Greece, Turkey, Georgia
A starry night on the Nautilus ferry board, somewhere at the heart of the Mediterranean sea, only the noise of the machines who turn on the steel beast and the chimneys in a thick and monotonous sound for more speed while pumping tons of diesel, the little room of the transport drivers that we have received was cozy and convenient, ups and downs as a cradle of a new born baby had promised to Ido and myself a restful night till the dawn will break out while cursing the Mediterranean water. In between we had a “kabalat Shabbat” with a friend who joined the cruise to Greece, and there between the plastic cups, fine whisky and a sincere prayer, a night of thoughts had spread, and the fatigue of a busy day had turned off to a deep and exciting sleep in expectation to a new day.
The strength of the sea breeze had took me to the command chamber, captain Kaudous, who had seen angry and raging days said in impassive face “today the boat will dance a bit…” and it really danced to the sounds of the a spectacular sunset with orange and colorful cloudiness of scatted islands on the sides of the ferry water lines, the evening had landed and tomorrow someone will probably will shout “land”.
The first km of the journey was under fierce winds which shook the motorcycles, less familiar roads, we were in a ride to Salonika which is located around 600 km from the port of Liborio, in Suflaki, mini cafe and known tastes, the landscapes of Greece and pieces of bright blue ocean and both of my sides add a special feeling to this marvelous ride, the rhythm of the ride is above what we have expected and the desire to Solow distances is almost as putting the finger on the map and rolling it into the destination. A phone to my 2 dear friends which I have met in my Greece Ride 2011. Nikus from Salonika and Vasili from Ioannina. Coordinating the meeting and the horizon of Salonika is on the sight, the a white tower. There is probably some kind of magic that never expires from the glorious past of this city and community although of the disastrous war, strong sensations are rising and familiar sights make me smile, a vast sun set on the boardwalk of Salonika, and Ido my partner still didn’t put on Tfillin before the sunset so.. In a quiet corner in the boardwalk of Salonika, much history and one moment of silence. The meeting with Nikus was moving, a very special and dear men, a dinner with friends with the best of the Greek Cuisine, the white and clear drink had put life in a wonderful proportion.. Morning of sunlight in Salonika and I wait to Vasili from Ioannina who had rode 200km to meet us. I was very happy to see him. “A very special person with thirst to information and with love of life, a visit in the synagogue, some true phrases and this part the Greek journey ends and tomorrow with dawn we will ride to the boarder point into turkey to our next goal – Istanbul
An easy pass at the boarder point kippi to Turkey, acquiring third side insurance and I’m with big smile full of happiness to the known sights of the cracks and patches of the road, the Russian buildings and sights of savage landscapes when riding to Istanbul, a straight ride of 200km and we stop at a broken Turkish diner, and again it is just breaks me from all the directions, a dish of “kufta” kebab, salad coarsely chopped and a lot of olive oil, the Turkish bread “kimek” a king dish of tastes at the side of landscapes of arid mountains and two motorcycles in a road of ruts.
The elaborated roads are quiet clear, we are riding to the palace topkapi, this palace was the office of the Ottoman Empire between the years of 1465-1853. The palace is places at Sralegu between a golden ray and marble sea, riverside to the the Bosporus Strait. Crossing the bridge in the direction of the palace and the vantage point on the bustling life of Istanbul, fishermen, porters, vendors of sweets, cabs beep and a dazzling life full of movement, the white smoke of fish is rising as marble stones into the blue horizon of the sea, simple people in a universe of full behaves and cultures of hundreds of years, probably drains to this part of the city.
sunsets are falling slowly into the sea, and the orange pastel color is splattered all over the buildings and the breaking of another day, the wish of all humans is a bit of rest, one more time and again accelerating wheels because… the sun is setting without laying Idos “tffilin”. We stop at biker shop for a quick question ”hotel..?”, getting out to meet us is the store owner, the only Jewish who sells motorcycles, hand shaking.. saying: “my family is in Israel…” so laying the tffilin in the shop just before the sunset, chance or fate? A goodbye, number exchange and an invitation to a motorcycle vacation in Israel. Finding a broken hotel in the middle of Istanbul and parking to our motorcycles hadn’t been an easy task, our efforts in finding a hotel in the neighborhood ally got fiercer. A little room, late 70th rubber slippers caused us pleasure and comfort. Out eyelashes got heavy and the and the exhaustion filled out body. A fine sleep filled out batteries. Screams and blows wakes us, a bustle of people and a mass brawl, from the windows screaming women and a police car is passing by without stopping. the silent is back, in drips it fills the streets and lonely street light plays his role faithfully. A vast silence of the night had returned the forced neon city.
Early in the morning, while the streets are washed with water for another month and food tastes are laying on the table, A strong Turkish coffee wakes the unawaken body parts and we are riding on the Bosporus bridge and as a goodbye tribute we are riding slowly and a farewell from this amazing city, we are entering to a mountainous trail, approx. 550k”m, we will join again with the black sea in a city by the name “Samson”, a port city in turkey.
The ride to Georgia aside the black sea was pretty fresh and convenient, excellent roads and time for a qualitative meditation in a monotonous rhythm, the sea changes his colors and trade & transport ships are sailing to their destinations, the city Trabzon is emerging in the horizon and a night stop at a fishy hotel in the city ally. It was pleasant to recall that i was here on my ride to Russia at 2009 but in the other lane, on the way to Trabzon port, we meet a motorcycle gang, there destination is Turkey, words exchange, handshakes and we continue as a pleasant song to the Georgian boarder, another country to cross among the other wonderful countries we ride through in the Asia 2012 journey.
A Turkish cop at the boarder point, alerts us that there is a problem without motorcycles, the numbers hadn’t been fed in the computer…, a long convey of cars are waiting, some Turkish and some Georgian, and ido is sailing in his mind with the movie “midnight express”… after some minutes the problem got solved and we heading the Georgian boarder, two youthfulness who meticulously drawn look at our international license which we received at “memsi”, a paper license, miserable and undignified and little stamps are innate on this piece of disparagement, and I think for myself why not a dignified plastic license which will honor its country and my motorcycle.. so after discussions the noise of the stamp is heard, as a pleasant sound and she declares: ”welcome to Georgia”.
The ride to the first city, Batumi at Georgia, had been through disrupted roadsת noble landscapes and strong green. on the sides there slow walking cows in apathetic look at the sight of the extremely fast crossing cars, incomprehensible bypasses, getting down into the dirt edges and back to the asphalt road, dust clouds mixed with the ground color. Broken churches aside the road, holy colors and painfully small shops of sweets which are full with booty. The entrance to the city was a combination of poverty and luxury. The deep gap makes it hard to balance the standard of living, this is the situation that the country seemingly deal with, promises mixed with careful optimism lay the road to the hope of the citizens that the future will get better.
It is night already, a moment before finding a hotel, a first taste from the national food “haz’apori” full with cheese and bombed in cholesterol, a delightful pleasure and uncontrolled hunger on the triangle shaped food, the amazement look of the kind old ladies, that probably saw many revaluations and government changes, in a slow ride we look for a hotel, passing a quarter of strokes in white, nuns in black and Turkish pimps who offer their merchandise. Taverns in a neon light aside Sodom, for the glory of uncontrolled desires of silky night, as wires that create a thick of roughness in this city. We are still tiredly looking just to give a rest to the big amount of the information and to processes this day. One place was left orphan in a luxury hotel, as a compensation for our ride, which is demanding more landscapes, sights and what else the world have to offer us. Goodnight and the city is shutting the door and last merchandize offer before the sun is coming up.
Riding through two – way streets in endless jam, mountainous roads flooded with flora and wire of houses and a landscape which covering thousands of acres of green tinged with the red edges of the earth. We ride to the next town “Kutaisi” Georgia’s second largest city, built around the River “Riuni”. The Interesting place I wanted to go to is the Jewish synagogue from the 19th century – who is still active, in the past it was one of the largest Jewish communities in the country, the city is relatively unknown and discovering it was a documentation were giving me the kind of public recognition. Out of the city in ways mostly one lane on each side, I try to photograph the remains of buildings and signs Login cities Soviet-intensive concrete, stops buses and walls of thick concrete, no doubt art for its own sake, bridges, steel and nailing along the bridge, kind of thinking over time probably thought Soviet perception forever …
It is twilight asides the stretched roads and a little motel for the passersby, a restaurant with the best of the Georgian characteristics is located somewhere in the edge of the vast plaza, we sit down and order “hankeli”, not before we explained our self in pantomime and some more philosophical question about life, the order of the alovera tasted vodka came quickly, a bunch of local Georgian invited us to drink some drinks in the honor of the Georgian people. A quiet night and the noise of the crickets pleasing our ears, a moon and two covered time travel machines are waiting to the sun rise in a few hours.
In the entrance to the city “Guri” a rows of concrete buildings surround the city, vast streets and a militarily planning for the entrance of thanks, probably that was the attention of the writer, In this city Josef Stalin was born who was the leader of the soviet union, a museum is located in the middle of the city, the iron rail road which is passing through her constitutes a main artery for the city citizens and for transferring goods from the factories in the city. Gury is located 76K’m west from Tbilisi, in the meeting point between the Liakhvi river and the Kura river, 588 meters above the sea level. Looking for and finding a hotel in the edge of the city which is trying to be unsuccessfully western, a night wondering, and youth groups in the corner… it is late, the gutter society are still wondering around in a city which became a ghost, they are trying to ladle another coin from the passersby, another day had ended in studying on the other side of the world…
In hasty steps with full bag of curiosity we enter to the Stalin museum, which is displaying with too much pride the work of the tyrant, inside personal belonging of Stalin, Photos and articles from different newspapers, the Exhibition includes one of the 12 death masks (the emboss of the face) of Stalin which was taken after his death, an admiration for a cruel human being which instituted a cruel dictatorship, which combined killing the Opponents or the suspected as opponents, confining millions of people in the labor camps “Gulag”, collectivization which caused to the death of millions. On the other hand he enhanced the industry revolution in Soviet Union which helped it to become a superpower. After the German invasion in 1941, which caught Stalin under surprise, he led the country in fierce determination until they won. on the other side of the museum we can find his personal train, the train is coated with armor and was in the personal use of Stalin from 1941, Stalin appeared with the train at the Yalta conference and at the Tehran conference. (credit:: Wikipedia)
Arriving to the capital of Tbilisi, resting for several days and Bureaucracy preparation to a visa for Azerbaijan. We have passed approximately 4500k”m of marvelous sights, the August swat is dripping in the wave of heat and in the chilling nights when the wind is blowing through ancient castles, high in the mountains.
Till the next chapter of my journey, goodbye to everyone from the endless roads in a full of beauty and fine human material
Jacob Samuel
קובי שמואל - Kobi Samuel 