There is only one phrase I can think of that can do justice to the Trabzon-Sinop bus ride: complete and utter misery.
The ride started out fine. Tiffin and I were both wonking tired and I assumed I would fall right asleep.
But, no.
No matter what I did, I just could not get remotely close to even a mere dozing state! Hours and hours passed and, though my eyes were closed, there was absolutely no sleeping going on.
Then, around 1:30 am a man boarded the bus and sat down behind us. He was loud and he’d prop himself up to stare at us over the top of our seat. He started talking with the guys in the seat next to him, mostly about the coming day’s election. And my goodness, he was loud. I was livid.
The guy’s next to him were also trying to sleep and yet they didn’t discourage Obnoxious Man from talking. The attendant wouldn’t do anything either. Tiffin and I tried listening to music...that definitely didn’t work.
Eventually, the guy’s sitting next to Obnoxious Man got off, but that didn’t stop him talking. He picked up his cell phone and proceeded to have a heated discussion with someone. And the staring continued…and it was incredibly creepy. There was nothing we could do. It was truly miserable.
Eventually, the man got off the bus. Whew! What a relief, right? Another four hours, surely I would be able to sleep!
And then…the bus pulled into the Samsun otogar.
Remember how I mentioned that there was some confusion about where the bus was going? The attendant had said Samsun but we were told we’d get to Sinop?
Yeah? Well, here’s where the confusion played out.
So, we got to the Samsun otogar and the attendant told everyone to get off the bus. This was the last stop for the bus. It was over. Grab your bags and get out!
It was 4 am.
What?!?!?!
As it turns out, we had to catch another bus to Sinop at 7 am. It was paid for on our ticket but we did have to switch buses.
So, it’s 4 am and we’re in the Middle-of-Nowhere, Black Sea. The otogar was nearly deserted and we were a couple of very tired unhappy campers. The bus company was kind enough to let us sleep on their office chairs, but it was like sleeping in an airport. In other words, it was entirely unsatisfying. Tiffin managed to get a decent rest but I didn’t. I was also having trouble reading my watch and thought it was 7 o’clock when it was really only 6 o’clock. Yeah, that made me feel really really great.
So, again, I was pretty miserable.
Finally, it was time to go again and we boarded the bus to Sinop. It was a windy road through some beautiful terrain, but the sleepiness had me rather unenthused. Additionally, the driver turned the television on to watch the news and some soap operas, which are truly annoying things to have blaring in your ears when you’re tired but can’t sleep. Let’s just say Turkish is not exactly the most soothing of languages.
Finally, around 10 o’clock, we arrived in Sinop. We hopped on the servis into town and managed to get to our hotel. We checked in and took showers; it felt oh-so good to get all the gunk off. Thankfully, our room also air conditioning--the weather was hot and humid as all heck [i.e. not my favorite].
After having a little relax time, we decided to go for a walk and get some foodstuffs for a picnic at the beach. There didn’t appear to be much else going on in Sinop, so it seemed a good plan.
Walking around, we saw that most stores were closed. Oh yes, election day! It was much calmer than I’d expected it to be--with all the hubbub surrounding the vote--but I’m glad I wasn’t in Ankara or Istanbul. The only evidence we saw of the election even happening in Sinop was a large crowd of people around the local school where voting was being held.
Sinop was pretty and easy to get around. We wandered awhile and found a produce Pazar and picked up some tomatoes, cucumbers, and a watermelon. Heading back towards the shore, we stopped by a grocery store for some napkins and utensils, then made our way to the coastal promenade.
We were on the hunt for the black sand beach mentioned in the LP. We came across a small one near a playground, so we sat down on the grass and ate. Unfortunately, for all our lugging, the watermelon was a bad one.
After lunch, we decided to go a bit further--the book said the beach was a kilometer away and the playground one seemed too close and too small. The weather was really nasty and I was looking forward to getting in the water.
We walked quite a ways and eventually gave up. We saw some people laying on towels and hammocks in a pine covered rocky cliff. We decided to join them, thinking we could get down to the water…
I can not tell you how treacherous trying to walk down that cliff was. Slipping and sliding on loads of dried pine needles in flip-flops leaves much to be desired. The slope was steep, very steep, and I have no idea how some of the old ladies made it down.
Finally, we got to a place where we felt stable enough to sit down--there was no beach, that’s for sure. From our post we could see the black sand beach further down the coast with nice little pagodas set up. Obviously, you had to pay to get in, which is why none of the folks on the pine hill decided to go there. We sighed, spread out our stuff and had a seat. It was hot and not so comfortable; I kept sliding down the hill. Tiffin fell asleep and I dozed a little, but in the end we only made it about an hour before we decided to go back.
The walk back wasn’t too bad. We stopped for a bit at an internet café, but I have little patience for those places. Eventually, we went back to the hotel and I took yet another shower--I was just too miserable, I admit it was wasteful!
After a short nap, we decided to head out again. That’s when I realized that I couldn’t find my watch. I was pretty upset as I am pretty attached to that watch. We had to go back to the bus station to figure out how to get to our next location the following day, so Tiffin suggested that while we were there I could ask if anyone had found my it. It was a long shot but worth a try.
We decided to walk along the coastal promenade in the opposite direction that we’d taken earlier. It brought us to a pretty little port where there were loads of cay bahcesi packed with people enjoying tea by the sea.
We decided to join in and sat down at a little table wonderfully shaded by trees. Some young boys selling simit walked through, so we also grabbed one of those. The epitome of Turkishness: simit and a cay.We people-watched for awhile; for some reason we were dead tired and it was nice to just laze about staring at people.
After regaining some strength, we got back to walking and followed the promenade around the city walls. 
We crossed through a park and I loved how all the little ledges were lined with large tin cans--emptied of their olives, tomatoes, oil or beans and filled with herbs or flowering plants.Eventually, we arrived at the bus station. We went back to the bus company from the previous morning and asked about my watch:
Me: Did anyone turn in a watch from the morning bus from Samsun
Guy: Hmm. No, nothing here.
Me: Shucks!
Guy: The bus returned to Samsun this afternoon and should be arriving back in Sinop in the next few hours. I can ask them when they get here. Give me your cell phone number and I will call you if we find it.
Me: That would be wonderful, thank you so much!
How wonderfully kind is that?
Then we asked about a bus to Amasra and the driver told us that if we came in the morning, circa 9 am, there’d be a bus and he’d get us where we needed to go. Fantastic!
After resolving that, we made our way back to town. Crossing the busy street--an area we’d not explored before--we came upon some ruins of walls and towers. Walking towards them we suddenly saw an absolutely gorgeous white sand beach. We were furious! How could the LP not have mentioned a single word about the beach?!?! All they could do was talk about the black sand beach! All we had wanted was a nice day at the beach, but instead we had pine needles stuck in our rumps!GAH! Tiffin and I decided that the people at LP must not have visited Sinop. We reckon that they called the local tourist bureau, asked about the beaches and some recommended restaurants, and then they just wrote what they’d been told. We were disappointed.
But, at least we got to see it at all. Now, when we go back in the future we’ll know better. The view from the tower was fabulous. There were dark clouds rolling in and a mist covering the city. We could see a peninsula of the town jutting into the water. It looked quite spooky, enveloped in gray mist. The water was dark and violent and the sun looked like a full moon. It was fantastic.We walked back through the town using a different route than before. The town was very small, but we never even realized that certain parts of it existed--sections filled with old Ottoman houses all run down.
Passing one apartment we saw a humongous pile of gigantic pine cones. It was the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever seen; what they were used for I have absolutely no idea. I stopped to take a picture and a young woman walked out on her balcony, suspicious and entirely confused as to what I was doing. We said hello and quickly left before she got pissed off. She must have been looking out the window to have seen me at all, but come on, it was a pretty strange sight to see, no?Walking, walking, walking, we got back to the main square. The LP had mentioned that the place was full of model boat shops and we found a bunch. They were strange and out of place, but pretty cool.
Eventually, we started getting hungry for dinner and decided to try the Sinop manti we’d seen around the town. Now, I always knew Kayseri was known for it’s manti, but I’d never heard of Sinop manti. Of course, the LP said nothing about it--though they didn’t even mention manti in the section about Kayseri [where it’s the most famous]!
We found a little place and sat down. The waiter described that they had the traditional manti--with yogurt and garlic sauce--or another type with walnuts and butter. We couldn’t decide what to get, so he gave us plates of half-and-half.
The manti was delicious. Much larger than the Kayseri manti [rumor has it you can fit 40 Kayseri manti on one spoon], the meat filling in the Sinop manti was palpable. I much preferred them to the Kayseri manti and, while the traditional sauce was delicious [as always], I quite liked the walnut type as well. Great choice! Another strike for LP!Throughout dinner, I had my phone on but it never rang. I gave up on the watch being found and turned off the phone to save the battery. I was a bit down, so after a brief stop at the hotel after dinner, we went out for some dessert. That was satisfying.
It was only 9:30 by the time we went back to the hotel and went to bed. We were tired--it was a long, if not exactly successful, day. I quite enjoyed Sinop, though; it was a delightfully relaxing town to spend the day in…I could understand why so many Turks used it as a vacation spot. It was quiet, though I’m not sure how much of that was a result of people going home for the elections.
Election day was actually surprisingly uneventful--after all the hype I expected so much more! However, we did find out that campaign banners must be taken down the day before the election, so that may have limited rallying or any other raucousness. It was pretty much like a regular old Sunday. Perhaps it was worse in Ankara and Istanbul.
Either way, it’s a nice place and I’d go back for sure!
Day 9: Tuesday July 23, 2007
The new day came and we were ready to get to our last stop. Though we were having a good time, I think we were both ready to stop the constant moving. After Barhal, we didn’t stay in one place for long and that just gets tiring.
So, we got a taxi to the bus station, planning to catch the 9 am bus like the guy had told us. We arrived at the otogar—if you can really call an enlarged parking lot an otogar—and headed to the bus company’s office to buy tickets.
All of a sudden, the man I’d spoken with about the watch the previous night came running up to me.
“I tried to call you,” he said. “We have your watch!”
What?!?!?!?!
How amazing is that?! They actually found my watch--it went all the way from Samsun to Sinop back to Samsun and back to Sinop! Honesty like that…something rarely found these days back home. I was beside myself with happiness. Tiffin was shocked. We were both sure that it was a sign for a good day to come.
We had some time before the bus left, so we went and walked along the nice white sand beach. I found tons of perfectly weathered sea glass and the weather was beautiful. It would have been hot to sit on the beach in the afternoon, but walking along it was great. In the end, our wish was fulfilled--we got to spend some time on a nice beach on the Black Sea!
Back at the station, Helper Guy went on to help us get tickets and get settled on the bus. He kept insisting that there were seats closer to the front that were open, saying we should move up, but we were satisfied in the back. Since then I have been told that women usually sit in the front if it’s possible.
The bus attendant asked us where we were getting off. “Safranbolu,” I said. That’s where we’d transfer to a bus to Amasra. He was intrigued by us and for most of the ride insisted on talking to us, a bit annoying.
The ride was fine, though the two little girls in the seats next to us just couldn’t stop moving around. About four hours into it, we got to Safranbolu. We didn’t go to the otogar, however, so I was confused. I asked the attendant about it and he said “no, no, this isn’t your stop! This is for workers!”
So, we stayed on the bus. The attendant laughed at us.
About 15 minutes later, the attendant came up to us--he was a young guy--and tried to clarify what we had been talking about. I had told him that we said we were getting off in Safranbolu:
Him: No you didn’t! You said xyzabc!
Me: No, I said Safranbolu!
Him: No, you didn’t! You’re stupid and American!
It was obvious that he was trying to compensate for making the mistake…because he did. But, that didn’t help us with our problem. What were we supposed to do now?
The bus driver and another attendant decided that we would get off further down the road--another two hours--and it would be “so much safer” and from there we could catch another bus.
Uugghhhhhhhh! Ok.
So, another two hours. It was miserable and we were antsy.
Finally, the bus stopped at some random hole-in-the-world town and lets us off. The attendant talked to a guy in a shop who brought us across the street and told some other guy to flag the bus for us. So, we gave the guy our money for tickets and he said it would be about 15 minutes. He then offered us bottled water and cigarettes. Hoorah.
Great.
So, here we were standing outside a convenience store in, apparently, Yenicaga [yeneechaah].
I gotta say, on first glance [and hopefully only glance], Yenicaga was a bit of a dump and people drive old fogey cars.
All was not lost, however, as one car pulled up and Tiffin pointed at the gas tank cover: Yes, that’s a boy with his pants down sucking his thumb.
Where the hell were we?!
Finally, about 45 minutes later the bus showed up. We got on and it was packed to the brim--vacationers from Istanbul. It was hot and stuffy; they were showing School of Rock dubbed in Turkish.
The bus started moving, turned, and promptly stopped at a rest stop for half-an-hour. Great. We were never going to get to Amasra!
Back on the bus, finally we got going again. It was a treacherous road and the bus driver was the opposite of conservative--he sped, he passed illegally and on blind curves. It was a harrowing experience and the attendant was crazy. It was obvious he did not want to be there and he looked like some weird card dealer at a blackjack table in Las Vegas.
And finally, we got to Amasra.
Or so we thought.
Turned out, we had to take a service to the center of town and from there get a dolmus to Amasra.
Where was this place?!?! We didn’t even have a place to stay lined up and we started to think that maybe we should just go back to Ankara. When we got to the center of town, we actually asked at the ticket stations, but the only buses were at midnight and 1 am. Bleh.
So, we went to Amasra. IT was a pretty drive and the sun was setting--yes, it was an incredibly long day. We got to town about half-an-hour later and upon getting off the bus we were immediately accosted by a woman. “Room for rent,” she said. We took it.
She walked us to her house and showed us around. Only 20 ytl for the night, not too bad. We took showers and then got to thinking…
The room was not air-conditioned and the weather was horrid. Neither of us really wanted to stay. So, we decided that we’d go get dinner—the requisite fish dinner on the Black Sea [the main motivator of the trip and one reason for going to Amasra]--and then decide if we’d stay the night.
So, we went a walking and found a good restaurant. We got a slad and some grilled fish to share—neither of us actually likes fish, but we felt we had to do it. The salad was great and the fish was decent, too. The setting was nice, right on the water, and we could tell that Amasra was definitely a pretty town…but it would be ok if we didn’t stay.
The waiter then brought out the signature dessert--a large block of thick yogurt covered in honey and hazelnuts [another regional crop]. It was cold and delicious and totally hit the spot. It was a great way to end our trip. Entirely satisfying.
After dinner, we went to find bus tickets--we’d resolved to going back. Tiffin thought she’d go straight to Istanbul [she’d be flying from there, so it’d be easier], but the buses were all sold out. So, she came with me to Ankara. After buying the tickets, we had 20 minutes to get our stuff and get back to the office to catch the servis to the otogar. We had a while before our bus—it left at midnight--but there was only one servis at 10:30, so we had to take it.
We scrambled around and made it back in time, with a little room to spare and have a conversation with the guys sitting outside. Then, it was back to the otogar.
At the otogar we both made some phone calls home and tried to avoid the drunk bus driver sitting near us. At one point, one of the military guys said to him “they don’t speak Turkish!” to which I replied, in Turkish, “yes we do.” He shut up and the drunk guy laughed. Then, they all left us alone.
The buses to Istanbul came and went--they were absolutely packed. Then it was our turn. We got on the bus and I promptly fell asleep. That last night ride was the best we’d taken—it was quiet, comfortable, and I actually slept. Also, instead of taking the usual five hours it only took four-and-a-half. Back at the station, we got Tiffin a bus ticket to Istanbul and parted ways.
I took a taxi home. By the time I was on my way, it was about 5:45 am. Unfortunately, as it turns out, that’s still considered “nighttime” which means the rate is doubled. Consequently, a typically 7 ytl ride turned into 20 ytl. That was a bit of a shocker…
But, it was nice to be home.
Despite all the mishaps, I did love my trip to the Black Sea. It’s a beautiful area with great food, beaches, fantastic historical sights, and relaxing atmosphere. Barhal was definitely the highlight, but I’d love to visit the region again. If nothing else, the local hazelnuts rock my world!
sidenote: did you know that 90% of the world’s hazelnuts are supplied by Turkey?
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