Left the guest house about 11am this morning which was a bit later than I wanted to leave but it was nice to stay in the company of the others.
Hossein showed me the road out of town which went towards the lake. I don't think I would have found my way out of there by myself. Traffic wasn't bad and the weather was good. The road goes straight to the lake.
I'm approaching the bridge and I see a police sign, so I was preparing to stop and see if they'd let me pass. There's no one at the check point on my side but the guard on the other side comes over. We have the usual conversation, he's speaking to me like a native and I'm shrugging my shoulders like normal. I hand sign if I can go - he nods but insists I give it some gas on my way out of there!
The bridge goes through the lake and it's difficult to see where the lake ends. It looks like the water has retreated and it looks like the salt flats on one side. I have to stop to take some pictures.
I continue and there's another check point, all smiles and I'm just waved through. I see a sign for bridge toll ahead. This is going to be fun, as I'm not sure what will happen and I'm having trouble with the currency, rials or toman. I approach the booth - Hello! Where are you from? I'm getting used to the speed dating conversation here. We chat in basic English. I ask how much for the bridge - for you it's OK, no need to pay. Great!! Off I go and continue driving. I'm finding that cars are following me really close, too close for my liking. It turns out they're checking the registration and as they pass I get a wave or plenty of honking of horns. One guy nearly caused an accident in his attempt to get close and have the occupants way to me.
The roads are good and I'm heading for Tabriz and hopefully the Caspian Sea today. I settle into a 95km/h rhythm and all is well. Watching the semi desert landscape on either side of me. A couple of local bikers appear from nowhere and they're behind me for a few km's. I let them pass and I eventually meet them again in the town where I stop for lunch.
I was looking for a place to eat but couldn't find anything. A guy in a car says hello to me and I ask him about somewhere to eat. He brings me to a place and orders for me and even checks the price I should be paying. He writes down a couple of useful phrases for me that I can use. I get moving again and I'm having trouble getting out of the town, no idea where to go. I stop and ask for directions, one guy gets some paper and draws out a map for me. I take a wrong turn, I stop to ask some military guy, he smiles and points me in the right direction. So far everyone seems happy to help.
I pull in for a fuel stop. No green pumps so I'm wondering if the have petrol. Yes they nod. More hand waving and some basic English. I'm told to park the bike and come in for a tea. One guy asks where I'm from. I tell him Ireland. He removes his necklace which has a coin on it and tells me he wants a coin from Ireland. I've got some Euro coins in my pocket and try to find one. He settles for a €2 coin as it matches the size of the other coin. I ask about hotels in the next town, they seem to suggest they're cheap but they offer to let me sleep at the petrol station for free tonight.
I arrive into the town of Ardabil, chaotic as usual, busy roads, drivers all over the road. I take a turn at random and ask about a hotel. I come to what looks like a dead end but there's a police officer there. I ask about a hotel, he points to the hostel behind me. OK, that could do for tonight.
The owner shows up and tells me I should go park down the street at a parking lot. They will open at 9am. Tell him no as I want to be on the road sooner than that. He finds me another car park. Bike is tucked away for the night in a multistory carpark. Collect it in the morning.
Total distance covered: 460km
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