29 September, Amasra to Istanbul by bus
Route 39 House 83TL

It was to be a six-hour bus ride, departing Amasra at 11:00, arriving Istanbul at 17:00. A late start (our first on Turkey’s excellent bus service), a helluva climb on a narrow strip of road between Amasra and Bartin, and a huge amount of slow-moving traffic over the bridge, one of only two, between Asian and European Istanbul, got us to the otogar at around 18:30. The bus station was 11km from our accommodation and we had no idea how we were going to get the bikes across the city in the encroaching dark. Most long distance bus companies offer, free of charge, a shuttle service between the otogar and three of four useful hubs within the bigger cities and towns. We had been told the shuttle could not accommodate our bikes, but took a chance and asked anyway and were loaded with smiles and driven, just the two of us, to Taksim Square. From there it was less than a km to our hostel, but we received such conflicting directions that it took us around 90 minutes to find our haven. By then we were exhausted and ravenous; luckily the hostel was sited above Dominos Pizza, which sufficed for a late dinner. The almost-at-a-standstill traffic onto the bridge over the Bosphorus made it possible for vendors selling bagels and bananas to set up shop on the motorway itself! Tolerant Turkey.  

Amasra

Between Amasra and Istanbul

Sea of Marmara

Bridge over Bosphorus - Istanbul

Bosphorus - Istanbul