When I woke up on Tuesday 26th October I knew it was going to be a good day, my shoulder was much better and the cyst was only producing a very small amount of clear liquid. The building site next door was at the concrete floor pouring stage today which was interesting to watch. I had my breakfast outside in the sun on the balcony and read in the news that the Vietnamese daily Corona cases were down to 3,600 per day and 65 deaths – much better than before.
My stomach was still not great but I was able to function and went to meet Ann, Ali and Sharon (all Jamie’s friends) at Lukka bar. I just had a drink but they all ordered lunch which looked great. In the afternoon Debbie (Darling) came to meet me and we went to the Dalyan clinic to ask if we could have a Corona vaccination. The doctor told me that they only vaccinate in groups of 5 or 6 so I should come back tomorrow for the Pfizer vaccine at 9.30am but unfortunately she told Debbie (Darling) that she didn’t need a third one because here they are only vaccinating up to 2 jabs and no boosters yet so I was lucky to get booked in. This was all great news and it fitted with my plans for me to be classed as vaccinated in Vietnam, Turkey and the UK so all would be fine for my visit (and return) to England in December with 3 days spare after the 14 days since my 2nd Pfizer vaccine! I walked back along the river to Lukka bar for a wine, a last drink with Jamie’s mates as Ali and Sharon were heading home tomorrow, it was a nice civilised afternoon with a lovely evening out planned.
I had booked a table for 6 of us at Egehan Boutique hotel for dinner with Maddie, Angela and Nick and as an added bonus Onur was playing live music there. I’d not been before, I had heard good things about the food and it was one of Maddie’s favourite restaurants in Dalyan. The place itself is very lovely with an intimate fine dining kind of vibe going on and excellent toilets. The tables were by the pool and the menu was quite fancy but not particularly expensive, we all decided to have wine and most of us had starters. We got a cute little amuse bouche to get us going with some fancy bread crackers, I had prawns to start, Dad and Nick had chicken soup and Mom had what looked like an amazing octopus dish. Most of us went for the steak for mains except for Dad who fancied a spot of salmon. The wine and chat flowed easily, the music from Onur was delightful and really made the night special with some expertly chosen numbers which Onur knew were Dad’s favourites. Maddie amazed us with her rendition of Valerie as she’s got a lovely singing voice. As the night cooled down and Dad tried the crème brûlée for dessert I got one of the blankets with toddles on, which I absolutely loved as they were so cosy. My stomach wasn’t too good still so I had to limit the amount of wine I had to just a couple of glasses but I really enjoyed the evening and I definitely would like to eat there again. We walked home with a stray dog following us, as is often the case on the streets of Dalyan. He was such a cutie and when he picked up a discarded disposable mask off the street I told him to drop it and he did – he was probably a pet that had been dumped.
After 34 days of eating all the things I thought I could be allergic to, without much reaction, I thought I was safe to go on a full day trip on Sunday 24th October – I would be very wrong! When I woke up I saw some news from Vietnam and was glad to hear from Captain Caveman that everyone in Phong Nha was safe, unfortunately people in Tam Ky hadn’t been so lucky – here’s the article: https://tuoitrenews.vn/news/society/20211024/vietnamese-province-evacuates-2500-residents-due-to-floods-landslides/63742.html. In Dalyan we were very lucky as the weather was dry and it was meant to be hot later in the day but at 8am it was pretty chilly, as I got ready for my pick up for the Mediterranean Highlights trip with Volkan Adventures. Our friend, Murat, picked me up and there was already a couple in the minibus. The next stop was to pick up ma & pa who were also very excited for this trip as it included a visit to Patara, where none of us had been before, and was also the last one of this particular trip for the year. We continued to pick up the rest of the customers which included a family of 7, a single lady and our friend, John. Then we were off for our short drive to the first stop which was for a hearty Turkish breakfast in a nice little spot. When we arrived Murat explained that we were early and the staff were getting our breakfast ready so we had a bit of time to take some photos. The sun wasn’t out yet and so we were all a bit cold, this was the coldest I’d been for a while and I had to put dad’s jumper on over my hoody, while John got out his travel towel and a buff. We sat at the breakfast table and we all got a hot drink just to warm our hands up and then the food started to come, there was a lot of it. I had a precautionary Gastropulgite sachet in case anything gave me a bad reaction then I tried a spinach filo pastry, a small amount of cheese, honey, jams, bread, chips and a savoury doughnut type of thing and it was all very lovely. Unfortunately my stomach decided this was the time to not accept such a feast of a breakfast and I was feeling a bit out of sorts after 2 toilet visits before we left for our next stop.
Unfortunately, the main highlight of the Mediterranean Highlights trip was closed. Murat explained that we were no longer able to visit Patara ancient town or beach and so our next stop was going to be Kalkan. I’d not been before and it had been some years since ma & pa had visited the town so we were a little disappointed but still fine as we know Murat and Volkan’s tours are usually really good. We hadn’t been travelling long when Murat stopped the minibus and went to a small shop to get waters and a sweet treat for everyone. I followed him for an impromptu toilet visit in the staff squat toilet which I was very grateful for, my bad leg wasn’t such a fan though. I felt a bit better and took one of mom’s imodium instant tablets, even though I’d already had one of my normal ones. A bit further along the journey we had a quick stop at the roadside to admire a view, by which time my mom said I looked grey and I felt terrible. I got off as I thought I might be sick and wasn’t sure whether I should ask to stay there and get a taxi to come to take me home while the others continued on. Murat reassured me that it wouldn’t be a problem to continue on and they would stop at any (or every) services they could for if I needed the toilet. The next couple of stops had very good western style facilities which I took full advantage of, all had toilet paper and soap, one even had toilet seat liners, but I wasn’t feeling any better. As everyone had a complimentary choc-ice I had to head back in to the toilets and this time I was vomitting. On the bus I put my mask on, had my hoody on and tried to sleep for a bit, but I felt cold even though the temperature was warm.
When we got to Kalkan it was a picture postcard type of town with very steep winding streets and a harbour, the beach was pebbled and it was nice and sunny as we headed to a restaurant called Gusto for our (included) lunch. Obviously, I could barely look at the menu so I had just a soda water and no lunch while my parents ordered a beer each and chicken wraps for their’s. Next to me were the grandparents of the family, who both had a mussel casserole (that didn’t help my sickly feeling one bit) and the mother of the family sat opposite me, had calamari. Others ate halloumi salad, pasta, noodles and generally everything I thought best to avoid. Although lunch was included the drinks were not and so when my mom went to pay for the beers and soda I was astonished that the beer was 45 lira (£3.44) and the soda 20 lira!!! This was almost twice the price of Dalyan and so rather than go somewhere else for drinks we decided to walk to the beach. Because both me and mom have bad legs we found it hard to walk on the pebbles so we decided not to go in the sea, Dad was going to but then he changed his mind and left the beach. I’d popped my shorts on and so had to hurry to catch up, then we walked back to where we started and bumped in to John. We had a little saunter along the harbour front, John got an ice-cream, I felt ill still but now there wasn’t really any going back and I didn’t want to ruin the day for my parents so we decided to carry on. I had more toilet visits and imodium, thinking I’d not be able to go for a week after this but they just weren’t working. One of the ladies on the trip said it could be the Norovirus which had been going round and I thought she might be right at first, or food poisoning but everyone ate the same and they were all fine.
I managed to get to Kaş where Murat lead us on some steep streets and we had a little tour of the lovely town. He also pointed out a meeting spot for later and gave us free time to do what we liked. I thought I’d try to check out some ideas for a girls weekend away as everyone was up for a visit to Kaş but I didn’t get very far as I found it harder on my leg than I thought I would. I found it difficult to concentrate on finding a place to go for a drink because I was trying to will myself to feel better too. My Dad’s eyesight was ok but he wasn’t forthcoming with suggestions and my Mom just said it’s up to us – all I wanted was to lay down and sleep! A lot of the places on the front were very pricey so we decided to go down the back streets but lots of places weren’t serving alcohol. Eventually I spotted a gorgeous little place called Frida’s and we plonked ourselves down. My parents had a couple of beers at a more reasonable price of 32 lira each and I avoided alcohol again. From there we had a short walk to the meeting point and then we walked to the bus as a group, we drove about 10 minutes to where everyone (but me) would eat our evening meal.
When we arrived it was clear that there would have been time better spent if we had got there an hour or so earlier as the sun was just setting and it was a lovely alcove beach with a nice spot for swimming. Some of the family on the trip still went in the sea but it was too dark to see where we were going for me and Dad. I had started to feel like I could probably eat but I had a word with Murat to ask if it would be possible to get my dinner (also included in the trip) to takeaway, which of course was fine. It was like torture for me when I had to dish out food to the others on the table and I really wanted to eat the garlic prawns but of course it wasn’t worth the risk – I had a 3 hour drive back to survive yet. As the evening was drawing to a close Volkan and his dance partner did us a few dances and they were pretty impressive. I drank only soda water (a bargain 5 lira) and willed myself to be able to make the minibus ride home without incident. At this last place, which was 10 minutes outside of Kaş, the drinks were normal prices and the food looked delicious, by this time I was looking forward to eating some of my doggy bag when I got home. The drive home was uneventful and we arrived back in Dalyan just before midnight – I was so ready for bed but I ate 2 small cubes of chicken shish, a slice of bread and some salad before bed. The cost of the day trip was £75 but it was a shame I had been too poorly to really enjoy it and I was disappointed that we didn’t get to see Patara. We even joked that instead of a Mediterranean Highlights blog, I would be writing a bog blog about this day! I looked forward to next season when we could enjoy some more of Volkan Adventures trips and be in better health.
Wednesday 20th October was a wonderful day, spent with my parents and some friends. The first exciting thing that happened that morning was that I got a message from our friend, the filmmaker, who came to Vietnam to make a documentary about Phong Nha. He gave me some tentative dates for the film festivals where his film would hopefully be screened in 2022 and I made a note of them – how amazing it would be to go to see something like this! It might also be a chance for me to meet up with Captain Caveman and watch him, his colleagues and our friends in what I was sure would be a work of art. I didnt bother with any breakfast as I was faffing about with the left over hotpot mixture and more layering of potatoes, this time with butter on, so I could pop it on while we were out. The suitcase lady had asked to meet me to have a look at it so I took it round to Lukka bar and ordered myself a tea. The nice lady turned up on a bicycle, with a dog and was unsure if she wanted to buy the case, even though she needed one to go back to England with, in the end I managed to sell it to her but it was quite funny watching her try to figure out how to get it back to her hotel, with a bicycle and a dog, but I couldn’t help as I was cutting it fine for my next adventure. I’d arranged for us to go on an afternoon boat trip with Captain Boris (aka Basrı) and his wife, Rebecca. Sarah had also taken the afternoon off work, at the last minute, so that she could come too and my parents came round to mine dead on time as they were looking forward to our boat trip. We arrived at the boat early, Sarah was already there and we were joined by a really nice bunch of people, who were friends of the boat owners and Sarah. The order of the day was to eat, drink and relax and the Captain Boris trips sure know how to treat their customers well. I wasn’t even too upset that I wouldn’t be able to swim because of not being able to get my cyst wet (apart from showering, obviously). We went to Çandır lake first and the sun was out as we nibbled on snacks and sipped an alcoholic beverage.
Quite a few people got in the water for a swim, including ma & pa who were larking about like a couple of teenagers. Next, Basrı took the boat to the sheltered side of the beach where Andrea got a few of us dancing on the sand at the waters edge.
I had started on white wine with my parents and later went on to red as Rebecca filled the table with the most amazing spread I’d seen on a boat – I was in cheese heaven! There was so many different cheeses, fruit, including fresh figs and dates, crackers and bread and I my stomach handled it all absolutely fine. Quite a few boats had got themselves stuck on a sandbank and Basrı had to help out, we even rescued a damsel in distress who had been left stranded on the beach. On the way back we had such a laugh, Andrea even taught me the meringue and it was such a lovely afternoon with plenty of wine.
When we got dropped off we should have gone home and stayed in however it was Open Mic night with Onur at Heybe’s which we had missed last week so we decided to meet back there after getting our warm clothing on. As it turned out one of the couples from the boat trip was having a drink at Heybe’s so I joined them while waiting for ma & pa to join us. After another couple of glasses of wine, on top of the 6 I’d already had with Captain Boris, I wasn’t shy at getting up for a singsong with Onur. This reminded the couple that they were meant to be somewhere else and they left. Debbie (Darling) did a quick cameo appearance singing ‘I’m leaving on a jet plane’, Sarah joined us and even she got up to sing with Debbie (Darling) or me. In the end Dad and I nailed House of the Rising Sun together, it was just a pity that all of the other customers had left! Onur even sat and did an acoustic version of Losing my Religion at our table and we ended up leaving Sarah there. We’d had so much fun and when I got in, my hotpot was still warm in the slow cooker so I had some before bed.
It was a mix of a day on Thursday 7th October; news that Vietnam planned to open again in June 2022 were posted on the internet, the number of Corona cases in Vietnam had dropped considerably, the weather forecast for next week was looking cold and wet here in Turkey, and a few fully vaccinated friends in the UK were positive for the Corona virus. Before breakfast I went over to my parents’ place where I had arranged for my cleaner at Fire Opal to give their place a once over before their arrival next week. I did a small shopping trip too then Sonuç messaged to say he needed a copy of some paper work for my residency, again.
Here’s my shopping list and costs in lira:
Şok supermarket
1 plastic bag 0.25 2 lemons 0.77 Bread 2.00 3 carrots 3.28 1 packet of Turkey ham 3.50 1 packet of plain crisps 4.50 2 packet of biscuits 5.00 1 bottle of pomegranate sauce 5.50 Honey 5.90 Rock salt 12.45
Total 43.15 lira (£3.82).
I had arranged to meet Annie and Anne at Alegria for lunch, the owner of Yummy’s had taken over the old Safran restaurant and made Alegria her new eatery, right on the river, opposite the tombs. The place is lovely and they have a very large menu to choose from, which I’d not been used to having so much choice and it took me ages to decide. Eventually Annie and I ordered the steak salad, Ann had the crispy chicken and the food was absolutely lovely. I even had a pineapple and watermelon juice as I was conscious of not having eaten enough fruit of late and, although it’s not the cheapest place in town, it really is good value and the portions are large (I took home leftovers) and the location is gorgeous. In the afternoon I met Sonuç at the insurance company to ask about renewing my health insurance policy because I needed a 2 year policy for my residency application. That night I decided to have a night in and, because I’d had a big lunch, I just had leftover steak salad and nibbles for dinner while watching a bit of Netflix. I’d had a productive and enjoyable day and I was ready for a relaxing weekend.
On Monday 4th October I woke up early and Captain Caveman had sent me a photo of Eric, the bee, who had stayed over at Elements last night. I didn’t bother with any breakfast because I’d arranged to meet Melissa and her family at 11.30am for an early lunch at River Terrace. It’s a lovely location right by the river and is a family oriented place with a small playground. It was nice to see the owners, Sara and Ali, who (like many business owners in Dalyan) had experienced a very hard year or 2 because of the pandemic and lack of tourism. They were still so happy and welcoming and the restaurant has had a toilet refurb since I last went there which has definitely made a massive difference. I decided to have a cider with ice, the sun was shining and I waited for the Wiringi family to arrive. Melissa had a big surprise; she was pregnant, they are expecting their 4th child in February. They all looked well and while mom and dad ordered food the 2 older kids, Noah and Aaliyah, had smoothies. Elijah, the youngest ordered a chicken wrap and wouldn’t eat it because it had peppers in. Rimaha and I ordered chicken wraps too and they were really tasty, Melissa had the nachos and then, the highlight of the day, we ordered 6 brownies. Sara is an excellent baker and her warm brownies with ice-cream went down a treat with everyone as they were so delicious.
As the family were only staying in Dalyan for 1 night it was difficult to fit anything in for them to do, they didn’t have the time for the boat trip to the beach or lake so were happy to have a simple stroll along the river where we looked out for turtles. The plan for the Wiringi family was to go to Akyaka tomorrow, then they were off to Ephesus, Pammukale and Cappadocia, they couldn’t fit all their luggage and 3 kids in the car so they had to go back to Kaş next week to pick up a suitcase then they were leaving Turkey – their 90 day stay was almost at an end already. It was unfortunate that they didn’t have longer to explore Dalyan but it was already time to say our goodbyes, they were going to stay in tonight as they had plans to leave early the next morning.
After running a couple of errands I went to Jiks, I was thirsty and desperately needed the toilet so I got a fanta and then could smell food. My favourite chef in Dalyan, the lady at Jiks, was cooking so I was very tempted to have dinner. I ordered the shrimp skewer and a white wine and soda, the food was so delicious and for just 65 lira (£5.50) for 3 skewers with chips and salad it was a new favourite. My total bill was 105 lira, which is less than an English ten pounds and I was really full, I’d definitely be coming here again. I had completely forgot that I had leftover Sunday dinner in the fridge, it would wait until tomorrow. When I got home I noticed my internet wasn’t working but it turned out that Facebook, Messenger, WhatsApp and Instagram were all down for the next 6 hours and it was worldwide!
I had an amazing day on Sunday 26th September; on the first night I had arrived I’d been invited to join friends on a day out. The boat trip was with Captain Boris Boats and they are really good, my last trip with them was a boxing day one which I thoroughly enjoyed and their food is always outstanding. The owners are such a good laugh as well as being extremely accommodating. Sarah came to call for me on her new tricycle with 2 giddy dogs and I checked if she realised we were going on a boat. She was going to leave her bike by the river and the dogs would make their way home, apparently. There was quite a party of us, the organiser wasn’t feeling too well but was determined to soldier on, another lady doesn’t like boats and was a bit unsure about going but was there, most of the rest were people I’d already met up with in the few days I’d been in Dalyan. Jamie was hungover as he’d been up drinking until 6.30am but he was still the first to get an alcoholic drink. There was an issue with the white wine so I had a rosé with Jax and Captain Boris made arrangements for a prompt restock of the white for our lunch. Once we stopped at Köyceğiz lake Nick and Annie bravely had a dip in the cold water, but I didn’t go for a swim – it felt a bit too chilly compared to the Vietnamese temperatures, even though it was a hot, sunny day. After the lake Captain Boris was having a quick wine pick up in Dalyan and then on to the area at the back of the beach for our lunch and an optional dip. More white wine was delivered but we lost one of the party as the lady who didn’t have her sea legs on got off, the rest of us stayed on and went to the beach. I enjoyed a white with soda water while I caught a bit of sun on the comfy seats at the front of the boat and admired the gorgeous scenery along the river. The buffet lunch was fantastic, there was lots of different dishes including chicken, köfte, prawns, salads and mezzes that were so delicious that I had to have more than one helping! More booze flowed for most of us, I’d moved on to the red wine, followed by some music from Onur, who had brought his guitar and is a great singer. In memory of Graeme, Jamie’s husband, we all were treated to a cocktail called Mr G and it went down well on the front of the boat with the sun shining. The day had gone so fast and had been such a relaxing trip, my first on a Dalyan boat in 1 year and 9 months. When we got back a few of us decided to have a nice cocktail in the Rum Bar, where I bumped into my next door neighbours, who’d just arrived in Dalyan. That night I didn’t need any dinner that evening, I started watching Series 3 of The Fall on Netflix but I was having trouble staying awake.
joloyolo 