How are you doing?
We're very good thank you!
That's a skill isn't it!
Oh look we come in the kitchen, look at this anyways a real Trabzon old town life here.
Don't drive with the side door open!
We're Chris and Marianne and we've been travelling full time for the past 3 years.
We did it! we're currently attempting to drive Trudy our home on wheels all the way around
the world!
Oh good morning it's hot i've literally just got the van ready to go into town and the
sweat is dripping off me it's about 80% humidity and forecast 31 centigrade today.
It's very warm anyway today we thought we would go in and have a look around Trabzon
because i've heard there's some really nice food.
So we're just driving down and we've just seen a hospital so we thought we'd pop in
and just see whether they do do the PCR tests here because we'll need one when we go to
Georgia so that's great we had a nice chat to uh the security guard in there who said
uh yeah they do the PCR test here and apparently the results are in eight hours which is really
quick uh it lasts three days so as long as we get it done by Sunday or Monday because
we're going to go into Georgia on Tuesday because we have an interview on Monday with
Becca Bryers she does a lovely podcast, if you like podcasts, for the BBC so if you find
a Devlet Hastani Hospital they're the government state hospitals and they appear to be doing
PCR tests so that that's where i would start okay so now we just gotta find parking we've
arrived in trabzon okay so let's see is this the entrance to the exit oh we're going in
directed us next to that one
okay we've parked up and we've arrived in trabzon are you ready to go and have a little
look around i'm excited to go and have a look around because Trabzon is a fabulous city.
We've been here before but it's fabulous there's a huge new mosque being built they were building
this when we were here last year that's going to be amazing.
Look at the size of that!
So we were here last year and we had a really good day walking around Trabzon but last year
we didn't really try the local food, so we thought that this morning we'd have a good
look around the town and try some local food and just take you around Trabzon for the day.
So we've literally just jumped out of Trudy and straight away we've come into a little
market, good morning.
Fish market
They have got a bit of boxing on the telly!
Good job!
Who's winning?
Turkey?
We're very good thank you!
Enjoy
They're all watching the boxing olympics, I think Turkey's boxing they're all getting
very excited there!
This is it, we've come into the sort of old town of Trabzon one of the things i love is
walking around, looking at all the different food shops.
Does this remind you of the car park in Istanbul?
It really does in the first lockdown we actually grew tomato plants, cucumber, aubergine and
chilli plants in the borders because we spent 95 days at a car park in Istanbul, and we
kind of did this in the car park!
Oh look there's the first tomatoes!
Oh yeah the local bread shop all that lovely bread in the window this is the local bread
that we've seen before, oh it just looks oh and this is the ... you may have seen in the
last restaurant we came here and had p-day this is a very good p-day shop here but i
just love all these little shops selling the bread
The the back streets here are really nice, let's look at the character all these little
streets we're coming into the sort of tools and home improvement section of the town,
now we've got lovely baskets.
Oh it is for cheese, ah nice isn't that just absolutely
beautiful?
If i could fit it in Trudy, i would!
We've already had a conversation off camera it won't fit !
This would be one of the traditional storage pots for the cheese look at the work, the
craftsmanship on this!
I love these hardware shops, and because we're in the region of tea they've got these big
bags that they would use to carry on their back to put the tea in.
We're just walking along and seeing this man making brooms and brushes, that's a skill
isn't it? are they made of straw and grasses.
There's a little one, we need a little one for Trudy!
So we're thinking we might get a little one ....
This is perfect for Trudy so in true Turkish style the gentleman has offered us a tea!
a beautiful cup of tea and a seat!
how literally oh
Bringing back these natural skills and coming away from plastic is something that Chris
and I are working towards, having reusable bags and just and this is perfect, look at
that compared to a dustpan and brush things break that were plastic.
We replaced them with something that is natural, supporting the local economy and the skills
...... don't lose skills!
Wow look all of these, he's been a busy man!
These are different grasses that have been collected, Amazing!
You can see within there's all different types, oh look oh okay oh this is like the natural
oh it's so nice he's actually giving Marianne a little present
The pretty ones look how beautiful mother nature is creating these natural fibres that
he uses to make such a natural product, it's just beautiful and in true Turkish hospitality
i can't leave without taking it!
He bundled them and I said to him no ....
But this shop, this little shop doesn't actually have a name, but it's number I think that's
the address ...... number seven and it's just in the back streets here.
The mosque the big mosque is sort of over in that direction and the main roads here,
and we just wandered down the back streets and found this shop.
gurus another pleasant meeting meeting Savas, having a cup of tea, we were saying weren't
we that actually travel for us meeting people is sometimes even better than going to places!
Oh they want us to stop and have a cup of tea - many thanks
So we haven't even got two steps away from ....
We haven't even got two steps away from Savas shop, and we've been brought in to the tea
shop!
So we've had so much fun they they they wouldn't let us pay for the tea.
You can't go more than 10 foot and you get invited in for some tea!
Isn't that just fantastic .... these kind of interactions are really what makes our travel awesome!
We were saying that!
That's the best part ! Absolutely and so many of you say how you love how we engage
with the local people. We have so much fun with them,
in fact we've been learning with Rosetta Stone.
Trying to commit to a formal class or lesson is just doesn't work for us because we're on the road travelling so much.
And we never know where we're going to be! We never know.
But with Rosetta Stones bite-sized classes you can learn on the go on either your mobile phone, tablet, or on your laptop!
And with the tru accent software it doesn't just tell you what to say, but how to say it!
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the lifetime unlimited package, by clicking the link below,
you'll get the special price of £179 compared to the normal price of £349, that's a saving you nearly 50%
And if there's any doubt that we're back on the Black Sea Coast - this means hazelnuts,
and this whole region is famous for it.
The last time we came up here we said it, but i'm going to say it again!
80% of the hazelnut production in the world comes from Turkey,
and 70% of hazelnut production in the world comes from the Black Sea region!
That's a huge statistic !
So we were told in Trabzon that we have to come here for lunch!
This is the famous pilav restaurant, that they have here.
In fact we came here last year and we missed the service,
so i'm excited to come this time!
So we're in the Tarihi Kalkanoglu restaurant here in Trabzon,
it's a family-run business they've actually been making food here for generations !
In fact since 1856.
They serve very traditional food, in fact they only serve three dishes.
Why change something if it's been so successful!
And the tables all have notes left by people that have eaten here, which is wonderful.
This is the place to come and eat if you come to Trabzon.
Oh this is where the magic happens,
look at all that rice!
Rice .... Pilav.
Come ! Oh look we have come in the kitchen!
Look at this!
Oh there's so much!
and the beans!
look at that!
So much food cooking!
and the beans!
Then they've got this drink here, it's called a compote,
Oh it's cold which is always lovely!
Oh it's very sweety, fruity!
Is it apricot? .... i think it is peach?
We're not sure what's in it, but it tastes good!
I won !! It's apricot!
We actually found out today that this is number one tripadvisor restaurant in Trabzon.
And we were looking through the comments and we were laughing because there are only three dishes here!
And somebody wrote ... "but there was only rice, beans and meat!"
But that is actually what makes this place special, the history behind the story and that the soldiers came here and they were fed rice, beans and meat in 1856.
Don't come here for burger, or something that isn't traditional to this restaurant, because you won't find it!
Exactly, look so we got the traditional pilau rice, we got some pickles, we got the
meat here, which i believe is mutton and then we got some haricot beans,
this is truly traditional old school Turkish ....
Oh so the rice is nice and moist, cooked i think probably in stock.
The rice is enriched with butter!
Yes and that's what makes it really really oh it's so much butter .... it's delicious
you get that real nutty flavour,
and then the meat ...
Just tender, rich soft meat and the beans are all mine because Marianne doesn't like beans,
which makes me happy ....
so we've got some haricot beans here,
soft rich beans and like a tomatoey very well seasoned sauce.
I'm a happy man! And then we got nice juice oily juice to soak up with the bread,
Oh thank you very much, so we got the equivalent of Turkish rice pudding here,
and we've had this before it's delicious, rice creamy sugary topped with nuts!
And for me i love it!
That's what i call ..... naughty but nice!
So the lunch there was absolutely delicious, any restaurant that's been going since 1853
must be good 1856 - 56.
what's 3 years!
It's an amazing restaurant and if you come to Trabzon I would definitely go and check it out.
Marianne spotted her favourite olives, i love them, these are my favourite ones ..... they're
grilled, slightly citrusy ....
So we just bought some olives, but i love all these little back streets all of the shops
here, and real Trabzon old town life here!
Check out this old truck coming down!
Oh it's lovely smelling, all the different fresh produce is really nice,
but for me these are the real streets you know, these these little character streets look
at this, let's go and have a look down here.
I love it just walking through all the streets and then you come across the old building,
shopping around the old town we always say if you come to a city, check out the old town,
because you always really feel like you are in the heart of the city, by getting lost in all the side streets.
Past the tea pot shop
Coming down here, we got all the metal ware, all the kitchen stuff and the teapots.
There's so many, different side streets with different things,
again I love how they group things together here in Turkey
You have all the kitchen stuff together.
Okay we're back to a very hot Trudy!
And a very busy car park!
All right!
Oh that was a bit tight wasn't it my sweetness?
Fortunately i'm a professional driver!
Oh it was a fantastic walk around Trabzon today, it is a great city!
Don't drive with the side door open!
That's the first!
Oh my God!
I'm now driving around the roundabout because i'm not sure where i'm going!
Where am I going? Oh to Akcabaat!
Yes ! Oh my lord what happened there?
I don't know!
Okay that's the first time i've ever driven off with the with the side door open.
And it's looking a little bit grey now,
we haven't seen clouds like this in Turkey for months!
This region of Turkey is known for having rain and being cooler in the summer, although it's immensely humid.
So there's actually a storm starting,
there's a bride having a picture taken in the car park here ....
they like to take pictures in front of the reeds.
There....
They are still having the pictures taken,
but the heavens are about to open!
There's a really strong electrical storm brewing .....
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