It was beginning to get dark.
My father and I had been traveling all day. We were trying to get to our next hotel. The last few days we'd been hotel jumping, traveling to different cities in Turkey.
On this particular day, we took a 7-hour bus ride to our next destination, Denizili, Turkey. On arrival, we scoured to get to our hotel as soon as possible.
We were tired, we wanted to get something to eat and rest.
I opened Google Maps to see how far the hotel was from us. It was about an hour and a half walk from the bus station. We weren't able to find a taxi or bus in the area so we decided to walk.
About an hour in, my feet were starting to hurt. We were both carrying backpacks filled with our clothes and other items we packed to last us at least 7 days backpacking city to city. The weight on those started to feel heavier the longer we walked.
The sun was starting to set.
We were walking in this area and one side looked like empty business buildings on one side and apartments on the other. No one else was outside walking. It was just us on the streets alone. Or so we thought.
As we were walking, I noticed a dog off in the distance. It was loudly barking at us. I told my dad we should probably go to the other side of the sidewalk. But he responded with a “Don't worry about it, just keep walking”.
As we were approaching the dog, we noticed more dogs coming out. There was an abandoned plot of land that was vacant but filled with some sort of rumble or junk. Seems like the dogs have claimed it as their own.
We needed to pass them to get to the other side. They were coming towards us aggressively. Barking really loud and getting ready to attack us.
Even though I was in complete shock and terrified beyond belief, somehow my feet were still moving. We made sure not to run because the dogs would've chased us for sure. One of the dogs started to run at us and as soon as it did my dad took off his backpack to try to deter it. The dog then lunged at me but missed. We were still walking forward now more at a speed walk pace. While I was praying to God to please protect us and get us through this, my dad was making himself big and loud to scare the dogs from us.
After the longest minute of my life, we finally got passed the dogs and entered a better-lit street where there were people. One of the most scarest moments of my life.