And another workday. I had a stroll through beautiful 7000 years old Plovdiv in the morning. But most of the afternoon and evening I spent with further research and planning. It looks like getting the Visa for Iran should not be a problem. Getting the Visa for Pakistan however seems to be a big problem right now. Especially if you want to enter from Iran in any other ways than flying it is currently next to impossible. There are two alternatives:
Alternative North: going north from Iran through Central Asia and Western China and entering Pakistan from the north - strangely there you can get Visa upon entry (Problem: I will have to wait until spring to go that way).
Alternative South: taking the ferry from Iran to the Emirates and trying to get a boat from there or Oman to India (Problem: highly improbable to find one).
I still have some time until I will have to decide - I will enter Turkey in 2 or 3 days and it will take me about 2 months to reach its eastern borders. Only then, after entering Iran, I will have to pick a direction.
Then again despite this mid-term problems I solved some short-term problems: I will not cycle from Edirne straight to Istanbul. Instead I will cycle down Gallipoli peninsula, enter Asia by crossing the Dardanelles, drive up to Bandirma and take the ferry across Marmara sea to Istanbul - therewith avoiding the highway ride into Istanbul (something I have not heard anything good about ever). If I find a save place I could even leave Arthur in Bandirma as that is were I will start my ride down to Izmir from.
