Goodbye Bulgaria, Welcome Turkey!
Today the ride was short, but very hilly, with some rain and cool temps. The border crossing was on a forested mountain top. This crossing was like the old days where one has to wait in lines for an hour and pay for a visa - $20 for me. It is clear we are in a different world from Eastern Europe – all the towns have mosques, the older women are covered and only kids wear shorts (young people are in jeans and T-shirts). There are lots of stores that sell everything, but the price of beer and food has doubled.
We picked up a great Turkish guide, Cim (pronounced Jim) who gave us a walking tour of the city, and showed hundred year old Greek homes that are being restored. We seem to be somewhat celebrities to the city fathers who arranged a wonderful dinner for us at a Turkish restaurant. The city is starting to promote itself as a tourist stop, and we appear to be an international group to carry the word to the outside world. Kirklarili is a fun little city with very friendly people. The mayor has promised to personally ride with us out of town and provide a police escort!
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