I’d planned on going to the weekly Dalyan market on Saturday 29th June, however, I had work to do and it was too hot by the time that I’d finished. For lunch I joined my parents at the Kefal tea garden where I had a lovely chicken sandwich and some lemon soda. After lunch I went over to Captain Caveman’s apartment complex to better inspect the garden so that I could let the pool and maintenance company know that I wasn’t happy with the lack of work being done. Back at Jamie’s villa, Norman and Edna had been in the pool with the boys and were trying to keep cool. I had a shower and then got ready for a dinner at ‘home’. I’d been invited to dine al fresco with Jamie, Drew, Nick & Mark and we had a delicious chicken pesto pasta dish with garlic bread. I’d drank too much yesterday so I kept it to just one glass of wine with dinner and then retired for an early night. I still wasn’t caught up on sleep from missing a night of it when I came from Vietnam.
I worked all morning and until 2pm on Sunday 30th June before heading off to meet Kate at the bus station. Kate had suggested we go to Günlüklu restaurant for lunch, where she’d been told there was some music on. It sounded good and it was too hot to walk so we got the bus. Kate and I had totally got the wrong end of the stick where the music was concerned as it wasn’t even in the restaurant part. There was a small copse in the nearby woods where a stage area had been made, ready for a bit of an afternoon shindig but we had already ordered shandies and food. Kate and I shared haydari, fava bean dip and bread with our beers and it was rather delicious. After eating, we walked to the area where we had seen a few familiar faces taking cooler boxes and fold-up chairs to see what we were missing. On first look we both agreed the gathering wasn’t for us today, it was already getting late and no musicians had started playing yet. Kate was wearing an all in one outfit which would not be conducive to peeing behind a tree, if needed either. We said hello to a few friends, walked to the underwhelming water wheel then left. I had to get back to feed Norman and Edna as the boys were on a day trip and wouldn’t be back until later. In the evening I finally got round to booking my appointment and paying £219.50 for a UK passport express renewal service. I had an appointment at the Passport office in London in 8 days! It was expensive but I wanted a guarantee it would be completed and in my hand the same day.
On Friday 28th June my parents and I had quite an adventure. Ma & Pa had booked the 3 of us on a Captain Boris boat trip for the day and I was so looking forward to it. I woke up at 6am feeling happy to have the temperature cooler than I was used to in Vietnam. By 8am it was still under 30°C outside but it was definitely getting hotter as I left for our day on the boat. Captain Boris is one of the more luxurious boat trips with exceptional food, hosted by the lovely Rebecca & Basrı. The cost was £40 per person and included a massive lunch with lots of different dishes. Rebecca was a bit miffed that they had 2 lots of bookings today and she had to go on the second boat, leaving 16 of us in the safe hands of Basrı and Anıl. We headed out to sea and, although there were parts where the sandbanks were high, we got through. The sea was very rough and I was glad I’d taken a precautionary sea sickness tablet, as did one other passenger. After we got to a nice calm bay we had a swim stop and there were crisps and dips to help ourselves to. A BBQ and full buffet (including prawns) was served for lunch just after 1pm and it was absolutely amazing. The prawns and the chicken casserole were definitely my 2 favourite dishes. Ma & Pa stuck to beers but I had rose wine and we were all having a great time with a fantastic bunch of random people. Just before 3pm, there was a bit of a disaster when something happened to the engine and the Captain instantly called May Day on the walkie talkie. I looked over the side and there seemed to be a fire or something causing a lot of smoke – it didn’t look good and we were out at sea in very choppy waves.
The food was fantastic
Short video of the boat
Captain Boris had to arrange for us to be rescued from our boat trip after we tried to get a tow but the waves were strong and Basrı needed to get out weight off this boat. Already he had neighbouring boats helping, including Princess of Ekincik who we were on last night and a cooperative, smaller boat. It became essential that we were going to have to climb over from our boat to the rescue one while bobbing about. I started to feel a bit worried for my parents; my mom has a dodgy leg and my Dad’s eyesight isn’t great. To be honest, I wasn’t sure my balancing skills stretched to straggling 2 boats of different heights while at sea. It was a bit of a to-do but we all made it – with all our bags! Boris and Anıl kept calm and efficient during the mini crisis and they got us all on to the cooperative boat safely. We got took off to the beach to wait for Captain Boris to get sorted out but unfortunately, we had forgotten to bring our shoes. Ma braved a walk to the toilet on the beach but the floor was red hot so I didn’t attempt it. By 5pm we had been rescued and were back on Boris’s Boat, the way we had got on but in less choppy waters. We saw yellow boat and also another Captain, Simon, who came by paddle board to say hello. We got towed to Magic Lake and Basrı insisted on a free bar to apologise and, of course, Dad and I made good use of this to help encourage other guests (a couple were first timers). We were meant to be back by 5pm but it was more like 6.45pm when we got off the boat. My Dad was on a mission to carry on the night but my Mom was insisting he’d had enough so we all went home.
Of course, Dalyan wouldn’t be Dalyan without a bit of drama and it turned out neither my parents nor I would stay in that evening. When I arrived back at Jamie’s, the 4 fellas (Jamie, Drew, Nick & Mark) were waiting for me to join them for a drink at Lukka bar. It was their Friday music bingo night and the boys were booked in for food. My parents had a shower and Dad decided they were going to meet up with other Dalyan Dwellers in Tapa and Tez bars. After a shower and change for me, I joined the guys for Lukka music bingo and it was brilliant. I had some cheesy chips and some wine, to see me through, I had a good boogie and a sing to the first half of the bingo. At the interval, Jamie had decided we were moving on to Sofra bar to enjoy the rest of the night but Mark and I decided to stay a bit longer to hear Joseph sing Sweet Dreams and have a sing-along to the start of the second half. At Sofra bar the rest of the gang had met up with some of the regular characters and were having a good time. I nursed a pint of beer for the rest of the evening as I’d overdone it but I managed to have a go on the karaoke and probably did a bad Adele or something. I bumped in to Jack, Stan and Nigel and I enjoyed watching Jack perform one of my old favourites, Psycho Killer. It was gone 1am when we finally went home and it was a good job I was working flexible hours for tomorrow.
On the morning of Thursday 27th June, I didn’t get out of bed until 8am Turkish time, but that was midday in Vietnamese time. By 10am I had set myself up for a working day at Books & Cookies, not far from where Captain Caveman’s apartment is located. It had AC, was very quiet for using it as an office, and had good Turkish tea. I treated myself to a savoury pastry for breakfast and got on with my tasks. By 1pm, I was peckish so I had a linden tea with some delicious homemade cookies. The owner was really lovely and we had a little chat. My bill came to 360 lira (£8.67) which I thought was reasonable.
By 3pm it was hot outside as I ventured to the bank. I needed to ensure I was depositing at least 26,000 lira (£627 at today’s rate of 41.5 lira to the pound), in order to keep my Turkish residency. On my way back ‘home’ to Jamie’s, I called in to see my parents who were on their balcony, and we had an Efes shandy. In the evening, I had booked the 3 of us on a moonlight boat trip with Princess of Ekincik. It was £30 each and included a BBQ dinner with a few swim stops in the lake and the sea. On our way to the boat my parents and I called in to check out the complex at Captain Caveman’s place to check the pool and grounds. The pool looked fine but there was no sign of any gardening company having removed old leaves or swept the floors in a while. The floor had not been sloshed down with water recently either so, I was disappointed with our pool and garden company.
On the boat we said hello to the other customers and got comfy as we sailed to Köyceğiz lake. A small Efes beer was 100 lira (£2.41) and a glass of wine was 150 lira (£3.61) which was more than what it was 4 months ago but prices and taxes had gone up a lot. To start, Ma & Pa had beers while I had a rosé wine to try it out and we had our first swim stop at just after 7pm. Our BBQ food was as amazing as I remember it being and Ismail cooked us a feast. A bottle of white wine was purchased to have with our dinner and, as I was a bit jetlagged, I felt quite tiddly. The boat trip was amazing and we all really enjoyed it, it was past 11pm when we got back.
My flight from Bangkok to Istanbul on Wednesday 26th June arrived 40 minutes early. I’d purposely not booked an earlier flight in case of delays, so now I had even longer to wait until my flight to Dalaman. Before 5am it was a very chilly 17°C and I was feeling the cold in the airport, even with jeggings and a fleece on. I retrieved my luggage and had a faff about with the trolleys which you have to pay for. My flight wasn’t until 12.15pm and I was feeling a bit jetlagged. I logged in to the free WiFi, which was easy to get at a kiosk using my passport, and let people know I was on track. I’d booked Sonuç to pick me up from the airport and he messaged to check all was as planned. At the terminal in Istanbul airport, I checked if I could drop off my bags earlier and to my delight it could all be done on the self service machines. I weighed my 2 hold cases which had lost 1kg since Saigon and were now 17kg and 7kg. Due to my tiredness, I completely forgot to take my laptop out of one of them and then proceeded to worry my case would get lost. My next bit of good luck was when I decided to go to the lounge, which I had booked for 2 hours before my flight. It was before 8am so I explained I was early and they checked to see if there was space on the 09:55 flight. It was already full so they told me I could still enter the lounge until my flight and didn’t seem to care I would be there for 4 hours. There is no alcohol in the Turkish Airlines lounge but it was breakfast time and I was really hungry. I’d been given a spicy dish on the plane which I couldn’t eat and the breakfast meal was omelette which I didn’t eat either. I got myself cherry juice, Turkish tea, herbal tea, water, croissants, pastries, bagels, cheese and olives and tucked in while using the free WiFi. The call to board came at 11.40am and the bus was directly from the lounge and half empty. I had chosen an aisle seat and we even got given a chicken sandwich and a water on the 80 minute flight. I arrived on time in to Dalaman and didn’t have to wait too long for my luggage, where I was glad to see my laptop had made it. Sonuç was waiting for me and carried the luggage, had water for me in the car and we drove safely to Jamie and Drew’s new villa. I had planned to stay there for a week or so and it was really kind of him as he also had other guests visiting. I was so hungover that I don’t remember much about that afternoon apart from seeing Norman and Edna, Jamie’s dogs, who seemed to be pleased to see me. The villa was gorgeous and I had a lovely twin room with an ensuite which I couldn’t wait to go to sleep in. I’d made it just in time for Fat Club but, unfortunately, it was cancelled this week. I had no idea about my weight but I did take my measurements after a much needed shower; Bust no change, Waist +1cm, Hips -1cm. I had a glass of wine with Jamie, Drew and their house guests, Nick & Mark, before heading over to see my parents, who I hadn’t seen since January. The weather was nice and warm but definitely cooler than Phong Nha.
That evening, we had our first meal together at Duble, one of our favourites. We all had the chicken soup as it’s so good, then I had a chicken shish, Mom had fish and Dad had a chicken casserole. Ma & Pa had beers but I stuck to soda water and we had 2 lots of fresh bread. The whole bill came to 1,720 lira (£41.25) which worked out less than £14 for a starter and a main plus drink and a free shot each. I’d expected prices to be worse given the moaning I’d read on Facebook so I was pleasantly surprised. It wasn’t a late one as I had work to do tomorrow and I was desperate for sleep.
On Tuesday 7th May Captain Caveman and I decided we needed to get planning some stuff. After one of our usually tasty breakfasts and my Yorkshire tea we sat in a shady area with a breeze and got my diary out. We knew we were booked in at Greenfield Ecostay for another 2 nights but we were already thinking it wasn’t long enough. We had no plans of where we would stay next and I still had no flight out of Vietnam booked. It felt a bit disconcerting not knowing where I would be staying once I left Vietnam, and I couldn’t return to Captain Caveman’s apartment until 1st October. What I did know is that I was joining Captain Caveman on his trip in the UK for his cousin’s wedding in Penrith in July and that I needed a new passport. Our plans revolved around me getting the passport in London on the same day as I arrived. My passport doesn’t actually expire for another 4 years but a lot of South East Asian countries take up a lot of room with visas and stamps so it was very nearly full We decided to look at flights and get booking some things in. We also still didn’t know where Captain Caveman would be working next year so I needed to take as much of my stuff back to Turkey as possible. I booked my flight from Dalaman to London on the 8th July which was €44 (£37.50), hand luggage only, going with easyJet and landing at Gatwick airport at 3am. I would then take the train to Farringdon and walk to an Italian 24 hour cafe where I would meet Captain Caveman at an unspecified time. He would have arrived from Vietnam the day before and would have stayed at his parents’ house in London. We could then get my new passport and stay in London for a few days before going North. Looking at Captain Caveman’s schedule, it made sense for us to have a short break together in Vietnam at the end of June when he had time off. We decided on Danang where I could then start my journey back to Dalyan from. Captain Caveman’s Son Doong tour finished on the 21st of June and there was a train late that night which would get to Danang early in the morning the next day. This meant we could have the weekend in Danang before Captain Caveman had to be back in Phong Nha the following Tuesday and I would go to Turkey. It was decided and Captain Caveman booked my flight from Danang on the 25th, stopping briefly in Saigon, Bangkok and Istanbul before I reached Dalyan. I felt happier knowing it was booked and we knew some plans, I was still concerned that I didn’t have a clue where I would be after Captain Caveman came back to Vietnam at the end of July and for all of August. I’d banked on being able to to do house and petsitting in August and most of September in Dalyan but I couldn’t do that any more, due to the new rules there. I also needed to be in Dalyan around the 23rd August which was when I could apply for my Turkish Residency Renewal appointment. I was about to get in the pool when Chung and Hoan arrived, with fruit and snacks. Hoan brought a watermelon and Chung brought Banh Hoa which is like a doughnut mix in a crispy snack, shaped like a flower and rather moreish. Our friends had a soft drink and a look around the pool area, Chung picked a fruit from the tree near the pool and ate some. That evening, I got a lift with Captain Caveman to Phong Nha Vegan where I tried the Mushroom Congee. I was not expecting to like what they called mushroom porridge but it was amazing. Captain Caveman had taken himself off to the Indian restaurant, Ganesh, and he brought leftovers back too. Back at the homestay we went to bed early (again) and I fell asleep very quickly.
I had quite a few plans on Tuesday 5th March; a hair appointment, Leanne coming over to video the apartment and meeting Becky for a leaving drink. As I went to Emrah’s for my hair appointment it was getting a bit blustery outdoors. I was nearly late on account of going back for an umbrella and me carrying a bag full of jars for Drew to pop his kumquat jam in. My hair looked good, until I stepped outside in to the wind as a huge storm was likely on its way. I had tea and a banana for breakfast and made a Slimming World friendly lasagne for lunch. I didn’t go to Zumba as it started to rain and I had a leak in the bathroom to sort out. I’d just repainted the bedroom wall but then some water came in through the Air Con and ruined it. Leanne came over and we had a chat for quite a while, she took the video for the new tenants moving in so that she could see everything was in good working order. We were using King Emlak for our long term rental and Leanne was going to be overseeing that as well as some repairs prior to the tenants moving in. I arrived late at Mono and More where I was pleased to see Becky, Jamie, Barney (Jamie’s brother), Norman and Edna. I was also glad to find that the new coffee shop now sold alcohol and I ordered a nice glass of white wine. Edna was funny as the glass table top confused her when she could see my wine but couldn’t get to it. It was nice to sit out and it was actually quite warm. The Aussies, Greg had to meet a friend but Amanda joined us. Basrı also joined us and then after it got a bit cool we all said our goodbyes, apart from Amanda who was waiting for Greg with the keys and the money. It was at this point that we wanted to get in touch with Greg to find out where he was, when the whole Facebook and Social Media crashed. We walked to their villa but no one was there, Amanda managed to call Greg who was in the barbers. Amanda invited herself over to mine to wait for him there, on account of not having her keys. We waited a while at mine and then the rain came just as Greg was walking to my place. We chatted a bit then they decided they needed some food, I only had my Slimming World friendly meals in as I was leaving in a few days. Greg decided he fancied Hatay kebabs, Amanda did too but I said I really wanted to avoid temptation. Hatay kebabs are one of my favourites but I had Fat Club weigh-in tomorrow and I had been quite good all week – the last kebab I ate gave me a bad stomach. Greg got up and left the apartment just as the rain absolutely trounced it down. He arrived back at the bottom of the stairs with 2 kebabs, chips, cokes and a massive cramp from running in the storm. Amanda had to help him as he couldn’t get up the stairs and I got him a towel out as he looked like he’d had a shower while fully dressed. It was hard watching them eat their food, but I was determined to lose weight this week. The rain got worse as I listened to their travel plans for the next month, until they arrived in Vietnam in April. It was 11.15pm when they left having invited me to join them for a Turkish breakfast tomorrow morning. I explained I was eating healthily and had Fat Club tomorrow afternoon so didn’t want to eat a big breakfast beforehand. They said they would call round first thing in the morning to say final goodbyes and pick up the paint I had borrowed as they were leaving Dalyan for a few weeks. I ate some reheated leftover Slimming World friendly lasagne then went to bed. This week I had consumed 241 syns, of which 79 were alcohol so I was really hoping I’d done enough to get a loss this week. I wasn’t confident I’d have reached my next milestone of one and a half stone loss though.
I’d got up early on Wednesday 6th March to apply another coat of paint on the bedroom wall beneath the AC unit. The Aussies were planning on going for breakfast at Kefal tea gardens and said they would call round to pick up the paint they loaned me. I got on the scales at home and the result was good but I wanted to wait and see what Carol’s scales said this afternoon before I got too excited. My measurements were really good as I’d lost 2cm each off my bust, waist and hips this week and I was now quite a bit under the measurement targets I had set. After strawberries and 2 bananas for breakfast I did a bit of packing and tidying up, while waiting for the Aussies. Bonnie popped round at 10am and we had a little chat. The Aussies turned up while Bonnie was there having not had their breakfast yet. I gave them the paint and gave them hugs goodbye. They would land in Vietnam in 6 weeks and were heading to Phong Nha. I helped Bonnie downstairs with a charity bag and then popped to the bank and stationers to finish off my errands. I went to have my last catch up with Adele at the Kefal tea gardens where I had several Turkish teas and some peanuts before going straight to Fat Club. Unfortunately, it meant that I had forgotten to take some of the food I was clearing out before I left for Vietnam. This was the last Fat Club before my trip so I was so glad when I had lost 1.7kg (3.7lbs) on Carol’s scales this week. I was so happy that I’d now lost a total of 10.5kg (22.7lbs) which meant that I had finally got my 1.5 stone loss sticker! I was just under my original target weight but I’d adjusted it more recently so that I still had 0.7kg (1.5lb) to lose to hit target. From now on, the group would have to be known as the Not So Fat Club, especially as lots of others were all doing well and losing weight. I’d been so grateful to have managed to lose so much and Carol had been a massive help. To celebrate I went to Ozzy’s for a bit of wine with Jamie, Ghislaine and Christine. We bumped in to Kate, Pamela, Andrea and John and I had a few celebration last drinks. That evening I joined Jamie, Barney and Nanny Kay at Mahir’s again. This time I ate the batter off the fish and thoroughly enjoyed my treat night. After dinner we had one more in Ozzy’s and I gave Kate the dress I’d been wearing as she liked it. I said goodbye to Mark and Kate who were going home on their mobility scooter. Tomorrow was my last day in Dalyan and so I planned for an uneventful, but productive, day.
I didn’t sleep well and still had a bad stomach when I woke up on Sunday 3rd March. I put it down to the sausages I’d brought back from Rhodes and they had to go in the bin. I managed a cup of tea and a banana but had to cancel any plans to join Mark, Kate and the Aussies for Turkish breakfast at a museum. There was also the Sunday walk which Carol had organised to go from Ley Ley restaurant which I skipped too. I was hoping to be ok for later as I’d organised that tonight would be my leaving meal and drinks with an eclectic mix of just a few friends. During the day I managed to eat a fruit salad, some broccoli and potato soup, a small pasta Bolognese and lots of oresol, water and herbal teas. I spoke to Captain Caveman who was heading back in to the jungle on his Laos/Vietnam month long cave expedition that he was half way through. They had found some new cave which was good and it was nice to talk to him after a couple of weeks of him being in the Laotian jungle. This might be the last phone call until I saw him in Phong Nha in 12 days time. I arrived at Mahir’s kebab place at 7.30pm to find that Jamie and Drew were already there and a random bag and jazzy jacket were placed on the middle seat so I moved it along one space to my left and sat down next to Jamie. Jaxx sat opposite me when she arrived, as Bill was away, then Carol (from Fat Club) arrived with Ian and moved the bag to sit next to me and Jaxx. I’d now worked out the stuff on the seat was perhaps Adele’s. She sat next to Carol which left the 2 seats at the end for Amanda and Greg, who arrived last and instantly got on with Adele. Mark and Kate had declined the invite as they had already eaten out today and they didn’t fancy the leaving drinks. A few of us ordered the fish and chips at Mahir’s. I tried to be good and took most of my batter off, mainly because of my stomach more than the diet. Jaxx and I went thirds on a bottle of wine with Adele, then shared a bottle between the 2 of us. We had a lovely meal, I seemed to have made a full recovery and was feeling well enough to move on to the after party at Sofra bar. Adele, Carol and Ian went home as they had to be up early on Monday morning but the rest of us decided to move on for a bit of a drinking sesh. As it happened, Mark and Kate were still out and were the only ones waiting in Sofra for me. Of course, it turned in to one of those nights. Jamie and Drew had been sensible and gone home once it started looking messy. Greg took Mark and Kate home then returned to Jaxx and I where we put Jaxx in a taxi then Greg insisted that they drove me home. The night turned in to a very very late finish! Amanda and Greg were still at mine after 4am! Once upstairs I realised I’d left loads of coat hangers on the bed and then at 5.30am (9.30am in Vietnam) I had a drunken video call with Captain Caveman who had popped back to Phong Nha in between cave expeditions. We were both glad I had decided to have the leaving drinks in advance of my leaving date.
I was surprisingly chipper when Jamie picked me up at 10am on Monday 4th March, despite my 3 hours of sleep. We drove to Ortaca where we got to the shop and bought 2 grey sunbed cushions for 1200 lira (£29.93) then went straight back to Dalyan. The cleaner was hard at work so I dropped the cushions off then had a wander round Dalyan. By the time it got to 11.50pm I knew I needed a bacon sandwich but Ela’s Kitchen was closed. I went to Jiks where I bumped in to 3 other Dalyan Dwellers before finally going back home to start on my packing for Vietnam. I’d called at the bank a couple of times to sort things out and try to get holiday insurance but the computer was down and I had to go back. The lira was now at the highest it had been at 40.1 lira to the pound. For lunch I had left over pasta Bolognese then for dinner I had chicken stir-fry with bulgur wheat and chickpeas. I had heard from one of the Fat Club that there was a restock of Quark and on offer so I went to the shop to get them and some cheese to make Carol’s pasties. Here’s what I bought and prices in lira;
Migros Supermarket
Plastic bag 0.25 3 Quark 59.85 Cheddar 76.90 Total spent 164.95 lira (£4.11)
Later, I spoke on video call to my parents which was good and we spoke about my plans for Vietnam.
Before I left home on Friday 1st March I had 0.5 litre of water, and a banana. I was meeting fellow Sunday walker, Debbie, for an impromptu Friday walk, just on our own. I was early to meet at Migros so I bought and ate a croissant. It was 21.95 lira (55p), a bit too many syns but delicious. The walk was very nice and Debbie had kindly downloaded an old walk of Captain Caveman’s so we could just follow something and not get lost. We walked for about 3 hours and later Debbie confirmed it was about 15,000 steps and 10km. It was our farewell walk as she was off to the UK and I was off to Vietnam very soon. At home I had another 0.5 litre of water and a cup of Yorkshire tea. My lunch was potato and broccoli soup with a bit of cheese in it. I needed something to line my stomach late afternoon as I was off to a soirée. I had more of the leftover chicken stir-fry with egg rice, more water and a rose tea. I was only on 27 syns so far this week so I was ready to treat myself at the first 3G night but first, I managed to fit in a video call with Vanessa. She was recovering from surgery on her hand so it was good to catch up and see she was making great progress.
I arrived at Jamie’s with a bag full of bottles, instead of the requested gin. Even though it was 3G (Gin, Girls and Gays) night, I’d checked it was ok to bring drinks I already had in the house, to get them finished before I left in just over a week. I arrived a little late for the first Gin night feeling quite warm and with a loaded bag. I simultaneously said hello to people and dogs while emptying my rucksack of the tonic, bitter lemon, coke, pink grapefruit, vodka and rum. I was poured a vodka and coke which must have been extra strong as I could definitely taste the vodka. I had a lovely evening with our newly formed 3G attendees; Jamie, Drew, Nanny Kay and Ghislaine (and the dogs of course). For dinner we had a gammon joint with carrots, broccoli and dauphinoise potatoes which was amazing! Lots of drinks were had and I don’t remember putting the dogs to bed with the nice soft blanket. I don’t even recall the end of the night after Ghislaine called a taxi.
Saturday 2nd March was a struggle as I woke up not even knowing where I was. I’d slept over in Jamie’s spare room as Drew had thought it safer for me not to walk home drunk. It was only when I got up for a pee that I realised I couldn’t find the bathroom in the place I thought it was. The first Jamie knew I had stayed was when Drew told him to put clothes on if going out of the bedroom because I was still in the house. I left there about 10.30am and headed back to mine to sort myself out a bit before meeting Jan. I had arranged to meet her at Lukka bar to buy some sunbed cushions and I hoped I didn’t stink of booze. I got home and got ready, making sure I was on time. Jan was already there with a coffee and she kindly bought me an orange juice. Luckily, she seemed not to notice I may still have been drunk and we had a good chat. At noon I had to leave as I needed to get to the market. I bought the 2 cerise pink cushions for 700 lira (£17.63) and they were like new so I was pleased with them. As I walked to the weekly Dalyan market, I knew I’d not be making the Zumba party tonight at Ozzy’s bar as I was feeling quite delicate. At the market I couldn’t focus on buying what I needed so I just bought the following (prices in lira);
On the way home, I saw the stork for the first time this year. Back home I’d only just made it in time from a storm that was brewing. For dinner I still wasn’t feeling too good so I cooked some sausages to make a casserole. I ate one with a wrap and then had a really bad stomach straight away. Needless to say, I didn’t make it to the Zumba party that night, but Nanny Kay did – what a legend! I had an early night as I had a mega busy day tomorrow.
Wednesday 28th February was weigh-in and Fat Club day, we also had a taster session arranged at the group meeting today. I got weighed and took my measurements at home, to find I had stayed the same weight, my waist and hips measured the same as last week but my bust had increased by 1cm. I was convinced now that I just wasn’t going to lose that final bit of weight before I went to Vietnam. I had 2 bananas and a linden tea for breakfast, then a rehydration tablet in water. Jamie popped round with Norman and Edna and my remaining bags and I was astounded at Norman running up the stairs to my door – he was like a new dog. We had cups of tea/coffee, the dogs had some water and a sit on the sofa while we chatted and waited for Drew to come from the barbers. I ate broccoli and potato soup for lunch while attending the 3rd day of Lisa’s challenge. Today’s training was focusing more on content and it was a little easier to do the homework. My next task was to do some shopping, where I caused a bit of a furore at the check out counter. I bought a bottle of drink which was on offer but there was only one left and it didn’t have the right price on. The cashier had to get help while I bumped in to and chatted with Sioned, then a couple of women who were new to the area and then Nuri so the queues all got bunched up and it was quite the social gathering. Here’s what I ended up buying and the prices in lira;
At Fat Club we all placed our wares on the table and then eagerly got weighed, it was great to see the progress of everyone in the group. Unfortunately I was not as lucky on Carol’s scales as at home, I’d actually put on 0.6kg (1.3lb) and I was gutted! This meant I had to still lose 2.4kg (5.3lb) to hit target and I was not going to do that within a week. I troughed lots of delicious food at the taster session. There were cheese pasties, quiches, chestnuts, bhajis, fruit skewers and my offering of rainbow veggie bulgur wheat. This meant I didn’t need to eat my dinner that night until later than planned and I resisted any alcohol on treat day.
On Thursday 29th February I had overnight oats and a cup of tea, before getting on with laundry and some other chores. I had an apple before Zumba and then rushed back for a lunch of soup while joining Lisa Johnson on the final day of the Race Recurring Revenue challenge. This session was all about getting things launched and covered various aspects which made me realise that I needed to create a brand, think of a business name and even design a logo. I felt a bit nervous and out of my depth but I would mull it over this weekend and see what I could come up with. I got peckish in the afternoon so I had a chicken and onion wrap, then an orange. Dinner was more of the chicken stir-fry, served with steamed rice and chopped omelette in. No alcohol was consumed and I was doing well. I added up my spending for the week, and then the month to see how that £10 per day budget had fared. It had been really difficult to keep saying no to invites where it would cost more than my budget but I was determined to survive, especially as I’d not yet found more online work. This week I’d only spent a total of 1,253.72 lira (£31.93) thus proving that you can definitely live very cheaply in Dalyan, especially if you limit the booze. Overall, my self imposed February budget of £290, which did not include accommodation or bills, had been achieved. I was actually £47.47 under so I was very pleased with myself. I wondered what my friends and family had as a daily, weekly or monthly budget and how February had gone for them. I intended to give the ball a bit of a kick this weekend as a bit of a reward for my dedication, especially as this would be my last week in Dalyan before I flew to Vietnam for 3 months.
Monday 26th February was another busy day in my Dalyan world, the last day of looking after Norman and Edna who I was going to miss. They had been a great tonic for me while I did my best to stick to a tough budget and my healthier lifestyle. I was certainly feeling the benefits of being over a stone lighter too. In the morning I had my cup of Yorkshire tea in bed and the dogs came back to bobos for one last time. They snored away until almost 11am when I got up for a fruit salad while I started to make a list for my course preparation, which started at 1pm (Turkish time). I had pasta Bolognese for lunch and got myself ready to hear what Lisa Johnson had to teach me about Recurring Revenue. It was only for about an hour but it was really interesting and insightful. I took lots of notes and we even had some homework to do. I had some gold bear jellies while I pondered over my answers but managed to complete the first task of the challenge. At 4pm I joined another live session which focused on Mindset and seemed to be quite obvious at first. Renée, the speaker made a lot of sense and it really peaked my interest even further. After the dog walk, I took some stuff back to my place and called at the shops, here’s what I bought (prices in lira);
For dinner I had another Slimming World style pizza made from a wrap, a couple of glasses of wine to finish the bottle off and some chestnuts. There was a recap session from Lisa at 7.30pm which was useful for us to check we were on the right track and I was already feeling inspired. Meanwhile, Jamie and Drew were leaving Thailand to return back home. It was hard breaking the news to the dogs but I thought I’d better prepare them for being less spoiled.
Much to Norman and Edna’s disgust, we were all up early on Tuesday 27th February. I did the usual stuff of stripping the bed but didn’t put a wash on as it had been raining yesterday and I wasn’t sure if it was going to stay fine enough to dry it. After an almost 2 week holiday I also thought Jamie and Drew would need to wash their clothes and they were due back before 10am. Nanny Kay was picking them up so we had to assume she wouldn’t sleep in! After feeding the dogs their breakfast I decided to video them both as I let them know Little Daddy and Step Daddy Drew were on their way and would be home soon. Edna was a good listener and was in the armchair looking out, Norman didn’t give a toss. After my cuppa and overnight oats, I packed my belongings up, leaving some things I couldn’t carry, behind. I had a ginger tea and half a litre of water before saying bye to little Norman and Edna, perhaps for the last time. At home I unpacked and then went to Zumba, which was good. I rushed back to log on to the second day of the Race to Recurring Challenge with Lisa Johnson where we took our knowledge lists from yesterday and started to look at how we could share that knowledge with others. It was really interesting to me and I cracked on with the homework straight after, feeling motivated. At 4pm I joined another mindset session with Renée who was definitely good at helping build my confidence. For my lunch I treated myself to chicken nuggets and chips as I was rather peckish. At dinner time I cooked a healthy veggie stir-fry with bulgur wheat and had strawberries with kaymak for a pudding. At 7.30pm I was back on a live summary call with Lisa and things were starting to come together nicely. It was also good to be back home in my own bed, even if it was just for 9 more nights!
Video of Edna being told Jamie and Drew are on their way homeVideo of Norman’s response to being told the same news
Unfortunately, there was a full power outage, from 7am, in Dalyan on Saturday 24th February but Jamie had sent me a warning about it. This gave me a good excuse that I would have to have breakfast from the market today. I got up and sorted out Norman and Edna, then made a cup of Yorkshire tea with Jamie’s whistling kettle on the gas hob! It seemed a bit cold so I got on the sofa with the dogs and a blanket while I drank my tea and caught up with a few online chores. I went to the weekly market and here’s what I bought (prices in lira);
Mushrooms 15 Potatoes 18 Bananas 55 Strawberries 100 Apples and Chestnuts 125 1 cheese and mushroom gözleme 75 Total spent 388 lira (£9.95)
I’d got talking to Cath and Keith while I was picking bananas out and unfortunately instead of the 5 I wanted to buy going in to my bag, I got a whole bunch of them. The gözleme had increased in price a bit more too, but I didn’t think 75 lira (£1.92) for breakfast was unreasonable. The walk home was sweaty and my bag was heavy. I had cucumber water and rose tea, some strawberries and the gözleme when I got back to Jamie’s. For lunch I just had a red apple and a litre of cucumber water. I sunbathed outside for a bit and even had to pop on some suncream as it was warm. By 4pm we were all back indoors cooling down and I was going to have a shower before the dog walk. I got in the shower but the water was cold and it turned out that, because of the power outage earlier, the boiler was off. I messaged Jamie so he could get the plumber out. I could’ve gone over to our apartment for a shower but I didn’t bother. We did the dog walk, avoided the pub or any alcohol and I had a sweet and sour chicken with rice for dinner. On the sofa I caught up with The Apprentice on TV and even Edna couldn’t believe how stupid some of the candidates were.
There was a bit of activity on Sunday 25th February; I was joining the Sunday walk which Carol (from Fat Club) had organised, the plumber was coming to fix the boiler and I was joining an online launch party with Lisa Johnson later. I didn’t have a cup of tea this morning as I needed to get Norman and Edna sorted and fed before I left for the Sunday walk. Norman knew it was a Sunday and was stood at the bottom of the stairs trying to get me to take him back to bobos. I nearly didn’t go on the walk because the plumber was coming at 1pm and I wasn’t sure we’d be back in time, given we were walking to the Sultaniye mud baths. Carol had confirmed we should be back in time so I’d agreed to meet at the Denizkızı ferry. I met Tina (from Fat Club) and her hubby, Paddy, at Tez bar at 9.30am and we walked the 20 minutes to the meeting point together. It was quite a turn out and I said hello to a few of the walkers as we got on the ferry to cross the river. The ferry was just 10 lira (26p) each way for a foot passenger which was a bargain for the short trip. Ghislaine loaned me the use of Honey, her 13 year old spaniel, who could certainly motor but did like to pee a lot. It was quite a hard walk for me and unfortunately we didn’t get to the mud baths until gone 11.30am. This meant that, because I had insisted that I be back by 1pm, the group couldn’t enjoy any time at the mudbaths. We all had a quick pee, I was the only woman to brave the squat toilet, as I was in practice for my travels next month.
The walk back was hard and we stopped off for a drink at Pirates and Skulls, a nice little cafe. I just had an orange juice and tried to get the correct information on the times of the ferries. I had a panic on as I possibly wouldn’t be back in time for the plumber or to let the dogs out after them being alone after almost 4 hours. I messaged Jamie to see if he could delay the plumber, paid the 70 lira (£1.79) for my orange juice and decided to go for the ferry anyway. Ausaf, Lyn, Debbie and Christine came too, leaving some of the group having a few bevvies. The ferry turned out to go back and forth without a timetable so we were in luck, as well as Christine coming to the rescue with her hubby, Jez, picking us up at the other side and dropping me at Jamie’s. I was more concerned with being late to let the dogs out but they were fine and snoozing away. I’d just let them out on the back garden when the plumber turned up and he fixed the boiler really quickly. Norman and Edna knew him so, of course, Edna had to get some male attention from the nice man! For lunch I had a chicken pasta dish while Norman wanted to know why I’d been on a walk with another dog! I felt a bit guilty and even worse when I had to do only a short dog walk with them because I could hardly walk myself. For dinner I had miso soup with egg noodles and lots of fruit salad. At 11pm I joined the launch party Facebook live with Lisa Johnson and a massive number of other people. It was really motivating and encouraged me to get on and start taking some action. I was really excited for next week’s free course and was glad my friend, Heather, had prompted me to get involved. Finding a job with my unique requirements and talents was going to prove difficult, but setting up in business might just suit me better. By bedtime I was still hungry and had to have a buttered crumpet with cheese and olives. This meant I was already on 174 syns for the week. I’d had a great day and had only spent 90 lira (£2.31) but tomorrow was my last full day with Norman and Edna.
I had updated my CV and spent the morning applying for jobs on Thursday 22nd February. I needed to earn the equivalent of around £700 per month to keep my Turkish residency and so I was looking for part time work that I could do from any of the countries I was likely to be in. I had bread, 2 bananas and a cup of Yorkshire tea for my breakfast before popping over to our apartment to take back a few things and grab some more stuff. I was meant to be on a mission to eat healthy and I did drink a rose tea, a green tea and some cucumber water before lunch. When I returned to Jamie’s, Edna had taken my slipper on to the sofa again and Norman was in his bed, snoring away. I had a Slimming World friendly chicken dish with rice for my lunch and I was really enjoying having a surprise freezer meal when I couldn’t work out what was in my batch cooking. As Nanny Kay had missed out on her fruit scone yesterday, I couldn’t help snaffle it today – this time with jam instead of strawberries! I washed it down with 2 litres of water and chilled out in the sun on the patio with the pooches. I snacked on chickpea biscuits and tried to make similar using grated, and squeezed, courgette. It didn’t turn out well and I ended up with a courgette omelette and decided I could chop it up to put in rice. On the dog walk, Edna got a seed stuck in her paw and I had to get it out, she tried to get a sympathy pub visit for Skippy to kiss it better but I wasn’t swayed. Back home, I roasted a load of vegetables and had them with some Turkish pasta for dinner. My treats were an apple and just 1 glass of wine that evening.
A friend had recommended Lisa Johnson’s Race to Recurring Revenue, which started next week. On Friday 23rd February I signed up for the free challenge and was looking forward to getting involved in seeing how it might help me run my own business or make passive/semi-passive income. I knew I needed to do something while ever I wanted to remain being abroad and ideally I wanted to do something I was passionate about, so this would be ideal. I’d started to do it a year ago but, because I started the job I’d been doing for the last year, I never followed it through. Nanny Kay popped round at 12pm and we sat in the garden with the dogs. We were both so proud of how well Norman was doing. He wanted to play fetch or football with Nanny Kay and he was even pushing Edna out of the way as I drank my green tea. For lunch I ate more of the Slimming World friendly ‘surprise’ chicken dish with rice and then had a fruit salad with yoghurt for afters. At about 4.30pm Edna persuaded me to do the dog walk to the Waterfall pub and we all forgot that Skippy doesn’t go there on a Friday. I just had the 1 red wine, while the dogs got a couple of sausages from Mehmet and made friends with everyone in the bar. Edna got over her Skippy disappointment by trying to get in with a bloke playing darts. Back home, we all got fed but I didn’t wolf my dinner down nearly as fast as Norman. I made a Slimming World friendly pizza from a wrap, which was really nice, and finished off the chickpea biscuits.
I had another healthy and relaxed day on Tuesday 20th February, just keeping out of any drama and trying not to stress about being out of work. I’d started to think about what I could do to start my own business and I’d brought my laptop over to Jamie’s so that I could update my CV. I intended to apply for some jobs which could be done in Vietnam or Turkey. I had a breakfast of champions; a crumpet with butter, Yorkshire tea, overnight oats with berries and a green tea. My back and neck were still hurting and aspirin was not taking the pain off. I was meant to be going to Zumba but I couldn’t manage it. I had some rose tea just before lunch and then warmed up the rest of the pasta dish from yesterday. In the afternoon I went to buy a replacement water which was still only 50 lira (£1.29) at the shop Jamie uses (compared to 85 lira at my local shop). By the time I’d got home, it had already been delivered too so was great service. I went to the vets to pick up medicine for Norman and Edna, which they had ran out of. It cost 2,320 lira (£59.49) for 2 lots which Jamie transferred to me, immediately. I had leftover pasta bake for lunch, managed a dog walk without a pub visit and ate leftover curry for dinner. I made chickpea biscuits as a snack and had them with low fat yoghurt, onion, cucumber and tomato. I kept some to eat over the next couple of days in a tupperware to try to prevent unhealthy snacking. I’d done well this week with only consuming 195 syns, only 12 of which were on alcohol and I felt I was bound to have lost weight when I got on the scales tomorrow.
When I got up on Wednesday 21st February I weighed myself on Jamie’s scales. They showed I’d lost 0.8kg (1.8lb) and I’d had a good week, having not drunk any alcohol since Thursday. I was very pleased with myself and hoping for good results at Fat Club later today. I did my measurements but they weren’t as favourable; Bust -1cm, Waist +2cm, Hips +2cm. This meant my waist was now back over the goal I had set by 1cm. After feeding the dogs, I decided to try an app called Three Sixty Me where it takes a scan of your whole body to determine your measurements. It was worse than with the tape measure so I wasn’t convinced it was ideal. I had overnight oats and a Yorkshire tea for breakfast then as a snack before fat club I had 2 ginger teas and 3 of the chickpea biscuits. When I got to Fat Club, it wasn’t great news as I had only lost 0.1kg (0.2lb) which was negligible. Of course I was disappointed as I only had 2 more Fat Club weigh-in weeks to go until I left Turkey. After drinking 1.5 litres of water at the meeting, I popped to the shop on the way home. Here’s what I bought and prices in lira;
Back at Jamie’s, Norman and Edna cheered me up with a bit of advice for keeping the weight off. Norman instigated a game of fetch with his sister while Edna soon suggested we open the wine. Nanny Kay was meant to be coming over but she didn’t. So I had to have afternoon tea by myself; Yorkshire tea, a buttered fruit scone with fresh strawberries and kaymak, seeing as it was treat day. After walking the dogs, I warmed up leftover chicken, pumpkin, chickpea and spinach curry for dinner, had 2 glasses of wine and some Haribo jellies. I’d not gone out on treat day but I’d certainly eaten (and drank) well, using 56 syns in one day. Before bed, I totted up the weekly spend which I’d really tried my hardest to get back on budget with. I’d spent just 731.52 lira (£18.76) this week and I was so chuffed with myself. In total for the month so far I had spent the equivalent of £210.60 making me only 60p over budget – proof I could do it when I really tried.
On Saturday 17th February Norman and Edna ate breakfast and then had extra cuddles on the sofa while I had a cup of Yorkshire tea and a buttered crumpet. I left the dogs at home while I walked to the Saturday market where I bought the following (prices in lira);
Bananas & apples 40 Strawberries 100 Peppers and courgettes 55 Total spent 195 lira (£5.01)
I ate some strawberries on my way back and the sun was getting warmer. Back at Jamie’s I had more tomato and lentil soup for lunch. We had a dog walk in the afternoon where we avoided going to the pub. I had a bad neck and shoulder so I had to take some aspirin. I spoke to my parents who were still in Sheffield and Captain Caveman who was in Phong Nha. My evening meal was more sweet and sour chicken with egg rice and I watched some TV while eating chestnuts and oranges later on.
I was meant to be joining the Sunday walk on Sunday 18th February but I woke up with a very sore shoulder and neck and decided not to go. I fed the dogs and then Norman insisted on coming back to bobos with me and Edna. I had to carry him up the stairs and he was very patient. After extra sleeps and a cup of tea in bed we all got up and decided to get a sun lounger out on the patio, as the sun was out. I made a nice fruit salad for breakfast and had it with low fat yoghurt and a litre of water. Jamie messaged to say his brother, Barney, had booked flights to come to visit him in Dalyan next month so he asked me to let the dogs know. The reactions in both dogs were amusing. For lunch I had beef stew and Yorkshire puddings then a small slither of fruit cake with another litre of water. I spoke to Captain Caveman again and we looked at plans for when I’m in Vietnam. For dinner I made a lovely veggie pasta dish which was so tasty. I’d managed a whole weekend of not going out or having any alcohol, my total syns for the week was 182 which was good compared to other weeks and I just needed to keep it up for a couple more days.
I had a really easy going day on Monday 19th February and the second day in a row of not spending any money. I had fruit salad, yoghurt and Yorkshire tea for breakfast then got peckish late morning and had 2 slices of wholemeal toast with cheese triangles and an apple when I nipped back home. I wasn’t gone long but when I got back, Edna had taken my slipper up on to the sofa to snuggle with – cute. For lunch I had chicken curry with pumpkin, spinach and chickpeas and plain rice, which was delicious. I tried something a bit different for dinner by adding the tomato and lentil soup to cooked pasta and adding cheese to make a kind of pasta bake. It tasted really nice and, because I hadn’t had my syns for today, I had a few olives and some strawberries in the evening. It was also the 4th day in a row of no alcohol so I was hoping for a good result at Fat Club this week.
I spent most of the morning on Thursday 15th February getting ready for my 13 days at Jamie’s while they jetted off to Thailand. I did Zumba at noon in my new Zumba trainers and felt quite light on my feet this week. For lunch I had a veggie fried rice then I packed all of my batch cooking so that Jamie could collect it in his car. I didn’t need to be over there until the evening but then I had to have chicken nuggets and chips for dinner as I’d sent everything else over that was in the fridge. Norman and Edna had been briefed that I was coming but they were both snoozy by the time Little Daddy and Step Daddy Drew said their goodbyes. Jamie had bought me 2 bottles of wine from Edna, as she loves a party. I finished off some wine then chilled with a blanket and the dogs on the sofa.
Norman and Edna weren’t too thrilled by the early get up on Friday 16th February and were already on the sofa snoozing by 8.30am. I was no longer working on Fridays (or any other day) so I had the day to spend as I pleased. I had my Yorkshire tea and then got ready for a morning walk with Adele. The dogs weren’t bothered about going out on the garden but I had to insist as I wouldn’t be back until lunch time. Norman was much more mobile but grumpy about being woken up for a pee. He still needed to be wiped down after, as he got it on his front legs, but he was much more capable of going to the toilet by himself. He still waited for me to do the wet wipes and pick him up at the back step, although he frowned at being called Little Lavender Legs. Edna was still getting a bit jealous of all the attention Norman was getting too. My walk with Adele was lovely, it started off cold but we were down to our t-shirts when we stopped for breakfast at the Kefal tea gardens. I had a toasty and a couple of çay which was very nice and only cost a total of 75 lira (£1.93). Back ‘home’ I had another cup of Yorkshire tea and some water while catching up with Norman and Edna, who had been sleeping all morning. My lunch was soup and I started watching The Apprentice as Jamie has UK TV. I booked my flight from Dalaman to Istanbul for when I go to Vietnam which only cost £34, including food and seat choice. Jamie had very kindly said he would take me to the airport that day. After walking and feeding the dogs, I made myself some roasted veg which I had with a chicken casserole. The evening was spent snuggled up under a blanket on the sofa with more snuggles and snoozes from the dogs.
joloyolo 