My goal today was to make it to Cappadoccia in one day. It was a lofty goal, considering I first needed to ride a ferry and then a series of buses, the totality of which would be over 12 hours. The schedules would have to align just right for me to make my journey. Truthfully, I was fully prepared to spend the night along the way.
The ferry was surprisingly calm, and fast, a huge relief after my Egypt to Jordan ferry ordeal. It was fast for one, about 2.5 hours, and on time. Arrival took slightly longer than expected, which gave me a little bit of deja vu, but in the end a very painless trip. Customs in Turkey was a bit of a hassle. There was no label for the visa office, so I lined up with everyone else [Turks] and waited for the passport official to stamp me in. She indicated I needed a visa (duh) and pointed to the booth behind her.
I lined up for that booth, way in the back, and waited about an hour to get to the front. The man in the booth told me I needed a visa (duh) and pointed to the visa office which was behind his booth. Damnit. The visa officials looked at my American passport, Chinese face, and little piece of paper from the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (they don't stamp your passport, just a piece of paper), talked to his colleague in Turkish for a bit, asked me a few questions, and then sent me on my way.
The port where I landed was Tasucu. I took a minibus to nearby Silifke, and only waited twenty minutes before boarding a slightly larger minibus to Mersin. This is where I anticipated I would be spending the night. Cappadoccia is pretty far away, and it was already 4 PM in Mersin. Turkish bus stations, or otogars, are quite large and filled with individual bus companies each advertising their prices and destinations. However, only one went to Cappadoccia, and their buses were full that day and the next.
Solution? Easy. Wait five minutes and ask again. Lo and behold, another attendant told me that he would have two spaces in a few minutes, and he did. Even better, the bus departed in less than an hour. I would arrive in Cappadoccia at around 11 PM. Not bad.
Turkish buses are rather amazing. My 6 hour bus from Mersin to Cappadoccia was a Mercedes. Moreover, we were met by two men in ties, one the driver, and the other an attendant. He served us water, tea/coffee, and cake. Service even included hand sanitizer, which rather surprised me.
I transfered to my last van at a town called Nevishir. On my van was a very eager Korean guy who had booked his plane ticket Thursday, quit his job Friday morning, and flew out Friday evening. Go that guy.
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