We packed things up at the free campground in Tarsus. It had become quite busy there as three Turkish rigs traveling together showed up around 9:30pm Monday night. I think all the spots were full so we're glad we parked well out of the way.
Thanks to the municipality of Tarsus for providing this free campground. Always good to be able to get back on the road with full batteries and water, and an empty toilet tank!
We weren't going very far. It was only 45 kms (28 miles) to the center of the big city of Adana (pop 1.7 million).
We noticed that the price of diesel had dropped back from its peak at 23 lira per liter, and so when we saw it for 19.99 lira per liter we decided to fill up despite the fact that Max still had half a tank. Still more than what we paid at the beginning of the month though. It worked out to $1.71 CAD per liter ($5.14 USD per gallon).
And, with lots of filling stations along this route, we also filled one of our LPG propane tanks at a decent price.
Big city traffic.
Even if we weren't stopping here, there is no choice but to do the drive through the big city if you are heading east. The only better route is taking the toll road a little north of the city. But, there are things we want to see here in Adana.
We found a decent overnight spot beside a big park by the Seyhan River that flows through the city. There is lots of green space, and it didn't look very busy where we were parked. It turns out it gets busier afternoon and evening, but it would still do for an overnight.
We went for a walk along the river...
Pedestrian bridge crossing the river.
A beautiful blue sky day.
Another pedestrian bridge.
There is nice park space on both sides of the river.
The fancy 5 star Sheraton Hotel.
Why are there balloons in the river?
So that you can pay to shoot at them with a pellet gun!
We walked as far as the Sabancı Central Mosque. It's the second largest mosque in Turkey, the largest being the Blue Mosque in Istanbul. It was prayer time so we didn't go inside, but we will try to do that today.
It's an impressive structure!
Built between 1988 and 1998.
It holds 28,500 people!
It's located at the edge of Adana's Central Park.
Central Park itself is really pretty.
We are parked beside some kind of little bird farm.
There are peacocks and chickens and turkeys and guinea fowl
Oh, and roosters. They made sure to remind us of their presence at 5:00am this morning!
View out our front window.
Glass of wine and a game of cribbage.
This morning, we are walking over to the Adana Archeological Museum. Then it's such a nice day we will go for a bike ride up and down the river this afternoon!
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84 Pack of Maxwell House Medium Blend Roast Coffee Pods. 28 cents each!
And in Canada...
So it looks like as long as you are parking and not camping (BBQ & lawn chairs) you are able to park in a lot of places for the night. That is handy. Do you have to ask anyone or do you just know that public spots are fine.
ReplyDeleteYes, you can pretty much park overnight in most places, unless they have a sign up showing no motorhome/tent camping or a sign showing not parking during nighttime hours. If it is public space there is no need to ask for permission, if it is the parking lot of a restaurant or some kind of business then, yes we would ask.
DeleteYou guys are having a blast! How are the truckers and driving?
ReplyDeleteWe certainly are!
DeleteDriving for the most part isn't a problem. In the cities it gets a little hairier, people drive down the middle of the lines on the road often, just to keep their options open as to which lane they will decide to move into further on, lol. You have to really watch for double parked cars, even on a multi lane roads in the city. The truckers for the most part seem fine, it is more the buses, dolmus (like a little collectivo buses/vans) and of course taxis, that you really have to watch out for.