic part of it helpful in understanding for you? What's your time schedule etc.?

all the best
roland

Hello Roland -- looks like you are into 3 months of very serious adventure - Great !. As I told you before, the southern part I have seen several times but I am curious to see the north along the back sea, it should be very scenic and interesting people. It is good also you make the choice for the south for the early summer because it gets very crowded later. SO, In principle, i can join you for 2 weeks, lets say around July or August, I am flexible on the timing as I have my own work. Once you have a route idea, please inform me. I am with you 100% on free camping and sleeping bag - thats the best. Yes, I can understand a little bit of the language/words inTurkish as some of it is similar to Arabic. But I am truly amazed with the turkish culture in general - such a powerfull nation ! you can email me on ptc@go.com.jo

cheers
Saad

Hello
since 6 weeks I am in Turkey as a traveller and volunteer worker on organic farms (www.woof.net). Today I finished this volunteering, continued to Amasya and tomorrow i will leave to the black sea, Samsun. From there I will continue to Ordu, Trabzon, Hopa along the coast. Then at the end of july i will leave the north and cross to the south via Kars, Igir, Dogubayazit, Van, Diyarbakir and Gaziantep by bus and bicycle. At the end of august I will return by bus to Cesme, Italy and Switzerland.
Is there anybody around to join me ?
roland

Hello Roland
Thank you for coming to Turkey and being a guide to other cysclists who else is interested in my country.As you see I am Turkish and a cyclist.I am registered on this forum right now,for 3 hours I have been desperately surfing on the net ...Well,the reason for my surfing on the net is to find some groups to join in August.I have travelled to many regions in Turkey during summer holidaysIn August 5th to 19 ,I again will have my annual holiday and I would like to travel by cycling .Unfortunately my partner went abroad since then I am looking for some groups.Unfortunately cycling groups in Turkey may not be available between the days 5-19 August.

Could you please tell me about yor route on the regarding dates.

Take care

Hi Pinar - Very good to know and meet cyclists fromTurkey. I have been to your magnifecent country several times and still have plans for more visits, maybe in late Sep/Oct and hope to meet and cycle with you. Saad from Jordan - ptc@go.com.jo

Hello Saad
I am very pleased to meet cyclists globally.
I hope this will be a great chance for everybody to come together in the future.
Let me know when you will come to Turkey

hope to hearing from you soon again
take care

Hello Pinar
I am right now in Hopa at the black sea, where it is raining. Therefore tomorrow morning I will take the bus to Kars. From there I will continue with my bike to Igdir, Dogubayazit, Van and Tatvan. Further route is not fixed yet. The only fixed point is my return to switzerland latest on 25.august from Cesme to Ancona.

i ask you to send me a short message to my mobile telefon ( 00423663110071) as soon as possible or to write once more into the forum, in Kars I will read your news !
see you
roland

Dear Roland,
Thank you for your mail.
I am admiring your life for 3 months seriously.

But first of all I would like to remind that it would be better for you to change your route from Kars to western Turkey,this is because Turkey is becomin dangerous nowadays.I am sure you have some information about terror problem.Unfortunately there are many people dying in Middle east and my country is also being affected by this conditions.



Take care and try to go to Aegean and Mediterian region
Besides the weather is going to be very hot starting from 24 July ,it will rise about 5-6 degrees.

I wonder where will you be between August 8-18,please tell me your programme day by day .

Have a good cycling

Merhaba Pinar
yesterday I cycled besides the Ararat from Igdir to Do?ubayazit, where I installed my tent above the ?shak Pa?a Saray? at a small campingplace. Tomorrow I will continue towards Van, it will take about 3 days. From Van I will continue to Tatvan to visit the Nemrut Da??.
My following route is not yet fixed, it can be more in the west if we would travel together, as I finally will leave turkey in the west, in Ceşme by a ship to Italy.
What is your interest, which route would you like to go, do you prefer camping or hotels?
selamlar
roland

Hello Pinar,
yesterday i arrived in Tatvan after a wonderful cycling tour from Gevas/Van. Tomorrow i will climb up to the Nemrut Da??, next steps are not yet fxed now.
Are you also still interested to cycle together with me from 8. to 18.August whereever in turkey it will be, so please give me an answer, at least an answer with Yes or No within the next days - thanks!
bol bol selam
roland

Hello Pinar,
I am sorry and very sad to hear from a Turkish cyclist to hear that cycling is dangerous because of terrorists!! I have cycled in Turkey for 20 years now, about 15 times all over the county, I have been invited by PKK guys to their marriage in the evening and to supper by Turkish military next day.
Good luck both groups didn`t know each other,.....once cycling was forbidden east of Elazig by military command, but they were always friendly to me as a tourist, certainly not to the people who lived there.
I hope the day will come that Turkish and Kurdish people can live in harmony and peace.
Edgar.....from Germany

Merhaba Pınar
İ spent 5 wonderful days at Nemrut Dağı, close to Tatvan.
You saıd you are interested to travel together wıth me, therefore İ informed you about all my steps and asked you to response whether you want to joın me or not wıthin a few days. You did not - why ?
This afternoon İ wıll travel by bus back to the west (as it is too hot in Diyarbarkır or Mardin), fırst to Cappadocia, fınally back to a ferryboat that will carry me and my bicycle to İtaly, Swıtzerland.
görüşürüz
roland

Merhaba,
I had 3 very good months last summer in turkey - besides cycling in kurdistan I worked 4 weeks on organic farms. On 24th of february I will show the pictures to my friends and interested people. If you are interested and close to the village (97907 Hasloch, germany) come and see.
roland