Istanbul to Safranabolu Easter Monday 9 April 2007

On the road again and after trying to arrange insurance cover for Europe we pick up the Cleo and tackle the Istanbul motorway network. We’re definitely no longer in Asia (although we head that way) with speeding trucks and spaghetti junctions, massive industrial estates, business parks and sprawling suburbs. We eventually find ourselves on the TEM (the trans European motorway – an extension of the M25) heading east towards Ankara across the Bosphorus Bridge at well above the Australian speed limit. The only things passing us seems to be a procession of X5s, none of which is going at less than 180km/hr.

After stopping for petrol, hamburgers and Turkish Delight, we reach the Unesco world heritage village of Safranabulu, full of half timbered Ottoman houses and check into the Havuzlu Asmazlar Konagi where we have a beautiful room full of wooden niches and kilims.

Distance today 404km