Day 10 : Beyşehir to Konya

Fries for breakfast. Haven't seen that before. Luckily the other usual suspects were also available: feta, tomato, cucumber, bread, olives.

On the programme today: 100 km to Konya. Originally I wanted to take a different route with small back roads. But there was no option to sleep except wild camping. Two things stopped me from doing this. First, it would have been on 1500m altitude and quite chilly at night. And secondly, I wasn't ready yet for camping wild. The latter changed during the day...

The choice fell on the major connection between Beyşehir and Konya. I expected major traffic.

What did I get? Smooth asphalt (I put some more pressure in my tires beforehand 😀) which I actually enjoyed. The traffic was not too bad.

Mescits (small mosques) which reminded me of a space rocket,

coloured mosques with LED ticker, 

and the "guarding" dog. 

But most importantly, I met Max, a German cyclist who's cycling in the direction of the Himalaya.

We rode together and climbed the first pass accompanied by fighter jets and military helicopters. A demonstration of power?? Anyways, we shared stories - as far as that was possible with that noise in the air and while climbing. He's camping wild most of the time. I expressed my doubts, got some tips... and it's time to try!

In a restaurant just after the pass we enjoyed an incredible meal in a special setting. 

These are only the side dishes, the meat still had to be served...

It was nice to eat in company again. We (especially Max) even finished the unbelievable portions they served here! 

One more pass to Konya and the rest was descending into the city of more than 2 million people. 

Max stopped at a bicycle shop to get some extra brake pads. I looked for a hotel. And our paths separated again. 

Some first impressions of Konya... 

Tomorrow, there's more time to explore Konya...