The alarm was set for 5am on Sunday 3rd September and Jamie was coming to pick us up at 5.30am. Of course, there’s sometimes a bit of a drama when we go anywhere with Nanny Kay and today was no different! We had been good for once and gone to bed early, set 2 alarms on 2 different phones and were sat in the back of Jamie’s car as he knocked on Nanny Kay’s door. It was still dark so we couldn’t see anything until Drew went to check what was taking so long and found that Nanny Kay wasn’t answering the door. To be honest all of our first thoughts were ‘what if she’s dead?’ she is getting on a bit! Luckily, she had done her usual trick and overlaid so she eventually came to the car in a panic and slightly dishevelled. We still arrived at the ferry terminal in good time to pick up our boarding cards. Jamie, Drew and Nanny Kay were on the faster ferry, Captain Caveman and I were on the other one. The ferry crossing was fine and of course Captain Caveman played Bridge on his phone the whole way there and I don’t think we spoke once. We were right at the back of the immigration queue when we got there so the others had to wait for us. As there were 5 of us plus luggage a taxi wouldn’t have been much use so we all followed Captain Caveman, through the streets of the old town, towards the hotels. Nanny Kay had managed to get the same hotel as us and it was meant to be just 11 minutes’ walk from Marks & Spencer’s. Jamie & Drew were in a hotel with a pool not too far away from us.
We checked in at Mascot Boutique Hotel and had a quick shower/change. It was a hot day and we all needed a beverage so we didn’t waste much time. Our room was lovely with a loft style bed and ladder, we had a bottle of wine left out for us too. Nanny Kay had the largest room in the hotel and was rather nice to say it was the last one left. We reconvened as a group at a Mexican bar/restaurant just round the corner from our hotel. Nanny Kay had a sangria but the rest of us had an Alpha beer, which were about €4/5 each for a big one.
We decided to eat at Rhodes Blue for lunch and what a lovely place I thought it was. Drew had beer, Nanny Kay had a coke and the rest of us shared white wine. For starters we all shared pitta bread with hummus and tzatziki and we had quite an eclectic mix of main meals; Pepperoni pizza for Drew, Beef Stifado for Jamie, Moussaka for Nanny Kay, Pork Souvlaki for Captain Caveman and Spare ribs for me. There were extra french fries ordered too. The total bill came to €107 (£93.46) with the cheapest thing on the menu being a can of coke at €3, the most expensive being the wine at €13.50, meals were between €10.50 and €12.50 so not bad and the portions were good.
We nipped back to the hotel after lunch but then met up again at a bar called Ottima. We were meeting Steve and Michelle to go to a festival that was on at Therme Park in Rhodes Town, nearer to Marks & Spencer’s. Steve and Michelle were really busy with work so they couldn’t stop long, just long enough to meet everyone and have a pint of ale from The Mule’s Brew pop up bar. After they left, the 5 of us stayed to listen to the singers, had another drink from the cocktail bar and it was a nice little event. We walked back to our hotels and called in to a lovely bar called Koykos on the way back, we sat outside and ordered wine and a sharing platter which was lovely and not expensive. Our night finished at Felini, an ice-cream place where Captain Caveman had his favourite, pistachio. I had a mixture of mango and raspberry sorbet – the diet was once again on hold!
Photo credit – some photos by Captain Caveman and Jamie
I had a day with a difference on Sunday 30th July! As it was the weekend and I didn’t have to work, I decided to take Adele up on her offer of a trip to Fethiye. We had heard some hype about the new Barbie film and had decided we would go to see it at the cinema in the Erasta centre. I had cherries and blueberries for breakfast before meeting Adele at the Dalyan bus station. It was 40 lira (£1.20) from Dalyan to Ortaca where we grabbed water and mints and changed on to the Fethiye bus. That bus was 50 lira (£1.50) and took almost an hour. The cinema tickets were 105 lira (£3.14) each and the next showing wasn’t until 4.45pm. We went to a cafe where I had chicken, salad and pasta with a sparkling water, Adele had soup and a dessert. My food came to a very reasonable 150 lira (£4.49) and was very nice. We also bought cherries to eat in the cinema but we were too full to manage them. In the chemist I bought a Dove deodorant stick which was on offer for 94 Lita (£2.81) and comes in handy to roll on thighs to prevent chub rub on a hot day. The film was weird and I wasn’t sure I’d have carried on watching it, if it had been on the TV but it was certainly interesting. A handful of people walked out which is a first experience for me to witness. We also saw some trailers for other films which looked of interest and hoped to come again. On the way back to Dalyan, the prices of the buses were slightly different; the bus from Fethiye to Ortaca was 48 lira (£1.44), then the bus to Dalyan was only 20 lira (60p) which was half the price of the way there. I had cheese and biscuits for a snack at home and then was off to bed, ready for a busy Monday!
I managed to work 6 hours on Monday 31st July, between 10am and 9.30pm. As it was still very hot in Dalyan, I’d found it was easier to spread my hours over 3 or 4 days rather doing it all in 2 days. I had a cup of Yorkshire tea, fruit and quark for breakfast, then made a veggie wrap pizza for lunch. When I finished work, I wasn’t hungry so I just did a chicken schnitzel in the airfryer. The year seemed to be going so fast but this did mean that it was only one more month until I saw Captain Caveman again and only 30 days until I could start to apply for my Turkish residency renewal appointment date.
Of course I was hungover and very woolly headed on Saturday 8th July. I vaguely remembered getting involved in tequila shots the previous night, which meant I should have gone home 3 hours previous to that. While Steve and Michelle were up and about, and even quite sprightly compared to me, my day was a bit of a right-off. I actually did nothing but loll about with some of the cats and Xena, the dog. I was in bed by 10pm on my last night in Rhodes, tomorrow I was off back to Turkey.
Having had a quiet Saturday night, I was awake early on Sunday 9th July. Steve and Michelle had commitments until late so came home after I’d gone to bed. The weather was still sunny in Rhodes and the forecast showed it was hotting up in Dalyan, where I was going back to tonight. A weather warning due to the wind, had meant a lot of boats had been unable to sail so I hoped my ferry was still going. By 1.30pm Steve, Michelle and I were in Rhodes town, wasting a bit of time before I had to pick up my ferry ticket. We decided to have a Macdonald’s which was not one of my best choices. I’ve not eaten a Macdonald’s in years and, looking back, it was not the right time to reintroduce a Big Mac meal into my diet. I was convinced that I would be able to keep it down if I had a sea sickness tablet for the journey and didn’t worry too much as I shovelled it in. The Big Mac meal in Rhodes Town cost €8.85 (£7.58) so wasn’t cheap but it was one the nicest I’ve ever had. The last one I’d had in the UK had been cold and cost me less than £4 – I have no idea how much they are now. I said my goodbyes to Steve and Michelle, outside the ferry port, after another great holiday in Lardos. I wheeled my luggage across the road a little sad but we had already arranged that I would be back again in early September so it wasn’t too traumatic a goodbye. There were no sea sickness tablets left in the shop as it was so rough, they had all been taken. It was Sunday so all the pharmacies were closed, I would have to chance it. As I got on the ferry, my sister and her family were already having a relaxing first day in Dalyan with my parents. The ferry crossing was very choppy and I was lucky to be given the middle seats by a couple of kind Turkish ladies, who also offered me a lift to the bus stop when we arrived. I decided I had far too much luggage to chance a bus journey after over 2 hours of trying not to throw up a Bic Mac. The taxi was charging €70 to go from Fethiye to Dalyan which was 2,000 lira (£59), a massive increase on the 1,100 lira (£32.47) I’d paid on the way out. I got home and was absolutely knackered, there was no internet at home and my Turkish phone had run out of credit so I went to bed – tomorrow the family fun would start.
I woke up at 5.30am on Sunday 7th May instantly regretting not drinking less last night and not going to bed earlier. I made sure the apartment was secure, a bit tidier and the power turned off. My mom didn’t come to get the beers and stuff I left her because of the rain yesterday so she would pop round in the week to sort that out. Fikri was on time and we left at 6.30am for the taxi drive to Fethiye port. My ferry was at 8.30am but I had to be there at 7.30am to pick up my ticket and pay the nice lady which had been arranged by Steve and Michelle. The ferry ride was a little tough going as I’d taken no seasickness pills and I was pretty hungover. The weather was a bit windy so it was choppy but nowhere near as bad as the time I went to Dublin for Little Jo’s birthday. I arrived at the ferry port in Rhodes and was the first off and through. I waited outside at the bus stop where Michelle and her friend, Louise, came to pick me up.
It was just under 50km to where my friends-boss-work colleagues, Steve and Michelle, live, in Lardos. I’d been before with Captain Caveman and it’s a lovely small village which I was looking forward to seeing more of. Initially, the plan was for me to be house and pet sitting for Steve and Michelle for the next 5 days while they had a holiday. Sadly, they had cancelled their holiday at short notice because Steve’s brother had died. Instead, they had insisted that I still come over for a holiday and to catch up with work stuff before my, already arranged, flights to Vietnam from Athens. We stopped for the girls to get an iced coffee on the way, then to drop my bag off at Steve and Michelle’s house, before heading over to Louise’s house. I wasn’t quite expecting that the first time I’d meet Steve as my new boss that he’d be on his knees, sweating and holding a paint brush but it definitely set the tone for what was about to be a fantastic week in Rhodes! I got introduced to Milokleftis, a lovely Greek cider, and, while Steve painted Louise’s patio floor and Louise sorted out an urgent work emergency, Michelle and I got through a few ciders. After some work had been done and some Milokleftis had been necked, Steve went for some takeaway pizzas. He was a bit disgruntled that they cost €45 (£38.52) for 2 big ones and a garlic bread but they did taste good! That night, I slept so well in the spare bed which was super comfy. I thought I’d be working tomorrow but Steve had already said I could take the day off – what a boss!
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!
On Saturday 18th February Jamie picked me up at 10am and we went to the Saturday market together in his car. I was glad of this as I had quite a list of things I wanted to get and knew my bag would be heavy. We were both on a tight schedule today as I had arranged to get the bus to Fethiye and didn’t know what time I’d be back. At the market I bought lots of fruit and vegetables which came to a total of 253.50 lira (£11.18). This was the most I’d spent at the market in one go, in quite a while but was also good that I was planning meals and buying more healthy fresh produce. We bumped in to Greg, a well known Dalyan resident, and he took our photo for his Facebook update. I took his photo for my blog and we had a little chat. Then Jamie dropped me back home with my heavy bags and popped in for a cup of tea. When Jamie left I chopped my strawberries and pineapple ready for later. I had already had 2 cups of Yorkshire tea so my breakfast was 1 banana and some strawberries. I’d not suffered with a bad stomach for some months now, mainly after cutting down on eating out. For some reason I don’t think my body liked the banana and I was quite poorly after eating it. I had a cheese sandwich at lunch time but still wasn’t feeling too well and wasn’t looking forward to travelling by bus this afternoon.
After a swift trip out of Dalyan for a couple of hours I was back in time to meet Ann and Jamie at Sofra bar at 5.30pm. Sofra bar is the place to watch sport on a weekend so is a popular bar for most people in Dalyan. Jamie and I had already decided we weren’t drinking alcohol today and weren’t staying out because we each had our dinner planned (there is only so many waters you can drink in a bar). It made a nice change to frequent a pub I’m usually in more of a tangle at. Around 8.30pm Jamie left, then me in the opposite direction having briefly seen and chatted to Cath, Keith, Mark, Kate, Sarah, Rach and Nuri, some of who were ordering food or staying for more drinks. For dinner I made from scratch a sweet and sour chicken, using an adaptation of a Slimming World recipe and it was one of the best I’ve had. It was also a fraction of the cost of going for a Chinese meal. The only downside was that I didn’t make more of it!
I felt absolutely shattered on Friday 27th January, after only a few hours sleep. Charlie was in Abi’s bed with me and he’d been scared of the wind during the night. At 8.30am I went to survey the outside balconies and found the furniture had blown everywhere. A screen fence had fell off the roof and I could see that on the ground there was some damage to the front of the complex fence. There was a slight gap in the rain storms so I got my casual clothes and a big coat on to go for a jog with Charlie. We had to be quick as the rain was threatening the whole time we were out and the wind was still blustery. We’d just got in when the torrential rain came and Charlie was scared. I snuggled him up in his favourite blanket and made sure he had Slothy, his best toy, with him while I went out for just over an hour to Turkish class. When I got back, I’d got a bit wet in the rain so went to have a shower. Charlie was still worried about the storm so he came in the bathroom too. I spoke to Helen about Gill, her friend who was taking Charlie, arriving later today. She sent me Gill’s number so that I could discuss directly about me dropping Charlie off this weekend. It wouldn’t be tonight as Gill was still on her way to Turkey, but tonight would probably be my last one with Charlie. Meanwhile, Captain Caveman had arrived back in Phong Nha and was at his Oxalis briefing ready for his tour tomorrow. That evening, I had something planned which even the manager at the venue had been sceptical about because of the weather.
I’d originally planned to go to Fethiye for the day with Jamie, Ann and Nanny Kay where, instead of drinking too much, we would go bowling to celebrate my birthday. In the end we’d decided not to go as I would have had to miss Turkish class and it could be too busy with families at a weekend. We would go for a meal and drinks in Dalyan instead and we decided Hotel Dalyance was a good choice for everyone. I’d not been in ages and I love the food there. We also had the added surprise that Jamie’s partner, Drew, had decided to come to Dalyan and had just arrived. The 5 of us had a lovely table and by 6.20pm I had a beer and a red wine on the go while tucking in to the complimentary bread and olives. Nanny Kay bought me a bottle of red wine with some Smarties and a chocolate bar attached which was very generous of her, especially as I thought that she already gave me a bottle of wine for my birthday. That one was just for having her over for dinner, as it turns out, so I wasn’t complaining and it was much appreciated. Sarah came to take our order and she recommended the pepper chicken for me, which sounded good. When it came, I was very impressed and it tasted delicious. I enjoyed my night, the food and wine at Hotel Dalyance with my friends but we were getting the bill before 9pm! It looked like the night was coming to an end quite early on a Friday night, luckily I’d not dressed up for it but everyone I was with looked like they had made a bit more effort. Jamie, Drew, Nanny Kay and I decided we would go for 1 or 2 more at Sofra bar. Ann said her goodbyes and went back home as she didn’t fancy going on for another drink as she was closer to home at Hotel Dalyance.
When we got there, it was pretty quiet but I had a couple of red wines while the boys managed 2 bottles of wine between them. Nanny Kay and I were having a nice chat when Mark walked in and joined our table. Sofra is one of the main go-to weekend bars for most of the expats during the winter and, as Kate was due back from England tomorrow, it was not surprising to see Mark on his last night of playing out. I limited myself to just the 2 red wines as I’d definitely had my fill with the 2 bottles of wine we’d shared at Dalyance. Nanny Kay was sensible and had just the one red wine in Sofra and a taxi home. I was home before midnight, Mark dropped me off in his taxi, and unfortunately Gill’s flight had been redirected to Heraklion in Greece due to the bad weather. I played catch Slothy with Charlie and told him he’d be going to stay with Gill at some point this weekend. I’m not sure why but he started licking my feet and we were still up at 1.30am.
Monday 26th September was quite a day! Kate, in her capacity of Miss Guided Tours or Miss Adventure, had organised a day trip. Captain Caveman and I called for Amanda & Greg to walk to the bakery opposite Özalp’s to meet the rest of the party; Adam, Kath, Mark, Kate, Daisy, John, Andrea, Janet, Kev, and Gaz. We departed on the minibus towards Fethiye as we were off for a day out at Babadağ, the place where paragliding is a popular sport. We left Dalyan at 10am, by 11.30am I had already had my first nervous wee and had my cable car ticket in my hand. The cost was 170 lira (£8 approx) each so not expensive for tourists. It became apparent that Gay Gaz, Amanda, Daisy and I were not looking forward to the cable car, at all. I’m not scared of heights but I have trouble trusting anything that looks precarious. As people dallied about waiting for Gay Gaz before getting in to a cable car, Captain Caveman and I were already at the front of the queue. We got told by staff to get in and the maximum allowed per car was 8, I hurried in and sat down as it moved along the platform. No one else had got in with us and the car behind us had a guy with a parachute in. I was terrified and it felt like the longest journey ever as it climbed up to the first station. It was definitely the highest cable car I’d ever been on but Captain Caveman thought it was amusing to see me so scared.
We all reconvened at the restaurant which involved a walk over a bridge with a glass floor down the middle. Ordinarily I wouldn’t have stood on the glass floor but compared to the cable car it was far less worrying and people were standing in the way on each of the sides. There wasn’t enough room at the restaurant for all of us to sit together so, while the rest of the group sat in the sun, Captain Caveman, Amanda, Greg and I sat at a separate table in the shade. Captain Caveman and I ordered burgers and a beer which we really enjoyed and it wasn’t too expensive. Greg had a beef wrap, also good, and Amanda shared her chicken salad with a wasps.
The next part of ascending the mountain involved a chair lift, which I have been on before when I went skiing a long time ago. Both Amanda and I didn’t want to go on it but I kind of talked her in to it, only to regret it. I had a complete meltdown on this one and hated every second. Obviously Captain Caveman and Greg were fine with it but Amanda and I were not and were extremely emotional when we got off. Poor Greg had a migraine coming on but luckily I had medication with me so he was able to prevent it. Captain Caveman took himself off for a laugh and couldn’t believe how scared I had been. As the guys decided to carry on right to the top of the mountain, Amanda and I decided we would walk down to the cable car station – there was no way we would get on the chair lift again. We managed to watch lots of mental paragliders jumping off the mountainside but we couldn’t get our head round the 5 year old child doing it with an adult.
Video of the chair lift we went on
By 3pm we were back at the 1700m cable car height and about to go back down. Kate had lost Mark, who had wandered up to the mountain top, with John, later than everyone else so she felt like she was herding cats. On the way up I had sat with my back to the sea but on the way down I thought it might be better to face the drop – it wasn’t. Daisy, Greg and I were facing forward while Captain Caveman and Amanda were going backwards. Halfway down both Daisy and I spotted the same fraying rope above us, at exactly the same time. Captain Caveman tried to reassure us by saying it would still be safe but managed to make it worse. I felt like I was hyperventilating for most of the cable car journey and, although the views were amazing, all I could concentrate on was getting out.
The next part of our day involved a drive in to Fethiye, where there was a quick pit stop at Address restaurant and bar where we managed to smash some crockery moving tables. Amanda, Greg and Captain Caveman tootled off to the Turkish delight shop, Kate collected the water taxi tokens for us all to go to Çalış. Of course no trip is complete without a visit to Charcoal Palace for fish and chips, the draft Becks beer was now 40 lira (£1.95) per pint so some people took advantage of that and most had the fish and chips. Some had battered sausage and onion rings. It was great, as always, and I felt very full and sleepy on the journey back home. It had been a great day out and now Captain Caveman fancied doing a tandem paraglide jump from the top of Babadağ. I think I will be busy that day!
Our first day back in Dalyan on Saturday 17th September was certainly interesting. This was also the day I had noted in my diary that our Aussie friends would arrive. Amanda & Greg had not been able to leave Australia during the pandemic so they were also glad to be coming back to Dalyan after almost 3 years away. We checked out of the lovely Downtown Fethiye Suites and went to the Mulberry Tree for breakfast. Captain Caveman went off to check the Fethiye to Ortaca bus timetable while I had a toasted teacake and a cup of tea. When he returned he also had a teacake then off we went on our journey back to Dalyan. The bus was busy, hot and not too comfortable but we made it in one piece.
By 5pm we were in Backyard No.9 taking advantage of the Happy Hour before 6pm and ordering a pizza each. Efes beers were 45 lira (£2.14) so we had a couple while they were on offer. While we were there a few of our friends came over from Rehab bar to say hello and we got to see Mark & Kate on an invalid carriage! Our Aussie friends and neighbours, Amanda & Greg, had arrived so Captain Caveman and I went to welcome them back and have a drink at Lukka bar. The 3 of them ate at Lukka but I wasn’t hungry after my mushroom pizza so I just had a large draft Efes. We had a wander to see Amanda and Greg’s new apartment, The Reading Room, which is lovely and we celebrated it with a gin!
When we got home we were about ready for bed when I noticed our Dutch friend, Angelique, had put on Facebook that she had arrived in Dalyan but had tested positive for Corona. We decided to go back out and Captain Caveman took some medication for her while I joined Mark, Ged and Tommy for a drink. The Favipiravir medication had an expiry date in October so it needed to be used and had been provided by Oxalis for if Captain Caveman had got Corona. At Rehab bar everyone was pretty drunk so we didn’t stay long and Captain Caveman was keen to get home to get some sleep.
On our way home we noticed Daisy and Andy at Rumours so we went over to say hello. Obviously we got chatting, as you do, even though I don’t usually frequent Rumours bar. Andy bought Captain Caveman and I a beer while Daisy introduced us to her friends. Needless to say it was a messy night with us leaving just after Andy, at around 3.15am! On our way home we passed Sofra bar where people were still drinking and tried to sit down for one more beer. Şükrü, the owner, said no and to go home as he was trying to get the other punters to do. It was a sign we were back in Dalyan!
We were up and packed super early on Friday 16th September as we were off back to Turkey. We were booked on the 9am ferry from Rhodes to Fethiye with Sky Marine ferries. They run only during the holiday season, until the end of October, and when we arrived at the port it was busy. The walk from our hotel to the port wasn’t too far but it started to get a bit warm carrying the rucksack, on the way we saw a massive cruise ship too. At the port, I had a sit down and some water after carrying my bag which was about 10kg, Captain Caveman’s was heavier as he was carrying the booze. We noticed the ferry queue for Marmaris was quite long but the one to Fethiye was very short, we were at the front and we didn’t have to wait long to pick up our tickets. The crossing takes a couple of hours and cost around €50, Captain Caveman had the good idea to get me a sea sickness pill. When I took it the ginger and size of it made it difficult, but I got it down. The ferry was empty so we sat at the front where we could stretch our legs out. Strangely, the next passengers to get on sat right behind us, despite having the whole ferry to choose from. I fell asleep almost immediately and we think it was the seasickness tablet as I’ve experienced that before.
We had planned to spend a bit of time in Fethiye when we arrived and had even asked Mark, Kate and Daisy if they fancied a trip to Çalış but they were already busy. Captain Caveman decided we would stay an extra night in Fethiye and booked us in at the Downtown Fethiye Suites. With it being a weekend we had trouble finding a place to stay so we got lucky with this little apartment. We arrived early expecting to drop bags but we were allowed to check-in. After unpacking our stuff and putting the cheese in the fridge we decided to go to The Mulberry Tree for brunch. Its a popular little cafe with great food, I had a bacon sandwich and a cup of tea while Captain Caveman had pide and coffee. We even bought some crumpets to take away with us for the freezer.
We decided to get the 5.30pm water taxi from Fethiye to Çalış so that Captain Caveman could experience the delights of Charcoal Palace. The ride takes about 20 minutes and costs 40 lira each way and on the way there it was a full boat. When we got to Charcoal Palace it was quiet so we sat outside and ordered a pint of Beck’s draft beer each. It was 35 lira (£1.68) which is a lot cheaper than what we had been used to. I noticed that the menu had gluten free batter for the fish so I decided I would try it, for research purposes more than anything. We both had fish and chips which come with tartare sauce and mushy peas. I don’t eat either so I gave mine to Captain Caveman. If you didn’t know the gluten free was served, you wouldn’t have been able to tell as it was very good. The colour was slightly different and the price was the same as the regular one.
After dinner we walked to the seafront to see the sunset and had an Efes at Summer Breeze bar, they were out of Beck’s draft. We were ready to go back to Fethiye for an early night when we got a message from Julio. He was at Terras bar in Fethiye with friends and invited us to join them. We had a great night, a few more drinks and a good laugh before we walked back to our apartment and the others carried on their night.
I met Ma, Pa, Mark, Kate, Vanessa and Matt at the Dalyan bus station at 10.20am on Thursday 19th May and we were off on another adventure! I’d luckily managed to change my breakfast arrangement to Friday and therefore I had not eaten when we got on the bus to Ortaca. At Ortaca we changed to the bus to Fethiye, as there isn’t a direct bus to Çalış. Mark and Kate were going to Fethiye first and the rest of us were going straight to Çalış where we would meet Steve and Michelle for lunch. When we got off the bus at the Citroen garage, ready to walk a few kilometres in to Çalış, a bus arrived which we got on to. I don’t have a Kent card, which is used for transport, so the regular cost was 14 lira (72p) from Dalyan to Ortaca, 28 lira (£1.44) from Ortaca to near Çalış, then 10 lira (51p) in to Çalış itself. The total journey was just over an hour and a half and was quite pleasant. When we arrived at Summer Breeze, a lovely restaurant and bar on the sea front which Julio recommended, most of us had a soft drink and then decided to order a breakfast. The prices were very reasonable and much cheaper than most places in Dalyan so we were quite happy to stay there until Steve, Michelle, Julio, Serem, Mark and Kate were going to join us later. By that time we were well and truly on it with the drinks and were having a lovely time. A guy in white shorts, and no shirt had skated past us showing off his muscles so we, and another table of ‘Brits abroad’ couldn’t help but show their appreciation. He then came back, stopped his skate board in front of us and thanked us for making his day. I didn’t even get my camera out, I was so surprised – you can’t take us anywhere. The rest of the party arrived and we continued to have more drinks, Steve had received positive news from the hospital that his leg was doing well. He didn’t drink but they did have a breakfast and propped up his leg on a spare chair. About 3.30pm Can, the man who sells sunglasses, came round and we all proceeded to try several pairs on. I treated myself to some fake Ray-Ban’s for 250 lira (£12.82) and a couple of others bought a pair.
At 5.15pm we decided to move locations, Julio and Serem had their car so this was useful to get Steve to Charcoal Palace. The rest of us walked, this time I didn’t get lost, and I was able to enjoy the fish and chips I’d missed out on last time. Steve, Michelle and I even ordered an extra battered sausage and chips to share and I thought the food was amazing. I don’t eat peas, tartar sauce or curry sauce but my friends loved the accompaniments. I tried one of Kate’s onion rings and they were very good too but I was conscious of a batter overload. My Dad had said he had not liked the fish and chips last time so I was surprised to see him order them again. This time he said they were better, but still not as good as Tony’s chip shop, back in Mosborough, Sheffield. My Mom and Vanessa decided to order the chicken fajitas and they looked incredible, as did Julio’s chicken shish which he had eaten there before. I couldn’t finish my small portion of fish and chips so I asked to have a doggy bag, unfortunately they forgot and must have thrown it away. Steve and Michelle of course were sensible and went home at a reasonable hour. It had been so good to have a Deep Blue Leg-Ends reunion and of course there were plans for another one next month. Vanessa, Matt and my parents also decided that getting a taxi back from Çalış to Dalyan for 600 lira (£30.77) would be a good option and for the 4 of them it worked out £15 per couple – well worth it!
I could tell that Kate was on her way to getting merry as she had started to speak more Turkish to Serem, at first we were exchanging idioms but we were slowly getting off track and had to resort to speaking English. Mark had considered going home at a decent time too, but Kate was out out – we were also expecting another couple of their friends to arrive. I decided I would share the taxi back with Mark and Kate as even 200 lira each would be a reasonable amount. I joined Mark, Kate, Julio, Serem, Adam & Damla for a drink in Motto bar which turned in to a few more for some of the contingent. We eventually got a taxi after Kate negotiated the bar man down to an excellent price of 500 lira. The journey back started with Kate being chatty but then she fell asleep, Mark said almost nothing the whole way back and the Fethiye shopping made it back to Dalyan. I got dropped off at home and gave 200 lira to Kate regardless of the taxi price. It was midnight when we got in and it had been a long day with lots of laughter, great food and a fair bit to drink. It was worth it to see Steve and Michelle again but I was a bit sad when it suddenly dawned on me that I wouldn’t be in Turkey for the next Deep Blue Leg-Ends get-togethers!
What a day Saturday 23rd April was! It started with me waking up with a strange woman in my hotel room and me asking who she was. I had half the bottle of red wine left but couldn’t find the cork, both Mark’s jumper and Kate’s jacket were on a chair and towels were strewn on the sofa having once been blankets. A bunch of keys and 2 sets of sunglasses were on the desk, Michelle and I were both fully clothed. I felt fairly ok though, as I was probably still drunk, and so Michelle and I went to meet everyone for breakfast. I was too delicate to eat much but I hammered the fresh juice and tea as everyone was recalling the awful events of last night. Matt was feeling better and grateful to have gone back to the hotel earlier last night whereas Vanessa was feeling bad for poor Steve. When we got back to the room Michelle checked her phone and had lots of messages and missed calls from Steve. He’d already had Julio visit him at the hospital and was waiting for a doctor after being told he’d broken his leg in more than one place. Michelle found Steve’s shoe which we had put on a shelf, she gave me some fresh lemon juice and left. I went back to bed for a bit but had to check out at noon. I could hear my parent’s kettle in the room next door so I knew I was going to get complaints for being noisy until about 4am. We all met back up at Address, a restaurant on the river, where Mark was the only one having a beer as no one else could manage alcohol. I started to feel unwell but we still all paid (30 lira) for our tokens for the ferry from Fethiye to Çalış – our next adventure was about to start. I was sat on the ferry boat in Fethiye worried that I had started to feel very unwell and that I might not make the trip across to Çalış. I was sat between Matt and Mark and I could feel myself getting worse, there was no toilet on board so I contemplated getting off and getting the next boat in an hour. The plan in Çalış was to go to a restaurant called Charcoal Palace so I asked Mark for the directions from where the boat stops. I reminded everyone I don’t have a SIM card in my phone but I would come to meet them at the restaurant in 1 hour’s time – it sounded simple!
As I got off the boat I headed straight for the big Migros Supermarket nearby. I had a very strange feeling and felt like I needed to get some essential ‘lady items’. In Turkey I’ve found it quite difficult to buy tampons in a supermarket. They can be found in the pharmacy and some of the bigger supermarkets and I was in luck. I picked up what I needed and then noticed the massive check-out queues and started to have a cold sweat. A young lad noticed me, he opened up another till and hurried through the process. I made it to a cafe but only just and I was not well at all. After a cup of sweet tea and a 45 minute sit down I had to force myself to go back to the ferry. I had a map of where Charcoal Palace was meant to be, in case Mark’s directions weren’t clear enough, and on I got. I felt like death, I was deeply regretting Tequila and extra red wine last night now and was not confident I would make the bus journey back to Dalyan later, either. As I got off the boat I obviously went the wrong way but asked several people for directions, most had never heard of it but the ones who did ‘know’ sent me in the opposite direction. After walking for far too long in heat and having finished my water I decided to jump in a taxi. It was meant to be 5 minutes walk from the boat but the taxi was heading down a dual carriageway and back to Fethiye when I stopped him and got out on the central reservation without paying. No one had heard of Charcoal Palace; some were convinced they knew and each bar, shop, travel agent or taxi rank I asked didn’t know. I knew that out of everyone already at the restaurant, Mark would be the least likely to have left to look for me so I found a bar, logged on to their WiFi and messaged him to say I was lost. I knew my parents didn’t have a working phone so didn’t bother them and I eventually found a taxi rank who knew where it was and said it was walking distance. I had just started to walk when I saw Kate on the street, who’d come to find me. We also saw the man who had given me the first lot of incorrect directions when I was 2 minutes walk from where I needed to be!! Of course I had missed out on having fish and chips with everyone so I had a pint of shandy. I was hot, sweaty and cheesed off already when Kate informed me that Mark isn’t good at directions and not to listen to him! His phone was in his pocket and he hadn’t noticed my message either so it was good that I had finally been found. most of the group who live in Turkey full time were so happy to have eaten good food and I gathered I’d missed out on amazing fish and chips or battered sausages. They said the chicken shish was also amazing, and portion sizes were generous meaning great value. I was disappointed to miss out but I couldn’t eat anything now and would save it for another time. Kate came up with a wonderful idea that, instead of getting the buses back, we get taxis and I was very happy with that suggestion. It was slightly unfortunate that Kate and I had to listen to Mark, the most chatty bloke I have ever met, talk to the taxi driver for the entire journey back to Dalyan. The cost of the taxi from Çalış to Dalyan was 600 lira (just over £30 per taxi). My parents, Vanessa and Matt went in one taxi, Mark, Kate and I in another. It was probably the best tenner I have spent, as I was feeling very queasy all the way back. That night I had an early night as we had another big day planned for tomorrow and it looked to be a good one.
Friday 22nd April was one of those days that we will probably remember for a very long time! A few of us were off on a trip to Fethiye and we were all excited, having booked rooms at the Infinity hotel. I’d already agreed to go ten pin bowling, even though I’m not really a fan, and I was also hoping there may be an opportunity for a Kentucky Fried Chicken, which is one of the few fast food eateries I really enjoy. Mark, Kate and I got a taxi from their’s in to town and went to the tea gardens for a quick beverage before meeting the others at the bus stop at 10.20am. We got the 10.30am bus to Ortaca and then changed at the bus station to the bus to Fethiye. The entire journey took about 1.5 hours and cost less than 50 lira (£2.67) each. We got off the bus at the Erasta shopping centre and headed straight for the food hall section upstairs. The gang went for several different options; İskender kebap at the traditional Turkish food restaurant, a burger stall and pides. Vanessa and I plumped for a 2 piece KFC meal with gravy. I’d last eaten a KFC 5 days before Christmas in 2020 in this exact same location and I was so looking forward to it. I loved it and it was quite a bargain too compared to a UK one and wasn’t as greasy. At the bowling alley Vanessa took charge of our booking while Mark had a go on a boxing game. It cost less than £5 each for a couple of bowling games and we split the teams in to two. I was the only one to start with a strike but then it went downhill from there. We were all in good spirits, some of us more competitive than others. In our team Matt won and Mark won in the other team. It was a great afternoon and despite me not liking bowling that much I really enjoyed myself. We decided to walk to the hotel which was situated in the centre of Fethiye and would take about 20 minutes. There were road works, we all had bags and after a few minutes we flagged down a taxi. The intention was for some of us to get in while Mark, Kate and Matt walked. The taxi driver was having none of that idea and proceeded to pile all 7 of us, and the bags, in to his taxi. He even pulled alongside a fellow cab driver and joked he could fit 3 more people in as we weaved through the busy streets of Fethiye, some of the passengers on their knees/going backwards/clinging on for their life.
We got out of the taxi a short walk from the Infinity Hotel, feeling lucky to have survived. The taxi driver told me it was 70 lira so I paid it but Kate, who must have been the most relieved to be in one piece, took my 70 and gave him a 100 note! We gave ourselves half an hour to get ready at the hotel then the plan was to go for a cheeky pint. I heard the instructions to meet in reception at 4pm so we could then have a stroll to the nearby Deep Blue Bar. The room was lovely with a nice (but small) bathroom where I jumped in the shower then put on my frock – I suspected we might end up out out! Three of us sat in reception waiting for the rest of the gang for a few minutes before realising they had all been chomping at the bit and had already gone to the pub. Luckily, I remembered the way (kind of) and we were there in no time. Mark, Kate and Matt had beer already and Vanessa was having white wine and soda. We got a drinks menu but then I saw a sign which advertised draft Guinness for 50 lira (£2.65) a pint until 9pm so all 3 of us were up for that. The last time the 3 of us had enjoyed a pint of cold Guinness together was 4 years ago in Singapore at a bar called Muddy Murphy’s. Everything was great, we’d had a lovely day and now we were relaxed with our drinks, enjoying each other’s company away from Dalyan, feeling like we were on holiday. A young couple were sat on the next table and obviously we got chatting; they were on holiday from Rhodes but originally from the Midlands and London. Before long we had become a group of 9 and had managed to cheese off the only other customer in Deep Blue bar with our loudness and laughter. Our Guinness went down extremely well and I’d had 3 pints of it before I thought it wise to switch to beer. Luckily someone had the sensible idea that we should probably eat food so we all went to the nearby Duck Pond for dinner and we invited our new friends, Steve & Michelle. We also decided to reserve our table back at Deep Blue bar for 8pm for after our meal. Looking back, most of the Dalyan gang were already on our merry way by the time we ordered food – in less than 4 hours things were about to take a turn for the worst.
The meal at the Duck Pond was pretty good from what I remember, despite the fountain wetting a couple of people who were sat the nearest to it. Some people had starters, others just mains and even an octopus salad was eaten. The service was good and the prices weren’t bad. Having shared a bottle of red wine with Mark during the meal at Duck Pond, on top of the 3 pints of Guiness and 2 pints of Carlsberg, I was probably drunk. However, that didn’t stop us all going back to Deep Blue bar for more drinks. I decided that sticking to red wine now would be the best bet, our table was reserved and more people joined us, including Mark and Kate’s friends from Fethiye.
Matt was the first to take himself off to bed as he’s not one for drinking too much. Kate was the next one to want to retire for the evening and she told Mark she wanted to go to bed. He was not having any of that suggestion and had now gone on to drinking Guinness. The live band were very good and we all got up to dance, the ladies were treated to a spot of gyrating and twirling from our new mate, Steve, as we twisted and jived about the dancefloor. I had just come back to our table for a drink, leaving Mom, Vanessa and Fethiye’s answer to Ricky Martin, giving it their moves on the dancefloor, when it happened. Our new friend, Steve, and Vanessa were on the floor! It all happened so fast but Steve was in pain and he said to Vanessa that he thought he had broken something. He was instructed to not move, the ambulance was called and we were all in shock. It felt like ages for the emergency services to get there but it wasn’t really and Fethiye has a good hospital quite near to the bar so he was going to be looked after. They stretchered him out to a standing ovation and his wife went with him to the ambulance.
None of us would have predicted the irony of my Mom telling Steve to be careful because she had a bad hip and ankle as they had danced to ‘Stand by Me’.
The rest of us seemed to have sobered up somewhat so we did the only sensible thing and drank some more. Kate took herself back to the hotel and there was talk of the rest of us leaving at some point. Vanessa had said she didn’t think anyone would be allowed in the hospital due to Corona restrictions and she was correct. Michelle was back, with her husband’s shoe in her hand and upset that they wouldn’t even let her in to the ambulance. I did the only thing I could think of that might help; I ordered the tequila shots! She and I had a couple of Tequila shots and, as Vanessa, Ma & Pa went back to the hotel we thought it was a good idea to have more drinks. The night finished with Mark, Michelle and I ordering a bottle of red wine which they uncorked for us, and took it back to the hotel to drink – it never occurred to any of us that this might be a bad idea.
On Friday 7th January I met Jamie outside Lukka Bar and we drove down to Ann’s house to see Jax & Lee off. I gave Jax a couple of envelopes to post to my family when she got back to the UK, having forgotten to leave them before I came back. I felt really tired after not very much sleep and decided not to join Jamie and Ann on their trip to Fethiye but I did ask Jamie to take me back some trousers I had bought on the 4th December which didn’t fit, in fact they wouldn’t have fit one leg! I went home and had beans on toast for breakfast with a cup of tea. The white chocolate orange didn’t last long and I polished the rest of it off after hummus, lavaş bread and olives for lunch. That evening I joined Jamie, Ann, Sarah and Katrina for the Lukka bar music bingo night which was Disco themed this week and we got there early enough to have dinner before the fun started. The others had burgers or pasta but I went for the BBQ pizza which I do enjoy.
It was raining very heavily on Saturday 8th January but I had plans that meant I had to venture out in it. I’d decided I did need a mobile phone to use when there was no WiFi, for whatever reason. My Vietnamese Oppo phone was a few years old now and, although still worked, it wasn’t worth the 2732 lira (£150) it would cost to register it. Here in Turkey, it is only permissable to use a foreign phone for up to 120 days and only 1 phone per person every 3 years can be registered. In 2018 it cost just 170 lira to do this but now it is extortionate and, for me, not worth it so I had posted in a local Facebook group to see if anyone had an old Turkish phone I could buy. The most suitable choice for me was from a lady who had a Samsung J4 which she was willing to sell me and I arranged to meet her at Kordon restaurant to do the deal. I was meant to go to do a full supermarket shop, after all I’d not been yet this year, but it was too wet and I couldn’t be bothered to carry much – I just got the ‘essentials’ in Migros and left.
On the way home I noticed there were some new recycling bins in the old market square which I would be sure to use from now on. I used my telephone banking to add on my phone credit to the new phone, which was a first for me. I noticed that the LinkedIn app was on my new phone so I decided to join it, I did a speed test, assisted by a friend who I was thinking of buying a Firestick from and was finding out more about it. That evening I messaged Kebapçı Yusuf to order my dinner and arranged to pick it up at 7.30pm, it cost 70 lira (£3.82) for chicken shish, salad and chips and was piping hot when I got it home. It would have served 2 people but I did manage to eat most of it and just save the flatbread and half of the salad for tomorrow. I had a video call with my parents, who were still social distancing from each other, within their own home, so that Dad didn’t catch Mom’s Corona. Ma was still sickly but looking like she had a bit more colour and was feeling a little better too, at last. None of us could believe Dad hadn’t caught it yet and he was obviously made of tougher stuff than us.
On Sunday 9th January I didn’t have any breakfast as I was booked in for a Lukka Sunday dinner at 2pm with Jamie. I spoke very briefly to Captain Caveman who had got back from the cave to find a young pig at the door of the Glass House. He sent me photos and I talked to the pig but it looked like it was trying to find some snacks. Captain Caveman managed to give it a tickle and said he would look after it, if it was still there after he’d been out for dinner. Our Sunday dinner was delicious and plenty of it, it had gone up to 140 lira (£7.67) but was still good value. I finished watching a series on Netflix, The Innocent, which I thought was one recommended by Jax and Lee but it turned out I’d probably been watching the wrong series! By dinner time I still wasn’t hungry so I just finished off the leftover flatbread and salad from Kebapçı Yusuf followed by a Double Decker chocolate bar. In the evening I started working out how to use LinkedIn and decided I would start to look for a part-time job.
Vanessa and I finally got our day trip on Saturday 4th December when we decided to get the bus to Fethiye. We got the bus around 9.30am from Dalyan bus station and it took about 20 minutes for us to arrive at the bus station in Ortaca. There, we waited under shelter as it was very rainy, for our next bus to Fethiye. We had masks on and were wrapped up well so when the driver whacked up the heating we were both feeling a tad too warm and it seemed to take longer than we expected to get there. The bus was fairly busy and we stopped quite a bit to pick up and drop off but we were in Fethiye before 11.30am where it was still raining. We were just glad to get off the hot steamy bus and we decided we would walk in to town, about 2.5km away. It was a good walk and we really enjoyed the fresh air and looking in a couple of shops along the way. Vanessa had been to a place before where they sold pickled onions and chutneys so we decided to have a look for it and we were both also keen to buy some Turkish delight to take back to the UK. Fethiye was busier than our last visit but still not too bustling and we managed to get a few bits and bobs, including a Christmas jumper, before we got slightly lost. When we finally found the Mulberry Tree restaurant, I recalled having been before with Captain Caveman a few years ago. The owner was lovely and welcoming and he and the rest of the staff were working hard in readiness for the Winter Fayre in Çalış tomorrow. We decided to have lunch there and took a seat inside, near the window. Vanessa ordered meatballs, I chose a chicken shish and we got a complimentary lavaş bread starter. The food was excellent and we both bought extra provisions there; pickled onions, mince pies, crumpets and plum jam. We had bought so much stuff that a walk back would have been a bit of a struggle so we got a taxi over to the Erasta shopping centre. We tried to get a wine, I bought a couple of bits and had a new battery put in my watch. Unfortunately we did not find any wine in Fethiye but we did get to practice our Turkish questions of asking establishments if they had wine. We gave up and got the bus back, it had stopped raining but the bus got very busy and went the quick way back to Ortaca. When we arrived it was dark but we decided to go for a drink at a cafe near the bus station. They also didn’t serve alcohol and so we had a lovely hot chocolate and admired the pastries and cakes on offer. In the end we got a taxi back to Dalyan and practised our Turkish directions as the driver didn’t speak English. I was tired when I got home so I reheated a lasagne for dinner and had it with beetroot and some Turkish delight for afters. Tomorrow I needed to get on with sorting out my trip to England but I was starting to wonder if I would go or not. Even in the Vietnamese news there were reports of potential travel bans and I wondered if the UK would be affected: https://tuoitrenews.vn/news/international/20211201/who-warns-against-blanket-travel-bans-over-omicron-coronavirus-variant/64471.html
joloyolo 