The morning I left Fethiye. Breakfast was included. Lucky.
Breakfast eaten on the top-floor terrace in Fethiye
I woke up at 9:20 a.m. and went up to the top terrace.
Cheese, bread, vegetables. It was a simple breakfast, but the view from there was truly amazing. The Mediterranean air drifted over the table. It tasted really good.
After doing a little work, I packed my things and headed to the bus stop.
Fethiye doesn't have a metro. Transportation is small minibuses. Yesterday I didn't know that and walked for 45 minutes from the bus stop to the hostel. Today I managed to get on a minibus.
Inside the bus, it felt like neighborhood socializing. Mostly elderly people, all chatting without any particular purpose. It's a small town, so I thought it's natural that everyone knows each other's faces.
I got off at a stop and walked to the bus terminal. It was about a 15-minute walk. Compared to yesterday, it was really easy.
A five-and-a-half-hour bus trip from Fethiye to Izmir
Even after arriving at the terminal, the bus hadn't come. I killed time at a nearby shopping mall.
I looked for an SSD card and checked out sportswear. I don't have many summer T-shirts, so if I find any New Balance somewhere I'll buy more. When I asked an electronics shop clerk, "Where is the SSD?" he echoed it back to me. I thought he must find me pretty cute. Well, I thank my mother for giving birth to someone like me.
When I returned to the bus terminal, the bus had just arrived. We loaded the luggage and departed.
The trip took 5 hours and 30 minutes. Long. There were stops along the way, but they were mostly for passengers getting on and off, and each stop lasted about five minutes. Even though we stopped many times, I ended up not eating anything. A snack served once was insanely delicious. I ate it in an instant.
I got tired of listening to music, so I took my earphones out and just stared out the window.
On the bus I thought a lot about myself. I think the very first step is to understand yourself. You can't understand others without sufficiently understanding yourself. First, be interested in yourself—what you like, what you don't like so much. What kind of person you are attracted to, and what you want to become. I imagined a lot about those things.
Along the way, I also thought about Japan's future. I kept thinking about the movements of left-wing groups and things like what I would do if I were prime minister. The five-and-a-half-hour bus ride was long enough to exhaust my thoughts.
Arriving in Izmir — I chose the wrong location
I finally reached the bus terminal.
But that terminal was far from the city center. And far from the metro too. Disappointing.
I checked Google and decided to take the No.302 bus. While walking in that direction I asked someone nearby, "Does this bus come here?" and somehow managed to get on.
Everything is a new experience—new people, new places. If you think about it seriously, it's nothing but stressful. I don't do pre-trip research, so I only learn how to get places after I arrive. I didn't even know where the bus terminal was. No wonder I'm anxious.
But I think that's just how I travel. It's a hassle to look up everything in advance. Since things will happen anyway, I think it's better to wait until they do.
I got off the bus near the hostel and walked. Apparently the area where I'm staying has a strong Muslim presence. Every time I entered an alley there was a somewhat uneasy atmosphere. Just standing still felt like someone might come up to me, which was scary.
When I asked friends, they said it seemed to be a low-income area where many refugees and migrants live. They told me there's also a hill nearby where children beg, so it's better not to go.
I chose the wrong location. I should have researched the area more properly. I also need to seriously re-examine my habit of booking only one day in advance.
I'm planning to stay here four nights, but I'm thinking of staying just two nights and moving to an Airbnb for the remaining two.
When I arrived at the hostel, a woman greeted me. The moment she saw my Japanese passport she went "Japaaaan!" in a very welcoming way. I appreciated it.
But I was too tired to match that energy. My body, rocked for five and a half hours on the bus, had no capacity to take on someone else's heat. I felt the woman's expression change a little. Sorry. People change depending on how you interact with them. I was reminded of that.
Kebab and ayran — the night I decided to start a business
I went out because I was hungry.
I wanted to eat Iskender and headed to the place I had in mind. But the city felt pretty dangerous. I couldn't help muttering, "Is there a restaurant in a place like this? Why is this the center? Is Izmir really this dirty?" In the end, that place wasn't open.
Dinner was kebab, fries, and ayran. It was genuinely tasty.
I ate alone in an atmosphere where just stopping felt like someone might approach. In any country, low-income areas have a unique tension. If it's dangerous, that becomes normal for the area. Putting yourself in such an environment, you unconsciously start to pick up the same feelings.
That's why I will never be low-income. At the very least I'll be upper-middle.
I thought that strongly.
At the same time, after traveling for two years I thought there's no way I could take a job at a company. I must start a business and become an entrepreneur.
It was decided that way on a night in Izmir.
I found churros so I bought just one. It was insanely sweet.
