In Istanbul, the end of the road

Here is a follow up to my last cryptic post, sorry for the delay. There is just so must to do in this city!

Wow, I can't believe it has already been a week since we arrived in Istanbul. Our last ride day was as all last days should be, epic, intense and amazing.

We left camp early on the morning of August 23rd for our ride into Istanbul. There was a sense of excitement and impatient anticipation from the group as we had breakfast in the parking lot of a nearby gas station (we had to leave camp early before the boss of our site arrived as his employees hadn't asked permission for us to stay). The ride into the outskirts of Istanbul was fast, fun and uneventful as we rode through the final villages before merging onto the main highway into the booming metropolis of Istanbul and the urban sprawl leading up to the city. We left the small highway for the huge 6 lane highway and that is where the fun/chaos started.

As we approached the mega highway, we caught our first glimpses of the sea. Although there was lots of traffic and it was the busiest road we had ridden on yet, we had a nice shoulder and the cars and trucks gave us plenty of room. As we got closer and closer to the city, the chaos increased. On one stretch of the highway we hit an amazing downhill at the same time as we reached a stretch with multiple merging and exit lanes. This was the type of riding we sometimes referred to as video game mode and required full attention as well as some quick maneuvering. Despite the craziness, it was a blast!

At this point, due to speed and traffic, pods got split up and re-grouped. All was well until (we were NOT involved) a car accident occurred just to the left of us. This was the last straw (not everyone was loving the highway) for a couple of the riders and we decided to pick an alternate route. With the help of an amazing local on a motorcycle, we found an alternate route to our destination through small neighbourhoods along the sea. Omer, the man on the motorcycle, escorted us to the meeting spot with our host and then took us out for fish sandwiches.

Once at our Istanbul accommodation, a camp for disabled children and their families, we waited for the others to arrive. Within an hour we were all reunited and after exchanging stories, the celebrations commenced.

We spent the next two days wrapping up our tour with workshops and activities and then said our goodbyes. Happily, many of us are still in the city for a while longer and we have been exploring the city together. Many are couch surfing and I am sharing a hostel room with fellow riders, Jake and Charles.

So far exploring has included markets, Mosques, walking streets, lots of eating and just generally taking in the sites of this vibrant city.