6th to 8th of April, 2022.
Mehmet is using CS for many years so he knows how everything works. And he is a very nice guy. He prepares a room for me and we talk about a some stuff. He has the most adorable cat, Alex, who when it gets very fond of you, gives you little bites in the chin. I also get to know his girlfriend, a very lovely young lady.
Next day I am a bit tired for going around again but I decide to go anyway. I walk all the way to Dolmabahçe Palace, and I can see a little bit of the outside area and the gate, but to go inside and beyond you have to pay. After I walk to the Galata Tower, which is charming but I don’t really see why all the fuss about it. There are plenty of tourists around.
Back to Mehmet’s place, he prepares some really nice dinner, we chat and listen to some music. I tell him my plans about leaving Istanbul and getting to a hitchhiking place. He makes some different suggestions and I take it.
Next morning, we leave his house together because he needs to go to work and he will pass his metro card for me so I can pay him with cash. Now I just have to hope that I can pay the next bus (which goes to the airport so, supposedly, they accept cash) also with cash.
I get a bit lost when I come out of the metro station. It is a huge place! But I get help from a guy from Iraq. Lovely young boy! I am a bit worried with the time because it is a bit late already and I cannot miss this bus. And I don’t!
At the bus stop, I ask a lady if she knows about the bus driver accepting cash. She says that if he doesn’t, she will check her card to see if there is enough money for two tickets.
The bus driver let me in but the lady goes to the end of the bus. Luckily there is another young man sitting by the door and he helps me with the card. He insists on paying and not taking my money but I insist back so he finally takes it.
I still need to take another bus but this time the driver takes cash. Yeah, I know: 1 metro and 2 buses just to get to my hitchhiking spot. Great! But the hitchhiking spot it supposed to be good, a huge gas station. Only if I had been a bit smarter…
