Lardos & Lindos – 9th & 10th September

We both had a walk with Xena on Saturday 9th September, then had tortilla for breakfast, which Captain Caveman had made previously. We didn’t have any lunch and for dinner we decided to splash out €16 (£13.84) on a pizza from Roulas. The takeaway was really nice and we even had some left for tomorrow. I only took photos of the animals today for some reason.

Sunday 10th September was spent having a lovely day together and a bit of sightseeing on my day off. We walked Xena for about an hour, saw donkeys and the sunrise on our way. We stopped off at the bakery for croissants and Xena could hardly wait for Captain Caveman to come back from the counter while I held her outside. When we got home, the pets were fed, plants watered and a little snooze was had by Xena.

At 2pm Captain Caveman and I got the bus to Lindos, €1.80 (£1.56) each for the one way trip. I surprised Captain Caveman by getting off a stop earlier than the Lindos bus station so that we could walk through Lindos without walking down Cardiac Hill. We decided to call for a drink at Eklekton, where they have a lovely roof top bar and nice staff. We ended up having 2 ciders and 2 beers, served with tortilla chips for €18 (£15.58).

We had a walk through the winding streets of Lindos, which are not dissimilar to those of Santorini and bumped in to an English man who recommended Rainbird Bar. The bar has lovely views over Lindos beach below but our view got somewhat spoiled when a half-naked, old, fat Greek man sat right in front of us. We paid €9.50 (£8.23) for a large Alpha beer and a Miloklefti cider. Walking back, this time up Cardiac Hill, I had another funny episode where I could feel an asthma attack coming on so I had to walk really slowly while taking really slow, deep breaths. Once I was at the top of the hill I was fine and Captain Caveman reminded me I needed to go to the pharmacy to get an inhaler.

We got the bus back and decided to call for one in Yamas Bar on the way home. Dinner of chicken, salad and potatoes was done by Captain Caveman and it tasted very nice. We watched The Gray Man on Netflix but I think I may have fallen asleep or found it boring as I couldn’t tell you what it was about.

Lardos & Pefkos – 8th September

While Captain Caveman continued to be on dog walking and meal preparation tasks, I got on with work on Friday 8th September. I was only working in the morning with it being the weekend and I had almost finished my hours by 12.15pm when I stopped for lunch. Captain Caveman had made a halloumi cheese salad with onion which was very nice and diet friendly. It was too hot to take Xena for an afternoon walk, she would have burned her paws, so we had to let her out in the garden where she loved trying to play with the cats.

That evening, we got the bus to Flyers in Pefkos so there was no dinner to be cooked. At 5.30pm, after pet feeding, we walked to Yamas Bar for a cheeky drink while we waited for the bus. Captain Caveman had a beer, I had a Miloklefti cider and then the bus came and we had to make a run for it. The bus was €1.80 (£1.56) each for the one way trip and we planned to get a taxi back later. As luck would have it, it was happy hour at Dapapa Bar so we popped in to see Hannah and have a pre-dinner drink. Captain Caveman had an espresso martini and I had a pornstar martini for €11 (£9.54) in total. They were very nice and it was good to say hello and ‘Happy Birthday’ to Hannah, who was celebrating with a party later.

We arrived at Flyers just after 6.30pm where Steve and Michelle had kindly booked us in, and paid our deposit, for their famous Greek Night. We were given a choice of tables and we decided to go up to the top section. We ended up next to a big group from Sheffield and ordered a couple of beers. The meal on Greek Night is a set dinner, so we had pitta with a tzatziki dip and a Greek salad to start with. We ordered a carafe of red wine to go with it and got stuck in. The bread is my favourite so, once again, the diet was on hold. The main course was a huge plate of meat (chicken, pork and lamb) with a heap of french fries which tasted a bit like the ones at MacDonald’s. We were impressed at the portion sizes and couldn’t eat it all – I should have brought my Tupperware box with me.

The Rhodian Ballet, and a singer with musicians were the evening’s entertainment and they were fantastic. I even joined in on the group dancing, without injuring myself! Our bill came to €49 (£42.39) and we had a lovely evening.

We returned back to Dapapa’s for a nightcap of red wine, a very generous portion, and our bill for 4 glasses was just €16 (£13.84). We bumped in to Louise and Mark and had a really fun night before getting a lift back with Mark to Memories Bar in Lardos for a cheeky extra nightcap.

Photo credit – some taken by Captain Caveman

Lardos – 7th September

Captain Caveman and I had established roles by Thursday 7th September; I was in charge of cats, pet feeding, garden watering and working while Captain Caveman was responsible for laundry, dog walking and preparing lunch and dinner. Xena absolutely loves Captain Caveman and she was so much calmer under his watch, it was cute to see them together. I had a banana and a cup of tea for breakfast, he had some sausage/tomato and sourdough combo. For lunch we had Baba Ghanoush, hummus and pita bread. For dinner it was pasta again followed by peaches with yoghurt. I worked from 8am to 5.55pm with breaks in between.
There was more after work shopping and here are the items we got, with prices in Euros:

ABC Supermarket
Bag 0.15
Blue Cheese 1.80
Halloumi 3.32
Chicken 11.92
Total Spent €17.19 (£14.94)

The other supermarket
Bag 0.12
Mushrooms 0.61
Potatoes 0.88
Peppers 1.53
Eggs 1.53
Pesto 3.68
Total Spent €8.35 (£7.25)

Because I got a bit peckish in between meals I ended up eating some biscuits from the cupboard which were not diet friendly but I did only consume 14 syns, making it a total of 31 syns so far this week.

Lardos – 6th September

Wednesday 6th September was a much less hectic day. Captain Caveman and I started the day with a short walk round the block with Xena, the dog. We did 4km and were back home before 8am, for me to get ready for work and to feed the cats. As it was Fat Club day back in Dalyan, I got weighed on Steve and Michelle’s scales to find I was 1.3kg lighter than when I was last here, a month ago. Captain Caveman was 1.5kg more than last time. My measurements weren’t so good though, as I had lost 2cm from my bust but put on 4cm on my waist and 1cm on my hips.
For breakfast we were rather naughty and had croissants from the Lardos bakery on the way back from ABC Supermarket. Here’s what we bought at the supermarket and the prices in Euros:
Bag 0.15
Tomatoes 0.62
Pasta 0.79
Potatoes 0.89
Red Onions 1.03
Peaches 1.85
Hummus 2.37
Baba Ghanoush 2.50
Yoghurt 3.54
Gluten Free Sausages 4.58
Coffee 5.31
Total Spent €23.63 (£20.53)

As expected, the shopping basket in Rhodes is more expensive than what I’m used to in Turkey, but it wasn’t ridiculous.
After working for a couple of hours, I had a break for lunch with Captain Caveman, we had salad with the hummus and Baba Ghanoush and some lovely sourdough, also from the bakery. I went back to work until 6.15pm then had a break and another walk. On the way back home we called at a different supermarket to buy the following:
Washing Powder and Fabric Softener €9.79
3 boxes of passata €1.78
Toothpaste €1.35
Total Spent €15.55 (£13.51)

Toothpaste is more expensive in Dalyan but washing powder is almost half the price and it’s always interesting shopping in foreign supermarkets you’re not familiar with, while trying to pick out some bargains.
For dinner, Captain Caveman made sausage and veg pasta in a tomato based sauce, which was really delicious and had some leftovers for tomorrow.

Rhodes – 4th September

At gone 2am on Monday 4th September I was up needing a wee and to put the AC on, it was over 30⁰C and rather sweaty in our room. I’d also got a message from my friend about dates for a holiday in Rhodes next year so I was mulling over how I was going to be able to plan ahead, knowing I still didn’t have my residency renewal appointment date for this year and wouldn’t know until Sonuç could confirm on the system. Now that I was out of the country I couldn’t access the system for an appointment so would have to wait until I got back to Turkey to find out more. For breakfast Captain Caveman had found us a nearby café called Dali Extraordinary Art Bistro, it had fancy tea and pancakes with some interesting combinations. Nanny Kay ordered pancakes with ice-cream, caramel and biscuits on, Captain Caveman had bacon, cheese, spinach and egg, smothered in a mayo sauce. I had plain pancakes with bacon on and they were very nice.

We went to Marks & Spencer’s and I was so disappointed to find they did not have a food section or sell booze. They had a few snacky things and some Percy Pig sweets but nothing that I wanted, even the clothes and underwear were not my style. I wanted to get a bottle of sherry for a friend as a thank you for all the bags of nice clothes she’d given me recently. All 5 of us had a wander round the shops and through the old town, stopping at a place called Streat for lunch, where Captain Caveman and I shared a pork gyros plate which was rather tasty. That night we had plans to celebrate Jamie’s birthday at a rather lovely restaurant Captain Caveman and I had been to before and we’d really enjoyed it.

We had arranged to meet at the Mexican place at 7pm, before dinner, as the restaurant we were going to was opposite it. Captain Caveman had his new shirt on which he’d had made in Vietnam, I had on a nice dress and Nanny Kay had wore her lovely dress from when it was her birthday. We looked the part and were excited for our night out to celebrate Jamie’s birthday. When we arrived at the bar, it was evident that Jamie had been celebrating his birthday already and was quite tipsy. Drew was definitely a little merry too but we all had some drinks and we hoped some food would sort Jamie out a bit. At Piatakia we were seated in the small restaurant upstairs and given our menus. Captain Caveman and I had already mentioned to our friends that the last time we came we had really enjoyed the tasting menu, despite me being rather fussy and having allergies. The tasting menu had 7 courses for €30 (£26.22) which was very reasonable so Captain Caveman and I were going to do that again. Nanny Kay was up for it too and we looked over to see if the boys were in agreement. They weren’t, as Jamie said there were too many foods he didn’t like, he wasn’t that hungry and didn’t want it to be a waste. They decided to just have a main course of the beef stifado, one of the dishes on the tasting menu, which none of us took note of the price of at the time. As luck would have it they also offered wine flights which was €27 (£23.60) for 4 different wines or €23 (£20.10) for 3 which Captain Caveman and I chose the 4 wines flight, obviously. I also made sure to tell the waiter about my allergies, especially molluscs in case they happened to be used in the prawn risotto.
Unfortunately, Jamie and Drew were not impressed with their meal as it was the same size as our taster plate. At €21 (£18.35) just for that course, it wasn’t good value for the size of it. It didn’t help that a storm had started, the restaurant was full but some of it was open to the elements as the rain got heavier and started to come in through the ceiling and the large windows. Our table was getting very wet and we had to move to the bar to finish our last 2 courses but, to placate customers, the waiter served everyone that wanted one a glass of champagne. Then the power went off and the chef continued cooking in the dark on a gas stove. We were assured our risotto would be served soon and given top ups of fizz while Jamie started making his point about his stifado portion being on the small size. The waiter told Jamie he didn’t have to pay their bill, which also included their drinks. Jamie insisted he would pay all or some of the bill (I wasn’t following exactly by this point) and put forward his card. As the storm had affected power, the machine wouldn’t work so he ended up not being able to pay at all. The waiter said it was on him, as they weren’t happy and he probably had a lot of other issues to sort as diners started to leave. Jamie and Drew left just as our risotto came and another top up of the sparkling stuff, which was moreish. While we ate the delicious prawn risotto, we were asked if we still wanted to continue with dessert and our wine flight. We did, even though the storm was definitely getting worse.
Nanny Kay ended up having my pana cotta dessert as I started to feel a bit unwell, all of a sudden I couldn’t breathe and I thought my throat was closing up. Captain Caveman thought I was having a panic attack after the stifado fiasco but I knew I wasn’t. Luckily, Nanny Kay used to be a nurse and had an inhaler with her. She made me use the Ventolin and I instantly started to feel better, I coughed and drank warm tap water but I was ok. Nanny Kay said it had been an asthma attack, which was really weird. When we went to pay, Nanny Kay had to lend us cash as, like Jamie, we only had cards. We were only charged €133 (£116.23) between the 3 of us as we only had 3 wines in the end and it was still pouring rain in.
The 3 of us didn’t really mind the rain and sploshed back the short distance to the hotel where we shared a cheeky bottle of red wine and had a bit of a laugh about the whole Jamie’s birthday celebration debacle. Nanny Kay, Captain Caveman and I had thoroughly enjoyed ours and we all agreed the taster menu was the only way to go. Nanny Kay had probably saved my life with that inhaler too and we realised that maybe there was clam juice in the risotto but in the chaos, the chef had probably forgot about my allergy requirements.

Photo credit – some photos taken by Jamie & Captain Caveman

Fethiye to Rhodes – 3rd September

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

Dalyan – 2nd September

We had an exciting last day (for a while) in Dalyan planned on Saturday 2nd September. I had booked Captain Caveman and I on Captain Boris’s Cheese and Wine boat trip. I’ve been on it before but Captain Caveman is not usually in Turkey early enough in the year for him to be able to go on one. Rebecca and Boris are such good hosts and we had joined a group of people we didn’t know, which was nice. Anıl, their captain, also has skills I’ve never seen before; he can steer a boat while opening a bottle of wine with one hand.

The photos obviously speak for themselves with all the amazing food that is offered. We sailed to the lake for swimming and to enjoy the massive spread, we were all wowed by the presentation, quality and amount of food – the wine flowed well too. I particularly like the Isabella rose wine and had bought a box from Boris last time I did this trip.

By 6pm we had moored up at Little Dalyan, behind Iztuzu beach, to enjoy the sunset. We got off for a stroll and a paddle along the beach while the boat moved up to the other end of the beach to await us there. It was just after 7.30pm when we got back, a little squiffy and full of cheese! It cost £40 each plus extra for the drinks, where the wine was a generous serving. It was definitely a great way for Captain Caveman to spend his last day in Dalyan, until next month.

Photo credit – some photos by Captain Caveman & Rebecca Uğur

Dalyan – 1st September

August had been a great month in Dalyan, September would see me spending time between Dalyan and Rhodes with maybe a quick trip to somewhere in Europe thrown in for good measure!
Kelly had been fortunate, or unlucky, to get stuck in Dalyan for a bit longer but her flight had gone ahead this morning and she was on her way back home.
On Friday 1st September the ferry tickets to Rhodes for Captain Caveman and me were sent through from Steve. We were getting the same time ferry as Jamie & Drew and, as luck would have it, Nanny Kay had decided to join us too. We were going early on Sunday morning and Jamie had kindly offered to drive all of us to Fethiye, where the port is. The 3 of them were just having a couple of nights in Rhodes but Captain Caveman and I were staying on for a bit longer. At lunch time we popped over to Jamie’s Villa to check on the dogs, Norman and Edna, for him while he was out for the day. Neither of the pooches were even bothered I was there and Norman had to be woken up to go pay a visit in the garden. I stayed for a bit to give them some love and check they didn’t need letting out again. Captain Caveman doesn’t waste an opportunity and, when the wind blew a toy water gun in to the pool, he was in having a quick dip.
Back at home, I made airfryer Slimming World style pizzas using small wraps. They were very nice and meant we were using up fridge items.

For dinner Captain Caveman and I joined our friends, Rach & Nuri, at Balıkçım for a night out. A bottle of rakı was purchased, mezes decided on and ordered before we got chatting about each other’s forthcoming travel plans. When Captain Caveman tasted the octopus he was very impressed, so much so that the 3 of them ordered another portion of it to share. As Balıkçım is a fish and seafood restaurant and I tend not to eat fish, I was able to order the Beef Shashlik from Meet Meat. It was absolutely gorgeous so we all had one of the best meals out with plenty of rakı to wash it down with. Our share of the bill came to just 1,850 lira (£54.24) which was reasonable considering what we had. By 10.40pm we were in the Rock Bar with more raki, and a fruit and cheese plate, courtesy of Nuri. We had a lovely evening, pleased to have managed to spend time with Rach and Nuri at one of the best eateries in town too.

Dalyan – 30th & 31st August

On the morning of Wednesday 30th August I got weighed at home to find I had put on 0.25kg (half a pound). Although this was a bit of a step backwards, I was grateful it wasn’t more as I’d been eating and drinking my way round Dalyan without a care in the world – and there was still Carol’s official scales this afternoon at Fat Club. I’d also lost 3cm from my bust but put 1cm on my waist and 3cm on my hips.
Captain Caveman and I popped to pay the council tax but the nice man in the office explained that it can’t be paid after the 28th of the month so we would have to come back on the 1st! He told us it would be 1219.35 lira (£35.75) for the year, which included a late payment fee – what a bargain.
I popped to BC Spa Hotel to see Kelly who had booked in some more spa treatments to alleviate her ‘being stuck in Dalyan’ stresses – there was definitely worse places to be stuck! A cat there took a shine to my porter sandals so I had a lay on a sun lounger, in another one of my new dresses, by the pool. I left to walk over to Fat Club and the sun was shining so I was a bit warm and sweaty when I arrived. Amazingly I had only put on 0.1kg on Carol’s scales!
It was Janice’s 70th birthday so we celebrated after Fat Club with a trip to Kefal tea gardens where I’m advised they sell a decent measure of gin for a reasonable price. I had a burger and a glass of wine to help celebrate with Janice, Tina and Brigette – they had G&Ts and shared some nuts as they were being good. After, I walked up to Rehab bar where all the pool players but Mark and Tayfur had already left. Captain Caveman, Kelly and Linda joined and Kelly ordered a few different dishes from Sosyete next door including salad items in sauce I didn’t recognise, a wrap and some onion rings. They went well with one of Tay’s cocktails too. I’d had the sense to sling a Mediterranean chicken in the slow cooker for our late dinner when we got home. It was diet friendly and very tasty.

Thursday 31st August was Kelly’s actual last day, seeing as her original return flight had been cancelled. While she had a morning of relaxing and packing, Captain Caveman and I had a morning appointment booked to go with Sonuç and Hüseyin, the translator, to the notary in Ortaca. We were officially changing my address and I was ‘moving in’ with Captain Caveman on a rental agreement. The process was straight forward but costly;
Hüseyin’s fee 2,000 lira (£58.84)
Sonuç’s fee 1,000 lira (£29.42)
Notary fee 400 lira (£11.77)
I paid the total of 3,400 lira (£100) out and asked Sonuç if it would be a good idea, while we were in Ortaca, to get the electric bill put in to my name. I’d heard from a few friends, who were doing residency renewals recently, and had been asked for this so I didn’t want to risk me being declined my renewal. I was conscious that we only had 1 more working day with Captain Caveman being in Turkey for signing anything so it might be a good idea. Sonuç firmly told me that we did not need to do that, I had a rental agreement now, Captain Caveman was my official landlord and therefore the bills should (quite rightly) remain in his name. Captain Caveman was happy with this too, I was still dubious, so we left it and returned back to Dalyan.
When we got home, I was hungry so we had the leftover Mediterranean Chicken for lunch then I sat out on the balcony. In the late afternoon, we decided to call for a drink at Tez bar and I wore my new red dress and had my hair down. When I went round the corner, I saw a waiter I knew at Taste of Heaven bar. He’d been drinking and came out to give me a hug and invited me to join him for a drink. I said no and waved over to where Captain Caveman was sat to say I was meeting my husband. We sat with Penny & Phil and a few others but then the drunk guy sent over a red rose with Ismail, the flower seller. As we were leaving Tez bar, I gave my rose to Kelly and the guy shouted me back to say he had bought it for me, not her. It was all a bit odd.
We decided to eat at Eylül restaurant which always gets good reviews. We arrived early as we were thinking Kelly might be better to eat dinner then get a bit of sleep before her 2.15am departure tomorrow. I ordered a glass of white wine, Captain Caveman had a beer and Kelly had a beer and a Sprite to make a shandy.
We shared a mixed meze and lavaş (balloon bread) starter which was really nice. For mains, Captain Caveman and I ordered traditional Turkish dishes while Kelly surprised us by ordering Bombay Chicken. My ottoman kebab was a large portion so I took half home but Kelly’s was a dish I’d never heard of or tasted before – it had banana in and looked awful. Captain Caveman ate most of his Hünkar Beğendi (a beef and aubergine dish) but Kelly couldn’t manage much of her’s. It wasn’t as cheap as I thought it would be either.

Here’s what we paid at Eylül:
1 Efes Malt 100
1 Efes normal 100
1 white wine 100
1 Sprite 50
1 Shared meze plate with lavaş 220
1 Bombay Chicken 240
1 Hünkar Beğendi 350
1 Ottoman Kebab 350
Total spent 1510 lira (£44.23)

By 8.15pm we were in Bistro Blue having our last night drinks for Kelly, with me trying to get Captain Caveman to put his phone down, join in the conversation and have a photo.
Our goodbye was emotional, it had been so lovely having the girls over to Dalyan but it had definitely made me miss them, and my other friends back in England, more.

Dalyan – 29th August

Kelly’s flight in the early hours of Tuesday 29th August did not go ahead, due to the Air Traffic Control System being down. Instead, she remained at the BC Spa Hotel and spent all of her morning trying to fathom out if/when another flight would be available. Of course, it was the end of the school holidays and so many holiday makers were also trying to get their cancelled flights rebooked – it was not looking very promising that she would be on the next flight.
In all the goings on yesterday, I’d not had chance to look at another delivery of clothes which a friend had dropped off yesterday. I decided to try them all on and take photos, Captain Caveman took one where I’m wearing the dress he liked the best.

After my mini fashion show, I popped to see how Kelly was getting on as she was still on hold to easyJet trying to get some help with getting back home. She was fortunate to have got a couple of days holiday booked for after she was due back from Dalyan but she really needed to get back for work and family commitments. I sauntered along the river, wearing one of my new dresses, and got to quite a frustrated Kelly. Unsurprisingly, easyJet had not been able to offer Kelly a suitable new flight, their ‘manage my booking app’ had the next available flight to book as 5th September. Skyscanner had a flight available on the 3rd and people had started posting all over Facebook how they were having their flights rebooked for over a week later. In the end, Kelly booked a brand new flight with TUI for the 1st September, landing at Bournemouth, which was the soonest date she could get with any airline, but it was also at great expense to herself. I told her to get packed and bring her stuff to Captain Caveman’s apartment but she was having none of it. The hotel was busy with people who couldn’t go home but the new lot of UK holiday makers hadn’t been able to arrive so they were able to extend her stay.
As Captain Caveman was expecting us back home, I headed over there for some lunch, leaving Kelly to sort stuff out with work and home. I warmed up bit of meat and veg, using some of my Sunday dinner leftovers before we popped to the bank. While Kelly and Clare were here on holiday I’d also been doing the tourist eating and drinking so it was time to get back on to my Turkish budget. I also needed to get all of my bank books up to date in readiness for my residency renewal appointment. On the way back, Captain Caveman and I called in to La Sorrella for a hot beverage; a double espresso was 60 lira (£1.77) for Captain Caveman and a green tea for me was only 15 lira (44p). I think it might have all been a bit tiring for Kelly as that night she had a quiet one at the hotel while Captain Caveman and I went for his first Hatay Kebab, which he loved!

Dalyan – 28th August

It was Maddie and Sam’s engagement celebration on a Princess of Ekincik boat trip on Monday 28th August. Unfortunately, Captain Caveman had to go without me as I had plans with Kelly and Clare. Kelly was leaving after midnight tonight but Clare was off around midday. It had not been a long enough trip and I was going to miss them a lot. I’d loved having them both here in Dalyan and it had really made my week! We all had more last day BC Spa treatments booked in. While the girls had their last full on pamper, I had a much needed pedicure. It was £10 which I didn’t think was bad and the therapist did a good job. I was trying my best not to sob when Clare left, especially as we hoped to meet up when I came back to England and maybe get a cheeky Rhodes holiday in for 2024.

Kelly and I waved Clare off as Fikri took her to the airport then we decided to have a last walk down the river. We stumbled across Sahil restaurant, where I’d not been to in ages. I’ve got friends who love it but I’d also read bad reviews of them ripping people off fairly recently. It took a while for one of the many staff to pass me the menus he was holding and I was on my guard to see if they were dual menu/pricing for foreigners. I did speak in Turkish but was given an English only menu. It has amazing views of the river so I didn’t expect it to be cheap but it turned out to be one of the more expensive places I’ve eaten at, in August. A coke was 65 lira (£1.94)! My chicken wrap was the most expensive I’ve had in Dalyan but the chips were very good. The chicken fajitas, which Kelly ordered without the wraps, were 447 lira (£13.34), which I remembered as it was a strange price. Having said that, Kelly did say it was one of the best meals she’d had all holiday and thought it was worth the price.
On the way back through town, it was pretty warm so we stopped at Sofra bar for a swift drink. It’s probably a good job we did as the TVs had some important news showing! The Air Traffic Control System in the UK had failed and was causing chaos. Flights to and from the UK were either cancelled or delayed until further notice. Clare was at the airport with a delayed flight but access to the lounge so was coping well but we didn’t know yet if it would affect Kelly’s flight, which was at 4.50am tomorrow.

While uncertainty for whether Clare’s flight, already delayed by a couple of hours, would take off still, Kelly checked the news and called home. Regular updates came from Clare at Dalaman airport but it looked like even the staff didn’t really know when flights would continue to fly. My mate, Josh, was stuck at a UK airport trying to get to Italy. All we knew about Kelly’s flight was that she should still go to the airport to check in, as normal, even if there was going to be long delays so that was the plan. We went back to BC Spa finished off some wine and then got ready for our last meal together.
Captain Caveman was back from an amazing day on the boat with lots of friends and had not heard about the flight issues. Of course, he said if Kelly’s flight got cancelled or delayed she was welcome to stay at his place and proceeded to tidy the spare room, just in case.
We ate at Bistro Blue that evening where Captain Caveman had liver & onions for a starter and Kelly had the onion bhaji. I didn’t have a starter as I knew I’d be having a big main meal. We shared some Allure rosé wine which went down very well and for mains we ordered a steak with onion and mushrooms for me, a chicken casserole for Kelly, and Captain Caveman chose the chicken & halloumi salad. I loved the food and was very full after eating all my dinner. As we drank more wine, Clare messaged to let us know she had finally landed at Gatwick but she had been one of the lucky ones. I managed to squeeze in the shared dessert of baklava with ice-cream which was delightful and not at all Slimming World friendly. We did a cheers with our complimentary amarettos to our last night together and recorded a birthday message to the other Claire, who hadn’t been able to make it out to Dalyan this time. The bill came to 2,800 lira (£83.58) for the 3 of us. All was well except for the fact that Captain Caveman was able to ascertain that Kelly’s flight was probably going to be cancelled before she got informed of it. The plane was still in the UK and would not be leaving any time soon so it would not be likely that Kelly could get on it from Turkey. Fikri was still on hold though for 1am as we weren’t sure if she was definitely going to the airport or not.
Captain Caveman, feeling tired after a long journey from Vietnam and going out since he got back, went home. I went back to BC Spa with Kelly where we explained the flight situation and the receptionist said the hotel room was available for tomorrow anyway, should she need it.

Dalyan – 27th August

I was awake on Sunday 27th August before Captain Caveman landed in Dalaman, on time, at 7.55am. I checked the weather forecast and it looked to be a bit cooler than what he’s used to in Vietnam but still quite warm and dry. He was only going to be here for a week and then he had a Europe and UK trip planned, so he hoped to make the most of being back in Dalyan just for a short time. The most important thing was for me to sort out all the necessary paperwork so that I would be able renew my residency. Hopefully, I would have everything he needed to sign, completed before we left for another trip to Rhodes.
Captain Caveman arrived but, as he gets paid in Vietnamese Dong, he had no Turkish money. I went out to pay Fikri, the taxi fare of 850 lira (£25) while he brought in all his luggage. I was excited to see him but by 10am I was even happier – he’d managed to get me some Yorkshire teabags! His friend, Damo, had purchased a box from Cornwall, took it to Saigon to handover to Captain Caveman and then he’d brought it over to Dalyan! Unfortunately, there had still been no 2024 diaries anywhere on his journey so I would have to wait until he went back to England.
I’d waited to have my breakfast with Captain Caveman but he’d eaten already so I had fresh figs, banana, strawberries and quark with a nice cup of Yorkshire tea. I drank quite a bit of cucumber infused water in the hope of my eczema clearing up but it still looked quite bad.

By 2pm I was sending a copy of Captain Caveman’s tapu (deeds) and his tax code to Sonuç for my residency renewal file. At 3pm we decided to head over for a cheeky snifter at Tez bar before we went to meet Clare and Kelly at Lukka bar. Tez wasn’t there but his wife, Rabia, was feeding Bailey the new kitten so we had to get a photo. Of course, with Captain Caveman having been in Vietnam for 9 months I’d decided to book us in for a traditional meal as his first one.

All 4 of us were booked in for a Sunday lunch at Lukka where they do amazing Yorkshire puddings. We had pre-ordered the meat choices; Captain Caveman was having lamb and the 3 of us were having beef. The lamb dinner was 495 lira (£14.77), 400 lira (£11.94) for the beef dinner and that included apple pie and ice-cream. Captain Caveman had a couple of Efes beers which were 85 lira (£2.54) each. My glass of rosé wine was 98 lira (£2.98) but I didn’t order a second one as I wasn’t keen on the Buzbağ rosé. We shared a large bottle of water which was 45 lira (£1.34) as we needed to keep hydrated.
The food and service were good and I really enjoyed what I managed to eat, a little less than half of my meal went in to Tupperware for another day as it was huge. I even took my apple pie home as I was trying to be good. It’s not the cheapest place in town, we’d paid 1,248 lira (£37.25) for Captain Caveman and my Sunday lunch with drinks, but we had full tummies and enjoyed it. Clare and Kelly both said it would have cost more than that where they live in England so it was a nice treat, for a bit of a change.

Just after eating our meal, I got sad news that a friend, John, had died. He was the guy I met when I volunteered to push him round the Dalyan 5k Race in a wheelchair. He was quite a character and a lovely fella so I was rather sad. We decided to pop to Bistro Blue for a bit of a drink and I was in a bit of a daze for Clare’s farewell drinks. I managed a pint of draft Efes, Captain Caveman had another Efes Malt, Clare a gin & tonic and Kelly an English Garden cocktail.
On the second round I just had half and everyone else had the same as before. Here’s what we paid for the drinks:

1 litre of water 75.00
330ml draft Efes 75.00
500ml draft Efes 90.00
500ml Efes Malt 90.00
Gin & Tonic 130.00
English Garden cocktail 330.00

Our total bill for 4 of us came to 1,415 lira (£42.24) but the cocktails are probably the same as you’d pay in the UK. Back home, I was back on the cucumber water, while Captain Caveman had a gin and tonic and I made him a mini pizza wrap in the airfryer. While I was happy that Captain Caveman was back, I was sad that Clare and Kelly were leaving tomorrow.

Dalyan – 26th August

At 9am on Saturday 26th August I would ordinarily be thinking of getting to the Saturday market for some fruit and vegetables. They do sell lots of other things there, including bags, shoes, clothes, spices, Turkish delight, as well as being able to buy a cheap gözleme (Turkish pancake). I’d asked Kelly and Clare if they fancied a wander round it later but they weren’t really up for a 15 minute walk (each way) in such hot weather, especially as they didn’t really need anything in particular. I knew I’d mostly be eating out with my friends, rather than cooking at home, so there was no point stocking up either.
We all spent the morning in the treatment rooms of the BC Spa and had mixed massages. I had some reflexology which was fantastic while the lady sorted out Kelly’s back. Clare was in another room getting a full body massage. We were all super relaxed by the time we emerged and we were fit for doing nothing, except for maybe a stroll down the river for some lunch.
I suggested an old favourite to eat at, Yakamoz, so we could sit and admire the river view. It was a hot day so the slight breeze was welcome and we got a couple of glimpses of a turtle swimming nearby. The starters had a theme of cheese; stuffed mushrooms, cheese rolls (sigara böreği in Turkish) and Halloumi all with salad garnish and plenty of fresh bread. For main I ordered the chicken shish, Kelly had chicken casserole and Clare had the mixed casserole. We all had soda water or a soft drink as we needed to keep hydrated. My meal came to 570 lira (£17) which was a bit steep for lunch time and wasn’t the biggest, or best, chicken shish I’ve had in Dalyan. The girls enjoyed their casseroles so I’d probably have that the next time.

We strolled back through town and the girls grabbed dessert at the Dalyano ice-cream shop, 70 lira (£2.09) for 3 scoops.
Next, we popped in to the Dalyan Turkish Delights and More shop on the main shopping street to buy some Turkish delight. It wasn’t as cheap as when I get it in Fethiye but it was very fresh and the lady let us taste quite a few flavours. I bought rose for me and pistachio for Captain Caveman, who would be arriving in Dalyan tomorrow. Our final shopping spot was Aladdin Bags, where we browsed the purses. I have a Hermes purse which I bought a couple of years ago and he was selling them for the same English price as back then which was good. Both Kelly and Clare got themselves a bargain and it meant it was time for a light refreshment.

On weekends it can often be tricky to find a reasonably priced bar which doesn’t have sport on so when I saw that Corner bar was empty and had no TV on, we plumped ourselves down on the comfy seats. I ordered a pint of draft Efes, the girls opted for a cocktail. While the drinks were being prepared a half naked English bloke and his mates came up and asked for the football to be put on and the bar man obliged. Our peace was shattered, Kelly went off for another browse round the shops for souvenirs while Clare and I tried to ignore the football on TV. We left after the one drink and sauntered back to BC Spa. Around the same time, Captain Caveman was boarding his plane from Saigon to Istanbul. We stayed around the girls’ hotel room and had leftover nibbles and wine for the evening. I got home after midnight again – this time knowing that when I woke up tomorrow, Captain Caveman would be on his way from Istanbul to Dalaman.

Photo credit – some by Clare Spindloe

Dalyan – 25th August

I spent the morning of Friday 25th August making sure I had all the paperwork and information that I needed for my residency renewal appointment. Next week we were able to apply for the appointment date as it can be applied for up to 60 days before my existing expiry date.
At 11am, we were all booked in to BC Spa for our spa treatments which consisted of a foam and scrub in the hamam, a face mask and a massage. The classic package cost us £35, lasted 75 minutes and was really good, even better than the last time I had it.
For lunch the 3 of us treated ourselves to a meal at Egehan with a glass of wine. We had complimentary starters of hummus, red pepper and walnut dip and baba ghanoush – all were delicious. For mains we had the following; Clare Sea Bass 370 lira (£11), Kelly meatballs 300 lira (£8.96) with an extra side salad instead of the usual rice and chips, I had mantı, Turkish pasta, 270 lira (£8.06). The food was delicious and it’s a lovely little boutique hotel with dining by the pool. After Egehan, the girls fancied an ice cream so I introduced them to the delights of Cherry Up where they both selected 3 scoops in a tub for 70 lira (£2.09) each. I’m not a huge ice-cream fan so I didn’t have any, I was still full from lunch.
Our next stop was the supermarket as we had decided to stay in at BC Spa tonight.
We chose to take a bit of a buffet/picnic approach where I bought the shopping and the girls bought the wine. Here’s what was in the shopping basket and the prices in lira:

Migros Supermarket

2 plastic bags 0.50
Apples 9.87
Chocolate biscuits 10.00
Turkey ‘ham’ slices 16.90
2 packs of normal sliced turkey 19.50
Cucumber 22.72
Tomatoes 36.25
Hummus 40.75
Plastic plates 49.50
Walnuts 53.50
Crispbreads 72.00
Pastrami slices 79.50
Smoked cheese 104.90
Smoked turkey slices 109.50
White cheese 119.90
Total spent 745.29 lira (£22.25)

Kelly and Clare thought it might make a nice addition to our evening dining to get some takeaway meat from the Kokoreç place. We waited for a fresh portion to be cooked but I wasn’t sure if it would be very nice, especially as I don’t tend to like eating lamb or goat. It cost 180 lira (£5.37) for just 100g so it wasn’t cheap but it is considered a delicacy in Turkey.

I called at home on the way back so that I could get changed and pick up a corkscrew, more wine from the fridge and a few bits and bobs from the fridge/cupboard. We had a feast and plenty of wine, while chatting away. The ofal didn’t end up getting eaten as it looked disgusting when we took off the lid and none of us could bring ourselves to taste the very fatty, now cold, meat. I got home after 1am, a little merry after another great day with my friends.

Dalyan – 24th August

On Thursday 24th August Clare was on her way to Dalyan and would be joining Kelly at the BC Spa Hotel in the afternoon. I had fresh figs, strawberries and quark for breakfast and then popped to the bank to transfer money from my US Dollar account to my Turkish account. I had a feeling it would be a bit more of an expensive week with having my friends here and I needed to have some funds available. At the bank, the resident cat decided she’d quite like a bit of attention and came for a cuddle while I waited for the cashier.
By 1pm I was with Kelly by the pool at BC Spa and we decided to have some lunch there. I had a chicken wrap which came with a few chips and Kelly had a salad. It wasn’t expensive and I really enjoyed the very filling wrap. Clare arrived at the hotel just after 3pm and I was so glad to get a big hug from her, again it had been far too long!
While Clare got settled in, I had an important meeting with Sonuç who I was paying to do my residency renewal stuff for me. We met by the river at BC Spa and I bought us a hot drink while we discussed the requirements and timeline. Unfortunately, Sonuç told me I would not be able to go for a 2 year renewal unless I had £10,000 in my Turkish Bank account which would be a bit tricky!
When I got back to the girls, they were sat in the outdoor dining area of the hotel and had ordered some food; a yoghurt dish, stuffed mushrooms and some breaded chicken pieces. I joined them for a glass of rosé wine which was very nice. The girls and I already had pre-booked the classic spa packages in for tomorrow and they mentioned they might book some more treatments in to.

That evening, we shared a bottle of Angora white wine at Tapa bar on our way in to town for dinner. I’d been keen to eat at River House for a while as I’d not been in a long time. We were given complimentary lavaş (balloon bread) with dips and we ordered main meals to share, Kelly had a salad while Clare and I shared a pide. We had a bottle of white wine and enjoyed a lovely reasonably priced evening, they have also made some improvements to the restaurant toilets since I was last there. I really enjoyed the meal at River House and definitely needed to visit again.
On our way home, we stopped off for a last drink at Bistro Blue and for the girls to say hello to Annie and Selahı. They had a new cocktail called the English garden at 330 lira (£9.85), with cucumber in it. It was a bit out of my budget so I stuck to wine but the girls said it was fantastic, really refreshing. It had been a cracking first full day with my friends and the next 4 days were going to go too fast!