Day 13 - "With my bare hands," Yiğitcan's dad said. We're in Malatya to swap out my front tire, which was totally worn down to the chords. Most of us folks struggle big time (it's a real pita) to change a motorcycle tire even with tire irons, but he managed it with… bare hands. A miracle. Apparently, their shop, Güven Bisiklet Malatya, handles all the police force's tires in Malatya, you can tell they've got 50 years of experience under their belt. It's the perfect pit stop for adventurers needing to service their rides. We set up camp by a lake on our way east and were greeted by an adorably cuddly furry friend who kept us company all night. Turkey has over 4 million stray dogs, most of which are harmless, but we tried to steer clear of any packs we encountered in the wild.
Day 14 - I really connected with this dog; she was a super sweety and it was tough to leave her behind. But we had a long ride ahead of us, over 400 km through the beautiful mountains of East Anatolia, all under the sunshine. As we traveled east the elevation kept climbing, taking us to amazing high plateaus over 2000m. By the time evening rolled around, we arrived at our service stop in Erzurum, where we’d be resting for two nights after riding over 5000 km. When we got there around 9 PM, the city was buzzing with excitement because Galatasaray football club had just won the local cup and everyone was celebrating in the streets, waving flags. We decided to grab some Koç Çağ Kebab, a local specialty from Ezurum, made from marinated lamb cooked on a rotating spit. After enjoying another cup of çay, we called it a night.
Day 15 - Day one of service. We brought our bikes into Bros Motorcycles Erzurum to tackle a few things: changing tires, swapping out the oil, checking the steering head bearings, and a couple of minor fixes to prep the bikes for the next 4000 km journey through Georgia, Armenia, Iran, and Afghanistan. Our next service stop is set for Dushanbe, Tajikistan, before we hit the Pamir Highway. We also took the chance to do a couple of laundry cycles at a local shop to freshen up our clothes and motorcycle gear. After that, I swung by the local barber shop where Israfil Efe and his crew gave my hair a Turkish trim - short enough this time to fit comfortably under my helmet.
