Uneventful arrival at Ankara airport. My backpack was the absolute last piece of luggage out of the carousel. It was starting to feel lonely and worries increased with every traveler departing the carousel with their luggage. Cleared immigration, the online VISA application worked without a hitch and easily cleared customs.
Went to the Turkey tourism kiosk and was offered a piece of Turkish pizza and received great help about bus service to the hostel and travel in Turkey.
Got on the bus for the 30 minute ride downtown. Bus was less than $4.00 USD. Asked a young woman in the seat behind me for directions - she just returned from 9 months of university in Poland.
We talked about Polish hospitality, drinking with Poles, Krakow, Poland vs. Turkey, the difficulty of the Polish language and our impressions from our visits to the Auschwitz death camp.
After a 30 minute ride to the bus stop at Kizilay, I set off to find the hostel. The first guy sent me south. I stopped and asked again - I was sent north. After going north 3 blocks, I stopped again and was told further north. Then I stopped at a restaurant and the owner called the bus boy who in a very friendly manner took me to the hostel doorstep, 3 blocks away. No one spoke any English but somehow I was able to find the Deeps Hostel and my little room for $25.00 USD a night using my map, gestures and a smile and head nods.
At the hostel I settled in and returned 3 blocks to the restaurant to eat and tip the young man that escorted me to the hostel. Took a sleeping pill and slept soundly.
Will stay here in Ankara for 2 days and leave on 10/4 for the Black Sea coast town of Trabzon via a short 1.5 hour flight.
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