3 June, Aydin to Nazilli, 43km
Hotel Ege 80TL (breakfast included)
For
the last two days we have been travelling east up a valley that runs west to
the Aegean, headed inland toward Pamukkale. Our morning out of Selçuk did not
begin well – we had a puncture and a broken odometer to contend with before reaching
the outskirts of town – but it improved considerably when we managed to cycle
every centimetre of a 5km climb that then dropped us into the valley we have
been cycling since. Aydin is a modern and attractive town of 200,000 with an
over-the-top municipal building and orange trees planted at intervals on the pavements. Today’s road brought us through more fruit
country, including fig groves, one roadside stall after another displaying and
selling watermelons, peaches, apricots, strawberries and cherries. As the road lies on the tourist
trail, there were also numerous garden restaurants offering tea and sodas at nearly
four times the going rate! In one small town we were persuaded to drop off the
main road onto the service road where we were given doughnuts being cooked just
there, hot, sweet and delicious.
Aydin municipality
Between Aydin and Nazilli
Between Aydin and Nazilli
Nazilli
Lunch in Nazilli