The Winter of 2018 experienced a ‘train crisis’ in Turkey as a large group of travel enthusiasts found themselves refreshing the website of the national railway operator, TCDD, to book a ticket for the unique Ankara-Kars train experience which is often referred as ‘Karsrail’ by the locals.
I was lucky enough to book myself a ticket in the coach compartment and after purchasing my ticket, I called my mother to inform her of the journey that I was setting out for, which would eventually last 28 hours including all the breaks. She subtly mentioned how I could not even bear one hour on the road back in my homeland Mauritius and now, I would just catch buses or trains lasting more than a whole day for some new adventure. A little reminder, Mauritius has an area of 2054 square-km while that of Turkey is 783,562. So, upon thinking of these figures, I have to say that I was not really hitting the roads back then.
Over the three years that I’ve been living in Turkey, I have visited countless cities and seen things that I used to only come across through books or documentaries, and they were all incredible experiences to savor. Whenever I think of the road trips I had in Turkey, I feel grateful for all the memories I made. I met a lot of people, captured many cinematic scenes through my eyes and my camera, had interesting debates with locals, been through routine security checks, and last but not least, ate the most expensive kuru fasulye of my life on the road. These observations are not just random ones but they are also part of my area of interest in my academic research which I group under the banner of ‘transportation and human behavior’. Out of the several observations I made during those long hours of travel, I picked the ones which any common traveler would be able to relate to. I included some advice which might be useful for future trips/travelers as well.
Leaving Istanbul
It does not matter if you are heading towards Edirne or Ankara, upon leaving the metropolitan area of Istanbul and its packed traffic, you’ll find yourself in the hinterland of Istanbul. Luxury apartments, the buildings of Ağaoğlu rising in the distant background and those large billboards which either reveal some sort of political manifesto or construction works adverts. Leaving behind this chaos is peaceful despite the noise of the bus or the cries of that evil child in the back seat.
Don’t forget your charger, books, and diary!
If you are an e-book fan or a game enthusiast, prior to buying your ticket get into the habit of checking whether the USB ports or electric sockets work or not, or else you might have one of the most boring trips of your life if your battery dies during the voyage. If you love to allocate this free time to observing the landscape and daydream or keeping a journal, then make yourself comfortable but beware of some occasional rodeo moves of the bus which might ruin your handwriting.
Personally, I use my time to write down my thoughts and experiences. I remember how, once, a teyze sitting beside me would keep staring at me and my notebook until I decided to break the ice. The conversation basically went from how she used to convince her son to study, accompanied by her thousand maşallahs and aferin oğlums. Often at such conversation points, I choose to close my diary and interact with locals, because in them lie storytellers who want to inspire others.
Don’t be too greedy with your yolluk!
The yolluk that I’ve been referring to is the snacks to be eaten during the road trip. I used to never prepare any kind of snacks until I stayed at my friend’s place in Samsun. Before leaving for Elazığ, Emre’s mother handed a bag full of mini poğaças, böreks, a bottle of water and a can of juice. This is how I was introduced to the word yolluk, and I really had nothing to do that I ended up eating most of them in the first hour of the trip. So, don’t be too greedy and pack up more than what you think you might need. First of all, if the bus is an express bus, there might be no break time to purchase snacks from the convenience store at the resting point. Secondly, if you have got more than three hours of a journey ahead, you will surely feel dehydrated and hungry at some point. And last but not least, yolluk is a great conversation starter to meet that adorable teyze sitting next to you. In short, buy enough yolluk! And if you are lucky enough to travel in summer, you might be served with some refreshing Turkish ice cream on the bus!
Sohbet sohbet sohbet (especially when you are a foreigner)!
My preferred seating arrangement is the single by the window seat since that way I’m more likely to avoid parents with some annoying child during the trip. But if it happens that I’m in a double seat, I somehow turn it into a fun experience. After the first I.D card check, foreigners are likely to draw attention with the different passports or residence permit cards . So, after some exchange of half head nods or half-smirks, some amcas (uncles) would ask ‘Suriyeli misin?’ (Are you Syrian?) to start a conversation to satisfy their curiosity.
If I am not in the mood for socializing, I usually act as if I don’t understand a single word of Turkish and plunge myself in a book. However, if it is some sweet teyze which remind me of my mum, then I will not shut up the whole trip long.
Making sure you are in your seat and not anyone else’s!
That’s the last mistake you want to make in these intercity buses. Imagine that you are comfortably seated with your stuff all over the place, and someone comes and reproaches that you’ve taken their seat! It is just one of those situations that you’d want to avoid because it may ruin your mood even before the trip barely started.
Watch out for your expenses at the coach stations!
Paying 20 TL for kuru fasülye and pilav at some random coach station is something I can’t forget even after two years. That’s why I warned you to be careful with your yolluk. If you’re hungry, then be sure that you’ll find nothing for less than 40 TL that can fill your tummy. For extra frugality, opt for gözleme & ayran combo or if you are lucky enough a yarım döner & ayran can be found around the same price. Some coach stations charge 1 TL to use the washroom, so always carry some changes with you as you can never know when you’d get the nature’s call during the trip. To sum up, if you are not careful at these coach stations, you’ll surely lose the few changes you’ve got on you.
If you are a backpacker then you’ll probably be in the limelight!
When you are a backpacker, you are likely to have your small ‘home’ all packed in your bag and you’ll always draw some attention when you are looking for something in it. Some people show signs of appreciation while others maintain their fixed looks. It is also amazing how the youngsters are interested. They usually approach coyly and ask where you are headed to and whether you’ve got social media accounts where they can keep in touch. Back then, I used to share my Instagram account as well as a coin from my country. Once during my layover in AŞTİ (Ankara Bus Station) in the months of Ramadan, a boy traveling from Düzce to Adana offered to treat me to a dinner when we randomly ended up sitting at the same table. You never know what the road brings you!
A glimpse of motherly affection!
There’s a word we often use to describe those beefy boys who have got broad shoulders and are of medium height: Tosun. I particularly found it a sweet moment when I first saw how these tosuns just comfortably position themselves in the lap of their parents and sleep peacefully. And similarly, they will sleep in turn and support each other during the trip. I barely manage to sleep during such trips, so rarely do these details escape my eyes! Try to observe the ones around you, it is a fantastic opportunity to learn and get more involved with the Turkish culture and lifestyle.
You might hate the invention of the air conditioner at some point!
From time to time, you might feel suffocated in the coach. Especially if the one next to you had some food heavy with garlic and onions, then good luck in sharing the same air with him for the rest of your trip. I have been through this and learned my lesson the hard way. If you can afford it, buy single seats only! Another thing about the air conditioner is that while traveling through Turkey, there is an obvious change of elevations and this air conditioner is not adjusted accordingly and that’s why it might feel too cold at some point during your trip. Always carry a light blanket or a jacket with you.
The change in demography is obvious!
I like the curly mustache of the people in the East. Jokes aside, the reception of foreigners changes from province to province. So far, the eastern part of Turkey did treat me the best and so was its counterparts who shared the bus ride with me. Be it the conversations, the food we shared or the shoulders we lent to each other to sleep during the trip, everything is inscribed in my mind. There is nothing like ‘you’ll absolutely find the best people in this province’ but my trips in the eastern part of Turkey were less stressful than those that were on the European side. So stop worrying that the Eastern part of Turkey might be dangerous, and just dive into the adventure! You may never know unless you step out of your comfort zone!
The hours of impatience
Tired eyes, dried lips, dehydrated body, and the endless road trip… At this point, you want to sleep but you are too tired to fall asleep. And what’s worse is that you know you have a few more hours to go. I haven’t found a remedy to this problem yet but I’m eager in finding it soon. This usually happens after spending two weeks on the road and I start missing the chaos of Istanbul. So, if you got any solutions to this one, comment below and let me know your suggestions!
You get creative with your body too!
I wish that I could record myself and my various Pilates moves that I’ve made on these single seats. Even Spiderman did not stretch this much in any of his movies. Removing my shoes and putting them in my bag to make a pillow to sleep on, folding the jackets and fitting a bottle in between to make some volume for the side pillow are all the little tricks I’ve tried to make myself comfortable during the trips. And let’s not forget, how I would reluctantly extend my leg till the mid platform to get more comfortable without disturbing anyone! This is basically the definition of comfort during my trips.
Beware of the floor at night!
We were 15 hours into the 20 hours trip from Elazığ to Istanbul and I went to get some water in the container next to the mid-door of the coach. To my surprise, there were two babies on the floor and if I had not realized them the last minute, I would have ended up stepping on the babies. It was the first time that I saw people making their child sleep on the dock of the bus. I had to confirm it with my friends upon getting back to Istanbul and they revealed how their parents also used to do it when they were babies. I have to admit that I was shocked by this sight that night! Be careful not to step on any babies at night!
Reaching the hinterland of Istanbul
After traveling a few times out of Istanbul, I have gotten used to the view of the hinterlands of Istanbul. Upon reaching it, you are sure that you will be stuck in the traffic jam ahead and any minute spent in the traffic is pure torture and just makes one more and more impatient. Returning by bus to Istanbul after a holiday is the worst thing one can do since this little one hour in the traffic of Istanbul is enough to drain you more than ever after a tiring trip by bus. So, pay attention to plan your trip accordingly by arriving super early in the morning, or sometime after midnight to escape Istanbul’s packed traffic.
Do you have tips for a road trip in Turkey? Comment below and let us know!
This article was originally published in February, 2019 by contributor Manohur Chand Poonyth.
