NIKKI SOLD FOR 20 CAMELS! FROM THE BAZAAR TO CAMP BAR, OVERLANDERS 1976

MONDAY 18TH OCTOBER, 1976

Bosphorus, Istanbul

Part Two:
"Made for a cay shop - (Chris, Nikki, Jan, me and Heidi).  Got lost in back streets, seemed to be cloth factories and shops, with streets teaming with cars and men bent double under loads of bails etc. Eventually found tiny cay shop in arcade - produced a few stools and bought cay and Turkish coffee - place seemed to serve all the shops in the area.

Kept buying all the savouries and sweets that were being sold at street corners - me and Jan the worst culprits!  Made for the bazaar.  Really funny time - blokes haggling for us 4 from Chris!  Nikki was offered 20 camels!  Quite expensive prices - lots of coats, material, jewellery, belts etc.

Found another cay shop!  Then made home in the rush hour with Chris and Nikki.  Everyone dashes for the buses, absolute chaos.  Eventually crammed in one - a fella called Salami told me where to get off.  Then had to waylay a No. 6 mini bus.  Everyone rushes into the street and people in mini buses grab them onto the buses.  Another bloke guided us on, shouting "Schnell, schnell!"

Went to B.P Camp to see if any mail.  Had meal in Camp restaurant - revolting meatballs (probably camp cat!) and cold spaghetti.  Tehran turned up.  Had to say goodbye - others eventually rescued me!
Went up to B.P Camp again because someone said I had a letter up there.  Me and Mark discovered Contiki were there and so stayed and drank with them.  Mostly dull, but driver's good fun - pretended he was barman - quite a laugh when annoyed people wanted drinks! 

Back to our bus and had a chat in back with Nikki and Chris."

OVERLANDER LETTER HOME, 1976 - Angel Delight, Pernod, cards and camping in the rain.

FIRST LETTER HOME WRITTEN ON THE BUS THROUGH FRANCE:

A touch of envy at Contiki Tours; no camp stew and Angel Delight for them ...

 

On the bus!

(Provence)

Dear Mum and Dad

Hope you got my p.c. from Paris.  We had a good evening - some of us got a lift from Contiki Tours into Paris again.  A very smooth bus - tinted windows, luxury seats and a courier who tells sick jokes!  (They even had a marquee affair where they doled out breakfast - not real camping!)

They drove up the Champs Elysees and round the Arc de Triomphe all floodlit - and round and round ... the traffic being Parisian it took some time to work our way to the outside of the race-course and take one of the roads again!

And a brief encounter with a formidable female French patron in a bar ...

They all went to a restaurant for a meal but as we'd eaten the soup/stew? and Angel Delight? concoction at the camp we all piled into a bar down the road.  We were "stung" by the awful prices because we sat down rather than prop up the bar.  Two of the group tried to "persuade" the waiter that the prices were too much and disappeared behind the bar with him - far from winning, the lady patron appeared - and no one argues with French landladies (they ended up buying the waiter a drink!)

Aussie card games on the bus and putting up tents in the rain ...

Yesterday we were woken at 6.0 (ugh!) and were on the road by 8.30.  We had a few 15 min stops on the auto-route, but apart from that, were on the road for 12 hours!  Spent most of the day playing rummy than then learnt an Aussie game called "5000" - I was pretty useless (having excelled at Rummy) - perhaps it would help if I stood on my head!

In the dark and rain we pitched at a place called Orange, Provence.  Had a quick drink to fortify us - the exuberant barmen had been knocking back the Pernods, so insisted that the first round was free! (About seven people).  This morning was still wet and hazy."

card scores recorded on toilet paper!

OVERLANDERS IN PARIS - some eat well, others just head for the bars, 1976

[Day Two and it was into Paris to do the tourist thing.  We were camping in the Bois de Boulogne so in the evening scrounged a lift with another tour bus going back into the centre.  They were going for a posh group meal out while we headed for a bar and complained about the price of drinks - which more or less set the tone of our group from the start - cheap and cheerful!]

MONDAY 27TH SEPTEMBER, 1976

"Lift in with other bus to Louvre - some went in there - but some of us went to see the Impressionist Art Gallery (Frances, Sally, Heidi, Jan Diana, Mark and me).  Really good.  Super one of a family gathering!  Liked Van Gogh and Monet.  Lovely serene characters and backgrounds.

Walked for miles to other Modern Art Gallery but was closed.  In great need of a drink by this time!  Decided to make for Latin Quarter.  Caught tube and found a cafe - had a citron presse!  Expensive, must have paid for the view (National Bank of Paris).  Wandered around the streets - temporarily lost as two hunting for malaria tablets.  Ate quiche Lorraine.

Sally and Frances went to see a friend.  We decided to walk home through the Bois, so spent ages rushing from one tube line to the other - all turfed off at one station, some at one before - some French game to play in the rush hour probably.  Finally walked back - people training and being energetic in the Bois, lots of exclusive houses (didn't call on Omar Sharif).

Hot shower, great!  In evening got lift into Paris with ContikiTours - drove round Arc de Triomphe (several times before getting off).  Saw everything floodlit.  Their tour went to a restaurant while we went to a bar down the street.  A rip off for the drinks because we sat down.  Arguing didn't pay off!  Trip round Montmartre rained off.  (Chris, Nikki, Sue, Pam, Pam, Neva, Rob, Mark, Jan, Hans and me)."