Monday, May 31, 2010
Katie and Taylor
Our last few nights in Georgia were pretty quiet and the food was kept light and simple – since we’ve all put on a few stone from being in Georgia. The heavens opened on our bushcamp outside the Azerbaijan border which put a bit of a damper on things and we all would have had a early night if it wasn’t for the frogs (and Mike and Darrell).
We all passed across the border without any problems apart from the truck which held us up for almost 3 hours as the border had ran out of paper! We were kept entertained though by Darrell chatting with the local taxi drivers.
A short drive to Seki – a small town in West Azerbaijan – and we checked in to a hotel Karavansari one of the original stops along the silk road. Each room used to be a shop where travelling tradesmen would set up shop for a few days before moving on. We headed out for a kebab dinner before enjoying a night of Uno and cups of tea served with jam instead of sugar – sounds strange but tasted really good!
Last night we bushcamped beside some mud volcanoes where Pete lost his flipflops, Darrell had a mud bath and Ned almost met his end (again). Today we arrived in Baku; the capital of Azerbaijan to start the bargaining to get us onto a ferry to Turkmenistan. There’s no timetable for these ferries so we may be given a matter of hours to get ourselves to the port. It’s looking promising that we will sail tomorrow but only time will tell. In the meantime we are in a lovely hotel in the centre of town about to go out for another birthday!
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Katie and Taylor
Have you ever stayed in an ex Russian Generals house? Well we have! Stunning building inside although it did look a bit like Niddrie outside it (sorry if you live in Niddrie). Kirstens birthday fell on this day so had a Georgian feast and far too much wine, followed by the luxury of the champions league final in Georgian which was rather bizarre. What should follow a night of late night drinking....hmm....wine tasting?.....Why not! Hit a few local wineries to stock up on wine which should last until China at least we have been advised although around 1/2 has been drunk already ...oops.
Now where does the Spit Roast come in to the equation you may ask, but you can rest your dirty mind (Stella) as it only involves a lamb! Pete, Mike and Neill spent almost 6 hours slowly cooking a lamb which was to be shared with the local families while we bush camped near their village. Also a wee game of football was set up by the local kids with Odyssey Overland vs Georgia select, our team ranged from 18 to 49 whereas they had the slight advantage of all being under the age of 25. We did scrape a narrow victory we think it finished 8-7 but our Georgian was as polished as their English so the rule of "next goal the winner" was somewhat lost.
One for the cameras!
Currently have the luxury of 3 nights in a hotel in Tblisi to catch up on washing etc but don't let the manager know as washing clothes is apparently forbidden (don't ask) It is also Georgian Independence day during our visit so we were able to watch a full military procession with tanks, planes and soldiers, quite easy to say they are very well equipped (ooh matron.) We had a few birthdays last night and most people opted for some more normal food as there is only so much cheese and meat bread a person can eat. Then came one of the most bizarre nights out we've had in what seemed to be a cross between Coyote Ugly and the Mission - Katie and Kylie were both hits with the crazy Georgian girls but weren't drunk enough to dance on the bar (dammit!). Kylie's birthday was celebrated at the stroke of midnight with happy birthday sang by the cheesy band, vodka shots and a birthday cake (all organised 10 minutes before - Pete made a plan!!!). We later welcomed Darrell back to the trip and took him to meet our new Georgian friends at the bar who didn't seem to take to kindly to Ned, think we have found someone with a bad case of Nedophobia.
Ned welcomes his dad back!
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Katie and Taylor
After 5 weeks travelling we have discovered the majority of our group are more outdoorsy country types who would prefer a nice hike to long days in a busy city. After a night or two in a hotel we’re all glad to be back in our tents, not because the other accommodation we’ve stayed in has been bad (it’s actually been really good) but because the trip was designed as an adventure and the camping nights are always the best. So the crew are looking into as much camps along the way as possible (with the optional upgrade for those not up for the challenge) and this starts with 4 nights bushcamp in the mountains of Georgia.
Rich, Kaye and Darrell headed for Tblisi, leaving the rest of the group camping next to an old fortress where we were joined by some cows, pigs, dogs and hundreds of fireflies. Tblisi is one of our last stops in Georgia and the rest of the group are spending a week to get there, so we will join the others hopefully with a shiny Chinese visa for Kaye (fingers crossed).
The next day a full truck stock up took place in the markets of Kutaisi, which was our first proper market. Amazing to see locals buzzing around actually buying stuff, whereas previously they have all been quite toursity, you definitely wouldn’t find a pig hanging in plain sight with its entrails in full view in the Grand Bazaar!
The second bushcamp on route towards Kazbegi was next to a set of caves similar to Goreme which have been inhabited since 300 BC, but most opted for a night around the camp fire. Unfortunately Nick suffered a broken toe in the morning while packing up the camp site, so a rush to the hospital and an OTT “stooky” later he is on the mend. We visited Stalins museum in Gori, which was quite bizarre as it did mention that he was born there and all his "charity work" but failed to mention the millions of lives he was responsible for ending.
Nights 3 and 4 were to be in the small village of Kazbegi, right next to the Russian border and a stones throw away from Ossetia, although I’m not sure if you would want to through a stone at either in case an invasion kicked off again which occurred here a few years ago. We drove up the “Georgian Military Highway” which gave many spectacular views and some wincing faces due to the sheer drops; also we welcomed back Rich and Kaye (who got her visa) after their rendezvous in Tblisi- we’re meeting Darrell there for a big reunion on Tuesday (we miss you mincer!). Everyone hiked up to the Sameba church which is the most famous landmark in Georgia according to the lonely planet book, but once we arrived we were warned not to talk/eat/drink/breathe in case of upsetting God but still welcome to spend money in their gift shop, so it seems the lonely planet recommendations have gone to their head!
Zaza our guide treated us to some “shashlik” at night which is a traditional Georgian dish in our first wet night of the trip, the good luck with the sun gods had to end at some point!
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Katie and Taylor
On our way to Sumela Monestary Ned met the Turkish Army, they exchanged e-mail addresses and facebook details so they can follow him on the rest ofhis travels, never thinking he'd ever see them again. However later that night Barry and Pauline discovered their laptop had been stolen so the police were called and the arym turned up. The person they asked for was Ned Kelly whilst creating a perimeter around the campsite. The army then told the owners of the campsite to return the laptop which miraculously turned up the next morning! Ned saved the day!
We left for the Georgian border on Saturday morning which was a surprisingly easy border where the only problem was the locals trying to barge their way in. Once accross the border we met Zaza our local guide who will be with us for the next few weeks. We headed for Batumi, which we'd describe as a bit of a building site, and checked into our "luxury yacht" for the evening. Zaza oerganised a Georgian evening for the group that night which involved lots of great food, dodgy dancing and numerous toasts, a great night was had by all.. even if Mike doesn't remember!
An early start the next morning for Mestia, a small town in the Caucasus mountains. Supposidly motorways lead us to the town but you could harldy describe them as dirt tracks! As we winded up through the mountains the roof seats were occupied which gave us amazing views throughout the valleys, we were later joined by the police who "escorted" us until they discovered we were driving too slow. We checked into our first homestay, which is really a house which the owners move out of whenenever they have guests. They have been extremely generous and have stuffed us full of amazing food for 2 days, in fact the trip could be renamed "Obesity Overland" with the amount of food we have all eaten. In attempt to burn some calories some of the group headed out for hikes. We headed for a glacier with Mike, Heather, Lesley, Jim, Neill, Kylie and Zaza which started with a bumpy journey to the snowline in an old soviet landrover. The views were incredible and our skiining skills (without skis) were tested. One our way down Zaza took us to a local bar to taste the Georgian signature dish.. meat bread. Others went for a hike up another mountain and the rest of the group headed for Ushguli - the highest permanently inhabited village in Europe (that's if you can say Georgia is in Europe).
Friday, May 14, 2010
Katie and Taylor
Now is the opportunity to get nice and smelly and have 2 bush camps in a row, as we make our way east towards Georgia. It’s amazing how the scenery changes every few hours, from vast open rolling hills and then hitting seriously high mountains in the east. It was on top of a mountain where we set up our first bushcamp in the Egribel pass at 2,200 metres and even had some snow beside our tents. It was the first time everyone had to fish out the cold weather clothes as we made Risotto for dinner and had a movie night in the truck.
We covered an extra 200km than we had intended to, so the next day was a leisurely drive to our next bushcamp behind a restaurant next to a river in the middle of nowhere, we descended 2km in an hour.
On route towards Sumela monastery we docked into Trabzon for a few hours, which to be honest there wasn’t too much to see but was nice enough to stroll around, drink tea and stock up on the essentials as these will become hard to find from now on. Everyone agreed that the highlight of Trabzon was a guy about to throw himself of a building and a large inflatable mattress being set up for him to land comfortably and perhaps have a snooze!
Today we have hiked up to Sumela monastery which is built into the side of a cliff; the pictures do most of the talking for this. People are genuinely intrigued by us now and have no qualms about coming up and asking us where we are from and are amazed by what we are doing as western tourists are quite rare around these parts. It’s taking a bit of getting use to as we automatically think they are after money or want something from us, but they are just intrigued by us and also want to practice their English.
Tomorrow we are setting off early to enter our first tricky border crossing into Georgia, and apparently stay on a “luxury yacht” in Batumi so we shall see what that holds……
P.S. Ned has had his first operation to reconstruct his face and leg and is currently in recovery, although he did meet the Turkish army who wished him well and are adding him on facebook!
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Katie and Taylor
Cappadocia is an area in Turkey where volcanic activity and erosion has led to incredible rock formations and a stunning landscape. On the way we stopped off for 2 nights in Akcakoca (Otherwise known by us as Acapulco) - a small town on the Black Sea where we had a bit of time relaxing after the hustle and bustle of Istanbul, also started the Volleyball Truck Championships: Northern Vs Southern hemispheres.
It wasn't difficult to identify Cappadocia when we were driving, the sudden change of scenery from flat deserty roads to rock valleys was a good indication. We arrived in a campsite just outside Goreme just in time to show off our truck and set up skills to another overlanding group: UK to OZ (there's is definitely a bus!). With 41 people on board, there truck lacks certain luxuries as the library, tables and a fridge. Most seem to be enjoying themselves but a few asked if we had any spare seats, I'm sure we'll see them again some way along the road, all the best to them!
Many of the group got up early and went hot air ballooning which everyone enjoyed. When the group got back we were all picked up for a day of sightseeing in Cappadocia. After going to the panoramic view point we headed to a small village to see some of the caves used and houses then we went off to explore an underground city. There were many tunnels and different rooms and our guide took us to all the important parts including the wine cellar (unfortunately no wine). Next we headed for a buffet lunch and filled up on Turkish Delights. We then went for a pottery demonstration, Darrell got involved and had a good attempt at making a... bowl? The group were all feeling the strain from the early start so we drove past our last destination - Imagination Valley to see if we could spot some animals in the rock faces and had a quick look around mushroom Valley (to spot "mushroom" shaped rocks).
A curry dinner was prepared by Pete and the Crew using some spices from Istanbul and we all ate in a cave within the campsite. The night continued with games of Odyssey's adaptation of Jenga and a few drinks.
Our second day in Cappadocia is a free day, some have gone off on quad bikes and others are going to a carpet shop to get a demonstration on carpets and most importantly a free lunch.. can anyone guess which one we picked!?
Mike, Darrell and the crew bought carpets while the rest of us watched them bargain with the prices and ate lunch. We then headed off to Goreme, a small town in the middle of Cappadocia for a wander around. Nothing much to see so we had a few games of pool and some apple tea. Met the group for dinner in a local restaurant where we had to smash a pot to get our food. We all ended up in the Flinstones bar for some cheesy music after dinner and were amazed at Darrells dancing skills!
Some bad news on Ned, he forgot to put his seatbelt and broke his leg, and while exploring the local cave he tripped and had some slight decapitation issues....he is now awaiting surgery and we are hoping for a full recovery.
Wednesday, May 05, 2010
Katie and Taylor
We all arrived into Bucharest a bit later than expected due to Draculas return to Rasnov castle, so most people had an early night before heading off into town early the next day. The city is filled with large grey buildings and a huge palace, and many of the streets appear to be carbon copies of Paris. The group all headed out for Dinner in Care Du Bere, where we had far too much food and got to watch some local music and dancing as well as drink steins of Beer.
The next day consisted of many sore heads and even Ned was nursing a hangover after taking over a local gig (see Mike’s blog for the video) so most of us just hung around the campsite and played football, Frisbee and read books.
Bulgaria was next on the list as we drove to a wee campsite near Veliko Tarnovo, where an English couple have opened up a great campsite with Wifi and even a full English breakfast. We both had our first hangover of the trip caused by the local firewater Rakiah. The village used to be the Bulgarian capital many moons ago and is great for a wander around before we hit a bushcamp near to the Turkish border, which would become a story in itself.
We all had an early start to reach the Turkish border as this was our first taster of problematic crossings so our fingers were crossed that we could breeze though, which to be honest everybody did, apart from Calypso! A special permit was required due to her not being a truck or a bus, and despite the best efforts of the crew to have the paperwork in place, the computer systems were down and we could not pass go.
So we pitched up at the border for around 6 hours, even managed to sneak in some cups of tea, some lunch and also met a multitude of cars on a rally from Austria to Jordan for charity. They had around £500 to spend on a banger and get to Jordan and the winner of the race, got a camel!
Anyway, we got into Istanbul just in time to grab a kebab and beer before bed, in the basement of a hostel. Glad to say we have no loud snorers in the group, or at least nobody is letting on just yet.
Istanbul is such a contrast to all of Europe, with the Aya Sofia and Blue Mosque right beside the hostel we are able to hear the daily prayer calls. We minced (new word for the group) around the Grand Bazaar and Spice markets and sampled the fish sandwich which was surprisingly tasty, then the adventure began to locate a dentist for Katie. We were sent to a dentist who was insistent on either route canal or removing the tooth! The next attempt was much better but a taxi ride out of town and problem solved. Although the taxi ride on the way back involved an argument with the driver and us jumping out of the taxi and running. Chancer!
The second day in Istanbul we spent the day trying all the different local food.. Pide (Turkish pizza), Turkish delight, Apple tea, fish sandwich and Baklava (possibly a rival to the chocolate ball).
Tonight we saw some whirling dervishes (think Omad Dhajili in a dress spinning around for 30 mins?!), a not so spectacular light show in front of the Blue Mosque and happened upon a local music festival along the water front; Ahirkapi - which celebrates early summer.. all this and we're in bed by 11pm!
Istanbul has been the best city so far, the locals are so friendly and the food is excellent.. would come back in an instant.
P.S. Photos have been updated in the album
P.P.S. Ned has joined the real world after being rescued from Romania, and is looking for friends on facebook, so click the link on the signpost to add him!
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