Along the Black Sea Coast

First off, our long travel days and some dodgy WiFi has made it a challenge to keep up blogging.  I resolve to do better but only time will tell if that pans out.  

We continued to head east from Amasra to Sinop.  Ata discovered there were two roads - one the newish freeway which, as everyone knows, would likely miss the scenic bits and, the other, along the coast which was obviously preferable from a tourist perspective.  The day was filled with "OH MY GAWD" moments as we rounded corners and came upon more and more of the jagged coastline.

Looking down on Amasra

Ata having an OMG moment

We also passed through more towns and villages than I can name or remember.  Some were resort towns but most were dusty villages.  One thing they all had in common was the dogs and cats that seem to be wandering loose everywhere - even on the roads no matter how buy the traffic.  Remarkably, the only "road victims" we saw on the sides of the road were several foxes which obviously don't have the same "street smarts".  At times, driving through the smaller villages there were even cows and chickens wandering on the road.  I mentioned to Ata how obsessed we have become at home with banning off leash dogs.  It seemed to be a foreign and rather stupid concept to him.

When we arrived in Sinop, I wasn't too impressed - just another big town.  However, as we made our way to the harbour - our hotel name should have been the tipoff:  Harbour Otel - things got better.  Once we had the car parked and checked in, we crossed a busy street, walked down an alley and found ourselves smack dab in the centre of a working harbour with fishboats, pleasure craft and all sort of other water craft, even paddleboarders.  Even the restaurant we chose - one of the few that sold alcohol - was floating.  It took us a minute to work that out as I wasn't sure I wasn't just light-headed from the long car ride.  It was a perfect choice.  We ate fairly early but I stayed on and enjoyed the view after Ata had gone back to the hotel.  It had been quite the challenging drive.  My lamb meal was quite tasty, notwithstanding I probably should have had seafood given the location!

The following morning, breakfast was what I am becoming to realize is typical here but olives, cheeses, cucumbers, and tomatoes aren't for me at that time of the day.  What I wanted was orange juice which was not to be had.  We were on the road just before 9 and it was going to be about a 4 hour road trip.  Unfortunately, the lovely scenery from yesterday was not to be had.  While we did get glimpses of the sea from time to time and the forested mountains inland, most of the drive was through urban areas and some were not that attractive.  The town of Samsun took ages to get through as there are over a million people who live there.  

The day turned completely around when we reached the town of Ordu and it was lovely.  Our first stop was the gondola ride I had seen on Youtube.  It took us up the mountain overlooking the town and was fun.  However, the ride, thankfully, did not go as fast as it looks in the video Ata recorded!

Then, our hotel, The Sinema, was spectacular.  Our rooms were spacious with sweeping views of the sea.  Better yet, it had a rooftop restaurant and bar.  No surprise that is where we headed for a drink and a snack before having a rest.  Later we reconvened to go back there for dinner.  I had penne alfredo and it was one of the best I have ever had, including in Italy!

From Ordu, we continued east to Trabzon and beyond toward the Georgian border.  This part of Turkey is much more conservative, Ata told me, that other parts in the west and south.  More about that as well as some fundamental travel mistakes I have made in the next blog.