The ramblings and observations of a fortysomething lady of leisure
Author: joloyolo
Originally from Sheffield, England. Can be found mostly in Phong Nha, Vietnam, or Dalyan, Turkey. Likes travelling, eating and drinking. Lives with Captain Caveman.
By 8am on Monday 14th August I was in Rob and Tracy’s apartment feeding Molly, the cat. While I was there, I took some photos, played with Molly and spoke to Captain Caveman who was at a party with some porters. We discussed me meeting him in Naples at the beginning of October but the flights went via London which was a bit of a faff and they weren’t particularly cheap. Before work, I had cheese on toast for breakfast, but no Yorkshire tea as I had ran out. I messaged our gardening company, to let them know they needed to tidy the grounds of our complex and they replied to say they would come today – they didn’t. I went back to check the cat at lunch time and, as the owners had not left enough food or cat litter in for Molly, I located the spare cash as instructed by Rob. I would check the price when I next went to the supermarket as I had no idea how much cat food was, these days. I played with Molly for a bit, she’s a lovely cat but a bit on the chunky side. I took more photos and admired the river view. Back at home, I had mantı (Turkish pasta) for lunch then got back to work. I went to meet Kate, Mark and Jamie at Sofra bar at 7pm Kate explained she’d been unable to bring me a 2024 diary back from England and she’d forgotten about the Yorkshire tea. I was back to being on a constant look out for a diary as I was getting quite booked up for 2024 already. I messaged Captain Caveman and he said he would try to get me some Yorkshire tea and a diary when he came back from Vietnam in 2 weeks. I finished my drink, kept hold of Teddy, the AWOL dog, until Ghislaine came to collect him again then I went back to feed Molly. I called at the shops for some provisions and got the following items:
It was late by the time I was going home and I’d forgotten to get anything out for dinner. I decided to have a Hatay kebab which tasted great at the time but I’m sure I’d come to regret it at Fat Club on Wednesday.
On Friday 11th August I had to work because I’d moved my days to accommodate Mark and Kate’s cat and house sitting dates. I worked from 9am to 5pm with a break for lunch. I was also back to eating nice food at home; beans on toast for breakfast, feta and beetroot salad for lunch, then a tandoori style chicken and rice dish for dinner. I even opened a bottle of rosé wine when I finished work and sat on the balcony in my lounge chair. I thought I was going to have a relaxed early night at home but I couldn’t have been more wrong. Kate messaged to ask if I wanted to meet her and Mark at Tez bar so I said yes. After more wine there, it ended up being a rather messy, drunken evening in Dalyan Lounge and then Sofra. Kate fell asleep in Dalyan Lounge so Mark and I left with her on the puff truck to make sure she got home. We had a can of beer and a hip flask to come back in to town with to rejoin Jo, Steve, John, Andrea, Jade and her husband who’s birthday it was. We bumped in to Bakı and we had rather a lot more drinks. Obviously, Mark and I were the last 2 standing in Sofra at about 4am – tomorrow was going to hurt!
I had no idea how I was going to get through all my plans on Saturday 12th August! I postponed my meet up at Goodeer Cafe with Jamie and went back to bed. I couldn’t face going to the market so I slept until about 1pm then went to meet Jamie. I had a lime slushy which made my hangover headache even worse. Jamie had also ended up drinking until 4am this morning with his neighbours so we were both in the same pathetic state, still. Neither of us quite knew how we were going to muster up the oomph to be able to attend Nanny Kay’s birthday celebrations tonight. As I entered the complex back at our apartment I noticed that the garden was overgrown again and was looking a bit dishevelled so I needed to remind the maintenance company to give it a bit of attention. Jamie, Ann and I met at Sofra bar for a livener before the main birthday event. I took more than 30 minutes to get half a draft lager down me and felt absolutely terrible. We went to Meet Meat restaurant where there was about 20 of us for the birthday meal. The free mushroom and bread starters were amazing and I ordered a steak with rice, chips and salad which was very nice. I made a glass of red wine last all night and I was absolutely begging for mercy. My 200g steak meal came to 448 lira (£13.27), which was very reasonable, the wine was 100 lira (£2.96) for a decent glass and a large water was 30 lira (89p). We’d had a reasonably priced night out with excellent food and service. Unfortunately, there was an after-party, back at Sofra where it turned in to another one of those nights! Jamie, Ghislaine and I got in at gone 4am after Teddy, the dog, had gone AWOL meaning Ghislaine was forced to come and collect him from us at Sofra Bar.
It wouldn’t take a genius to work out that I had an easy day on Sunday 13th August. On a positive note, staying out until after the Jazz bar had closed meant I was getting better sleep. I had bread, feta cheese and olives for breakfast, a hot dog for lunch then tandoori chicken with egg fried rice for dinner. I had an early night because tomorrow I had another week of cat sitting.
After I’d fed the cats their breakfast on Wednesday 9th August, Casha went back to bed in the spare room. I met a gecko outside on the meter box too. I took the puff truck over to our apartment, where I made myself pancakes with fruit for a late breakfast. I got weighed and was hopeful for a good result at Fat Club later as I had lost a bit since last week and my measurements were good; no change to bust or hips but -4cm off my waist! I noticed that our complex was looking a bit dishevelled and the gardener and pool man hadn’t been in a while. I worked all morning then went to Fat Club where Carol’s scales said I had lost 1.3kg (almost 3lb). On the way home I went to the supermarket and bought the following;
I had beans on toast with hot dog sausage in plus a hot dog before I took the puff truck back to Mark and Kate’s for my cat feeding action. I was in bed by 11pm, having had another alcohol free day. I was pleased it was my last night staying away and I was looking forward to getting home!
Mark and Kate were due back at 8.20pm on Thursday 10th August and I was eager to get back to normal. I fed the cats, watered the plants, stripped the bed and washed all the bedding and towels. I had strawberries for breakfast then packed up all my stuff ready to leave. I had a last swim before a lunch of lentil soup and a turkey salad wrap. I took all my stuff home in the afternoon, it was very hot. I had a hot dog at home before taking the puff truck back to Mark and Kate’s for one last cat feed. I made sure the house was tidy, that I’d taken anything I’d left in the fridge and that the cats were all happy. I put the keys for the puff truck back where they belonged, it still didn’t need charging and I’d not used any of the electric bikes. I walked home, it had cooled down a little by about 8pm but it was still quite warm. When I got home I had a beer and a Bounty as a bit of a treat. I was so looking forward to my own bed and not having to get up too early to tend to any animals.
I didn’t get out of bed to feed the cats until 7.15am on Sunday 6th August. I was feeling tired. After feeding the cats and watering the plants I did a bit of blogging. I was quite behind and really needed to catch up. I’d mistakenly thought I’d be able to do that while I was house and pet sitting but the internet wasn’t up to much. It also meant that I probably wouldn’t be able to work online from this house tomorrow and I decided to rearrange my work schedule. I had beans on toast for lunch and lots of fresh fruit. Kate suggested I turn her home grown tomatoes in to sun-dried ones but, instead, I made a fresh tomato sauce to go with some pasta and ate it for dinner. I got messages from Kelly and Clare, who were looking forward to arriving in Dalyan later in the month and I was getting excited for their visit. Captain Caveman would also be back on their last day so we could all do something together. I was in bed before 10pm, picking out recipes from Carol’s Slimming World book.
Monday 7th August followed a similar pattern to the previous day; cat feeding, plant watering, blog editing. I’d decided to work from home once back at home so I had a little swim. Unfortunately, my eczema seemed to be getting worse, possibly from the chemicals in the pool. The cats were more playful today, especially as I tried to drink my tea from a Yorkshire tea mug. I had mantı (Turkish pasta) for lunch and popped to Migros and Rehab bar on the puff truck in the late afternoon. I needed to pay my bar bill which was 240 lira (£7.22) for the 3 pints I had on Saturday. At Migros I bought soup, cooked meats and some aloe vera gel (for my eczema) for a total of 114.26 lira (£3.44). Back at Mark and Kate’s, there was more cat feeding then I had a turkey and lettuce wrap for dinner. Another early night was had but I decided that tomorrow I would go back to our apartment to work from there in the day time.
When I woke up on Tuesday 8th August the power was off but I didn’t know if it was a widespread power cut or not. I fed the cats then I took the puff truck back to my place where the power was on and I messaged people who live in the same area as Mark and Kate to check if they had power. It turned out to be everyone in the area. I made Slimming World friendly pancakes from egg and banana for breakfast and did a bit of work. I had 2 Yorkshire teas as a nice treat before getting the laptop out. I had an airfryer jacket potato with cheese and a Linden tea for lunch, which was lovely. I spoke to Captain Caveman for the first time in a while (he’s not one for keeping in touch or asking how I’m doing) and we came up with a holiday plan. Once he was over in Turkey, he could only spend 90 days here so he intended to go to England and Europe for about 40 days. He did ask if I wanted to go too but I just couldn’t afford it, so I said no. We did think I could possibly meet him in Naples or Rome though, as the flights between Italy and Rhodes were so cheap. I said I’d consider that and went back to work until 5.15pm. Back at Mark and Kate’s I fed the cats and watered the plants, while our own garden seemed to be neglected in comparison and we have a maintenance company there. That evening, I spoke to Ma and Pa and suggested meeting in Italy as per Captain Caveman’s idea. They were also open to this plan and we said we would factor it in to our October holiday. It was almost midnight when I went to bed, tomorrow I had a busier day planned.
I was meant to be going swimming with Adele before cat feeding on Saturday 5th August but I felt I had not left myself enough time in the day to do everything I’d planned to. I fed the cats; Baby stuck her tongue out at me and she didn’t eat all the food. I watered the plants and felt grateful that I don’t even own a plant as it is such a time consuming job. Adele picked me up on her motorbike and we drove the short journey to Yalıçapkını (aka Kingfisher) for breakfast with friends. I had booked a table for 8 of us but, when we arrived it was clear I had made a mistake. Joining Adele and I were Ann, Jamie, Drew, Nanny Kay, and Viv, however there were 2 people who I had not met before. Nanny Kay introduced me to her friend, Lynne, and I said hello. I looked towards the lady sat next to Viv, who introduced herself as Lynne, too. I had not realised that when Viv had messaged to ask if I’d included Lynne that she had been talking of her Lynne, not Nanny Kay’s Lynne. I took the end of the table and requested a new place be added. Six of us had the Turkish breakfast, Nanny Kay and the first Lynne had menemen, Drew had a toastie. I loved the food, despite avoiding the chips and trying not to be too naughty. The total bill came to 2,290lira (£69) working out less than £8 per person. After eating, the conversation topic of the Barbie film cropped up. Lynne number 2 and Drew helped us all download an app where you can make your own photo in to a Barbie – hours of fun could have been on the cards but it was time to leave. There was no lolling by the pool to be had that afternoon as I decided to take the puff truck to the market to stock up on fruit and veg. The mobility wagon was brilliant, I managed to get 27 km/h out of it and work out where the gears were. I decided to call in to Rehab bar to meet up with the pool gang and had a nice pint (or 2) with Carol, Adam & Kath, Julie & Gareth. Of course, without Mark and Kate there we finished earlier than we would normally and I was able to whizz back on the puff truck for a river swim with Adele. I quickly fed the cats and was watering the garden again when Adele arrived with a bottle of wine for us to share later. The swim off the jetty was refreshing and enjoyable as we went past a small inlet near to Mark and Kate’s. We felt what we would later find out were thermoclines which are cold pockets of water staying separate to the top layer of warm water as the sea and river met. It was getting dark, no one knew we were swimming in the river and I had been drinking – probably not the smartest idea! The mosquitos were out in abundance as we climbed out on to the jetty. We went inside, drank Adele’s wine and chatted until gone midnight having had a lovely day.
I didn’t bother with breakfast on Thursday 3rd August and got straight on with my work for the day. I had a late lunch of beans on toast and finished work around 3.15pm so that I could pack and go to meet Mark and Kate. They were having drinks in Jiks with Adam and Kath prior to flying back to England that evening. They bought me a pint of Efes and I got a lift back to their’s so that I could move in to cat sit their 6 cats for a week. I shared a beer with Mark and Kate before their taxi came at 7.15pm and they said goodbye. Kate had agreed to bring me some Yorkshire tea and a much needed 2024 diary, which I was really looking forward to. Both JC and Kylie, 2 of the 6 cats were wanting a bit of attention so I sat outside with them for quite a while.
By 7.30am on Friday 4th August I had fed the cats and hung out the washing at Mark and Kate’s house. After her breakfast, Casha (Kate’s favourite cat) had got on the bed in the spare room for a snooze so I took a photo to send to Kate. I watered the numerous plants in the garden, I couldn’t find any Yorkshire tea so I just had what was in the jar next to the kettle and didn’t bother with any breakfast. I also got on with helping to organise a ladies night boat trip with Adele for later in the month. I had beans on toast for lunch (again) and I paid Leanne for the AC fixing at our apartment before putting my new bikini on for the first time so that I could have a dip in the pool. I swam a lot, lounged about and generally relaxed – I even got the Mike Tyson autobiography back out to read more of. It was only 31°C when I went out there but it got to 40°C later on and I had to go back indoors. I did some work on Sausage Dick’s Vietnam itinerary as he was going in March 2024 and I noticed that LC Waikiki, a shop in Turkey, were now selling the porter sandals we wore in Phong Nha. I had a cheese roll from the fridge and some pasta for dinner before calling it a night once it got back down to 31°C. Tomorrow, I had another exciting day planned!
I had another healthy day on Tuesday 1st August. For breakfast I had banana, peach, strawberries with quark and a herbal tea. I went to buy another water for the cooler to find it had now gone up to 50 lira (£1.50) for 19 litres but he did deliver it quicker than last time. For lunch I had a chicken and veg pasta then I worked for about 3 hours in the afternoon, once it had cooled down a bit. I was conscious that I was off to Fat Club tomorrow so I was trying my best to be good, it was my third day without alcohol too. I had wholemeal toast for dinner and then decided to pop out to the shops because there seemed to be an increase in the amount of ants we had in the apartment. Here’s what I bought and the prices in lira;
Migros supermarket
Boiled beans 16.90 Bulgur wheat 27.95 Tomato paste 32.50 Ant spray 45.25 Total spent 199.15 lira (£5.96)
Şarküteri 2 tins Heinz baked beans 90.00 Cheddar cheese 110.00 Total spent 200.00 lira (£5.98)
The English products were obviously more expensive here but I really fancied treating myself to beans and cheese.
I was on a last-ditch attempt to have lost weight this week on Wednesday 2nd August. I weighed myself on the home scales and I seemed to have done ok but we would have to go by Carol’s official scales at Fat Club. My measurements were less favourable; bust -2cm, waist +2cm, hips +3cm. This wasn’t boding well for a loss this week and I had consumed 266 syns in total, on a 110 syn allowance! I’d done an hour’s work when I noticed the water in the cooler was only half full – it was leaking! I googled how to fix it and did, then mopped up the floor! I had slimming world friendly ‘pancakes’ for breakfast which were made from 2 of my least favourite foods; eggs and bananas mashed together and cooked. I drank 2 Lotus teas and a litre of water, I also made 3 omelettes and popped them in the freezer for egg fried rice at a later date. For lunch I had veggie pasta and another litre of water. I finished work at 2.30pm and walked over to Fat Club. I was pleased to find that I had actually lost 0.8kg (1.8lbs) which was great. I went back home to finish off some work before heading back out to the bank and then to Rehab bar to see whoever was left of the pool gang. Mark, Kate, John and Andrea were still there so I joined them for a drink, with it being pay day. I limited myself to 2 pints of draft Efes and then joined Mark and Kate for another drink (a glass of red wine) at Rodrigo’s. Mark ordered a burger from the burger place next door while Kate and I had chicken rice and chickpeas (really tasty and healthier) from across the road. I walked home via the river and took some photos of the boats along the way. After a cup of tea, I had an early night as I was working tomorrow and then off for a week of cat sitting.
I had a day with a difference on Sunday 30th July! As it was the weekend and I didn’t have to work, I decided to take Adele up on her offer of a trip to Fethiye. We had heard some hype about the new Barbie film and had decided we would go to see it at the cinema in the Erasta centre. I had cherries and blueberries for breakfast before meeting Adele at the Dalyan bus station. It was 40 lira (£1.20) from Dalyan to Ortaca where we grabbed water and mints and changed on to the Fethiye bus. That bus was 50 lira (£1.50) and took almost an hour. The cinema tickets were 105 lira (£3.14) each and the next showing wasn’t until 4.45pm. We went to a cafe where I had chicken, salad and pasta with a sparkling water, Adele had soup and a dessert. My food came to a very reasonable 150 lira (£4.49) and was very nice. We also bought cherries to eat in the cinema but we were too full to manage them. In the chemist I bought a Dove deodorant stick which was on offer for 94 Lita (£2.81) and comes in handy to roll on thighs to prevent chub rub on a hot day. The film was weird and I wasn’t sure I’d have carried on watching it, if it had been on the TV but it was certainly interesting. A handful of people walked out which is a first experience for me to witness. We also saw some trailers for other films which looked of interest and hoped to come again. On the way back to Dalyan, the prices of the buses were slightly different; the bus from Fethiye to Ortaca was 48 lira (£1.44), then the bus to Dalyan was only 20 lira (60p) which was half the price of the way there. I had cheese and biscuits for a snack at home and then was off to bed, ready for a busy Monday!
I managed to work 6 hours on Monday 31st July, between 10am and 9.30pm. As it was still very hot in Dalyan, I’d found it was easier to spread my hours over 3 or 4 days rather doing it all in 2 days. I had a cup of Yorkshire tea, fruit and quark for breakfast, then made a veggie wrap pizza for lunch. When I finished work, I wasn’t hungry so I just did a chicken schnitzel in the airfryer. The year seemed to be going so fast but this did mean that it was only one more month until I saw Captain Caveman again and only 30 days until I could start to apply for my Turkish residency renewal appointment date.
It was a day of fun on Saturday 29th July on another Princess of Ekincik boat trip to welcome Annie back to Dalyan. By 10am we had set sail as we drank our morning brew with a cookie. Onboard we had a nice eclectic mix of people; Jackie & Chris, Viv, Linda, Adele, a Turkish couple, a Dutch couple, Annie and me. We had a great BBQ lunch and some amazing swim stops and we even got to do something I’d never done before.
Adele asked Captain Ismail if we could moor up near to The Rock so that, those who wanted to, could swim around it. Adele, Annie, Chris and I managed to swim around it in the fairly choppy sea and it was really lovely. We had a laugh with the Turkish guest who was rather big and hilarious at getting himself on and off the paddle board. On another one of our swim spots we were warned very clearly by Ismail to stay away from the sea urchins. The Dutch guy, who had never been to Dalyan or a boat trip before proceeded to ignore this and ended up with six spikes in his foot. Our Captain had to remove them with tweezers and the man was clearly in agony.
The Rock we swam around.
The food, as always, was incredible and I washed it down with a couple of glasses of rosé wine which were 100 lira (£2.98) for a decent measure. It was such a lovely day that I don’t think Annie, Adele and I wanted it to end. It nearly didn’t end well when there was a problem with the boat’s engine. Luckily, Captain Boris was due to pass and he helped tow us back to Dalyan.
The 3 of us plus Chris and Jackie decided to pop for one drink at Tez bar. Tez had a nice bottle of rosé wine for just 350 lira (£10.42) so Adele, Annie and I shared that. It was nice to sit and relax while deciding if we might go for food. After saying goodbye to Adele, Chris and Jackie, Annie and I popped back to mine for a quick shower before dinner. We had booked a table at Duble, one of our favourite eateries in the old market square. I’d not been there in ages so it was nice to visit and we had a veritable feast between us; cheese rolls, liver and onions, bread and dips to start followed by chicken shish and Adana kebab for our mains – all washed down with another bottle of rosé wine. Our meal with wine was a reasonable 700 lira (£20.83) each, it was amazing and I had leftovers to take home. I’d loved my day and night out and it was brilliant to spend time with Annie who was due back again in a couple of months.
Photo credit – Annie Miller for some of her photos
On Wednesday 26th July I made a concerted effort to get back in control of the diet and budget. I had a month until my friends from England visited and I wanted to be able to lose a bit of weight and save some money before they arrived. The last few weeks had been very slack in both those departments and I needed to get back on it.
I had strawberries, cherries and quark for breakfast with cinnamon tea then I remembered to take my measurements. I’d put 1cm on my bust, stayed the same on my waist and lost 1cm from my hips. I had cheese, rice crackers and olives with more cinnamon tea for lunch and I worked until 2.35pm. At 3pm I was at Fat Club to face Carol’s scales and start again on my weight loss journey. To my absolute amazement, I’d lost 0.3kg this week and was able to rush back to my laptop feeling quite motivated. I finished work at 5.35pm and went to see which reprobates were left at Rehab bar after pool. It was just the hardcore few so I had a couple of pints of Efes with Mark and Kate who I’d not seen properly in ages and I’d missed them. We took a photo of the 3 of us to send to Steve and Michelle, in Rhodes, who were really going through some horrendous fire situations and we wanted them to know we were thinking of them.
I got a lift with Mark and Kate, on the puff truck, round to Jamie’s where I had been invited over for an impromptu BBQ. I tried to be good and only drank half a bottle of red wine, had plain chicken, beef and salad. Unfortunately I found it impossible to resist Drew’s homemade croutons, nan bread, peanuts and Nanny Kay’s brownie. I’d been feeling a little sad, worrying about Steve and Michelle, their friends and all the animals affected by the Rhodes fires. Everyone did their best to cheer me up, Nanny Kay even wore her sandals which she’d got from Rhodes and we sent love to Steve and Michelle to try to show support. Towards the end of the night we even discussed a mini break to Rhodes with my friends. As we were leaving, Ann suggested a nightcap in town so she and I popped to Cafe Ivy for a drink. I got home and went straight to bed, looking forward to a lazy day tomorrow.
I helped a friend with a holiday itinerary on Thursday 27th July and did a few chores at home. I popped a beef and pumpkin curry in to the slow cooker for dinner too. It was far too hot to go out but I did need some provisions. I made a shopping list for when the sun had gone down. Steve and Michelle were back home but there was still a chance of resurgence as the winds were unpredictable in Rhodes. I had fruit for lunch and drank lots of water and herbal tea. By 7pm I’d been to the bank and was swanning round Migros getting some shopping in. They didn’t have all that I had on my list so I also had to go to Şok, here’s what I bought and the prices in lira;
My beef curry was lovely, I had plenty left for the freezer and I was ready for another early night.
On Friday 28th July my friend, Annie, let us know that she was on her way to Dalyan. As I ate my breakfast, she suggested that her and I join a boat trip tomorrow as the weather forecast for the next few days was scorching hot with very little breeze. Of course, what kind of a friend would I be if I didn’t go one better than joining an existing boat trip. Before lunch I’d arranged a private boat trip with Princess of Ekincik and invited a few friends to join us. I had fruit for breakfast, and a pizza wrap in the airfryer for lunch because the AC man was due over. I’d asked Leanne at King Emlak if we could get a workman round to service the units as they didn’t seem to be working properly. She’d just messaged me to say he would have to come over the weekend, when he arrived. He proceeded to drag the TV, which is directly beneath the living room AC unit, from the wall. This ripped the wires out of situ and disrupted the small DVD cupboard as it’s all attached. He was not careful at all so I rushed in to help, wearing what can only be described as beachwear. In the end, I had to go and sit on the balcony as he was making a bit of a mess and I was annoyed that he’d pulled all the wires out for the TV and internet out when I had no idea how to put them back. He took a while, had to replace two broken capacitors and I still wasn’t sure how much more than a service it was going to cost me. When he left he didn’t even clean the floors and told me to get the mop out! Luckily, he did fix the cupboard and TV, making sure that and the internet worked, so I was relieved. I tried to get Leanne to send a cleaner but she was busy so it looked like I’d have to do it. On a more positive note, the AC was working much better and it was pretty chilly. Leanne even gave me a great AC tip; put it on to dehumidifier around 25°C and it will do it’s thing! I ate leftover beef curry, with nan bread warmed in the airfryer, for dinner. I’d had trouble getting the remaining curry in to the freezer so I took a random box of Tupperware out with pineapple in so that I could finish that off.
By 9am on Monday 24th July I was off to the bank to draw out more cash. I’d promised to pick up 3 boxes of baklava for Morgan and April to take home as gifts. I got it fresh from the bakery and went for the medium sized boxes, hoping they weren’t already over their weight allowance on hand luggage as it was very heavy. When I arrived, Gayle was still tidying, Neil was moving stuff downstairs and the girls weren’t quite ready. They had all kindly left me some spare toiletries and food which Gayle had bagged up for me. She also mentioned there was ice-cream and wine in the fridge, including the remaining half bottle from yesterday that I’d taken over. In the kerfuffle of them leaving, moving luggage and me getting the bag of gubbings, we left without the ice-cream and wine! We had hugs, said our farewells and I was genuinely sad to see them leave. It had been lovely to share a big part of their family holiday and we’d had so many laughs. I was going to miss them a lot and the itinerary plans! If you think I’m funny, you should meet my sister – she really is hilarious! I waved Fikri’s taxi off with tears in my eyes and then walked back to mine. I worked from 1pm to 7.30pm with a break for food and I decided I needed to spend the next week getting back to the Slimming World plan and saving money for my next adventures. I made a diet friendly pizza for dinner and had a much needed early night.
Tuesday 25th July was a quiet day for me in Dalyan. I’d been in communication with Steve and Michelle in Lardos who had managed to go back to check on things but it was still pretty horrendous over there. I got up late, ate fruit with quark for brunch and worked from 12.30 until 8.30pm with a break in the middle to chat to a drunken Captain Caveman in Vietnam. I ventured out to buy a replacement water for 40 lira (£1.20) but the guy forgot to bring it round and I had to chase him. I had a chicken and veggie wrap for dinner with some Airfryer chips. I’d not even counted my syns this week but tomorrow I had to face Carol’s scales at Fat Club. I was bound to have put weight on but I was determined to get back on it.
It was Gayle, Neil, Morgan and April’s last day and night in Dalyan on Sunday 23rd July as they were leaving tomorrow morning. They had planned to have a cleaning, tidying and packing day followed by lounging and swimming round the pool for their last day. They had booked to go out for a meal and I was going to have another day off. We’d had a great time and, surprisingly, not one fall out or complaint. In the afternoon I got flight confirmation from my friends, Kelly and Clare, who were coming to visit me next month. I was looking forward to seeing them after 4 years of not being able to see each other. Later, I went over to where my sister and family were staying and we had a dip in the pool. Some friends from Fethiye and Mark stopped by just to say hello and I met them at the gate for a few minutes. When I went back in, the family were getting ready and said I should join them for their last dinner out in Dalyan.
I’ve not been to La Bohème this year, it was very busy but we had a reserved table by the river, overlooking the rock tombs. We decided cocktails would be a good idea and I ordered a pornstar martini. We shared the meze plate for starters and each of us ordered some really good main courses. My surf and turf was one of the best meals I’d had in Dalyan. We shared wine and had a brilliant last night celebrating a wonderful holiday. As we came to pay the bill, there was a power cut which meant we all had to put our cash in to pay.
The girls weren’t too pleased about that as they had been promised a look round the shops. A lot of the shops were unable to take card payments but we did find a couple that could so the girls could get some souvenirs. On our walk back towards home we decided that it wouldn’t be a farewell send off without a quick drink in Bistro Blue. We must have left about 12.30am as I have a receipt for the drinks at that time and the electric in Dalyan was back on.
After a hot and humid night’s sleep, the temperature on Saturday 22nd July felt like the hottest day so far in Dalyan. It was already above 33°C when I got up and was forecast to be 43°C in the afternoon. Today I was having a day and night off while the family went on a jeep safari and then for a meal at Alegria. Yesterday’s amazing boat trip had been paid for by Gayle and Neil so I’d only had to pay for my wine. I felt very grateful that I’d only spent 600 lira (£18) and was off to the market today for some provisions. Due to the heat and weather warnings I went at a more sensible hour. I bought 2 red peppers, 4 green peppers, 1 red cabbage, 500g of cherries, 1 punnet of strawberries and 6 peaches which cost 193 lira (£5.80) then had to call at a new cafe on the way back. It was hot and I needed refreshment so I called in to Asaf Bey which had been recommended on Facebook groups for coffee and cake. I’m not a coffee drinker so I had a juice and a water which took a good while to be served as there were already 2 other customers. It’s a nice place, the staff are friendly and they do the traditional coffee, made in sand. I personally didn’t like much on the menu but they had a fan on and it was a nice place to cool down a little. I paid 50 lira (£1.50) for my 2 drinks and a cool down in a nice peaceful environment so I was happy as I went out in to the now midday sun. On the way home I bought lavaş wraps, cherry juice and smoked turkey at Migros supermarket for a total of 117.50 lira (£3.53). I made a turkey, cabbage, carrot and quark wrap for lunch, whacked on the AC and rested up. The weather forecast had been accurate and it was extremely hot, the humidity had dropped though. Unfortunately, other countries were suffering the heat far worse than us and things in Rhodes had took a turn for the worse. There were forest fires which were spreading across certain areas in Rhodes and, by 2pm my friends, Steve and Michelle, were having to evacuate their home in Lardos. It looked pretty scary and I was worried about the people I knew there. I offered to put them up at our place and said if it got worse to get on a ferry to Fethiye and come to Dalyan. For dinner I made a chicken and veg stir fry which I ate while worrying about my pals in Rhodes. I had an early night but didn’t sleep much as I was watching the Rhodes news.
I was lucky enough to be invited on an amazing private boat trip on Friday 21st July. After a gap in the itinerary had presented itself, Neil had decided he’d quite like to enjoy some time with just the family, out at sea. The 4 of them had asked me to join their full day and evening on the Princess of Ekincik boat, which they had managed to book for exclusive use at the last minute. We were bright eyed and bushy-tailed, ready to set sail, at 10am. We had tea/coffee and biscuits while Captain Ismail took us out towards the Devil’s Bay area. Our first swim stop was lovely and the water felt amazing in our deserted little bay.
Our lunch had some of the best tasting mezes I’ve had this year and they took in to account all our allergies and requirements. The meat was top quality and the hygiene second to none. We had an absolute feast of a BBQ lunch and we were all stuffed. We set sail just as the sea got choppy and I had to take a sea sickness pill (just as a precaution). Captain Ismail was very adept at getting us through the fairly choppy sea and he sailed further out and then across to save us getting too disturbed as we lounged and sipped on iced tea or rosé wine.
It was getting quite hot and a tad humid as we got to the next swim stop which had crystal clear deep water. We were the only ones there, at 5pm, because most boats were on their way back from the day trips and the moonlight ones were not out yet. I felt so lucky that we could do this on such a lovely boat, great setting and one of the best crews in Dalyan.
By 6pm we were making our way to Little Dalyan, behind the beach, where we would stay for our last swim stop, dinner, sunset then stargazing. Neil and Gayle had a walk across the beach to the sea, the girls went paddle boarding and then we tried our luck at crab fishing. I’ve never been a fan and have thought it cruel however I did catch 3! Neil, being the fisherman of the family, caught the most.
As we watched the sun go down, we ate a delightful chicken casserole with rice, salad, bread and the BBQ crab. It was my first time eating crab and I was a bit concerned in case I was allergic to it. Ismail showed us how to get the meat from the shell and he opened mine for me. It was so fresh and tasty with no allergic reaction. There was lots more rosé wine had and we all loved the trip.
We got back to Dalyan after 10pm and, as we sailed in, the air felt very different than it had out at the beach. It seemed to be several degrees hotter and very suffocating, we all noticed it and started to sweat straight away. The humidity levels had increased and, despite there being no sun, the temperature seemed to be extreme for an evening. We paid our bills, said our thanks and goodbyes to Ivona, Ismail and Ege – we knew this wouldn’t be the last trip with them this year!
I had another lovely day with Gayle, Neil, Morgan and April on Thursday 20th July. While they were all getting ready, I had been to the bank to draw out more money. It had only been 3 months since I was living off 1400 lira (£41.86) for the week but now 3000 lira (£89.69) wasn’t lasting more than a few days with going out and about more. I bought more credit and data for my Turkish phone which was now 160 lira (£4.78) per month, compared to 110 lira (£3.29) last time.
Today’s itinerary was a little bit laid back as I met up with the family for a late breakfast/brunch. They’d been wanting to try Ela’s Kitchen as they fancied checking out all the hype about the place. I think I’d mentioned that both the menemen and Sev’s sausage had been recommended so they were keen to see. As there were 5 of us, I’d had the common sense to send a cheeky message to book us in and I’m glad we did. About 5 minutes after we got sat down the place was full. Nicola greeted us all with a smile and took our orders for water and hot drinks while we checked out the menu. This is what we ordered (mine without egg or tomato, my niece without tomato) with prices in lira:
2 large waters 70 1 Yorkshire tea 60 2 iced caramel coffees 160 3 Coffees 210 1 omelette 230 1 Menemen 230 1 Sausage Baguette 255 1 mini full English breakfast 255 1 large full English 375
Total spent 1845 lira (£55.16). All the food was delicious and the portions extremely generous, even for a Fat Club Chubster like me! Of course, pork is an expensive product in Turkey so it’s not surprising that the breakfasts containing English bacon and sausages were the most expensive. Recently, businesses had been struggling to get the pork products and the prices of it were constantly increasing. Our maveraged at £11 per person with the drinks so not bad for what we had. We all really enjoyed our food and we were stuffed, looking forward to a leisurely afternoon.
Our next destination was Iztuzu beach, where we got the cooperative boat to for 100 lira (£2.99) return. We had a nice chilled out few hours in the red hot sun, we used all the spare clothes we had to put on the rattan parasols to stop the sun coming through. We all went in the sea and I even had a Magnum, I don’t normally have an ice cream as they don’t really agree with me.
Later, we got the boat back and went back to our respective apartments to get ready for dinner. I’d arranged for the 5 of us to eat at Hotel Dalyance where they had Turkish Day on. This meant we could choose a main Turkish meat dish from a select menu and a cocktail, beer or glass of wine for just 499 lira (£14.92). This seemed like a good offer as well as a way to introduce the family to a bit of Turkish cuisine. April was the only one to not order from the Turkish menu, even though she had chosen steak most nights out so far. She ordered chicken fajitas, Neil went for the Adana kebab, while the rest of us all ordered Ottoman kebab. I had red wine, the others ordered cocktails then Neil ordered a bottle of rosé to go with dinner. The food was nicely presented and definitely a little different to what we had been having. I really enjoyed my dinner but I think Neil and Gayle are used to a more generous serving. A few of us had the cheesecake dessert which is really nice at Hotel Dalyance and Neil had ordered a second bottle of wine. It was a good night but Gayle had got the taste for it and fancied going on for another drink somewhere. We ended up seeing Jamie and his 2 friends (Nick and Mark) in Aşkın bar so we joined them for one. It turned in to two(!) and we had a right laugh before finally going home about 1am. I’d had a great time but I was a bit concerned we may end up with a casualty for tomorrow’s itinerary plans if we stayed out much longer.
joloyolo 