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Metro Bus
After talking to Irfan for a while, I decided on my next destination: his hometown of Ordu. I was thinking of going to the
Aegean Coast and then hopping over to Greece. But I think it is too hot, and I am too tired for that. Instead, a few people recommended the Black Sea Coast in the north. Ordu is one of the medium-sized cities that is frequented by many Turkish tourists every summer. I had no trouble finding a bus that was headed there the next morning. The bus ended up taking a full ten hours. Lots of honking and dangerous passing on mountains roads, but we all arrived around dusk on Saturday night. After a little wandering around, I found a room at the "City Palace Hotel."
Otel Sehir Palas
For just under US4 per night, I have a little single room with a single bed, looking out over a busy street. It is not so quiet, but it is a good location and I can sit on the balcony and see the sea. The staff here seem really nice and they have helped me arrange to go up into the hills tomorrow. The shower has only cold water, but somehow it doesn't matter so much. Perhaps I have mastered the technique for such things. Anyway, I sit here at my window this evening. Two old men are just outside my door watching TV in the reception area.
Ordu
From the center, the town seems smaller than it is. There is nice shopping to be had, although nothing was open today, Sunday. Many tourists stroll up and down the boardwalk which is lined with benches, Coke stands, and garbage cans at regular intervals. It is a bay town which has not been invaded by European tourists (only ones from Istanbul and Ankara), so it still seems to hold a little adventure for me. But at the same time, I just came here to relax and so that is what I have been doing. Sitting around. Not much appetite. Just watching the time go by.
Berber
The highlight of my day today was not the internet shop which I was truly amazed to find. Instead, it was the little barber shop that I found sitting empty along one of the sidestreets. I have been dying to get a haircut for about a month now. At home I usually trim my hair up myself every couple weeks, but I don't have my hairclippers here. Besides, I was kinda looking forward to trying out a Turkish barber again. It was better than I remembered. I warned the guy when I walked in that I could not speak much Turkish. He was happy to work with me anyway. Besides, my instructions were easy enough: shorter all over. He trimmed up everything real good, and then got out the straight razor to do my neck up. He topped it all off with a great shampoo that doubled as a massage. I was in heaven. He was so thorough that there was no need to shower after he was done- no itching. I don't know what kind of barber you go to, but these guys in Turkey are really good.
Evening
There is not much to do here in the evening. There is actually a movie theater in town, but it seems to be out of commission. I spotted a guy in there working on some machine type thing today. Anyway, I am not looking for nightlife. I bought a couple tomatoes and came back to the hotel for dinner. The reception guy whipped out a newspaper for a table clothe and provided the plate and glass too. I topped off my big meal with a hot tea and the evening news: an Ankara-Istanbul express train derailed today. Two US embassies bombed in Africa. Tomorrow I will retreat even farther-into the hills.
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