Lardos – 8th May

Having not managed to do my plank or squat challenge yesterday I made the effort when I got up on Monday 8th May. I completed 50 seconds of squats but only 60 seconds plank then Carol, from Fat Club, reminded me that it should’ve been 60 seconds of squats so I did it again. I had an impromptu day off, had slept really well and had a slice of leftover pizza for breakfast. Xena, Steve and Michelle’s dog, was super excited to see me – Trixie, the cat, less so. My hosts were already in the office and were working hard while I unpacked and pottered about.
At 12.30pm we all went to Yamas Cafe in Lardos, which was a short walk from the house. Steve and Michelle had coffees while I had a hot chocolate (the diet was not going too well). We all had a fresh orange juice after that and then it was time to get back for lunch and back to work for some. We had left over pizza with salad and it was pretty tasty – I think the €45 was money well spent on all that pizza.
In the afternoon I met one of the other cats, Pixie, she was friendly but a little shy. There were quite a few outdoor cats which were going to take a while to learn the names of.
While Michelle whipped up one of my favourite dinners, I offered to go to the shop to buy some cheese and wine. We were having pork products, cheese and wine for dinner and I was so excited. Xena and Trixi had also heard about it and were hoping there would be some sharing going on. At the shop, I found the cheese easy to pick out and it wasn’t too expensive (compared to Turkey). The wine was very reasonably priced but I had no clue which one to pick as most only had the tasting notes written in Greek. I opted for one that had it also translated to English, sounded nice and was a Merlot.
For those of you who like to know what’s in my shopping basket and how much it cost for cheese and wine in Rhodes, look no further:

Lardos Supermarket:
330g Edam cheese 2.15
100g Blue cheese 2.58
200g Cheddar cheese 4.72
1 bottle Merlot 8.87
Total spent 18.32 Euros (£15.67)

The food was absolutely superb and I had to remind myself not to be too greedy with the pork products as I snaffled my way through the different ones! Even the selection of crackers was fantastic. Unfortunately, the wine I had bought was pretty disgusting – in fact it’s unusual for me not to be able to drink iffy wine but this was pretty rank. None of us could drink it so Michelle and I went back to the shop for another bottle of something better. This time she was able to help me pick out one of the Greek ones which she recognised as being good. It was the one I had picked up first but put back because I couldn’t read the Greek label. The new bottle was €10.45 (£8.94) and was much better! It was a lovely night and even Xena and Trixi got a little cheese treat before bed time.

Dalyan – 3rd May

It was Fat Club day again on Wednesday 3rd May and what a day it would turn out to be for my last Wednesday in Dalyan. It was less than 13 hours until my parents landed at Dalaman airport, less than 4 days until I would be on my way to Rhodes and 10 days until I arrived in Ho Chi Minh city, Vietnam, to meet Captain Caveman.
I took my measurements; I’d lost 2cm from my bust, 1cm from my hips but my waist (where I needed to lose it the most) had stayed the same. In another last ditch attempt to lose weight today I did 70 seconds squat, 90 seconds plank, 30 crunches and 20 leg lifts – it was very difficult! For breakfast I only had chickpea biscuits and courgette tortilla with a cup of Yorkshire tea. At 12.30pm I had an appointment with Emrah, my hairdresser, for a cut, colour and styling. I ended up having my hair washed by Mehmet instead of one of the girls, as it was busy and he did a great job. After finishing my hair, Emrah took a few photos for me and I couldn’t help thinking that Edna would be pleased I still had the cavalier look to match her.

I decided I would wear one of my newly acquired dresses to Fat Club as I had a feeling I’d be going out after, to meet the pool gang for the last time in a while.
When I got on Carol’s scales I had lost 0.5kg (1.1lb) so I was pleased with that. I had now lost 8.2kg (18lb) in total and it was definitely noticeable. I got a lift round to Rehab bar with Carol where I proceeded to have 2 celebratory draft beers. I bumped in to Dan, who I’d played pool with before, and he was having a daiquiri at the bar. He’d gone for a red fruit one to detract from his rather pink and painful looking sunburn. Carol and I joined Kate, Pamela, Gareth and Julie, sat outside Rehab until the sun went in. Carol was a bit giddy at how much weight I’d lost and insisted we took photos in the street. Kaan, the Tequila boat captain, stopped by to say hello and liked my new leopard print dress and my new weight loss, he even asked if I still had a husband! I obviously let him know I was still very much with Captain Caveman and was off to see him soon. After getting chatting to Gareth and Julie I was almost late for my next engagement of the day. I had been invited by Ann to her daughter, Jacqueline’s birthday celebration at Sofra bar and I was looking forward to it.

I joined Ann, Jacqueline, Lee, Jamie and Drew at Sofra bar for birthday celebrations at 7.30pm. My parents were currently on their flight to Dalaman and would arrive in a couple of hours but planned to go straight to their apartment. Jacqueline and Lee had flown in from Manchester earlier today and Ann had organised a cake from Louize as a surprise. I wasn’t going to have any cake due to the fact that I was meant to be on a diet but I was ‘forced’ in to it and it’s one of the best ones of Louize’s I’ve had. I had picked up Daisy’s sunglasses when I left Rehab bar, and had them in my bag. She messaged to ask the whereabouts of them which gave me the idea to send her photos of everyone around me wearing them. My reply to Daisy being ‘do you mean these?’ Even the staff, the dogs (including a stray that wanted in on the fun), and some other friends got involved. Şükrü made Jac do a birthday shot with him and she chose apple sourz! By 10.30pm the birthday celebrations were over and everyone paid up and got ready to leave. I, on the other hand, and not had my hair done and put a frock on for me to go home early. My Mom had messaged to say they had arrived but weren’t coming out as they were tired from travelling. Mom said she would message tomorrow so we could finally see each other again.

I went to meet Wendy, from Sheffield, and friends in Rodrigo’s bar and ended up giving the ball a right kick with Wendy, Jackie, Turgay, Kirsty, Sally, Sandra, Mal, Alice, Savaş and Ozzy. It must have been about 3am when we got turfed out and made our way home.
I didn’t cook myself any random meals when I got in but I did set my alarm so that I’d be up and ready to see my parents in the morning.

Dalyan – 20th & 21st April

After a rather boozy and cheesy last night, I decided that Thursday 20th April needed to be a good day. I made pancakes from banana and egg (nothing else) and had them with a fruit salad and chickpea biscuits for an amazing and healthy breakfast.
By lunch time I was tucking in to a warmed up chicken, lentil, aubergine and cauliflower curry with steamed rice, which was also syn free and tasty.
I decided that while I was in the biscuit making mood to nip to the shop to restock on ingredients. I drew more money out of the bank and popped to the A101supermarket where I bought the following;

Becel spread 17.45
Mushrooms 17.50
2 lots of chickpeas 47.50
1 pair of orange shoes 79.95
Total spent 162.40 lira (£6.70)

When I got home and put on my new jazzy shoes, then I sent a photo of them to Jamie, who had always wondered who on earth would wear such shit! On my way in, I had noticed how tidy the outside area was looking for the guests at B1.
I made chicken with black bean sauce and steamed rice for dinner, another low syn meal with extra veggies in. It was an early night for me as I wanted to be up early tomorrow.

On Friday 21st April I attempted what is known in Slimming World terms, as a Speed day. This involved eating only certain veg, meat, dairy and grain – no carbs were allowed. I had an apple, an orange and some strawberries with a cup of tea for breakfast. I had leftover chicken in black bean sauce with bread for lunch and then looked in to what I could have that would fill me up for dinner. I decided to make a courgette grilled cheese ‘sandwich’ type of thing; grated 2 courgettes, and added an egg then mixed it together and put it in to pancake shapes, cooked in the oven so no oil, then melted cheese in the middle. It was so great to say I’d managed no potatoes, rice or pasta today.
I collected some jars from a lady called Michelle, who was giving them away, as they come in handy. Then I went to Jamie’s to borrow his phone again to call my English bank, the complaint I had was turning in to an absolute joke and no one seemed to be able to help at all.
Later, I had a walk with Jamie, Drew and the pooches where we called for a cold beverage at Bistro Blue. I had a diet coke as a treat but when we got the bill I realised soft drinks were 50 lira (£2.06) but a beer was only 60 lira (£2.48) – I won’t make that mistake again in a hurry. Of course, Norman and Edna got free water and we were all made welcome by Selahı and Annie, the owners. We bumped in to Mark and Kate who’d been out and about, both wearing summer wear. I commented on Kate not feeling cold in her short shorts and Mark asked why I was dressed for skiing, which was funny. My clothes were starting to look too baggy on me because of me having lost a total of 7.3kg (16lb) now, so I didn’t have many options of what I could wear. Back home, I was still hungry not having had any carbs, so I snacked on turkey, lettuce and gherkins before bed!

Dalyan – 19th April

The home scales were favourable on Wednesday 19th April, when I got weighed first thing. My measurements were a bit disappointing as I’d lost 2cm from my bust, increased 1cm on my waist and 2cm on my hips! I still had to wait until 3pm for Carol’s scales at Fat Club so I had a banana for breakfast and checked my emails. My boss, had booked my flight from Rhodes to Athens for the 13th May, I was off to meet Captain Caveman in Saigon. The gaffer has also asked if I would mind bringing him some coffee and some lube over when I arrived by ferry on the 7th May! It’s one of the more unusual requests I’ve had from a boss but I had to clarify what kind of coffee it might be; Nescafe Gold and strawberry lube! Of course, I immediately messaged Jamie to find out where was the best place to get lube from in Dalyan and they sell it in Migros, apparently. I could just imagine the wagging tongues eager to gossip from anyone who glimpsed my shopping basket on that trip! Incidentally, strawberry lube is syn free, in case anyone wondered!
There was more waiting on the complex residents to agree the light and filter situation as I went off to Fat Club. I was disappointed, but not surprised, to find I had put 0.2kg on this week on Carol’s scales. One of the ladies was going back to the UK for a few weeks and had brought her surplus vegetables in, which she very kindly gave to me. There was news that local rock band, The Bengisu Boys, had a gig lined up for the 4th May at Jazz Bistro and I hoped I’d get to go with my parents.
In the afternoon, I made some chickpea biscuits using drained chickpeas, mustard powder, seasoning, egg and parmesan. They turned out really well and were syn free so I decided I would take them with me to the cheese and wine evening at Jamie’s. He and Drew had invited me, Ann, Nanny Kay and Katrina over for a soirée and I was taking Jacob’s Cream Crackers, red wine and the freshly baked chickpea biscuits.
Drew had brought some fantastic cheeses over from England and the spread was an absolute delight. Even my chickpea biscuits went down well and, of course, so did the wine. The chat started sensible but I was shocked to find out there is a sex shop in Ortaca and loose plans for a visit were made. I didn’t get in until 1.30am, a little merry and stuffed full of cheese!

Dalyan – 5th April

The Aussies were leaving for their road trip early on Wednesday 5th April so I’d been invited to have breakfast with them before they set off. The Turkish people here, tend not to get up early for breakfast and I thought we might struggle to find somewhere open.
I went downstairs, as planned, at 8am, it had rained in the night and there were checks being done on the woodwork outside, which looked great. I also had to have a look at the improvements they had been working on last night. Greg drove us to Ekin around 8.30am where we were met by a rather large slobbering black dog, called Negro, who was super friendly. The owner asked us if we could wait for half an hour while he got set up and so we walked about a bit, taking some photos of the beautiful lake.
I wasn’t going to eat the Turkish breakfast for 2 reasons; 1, it often gives me a bad stomach and 2, I had Fat Club weigh-in at 3pm. I realised it would be considered rude to just watch Amanda and Greg eat so I decided to go for it. It was my first Turkish breakfast this year! Just as it was served, it started to rain and we had to move inside. The scenic views were now no longer picture perfect and we were lucky to have seen the lake views we did, before the rain came.
The breakfast was amazing and I really enjoyed it but I knew it would mean a gain on the scales. I ate cheese, jam, honey, bread, cheese rolls, olives, chips and 2 types of savoury gözleme (Turkish pancakes), washed down with Turkish tea and a fresh pomegranate juice. We couldn’t finish it all so Amanda packed 2 small Tupperware boxes up (that’s why I love her) and gave me one with the cheese in. The total bill came to 585 lira (£24) which, considering how much food is provided, was a bargain. Of course, before we even got back in the car, I had stomach issues. Back home we packed the car up with luggage, in the rain, then said our goodbyes. Even Kitler, the abandoned cat, came to say farewell.
I almost didn’t go to Fat Club because I knew it would be disappointing but I forced myself to find out how much damage a Turkish breakfast on weigh day could do.

At Fat club, the inevitable happened; I had gained weight! It was only 1.1kg (2.4lb) but that was enough to undo the previous losses and I only had myself to blame! A more sensible person might have then decided to rectify the bad result by being really good. However, as some of you could have predicted, that was not what happened and I got a lift up to Rehab bar with Carol. I ended up ordering a bottle of wine, as it works out a bit cheaper than having several glasses. I didn’t finish it all as I had to leave to meet Jamie and Ann at Aşkın’s bar. Tay wrote my name on it and said he’d save it for me.
When I arrived at Aşkın’s, Jamie and Ann were already there and had been joined by Mark and Pamela. I ordered a red wine and we all had a nice drink, it’s one of my favourite bars to sit and people watch usually. After a drink there we moved on to Sofra bar for a bit more refreshment.
By 10.30pm, I was leaving Sofra bar with Jamie to go to Umit’s birthday drinks at Sunset bar. Our friend Annie had invited us along and Pamela was already there, as was Yusuf the pharmacist and the flower girl. I had a glass of red wine, Jamie had a glass of white. We thought we were only there for 30 minutes, saying hello to Annie and her friends. Jamie and I do not remember dancing there, having more drinks or leaving but it turns out we were there 90 minutes and had 3 drinks.

We were back in Sofra by midnight, Mark had rejoined us too, and it turned in to quite a night – not that Jamie or I could remember much of it. The photos were a big help to work out the rest of the evening but it was a little concerning.

Photo credit – Greg Le Couteur

Dalyan – 31st March

I met Jamie on Friday 31st March for a dog walk and a bit of a treat. At the bank Halıl, the security guard, let Jamie go in to the branch with Norman and Edna. Edna loved it and went over to the counter for a good nosey. Norman sniffed out the resident cat who was not phased in the slightest. After a walk through town, we went to Ela’s Kitchen for breakfast – I’d missed it there. This time, I just had the small sized English breakfast (without egg or tomato), not the large, as I would usually. Jamie loves the Menemen there so he had that and he ordered an extra sausage for the dogs to share. The food was fantastic and meant I would only need a small lunch. The small set breakfast was 140 lira (£5.90) and Jamie’s menemen with chips was 130 lira (£5.50). The English tea (Yorkshire or Tetley’s) is 40 lira (£1.68) per cup and the freshly squeezed orange juice is 55 lira (£2.31). It’s been 15 months since I was able to go back to England so I like to have an English breakfast from time to time as a treat. I would say Ela’s Kitchen has one of the best breakfasts in town. Norman and Edna can definitely recommend Sev’s sausage and they could hardly wait for it to cool down. I pretended to eat some of it and Edna was cross with me.
Back home, I found a ribbon to tie up my bike stand, which meant I could use it again. I ate stuffed vine leaves and 5 walnut halves for lunch then, at 2pm I went to my weekly Turkish class, which was good. In the evening I made myself some veggie steamed rice then went downstairs to call for Amanda and Greg. We ended up going to Sofra bar where we met up with Carol, of Fat Club fame. She was a temporary football widow as her fella and the lads watched the match. Jamie, who was out with his neighbours (Christine and David), came to join us too. The Aussies decided to go home after the one drink, maybe they had heard about my karaoke skills. Not one to be put off having a good time, I carried on without them. Jamie’s neighbours were absolutely lovely and I got myself a third red wine to join them. The red wine is 65 lira (£2.74) a glass in Sofra bar and is a decent one. It again turned in to one of those nights where I sang karaoke; ‘Simply the Best’ definitely wasn’t, as I didn’t know it very well but it’s Jamie’s song and I had to oblige. I murdered Adele’s ‘Someone Like You’ then roped Nigel into ‘Islands in the Stream’ which definitely wasn’t our best song.
I got in after midnight and accidentally ate some Easter egg chocolate because I’d not had a proper dinner and was hungry. The good thing is, though, I’d only spent 200 lira (£8.25) and was still drunk but under today’s budget. As it was the last day of the month I’d already worked out how I was doing on the March budget goal that I had set for myself. It was a miracle but I was under by 993.18 lira (just over £40) and I was delighted with that. I had survived a whole month spending less than £10 per day average – it had not been easy! My weight loss for March had not been as successful as I had hoped, I was only 1.6kg (3.5lb) lighter than at the start of the month. It was still twice the amount I lost in February but I needed to try harder in April. With the start of the holiday season here now, there was going to be even more temptation and opportunity and I wasn’t sure my willpower was up to it.

Jamie’s video of me singing Tina Turner in Sofra bar

Jamie’s video of me singing Adele in Sofra bar

Dalyan – 20th March

I’d like to have been writing that I had stuck to the diet a little more on Monday 20th March. I’d consumed 86 syns in one day yesterday but today was definitely no better. For breakfast I had strawberries and then a second breakfast of homemade masaman curry with steamed rice.
At 1pm I joined a free course which was about setting up an online business. It was interesting and I quite enjoyed it, although timing-wise it wasn’t going to be something I could pursue immediately.
I noticed the gardening company had made a big difference and I even took photos and video so that I could show Captain Caveman and The Aussies. Just after 3pm, I got a message from Kate to say her and Mark were having a beer at Okyanos with Jamie and Drew if I fancied it. Drew had been to collect some seeds from Kate and, as it was sunny, they’d decided on a cheeky beer in the sun. This was my last Monday of not being at work so I think subconsciously I’d decided to go mad!

I turned up looking very tired from last night’s antics and had to have a shandy to drink. We decided to go to Aşkın’s bar as Kate thought it was open, but we were a bit premature. Mark and Kate went to Tez’s instead but I needed to pop back home and change my top. By 5.30pm Jamie, Drew and I were sat outside at Waterfall bar having another beer or 2 in the sun. Drew went to get Norman and Edna because Skippy was in and Edna would be mad if she didn’t get to see him. Mark and Kate rejoined us for one but they weren’t staying out much longer on account of them wearing summer wear and it turning a bit nippy once the sun was in. Janet and Kev came to join us and there was quite a crowd sat outside. Instead of being good and sticking to my diet and my budget, I decided to join the boys for a treat. Because I’d finally got some more money I’d been owed for a while, I agreed to tag along for a meal at China Town with them.

I ended up having 90 syns in total today because I shared Jamie’s bottle of white wine, ate prawn crackers, a spring roll, a piece of prawn toast, a chicken wing and half of my sweet and sour chicken with chicken fried rice. It was so lovely but I knew it would mean a bad result at weigh-in this week. The meal with drinks had cost me 600 lira (just over £25) so it was rather pricey for my tight budget, but it tasted amazing!!!

Dalyan – 16th March

On Thursday 16th March I had 1 slice of buttered wholemeal toast, and a linden tea for breakfast. Outside, there were signs of a gardener here, Elite Maintenance had started work on our communal garden!
I had decided to be extravagant and treat myself to a very much needed hairdresser appointment as I’d not been since September. Because it’s a luxury and I’m on a tight budget, I didn’t want to spend money on my hair but it really needed sorting out. Some of the ladies at Fat Club had been talking yesterday that prices were due to go up again in April so it was urgent that I got in. Emrah’s very busy but he’d got me an appointment for noon and I could see he couldn’t wait to tackle my grey roots! I had a full hair dye, a cut, and curls (even though I said there was no need for the curls). It cost 600 lira (£25.53) which is very good value but had gone up by 34% in 6 months.
Once home, I packed and got ready for my pick up from Lukka bar as I was leaving Dalyan for a couple of days or so. I’d arranged to meet Mark at Lukka bar for a quick drink.
I was just drinking water but my lift was running late so I decided to have a beer. Of course the driver turned up before I’d had much of it so I gave my beer to Mark and said my goodbyes. I would be away until Sunday so my blog posts would have a little rest for the next 2 days.

Dalyan – 11th & 12th March

I was starting to really like feeling fresh on a weekend after not having boozy nights out. Saturday 11th March was one of those times, which was lucky as I was off for a bit of house and dog sitting for Jamie. He and Drew were off for a cheeky night away in Fethiye. I had a banana and a linden tea then popped over to Jamie’s with my overnight bag. Norman and Edna were of course pleased to see me but they were both still a bit snoozy. The weather wasn’t good and the dogs weren’t too bothered about going out in the rain. This was good news because we were waiting for a delivery to arrive any time from 10am. I had taken over some chicken, aubergine, cauliflower and lentil curry to have for lunch and I had a treat of some nan bread to go with it. It tasted really nice and was very healthy too.
I took all the ingredients to make a chicken casserole, which I did ready for dinner, with jacket potatoes. I made enough to have some another day while I had the oven on.
My dinner was nice, I resisted any wine but did have cheese on toast for a snack before bed. I still had 3 days left until Fat Club but had already consumed my weekly syn allowance – I hoped a bit of dog walking would help.

There was no chance of sleeping in on Sunday 12th March. Norman and Edna were awake at 7.20am and Norman was particularly wriggly. We went downstairs for pees and poos (the dogs, not me) then I made a cup of tea. It was raining out so I didn’t take it back to bed on account of the dogs now being a little damp. The weather forecast showed it was due to rain for the next 5 days. I had strawberries, banana, fat free yoghurt and honey for breakfast with a linden tea. Norman and Edna got lots of sofa cuddles while watching TV and I didn’t even get dressed until gone 11am. The dogs looked tired and were reluctant to go for their walkies because of the rain.
When we did go walking we found ourselves caught in a heavy rain shower. Norman wasn’t too bothered by it but I could sense Edna was all ready to complain to Jamie about the state of her curly ears! I got towels and dried them both but Edna did look kind of bedraggled. I gave them a treat for being good in the rain and we watched a bit of TV. I’d just warmed up a jacket potato for my lunch when Jamie and Drew arrived back. They had really enjoyed their break away too and they filled me in on their evening shenanigans. I ate my lunch while Jamie told me they had found a lovely Gay Bar in Fethiye and when I asked where it was they told me it was the Deep Blue Bar! Well, this was our favourite haunt in Fethiye where the Deep Blue Leg-ends group was formed. I was looking forward to letting fellow members Steve, Michelle, Vanessa, Matt, Mark, Kate, Ma & Pa know about it now being a Gay Bar!
I packed up all my stuff and went back home, the rain wasn’t too bad and I noticed there was going to be a new fish market in the square, opposite the shoe man. It was a bit chilly back at our apartment as I started making a vegan lasagne with the left over vegan bolognese – it’s surprising how far lentils go! I also put the leftover chicken casserole in the fridge and would have it another day. The lasagne looked shoddy but it tasted really good and was filling. I was really pleased to have had a super healthy weekend and today I’d only used 1 syn for honey. Before bed, I decided to do a quick recky of where I was with my March budget so far this month. I was feeling proud of myself for having a whole weekend where I had not spent any money whatsoever. In these 12 days I’d set myself a tough target but I was so chuffed to be 297.29 lira (£12.65) under budget. I just hoped I could maintain this level of frugality and still enjoy the challenge, as I had been doing. For doing so well, I decided I was going to allow myself to spend money on something I really wanted next week, a luxury! I was so wrapped up in my frugal and healthy goings on that I almost didn’t notice that my parents had not returned from their holiday, as they should have, today!

Dalyan – 5th March

Captain Caveman was back in Son Doong on Sunday 5th March, it was 7 years today since I did the cave trip with him! Here in Dalyan, the weather was meant to be terrible today but it wasn’t actually raining (yet). I had my cup of Yorkshire tea and strawberries with Quark for breakfast. I was also planning ahead because I’d been invited for Sunday dinner with Jamie and Drew at their villa later. Thoughtfully, they had even checked if I still wanted to have roast potatoes and Yorkshire pudding due to me ‘being good’ and I obviously said that I did. I was still on half as many syns than I used to be so I figured I’d chance it. I did say I wouldn’t be joining them in drinking wine though – that would test the willpower.
For lunch I had the vegan spaghetti bolognese which I was really into now, but no parmesan as I was hoping for cauliflower and broccoli cheese at Jamie’s.
Just as it was time to get ready to go out the torrential rain came, Jamie offered to come and get me in the car but I borrowed Captain Caveman’s waterproof rain jacket and walked over there. I had a couple of gin and sodas but resisted wine. Jamie had been busy decorating ‘my’ bedroom and so I went to have a look. If he’d asked me my opinion on the colours pink and grey, before he started, it wouldn’t have been my thing, but it did look very nice. The Sunday dinner was devine. The starter was a really healthy soup made from broccoli, cauliflower, potato, onion, garlic and was well seasoned. For main we had chicken, the skin removed and waiting for Norman and Edna to get their chops round. I had 3 roast potatoes, 1 Yorkshire pudding, a big spoonful of cauliflower and broccoli cheese and a good portion of carrots. I really enjoyed it and we had a good laugh. Drew got rather tipsy and ended up going out to the the corner shop for more wine in his slippers, in the rain!
I came home at a reasonable hour and had an early night. I’d also managed to have a really lovely Sunday, only drinking 2 gin and soda waters.

Dalyan – 1st March

Rather than get stressed about lack of money in March, I decided that I would focus on a plan to get through the month. I knew I’d be ok but I just had to be really careful and I had worked out a strict budget until I was back working again. From today, Wednesday 1st March, I would only allow myself to spend a certain amount each day. I was attempting to live on 40% less than Turkey’s minimum wage for this month and I was ready for the challenge!
I had wholemeal toast with cream cheese and a cup of Yorkshire tea for breakfast, then I got on the scales at home. I was the same as last week, but Carol’s scales at Fat Club would, once again, be the judge at 3pm. I took my measurements and they didn’t look too peachy either;
Bust +1cm,
Waist no change,
Hips +1cm,
Right thigh +1.5cm,
Left thigh +0.5cm,
Calves no change.
An art auction was taking place later this month to raise money for the earthquake survivors so I unpacked some artwork I had. I’d brought 4 Egyptian fine art prints, by David Roberts, over a few years ago but had never put them on the walls, mainly because I don’t have any walls to put them on. I decided I might be able to sell them at the event but when I looked at the value they were worth over £1,000! Kate suggested getting in touch with 2 of the well known art dealers in town, which I did, thinking if I could sell them I could give half to the earthquake fund and keep half for myself. Unfortunately, they were a bit niche for potential Dalyan customers and I didn’t get anywhere with it. Kate kindly offered to transport them back to the UK but it seemed another waste of money, I would bide my time, and be on the look out for someone who appreciates Egyptian fine art.
At lunch time I got a welcome surprise, I’d received some money that I’d been owed. I didn’t even eat lunch as I went straight to the bank to take out some cash.
At Fat Club it was a really hot day and there was plenty of us at the group today, which was nice. Carol gave us all a bit of a refresher on what the allowances were and how to calculate our syns. I was gobsmacked to find I had not known we could have 2 lots of Healthy A options which is calcium. Since I’d done Slimming World before, the allowance had doubled and I had not realised this – I was so happy about being allowed double the amount of cheese! I got weighed and was relieved to find that I had lost 0.3kg (0.7lb). I was still a little disappointed, though, as I’d only consumed 160 syns this week, of which 61 were alcohol. I’d had 6 days of zero alcohol, 6 days of exercise and 2 meat free days, in fact this was one of my most sensible weeks so far. Carol and the rest of the group were very encouraging and made sure I was still focused on the goal, a loss was a loss and I wasn’t to get too discouraged. One of the ladies had the same happen to her and we thought it might be that my body was getting used to the food I was eating. I drank a 1.5 litre bottle of water for the hour that I was at Nil Lounge hoping to keep my water intake up as much as possible. This week I would try my best to eat well and have lots of fruit and vegetables.
After Fat Club, I walked with Andrea and Kate to Rehab bar where I treated myself to 1 beer – my first in 11 days.
We had a laugh with the pool group and then Jamie came to pick me up on Derek the scooter. We’d decided to pop to Lukka bar for a bit and I got dropped off at the Turtle Roundabout. I was walking over to Lukka bar when I saw Charlie, the dog, he was walking with Gill, he saw me and went berserk. We stopped traffic and he nearly knocked my glasses off with all the kisses he wanted to give me. It was emotional and it was so lovely to see him still remember me.
At Lukka I had 3 soda waters and Jamie asked me if I would come to the music bingo night on Friday. We booked in to join the Beverley Sisters and their friends, plus Drew would be back in Dalyan then so it was a good excuse for a night out.
That evening I had a gorgeous dinner; chicken, carrots, cauliflower, broccoli, roast potatoes, stuffing and Yorkshire puddings. I even had some of Kate’s lemon drizzle cake for afters. I was pleased to have been out but still kept within my budget today, I’d spent a total of 144 lira (£6).

Dalyan – 24th February

I treated myself on Friday 24th February to a teaspoon of honey on my strawberries, pineapple and quark for breakfast – well it was a Friday! I put all the ingredients for a chicken, pumpkin and lentil curry in the slow cooker and had left over sweet and sour chicken with noodles for lunch. I decided to have Gorgonzola cheese with walnuts for a dessert and then got ready for my Turkish class at Lukka bar that afternoon. We had a good class and I was enjoying learning more sentences that might come in handy. After the class, Mark came to meet me for a drink where I decided, as it was the weekend, I would have a glass of red wine. After one at Lukka we went to Tez bar and I had a second red wine while sat in the sun. Jamie and I had arranged to do the dog walk along the river then pop in to Waterfall bar so I left Mark with some other Tez-pats. On the walk through town Jamie and I saw Debbie (Darling), Gill and Nikki having an afternoon drink in Sofra bar and said we might pop back later, without the dogs. We also saw Jackie and Chris in there and had a nice chat, Norman and Edna fancied a beverage and didn’t understand why they couldn’t go in.
After dropping off the dogs at home, Jamie and I left Waterfall and popped in to Sofra to join Debbie (Darling) and her mates. Jamie stuck to coffee but I had another red wine before Mark, on his way from Tez bar, called in. Jamie and I had anticipated Mark would not be going home yet so Jamie had brought out the dog lead. Now Mark could be kept under control while Kate worried about him from Bristol. Debbie (Darling) had an alternative solution to destressing; a round of Slippery Nipples were ordered and the necking of them insisted on! Jackie and Chris joined us, they were more sensible and stuck to vodka or wine rather than silly shots. I knew I couldn’t stay out late as I had the curry in the slow cooker so, when Jamie went home for dinner I made the next Slippery Nipple my last. Debbie (Darling) kindly paid for the shots and then she headed home while Mark, Gill and Nikki headed to Rodrigo’s. I decided that I wouldn’t manage all of the chicken and pumpkin curry to myself so I invited Jackie and Chris round to help me eat it. On the way to mine, Chris bought white wine for Jackie to drink but he and I decided to open the Finnish vodka. I made some rice in the rice cooker and I kept forgetting I had defrosted a nan bread. The curry was a little over done as it had been on for a while but it tasted ok and we all enjoyed the night. I didn’t even realise that I could still get music on my TV until Chris sorted it out.

Dalyan – 22nd February

When I got up on Wednesday 22nd February I was a bit fragile, I’d gone to bed about 3am when I had woke up a bit chilly on Mark and Kate’s sofa. Mark was already up and about, had fed the cats and was cleaning the kitchen cupboard fronts when I emerged. I got a cup of tea and a little later I decided to walk home. I got a few hundred metres when Tayfur showed up on his new motorbike and gave me a lift to Rehab bar – it was very whizzy.
On the way home I called at the pharmacy where I got another box of pills for 150 lira (£6.44) and some imodium for 20 lira (86p).
Back home I was keen to know my weight, I got on the scales and had lost a little bit but Carol’s scales would be the true test. I did my measurements and they were pretty good;
Bust -2cm,
Waist and hips no change,
Right thigh and calf -0.5cm
Left thigh +0.5cm
Right calf no change.
I had strawberries and a herbal tea for breakfast then went for a walk. I managed to catch up on the 2nd day of the Decluttering Bootcamp where I had a challenge based on some action that I would need to take.
For lunch I had more vegetable soup with pasta and then went over to Jamie’s to let Norman and Edna out. Jamie was at an appointment in another town with Nanny Kay so I just spent an hour with the dogs at lunch time. Edna was so excited to see me that she went straight in for cuddles and wanting to sit on my lap, Norman seemed a bit cheesed off that I’d woken him up and he paced about a bit. Edna was wriggling about and when I laughed at her new hair do she was confused, Norman came up on the sofa for snuggles and we tried to get a group selfie. Edna was up for it, once her appearance was sorted, Norman less so. Amazingly, at Fat Club, I had lost 0.7kg (1.5lb) and was happy with that. I had a diet coke there and then walked to Rehab bar for 2 soda waters while chatting to the pool group.
I left about 5pm, called to get some bread and, when I got home, I treated myself to a cheese sandwich and some mantı, Turkish ravioli. I waited up until 10pm to do the next decluttering challenge about vision and I did a couple of tasks on the back of it.

Dalyan – 21st February

I had a banana, Kate’s fruit salad, with added strawberries, pineapple, and quark for breakfast on Tuesday 21st February. I also tried some Linden tea which Jamie had brought me to sooth a bad stomach. It seemed to work and I wasn’t affected by the banana, like before. For lunch I had some healthy bits and pieces in an effort to get a good weigh-in result tomorrow at Fat Club. Kate was off to the UK this afternoon so had asked me and a couple of other friends to ‘look after’ Mark while she was away.
Even though it was Pancake Day today, I decided I would have mine tomorrow, after Fat Club. In the afternoon I met up with Jamie, Norman and Edna and we had a dog walk along the river then Edna insisted we call in to the Waterfall bar. She had forgotten that it was a Tuesday and Skippy doesn’t go in on a Tuesday. I had a diet coke and 2 wines, we were joined by John, Andrea and Mark on their way home from Tez bar.
Captain Caveman had been at his briefing for his next Son Doong trip but had managed to get a quick call in, which I took outside. We had a rough plan that I would be visiting Phong Nha, as well as having some holidays in both Vietnam and Singapore. I would only stay for 6 weeks which meant I had no visa issues and would be leaving Phong Nha when the weather was unbearable in July and August.
Jamie went home to feed the dogs and have his own dinner, John and Andrea said bye too, then Mark and I bought some wine and milk at the shop, got Fikri’s taxi to mine where I picked up a bag. We drove to Mark’s and he fed the cats then reheated us up some leftover Chinese for dinner and opened the wine. The cats that stayed in were super cute and were happy to settle in to their beds for the night. We decided to watch a film, drink wine and later have cheese, chorizo and Ritz crackers. The diet had fallen short again and I’m sure it would mean a bad result tomorrow at Fat Club. It also meant that I had missed day 2 of the Decluttering Bootcamp, luckily I could catch up tomorrow on replay. It was after midnight when Mark went to bed and left me asleep on the recliner sofa, I’d obviously nodded off during the film.

Dalyan – 20th February

My week started quite positively on Monday 20th February! I confirmed a house and pet sitting job in Rhodes. I checked out some flights and chatted to Captain Caveman about the possibility of going to Vietnam from Athens, in May.
For breakfast I just had a cup of Yorkshire tea and some orange juice, left by Kate yesterday. I decided to go out for a walk as I needed to run a few errands and get some exercise in. I called at the stationers to buy a notebook and pencil which cost just 35 lira (£1.50). I went to the pharmacy to buy contraceptive pills and order more, one month’s worth was now 163 lira (£7) and they were in short supply. For lunch I had the rest of the fresh bread with tomato soup and gorgonzola cheese. Today would be a no meat, no alcohol and more exercise kind of a day.
In the afternoon I decided to take my Marks and Spencer black boots to the cobbler as one of them had a cut in the rubber soul. I went for a walk around Gülpınar, checked on my parents’ place and then walked the long way back after about an hour. The boots had been repaired at a cost of 280 lira (£12) which was quite an unexpected expense but cheaper than buying a new pair. Rain was forecast later in the month so I needed these or to buy some wellies.
I had a banana for a snack then had a bad stomach again – I don’t even like bananas. For dinner I had left over leek and potato soup from Jamie and I added some cooked pasta to make it even more filling.
Around 6pm Jamie popped round, with Norman and Edna, as he was passing on his evening dog walk. The dogs were really excited to visit and were so happy to see me and be allowed on the sofa for cuddles.
In the evening, I stayed up to join the first one of Heather’s Decluttering Bootcamps at 10pm (Turkish time) and I found it really interesting. It was all about planning, Heather did a live session where she taught us how to plan to declutter a specific small part of our home and then set us a challenge to do. We would post our outcome in the group and then join for the next challenge tomorrow at the same time.