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Sinop to Amasra is billed by the Lonely Planet guide as a breath-taking scenic road to rival Pacific Coast Highway. We find ourselves underwhelmed, although the road winds through gorgeous mountain scenery, and along the coast the water is a vivid blue-green color. Much of this stretch is alternately in poor condition, under reconstruction, or just very narrow and curving, so it\u2019s not easy to make good time–climbing and dropping past mountain farm villages and beach towns–but that\u2019s not really the point of this trip. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Just on the far side of Turkeli, about two hours west of Sinop, we found a seaside tea garden, where the owners served us mineral water, tea, and chilled watermelon (this is becoming our favorite mid-morning refresher\u2014the melons here are sweet and juicy and full of seeds, like the watermelons of our childhood). Then we drove another hour to a beach at Abana, stopped for a couple of hours, and ended the day at Inebolu, a bit less than halfway to Amasra. We only moved our marker 100 miles, but it was a good day. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
We arrived Inebolu before dusk and strolled a bit before dinner. The town is known for its fine examples of traditional Ottoman houses built of wood. We saw some as we entered the city, but the center was less picturesque. We bought a block of excellent halvah from a friendly young man who told us proudly that he was the third generation of his family to do business in that place, pointing out framed photos and documents from the shop\u2019s history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dora the Explorer is averaging around 20 miles to the gallon, which we think is pretty impressive, considering the terrain and the load she\u2019s hauling. She\u2019s a good old girl, and we have more confidence in her every day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n