Safranbolu to Amasya, Turkey 2007

Wednesday 11 April 2007

Leaving the cobbled streets and half timbered Ottoman houses of Safranbolu we drive eastwards along quiet roads through rolling hills and forest with occasional villages of red roofed houses towards Kastamonu. There’s little traffic and compared with other parts of Asia the roads are excellent, wide and smooth making for easy driving. We stop in a little village for coffee in a cafe full of policemen. The owner refuses to charge us for the coffees, which to be fair weren’t that good but which help keep us awake on the drive. (such generosity is typical of the Turks, we’ve had people pay our tram fares, give us drinks and make phone calls for us without any thought of recompense – maybe we just look poor) After Kastamonu the road climbs to a pass at 1850m through the Ilgaz Daglari range of snow capped mountains. Although the road is clear the amount of snow is surprising - a foretaste of things to come later in the week. Then we’re down to a broad open valley with spring lambs, poplar trees and storks nesting on poles.

We stop for petrol and find the petrol station has wireless internet so check the emails and send of a few ripostes and reach Amasya by mid afternoon. It’s a very pretty town set in a limestone gorge with a river flowing through the middle and lots of old timber houses. We find the pension recommended by LP but its closed for spring cleaning so we check in to an alternative one in a the old part of town, in a restored Ottoman house with a music bar/cafe in the basement.

After some reviving Turkish tea, which is always served in tulip glasses, we explore the town and walk along the Yesilirmak river where there is a newly created park with statue heads of 7 sultans who governed Amasya and Stabon the worlds first geographer who was born there. Then its dinner in a restaurant overlooking the river, seven different dishes of the local speciality - chickpeas and not a grilled animal in sight.