Dalyan to Dalaman airport – 6th & 7th July

I went over to Captain Caveman’s apartment on the morning of Saturday 6th July, so that I could see the maintenance company in action. I knew they wouldn’t be there and that the garden area still wouldn’t have been done and I was now fed up. The tenants would arrive back this weekend and wanted to meet up with me before I went to the airport tomorrow night. I felt sure they would want to move out because of the complex grounds not being maintained well enough. Captain Caveman was in Saigon but would be flying to London from midnight tonight. My friend, who had kindly given me a lift, had come round to look and also agreed our gardener was not telling me the truth – nothing had been touched since my visit yesterday.
My friend and I got the bus to Ortaca and I was in a bit of a mood about the garden situation. Apart from buying a brush, a hose and some other tools to do it myself, I didn’t know what else to do. I messaged the maintenance man and said I was sick of it and wanted to meet him tomorrow. I also let the agent know so they could try harder to get something done before the tenants arrived tonight.

We got off the bus at the Ortaca bus station and walked a short way to a clothes shop which ladies from the moonlight boat trip had recommended to me. They had lots of choices and I tried loads on with my friend being honest on what looked good and what didn’t. In the end, I had narrowed it down to a red shirt dress, a burgundy long dress, a bright dress for boat trips and a patterned one for the family wedding. The 4 dresses came to not much more than the dress which I almost bought in Köyceğiz at a total of 1,500 lira (£36) and I was very impressed with the shop and could easily have bought more.
We called at the Gratis pharmacy where I bought a Dove deodorant stick for a whopping 199.50 lira (£4.78) as I had almost run out. I prefer the solid sticks as you can use them on thighs and under boobs to prevent any chafing. We had a bit of a walk around Ortaca and managed to get lost but found a nice stream and some columns which looked to be old and part of the Lycian way. It was very hot and I wish I’d brought sun cream as we walked past the hospital and a closed antique shop. We decided to stop at Cafe Deryası for lunch where we both had a water, a juice and Turkish ravioli (mantı). The lunch was really good and I would definitely go there again. It cost 390 lira (£9.35) each so it wasn’t cheap but we thoroughly enjoyed it.

Both my friend and I had to get back to work so we got the bus back, it was hot and sweaty but at least we had a seat. As it was my last night staying at my friend’s we decided to have our dinner with wine on the roof terrace. We decided to call at the supermarket for some bits and have a little picnic style dinner. Here’s what I bought for my contribution with prices in lira;

Şevikoğlu Supermarket
Crackers 34.90
Salt & Vinegar crisps 35.00
Peanuts 84.90
2 bottles of Cumbuş red wine 199.80
Total spent 354.60 lira (£8.50)

I also brought cheese, brownies and some cherries that I already had in the fridge. It was such a lovely evening and we stayed out there until it went dark.

I was in a bit of a rush on Sunday 7th July to fit everything in. I didn’t have anything for breakfast but I did do some washing and packing. I worked all morning and then had a lift in to town to drop my stuff off at Jamie’s.
We went for a last meal together at Kefal tea gardens where I had a cheeseburger and 2 lemon sodas for a total of 160 lira (£3.84). While we were there we saw a turtle, 2 snakes and lots of fish which was amazing.

After, I was dropped back at Jamie’s so I could check on the dogs, as Jamie was out, and repack all my stuff. My flight was after midnight tonight and I only had the smallest easyJet hand luggage to fit all my stuff in to. It was a squeeze with my laptop and I was sad to leave my toiletries behind. I had a little sit down on the sofa with Norman and Edna only to fall asleep for about 3 hours. In the meantime, Captain Caveman had arrived in London and was heading to his parents’ house in Barnes.
I went to Ela’s Kitchen to say hello to Nicola and Sev, bumped in to Melanie and Gareth and had a big bottle of water before going back towards town. Later on, I decided to have a rosé wine and soda in Grandma’s Garden and enquired how much their rooms were per night for next month. It was out of my price range unfortunately but the owners seemed very nice. I called at the bank to withdraw some money as I was meeting the tenants and Jamie for a drink at Lukka later and then I decided I was hungry so I called at one of my favourite restaurants.

It was quiet at Duble as I was early and I asked for the chicken soup as a starter, a large bottle of water and then for main I chose the chicken and mushroom pasta to be made without chicken. The food was lovely, especially the soup but I did notice that the prices had definitely gone up  a bit and my mushroom pasta was still the same price as the chicken one. The water was only 55 lira, the chicken soup was 120 lira and the mushroom pasta 350 lira. My total meal came to 525 lira (£12.59) which was more expensive than I’d expected but it was rather tasty. Luckily, it did mean I had 500 lira (£12) left to get me a drink at Lukka and for any emergency at Dalaman airport.
I arrived before Jamie and the dogs and introduced myself to our tenants. They ordered proper drinks for them but I just ordered a soda water to keep it cheap. They were very nice people and we had a bit of a laugh as well as discussing concerns that were all to do with our pool and garden company. Jamie was taking me to the airport so he wasn’t drinking either so when it came to pay, I said I’d get Jamie’s. Unfortunately, the bill came all 4 of us together and we decided to split it, although I put in 500 lira (£12) for mine and Jamie’s drinks, but it wasn’t enough and Jamie had to add more for our half. I hoped my flight wasn’t delayed as I now didn’t have spare cash to get anything at the airport. Norman and Edna came to the airport with us and it was a first for me to say bye to pets at Dalaman. I said bye to Jamie and the flight was still as scheduled. The queue to check in was huge and it took a while, the man behind me got quite shitty about the special assistance queue having so many people in the entourage of the disabled person – one wheelchair user got a group of 14 checked in together and he nearly lost it. Once through security, chaos ensued and my flight was delayed by 2 hours.