Cappadocia to Dalyan – 3rd & 4th September

On Wednesday 3rd September Captain Caveman and I were due to check out of the Mithra Cave Hotel and were thinking of staying 1 or 2 nights in the Göreme Cave Suites, which was fancier and had a pool. We were undecided as Captain Caveman had hoped to travel back to Dalyan via Eskişehir and take a scenic train back to Denizli. I was still sceptical that we could fit the trip in and return to Dalyan in time to see friends before Captain Caveman left Turkey. Captain Caveman decided he would get up to see the balloons again. The hot air balloon flights were super cheap at this time of year, at less than 50 Euros per person. However, neither of us wanted to do it.
We were still to decide what to do and we were thinking we might go mad and stay in the nicer hotel for a night or two. Captain Caveman had been looking at flights, trains and buses and weighing up the affordability. I was reluctant as I didn’t feel I should ‘waste’ the money.
After breakfast, I had to get my laptop out to do some work on a booking. We finally decided we should get back to Dalyan so Captain Caveman sorted out a flight and a transfer. I asked reception what time check out was (11am) then ask to extend until 2pm. Captain Caveman went off to buy more water and some travel snacks while I did a few things on my laptop. After checking out, I sat with the bags on a seat outside while Captain Caveman went sightseeing for the afternoon. At 5.30pm we were in a minivan on our way to Nevşehir airport for a flight to Istanbul. I remember two annoying passengers with tons of bags sat opposite us and that the driver had chatted up and taken the phone number of the young lady in the front seat, 7 minutes before we arrived at the airport.
We were delayed a bit which was eating in to the Lounge time at Istanbul that Captain Caveman had booked for us.
There wasn’t an awful lot of food left at the Lounge so I had some vegetables, rice and then later a plain bowl of pasta. I had 4 glasses of red wine, though. Captain Caveman drank beers and had a lovely chicken dish which I avoided in case it was too spicy. We boarded our flight from Istanbul to Dalaman on time and I fell asleep straight away.

Gratitude List
1. Getting to visit Cappadocia with Captain Caveman
2. Last minute flights and transfers working out
3. The Lounge, which was £20 approx each, so worth it.

We landed at Dalaman airport around 2am on Thursday 4th September and Sonuç, from Dalyan Transfers, was there to meet us. After some sleep, I woke up about 9am and Captain Caveman was getting ready to go Bumming with the Riverbums. Unfortunately, my day was not going to be quite as pleasant as picking up other people’s litter. I’d done something to my foot when I didn’t see a very shallow step and thought I’d stepped on a twig which had crunched. It was hurting, so I decided to go to the hospital to get it checked out.
While Captain Caveman went to Riverbums, I tried to make a hospital appointment but I was in a bit of pain and couldn’t really concentrate. I decided to ask Sonuç to take me to the Yucelen Hospital in Ortaca and get checked out. Captain Caveman had arrived back by the time I was leaving but he didn’t come with me. Sonuç had made me the appointment but when he looked at my foot he said he didn’t think it was broken and probably didn’t need to go. As I’d injured this leg 5 years ago I wanted to just check. I saw the orthopaedic doctor who touched my foot gently to see if it hurt, at first it didn’t, then I screamed out when he touched the bit that hurt. A translator was sent for, an x-ray was booked and I had to give my insurance documents and residency card to another receptionist. The walking between the different bits was starting to get tricky and extremely slow, but I managed.
The translator, Umut, was really good and we got talking about his trip to Japan. The x-ray person was friendly too and we went back to the doctor after, for him to tell me I had broken my 4th & 5th metatarsals. Oh dear. He gave me a prescription and told me to come back in 10 days for a check-up. I walked back to the pay desk where my insurer had already confirmed they would pay my bill, all but 875.16 lira (£16.21), and I had to sign a piece of paper. At no point was I told not to walk on it but I had crutches which Sonuç had picked up from Tay at Rehab bar. I was impressed with the service at the Yucelen and was back home by 3.25pm. I paid 2,000 lira (£37.04) for Sonuc’s services, too, which given he’d driven me about and waited there the whole time was a good deal. Although he’s not an official translator for medical stuff, he’d come in very handy and was great at taking my mind off the pain! I managed to cheese Captain Caveman off by not hobbling in to the chemist on my way back and assumed he would be ok to go and pick up my prescription for me. He was a bit put out but went anyway. The prices were as follows;

Balcı Pharmacy
Ketoprofen Painkillers 108.69
Naproxen spray 159.10
Frenag spray 247.21
Support Bandage 450
Total 965.00 lira (£17.87)

I was hungry as I’d not eaten yet today so Captain Caveman suggested we eat at Lukka, so I didn’t have to walk far. Here’s what we had with prices in lira from Lukka bar;

1 Sprite 110
2 small Draft lagers 170
4 Efes Malt 360
1 Philli cheese chicken sandwich 375
1 Crispy chicken sandwich 390
Total spent 1,405 lira (£26.02)

The food was lovely and a generous portion size – I’d somehow forgotten to eat sensibly this holiday!
I went back home for a rest and to put my leg up, the medicine can’t be taken with alcohol and I hadn’t known this so I would have to start the pills tomorrow as I had already consumed 2 halves of draft lager with a bit of lemonade.
We had no food in at home, on account of us coming home earlier, so for dinner we went out again. It took me far too long to hobble along to Ayaz, a fairly new local eatery. It was quite late so the staff were very apologetic to have run out of all lamb dishes. I had a chicken shish and Captain Caveman went for a chicken iskender. I had a fresh pomegranate juice and the whole meal was amazing at a great price, even though I forgot to note the prices.
On the way home, I bumped in to Aytaç Burçak Saraymine, my insurance broker. He wanted to check how I was and also how the service had been with the insurer. I knew the insurer would only pay up to 80% of any outpatient costs and I was happy with that. Aytaç invited me and Captain Caveman for a cup of Turkish tea with him and we sat and had a chat. I had been so happy that I had taken out the insurance with him. Lots of people (obviously, not experts) had told me that the cheaper insurance for residency wasn’t worth having but I certainly disagreed with that. My injury could’ve been a lot worse and cost me quite a bit just for not noticing a really small step!We stayed out until 11pm and I needed to rest my foot when I got home. The sprays were really helping and tomorrow I could start the stronger painkillers.

Gratitude List
1. Sonuç being available for hospital visiting
2. Not having a cast on my foot
3. Health Insurance covering 80% of the cost of my injury.

Dalyan – 28th August

Captain Caveman went bumming on the morning of Thursday 28th August, while I caught up on a bit of blogging. I met him at the Kefal tea gardens afterwards where one of the Riverbums bought me a lemon soda. As I was on holiday I didn’t plan on dialling in to our Resort Experts team meeting at 1pm so we went for lunch.
Captain Caveman had already had a toastie at the tea gardens with a beer so it was just me eating. Here’s what we had at Okyanus, with prices in lira;

1 soda 70
1 white wine 200
2 Efes Malt 300
1 chicken burger with chips 340
Total spent 910 lira (£16.85)

The food was good and I was impressed with the chicken burger, we chatted to Simone and Üstün again too. By 4pm we were back home and were about to get ready for a fun night out with The Aussies.

We had reserved a table at Lukka bar for the Music Bingo. Amanda and I ordered the çökertme (1 beef, 1 chicken) while the guys shared the very impressive leg of lamb. The food was excellent and we ate before the music bingo started. It was loud, fun and with lots of dancing with Mehmet and Apo. I even joined in the Turkish dances until I got too hot and tired.
I drank a whole bottle of Angora red wine to myself and gave the ball a right old kick. Captain Caveman went to pay the bill with Greg so I didn’t ask the prices for once. It was a great night and we really enjoyed ourselves.

Gratitude List
1. Lunch at Okyanus
2. Dinner at Lukka
3. Having a great time at Lukka music bingo with Captain Caveman and friends.

Photo credit – some photos by Captain Caveman

Dalyan – 28th November

Of course there was no apology from Captain Caveman on Thursday 28th November, not that I had expected one, but I had hoped. He said that he would just play Bridge on the days when I was busy working, he said he was annoyed that I had all these things to do but I didn’t finish them because I did other things instead. I explained that when I asked him to do them, he didn’t because he was playing Bridge and then I would end up doing the things myself anyway. He only did the jobs that he wanted to do and played Bridge the rest of the time, he still didn’t see my point of view and, as I looked over, he was playing Bridge while having this conversation!!!
I fed the dogs their breakfast and while Captain Caveman went off to Bumming, I stupidly googled Bridge addiction (instead of doing my to-do list) and found that it was really quite serious. All the advice on the internet said to leave and get out of a relationship with a Bridge player as they will never stop. There was no plan to change as far as I could see and I was not the person he would ever listen to enough to change, not that he wanted to. I already knew if he had to choose Bridge or me (or anything else, for that matter) he would always choose Bridge.
I went to get a cup of tea and some breakfast and saw that Captain Caveman had made a point of leaving the kitchen a mess with his breakfast pots, as he wasn’t doing the washing up.
I decided the only thing I could do was to concentrate on my own goals and surviving the rest of this year – I had certainly made it through worse. I would avoid anything and everyone that didn’t have anything to do with work, the dogs, Fat Club, Turkish class, blogging or content for my books. Once all those were sorted I could look at other stuff.
I ate a samosa and a cheese roll and, when Captain Caveman got back, I warmed us up some soup and we pretty much ate in silence, while he watched tv.

We walked the dogs who looked so cosy in their jackets and called in to Fire Opal to pick up some food. For dinner, I made jacket potatoes with leftover chicken chasseur and did all the washing up today. That evening, feeling knackered from no sleep last night, Captain Caveman and I watched a drama called ‘Until I Kill You’ which was pretty harrowing and just the ticket to cheer me up!

Photo Credit – some photos from the Riverbums

Dalyan – 31st October

Captain Caveman and I were on the list for Riverbums on Thursday 31st October and we were to be at the Kefal Tea Gardens, ready to depart at 10am. I had my cup of tea in bed then overnight oats once I got up for my breakfast. It was getting a little cooler now in the mornings but it was still ok to wear shorts, a t-shirt and plastic porter sandals for Bumming in. This time, we were on time and the electric Riverbums boat was ready for us. We went to the Dalko site and surrounding areas and, although we did collect some rubbish, it was nowhere near as bad as it used to be a few years ago. A diver who was checking on the fish there was very welcoming and friendly which was also good to see.

Back home, both of us needed a shower but Captain Caveman said he would cook lunch as I would take longer and I had to check my work emails. Unfortunately, Captain Caveman had put the oven on the high setting because he believed the oven here didn’t work (it does). I explained that he should turn it down or the food would burn, or to leave the pizza wraps in for less time. Of course, Captain Caveman disregarded my opinion, as is usual, and kept it as it was while putting my pizza in first. Mine had mushrooms on and he doesn’t eat them, his had different toppings. Even when I said I could smell burning at 2.30pm I was ignored and my lunch was cremated. I got the scissors out and cut off all the burned bits while Captain Caveman turned down the oven, adjusted the timer and made himself a perfectly cooked pizza. I think pizza wraps for lunch after Bumming was a no-no for future reference and I’d stick to soup or a sandwich.
I was getting impatient about still not having had any call or message that my new residency card was on its way, so I went online to check. It said ‘record not found’, which wasn’t useful, Jamie’s friend’s daughter had her residency renewal appointment 2 weeks after mine and already had her new card but it is Turkey and there is no logic to these things. I got on with some more quotes for work and had a couple of general enquiries for South East Asia for 2025. I also scheduled some social media posts for the rest of the week and saved a post from EasyJet which detailed when all the UK bank holidays are. This was good for people with regular Monday to Friday jobs to work out how to have longer holidays, while using the least amount of holidays. Clever!
I was peckish before dinner so had some peanuts and a green tea. Then, by chance, got a text to say my residency card was on its way!
I made chicken & leek bake using quark, thyme and cheese spread which we had with roast potatoes and red cabbage. It turned out really tasty and was syn free using the Healthy A for the cheese. Captain Caveman helped with the potatoes and was having a whiskey with his dinner so I had one too.

Dalyan – 24th October

I had decided to join the Riverbums on Thursday 24th October, the organiser was away so they had left Captain Caveman in charge of proceedings. I had a cup of Yorkshire tea and overnight oats for breakfast before walking with Captain Caveman to Kefal tea gardens to get the gear out of storage and ready to depart on the electric boat at 10am. Unfortunately, no boat appeared and one of the Turkish Bummers had to contact the organiser to find out where our boat and driver was. After a short delay, we were on our way in a normal boat, not the Riverbums one. We spent about 2.5 hours clearing up rubbish near the natural sulphur and rock pools over the other side of the river, in a field where sheep are and close to the mudbaths. I’d been there before with the Riverbums and it used to be a really bad area for lots of rubbish being thrown there. I was very pleasantly surprised that it was much cleaner. We did find a sheep who had put its head through a swing top bin and was wandering around wearing the lid like a necklace. Captain Caveman freed it of the bin lid and then the sheep wanted to say thank you. The boat captain gave them some reeds to eat as they were all quite peckish.
Back at the tea garden, we were already running over time so no one stopped for a beverage or snack and we all went home.

Captain Caveman and I had showers and soup for lunch with pasta in and some bread. In the local news there was an update that with immediate effect, renters in our area were able to apply for residency renewal for 2 years now and only had to show proof of 1.5 times the basic wage deposited in to their Turkish bank for 3 consecutive months. I was waiting for my new residency card which had expired on 19th October, so it was too late for me and I was stuck with just 6 months. Hopefully, if things didn’t change again before mid February, I would be able to apply for 2 years then, meaning I would be able to leave Turkey for more than 15 days by May, if I was approved.
In the afternoon, I got on with more training for Resort Experts and I was getting through the training quickly but now I had a 2 page To Do list. After working 2-6pm while Captain Caveman played Bridge on his phone, I was quite tired, and got a bit peeved that he was not very responsive to putting his phone down or helping me. He was also incredibly sneezy again, which was probably made worse from the pollen when Riverbumming.
In just 2 months’ time, it would be our 13 year anniversary so I mentioned this to Captain Caveman and asked if he intended for us to make it that far. I was getting increasingly more annoyed that all he wanted to do was play Bridge. He had said he was making his own to do list of other things he needed to do but, aside from washing clothes and hanging them out, he was obsessed with little else but Bridge. Captain Caveman thought I was overreacting (I didn’t think so) and said of course we would make it to 13 years! In all honesty, if I had a teenage son who was constantly playing games on his phone and ipad, I would not have allowed it. However, it was Captain Caveman’s house and there was no amount of me moaning that would stop him spending as much time on Bridge as he liked! I’d also noticed that if Captain Caveman wasn’t playing Bridge he was totally fascinated in watching random reels on his phone. If I interrupted him he would scroll past ‘someone painting a hole’ or ‘plaiting dust’ but got a bit snarky that I had questioned him. He really hates me asking him any ‘irrelevant’ questions.
I made dinner of chickpea and spinach curry with steamed rice and we had a bottle of red wine between us.

Dalyan – 17th October

Thursday 17th October was set aside for book writing and I got stuck in to that straight after my cup of tea and a Slimming World pancake. I had now perfected the odd pancake which uses egg, mushed banana and oats to make a healthy pancake, topped with a sliced banana and a drizzle of honey. It tasted lovely and was on plan so I felt better after veering off plan yesterday.

After getting my proposed book titles for my book completed, I set off to meet Captain Caveman who was at Kefal tea gardens with the other Bummers. He’d been collecting the trash and was now having a beer and a toastie, which I had a little bit of with a lemon soda.

The bill at the tea gardens was;

1 Lemon soda 25.00
1 Mixed toastie 100.00
1 Efes Malt beer 145.00
Total spent 270 lira (£6.07)

I didn’t think the price was bad but some of the expats I knew, had stopped going to the tea gardens as they thought it was far too expensive for alcohol.

Back home, I spotted a caterpillar and learned something new; the eyes on the caterpillar are actually a pattern on their bum. Apparently, this is to confuse it’s enemies. For lunch we had more leek and potato soup with bread so I was already on 88 syns for the week – and it was only day 2!
I got on with more book and blog writing and then we had chicken curry for dinner.
In the evening I had a few replies on my book title ideas which made me rethink my original plan.