About : Other Tours

August 2010 Beaune, France to Florence, Italy (no posts) July 2011 Vienna to Istanbul (posts below)

7/30 –Edirne to Corlu 79m/127k**

Ottoman 14: Edirne to Corlu
Saturday, July 30, 2011
79m/127k**

A NEW BOB’S BIKE TOUR FIRST – EMBEDDED VIDEO!
The first video here is us riding on Bulgaria 8 SE from Sofia toward Turkey yesterday.  The one at the end of the post is of the team in a fountain at the end of day today in Corlu, Turkey.

Today was pretty much a straight shot toward Istanbul on Turkey 100.  It parallels, a few miles south, the major highway O-3 / E80.  We were given conflicting advice on which road to take, but picked the right one.  Almost the entire way was either a new road with wide, smooth shoulders and perhaps a third of it was on new road, still closed off to cars.  Here’s the happy riders leaving Edirne.

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Lisa and Katharine in front.

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Cherie and Nels bring up the rear.  Jürgen was a bit ahead…  And here is a mileage sign with Istanbul only 194 kilometers, less than 120 miles away.

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Along the way, as we’ve experienced almost every day on this trip, there were weddings.  The first photo below is of people dancing in a circle along the side of the road celebrating one.  The next is of a procession of cars with another.  They all seem to have processions.

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We kept riding the rolling hills pretty much all day today, on good roads.  According to plan we stopped in Luleburgaz for lunch.  Nels found a great place overlooking the seeming fairly new city.  Here’s the view and two pics of us having lunch.

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Then it was off for the last 30 miles into Corlu.  I went ahead with Annie in the van to catch up on the writing, everyone else rode.  When we got there – a special treat.  The Divan Hotel has a fountain on the side.  We grabbed beers and wine and refreshed.  Here’s Lisa and Jürgen riding up, and the team by the fountain.

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And here’s the video of the water feature / water event AKA known as the fountain at the Divan Hotel in Corlu, Turkey.

 

Tomorrow is our last day of riding.  Istanbul here we come.

Bob August 7   6pm   Washington DC

 

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