Dalyan – 4th November

On Saturday 4th November Caroline was deliberating driving somewhere on the motorbike so she just took it around town and back. Captain Caveman and I needed to go to the weekly Dalyan market. As it looked to be a rainy weekend we thought we’d stock up, ready for lots of home cooking after Caroline’s imminent departure. Caroline got changed and we all went to the market where we bought the following, with prices in lira:

Stall 1
Potatoes, onions & garlic 59

Stall 2
Peppers, aubergines & pumpkin 57

Stall 3
Samphire 20

Stall 4
Tangerines 10

Stall 5
Tomatoes 35

Stall 6
Bananas 25

Stall 7
Apples & Strawberries 50

Stall 8
3 Gözleme (pancakes) 170

Total spent at the market today was 376 lira (£11.06).

Our next stop was for a quick shop for essentials as Captain Caveman needed proper coffee, Caroline wanted Sanpellegrino soda water and I needed a whole chicken for our Sunday lunch tomorrow. Here’s what I bought and the prices in lira:

Migros Supermarket
Chickpeas 39.92
Soda water 65.00
Coffee 76.90
Chicken 122.72
Total spent 304.54 lira (£8.96)

After dropping off the shopping, Caroline rode her bike to the beach and we caught the 2pm bus to meet her there. I didn’t bother taking my swimmers but both Captain Caveman and Caroline went in the sea for a dip. It was very windy so the sand was blowing about quite a bit and I’m not too keen on sand. We took some photos then headed back, calling for a drink in Waterfall. Recep was impressed with Caroline and her motorbike as she told him about her plans to ride to Şanlıurfa tomorrow. He, like Kaan, advised her it was risky to go alone especially as there was a storm coming tomorrow but she explained she was a strong independent woman who had driven a motorbike with Vee (her dog) all over Vietnam.

After a couple in the Waterfall, on Caroline, she thought it would be a great idea to pop to the shop next door to stock up on booze and snack essentials. She got a load of wine and I also bought wine and the mixer drinks to go with the gin we had back home. I have no idea how much she spent in Muhtaroğlu Market but the total I spent was 1,824.80 lira (£53.65)! Hopefully that would last us a few days though and meant we wouldn’t be spending it going out drinking and eating!

Of course, it being Dalyan, that didn’t happen and we were in Tez bar with my parents by the time it went dark. Caroline ordered french fries and beers for dinner, despite the amount of alcohol we had at home. While sat at Tex, the man on the next table to us proposed to his girlfriend and she said yes! I eventually managed to get Captain Caveman and Caroline back to the apartment where they carried on drinking but I just had the one wine. Tomorrow, rain was forecast and I had a house full for Sunday dinner. Due to the weather prediction, Caroline had, sensibly, decided to stay until Monday.

Dalyan – 3rd November

In my head I had planned to have an easy going, low-cost day on Friday 3rd November. Captain Caveman had gone to play Bridge and Caroline had taken 2 buses to Ortaca then Marmaris. She had decided she was going to collect her rented motorbike from Marmaris so that she could have a practice drive back to get used to the roads. I had some berry ‘muffins’ for lunch as was trying to stick to the Slimming World plan.
When Caroline returned she insisted that, as it was Friday night, we were going out for dinner and drinks, it was her treat for letting her stay with us as she would be off on her road trip soon. Captain Caveman pointed out that some bad weather was expected, possibly stormy on Sunday and that she might want to hold off until that had passed.
For dinner, the three of us ate at Çağrı where we ordered some random dishes and a beer each; 2 pides, green beans, baked beans, salad, yoghurt, chillies, bread and beers which came to a total of 980 lira (£28.82) for the 3 of us and Caroline paid.

The night did not end there as Caroline was in hot pursuit of the best frozen margarita in Dalyan. We decided to join Mark, Kate, Linda and a few of their friends at Aşkın’s where I was certain they would know how to make a frozen margarita. Unfortunately, we ended up with a mix of strawberry daiquiri and margarita minus a salty rim which İpek insisted was just what we had asked for. We soldiered through it but it took me quite a while to drink the strange cocktail. Our next stop was at Tequila bar where one of the Toprak brothers was manning the bar, surely he would know how to make a frozen margarita. This one came without the ice and we couldn’t seem to make him or Kaan understand that we wanted a margarita which was made with crushed ice. Another street dog joined us so we soon forgot about the frozen margarita and gave it some attention. On the way home we stopped at Sofra bar where the frozen margarita came just as requested. It was about 1.30am when we got home, Caroline had decided that she wouldn’t leave for her motorbike adventure tomorrow as she’d drank far too much, she would plan to go on Sunday.

Photo credit – some from the Riverbums and Caroline

Dalyan – 1st & 2nd November

I was surprised to learn it was Caroline’s birthday on Wednesday 1st November. Not only had she arrived a week earlier than we thought she would, but I would not get paid for 10 days and even then it was only half the pay I had planned for. Ironically, we had a very full fridge, freezer and cupboards at home as I was expecting not to be going out too much in the lead up to our friend’s visit. I didn’t hear from Captain Caveman or Caroline first thing as I let the dogs out then fed them and made a cup of tea. Norman was cute when I got my cuppa as he wanted to go upstairs ‘back to bobos’. We sat on the sofa for a bit of an extra sleep until it was time to go for a walk. I did my measurements to find my bust was the same but I’d lost 4cm from my waist and 3cm from my hips. This looked promising for Carol’s scales at Fat Club later. I worked in the morning and then I made my taster session food for Fat Club. I made the flour-less syn free muffins which look terrible but taste quite nice. Captain Caveman popped round and he’d been out with Caroline last night for drinks then food. Captain Caveman was very hung over and there was still no word from Caroline. I suggested we go to one of our favourite restaurants tonight for Caroline’s birthday and invited my parents too. It turns out that Captain Caveman and Caroline had been drinking at Bistro Blue last night but we would still go again tonight for an impromptu birthday meal. I left Jamie’s place and the pooches to go to Fat Club. I was disappointed to only have lost 0.1kg (0.2lb) but a loss is a loss, as they say at Fat Club. I couldn’t share the lentil soup that Carol made or the fritters by Janice, as they had chillies in but I did get the recipes to make my own without the heat. I couldn’t eat the fishy offering either but I did try and I enjoyed the mushroom paté as well as the hummus. My berry and banana ‘muffins’ were tried and people agreed they weren’t quite as terrible as they sounded or looked.
Jamie was back by tea time and he’d unfortunately inherited a street dog on his complex who some holiday makers had brought home. He asked me to take the dog back to bar street as they aren’t allowed to have them wandering around the complex. I did, and the dog seemed genuinely happy to get back to his fellow pooches for the night.
That evening, Captain Caveman had said he would pay for our meal so I didn’t even take my purse to Bistro Blue or Tez bar, where we started the birthday celebrations. My parents danced with some of the other Tez-pats to ‘Sweet Caroline’ as a thoughtful birthday treat for our friend. Caroline was happy to meet Tez who was going to help her organise a motorbike for her adventure tours to Şanlıurfa and Cappadocia next week. We had some amazing food at Bistro Blue although I noticed Caroline didn’t eat all of her’s. She said she felt unwell so she left before we had finished our drinks. When we came to pay Captain Caveman didn’t have enough on his card and I hadn’t brought any way of paying with me so we had to borrow the money from my parents. It was 1,740 lira including wine, which was just over £50 and not an expense I had budgeted for this week. The food and service had been great and I’d really enjoyed it but we now needed to make sure we stayed in to eat what we had at home.

While Captain Caveman went Bumming on Thursday 2nd November, Caroline had a lay in. I popped to the shops for sanitary towels and milk which cost a total of 36.75 lira (£1.08). Surprisingly, milk was more expensive than sanitary towels in Dalyan and it’s not usual or easy to find tampons in Dalyan supermarkets – they can be purchased at the pharmacy. When Caroline got up she had a banana for breakfast as she doesn’t eat breakfast and then went to ask Tez about hiring the motorbike. She was heading over to see the famous archaeological sights at Göbeklitepe, Şanlıurfa, and wanted to do it on a big motorbike. Both Captain Caveman and I do like to plan things but Caroline had said she was much more of a non-planning type of traveller. Her mission on this trip was to ‘search for people’s truth’ which I was sure that I fully understood.
Captain Caveman and I had a walk to the water company to get his deposit back from when he had the water in his name, unfortunately they didn’t understand our English or my Google translated Turkish, which was convenient for them!
At 2.30pm Captain Caveman and I met up with Caroline at Kaunos tea gardens where I had a double çay and a chicken döner, Caroline a juice and a chicken döner and Captain Caveman had an Efes beer and a mixed toasted sandwich. I paid the 305 lira (£8.97) but I did say we would be eating in tonight as we were on a budget and I was meant to be on a diet!
My words fell on deaf ears as we bumped in to Kaan at Tequila Bar and joined him for a drink, sat in the sun. Captain Caveman and I just had beer but Caroline, who was on her holidays, had a couple of Aperol Spritzes. Another stray dog or two joined us, one was particularly cute but a bit smelly. When the sun went in, Caroline decided she needed some white tops ready for her motorbiking adventure. We popped to the shop where she picked up a couple of t-shirts/sweatshirts. On the way home we stopped at Tez bar to finalise the bike arrangements for tomorrow and for Captain Caveman and Caroline to have a beer.

Dalyan – 29th to 31st October

We had a nice relaxing day on Sunday 29th October. Captain Caveman got his bicycle wheel fixed for 135 lira (£3.96) which he was pleased about. We shared a sausage roll and a cheese & onion roll each for breakfast and both agreed they were lovely. For lunch I had cheese spread and bread but I decided to make a vegetable curry in the slow cooker for dinner. While I was chopping the veg, Captain Caveman got a call from our friend Caroline. We know her from Phong Nha, in Vietnam, she lives in Hoi An now and is Australian but had been in Greece for the last month. Caroline had made loose plans to see us in Rhodes but they never materialised so she would like to come and visit us in Dalyan…. tomorrow! Her flight would land in Dalaman airport at 3pm so it was all systems go to make up the spare bed and get the house clean for our friend’s arrival.
We had the veggie curry with steamed rice which was delicious and, of course, we had some spare. We had a few grapes after and wondered how long a visit to Dalyan Caroline was planning.

I worked from 8am until 5pm on Monday 30th October and this would be my last week of working 16 hours. I’d already done some extra from last week so it meant I’d definitely be finished by Tuesday. I had Yorkshire tea and buttered wholemeal toast for breakfast. Captain Caveman went dogging, he likes to walk the dogs at the dog shelter so sometimes he goes up there to help out. He was back for lunch so we had leftover cauliflower mac and cheese.
As we knew Caroline was arriving this afternoon, we asked the taxi to take her to Lukka bar, where Captain Caveman would go to meet her. I would finish working and then join them.
As I was getting changed to go meet Caroline and Captain Caveman, I saw a post on Facebook reporting a dog that had turned up at someone’s house in Dalyan. It looked similar to Debbie (Darling)’s Brinny but had a different collar on. I messaged Debbie (Darling) who said it was Brinny’s sister, owned by a Turkish man.
I also had a message from Kelly, back in the UK, the girls were hoping to be able to book their holiday to Rhodes for next September and had a few questions. It was a long way off but I hoped I’d be able to join them for a holiday.
I met Caroline and Captain Caveman at Lukka bar, she looked well and was dressed for winter despite the warm weather in Dalyan. We had a beer together and she told us a bit about her trip to Greece and Sweden. We couldn’t sit about as we had a night out to get to so it was back home for curry before heading out to Sofra bar. The Bengisu Boys were playing a gig and they are great musicians so it turned in to a good night. By 10pm both Captain Caveman and I were on the Sofra ‘dancefloor’ giving it what-for! Caroline was too cool for dancing with the ‘olds’ but was testing out the drink menu and being acquainted with our friends.
VLS arrived and I did a karaoke song with her. It was awful and I could see that Şükrü would never let me put in another request! By 11.30pm Brinny’s sister, the escaped dog, had found us and was keeping us company. The walk home, at just gone midnight, involved several stray dogs escorting us home and Caroline tried not to get attached, as she loves dogs.

On Tuesday 31st October Captain Caveman went off to Bridge so that I could work in peace, leaving Caroline with me. I had plans at lunch time to go over to Jamie’s as I was looking after his cute little dogs, Norman and Edna, for a few days. It turned out I’d got confused about the amount of hours I needed to work this week as my boss only wanted me to do 8 per week with immediate affect as from last week, so I’d already worked them. It was going to be incredibly tight for money for the next couple of months so it’s a good job we don’t do Christmas presents or celebrate Christmas out here, in Turkey.
I left Caroline to her own devices following a discussion about the use of psilocybin mushrooms for trauma. I packed a bag and headed over to Jamie’s, taking my lunch with me.
Around 1.15pm I was just getting a nice feta cheese salad ready to eat when Captain Caveman arrived at Jamie’s. He was meant to have been going back home to see Caroline for lunch but shared my salad. I sent him over to look after our guest with instructions to keep in touch while I looked after Norman and Edna. I didn’t see or hear from Captain Caveman or Caroline again that evening so I had a lovely quiet one with a leftover chicken and veggie curry. I obviously stayed over at Jamie’s and the pooches wanted to come upstairs to bed with me. I told them they had to sleep in their own bed downstairs and gave them a kiss. I didn’t have any alcohol, it was Fat Club tomorrow and I was only on 273 syns for the week. The Fat Club meeting tomorrow had a taster session that we all had to take something for so I’d brought over my ingredients to make something in the morning.

Dalyan – 27th & 28th October

On Friday 27th October I had a fruit salad for breakfast and Captain Caveman had gone to Bridge when I got logged on to the laptop. I’d already done my hours for this week but my boss wanted a video call.
Steve explained that he only needed me to work half as much up until the end of the year. I was also going to have to finish work after the week commencing 18th December to have Christmas and New Year off.
We agreed I’d work my usual hours until the end of this month and then half the hours for the next 6 weeks after that. Obviously, I was a bit disappointed, especially as I need to earn a certain amount to maintain my residency that I’d recently paid so much to get.
When Captain Caveman got back we both went food shopping and here’s what we bought:

BIM supermarket
Wholemeal loaf 14.50
Bin bags 17.50
Wraps 31.50
Crisps 37.00
15 eggs 55.00
12 toilet rolls 62.00
Total spent 217.50 lira (£6.40)

A101 Supermarket
1l cherry juice 32.00 lira (£0.94)

Migros Supermarket
1 bag of porridge oats 4.25
Cheese biscuits 9.00
Peanut butter 65.90
Total spent 79.15 lira (£2.33)

I just had wholemeal toast for lunch as I wasn’t hungry and it would soon be dinner time. We were also hosting a small cheese and wine evening at our apartment for my parents, Jamie, and Drew.
Today was pay day and we’d been invited to a party at Rehab bar to say bye to a bloke who neither of us knew who looks after cats. Kate was hosting and wanted us to attend but with reduced work afoot, it was time to decline non-essential outings and frivolities – I needed to save the pennies!
For dinner we had chicken köfte with potato wedges and vegetables before getting ready to entertain our guests.
My parents arrived first and we got chatting, then Jamie and Drew arrived with Börek (Turkish pastries with cheese in) – the diet was out of the window once again!
We had a good night with plenty of wine and lots of laughs, where we all enjoyed ourselves.

It was market day on Saturday 28th October so, after a cup of Yorkshire tea in bed, we got ready for a shopping trip.
We didn’t need too much this week but here’s what we bought:

Stall 1
Lettuce, pumpkin, red peppers and tomatoes
70 lira (£2.06)

Stall 2
Grapes 20 lira (£0.59)

Stall 3
5 bananas 45 lira (£1.32)

Total market spend 135 lira (£3.97).

When we got back, I had grapes for breakfast as Kate was on her way over. She had bought some cat food from an online company but when it came, it was not correct and she needed to send it back and complain. That took longer than expected and still couldn’t be submitted so she went home a bit stressed.
In the afternoon I went over to Vanessa’s where she’d just made sausage rolls and cheese and onion rolls. We ate some and drank white wine & soda while catching up on all the comings and goings of life. Later, we encouraged Kate to join us and she cycled over. It was a lovely afternoon and I didn’t get in until pretty late, with spare sausage rolls to take home too. I left Vanessa getting on the back of her friend’s mobility scooter and heading for a night in Rodrigo’s.
I made a Slimming World friendly cauliflower mac and cheese for dinner using pasta, cauliflower, pumpkin, bacon, garlic, yoghurt, eggs, paprika and thyme. It was surprisingly good and we both enjoyed it.

Dalyan – 20th to 22nd October

I pride myself on not throwing food away and always using all the food that we buy. Friday 20th October was a classic example of this as I served us yet another portion each of the chicken casserole, this time jazzed up with broccoli done in the airfryer with pepper and garlic powder. We treated ourselves to a couple of slices of fresh bread which I had to syn. The meal was still very tasty and neither of us had got bored of eating the syn free casserole.
In the afternoon I needed to provide Captain Caveman with wardrobe and drawer space in our bedroom so I had to rationalise my clothes, popping some in an empty suitcase. I had a good declutter of my 4 drawers, down to 3.
For dinner we had something I’d not had in a while – a wrap pizza! Although I had to use syns again for this it was still much healthier and cheaper than a normal pizza.

On Saturday 21st October we went to the weekly market in the morning. Here’s what we bought and the prices:

Stall 1
Peppers, red cabbage, cucumbers, leeks garlic and aubergine
Cost 82 lira (£2.41)

Stall 2
Potatoes and onions
Cost 55 lira (£1.62)

Stall 3
Radishes, mushrooms and apples
Cost 52 lira (£1.53)

Stall 4
Bananas, peaches, plums and grapes
Cost 195 lira (£5.74)

Our total shopping came to 384 lira (£11.29) and we had quite a fridge full of fresh fruit and veg.
We also bought a 19 litre water refill which was now 60 lira (£1.76) from the corner shop.
For breakfast I had grapes but for lunch I made a chicken and vegetable soup which I chucked some egg noodles in to, a Slimming World version of a pot noodle. At 1.30pm Vanessa came over for a cup of tea and a chat while Captain Caveman was busy unpacking his stuff and getting his bicycle out from underneath the spare bed.
For dinner we had sausage casserole and had my debut airfryer Yorkshire puddings. I had to fashion some foil tins to keep them from blowing about and the puddings seemed quite dense. They still tasted ok but I needed more practice and some containers which fit in the airfryer.
In the evening we invited Ma & Pa over for drinks, as we’d not seen much of them since our Rhodes holiday. They didn’t stay late though as Dad wanted to get home to watch some football on TV. I ended up drinking the equivalent of a bottle of wine to myself so my syns for the day were too high at 47! I’d now had 197 for the week, which wasn’t great.

Captain Caveman had decided he was going to organise a walk on Sunday 22nd October in an attempt to keep active. He also planned to continue it every Sunday, while ever the weather was good. So, without any breakfast and wearing my porter sandals, I found myself waiting in Migros Square for a few stragglers. It was a lovely sunny day, shorts weather, and it was a pleasant walk. I’d took no notice of the proposed route so was quite surprised when I managed 12.5km in porter sandals without socks. Ma & Pa also managed it and took themselves off to the tea gardens after, for lunch. Captain Caveman was off to watch Dalyan Spor play football in the afternoon so we had lunch at home – a cheese sandwich and some fruit.
For dinner we had leftover sausage casserole with potatoes with another round of airfryer Yorkshire puddings and a couple of glasses of wine.

Dalyan – 19th October

I’d previously been invited, but declined, an invite from Kate to go on a 12 island boat trip from Fethiye on Thursday 19th October. At the time of asking I’d not known when my residency renewal appointment or me having to leave Turkey date would be so we couldn’t commit.
My parents, on the other hand, didn’t have these problems and had said they were going and were being picked up from Lukka bar at 10am.
More recently, Jamie had invited Captain Caveman and I on Drew’s private boat trip for his brother’s birthday and we had agreed. This one was with Ünal, Sioned’s husband, on Duran Duran boat. My diet started badly with a homemade (by Sioned) Welsh cake and a cup of tea as we set sail and got introduced to everyone. There was Jamie, Drew, Robert, Lucie, their 2 (well behaved) teenage children, Ann, Sharon, Ali and us two. Drew’s family were lovely and we all had an absolutely fantastic day out with excellent company and amazing food. I ate fresh bread, courgette fritters, şakşuka, spinach, pasta, green beans, carrots, chicken, meatballs, chips, red cabbage, couscous and more bread! I pushed the boat out a bit and had a beer (just the one) too.

We all went swimming, walked on the beach and generally had a really good laugh. There was numerous stops (beach and the lake), there was crab fishing, which I didn’t do but all the crabs caught were females so they had to be put back in to the sea. Ünal really spoiled us in the afternoon with fruit platters and a delicious cake. We sang Happy Birthday to Robert and I probably should have said no to finishing off Captain Caveman’s piece of cake too.

When we left the boat, everyone went back home but we reconvened at Lukka bar, where there was another surprise singing of Happy Birthday. An impressive chocolate cake was shared out and I managed a slice. Norman and Edna had joined us and wondered why they didn’t have such treats.
I didn’t need any dinner that night and we were quite sensible with an early night. My parents, on the other hand, were still giving the ball a right kick!

Dalyan – 16th to 18th October

On Monday 16th October it was business as usual in Dalyan. I needed to get back in to healthy eating, cutting down on the alcohol and, if I wanted to hit my weight target by the end of the year, do it seriously. Captain Caveman and I were now both in Dalyan for the rest of the year and I was really looking forward to us spending 11 weeks together. My parents were also going to be in Dalyan for the rest of the year which was great but I hoped they wouldn’t get bored in the winter. We also needed to save some money as we had some scheduled visits from friends in the coming weeks. We’d had a great holiday but now it was back to work.
My first job was to get weighed so that I knew how much damage I’d done and what I needed to lose still. Amazingly, I was the same weight as I was 12 days ago and 1kg lighter than on Steve and Michelle’s scales 5 days ago – I wasn’t as concerned about facing Carol’s scales on Wednesday now.
The next job was to go to the bank and check the finances, they had taken quite a bruising and it was time to cut back for a few weeks now. While I cracked on with a day’s work, Captain Caveman was also getting back in to his routine and took himself off dogging followed by a bridge session with John.
For dinner, Captain Caveman made a simple, diet friendly and tasty chicken and veg pasta. It was another alcohol free night for me as I wanted to be healthier and didn’t want to put any weight back on before Wednesday’s Fat Club.

I worked from 9.30am to 5.45pm on Tuesday 17th October and, although I’d done my hours for this week I decided i would make up for having a shorter week last week.
I was still trying hard to get back in to a healthier lifestyle and eating plan so I had made a chicken casserole in the slow cooker which I did with airfryer potatoes for dinner. I’d not been writing down my syns but I decided that I would get back in to that habit tomorrow after my Fat Club weigh-in. We opened a bottle of rosé wine from the fridge and shared that with our very tasty and syn free dinner.

On Wednesday 18th October I was definitely getting back in to my Slimming World regime. I started the day with a breakfast of overnight oats, made with quark and frozen raspberries, and a cup of Yorkshire tea. I got weighed on the home scales and had lost 0.95kg (2lb) since Monday! My measurements showed I’d lost 1cm from my bust but put 3cm on my waist and hips. I was now at the target measurement for my bust but I still needed to lose 7cm from my waist and 6cm from my hips. I was hoping to get that done before the end of the year if I could stay motivated and stick to my goals. I had a light lunch of random stuff from the fridge; turkey, sun-dried tomato, olives, gherkins, blue cheese, and salami in a wrap and we would be having the same as yesterday for dinner.
As I was working a bit extra this week, I only had time to nip in to the Fat Club meeting and get weighed. I was so pleased to have lost 0.4kg (0.9lb) on Carol’s scales, as I really wasn’t expecting it to be a good result. On the way home from getting weighed, I called in to Migros supermarket where I picked up potatoes and fat free yogurt for 30.10 lira (89p).
Back at home, I worked for another couple of hours before having our leftover chicken casserole with airfryer potatoes for dinner. There was heavy rain forecast, despite it being a decent temperature, so I decided to bring the lounging chair and foot stool from the balcony in to the living room. Captain Caveman was straight in it and I thought I might live to regret this decision as he now had a handy place to sit and play bridge all day on his phone! With dinner we opened a bottle of red wine which we had in the wine rack for just over a year. We had brought it back from Datça Vineyard when we went last year for my parents’ anniversary. I’m not sure which of us was the most impressed that I’d not drunk it.
We watched a bit of Netflix and treated ourselves to cheese and crackers so my syns for today were 34, more than double my daily allowance. This was not the best of starts and tomorrow was likely to prove somewhat difficult as we had an exciting day planned.

Lardos to Dalyan – 15th October

On Sunday 15th October I woke up without a hangover, which was quite a surprise. We sorted out the remainder of our laundry, which had been hung out to dry, and Captain Caveman went to get some much needed water as we had none in the house. We decided to pack all our stuff and leave the traditional Greek house earlier to go for a hot drink/breakfast rather than go to come back again. Our ferry from Rhodes to Fethiye wasn’t until 4pm but we needed to be there for 3pm to get our tickets. I got a message from Steve at 10.40am to say he would send us our ferry tickets shortly. We left the house just after 11am and went to the bakery and Cuckoo’s Nest for everyone (except me) to get pastries and coffee. Even though I no longer have gluten intolerances, I still avoid pastries before travelling as I always get a dodgy tum. I did buy a sandwich to take with me for when we got to Rhodes Town though. Steve and Michelle joined us for a coffee and to say their goodbyes, not knowing exactly when we would see them again but the ferries were going to be running in the winter months. Taxis in Rhodes are extremely expensive and would not have comfortably fitted 4 adults and all our luggage in so we had opted for the pretty reliable public transport option. The bus cost us €5.60 (£4.71) each to get to Rhodes Town and was meant to take 2 hours.
We got in to town before 2pm and decided to go straight to the port rather than messing around. It was a bit of a walk but we took it steady as the weather was nice and we were in no rush. At the port, it was the busiest I’d ever seen it and there was no available seating. Eventually we got a seat, I got the tickets and I managed to eat my sandwich around 3pm.
It was a long trip back to Dalyan, especially as we took the decision to go all the way by public transport after our usual taxi guy, failed to respond to messages. The ferry crossing was fine and quite relaxing, we took a short but speedy taxi ride to the bus station only to find that a bus to Ortaca was already in. Captain Caveman ran ahead to get on with us rushing to keep up with him. We got on and paid the less than £2.50 fare each to get to Ortaca, about an hour away. The bus ride wasn’t too pleasant, it was rather cold with the windows open plus I soon needed the loo. When we got to Ortaca the bus to Dalyan was in so Captain Caveman was keen to hurry to get it but we had a falling out when I said I didn’t care if we missed it. Even after a pitstop for Mom and I to go for a pee, we still managed to catch the Dalyan bus that was waiting but I had to squidge on to the back seat with a nice Turkish family. It was cold and rain was coming in the open window so we were all glad to finally get off at Dalyan where Captain Caveman had a cunning plan. He needed to redeem himself for us all being so hungry and thirsty but yet being in Dalyan with all our luggage at gone 8.30pm.
Since leaving Lardos at 12 we had not stopped and my parents hadn’t eaten since that pasty for breakfast at 11.30am. Captain Caveman would take our bags home while my parents, their bags and I would go to Duble restaurant and order some food. I think my dad was a bit too tired because he couldn’t decide what to have and said there was nothing he liked despite going to Duble a few times and enjoying it. By the time Captain Caveman got back we still hadn’t ordered either. Mom chose chicken and mushroom pasta, Dad went for a chicken shish he didn’t really fancy and Captain Caveman and I both ordered the same; lentil soup and liver starters as a main. Dad and Captain Caveman ordered alcoholic beverages but Mom and I could not face booze after last night. The food was excellent and Ma insisted that she paid for the meal which was very good of them. It was easily after 10pm as we headed home, Captain Caveman took my parents case to their’s for them so there was no chance of either of them struggling with it on the stairs.

Dalyan to Lardos – 6th October

I was awoken on Friday 6th October by my phone. It was 5.50am and it was Fikri calling to say he was outside. He had also seen me last night, several times, as guests booked him to go home. He knew I was one of the last to leave and was concerned I might overlay. How kind is that! He got me to Ortaca bus station early enough for me to buy a bottle of water at the small shop before getting on the first bus to Fethiye. I was surprised to see it so busy and hoped I would get to the ferry port in time, which was a good 10 minutes drive from the bus station after this bus journey. The taxi from Dalyan to Fethiye was too expensive for me so I chanced the bus and it paid off. It was a bit of a rush really, especially with my wheelie case and the extra taxi to the port. I got on the ferry without taking my seasick pills and was feeling somewhat fragile as I joined Rachel, her mom and 2 little kids. They were off for a short break in Haraki, Rhodes, and I know Rachel from my Turkish classes. I could have done without having to be sociable and even a Turkish tea didn’t sort me out but having friends to chat to kept my mind off feeling rather fragile.
By 1pm I was sat waiting in the Rhodes Town MacDonald’s for Steve and Michelle. They were coming to pick me up to go back to Lardos, where I was staying with them for the weekend. I had a cheeseburger and a coke which cost €5.20 (£4.46) so it wasn’t cheap but seemed to be a good enough hangover cure.
When we arrived, I logged on to the internet on Matt’s laptop and said hello to Bob, the cat, and Xena, the dog. It looked to be quite a lively weekend as tonight we were off to Flyer’s, in Pefkos, for one of their Greek Nights.

Having been before with Captain Caveman, I was ready to do it all again and this time we were taking it steady as I was still flagging from last night’s shenanigans. I had Milokleftis cider and we tucked it to a delicious feast of pitta, tsatziki, feta salad, lamb, pork, chicken and french fries. There was live music, singing and the Rhodian ballet with dancing, which we were encouraged to join in on.

Michelle and I took to the floor for a bit of dancing, as you do, but the real stars of the show were the male volunteers. It was a fantastic night and we really enjoyed one of the last Greek Nights of the season.
Back in Lardos, we called for a nightcap in Cuckoo’s Nest where we bumped in to Bob, the cat! I’d survived until midnight but I really was begging for mercy and needed my bed.

Rhodian Ballet

The audience participation was great

Dalyan – 5th October

Captain Caveman and I had both been invited to a wedding on Thursday 5th October. Of course, Captain Caveman was in Italy and couldn’t make it, but he’d also got shingles and wouldn’t have been there anyway. I had accepted the invite and needed to take it steady as I had a ferry to catch to Rhodes early the next day. Our initial plan for my parents and I to meet Captain Caveman in Naples had been scrapped, not just because of the shingles. Dad was waiting for an eye appointment and didn’t want to be in Italy when it came. Instead, we had agreed to meet in Rhodes Town on Monday (9th), where we would all spend 6 nights in Rhodes together.
I worked for a couple of hours in the morning, packed for my Rhodes trip and then had some leftover food with rice.

The wedding of Bill and Jaxx took place on a boat so we met at Paradise Hotel to get on the boats, where there were some familiar friendly faces. When Bill arrived he was having the 2 dogs, Big Boy and Lucy, with him for the ceremony. He’d also supplied some punch for us to have on the journey to pick up his beautiful bride.

Jaxx looked like a beautiful little doll in her wedding dress and the 2 boats sailed together to a spot for the ceremony. I had a couple of the punch drinks which I was convinced was made from cherry and vodka but my fellow guests said they didn’t think it was alcoholic and had quite a few.
There was a female celebrant who did a rather unique service and speech which everyone enjoyed.

The sun was shining and it was a beautiful wedding, followed by a dinner and party back at Bill and Jaxx’s lovely villa, with the bar and garden kitted out for the wedding party. We had a great time and my plans to not drink too much went out of the window as the champagne was poured. Dinner was served quite late so I was rather trollied as we enjoyed the steak dinner followed by some gorgeous cheese. One of the wedding party even shared her port with us and I, of course, made some new friends who were absolutely lovely.
I vaguely recall getting in, after a lift in to town with my new mates, setting the alarm for 5.30am and hoping I didn’t sleep through it. Fikri’s taxi was booked to pick me up at 6am and take me to Ortaca so that I could get the first bus to Fethiye.

Dalyan – 1st to 4th October

Sunday 1st October had some of my favourite things; dogs and curry! I had to wake the dogs up at 8.10am as I needed a wee. We went for a little walk and they shared water when they got back as both were thirsty. I had left over chicken tenders for breakfast and then had a bad stomach! By 11.20am I was feeling a bit better and had started catching up on my blogging; Edna was helping, while Norman snored away from his bed. Edna soon got bored as there was no juicy gossip and had a snooze. It was raining before 2pm and both dogs were snoring away as I typed.
That afternoon I got some bad news from the computer repair man. My laptop was going to cost too much to fix and would be better to buy a new one. I took the dogs on a reluctant but short walk in the rain and then gave them their dinner – they love meal times.
I couldn’t be bothered to cook and I’d not been to the market so I decided to order a curry from Spice Garden, as a treat. I decided to go for the chicken set menu which was 445 lira (£13.28) and included the following; Chicken Tikka starter, Chicken Masala main, Saag Aloo side. For a bit extra I also added in a garlic and cheese naan bread and then would split the whole lot over 2 meals. The food is obviously not prepared or cooked by Indian chefs but it’s as near as I was going to get in Turkey and it tasted great. At bed time Norman and Edna were the first to go to bed, not leaving me much room on the bed!

I had another day off on Monday 2nd October so that I could go back to the Fethiye office to complete my residency renewal by taking a copy of my water bill, in my name. I was still looking after Norman and Edna but Jamie had said they would be ok left after their morning walkies and breakfast, as he was due back around 1pm. I decided that it would be a bit irresponsible, should he get delayed for any reason and I’d be all the way in Fethiye on a bus so I arranged with Vanessa to get the 2pm bus.
I also got a message from the computer repair man to say he had found me a potential new laptop; a Toshiba i5 cpu 8GB RAM 240GB SSD with an English keyboard. I know nothing about laptops so I sent it on to Captain Caveman to check out and see if it was worth the 7,500 lira (£220) it was priced at.
At 3pm we were in the Fethiye office, where I saw the same lady. It turned out she spoke English and didn’t remember my application. I helped her find it on the pile, gave her my paperwork, which she copied. She then passed me the paper to say I had renewed residency for just under a year. My card would be posted within the next month and I’d been in there less than 3 minutes. I was so relieved but couldn’t help thinking that all this extra expense and stress could’ve been avoided!
Just 14 minutes later, Vanessa and I were about to tuck in to a Big Mac meal each in MacDonald’s. By 4.15pm we had decided to walk it back to the bus station as it was glorious weather. It was great to have had Vanessa there with me and it made a nice afternoon. It was late by the time we got in to Ortaca, where we decided to have an ice-cream as we were peckish and thirsty. Michelle messaged to ask if I would buy her some vitamins which are expensive in Rhodes, but we had already left Fethiye by the time I got the info. We walked out of the bus station in Ortaca to find a Gratis pharmacy, and they had 3 bottles left. I bought 2 at 99 lira (£2.91) each and with discount. We were late getting back to Dalyan so I warmed up some curry for dinner about 9pm at home. I lit some candles and relaxed – my residency renewal was finally done and I could relax until August next year!

On Tuesday 3rd October I had 3 days left in Dalyan before I went back to Rhodes. The plans to join Captain Caveman in Italy had changed as it turned out his rash was shingles! Instead, he and my parents would meet me in Rhodes in 6 days time.
I had fresh figs, peach and strawberries for breakfast then got on with work. For lunch I had cheese on toast, done in the Airfryer. It was a lovely, sunny day but I was indoors working, after being off yesterday. Steve sent me through my ferry ticket which was only €25 (£21.60), with discount. It did mean getting up at 5.30am on Friday morning though. For dinner I put the leftover chicken tikka starter in to the saag aloo and had that, very nice it was too. Fat Club was probably not going to see a loss from me tomorrow, but I had definitely drank less alcohol as I couldn’t afford to go out now!

It was weigh-in day on Wednesday 4th October and I wasn’t optimistic. I took my measurements to find I had put on 4cm on my bust but lost 4cm from my hips and 2cm from my waist. I worked for a couple of hours in the morning and I was quite enjoying the red keyboard of Matt’s laptop.
At Fat Club, Carol’s scales showed that I had put on 0.3kg (0.7lb), which wasn’t ideal.
I decided to make a stir-fry for dinner which I ate with steamed rice and it was delicious. I worked a few more hours later on then, around 9.30pm I spoke to Captain Caveman who was now in Turin but suffering with Shingles. I had an early night as tomorrow I had something exciting planned for my last day in Dalyan.

Dalyan – 30th September

I packed my bag on Saturday 30th September for a 3 day dog sit at Jamie’s, as he and Drew were off on a romantic break away. I got there about 9.30am, Norman & Edna were pleased to see me and Edna was hoping we would be going down the pub to see Skippy. We had some cuddles and some fun outside in the sun before an afternoon walk. I was tempted to take them to Rehab bar to see the pool gang but decided it might be better for them to stay home, as Norman loves an afternoon/early evening nap.

I walked in the sun to Rehab bar where I met up with a few of the regular attendees, most had already gone home as the pool match was coming to an end. Someone left their sunglasses on the table so we all tried them on and I posted on Facebook so the owner might notice.

It was getting a bit chilly and almost time for me to get back to feed the pooches so we had a quick refreshment in Aşkın’s bar on the way home. Vanessa was still out, Matt had gone home earlier so she was going to Fry Box to take him back some dinner. I’d never tried it but a few people had said how good it was so I decided to go along and get some too. It was certainly not Slimming World friendly and I knew I’d regret having it. I took it back to Jamie’s and fed Norman and Edna before I ate my KFC style chicken strips and chips with BBQ sauce. It was very nice but as I was eating it, I did wonder if my stomach would be able to tolerate the fried food. That night the dogs insisted that they come to bed with me and we were all settled down before 11pm.
September had been a busy month, however, October wasn’t about to get any quieter.

Dalyan – 29th September

Unfortunately I couldn’t work on the morning of Friday 29th September, as planned, because I had to go to the water company to try to put a bill in my name. This was going to be more stressful than it should have been because of a couple of reasons, the main one being that Captain Caveman wasn’t here. Sonuç’s wife, Leanne, who works at King Emlak seemed to think we could use her boss’s Power of Attorney from buying the apartment to get it sorted but her boss, Sezgin, would have to come with us. She was meant to pick me up at 9.30am and Sezgin would meet us at the water company. That didn’t happen and at 11am I was pacing up and down wondering when they would show up. Plan B was that Leanne was sending the guy from the office who used to go to school and play football with a member of staff at the water place and we were going to do our best to ‘sort’ it. I popped on a nice dress and took all my ID and a copy of an old bill.
When we arrived the two Turkish fellas were like long lost brothers, stroking and rubbing each other’s tummies and laughing a lot. At one point I thought I should get ready for a tummy tickle but, for a fee of 900 lira (£26.87), I was now the proud owner of a water bill. My next bill would be in November for 59 lira (£1.76) for the previous month and they had cancelled Captain Caveman’s direct debit. Another expense I wasn’t expecting and now I had to go straight to the bank to get the direct debit set up so that I could take the paper back to the Fethiye office for my residency approval.
Leanne had managed to sort this out and I bet she knew I was not happy with the situation, having predicted this would happen. Luckily she had saved the day and I was very grateful. The King Emlak bloke drove me back to the office so I took the opportunity to pop to the supermarket for some essentials and a thank you gift for Leanne and her colleague. I had to be careful what I spent as my laptop had started running slow and it looked like I needed to buy a new one for work – more expense I could have done without. Here’s what I spent and the prices in lira:
Migros Supermarket
Plastic bag 0.50
2 packets of biscuits 20.00
2 tins of chopped tomatoes 40.00
3 bottles of Angora white wine 470.22
Total spent 530.72 lira (£17.02)
The Angora wine was on offer which was a real bonus so I got a couple of bottles for home. I dropped a bottle of wine and some biscuits off with Leanne to show my appreciation and called into A101 shop on my way home. I bought some fresh figs for 19.90 lira (59p) as I love them.
Vanessa popped over in the afternoon and she brought me Matt’s old laptop to use, which was a real help! She also offered to come with me, back to Fethiye, to take the water bill and see if I would get my residency renewal. Sonuç probably couldn’t make it until later in the week so we decided we would go on Monday – what a good friend she is! For dinner I had another mystery meal from the freezer which I thought was going to be a casserole but it was actually a beef curry which was really good and went well with steamed rice.

Dalyan & Fethiye – 28th September

I’d took the day off work as I was off to my residency renewal appointment in Fethiye at 11.30am on Thursday 28th September. Sonuç picked me up at 9.30am and his first question was did I have a copy of my insurance document to put in the evidence pack, I didn’t. The insurance clerk had emailed it straight to Sonuç at the time of me going in to pay it as I don’t have a printer. We drove to the insurance office, which wasn’t open yet, and he called the clerk who had to come and open up to print us off a copy of the document. We arrived early in Fethiye and Sonuç did all the talking. The lady at the desk opened my file and looked through it for less than 2 minutes before she asked Sonuç for a copy of a bill in my name. I understood what she said and I could feel myself getting annoyed, but I tried to remain calm. Sonuç explained to the staff member that I didn’t need a bill in my name as I was living at my partner’s apartment and, as my landlord, he was paying for all my bills. She was having none of it and put my file in a pile and said to go get a bill in my name. I was given no paperwork or anything in writing, just told to return when I had the bill sorted.
We got to the car, I was so mad and I was trying very hard not to cry. Sonuç suggested that I message Captain Caveman (currently in Majorca) to ask him to get involved in us changing the electric bill in to my name. I had known this would happen as everyone else I knew who had gone for their renewal had been asked to do this, but I was told I would not need a bill in my name.
As we were driving, Captain Caveman messaged me to say he was at a pharmacy in Majorca and he seemed to have caught a rash that was like my eczema and wanted a photo of the packet of pills I had bought in Rhodes. The pharmacist had not been able to identify the drug or give him anything without a prescription so Captain Caveman was quite demanding that I needed to find it as soon as possible. He never asked how I got on at my appointment, he didn’t seem to care and had probably forgotten. Even when I explained I was in the car with Sonuç coming back from Fethiye, he still didn’t ask and I was even more cheesed off.
Sonuç dropped me off at home and said to let him know when Captain Caveman and I had got a utility bill in my name and if he was available he would come with me, back to Fethiye. He assured me that my residency had been renewed on condition that I provide the bill but I didn’t have the paperwork to say this and I was leaving the country in 8 days. I said bye, knowing that it would be another 2-3 weeks until it was possible for Captain Caveman to change the bill and my residency expired the week after that so it would be pushing it a bit, especially taking weekends in to account.
I got home, went through the bin to find the medication packet for Captain Caveman, took a photo and sent it to him for him to say he didn’t need it now!!!!
I made myself some prawn and egg fried rice for lunch and then went back to bed, hoping that things might feel better after a sleep!
I was still feeling out of sorts and cheesed off when I woke up but a bit of sausage casserole for dinner made me feel a little better. When I spoke to Captain Caveman on a video chat I told him I wasn’t happy, he wasn’t either. He was feeling ill but was on his way to Madrid. I made overnight oats before bed so that I could try to stick to my Slimming World plan this week. Having paid a lot out for my residency I also needed to be on a tighter budget – I wouldn’t be going out for drinks and meals for a couple of weeks by the looks of it.