I was missing 2 important events in Dalyan on Friday 19th June; my friend’s 60th birthday boat trip and the arrival of Sausage Dick and his wife. Both knew I would no longer be there for them today and were very supportive and pleased that I would instead be enjoying Day 3 of a luxury river cruise Fam trip. We’d spoken and rescheduled our meet ups so I was free to get on with my jam-packed day along the Danube. I woke up to an unfamiliar sound and found myself in a first-time situation; we were in a lock! It was fascinating watching from my picture window, in a robe as I drank orange juice, tea and buttered my toast. Daniel, my butler, had already arranged for my rather large breakfast to be delivered to my cabin this morning. This was an absolute feast which set me up for the day! I loved being able to choose between getting dressed to eat breakfast in the ship’s dining room, or to lounge on the sofa in my cabin, wearing my robe. We had a free morning to relax and I had intended to visit the spa before lunch. Unfortunately, I had selected a detox shot on my breakfast menu, not knowing what it was. I necked it, only to find it was an excruciatingly strong vinegar of some sort. I felt like my teeth would melt and that my throat and my insides were being burned. I tried to rectify the matter by having all the suitable liquids I could gather; water, orange & cranberry juices and tea – nothing soothed me. What a rookie error and the uncomfortable feeling lasted all morning! The rest of the breakfast was delicious but the uncontrollable burping was a bit of a pain.
I worked a little bit and caught up on some blogging before it was time to meet the others for lunch. Victoria had arranged for us to eat at Blue Deli, another of the restaurants to try. Being on a luxury river cruise doesn’t mean that you have to eat posh nosh and fine dining for every meal. Our evening waiter, David, had recommended we try the well loved Smash Burger for lunch today so that was the plan. Only 4 of us ate at Blue, all of us ordering our own specific burger requirements and we washed it down with a refreshing lavender lemonade. If I’m honest, that wasn’t my favourite drink but the others enjoyed it. I also had to leave some of my bread as I was so full from breakfast and still had a heartburn-like feeling going on, from the detox shot. We were then ready for an afternoon of excursions and activities. This relaxing cruise was certainly not boring and there was so much to do for any active people.
On our walking excursion of Bratislava we were given quite a treat from our expert guide; history and music were the main feature – finished off with a glass of fizz and a nice piece of cake. The guide was very aware of the heat and did her best to stop in the shade, she also was able to split the group for those who felt less capable of walking on the cobbles and steps up to the castle. I thought it was good that guests can pre-book to add the excursions on as a package and the ones we went on were very well done. It was a very hot day so I was particularly pleased that we hadn’t selected the bicycle ride along the Danube (again). The passengers who did that trip looked very hot but said that the excursion was great too.
The evenings onboard Riverside Mozart were perfect for me. Before dinner we were given an early evening show from Vienna’s Opera Ballet Soloists followed by a chance to learn a few steps of the Viennese Waltz. I got partnered up with a lovely man, whose wife was particularly thankful that she didn’t have to join in. He and I both had chubby tummies so the positioning of our legs with touching thighs had to resort to barely touching shins. It was a really good laugh, where the embarrassment of volunteering soon dissipated once we realised we were actually learning how to dance.
For our evening meal Norbert Toth, the Food & Beverage Manager, had invited us all to the Atelier Restaurant where we had a food tasting extravaganza. It was a proper snazzy dining experience, where we tasted everything on the menu aside from anything with nuts or molluscs in (due to allergies). There was so much to eat and it was such a good representation of the countries we were visiting – the wine pairing was just spot on. We had a delightful evening which included watching the sunset as we sailed to Tulln, Austria. In the bar, later we listened to the piano player and a saxophonist then it got a little livelier with some of us getting on the dancefloor and partaking in a Baby Guiness nightcap. If I hadn’t been sold on river cruisers previously, I was fast becoming a propenent of them now!
Gratitude List
1. A luxurious start to Day 3 of the cruise 2. Seeing a little of Bratislava 3. A fantastic dining experience at Atelier, onboard Riverside Mozart.
Photo Credit – some photos taken by the Fam Trip Attendees
Thursday 18th June was Day 2 of the Travelpack and Riverside Luxury Cruises Fam Trip and it was an absolute delight. I didn’t make it to the breakfast in the dining room on account of me still having half of my cheese plate from last night to eat – as I don’t like to waste things I had that with water and then realised my cabin didn’t have a kettle, only a coffee machine. I asked Daniel, the butler, if he could oblige with a pot of tea and he brought a proper pot of tea in with a smile! For our daily excursion we did the Panoramic Budapest tour, which was excellent. We visited the State Opera House which, as a former musician, blew my mind. The whole tour was done with an ear piece in so we could listen to our tour guides throughout. After an extensive tour round the opera house we had a glass of champagne and a bit of a surprise. As the performers were rehearsing we were treated to our own private showing in an intimate gathering on the stairs – just wonderful. I was shocked to find out that to get tickets to the royal box wasn’t even that expensive so it was definitely on my list to do with 9 other people (the royal box seats up to 10), ideally in a winter month.
We had a good walk around in the sunshine and visited Heroes Square before returning to Riverside Mozart for a delicious BBQ lunch on the sun deck. Other guests returned from other tours and I was very glad to have not been on the ebike tour as the sun was pretty intense and they all looked sweaty. Captain Caveman would’ve preferred that tour when we get to do a river cruise.
The lunch was lovely, I chose steak and prawns mainly, with another glass of Taittinger – obviously. After not too much champagne we had a guided tour of the ship and giggled at how familiar I was with the laundry room already. Someone had left a pair of red undies in there so I was fortunate it was after my visit so that none of my whites were turned pink. There was a beauty and hair salon for any titivating, a wonderful spa to relax or swim in and a very well equipped gym. I noticed some weighing scales and was almost tempted to get on them, having missed Fat Club yesterday – we all agreed it would be unwise. We used the private dining room for our office in the afternoon and actually did some work as well as having presentations on what Riverside and Travelpack could offer our customers. I now needed to up my game to find clients and friends who wanted to book, or come with me, on more of these types of luxury holidays – I already had a few people in mind!
Back in my cabin, I checked my emails and noticed I had won another prize from one of the other suppliers I have booked holidays with. It was a travel towel and suncream set – it looked great and I sent them my address in Sheffield so I could get it when I finally got back to the UK in July. Back once again on the sun deck for cocktails we set sail for Slovakia, it was a good feeling knowing that we would wake up tomorrow in another new country. In my harmony suite the water level of the Danube was just below the picture window and it was calming to look out at. Dinner was once again an absolute pleasure and the wine and fizz went down quite well too. This time I decided to have the steak with a pepper sauce and it was very tasty. I wasn’t keen on the first taste of the red wine offered so I was given a Primitivo instead, without any fuss. My butler, Daniel, had left more treats in my cabin and sorted out my room for the evening. I was starting to really enjoy being a river cruiser!
Gratitude List 1. The Budapest State Opera House and our private show 2. The Riverside Mozart ship and all it’s luxury 3. Being a river cruiser.
Photo Credit – some photos taken by the other Fam Trip Attendees
I was a giddy little kipper on Wednesday 17th June as the day of my 5 day Riverside Luxury Cruises and Travelpack Fam trip was here, at last! In the afternoon I would be boarding the Riverside Mozart ship and sailing down the Danube from Budapest to Vienna. When my alarm went off at stupid o’clock that morning, I was feeling sad to be leaving Mallorca and really had enjoyed an amazing 1.5 days cramming in stuff with the Mallorca Resort Expert. My flight was at 6.50am so the taxi was booked for 4.30am and was costing 50 Euros. We said our farewells, both knowing we had forged a great friendship and would definitely see each other again. The taxi was good, the driver spoke English and there was no traffic. My flight was with easyJet back to Gatwick, it was practically empty and I had nodded off before takeoff. Pauline, my petite pink under seat case kept her wheels on and there were no issues. I landed in a very rainy and cold London at 8.30am and had to get a bit of a spurt on. My next flight, which had been booked for me by Travelpack, departed at 11.05am and I had a small dilemma. They had booked me a Wizzair flight from Gatwick to Budapest with 20kg hold luggage and an underseat case. It would be my first time flying with this airline. Unfortunately, Pauline my petite pink case was 5cm too tall without the detachable wheels and couldn’t go as hand luggage. Wizzair staff at the bag drop told me that they would be strict at the gate so it would be better for me to pop Pauline in the hold and definitely not to chance taking her as an underseat bag. I wasn’t keen on this, with her being so small, and I had to take out my laptop, chargers, diary and other work related stuff, which I put in a shoulder bag. There was barely anything left in Pauline – mainly just dirty laundry, toiletries, a pair of sandals and a new sandy travel towel. Wizzair weighed my checked luggage and, although allowed 20kg, it was only 7kg and I got a receipt. Of course, I had the obligatory wait in the airport near a screen until an hour before the departure time, when the gate would be made public. It was too early for me for an airport pint so I ended up spending almost a tenner in Boots and doing some work. Oddly there was a member of staff there complaining to me about the heat and apologising that the AC wasn’t working. I had my hoodie on as it was comparatively cold to Spain and Mallorca. Here’s what I bought, prices in pounds;
Boots 1 paper bag 0.18 1 chocolate bar 1.00 1 smoothie 3.00 1 Hoisin Duck wrap 3.75 Meal Deal discount -2.75 1 mini cocoa butter 2.20 1 mini mouthwash 1.80 1 mini toothpaste 1.65 3 for 2 minis discount -1.65 Total spent £9.68
I’d had to buy the toothpaste when I realised I had left the rest of my toothytabs in Mallorca. I also didn’t really need the paper bag from Boots but it was another travel hack. If you buy a bag from any of the airport shops you can count this as an extra hand luggage at no extra cost. I used it to put my lunch plus diary, headphones, water bottle and other bits and bobs in. At the gate, I witnessed every passenger have their hand luggage measured and weighed with many having to pay a £70 fine – even some passengers who argued they had been told they could take carry on. The Wizzair gate staff were having none of it, they definitely charged a lot of people extra and boarding took ages. The Wizzair plane was not particularly clean and I got sat on an aisle seat near the back of the plane. A stag do of 10 lads had decided they weren’t that bothered about paying to select seats together so they were spread out, one in the window seat of my row and one behind us. We had a chat and it was a nice lad who offered me one of his jelly bears. I didn’t partake incase they were laced with drugs but the stag lads turned out to be a lovely bunch. They let me wear one of their masks, I shared a few travel tips with them and we had photos and drinks to pass the time on. When I told them about the neck pillow filled with clothes travel hack, they loved it – especially as one of them had paid an extra £70 and wasn’t happy about that as it was more than the cost of the flight. We landed in Budapest at 2.40pm and it was probably the longest I’ve been in a passport control queue in a while. Luckily, I got chatting to a man who often holidays in Budapest and he gave me a few ideas and tips based on his several visits. He even saved my space in the queue when I needed the toilet.
After about 90 minutes, I was through to pick up my luggage – needless to say little Pauline was on the baggage carousel belt on her own. I picked her up and walked out to arrivals where I was met by Suzie, an employee sent to accompany me on the private transfer to the ship. She looked shocked and apologised that my hold luggage, which she presumed had got lost, would be retrieved and brought to the ship as soon as they could. I explained that I travelled light, there was no more luggage, and she was even more shocked. The minibus driver asked where my luggage was, I explained and he and Suzie had a good old laugh together about that. While Suzie gave me some tips on how to say the basics in Hungarian, we drove along the Danube, where I would board the ship. Even the view from the minibus was fantastic and I was very excited for my first ever river cruise.
As I boarded the Riverside Mozart docked on the river Danube in Budapest, the porter, the receptionist and then a waiter were equally baffled over my lack of luggage and that I hadn’t lost any. I was given a welcome glass of champagne, a lady in the bar shouted hello but I wasn’t sure who she was until later and then I was shown to my cabin, number 153. My only comparison was a ferry so I was extremely impressed with my sleeping quarters for the next 4 nights. My cabin was a Harmony Suite with a picture window and was around 20 square metres. It was the ‘basic’ level cabin and I was certainly impressed with it – it was much better than any hotel room I’d been in this year. This was my first ever cruise and I had never had myself down as a cruiser – that was about to be challenged! It was also my first time visiting Hungary, Slovakia and Austria so I saw it as a great introduction to 3 countries I may want to see more of in the future. The Riverside Mozart wasn’t a massive ship but it can fit 162 guests and 82 crew – so far I had seen far more crew than guests and, at 23m wide, this boat felt pretty roomy. I had a welcome bottle of fizz and some rather lovely chocolates in my cabin and a note to welcome me. The bathroom was an absolute delight with one of those Japanese style toilets which can wash and dry your nether regions while having a heated seat! The shower was marvellous and had opulent toiletries so I needn’t get out my travel ones. I learned that Riverside Luxury Cruises do not charge a single supplement for any of their cruises! This was good to know as I often get requests from solo travellers who obviously don’t want to have to pay up to double the price. I also learned that I was on the Premium All Inclusive package with included excursions and that was an absolute bonus – I am partial to the odd tipple and the diet was certainly on hold from now on.
I felt so lucky to have won this trip and I almost skipped to the bar to find the other travel agents. On the way, I found the free DIY launderette and popped in my dirty laundry so I could start with a full complement of clothes. The bar was fantastic, the kind of place they hand out Taittinger like it’s water and the nibbles need a Google to work out what they are. Our first task was to listen to the safety briefing from a very dishy Captain, who’s priority was only the safety of his passengers. My fellow sailors on this Fam trip were; • Victoria – the Business Development Manager at Riverside Luxury Cruises • Joely – the Business Development Manager at Travelpack • Amy • Grant • Paul • Cath • Sam So, there were 8 of us in total; 5 other Travel Agents, me and the people in charge of putting on the trip. They seemed a nice bunch as we went through to the Waterfront dining room.
We sat over 2 tables and had a waiter, a server and a sommelier at our table, making sure we were waited on very well. There was a menu which changed daily, as well as a menu that was available throughout our stay. Amy & I chose the Asian spring roll to start, it was pretty and delicious. Grant and Cath had what looked like parma ham wrapped round bread sticks on a bowl of salad – they liked it. The next course for me was a soup, also very nice, I was on my second lot of bread and double parked with wine and champagne. Cath had a pasta dish which also looked good but rather filling as an interim course. For main, we all had the beef and it was absolutely delicious – fancy, but not over the top! Of course, it was served with fabulous wine which was probably too expensive for me to even appreciate, given I’d had 3 champagne, 1 white wine, and now an ample pour of Merlot. The desserts on the menu looked good but I had laundry to attend to, much to the amusement of my fellow Fam Trip winners. I excused myself to tackle the rather enthusiastic tumble drier, hoping to reconvene for a cheese plate and more Merlot. I got chatting to a guest in the laundry room, she was younger than I’d imagined the average cruiser would be and this was not her first rodeo with Riverside. She could not praise them enough and she told me that I was going to love the excursion tomorrow. We chatted a little before me taking my laundry back to my cabin to find someone had been in there. It turned out that I had a butler, who had brought me a treat and turned down the luxurious bedding, on the off chance I was too lazy to know how to get in bed unaided. Daniel, the butler, had popped on some mood lighting and closed my picture window curtains. The bottle of champagne was chilling and my ice bucket was full. So, this was what luxury cruising was about! There was a note on the desk to say to call Daniel or WhatsApp him if I needed anything at all – including room service! I messaged to say hi, ordered a glass of red wine and a ‘bit of cheese’. I made sure I was drinking water as there was plenty in the fridge and I read the itinerary for the next day.
I popped back up to the top deck bar, where my fellow Fam trippers were, and had a drink with them while we sailed down the beautiful Danube. My photos really didn’t do it justice and it didn’t help that I was somewhat merry. I said goodnight, leaving my new friends having a night cap, and returned to my cabin around 10.45pm where a substantial cheese plate with a glass of red sat waiting for me – this was the life! When I finally got in to the huge bed, it was so comfy that I fell asleep instantly!
Gratitude List 1. A fun journey from Mallorca to Budapest, via Gatwick 2. Being part of the Fam Trip with Riverside Luxury Cruises and Travelpack 3. Being wined and dined like royalty on Riverside Mozart.
Photo Credit – some photos taken by the rest of the Fam Trip Attendees
I had no idea when I woke up on Monday 15th June that today would be such a great day. We saw our last sunrise and sea view before I needed to pack up Pauline, my petite pink under seat case, for destination number 4 in 3 weeks. Due to me winning a luxury cruise Fam trip, I had needed to rearrange my Spanish section of my trip and I was now going to Mallorca to visit my friend, the Mallorcan Resort Expert, for only 1.5 days!!! I’d managed to get bargain priced flights from Malaga and then to Budapest and my friend was very kindly putting me up in her apartment. It was the last buffet breakfast at the Ramada by Wyndham and I certainly made the most of it. I’d really enjoyed this hotel although, on checking the rooms the others had, I did think their rooms could’ve done with a better layout and their bedrooms were on the small side. I’m glad 3 of us were sharing and had a bigger room, despite sleeping on the pull-out sofa bed which was very comfy. I made a note for future customers, I would recommend the better rooms. Everyone made it to breakfast for our last one and I even made a cheese and ham sandwich, plus took an extra breadroll for the last of the pork – I often take an airport sandwich if I can. It had been such a lovely weekend and I genuinely was sad it was ending. Our taxi to the airport was booked through the hotel reception while Jamie had booked an Uber with Charlotte and Kerrie as their Bournemouth flight was slightly later than the Gatwick flight. After saying bye to Carol, who was staying on to meet a friend, we said farewell to Jamie, Charlotte and Kerrie even though we would probably see them at the airport. The Gatwick lot plus me got in the taxi to the airport. Reports of queues at Malaga airport were not what we found and everything was straight forward. We saw the Bournemouth gang who were a tad early and they were heading for a bar/lounge. I said bye to Claire, Dawn and Spawn at the international terminal and popped over to domestic one to find that my flight had been delayed due to a storm. It was disappointing as now my Mallorca trip was even shorter. My flight should have been at 1.55pm but it turned out that we were only just taking off at 3pm. At Malaga airport I learned that the water dispenser was much colder in the domestic terminal than the international. It was also much quieter with lots of seating areas for me to snaffle my sandwiches and have a browse round the souvenir shops. My flight with Vueling was booked with an under seat bag where the permitted measurements with this airline was 5cm shorter than that of easyJet. I’d checked this before I flew and noted that Vueling is the same as Ryanair. Pauline, my petite pink under seat case, wouldn’t adhere to that despite having detachable wheels and being under on width and depth. I couldn’t acquire a new case so I did a bit of research to work out how I could take Pauline, plus my neck pillow stuffed with clothes and not have to pay up to £70 in charges at the gate. To add on a larger carry on bag it would cost up to £50 if adding in advance. However, I noticed that if I added on a seat selection for an exit row at online check-in, it would be less than half the price and my case would have to go in the overhead locker anyway. I did that, confident that Pauline would not have to be put in the hold and I wouldn’t get a hefty fine for the sake of 5cm. The flight was good, I had a row to myself and all went well with the travel hack to get Pauline through as hand luggage. I was really looking forward to meeting my colleague in Mallorca on what would be very much a flying visit.
I landed at Palma airport at 4.30pm and made my way to the arrivals area where the Mallorca Resort Expert was waiting for me. I was delayed, she stood there patiently and I was able to sneak up on her. It was the first time we had met in person and had so far only met online so I was really looking forward to meeting her. We hugged and it felt good to finally get together even though we had a very tight schedule. Rather than wait for the airport bus, we jumped into a taxi straight to Palma city centre. My host had organised for us to eat at a tapas restaurant which not many tourists know about and had booked us a table for when it opened at 6.30pm. This meant we had a bit of time for her to show me around some of her favourite shops in Palma. I was also glad that I had only taken Pauline, my petite pink under seat case, as we needed to walk through the busy streets of the capital and it was sunny. We stopped to listen to a street musician who was playing a Stevie Wonder song, we visited two of Dagne’s favourite shops; Georg’s which sold Salamis, herbs, olive oil, honey, and balsamic vinegar. The shop was so lovely, the owner very attentive and she let us try everything before I got a couple of souvenirs, mostly for myself. Puzzles was a really cute shop where they sell original puzzles that you can try out while at the counter and if you get frustrated and can’t complete them, the owners will lend you a hammer as a solution. It was such good fun and we had a good laugh before heading off to Bodega. For those not in the know, like the Mallorca Resort Expert, you would be forgiven for ending up at a different one. Ours was not the fancier, pricier La Bodega – more the traditional tapas place where locals queue as soon as it’s opened to get a seat.
Bodega was small but cosy and Pauline sat neatly under the counter/bar which we sat at on high stools. My fellow diner had a zero alcohol beer and I had a glass of red wine while we perused the excellent menu. We ordered a selection of tapas; croquettes, tortilla, brie, burrata on bruschetta, and patatas bravas which were all amazing – we both agreed on which were the best dishes. We had another drink each and, even though we were full, we chose 2 more of the pinchos to have with our drinks. The food and wine was so good that I would definitely put it in one of my top places to eat. When the bill came, I was expecting it to be so much more expensive so I was pleased when it came to just €25 (£21.25) each.
Next, we got the bus to Santa Ponsa, where Pauline and I were met with quite a few steps to climb that certainly weren’t in the brochure! Once inside I got a lovely welcome from my host who had bought me some gifts and even put some balloons out with ‘Welcome Jo Lo’ written on them. I felt like a celebrity or something as she had got both copies of my books out, ready for me to sign. After an admiration of the amazing sea view balcony and a drink of water, it was time for a quick shower and change. My friend had arranged for us to visit a roof top bar and hotel where we enjoyed a glass of champagne while admiring the view. A kind guest took our photos at the H10 Casa Del Mar hotel and did a pretty thorough job. It was lovely for someone I work with to be so thoughtful and I had definitely found a good friend here. The rooftop bar was really cool and we relaxed by the pool with our fizz, laughing and getting to know each other more. Even when we were back home, the hospitality and kindness shone as my host tried to insist I take her bed and she have the couch – I was having none of it as I was not about to take someone’s bed, I was more than happy on the couch.
Gratitude List 1. Having the last morning in Spain with the Costa Del Sol gang 2. Meeting the Mallorca Resort Expert in real life 3. Fantastic local tapas and rooftop bar drinks together.
Photo Credit – some photos by the Mallorca Resort Expert
After a lovely night’s sleep on the pull-out sofa bed I went outside to see what the view from our room was like on Saturday 13th June. It was lovely and I was pleased with the room we had, as we wandered to the breakfast area. I was very impressed at the choice and availability of the buffet style breakfast too and had plenty of it – all in the name of research, of course! By 10.30am 4 of us had decided that walking off the big breakfast may be a good idea and off to explore we went.
Claire, Dawn, Carol and I trotted downhill to the beach and wandered along the promenade all the way in to Fuengirola and stopped for a soft drink along the way. By the time we were headed back, the sun was shining, we were definitely getting sweaty and one of us needed to buy comfier footwear. It was all rather pleasant until it dawned on me that I was the most unfit out of the group and struggled on the hills at the end.
By 12.30pm we were rehydrated, armed with Lays crisps from the on-site shop and in our swimmers by one of the various pools. We had chosen one with less families and with a good mix of shade and sun. It was the first time this year that I had been in a swimming pool and it felt great. A few nibbles and a couple of beverages were had in the early afternoon and everyone, but me, had sandwiches, quiches or sausage rolls for lunch. The on-site bakery and shop had such a good range of products that it would have been quite easy to survive by not leaving the resort, should we have wanted to. In the interests of not wasting food, I had the warmed up tagliatelle carbonara from last night and it tasted even better the second day. In the later part of the afternoon, we sat out on the garden area outside our room, enjoying the sea view, drying our towels and swimmers while drinking tea or coke while we waited for the Cava in the fridge to chill a bit more and the other 5 to head over for pre dinner drinks.
Claire, who had become the one in charge by default because most of the rest of us couldn’t be bothered to step up, was the star of the evening. She had arranged some paraphernalia for each of the celebrators; Dawn who was celebrating her 50th and wore her tiara very proudly, Jamie who was less keen to sport an amazing vest top full of images of his cheeky face but loved the Gay Who? game and bracelet for his 40th, and Spawn, the bride to be was donned with more twinkles befitting her outfit and we all had a mask to show our support for her. The Cava flowed and we laughed a lot, not having time to do the games we had ready much chance, before heading off to the delights of Fuengirola and to feed our hungry bellies. I knew it was going to be a good night and decided to draw out more cash. The ATM charged me €5 to draw out €60 which was an error on my part as I should’ve just paid on card, but I wanted it for drinks/taxis later. We promenaded our way to the port and Claire had spotted a lovely looking venue which was fairly busy (always a good sign when choosing an eatery on holiday). The waitress at Ku’ Damm stuck us at a large table at the back, surrounded by interesting memorabilia and got busy with taking drinks orders. I really enjoyed the sangria and this kind of restaurant was right up my street as it sold pork! The ceiling of the ladies toilet in this Berlin-esque restaurant was certainly unique.
My next ‘mistake’, in some people’s eyes, was to order a pork knuckle with potatoes, gravy and gherkins. When it came it was ridiculously large and had so much crackling on – we’ve had smaller joints of meat at a family Sunday roast. A lot of the girls ordered the schnitzel and that was definitely not a small portion, either. The food was incredible and I thoroughly enjoyed my pork knuckle. Obviously it defeated me and I ended up asking to take half away with me. This is much more common abroad but, again, it amused most of the gang. There is no way I could have wasted any of that pork! Our bill was split between 8 of us again and I paid €40, remarkably the same as last night! Next, with very full bellies, we wandered (I most definitely waddled) over to a bar where it appeared it was part of the evening to be ‘forced’ to drink Tequila Rosé shots at the bar. Ordinarily, I do love a Tequila Rosé but I had overdone it on my meal so I struggled to get the first one down. Not one to be a party pooper too early, I took a second while one of the girls had to do a tactical chunder in the bogs! I almost followed suit and decided 2 was enough after a good amount of sangria and went on to water. While the celebrators really got in to party mode, I started to feel my age and was aware just how much I can’t drink, or stay out late, like I used to. Claire and Carol were either thinking the same or had took pity on me wandering the trendy bars of Fuengirola with half a greasy pork knuckle in a takeaway plastic bag. The 3 of us got an Uber back to the Ramada and Carol paid on her app. Back in our hotel room, having put my meat in the fridge, Claire and I tried to wait up for Dawn by watching a bit of TV but she still had to knock me up as we had fell asleep – was I turning in to a brunch friend rather than the party person I used to be!?
Gratitude List 1. Waking up to a sea view and included breakfast at the Ramada 2. Spending time on holiday with the Costa Del Sol gang 3. That huge pork knuckle!!!!
Photo Credit – some photos taken by the Costa Del Sol attendees
The day of our girls’ trip was here on Friday 12th June. Our group of 7 women and 1 (gay) man had been counting down the days until this much needed holiday. What had initially started as a group of about 10 and me being their travel agent had changed in to 7 of them and me being invited to join the booking! A first for me and definitely not an opportunity I wanted to pass by. Of course it helped that one of my best mates was in charge of the booking and I knew 2 or 3 of the other ladies so it was definitely a no-brainer when I was asked to join. I had not been on a girls trip for what seemed like forever so Claire and I were super giddy. I’d been up since 4.30am for a pee and to check my phone to see if my customer had arrived at the hotel after a flight delay last night, but I had heard nothing. By 6am I was up and getting the contact details for the hotel to ask them to get my friend to contact me when they arrived. Captain Caveman said farewell and was off to Bristol for work. As I accompanied him outside to his van to see him off, he made me laugh; we hugged and kissed goodbye and I said I loved him, he just said ‘yeah, I know’ but didn’t say it back – he never does. I was off on a 6 day trip to Spain then a 5 day Fam trip luxury river cruise and then meeting up with a friend in Vienna, after today, but he didn’t wish me well for any of that either. I would next see him again in 3 week’s time when I would be joining him in London. After dropping Claire’s daughter off at school and taking Reg for a run about on the field, Claire and I decided to have sausage sandwiches at the cake shop/cafe. At just after 9am (UK time) my friend messaged to say she had arrived at the hotel at 1am but hadn’t connected to the WiFi to let me know they had arrived – they had both had a good sleep and were about to have their first breakfast in Marrakesh. I was relieved and meant I could get on with getting excited for my own trip now.
Our flight was at 3.25pm and I had to make sure I had packed everything for my next 10 days; Spain, Mallorca, Hungary, Slovakia, Vienna and back to Türkiye – although I’d not booked my flight back from Vienna yet! Claire had checked us in as 5 of us were on the flight from Gatwick to Malaga but the others had already departed from Bournemouth very early this morning. Claire drove to the airport and we picked Dawn up on the way – now there were 3 giddy girls on their way to Costa Del Sol for a long weekend. At the airport we joined Carol and Spawn who were already in the Wetherspoons, drinking Prosecco. We had a few glasses of fizz each and then did a stock up for lunch on the plane at Pret a Manger, a posh sandwich shop which I usually avoid because it’s pricey! I chose a Turkish style salad which looked great and some chocolate, we all got water too – the tin water bottle would come in very handy for the holiday too. We were all excited, I did a Friday travelator dance while singing and I snaffled most of my delicious salad before take off – I was now a Pret fan! As we had exit row seats, I had to put the rest of my food up in the cabin for take off. Pauline, my petite pink underseat case, also had to go up overhead too – she didn’t mind as she got to keep her detachable wheels on! I nodded off, as I was tired from being up so early, but the girls continued with the fizz from the trolley.
On landing we all had to do the finger print thing at Málaga airport, where there were no queues, it was quick and straight forward for all but one person who had a dodgy finger. They had to go to a counter with a person at it and we went to pick up the one suitcase. Our Suntransfers driver was waiting when we arrived and we had a fairly straightforward journey to our hotel. We were staying in the Ramada Hotel & Suites by Wyndham, located between Fuengirola and Mijas. The driver dropped us off at the top end of the massive resort and we walked through to find reception, passing wild boar on the way. We checked in and had to pay €20 deposit each for a pool towel – they don’t mess about in Spain! Claire, Dawn and I were sharing a room with 1 bedroom and a pull-out sofa bed in the lounge. We had got a cheeky upgrade, which was nice. Carol and Spawn were sharing a twin room and they went to their room, with instructions to meet back in 20 minutes. Our room had a washing machine and kitchen, despite us having booked to include breakfast, and I was on the sofa bed which seemed pretty comfy.
It was after 8.30pm so we didn’t even get changed as the Bournemouth 3 were already out and we needed to catch up with them for dinner. We got 2 taxis which I paid about €12 for one of them down to a beach side restaurant called Ella’s in Fuengirola. Everyone said hello and were introduced to me, as we were celebrating Dawn’s 50th, Spawn’s Hen and Jamie’s 40th so a real good mix of celebrations this weekend. The rest of us were just celebrating being on the Costa Del Sol with some really fun people. I ordered a delicious tagliatelle carbonara which was only €14 and shared some wine and plenty of water. Claire wasn’t hungry so ordered a salad but when it came, it was massive. The weather was pleasant and the food was very good. As there was 8 of us, we split the bill and I paid €40 including the tip for my share. I took half my meal home to eat the rest tomorrow as it was a big portion and I wasn’t going to waste it. No one else did this and I realised it’s not a very common thing for my English friends to do. Most of the gang wanted to carry on so we went to a bar but I couldn’t physically drink any more. I was also tired from being up so early this morning so Claire and I went to buy bottles of water. We all got a couple of taxis back and for one at after midnight it was around €15 with 4 of us in, so pretty reasonable. It had been a good first night but tomorrow was our first proper day and we planned to make the most of it.
Gratitude List 1. Sausage sandwiches to start the holiday off 2. Airport fizz with 4 of the gang 3. Dinner and drinks with all 8 of the gang.
I woke up early on Thursday 30th April and started to look at the Uniqlo website. Captain Caveman had suggested I preorder some more clothes for my June trips and he would pay for them and get them delivered to his home in Sheffield. All my flights had been booked with just an under seat bag and no checked in luggage so I would need to pack very wisely. Captain Caveman and I thought it was doable and I wasn’t about to add luggage on to 6 flights at my own expense. It would be a challenge but I would do it. I spent quite a bit of time rearranging plans. We had a Resort Experts team meeting at lunch time and my afternoon flew by. I had a zero spend day today and totted up to see I had spent £331.72 in April against a budget of £300 (£10 per day). I was pleased with that as that included the boat trip, meals and drinks out too. I was pleased to have managed to only spend £332 in April and it was definitely becoming a bit more second nature to question everything I spent. It felt good to know I had lived off only 60% of the Turkish minimum wage. I did wonder if I would be able to do that in the UK though. It had been important for me to do as much as I could to come in at under £345 for the month, as from May I would need to have a bigger budget for all I had planned for this summer. Luckily, my Resort Experts bookings were increasing, having been in business for 18 months now, and I was a lot nearer to having more written travel products to sell for extra semi-passive income. My weight loss had gone better in April than it did in March and I was slightly lighter at the end of the month than I was at the beginning but I still needed to lose about 5kg to hit target weight again. So many more shenanigans were coming up for May; more outings, some celebrations and more boat trips! Dalyan would start to get warmer, have less rain and hopefully more tourists about. It was about to become so much more tempting to overspend and overindulge as the holiday season started! I’d also started to think about my plans for June and meeting up with friends in the UK during the limited days I would be in Sheffield.
Gratitude List 1. Getting some new Uniqlo clothes from Captain Caveman 2. Successfully reorganising my June travel arrangements to fit in a work trip 3. Not completely blowing the April budget.
Breakfast was included at our riad and was served on the rooftop terrace each morning between 8 and 10am. Our first breakfast on Saturday 3rd January consisted of several bread based items, yoghurt with a sauce in, a piece of cake, juice and a choice of coffee or mint tea. I tried to take a photo of the spread and the photo was there, but later disappeared from my phone. This was to be the start of my phone deciding it was going to delete photos just minutes after taking them, with no warning! Captain Caveman had his coffee which he said was alright but didn’t eat the cake or the yoghurt. I tried a bit of everything but it was very sweet for a breakfast. We both liked the dosa type bread which we later learned was called Msemmen. I ordered the mint tea and it became my drink of choice throughout the week. At first I thought it was simply a healthy mint tea but it’s actually made with gunpowder green tea and plenty of fresh mint and sugar!!! The Moroccans pour the tea from the pot at a height to aerate it and it looks a bit like dirty water or whisky. Captain Caveman had only exchanged £50 at the airport, ironically so that we had cash for the taxi! We decided to walk around the Medina and get our bearings a bit. Captain Caveman had marked a route and the way to an ATM on his offline maps. Neither of us used WiFi or a SIM once out of our accommodation as it can be expensive, plus we didn’t really need it.
We called for some lunch on the rooftop dining area of Chinguitti restaurant in the square where the spices are. The sun was shining and I actually had to take my hat and hoody off. They didn’t sell alcohol so I ordered a mint tea, Captain Caveman a coffee and both of us chose tagines for our meal – a minced meat and egg for Captain Caveman and a chicken for me. The waiter was friendly and spoke french, we can get by in french too (although I’m a little rusty, food is my forte). The menu was in French and English so it was easy to order. A selection of olives with a basket of warm bread was given for free and we ordered a bottle of water as it was getting quite hot on the upstairs terrace. The food was excellent and I really enjoyed my mint tea, this time with no sugar! Our tagines were around £8 each and were filling. The most expensive drinks on the nenu were about £2.50 for a juice. Our next stop was at the ATM, which you can choose English as the language before you start your transaction. This time we got 12 Dirhams to the pound so was a better rate than the airport, of course. The queue was long and the likelihood of people trying to push in happened but we stood our ground. A french lady told us that this ATM didn’t give the best rate and that we should walk to the post office to get money, we were fine to use this ATM as I was there now. Captain Caveman had transferred £500 to me, which we had allotted for a 7 night holiday and then, because I had Wise, we would use it all from my account.
We had more of a wander round the Medina and then I needed the loo! Everywhere I go where I eat out, I often end up with a dodgy tum but it didn’t last long and I was ok after a cafe visit. I ran off to the top floor of Argana in the famous Jemaa el-Fnaa square, shouting back to Captain Caveman to just order me anything to drink. When I came back down, Captain Caveman was drinking an Espresso and had ordered me a freshly squeezed orange juice – probably not the best choice in my predicament and I didn’t have any imodium on me. The drinks were reasonable and the cafe nice (good toilets that were free for customers) – we paid £2 for coffee and £2.33 for the juice, which Captain Caveman had to finish off. Our next stop was to meet Captain Caveman’s sister-in-law and nephew at a rooftop cafe. Le Grand Balcon Du Café Glacier was the perfect spot to watch the goings on in the square below and meant we could avoid watching any potential animal cruelty. A small amount of snake charming and monkeys for photos is still going on but my theory is to not give it any attention, so that it will eventually die out as an attraction. It was my first time in 14 years of knowing Captain Caveman that I had met Suzanne and Hugo, so it was great to spend some time with them. We sipped soft drinks or mint tea (they don’t have alcoholic drinks) on the roof terrace and caught up. The excursions they had booked already had cancelled due to the adverse weather conditions Morocco was experiencing this week and were staying in Marrakech for one more night before taking the train to Casablanca. Le Grand Balcon Du Café Glacier had an interesting toilet arrangement that I thought worthy of note. There is a toilet attendant who pretends he doesn’t have change so you can end up paying more than you should – like I did, twice! Captain Caveman went in for a free one and said I’d already paid for him just to even the score up a bit. We walked past a snack place called Adam but we didn’t choose there to eat. Instead we went to a place near to it, that I forget the name of. Suzanna wasn’t hungry so just had soda water – which is excellent in Marrakech and cheap for a large bottle. Hugo had a local sausage dish and an Orangina, Captain Caveman ordered lamb, roasted veg and couscous tagine and I chose chicken shish and chips to be kind to my stomach. The food was good and cheap, it started raining as we were leaving and the restaurant we were at filled up quickly. We walked back to our respective riads with arrangements to meet up tomorrow to watch Morocco play football. We got back to our room before the rain got heavy and had a spiced rum for a night cap! Our first day in Marrakech had been surprisingly lovely and very relaxed.
Gratitude List 1. Riad Lalla Khadija was very comfy and in a good location 2. Having some really nice food and drinks 3. Meeting up with family in Marrakech.
Thursday 19th September was my last full day with my friends in Ialyssos as I was leaving Rhodes early the next morning. Tonight would be our last night together and all the girls were really looking forward to us celebrating the end of our (too short) holiday together. When I woke up, I felt like absolute death and could hardly clean my teeth without puking. Liz did a walk, the girls all went out for brunch and it took me until 2pm to force down a slice of buttered toast and a cup of tea. The girls had fancied trying out Casa Italia tonight and I pretty much had to drag myself out of bed to attend the evening’s meal out and I am so glad that I did. Casa Italia is owned by Costas, the same owner as Cosa Nostra, Creamland and Kostas Village Taverna. As we arrived, Louisa, Kelly and Clare were walking ahead and didn’t notice Costas who came to chat to Liz and me. He was a very nice man and you wouldn’t have known he owned all the restaurants, very humble. Once seated, the manager was not happy with where we had been plonked and moved us to a nicer table. The girls were on it but I could not face any alcohol and stuck to water. We shared garlic bread and more of the fancy bruschetta. Liz ordered shrimp linguini, Louisa spaghetti Bolognese, Clare the burata on a huge plate of prosciutto, Kelly a rather lovely salad and I had to have the ham and mushroom calzone. When the food came, it was absolutely marvellous but my calzone was so big that I had to take half home with me, with a piece of the garlic bread, for good measure.
At 10.15pm we paid our bill and some of the girls fancied ice-cream at Creamland, I’m not a fan of ice-cream so I faffed around taking photos, as you do. It was such a good night but I was sensible and was back at the villa with the rest of the girls by 11pm. That next hour was the saddest as I said my goodbyes (with tears) to Louisa, Kelly & Clare. Liz was going to get up with me early tomorrow as the taxi to the port was booked for 7am.
There was a bit of bad news on Wednesday 18th September and it wasn’t just that I would have put on some weight from overindulgence with my family and friends over the last week or so. I did my measurements, as usual, to find that I had put 2cm on my waist and 1cm on my hips, my bust had stayed the same. Liz and I were up and about much earlier than everyone else, she had been doing her exercises and I had already done a couple of hours work. I saw 2 big black crows on the wall of the villa and they stuck around for a while, one of them let me walk up quite close and I vaguely remembered that superstition suggests that seeing 2 crows is lucky. Apparently it means new beginnings in a relationship or career. I’d had a reply back from my boss’s wife, to say to speak to him about why I hadn’t been paid yet. It was 4 days overdue and I knew from her response that it didn’t look promising. I decided to stop work until I had spoken to my boss to find out what was going on. I had a feeling he no longer could see the need in keeping me on during the quiet winter months. I closed the laptop so that Liz and I could go for a walk, get some breakfast and a coffee for Liz. By 9.30am Liz was getting us something from The Cake Box. She had a croissant, a coffee and a detox juice while I had a sundried tomato and cheese ciabatta and a juice. It was once again lovely, although Liz didn’t reckon much to the coffee as it wasn’t a brand she preferred. We walked around and I took her to Creamland to see if the coffee was any better and, luckily, it was. It cost €5.50 (£4.58) for her Cappuccino with a Freddo Espresso in it. Our next stop was a nice walk along the beach where a lovely Dutch woman had been making a cute heart and some writing out of stones on the beach. We got talking to her and her friend then decided to have our photos taken by her over her art work – I bet she thought we were daft, but Liz and I did not care! When we got back to the villa it was gone 11am, I was hoping to get a call in with my boss, for an update on the work situation. While all the girls were busy enjoying their holiday, I got a message from him. It said ‘things were getting very quiet and he was canning our project’. He thanked me for my help, apologised for the late notice and that I had ended up working 4 days over what he had already paid me for. I already had a feeling this was going to happen so I just replied with best wishes for flood season and to let me know if there was anything I could help with in the future. It was quite a blow that, just like that, I had no further income and I would now have to wait to rely on Captain Caveman once again, until I found another job. I made a decision not to say anything to the girls, I was doing all I could to hold it together lately as it was and didn’t want to ruin their (or my) holiday. I made myself a promise to find another job within a month, though, or set up my own business. As luck would have it, only 2 days ago a friend had suggested I talk to his boss as he thought I would be a good fit for an opportunity at his place. I decided to tell the girls that I had the rest of the week off, which wasn’t exactly a lie but it wasn’t the complete truth. We only had 2 more days together and I wanted us all to have a good, and happy, time.
As if the girls knew to cheer me up anyway, the fizz was out of the fridge and it was jacuzzi time. Not before being dragged through a yoga/HIT session with Liz and Clare. It was far too difficult for me on a concrete floor with my knees but I gave it a go where I could. Louisa kindly took photos of us and pointed out when I needed to adjust my position. The jacuzzi was fantastic and the bubbles were very much appreciated as I secretly celebrated being unemployed once again! By 6pm we were showered and changed, ready to hit the town – I even wore one of my dresses. Clare and I took photos of each other by the pool while we waited for everyone to finish getting ready. It was pretty windy and it took a couple of goes to get some without our hair all over the place.
Clare had took the liberty of booking a table for the 5 of us at Cosa Nostra and it certainly did not disappoint. I was very conscious of being on a budget but I ordered a margarita cocktail at €12.50 (£10.41), a Gnocchi starter at €10.50 (£8.75) and a mushroom risotto at €18 (£15). The steaks started at €45 (£37.50) so I avoided those and we all shared some fancy bruschetta with various toppings.
The food was excellent and the service on our VIP table, second to none. We ended up having more cocktails instead of wine with our dinner and I threw caution to the wind a little having 2 more drinks. At the end of our meal we were brought out free shots of something ridiculously sickly sweet. As we were getting the bill, one of the girls had already paid and it was on her! Wow, I was both grateful and speechless. More free shots were had and a group photo with the staff before heading back to the villa. Of course, that would have been the best thing to do at gone 10.30pm but it was Liz’s first night out and she really fancied another drink somewhere. While Louisa and Kelly headed back home, Clare and I accompanied Liz to a bar which I think was called Blaze Bar. It had a band on and we must have been a bit tiddly as Liz ordered a Bloody Mary, Clare had a cocktail which looked like Sex on the Beach meets a Pina Colada and I, very foolishly, ordered a draft lager. The band was a lot better than we were expecting with 3 members who looked like famous people with our beer goggles on. We joined in on the singing and stayed until closing time. I paid for the round of drinks and had one of the best nights in years for just £20!! It was gone midnight when we got back and then Liz and I stayed awake talking for a few hours – at least I didn’t have to worry about getting up for work in the morning!
My day on Tuesday 17th September started with a healthy breakfast but would not continue in that vein – it was probably a good thing I was missing the Dalyan Fat Club tomorrow! I ate a banana and a plum with my cup of tea, then got on with work. At lunch time the girls were going for a walk so I decided to close the laptop and join them. On our walkabout, we spotted a lovely rooftop bar and went in for some lunch and a drink. Kompologaki restaurant also had sunbed rentals by the beach across the road and we had nice views of the sea from our corner rooftop table. There were lunchtime specials on so we ordered from that menu where it came with a beer or wine included in the price. It had one of those QR code readers to view the menu so we used that and I made a list of who wanted what so that I could go back downstairs and order, here’s what everyone chose; Kelly: Pasta Carbonara + beer + Sprite + Mai Tai cocktail Louisa: Gyros plate + beer + Sprite Clare: Gyros plate + wine + soda water Jo (me): Gyros plate + beer
We also ordered a bottle of still water for us all and the total came to 62.30 Euros (£51.76) and I really liked my lunch. I also ended up with 2 small beers because the lovely waitress had miscalculated the included ones, thinking all 4 of us wanted the beer and not 3 plus a wine. We also got a good deal on 3 bottles of decent wine for 30 Euros (£25), split between Clare and I.
On the way back to the villa, we called at the supermarket for provisions too. Back ‘home’ I did a bit more work while the girls relaxed by the pool. I was happy to close the laptop and join them for crisps and a wine in the early evening. One of our other friends, Liz, was on her flight to come and join us. We were looking out for her plane, which would be flying directly above us. As we were waiting, we got a bit peckish and started our buffet for dinner, Kelly plated up some for Liz so that we didn’t eat it all. Clare took a video of the BA plane which Liz was on as she came in to land and we were all super excited when she arrived. There were hugs, tears and extraordinary footwear. Wine was had but not the fizz in the fridge as that was for when we went in the Jacuzzi in the main bedroom – oh wow, I hadn’t realised there was one! The rosé wine Clare and I had bought went down a treat and I even got to wear some fancy shoes of Liz’s while we caught up on her news. It was like having the band back together and I was so happy that Liz got the short straw and had to share my twin room for the next 4 nights.
I was awake so early on Monday 16th September as the burglar alarm on the neighbouring villa was sounding continuously and it was very hard for me to ignore. It was still not properly light as I went downstairs and discovered that there was no electric or wifi and it looked to have been a windy night. It was only 6.30am so I decided to get dressed, I got to see a glimpse of a sunrise from my bedroom balcony, before I went out for a walk. I had no clue where I was going so I just headed away from the ringing of the alarm. It was quite cold and I had popped on my jeans and a jumper for the first time in a month. In fact, this was one of my outfits that Clare had brought out for me. I took photos as I walked, in case I got lost and then I decided on getting some breakfast and something for lunch at a lovely café called The Cake Box, here’s what I had with prices in Euros;
The Cake Box 1 chocolate croissant 1.50 1 Feta & pesto ciabatta 2.30 Total spent 3.80 (£3.16)
This was a bargain and I continued my walk while eating the chocolate croissant which was so lovely and definitely not Slimming World friendly.
I could still hear the alarm and the streets were very empty. I guessed Ialyssos wasn’t geared up for early rises as even most of the supermarkets were still closed. The nearest beach was small, pebbly and very close to our villa and I had a little walk towards the waters edge. I saw a few people jogging but there were certainly no holiday makers rushing to get a sun lounger on the beach at 8am.
After coming across a lovely row of restaurants and cafes, I noticed an outside sink where I rinsed my chocolatey fingers and face under the tap. I found a supermarket that had just opened and I bought some tea bags and individual milks from the supermarket for €3 (£2.50).
When I got back to the villa, there were the owners and maintenance people next door. They had turned off the alarm and the owner’s sister told me the internet was getting fixed and would be on in about 10 minutes. I was rather surprised to find that none of my friends in our villa were out of bed yet. They obviously had more tolerance for noise than me! I cracked on with work once the WiFi was back on. When the girls got up, they decided they were going to have a walk for some brunch/shopping while I worked and asked if I needed anything. I still had my ciabatta for lunch so I was fine as I was. I got quite a lot of work done and was doing new leads and sourcing information.
After work, the weather had warmed up and the girls were out by the pool sunbathing. I braved the swimming cozzie and joined them for a dip, it was certainly refreshing. We had a bit of a chat before the girls got on with their holiday reads or put their music on. For dinner, the girls knocked up another lovely feast, this time Kelly had cooked corn on the cobs and some chicken to make wraps with! It was so tasty and I ended up having 2 chicken wraps as there was plenty – some even went in the fridge for tomorrow. The white wine which was definitely drinkable went down quite well. I had about half the bottle, meaning I had consumed about 3 days’ worth of syns in one day! While sipping drinks and chatting, one of my friends noticed that the swimming pool seemed to be getting fuller and may be likely to overflow. It did indeed end up in a breach and Clare having to contact the owner as we sat back and watched it. Once again, my evening was filled with laughter and I was very much loving having time with my friends – it was like therapy!!!
Sunday 15th September was a long but eventful day, where I very nearly didn’t get to Rhodes for my holiday with the girls. My friend and I were up before the agreed 4.30am and were ready to leave before 5am for our drive to Marmaris. By 5.40am we had a blow out on the main motorway and we didn’t really know what to do. Luckily, we both had a working phone and our torches were able to flag 2 men down, despite the dark. They stopped, but spoke no English and were panicking that we had not managed to get the vehicle off the side of the road. We told them we had a jack and some tools but the bolts were too stiff for us and they didn’t know how to change the tyre for the spare. We managed to get in touch with a Turkish friend and he was on his way but would be about 40 minutes, we put the 2 men on the phone so that they could speak in Turkish to try to help further. We established they were Kurdish and that they were insisting on us moving the car off the road, which they helped us with and we had to push. By 6.45am we were in danger of missing the 8.45am ferry from Marmaris to Rhodes. As I was booked on the 11am we would have to ask if my friend could get on the later one with me. I took photos of the car’s predicament in case we had to prove our excuse for being late. Our Turkish friend arrived in a yellow taxi with a mechanic and they fixed the car. We gave them simits in case they were hungry and they followed us to the next junction to check all was fine with the car – it was. Ferry check-in was at 7.45am but we arrived at 7.46am and the staff member was great. She let me switch on to the earlier ferry at no cost and all was fine. I’d already taken a sea sickness pill as I anticipated a rough crossing but I was thinking I might take another. We were a little in shock that we had made it to the ferry in good time and there were even little bunnies just freely hopping about. The Yeşil Marmaris Lines ferry, left Marmaris at 8.45am, we got sandwiches and tea for a total of 400 lira (£9), and they were fresh and filling. We both decided to take a sea sickness tablet and we were asleep before we had even got out of the dock. When I did wake up an hour later, all I could hear and see were far too many people being sick – not all of them in to the bags that the staff were desperately trying to hand out. It smelled and sounded horrendous, I could see land in the distance through the very choppy sea but I closed my eyes and went back to sleep! By 10am we were getting off the ferry, through immigration and I headed for the souvenir shop to ask if they did left luggage. The very nice lady there told me to follow her to a shelf at the back of the shop and we popped my rucksack in a hidden room for the day at a cost of just €3 (£2.51). I was glad that I didn’t have to carry it as it was jammed full but it did mean that I could probably have added in some duty free gin if I’d not been so concerned about avoiding vomiting passengers. I still had to pick it back up when we came back at 4.30pm to check in for my friend’s return ferry.
My travel buddy for the day already had a list of things she wanted to see while on the island of Rhodes, and was very keen for us to take the bus to Tsambika Monastery. We walked from the port, along the harbour and via the boats filled with stuff made from shells. The bus ticket from Rhodes Town to Tsambika Monastary on the 11am no.23 bus cost €3.30 (£2.76) each. The bus was in, we only just made it and I think I remembered where we should get off to head for the monastery. On a few of my visits to Rhodes, I had gone past it on the bus on my way to Lindos or Lardos.
It took us 50 minutes to get there and the sun was already pretty warm so I wasn’t relishing the thought of walking to the top but my friend was so keen to see this place and I’d never been. A Greek lady who also got off the bus and was wanting to visit the Tsambika Monastery was chatting to us, in Greek, as a car came past and we flagged them down. The 3 of us managed to cram in the back and got a lift to the first main car park, then set off walking. My friend reminded me a little of Captain Caveman as she forged on ahead, stopping to briefly check I was still following. I finally reached the top at 12.30pm and took a selfie at the Greek flag.
The old monastery is built on top of a big hill with gorgeous views to the sea and the surrounding area, the views over the beaches of Tsambika and Kolymbia are pretty amazing too. Like a lot of tourist attractions, the monastery itself was underwhelming, small and full of vendors selling religious tat. My friend loved it and had already taken photos while I had a puff of my inhaler. The 300 steps with just a small bottle of water and some polo mints had been hard work and there was no time to rest at the top. We had to descend the 300 steps, buy some more water and get back to the bus stop on the main road by 1pm. I’d asked when we had bought the bus tickets what time the return bus was and got told 1pm, the driver had told us 1pm from Lindos so we weren’t sure as we flagged a fancy car down and we got a lift to the bottom with some kind locals. We both needed a wee as there were no toilets at this tourist attraction. We waited ages for the bus, other potential passengers came and went, we drank all our water, ate our emergency apples and generally moaned about the sun and lack of any shade – we could see how Michael Moseley could have got in to difficulty in this type of terrain and temperature.
I was just about to go in to the bushes for a pee around 1.50pm, when the bus came and we were very glad to get on it. By 2.30pm we were safely back in the old town and ready to tick off another few ‘must sees’. My friend was quite a lot more taken with the Temple of Aphrodite than I’ve seen any other person be, as we simply walked past it in the ruins and walls.
By 3pm I was ready for food and a drink. We sat upstairs at Archipelagos and ordered a glass of rosé wine for €7 (£5.85) each and a main meal each. I chose the pork skewer for €16.50 (£13.80) and my friend went for the beef stifado at €17.50 (£14.63). The food was lovely but we were only just going to make it to the ferry port in time to check in. I retrieved my left luggage and bought another bottle of water for 1 Euro then it was time to say farewell to my travel buddy. We had enjoyed a great day out in Rhodes and I was glad she had finally had someone to suffer the monastery with her.
At 4.45pm I was on my way out of the port and off to the bus station, once more. There was a bus which would leave at 5.25pm and take 38 minutes to get to a hotel near to where the girls were staying in Ialyssos, on the North West of the island. My bag was heavy, the sun was strong and I was tempted to get a taxi but there were none about. The bus stop was crowded and there was only one bus coming so I decided to walk back to the taxi rank and pay the €15 (£12.50) for the 10 minute ride. Unfortunately, without a working phone, I couldn’t find the location and the taxi driver only new the approximate place. I asked a waiter at a nearby restaurant but he was too busy and unhelpful. I finally found the villa, which was about 10 metres away from where the taxi driver dropped me in the first place! Finally, after a very long and eventful day, I was reunited with Clare, Kelly & Louisa at the extremely lovely villa. I was welcomed with hugs and rum which was nice and then given a little tour of the premises, logged on to the internet and I shoved my bag in the twin room. Even though I still had to work while I was there, I was sure I would get lots of time to enjoy being with my friends again. Dinner was a fantastic buffet of meats, feta cheese, salad and bread which went down very well. I hardly took any photos as my phone was on charge after today’s jaunts. We stayed up chatting and catching up on who was doing what, while drinking. I stuck to just rum with ice as I had got so used to not drinking any fizzy drinks or juice most of the time and didn’t want to dilute it. That night, I was so tired I could’ve slept on a washing line and I did not need any help nodding off.
Photo credit – some photos taken by my travel buddy
Captain Caveman and I were tucking in to Bo Ne at Mr Bull’s in Dong Hoi before 8am on Tuesday 9th April. Our flight from Dong Hoi to Hanoi was at 10.50am, meaning we would arrive in to the capital city just before midday. I was a bit cranky in Dong Hoi airport, as I had ordered what I thought was an oolong tea but it turned out to be a bottled sweet tea with tons of sugar. Captain Caveman often goes in to complete shutdown in an airport and doesn’t respond to being spoken to, he is so used to travelling alone that he spends the entire time on his phone and I find it rude. The flight was as expected and we arrived on time with plans to get the number 86 bus to Xuan Dieu to meet an old friend. Captain Caveman had arranged to meet Leonard, who used to live in Phong Nha, at a nice little Italian restaurant of Leonard’s choosing. We were meant to be meeting at Giovanni’s between 12.30 and 1pm but, unfortunately, there was a bit of a delay with our bus. There were quite a few pushy men at the bus station, asking where we were going and probably trying to get us to take an illegal taxi. Captain Caveman was having none of it and we both kept our wits about us as we saw what looked like a bit of scamming. We got on the bus and paid the 90,000VND (£2.84) for the pair of us to go to Xuan Dieu. We sat a while and then we were asked to get on another bus, which was further delayed and meant that Leonard was waiting a long time for us. We didn’t get going until 12.46pm and it meant we had about 15 minutes before the Giovanni’s kitchen closed at 2pm, once we arrived. We said hello to Leonard who was looking very well and was dining on a pesto pasta dish which Captain Caveman also ordered and I went for the tomato version. It was very tasty but I had started to feel a bit under the weather and had a bit of a cough. I put it down to the pollution as we walked Leonard back to his nearby apartment and said our goodbyes.
We walked, with our bags, to the Aisha Hotel where we were staying for 3 nights. It was very nice and it had a super comfy bed and no windows – ideal for getting to sleep in at last! There was no rest to be had though as we needed to get ready for the evening’s entertainment and, quite frankly, Captain Caveman had excelled himself with what he had up his sleeve!
Captain Caveman and I had been invited by his friends, Martin and Martina, to an evening event at the Czech Embassy in Hanoi. We arrived to a champagne reception and I was glad I had worn one of my new dresses, a black floor length number. There was a fundraiser for Blue Dragon where the founder, Do Duy Vi, was there to receive donations from an auction. The designer Mimi Lan Nguyen put on a fashion show which incorporated Vietnamese silk with Czech linen to raise money for the charity. Hynek Kmoníček, the Czech ambassador, was there to introduce it all and was quite an amusing speaker. Vi and Mimi were great and their stories were particularly moving, especially Vi who had grown up in poverty himself. There were stalls dotted around the outside of the building, my favourite being the Belgian chocolate one. We got to taste amazing chocolates by chocolatier Peter Rudolf Braun and it was so good. After the show there was a chance to mingle with the likes of the Finnish ambassador and his wife, both wearing big shiny rings. A buffet of fancy canapes was put on and I had 3 with a glass of red wine. Captain Caveman managed to snaffle down a considerable amount more than me but was still up for food and drink elsewhere later. I’d really enjoyed my evening of Vietnamese and Czech culture a lot more than I thought I would – definitely another first for me.
We left Martin and Martina to ‘finish their duties’ as they work at the embassy and we headed over to 7 Bridges where we arranged to meet back up with them. Here I drank cider as I was still trying to stay off the beer while Captain Caveman tried a couple of different IPAs. We also had some food, I had quesadillas and Captain Caveman had sausage. When Martin and Martina rejoined us we each had a slice of pizza too. It had been a great night, something a little different. Around 11pm we paid half each of our 1,580,000VND (£49.38) bill which consisted of 6 beers, 1 cider, 1 soft drink, 1 quesadilla, 1 sausage, and 4 slices of pizza. I was definitely glad of my bed that night and had a bit of a sore throat as I went to sleep.
I slept in until 7.30am on Thursday 21st March and went for the homestay breakfast at 8.30am. This time I requested the vegetable noodle dish without butter and a green tea. The views of the river were good, the temperature was cool and the rain had gone. I felt a bit out of sorts and couldn’t put my finger on what was wrong. My skin had started to itch again and I thought either my eczema was coming back or that I had ring worm. My stomach wasn’t great and it took a lot longer than I’d expected to buy a bus ticket. Captain Caveman had instructed me to purchase my Phong Nha to Hoi An bus ticket from the Diep Le Homestay so I attempted that. We used Google translate and I thought I’d booked the 7am bus on Tuesday at a cost of 400,000VND (£12.62). I thought that seemed expensive but I had no reference point, having not bought a bus ticket since before Covid. I am also not a fan of the bus journey which takes 8 hours, changes in Danang and the drivers can be a bit iffy.
I cycled on the borrowed homestay bicycle to the pharmacy as I wanted to get some medication, it cost me 75,000VND (£2.38) for imodium and fungal treatment which would have been 5 times the price in Europe or Turkey. In the queue, I started to feel unwell so I popped next door to Lantern restaurant for a green tea and to be near a toilet. When I recovered, Tatas joined me there for lunch and we both had vegan pho, her’s with extra chillies and mine with random pineapple in it. Lunch was cheap at 60,000VND (£1.90) for my tasty soup and drink, which Tatas paid for. My next stop was to call at the supermarket, here’s what I bought and the prices in Dong.
Winmart Supermarket Goûté biscuits 30,100 3 cereal bars 34,000 6 apples 105,512 Total spent 169,612VND (£5.35)
I’d completely forgotten how expensive apples are in Vietnam, compared to Turkey and the UK, so I bought them without thinking. At 55p per apple I probably wouldn’t be buying them very often. I headed back to the homestay and had a video call with Vanessa. We had a great chat and she was still making good progress on her recovery.
After an hour I had to leave to go meet Veronika who had yet another treat in store for me. She’d only brought her own quality red wine with her to The Villa’s and had put the grandchildren (who she was in charge of) on a separate table so we could have dinner and wine together. We shared a green salad and a Momma D pizza which was lovely and before we’d hardly started, we had company. Aussie Pete arrived and proceeded to commence his ritual of asking the staff for a cold Huda and a glass with ice. As we were getting on with our evening we had another visitor; Marc (from Germany), had decided to surprise us. Once Veronika and I had got settled in to our dinner ‘date’ with Aussie Pete and German Marc, there was a call from Bich, Veronika’s daughter-in-law. She wanted to check on how the kids were doing and what they were up to. Unfortunately, they weren’t supposed to have been left to their own devices in the room watching Netflix, so Veronika had to resume babysitting duties and leave us. Tatas arrived in time to save the dodgy looking soirée and another bottle of wine was consumed. Before 9pm Aussie Pete fell asleep (standard practice) and we got kicked out at 11pm, an hour after closing time. As Veronika had provided wine for 2 nights running I paid for her meal too, a total of 595,000VND (£18.90) including tip, which was reasonable.
joloyolo 