I managed to work for 5 hours on Sunday 28th July so that I’d done 35 hours this week, as I only did 17.5 last week. I was back on track but I did feel like I was never drinking again when I woke up. I had tea and a toasted tea cake for breakfast and I was astonished to see Dad was fine. He had no recollection of him being a handful last night and he wasn’t hungover! Mom was still mad with him for being so drunk. I could see he’d been so excited to be out that he’d overdone it. I read in the Vietnam news that the train I’d got from Dong Hoi to Danang, and one Captain Caveman gets fairly often had a carriage come off the track and people were evacuated. I also messaged Captain Caveman to help me with sorting out how I was going to get to my next stop off. Claire had invited me down south to stay with her for a week and was initially going to pick me up but there were dog arrangements which prevented this. I was a bit concerned that I had a 20kg suitcase as well as 8kg of hand luggage (including a wine bucket!) to cart through the London underground and I would struggle. Captain Caveman recommended the National Express which he had got as it avoided the tube and I could get a train from London Victoria, straight to Sevenoaks, where Claire lived. It was also a lot cheaper than the train so I left him with it to book my tickets for me. I had a cheese toastie for lunch and carried on with work until 3pm. In the afternoon we had a little reunion for Briony planned at The Phoenix in Ridgeway. Sara had managed to get some of the old Aviva Sales Support team out and I’d invited Paz from the Berlin 10 crowd. My parents walked as far as the back of the Ridgeway Arms with me and, when they turned back, I continued on to The Phoenix. I was the first there so I got a drink at the bar. I was still feeling quite delicate and the walk up the big hill had not helped with my dehydration. I decided to have a pint of water with cordial which cost £1.85 and went to find a seat outside. It was so busy inside and only 3 or 4 tables left outside but it was 4.30pm on a Sunday. First to arrive were Sarah Saynor and Mick. Sarah had not changed a bit in either looks or mannerisms as she flicked her hair and told me she’d just had an expensive hair cut but still wanted to do her fringe herself! Mick was still the same funny bloke and was only slightly older looking and had filled out a bit more (Sarah’s words, not mine). Next to arrive in the taxi together were Sara, Helen and Briony. As they walked over to the table, it was like I’d been transported back in time to when we all worked together in Nick Reynold’s face to face team. We all hugged and got drinks, I was still sipping my cordial while the others were on it. I just couldn’t face any alcohol after yesterday’s party. Paz arrived and I instantly remembered that they all worked in the same building now at Aviva. I also realised that my old team may just be a bit ‘too much’ for Paz to take, on a nice relaxing quiet Sunday. It was great to see Paz and she looked so well, she’d driven all the way over just to catch up which was lovely. The conversation topics got more and more crude as the day went on and we all had some funny memories to share with each other. Once again I was in a position where I didn’t really get to speak to anyone one on one but we did have some laughs reminiscing of some of the tangles we all used to get ourselves in. It turned out that I was still remembered for forcing my team on to terrible low budget team building events (camping) as well as hiring a boogie bus to a Christmas party. That boogie bus stank of debauchery which really wasn’t pleasant on the way back in to work the following morning. They also took the mickey out of the time I drunkenly agreed to play my violin at Briony and Shaun’s wedding, thinking I was only doing the wedding march but the CD player wasn’t working and I had to improvise without any written music. Our cheeks hurt from so much laughing and we had a great time! After saying bye to everyone and walking home through the field path just as it was getting dark, I noticed it was quite cold but I had Captain Caveman’s down jacket on. When I got in at 9.30pm, having had no alcohol at all, I was a bit peckish so I made myself some noodles with chicken and vegetables, then went to bed.
Gayle & Neil were throwing a party for April’s 18th birthday on Saturday 27th July from 2pm. My parents and I were all excited and there was talk of what we were wearing, how we were getting there and even which door we would be leaving from. I carried on trying to get as much work done as possible but I could tell Dad was excited to be going. Before we left for the walk up the hill, wearing sandals, out of the garage door, I had some beans on toast (I was too busy for breakfast) and had a quick video call with Captain Caveman who had returned from the cave yesterday. At Gayle and Neil’s we were unfashionably bang on time and the birthday girl was still getting ready. It wasn’t her actual birthday yet so we put the presents and card on a table to be opened another time and admired the lengths my sister had gone to, to trim up the house. It reminded me of when I see American’s having a party as there were nicely arranged balloons and a light up massive number 18 in the living room. The table was ladened with treats and nibbles, outside was fizz in an ice bucket and more garlands/swathes of balloons on the pergola. The kitchen was jam packed with so much food that I wondered who was coming to ‘the small party just for close family’. We all had a glass of champagne, avoiding the larger champagne flutes which Gayle went for. April came out to say hello and fixed herself an Aperol spritz while Gayle, in her lovely summery dress, wrestled with Sumo, the dog, over a cardboard box for empties. Morgan and her boyfriend, Harry, joined April and Harley and I got to meet Harry for the first time. I was already eyeing up the beautifully presented charcuterie board and macaroons while I helped myself to a top up of Prosecco. By 3.20pm I was in the kitchen videoing the extravaganza as Gayle did some last minute preparation while chatting on. There was lots of red wine I noticed too and I was intrigued as to what the shell full of blue balloons was for – maybe a party game was coming later!
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Video of all the food in the kitchen
Neil’s parents, Susan & David, and their 2 dogs arrived who I don’t think I’d seen since Gayle and Neil got married over 20 years ago. I got Sue a fizz, Dave was driving, and the adults went to sit on the decking area while I chatted about music with the kids. I noticed Gayle had accidentally on purpose got herself a bit tiddly with the extra large champagne flute of champers and she flashed her knickers. She decided that she would take her dress off as she was too cold. Just as we were getting comfy there was a bit of excitement as it was time to have a go on the piñata. Much hilarity ensued and the funniest people to have a go were my Dad and Neil. Poor Neil seemed like he might’ve been working out some stress or anger and we all couldn’t stop laughing!!!
April, before the piñata bashing started
April V Piñata
Dad V Piñata
Neil V Piñata (1)
Neil V Piñata (2)
Jill and Rita, our aunties, arrived just after we had finished the piñata. They brought their new dog, Seacole, who joined Sumo, Milly and Holly. Neil was on with the massive BBQ mission and the food was fantastic. My diet was once again on hold as I wolfed down a burger and a hot dog. I got caught out by the chillies in the rice and had to have more Prosecco to get over it. By this time Dad had switched up to a larger champagne flute and I noticed Mom had slowed down on the booze. I went on to red wine as I ploughed through the cheeses and meats. Around 7.30pm I realised we hadn’t taken any birthday photos so we did our best to get a few group and individual photos. Of course, I took so many where Dad was messing about and would not face the camera.
Gayle had done some games, with prizes, to see how well we knew April with some hilarious answers that even April didn’t know. It was funny and tricky to concentrate as Sumo had taken a romantic interest in Seacole and we had to keep them separate which was hard to do. Harley did a really good music quiz and I teamed up with Neil and Jill. We did well but didn’t win, which was a shame. It was easily gone 9pm by the time any one left and my sister dished out food to take away as they had so much left. It would have been prudent for my parents and I to have taken a doggy bag and walked home too but we’re not well known for having sensible family shindigs. Gayle had asked us before we came if we wanted to stay over and my Mom had said no. I also had to work tomorrow so would rather get a good night’s sleep and be up early at my parents’ house, where my laptop was. Some sausages were warmed up for a midnight snack and I knew Dad was drunk when he ate 2, with onions on, and didn’t mention eating late or indigestion. Mom and I also had a hot dog and I had another red wine. As Dad was getting more merry I could see that Mom was considering staying over but she didn’t want me to walk home on my own and I couldn’t because she knew the alarm system which was on and I didn’t. To me, it seemed silly for me to stay over to wake up really early tomorrow morning to go to my parents’ house to still not be able to go in because of the alarm so I insisted I would leave that night. I didn’t realise it would take so long to walk home as Dad kept trying to walk on the road and take his sandals off. Mom was in a right mood with him and it was such hard work trying to get him to walk home properly without putting himself in danger. We eventually got in and messaged Gayle to say we made it in one piece (only just, for Dad) and I was gutted we forgot our leftovers. 12 hours after the party started, I was finally in bed having had a great day and night.
Briony’s plane was delayed by at least a couple of hours on Thursday 25th July so I got on with work until I heard from her to set off to go to meet her. I’d also bought a bottle of pink prosecco and a punnet of strawberries to welcome her for just £10 from M&S. I knew she’d be jetlagged and possibly hungover or hungry. Louisa was on standby to meet as she had the day off and we were all just waiting excitedly on Briony’s arrival. I eventually went to the Mercure hotel to meet Briony and she looked so good. America had been kind to her, her hair was a different colour and looked great. She had got a taxi from the train station as her suitcase was so heavy. We drank some Prosecco and ate a few strawberries as we messaged Louisa to say to come join us. She had missed a bus so had to drive and we said we would meet her at the car park. As we shared how excited we were to be drinking tap water again, Louisa was on her way and we walked towards a strange looking multi story car park. It was very windy and really cold for both me and Briony so we messaged Louisa to say we had gone to find a warm pub. Once again, I found myself in town looking for a pub that was open in the day time on a Thursday. Briony and I could only remember the Benjamin Huntsman as we’d had many a cheap drink in there over the years so we headed there. I dont think Louisa was enamoured with the choice of bar but Briony and I were very pleasantly surprised. You can pay cash, they have wine on tap and the prices are good as it’s a Wetherspoons. This time it was Briony’s turn to go for a pie, I chose the curry deal that is on the Thursday Curry Club and I had the spinach and chickpea curry with rice, poppadoms and a naan bread, plus another wine for £11. Louisa went for a coke, some chicken nuggets and onion rings and ordered it all on an App where the order arrives, miraculously, to your table. Time went too fast as my alarm went off to tell me I needed to go get the bus. I’d arranged to meet Chris & Amanda at The Alma tonight so I needed to get back. I said my goodbyes with promises of meeting up again and hurried for the bus. I got to The Alma a bit late, Amanda and Chris were already there and had got the drinks in, including for my parents who I joined along the walk from the bus stop. They remembered what we drank which was really kind but they hadn’t brought the dogs this time. We had a great catch up and such a laugh trying to remember everyone we used to work with back in my Aviva days. It was such a good couple of hours and I was a bit tipsy by the time we left to go for fish and chips at Tony’s. We only just made it to the chip shop before it closed, too. My parents took their’s back home but I joined Chris and Amanda as I wanted to see the dogs and Amanda had some clothes for me to try on. The dogs were so fussy but soon calmed down when they saw me putting a bit of fish to one side for them to have when I had finished my dinner. The fish and chips are just so good and it’s a good job I don’t live in that area as I would be too tempted to eat them more often. Trying clothes on after fish and chips and several ciders wasn’t the best idea but I went for it. Amanda knew I’d been feeling the cold and had no clothes with me so gave me 3 pairs of jeans, a T-Shirt, a shirt and a jumper. I loved the clothes and they all fit really well so I was happy. Downstairs I caused havoc when I threw the ball for the dogs in the lounge, which isn’t allowed so it was time to leave before Bruno or Ted damaged something.
On Friday 26th July I was working very early so that I could finish at lunch time. The jeweller at Crystal Peaks had let me know that they needed to send my G-Shock watch off to be fixed and it could take up to a month to come back but would most likely be as good as new for £60. I agreed and he asked me to call in to get the necessary paperwork and receipt so that my Mom could collect it when it was fixed. While we were at Crystal Peaks, Mom picked up a couple of things and then I popped to Beres sandwich shop. I got 3 roast pork sandwiches for £3.90 each and we took them home for lunch. Dad was in a better mood on our return this time, but we hadn’t been out long. I carried on with some work emails until it was time to meet Briony. Even though she didn’t have a phone SIM while in the UK, she had decided she would chance getting on a bus to Mosborough and I would meet her at the bus stop. It was a nice day, my parents had already gone for a walk so they had declined to come and meet Briony with me. She managed the bus fine and we had a wander around Mosborough while chatting. It was just like old times even though it was now 10 years since her and husband had got married, then moved to the USA. We walked via the kid’s park then we had a drink in the British Oak where we sat outside but got moved due to a private party coming at 4pm when it was 2.30pm. The round of 2 halves came to £6.40 and it was quite pleasant sat outside chatting about anything and everything. Our next stop was at The Alma beer garden where 2 pints came to £9.60 and the weather was pretty nice. We turned the Mosborough walk in to a pub crawl and finished off at Craftworks. Here we discovered the Fuggle Bunny Jammy Dodger ruby ale which was only £2.60 for ⅔ of a pint. We had 2 of these each and then missed the bus Briony was thinking of getting. After seeing Briony on to the later bus, I walked home to find Mom had saved me some dinner, another favourite of chicken fajitas. We had also forgotten about the strawberries and cream we bought in Sainsbury’s so I had some of those saved for me too. I’d really enjoyed today but as the weekend approached, I still needed to fit in a bit more work this week to make up for doing a few hours less last week.
While Captain Caveman had gone back in to his next Son Doong cave tour on Tuesday 23rd July, I did a morning of work. I had Shreddies and a cup of tea for breakfast and cracked on until just before lunch time. My Mom had kindly offered to take me to Crystal Peaks so that we could do a bit of shopping. We called at the Charity shop for me to drop off a load of old CDs which I was getting rid of from the loft stuff. When we got there, one of the boxes was of my own photos – it was a good job it was spotted and I put them back in the boot. Our first stop was Asda supermarket where I bought the following; 2 packs of Ibuprofen 0.78 Pickled onions 1.00 Crisps 1.35 Midget Gems 1.35 Posh crisps 1.50 Dairy Milk 1.75 Birthday card 2.28 4 packet mix sauces 3.05 2 blocks of cheese 5.50 Sleeveless play suit 10.00 Total spent £28.56
I would have bought more clothes there but there were no changing rooms and I put most of the stuff I’d picked up, back on the shelves. Next, we drove to the Crystal Peaks shopping centre and had some lunch. Mom chose MacDonald’s for the quickest and I paid as a treat, seeing as my parents had been feeding me and putting me up for almost a week now. I’d also dropped the bombshell that I was planning to stay another 2 weeks too. I was surprised that it wasn’t more expensive to be honest as it was only £12.78 for a chicken sandwich meal and a Big Mac meal. I was able to order at the counter and also was successful in getting Mom’s meal without mayonnaise. My diet was already screwed and I actually enjoyed my meal which had hot chips. With full bellies, we went to look at clothes in Sainsbury’s where Mom and I picked up loads of bargains. Again, there were no longer any changing rooms so Mom and I decided to try stuff on over our clothes on the homewares aisle so that we could look in the mirrors. This was a great idea until halfway through our activity, lots of customers suddenly needed the mirrors and book sections of the store! Mom and I couldn’t stop laughing. Here’s what I bought at Sainsbury’s, prices in £;
Single cream 0.99 400g strawberries 2.00 1 vest top 3.00 Socks 3.50 1 mouse (for laptop) 5.99 Printed long sleeve play suit 6.00 Blondie T-shirt 9.80 2 bottles of Prosecco 13.50 Total spent £44.28
I was pleased with my purchases and even had some size 12 items which actually fitted. The next shops were to look for a birthday gift for my niece’s 18th birthday and I had a bit of an idea. On the way, mom and I found a 2025 diary in the market for £1 and bought one each. I took my G-Shock watch to the jewellers to see if they could fix it and the nice young man in F. Hinds said they would have a look. I bought a couple of trinkets in Card Factory for £3.49 and then found a useful gift for April. I decided an Air Tag with matching key ring so that she can connect it to her keys and track with her phone. I did keep the receipt in case it wasn’t suitable. Back home, Dad was out of sorts and moody but I’m guessing it was because we had been out having fun without him. We had invited him but he didn’t want to come and even when Mom cooked a nice dinner he was being a bit odd and wouldn’t speak to us. I did more work in the afternoon while mom chopped the vegetables. Dinner was amazing and we had pork with vegetables – I was on 558 syns for the week, though, so I was definitely going to have put on weight tomorrow.
I got weighed on my parents scales on Wednesday 24th July to find I had put on just 0.15kg (0.3lb). This was amazing, given the amount of eating and drinking of unhealthy proportions I had been doing. My measurements were not quite as lenient but still not what I was expecting or deserved; Bust and waist – no change, Hips +3cm! I sang ‘My Hips don’t Lie’ by Shakira and decided the prawn fried rice I’d forgotten about yesterday would be an ideal breakfast choice. I also calculated my spending and really needed to reign it in a bit. I’d got some foreign currency but I really wanted to save that to meet my minimum amount for residency in to my Turkish bank account. I knew August was going to be my tightest month in a while and September would be the highest for paying for stuff. I worked from 8am until 1pm as Ma & Pa had invited me out for a walk with them. Compared to when they are in Dalyan, they don’t really go out to pubs much so this was going to be a nice treat for them. They had suggested we go on a walk, as the weather was still fairly nice, to Ridgeway and have a late lunch at The Bridge Inn. The walk there was lovely and when we got to the bar I ordered a Guiness but the pump wasn’t working, so I asked for cider and that was off too. Remembering I had tried Madri lager before, I had that and we sat down to peruse the menu. I chose unwisely for my Slimming World plan, with a steak and ale pie, Mom went for steak and Dad plumped for salmon. When the food came, it was so delicious and I loved that pie! We were joking about fitting in a pudding as I was stuffed but Mom ordered me a sticky toffee pudding and Dad an apple pie. I thought she would share mine but she didn’t but I did manage to eat it all – it was amazing! The prices weren’t bad either; my pie was £12.95, Mom’s steak was £19.50 and Dad’s salmon £16.95. The puds were £5.95 and £6.50 which were the most expensive desserts on the menu but they were huge portions and really should’ve been shared. The pump was back on so Dad and I got a cider to round off a brilliant lunch which my parents very kindly treated me to. Back home, we rounded off the afternoon with wine. At dinner time, I was too full for anything proper so I opened the pickled onions I’d bought and had them with some cheese and a mini sausage roll. Tomorrow I had more excitement planned as my friend, Briony, was currently on a flight from America and we had planned to meet up in Sheffield.
On Saturday 20th July the weather was glorious which was a shame as I was catching up on work, having taken yesterday off. I’d done 2 hours work before Ma got up and I was having Shreddies and a cup of Yorkshire tea for breakfast. Ma and Pa had no set plans for the weekend but we were thinking we might see Gayle and family as Neil, her husband, was back from working in Scotland. Ma got the washing out as the sun was out and ideal for getting the bedding dry. Lunch time bacon sandwiches from Mom were much appreciated even though I was on 50% more syns than at the same time last week. I managed to get 7 hours of work under my belt before the garden furniture cushions needed putting out. Gayle was popping over for a cup of tea but I knew what that really meant. Dad had already been checking the wine stocks in each fridge. Captain Caveman was getting his flight from Heathrow at 5pm and had already checked in when Gayle arrived with cakes for the cup of tea. I don’t think she even got offered a tea as I cracked open the Prosecco, another thing on the must do list. We all sat outside, ate the cakes, drank the fizz, went on to the other wine and then started snacking on mini cheddars or Seabrook’s salt and vinegar crisps. There was discussions about an impromptu BBQ or pizza for dinner but with Gayle being coeliac Ma wasn’t sure if she had any suitable foods in. She decided we should ring Neil and the kids and see if they fancied an Indian at The Vine in Mosborough. Before Dad could enquire about whether he should open the Chardonnay, we were booked in and it was all systems go as we needed to get there. April was working and couldn’t make it, but Morgan and Neil didn’t need asking twice.
The Vine was absolutely packed full and we had been lucky to get a table for the 6 of us. The food was amazing, both Gayle and I tried something different due to us being a bit tiddly. We all had drinks, starters, mains and sides and it came to £35 per person, which was the most expensive meal I’d paid for so far but I did get a really good doggy bag to take home and I’d thoroughly enjoyed my 4th curry in the 12 days of being in England.
It was Captain Caveman’s last day off on Sunday 21st July as he landed in Saigon just before midday. He had his next Oxalis briefing tomorrow evening and I think he was happy to be going back for his final few weeks of this year’s season. The UK is 6 hours behind Vietnam so he had already landed before I woke up. There was some issue with his flight from Saigon to Dong Hoi that afternoon being cancelled, meaning he had to stay overnight in Saigon. I was a bit hungover and I just had tea and toast for breakfast. I’d been invited to a music event in Leopold Square in Sheffield but I was working today so I declined. My parents were invited but they prefer not to go in to town and didn’t accept either. For lunch I had my left over curry which was still as delicious as last night. For dinner Mom cooked pizzas and garlic bread which were very nice but I was now on 430 syns for the week already and it was still Sunday. At 7.15pm I met my friend, Kerrie, who I hadn’t seen for 2.5 years but it felt like longer. I was still hungover and she was driving so I had a nice cup of tea and then we went on to the alcohol free Erdinger beer which was only £3.50 for 500ml. We had a good catch up and a laugh while reminiscing and then it was time to say bye but with plans to meet up again. I wrote down Kerrie’s availability for the next week or so which I could refer to as she’s usually such a busy person. It wasn’t a late one as we both had work in the morning and I’d got plans to go clothes shopping in the afternoon.
It was crumpets for breakfast with a hangover on Friday 19th July. Last night had really been so good, I had no regrets and I was a bit sad to be seeing Captain Caveman off today. He decided it would be a good idea for us to go into town early so we could get some lunch, our last meal together before I met him in Turkey in just over 10 weeks’ time. It was time for him to say farewell to my parents but they would also be in Turkey when he returned. My Mom mentioned that there was some global IT system outage and we dismissed her when she suggested that the buses may be affected because of it. Leaving me with a suitcase half full of his clothes and shoes, we went for the 10.55am bus in to town. Unfortunately, it didn’t turn up until 11.22am and then it had a driver being trained by a gobby woman from Chesterfield who was doing nothing for my hangover! We’d gone about 6 or 7 stops and when we had to stop at Birley and wait for a mechanic. The Chezzy trainer shouted to us all that we would just be 2 minutes as they needed to fill up the water. Unfortunately, this was not true and 2 buses, which we could have got on to, sailed past. Captain Caveman’s National Express bus to London Victoria was leaving Sheffield at 12.45 pm so now we didn’t have time to go anywhere for lunch. Instead, when we got to town we rushed to Marks & Spencer’s – our first walk on Fargate and we were shocked at the state of it. Captain Caveman got himself a Roast Beef sandwich (£3.90) and an Orange & Mango juice (£2) but we didn’t have time for me to choose or even fathom what you can get in a meal deal these days. Captain Caveman was determined to have a coffee from Macdonald’s on our way back to the bus station. It was £1.59 for a double Espresso and you buy it by touching a massive screen and paying on card , which felt weird to me. Then you still went to the counter to collect it but there were staff stood around and no customers at the till. On the way to Pond Street there were a few too many obvious druggies around and it was so noticeable. At the National Express bus, it was busy with the driver faffing about with a ramp user who he had left to sit in his wheelchair in the bright sun for too long. I said my goodbyes to Captain Caveman and he did remember to give me a kiss and a hug this time, which was nice! I waved the bus off and then went to get my bus ‘home’ which was meant to be at 1pm but was late. This was fortunate as I had time to buy my lunch from WH Smith where I took advantage of the meal deal, thinking I was getting a bargain. I had a chicken wrap, some salt ‘n’ vinegar Walker’s crisps and a juice for £5.99 and it was nowhere near as good as a M&S sandwich. The bus finally arrived at 1.14pm and the young chirpy driver explained that my Mom was correct and the world had come to a bit of an IT related standstill. He had a giant sippy cup of Yorkshire tea and was ready for the abuse from all the passengers he was late for. Back home, my parents decided it had heated up enough for some outdoor lounging, drinking and eating. I helped Dad move the garden furniture and put out the cushions, a job that would become more frequent over the next few days. Ma made a curry and Dad got the wine out, but not the Chardonnay that was in the garage fridge – he was saving that. The chicken bhuna was excellent and Ma even surprised us with a couple of naans and some onion bhajis. The Pinot Grigio went down well too and it was nice to be out in the garden still at 8.30pm in a summer dress and not complaining I was cold!
It was Captain Caveman’s last full day with me in England on Thursday 18th July and it was also his birthday. I’d organised for us to celebrate later but he wanted to keep any plans casual which was proving a bit tricky. It was only 18°C at 9am as I had my tea and toast then got on with work for a couple of hours. Unfortunately, I had some bad news; my parents did not drink Yorkshire tea but I’d thought all this time that they did. They had been fans of Tetley it appeared and even had the Tetley teabags bought in bulk. It was a good job I’d brought my own, all the way from Vietnam and Turkey! Captain Caveman got all his stuff together and was leaving for London tomorrow afternoon by bus. Before midday we were bus wankers once again as we ventured in to town for some birthday fun. The bus fare from Mosborough to Sheffield city centre, which is 12km and takes about 20 minutes usually, cost us £2 each, one way. My parents had declined our invite to join us as they don’t like to go in to town if they can help it, even though they both have free bus passes, and they don’t particularly like to go out drinking in Sheffield these days. On the bus I got some messages and photos of the pool from Captain Caveman’s apartment complex which could’ve been taken on any given day and reused but he seemed to think he was on top of things now – I was still dubious. We got off the bus near the train station and headed to a cafe on Brown Street, I noticed Spearmint Rhino was no longer! I just had a soda water and Captain Caveman had a coffee as it was one of those fancy places that serves smashed avocado and I wasn’t keen so we didn’t stay. Instead we walked up towards The Moor where 2 sleeping tramps and a dog were almost blocking the door to Beres sandwich shop. We both had a pork sandwich and went to sit on a bench to eat it, as it was now sunny. My first pork sandwich since being back in England cost £3.60. It was so tasty and was another thing off our must do list. We walked through Leopold Square where Strada had now become another restaurant called Pho. I checked out the menu to find a Pho Ga (chicken noodle soup) was priced at a whopping £12.25 which, compared to £1.82 for a posh one in Victory Road Villas, Phong Nha, was absolutely shocking! We walked up West Street and along Division Street spotting new places like Glass Onion and Pieminister as well as old favourites The Frog & Parrot and the Devonshire Chippy. No cars are allowed on the road now so it seemed odd to see people sat outside the pub but on the road. There were a lot more drug addled homeless people around too, and I was shocked to see drugged up women who looked like they were desperate for a wash. At the clothing bank, I wondered why all the clothes were spread out on the floor but maybe it was for the homeless to be able to use them. As it was lunchtime on a Thirsty Thursday, we tried to go to a pub for a drink but not many were open, including another old favourite, The Bath, which didn’t open until 4pm – on a Thursday!! We unsuccessfully tried a couple of other pubs which were either not open, closed down or had the decorators in. The Forum was still going strong so we went in there but I just had a pint of water, which was completely free (more on that later) and Captain Caveman had a pint. We had a critter join us which I didn’t like but Captain Caveman persuaded me to be friends with it and we saved it by giving it some water, then it ended up in the hair of a recently graduated female with a partial tit hanging out. We decided to walk towards Kelham Island as, surely, pubs there would be open and it might be a bit more classy!?
Today was also the day of Captain Caveman’s friend’s funeral. Sid Perou, from England but living in Thailand, was a famous caver and filmmaker who had sadly passed away. We’d last met up with Sid, his wife and his grandson in May last year and he was a really fascinating and lovely man. Captain Caveman and I were of course upset by this news, Captain Caveman in particular, and he had planned to mark the evening by joining some cavers at The Cobden View pub. The Sheffield University Speleological Society (SUSS) meet there on a Thursday, right at the same time that I’d arranged a small gathering of friends to help Captain Caveman celebrate his birthday. We decided Captain Caveman would go to the Cobden View but I would go to meet everyone at Kelham Island. After the caving night, Captain Caveman would join us. In the meantime, we had stopped off at The Shakespeare for a pint on the way to Kelham Island, we both had a pint and a packet of Salt and Vinegar Discos to share. We had a walk round Kelham Island to find a few of the pubs were closed but we ended up in The Millowners Arms where I had another pint of water. I was feeling a bit dehydrated after last night and thirsty after walking in Sheffield which is far more hilly than I’m used to. To my surprise, the water was free again and I was absolutely loving being able to drink tap water whenever I liked – it was so amazing! Next, we decided to call in to the bar I had arranged to meet everyone in later tonight. I’d been to Salt before but it turned out that Captain Caveman hadn’t, as we ordered 2 on-tap cocktails for a total of £12.30. My Pornstar Martini was a bit too sweet but Captain Caveman’s Espresso Martini went down well. We also tried a gyoza snack for £4.50 which was tiny but tasty. Our next stop ended up being Craft & Dough with other choices not being open and Captain Caveman was getting a bit peckish. We decided to order a pizza to share and he had another pint of beer while I went to the loo. When I came out I went to order a pint of water and asked the barman how much it was. I never knew this but, all licensed premises in England and Wales are required by law to provide ‘free potable water’ to their customers upon request. He explained that it was illegal not to give free tap water out when asked and I was so impressed with this law. I also ordered a beer as I thought it was a good idea and we were going to be meeting a few people who were finishing work soon.
Captain Caveman and I met Tony and Paul first at 6pm at the Kelham Island Tavern. Tony was drinking from a glass labelled Left Handed Giant which might be his new nickname. Becca was also already there just as we arrived as she’d got an Uber in to town. As we tried to work out how long it had been since our last rendezvous (too long!) and who knew who from where, the beers flowed. Luan, Drexy and Jeff arrived as Captain Caveman left to go to the SUSS meet up. More reminiscing and laughter was had before we realised we needed to change venues to meet anyone else at Salt. Becca and I left first as Louisa and Linda were already sat outside and I almost didn’t recognise them as both had different hairstyles since I last saw them. Louisa was working later so couldn’t stay out long but had made the effort for Captain Caveman’s birthday, I hoped he would make it back before she had to leave. To complete the crew, Caz & Tim were next to arrive and we had a drink or two more. I felt that I didn’t get to speak to everyone enough and it dawned on me that the time I planned to be in England for would fly by. It was the school holidays so lots of parents were busy with the kids or going away so it wasn’t possible for everyone to come out, just because JoLo was back in town. As we were chatting, Luan informed us that one of our friends’ father had died. But then when she double checked it was a false alarm and we all raised a glass to him, with Linda saying ‘I’ve never met him, but I’m so glad he’s alive!’ It was nice to be with my Northern mates again and we had a great time. As I said bye to Louisa and Linda, Captain Caveman was in the taxi coming back – which was a shame they had missed each other.
We had another drink in Salt but then decided to go back to The Kelham Island Tavern. Caz and Tim also had to get back home so they said their goodbyes. Much to Captain Caveman’s aversion to acknowledging his birthday, he responded quite well to a group rendition of ‘Happy Birthday’ from the rest of us in our last bar. Drexy and Jeff had offered to give Captain Caveman and I a lift back to Mosborough and the sensible thing would’ve been to take it. Luan and Paul also had work tomorrow so were leaving but I blame Tony for the rest of the evening’s shenanigans.
I don’t think Captain Caveman was expecting for it to be such an eventful (drunken) birthday on Thursday 18th July. Tony had the amazing idea that we should all go for a curry. Once we’d said bye to the people our hangovers would be wishing we were tomorrow, I called Butler’s Balti to ask them to stay open. Tony is a regular there so they agreed to wait for us but we took longer to walk there than we expected because of all the road work paraphernalia in the way. Once there, we were the only customers; Tony, Becca, Captain Caveman and I were so grateful, though, and we cracked on with ordering our drinks and food quite sharpish. Tony and I had red wine, Becca had white and Captain Caveman stuck to beer (for the time being). I’d love to write about what each of us ordered but all I can recall is that it was amazing food and that Captain Caveman and Tony went for something too hot for me to handle. At the end of the night, and as the staff were probably really hoping to lock up, Captain Caveman was presented with the ultimate birthday drink. Of course, I had to get a video of it which, to Captain Caveman’s irritation, caused a bit of an injury. While I videoed and we all sang Happy Birthday in the style of Stevie Wonder on a night out in Sheffield, Captain Caveman had to wait to blow out the flaming sambuca which then meant he burned his lip on the hot glass and lethal liquid. Outside we struggled to get taxis for 3 out of 4 of us and we were a bit merry by this stage. Becca got upset as her taxi got nicked by someone else and Captain Caveman got impatient when we ordered a second one as ours went missing. Poor Tony was left to sort us all out and make sure Becca got the taxi and he got back to his hotel. All this on a school night but we were home before 1am and our friendly taxi driver was chatting all the way back to Mosborough to his friend abroad. It only cost £16 which I didn’t think was bad considering it was probably about that 2.5 years ago. What a night, tomorrow was going to hurt but I’d fortuitously took the day off work.
Josh and Martha had weighing scales in their bathroom and it was my weigh day on Wednesday 17th July. I’d consumed just shy of 500 syns this week, but I kidded myself that at least I was still tracking it! I do realise that simply writing it down doesn’t make me lose weight, eating and drinking less does! According to these scales I had put on 0.85kg (1.9lb) which wasn’t great but my measurements weren’t too bad; bust +1cm, waist stayed the same and hips -1cm! We let down our trusty inflatable borrowed bed, which had been comfy, and tidied the room. With everything packed it was time to say bye to Martha as Josh gave us a lift to Oxenholme train station on his way to work. We had spent the last 2 days having lots of laughs and it was definitely one of the things I loved most about being back in England – spending time with friends who had a great sense of humour and banter. I don’t get as many opportunities to do that in Vietnam due to the language barrier and my comedic style being somewhere between Sid James and Jimmy Carr. My concerns about gaining weight were soon forgotten (again) as we arrived at the cafe outside the station. We’d said a hurried farewell to Josh with hopes of seeing him and Martha in Turkey this winter and had a little bit of time before our train at 9.14am. Captain Caveman had already booked our train tickets in advance and we were going via Manchester Piccadilly to Sheffield, hoping to arrive around midday. Captain Caveman ordered a toastie and I had a bacon sandwich with brown sauce. The cafe there is excellent and my bacon sandwich was so good!!
The train to Manchester was fine, although someone was sat in our allocated seats, a lady who I thought was rather mentally challenged as she kept talking to herself, even while she was shovelling a flapjack in to her mouth. She also was speaking in a tongue I had no knowledge of and I tried to guess where she might be from. When we got off at Manchester Piccadilly to change trains, Captain Caveman pointed out she was Glaswegian and had airpods in her ears – earphones without wires! Wow, I was so out of touch and then Captain Caveman called me racist because I didn’t recognise a Scottish accent – while we were stood next to lots of people with different skin colour to me! The train to Sheffield was rammed and we only just got a seat with it being a free for all and Captain Caveman making a passenger move her bags from the seat next to her so that I could sit down. She said she couldn’t move them because she had recently had spinal surgery and that was no issue for Captain Caveman as he bunged them on the overhead rack. I assured her he would get them back down for her when we got off, as I sat down. We arrived in Sheffield at 11.45am and my first activity was to need the toilet at platform 8! By 11.55am we were outside at the bus stop waiting for our bus to Mosborough and it was sunny! I wouldn’t have said it was hot but a workman on his lunch break obviously would have, as he came and did pull ups on the bus shelter while half naked. Our Giffgaff SIMs were now working so Captain Caveman didn’t notice as the workman got down on the floor and did press ups. I warned my parents we were on the way to their’s and we booked the family in for celebratory drinks tonight.
We arrived at Ma & Pa’s to warm hugs and they had even got us the kettle on and some nice food in for lunch. There were sandwiches with ham or pork, crisps, sausage rolls and scotch eggs. They were snaffled down very quickly and I didn’t even take a photo. After a bit of unpacking and repacking, all 4 of us decided it would be a good idea to go for a stroll to the nearest boozer. We love the Alma and it’s beer garden is often full of dogs with their owners. It was pretty quiet as we drank our pints. Captain Caveman and Mom stuck to beer but Dad and I had Inches cider. It was my first time of trying it and I really liked it, we commented that the glasses were nice and instantly went on to the barmaid’s watch list as she had noticed quite a few go missing already. We had pork scratchings even though we had plans for a dinner that Captain Caveman and I had been counting down to. I’d not been to Tony’s fish and chip shop for 2.5 years and it was at the very top of my list of must do places while I’m back. My parents were up for it and after a couple of rounds we left the Alma and went to the best chippy in Sheffield. Captain Caveman ordered himself a haddock, the rest of us had cod and shared two lots of chips between us. I was surprised to find that a fish was now over £6 so the whole lot came to over £40 for our dinner but it was so worth it and I could’ve eaten even more. Tony’s rarely disappoints and I hoped I’d get to go there again while I was back home – the diet could wait! In one day, I’d consumed over the weeks allowance of syns already and we still had a night out planned.
I’d booked a table at the local micro pub, Craftworks on the Mosborough high street, for 7.30pm. The motley crew joining Captain Caveman and I were my parents, my sister Gayle, my 2 nieces Morgan and April and Harley, April’s boyfriend. I went on to the red wine as I was full after the ciders and fish and chips, Captain Caveman stuck to pints, as did Ma, Pa & Harley. The ladies went a bit fancy with Aperol spritz or spirits and we gave the ball a right old kick. To give an idea of costs, pints of beer ranged from £3.90 for a Barnsley bitter or a weak pale ale, right up to over £7 for something stronger or a stout. My mom was better behaved than her last family visit here and I’m happy to report that she didn’t inspect the walls or floor this time – she knew that Neil (my brother-in-law) wasn’t here to come and rescue her this time. It was a brilliant way to celebrate Captain Caveman’s birthday early with the family and my face ached from laughing so much, especially at Gayle who is hilarious (even when she’s not trying to be). My nieces are now adults and I was kindly invited to a party next week to celebrate April turning 18. I’d not seen them since they came to Dalyan on holiday last year so it was brilliant to see them again. It was the first time I’d met Harley and we liked him straight away when we found out he was a fan of a music quiz! We were obviously the last to leave and at 11pm we were still all supping our last drinks as the really polite barmaid waited patiently for us to go home. Captain Caveman and I loved it and it was his first visit to Craftworks but maybe not his last.
Another relaxing day was had by Captain Caveman and I on Wednesday 1st May. I’d been away from Dalyan for over 7 weeks now but we were looking at the option of me staying in Vietnam for another 2 months. I still didn’t have a flight booked but my parents, sister and brother-in-law would be on their way to Istanbul tomorrow. I was missing Dalyan and my friends there, a few of which had kept in touch which was nice. I was definitely missing Fat Club and the accountability it gave me although I was still trying my best to track everything and make sensible choices. This week I’d only consumed 208 syns, more than 100 less than last week, and only 78 on alcohol. Today was weigh day and the 8th Fat Club I’d missed but I took my measurements. I had lost 3cm from my bust, 1cm from my waist and 4cm from my hips. I was pleased because I was under or on target for all of my measurements now. I decided I would find some scales when I next went in to town as it was almost a month since I’d got weighed. At 8am it was 33°C and it didn’t feel unbearable as we popped our swimmers on to go down for breakfast. I had veggie noodle soup with extra greens and a cup of Yorkshire tea, Captain Caveman had an omelette with plenty of coffee. We spent the morning by the pool but at noon I got some bad news; our tenants back in Dalyan (and Jamie’s friends from his home town) were complaining about Captain Caveman’s apartment. The pool there wasn’t ready, as promised, the sunbeds and decking areas were untidy and someone on the complex was feeding lots of cats. Jamie had messaged me to tell me of his friend’s complaints with photos and to inform me that the pool wasn’t even full of water yet. He said it was hot there and they would not be happy to be without a pool when it was promised. Just what we needed, especially when I had been told by our pool and garden guy that it would be ready in plenty of time. I messaged the agent and our pool and garden man with the complaints and photos. I also let Amanda and Greg know as they had guests renting their place downstairs. Captain Caveman went in the pool at Greenfield, while I continued to try to sort all the issues out in Dalyan. We had lunch at Greenfield which was a really nice beef and vegetable stir-fry (without chillies for me). I eventually got some time to myself and for a swim before going back to the room to speak to a friend. Unfortunately, she had some bad news about her health, and she needed surgery. This meant that her plans to come visit us would be delayed or cancelled. In the evening, Captain Caveman drove us both in to town via the pharmacy. They had a set of old style weighing scales and I got on to find I was the same weight as when I last got weighed. I was still 3.3kg (7.7lb) heavier than when I last got weighed on Carol’s scales though, which I wasn’t convinced was true. I went to Phong Nha Vegan for 2.5 hours and the chef made me Com Suon which is fake pork with steamed rice and vegetables. She added a couple of spring rolls and I gave one to the waitress. The food was delicious and very filling. We left at 8.30pm and drove the 8km back to Greenfield as I had a video call booked in with Ma & Pa. I had one glass of wine at the bar and left Captain Caveman having a beer with René while I did the call. My parents were excited to be going back to Turkey and had a week in Istanbul before heading to Dalyan. It was good to see their happy faces as Ma got the hang of the camera angle this time.
We had the same breakfast as yesterday on Thursday 2nd May at Greenfield Ecostay. It was a bit muggy so I also drank a litre of water and we shared some mangosteen. While Captain Caveman played Bridge on his iPad, I cycled in to Phong Nha by myself. This was great as it meant that Captain Caveman had not been in to work on his day off for 3 whole days and it was doing him good. I spent a couple of hot and sticky hours at the Vegan with the girls and a couple of dogs where I had the amazing fresh spring rolls. I took half of them with me when I left as it looked like rain may come. At 4pm I had a video call scheduled in with Vanessa which I wouldn’t have time to cycle the 8km back for in time. We had already had to move it twice because of me being unavailable so I decided I would call in to The Villa’s and call from there. I mentioned to Vanessa a storm was looking likely and that I couldn’t speak for long. I had a soda water and a cheese toastie as I was peckish which I ate while on the call. It was good to catch up but we had to cut it short at only 34 minutes, for me to attempt to get back before the rain. Of course that did not happen and I got absolutely soaked to the skin. I tried to take a short cut and ended up pushing Bluey up a muddy hill and, for the first time in weeks, I felt cold. When I got to Greenfield, looking like I’d just got out of the shower with my clothes on, I should have gone to have a hot shower and take my clothes off. I didn’t, instead I joined Captain Caveman, Multi and René at the bar with a generous glass of red wine and then shared the fresh spring rolls with the guys. I finally showered and noticed my thighs were chafed from cycling in the rain in flimsy shorts. I ended up drinking a bottle of red wine and ate my delicious dinner. Ngan had prepared meatballs with veggies, steamed rice, peanuts and beef Lalot with water melon for afters and I really enjoyed it.
There was another walk planned on Sunday 11th February which I was looking forward to. I hadn’t eaten since lunch yesterday but I was starting to feel better. I had a couple of bananas to give me some energy but didn’t bother with any tea. Luckily, I was walking with Christine who has a bad knee so she goes at a similar pace to me. She and I only managed 2 hours, there was a bit of rain and we were struggling to keep up with the others. Very kindly, Christine gave me a Slimming World skinny bar which I had when I got home with my cup of tea. Vanessa and Matt were coming round for Sunday lunch which had kind of happened by accident. Initially I had invited Kaan over, thinking we would be able to have a video call with Captain Caveman and Caroline who were celebrating Tet together. When I’d realised the etiquette of not having a single Turkish man in the house with just me, I’d roped in Vanessa. She had not only agreed but had also said she would cook the chicken and bring it over with some Yorkshire puddings. When I let Kaan know, he cancelled as he had some business he needed to attend to in Fethiye. I did the carrots, cabbage, potatoes, pumpkin, brussel sprouts and stuffing. I’d got some gravy but when Vanessa and Matt arrived she had brought some homemade gravy too. What a treat, I poured us some fizz to start, then we went on the white wine with our very delicious meal. Vanessa and Matt left so that she could have her family chat but, by this time, Jamie and Geoff had stopped by for a bevvie. Not being one to miss a party, Vanessa promised to come back after the chat. Jamie and I had wine, Geoff had his own beers and we caught up on what the two of them had been up to. Vanessa came back and the 4 of us had a great night, drinking until about 11pm. At midnight I was in bed when Captain Caveman sent me a photo of him and Caroline and I told him Kaan cancelled on us.
I was getting quite used to not working on a Monday but on Monday 12th February I had some decisions to make about work. I had a bigger breakfast than usual with 2 slices of wholemeal toast, 2 cheese triangles, a banana and I used the last Yorkshire tea tea bag! It was a tough day but I put on my big girls pants and got on with it. I went to the bank to ask about various ways of getting Euros cash in to my Turkish bank and they were very helpful. My local bank can take Western Union payments, which I know they have a branch of in Rhodes Town. I decided to go for a little walk around Dalyan before lunch time. Lunch was more of the tomato and lentil soup with pasta in and lots of water. I spoke to Captain Caveman who was off to his briefing and would be in the cave again tomorrow. At 4pm I went to meet Vanessa and Matt at Tez bar for their farewell drinks. They were off back to the UK tomorrow and I might not see them until the summer. I had a soda water at Tez bar which was only 20 lira (52p), some bars were now charging 3 times that. Wolfie and Rey were there, who I’d not seen in a while as they’d been back in the UK. At 6pm we went to Ozzy’s where I treated myself to a chicken pizza and 2 wines. The pizza was amazing so my well intended plan of eating half and taking the rest home, went out of the window. We had a good night in Ozzy’s, even Jamie and Geoff (with Norman and Edna) popped to say bye to Vanessa and Matt which was really nice. My bill including a tip and just 2 wines came to 600 lira (£15.46) which I thought was reasonable. Back home, I had a ginger tea and watched some Netflix before bed and a huge storm.
By 9am on Monday 24th July I was off to the bank to draw out more cash. I’d promised to pick up 3 boxes of baklava for Morgan and April to take home as gifts. I got it fresh from the bakery and went for the medium sized boxes, hoping they weren’t already over their weight allowance on hand luggage as it was very heavy. When I arrived, Gayle was still tidying, Neil was moving stuff downstairs and the girls weren’t quite ready. They had all kindly left me some spare toiletries and food which Gayle had bagged up for me. She also mentioned there was ice-cream and wine in the fridge, including the remaining half bottle from yesterday that I’d taken over. In the kerfuffle of them leaving, moving luggage and me getting the bag of gubbings, we left without the ice-cream and wine! We had hugs, said our farewells and I was genuinely sad to see them leave. It had been lovely to share a big part of their family holiday and we’d had so many laughs. I was going to miss them a lot and the itinerary plans! If you think I’m funny, you should meet my sister – she really is hilarious! I waved Fikri’s taxi off with tears in my eyes and then walked back to mine. I worked from 1pm to 7.30pm with a break for food and I decided I needed to spend the next week getting back to the Slimming World plan and saving money for my next adventures. I made a diet friendly pizza for dinner and had a much needed early night.
Tuesday 25th July was a quiet day for me in Dalyan. I’d been in communication with Steve and Michelle in Lardos who had managed to go back to check on things but it was still pretty horrendous over there. I got up late, ate fruit with quark for brunch and worked from 12.30 until 8.30pm with a break in the middle to chat to a drunken Captain Caveman in Vietnam. I ventured out to buy a replacement water for 40 lira (£1.20) but the guy forgot to bring it round and I had to chase him. I had a chicken and veggie wrap for dinner with some Airfryer chips. I’d not even counted my syns this week but tomorrow I had to face Carol’s scales at Fat Club. I was bound to have put weight on but I was determined to get back on it.
I was lucky enough to be invited on an amazing private boat trip on Friday 21st July. After a gap in the itinerary had presented itself, Neil had decided he’d quite like to enjoy some time with just the family, out at sea. The 4 of them had asked me to join their full day and evening on the Princess of Ekincik boat, which they had managed to book for exclusive use at the last minute. We were bright eyed and bushy-tailed, ready to set sail, at 10am. We had tea/coffee and biscuits while Captain Ismail took us out towards the Devil’s Bay area. Our first swim stop was lovely and the water felt amazing in our deserted little bay.
Our lunch had some of the best tasting mezes I’ve had this year and they took in to account all our allergies and requirements. The meat was top quality and the hygiene second to none. We had an absolute feast of a BBQ lunch and we were all stuffed. We set sail just as the sea got choppy and I had to take a sea sickness pill (just as a precaution). Captain Ismail was very adept at getting us through the fairly choppy sea and he sailed further out and then across to save us getting too disturbed as we lounged and sipped on iced tea or rosé wine.
It was getting quite hot and a tad humid as we got to the next swim stop which had crystal clear deep water. We were the only ones there, at 5pm, because most boats were on their way back from the day trips and the moonlight ones were not out yet. I felt so lucky that we could do this on such a lovely boat, great setting and one of the best crews in Dalyan.
By 6pm we were making our way to Little Dalyan, behind the beach, where we would stay for our last swim stop, dinner, sunset then stargazing. Neil and Gayle had a walk across the beach to the sea, the girls went paddle boarding and then we tried our luck at crab fishing. I’ve never been a fan and have thought it cruel however I did catch 3! Neil, being the fisherman of the family, caught the most.
As we watched the sun go down, we ate a delightful chicken casserole with rice, salad, bread and the BBQ crab. It was my first time eating crab and I was a bit concerned in case I was allergic to it. Ismail showed us how to get the meat from the shell and he opened mine for me. It was so fresh and tasty with no allergic reaction. There was lots more rosé wine had and we all loved the trip.
We got back to Dalyan after 10pm and, as we sailed in, the air felt very different than it had out at the beach. It seemed to be several degrees hotter and very suffocating, we all noticed it and started to sweat straight away. The humidity levels had increased and, despite there being no sun, the temperature seemed to be extreme for an evening. We paid our bills, said our thanks and goodbyes to Ivona, Ismail and Ege – we knew this wouldn’t be the last trip with them this year!
On Saturday 15th July we had entered a heatwave coming from Morocco and were advised by the authorities to stay indoors during the daylight hours. Of course, we decided to ignore that and actually it didn’t feel quite as hot as Vietnam so I was doing ok. I decided to go to the market in the midday sun, which is about a 15 minute stroll away. I had my sunhat on and took water with me. On the way I saw the homeless guy, wearing black and looking very warm. I bought him a peach and some water and helped him wash the peach. The market had been exceptionally empty when I got there at about 12.30pm so it was easy to grab what I needed and get back home quickly. I bought cherries, peaches, courgettes, aubergines, carrots and mushrooms so spent less than 200 lira easily. On the way back, I called in to Bim supermarket where I picked up a loaf of bread and a pack of nan bread for just 27.50 lira (82p). I noticed they had air fryers in for 1800 lira (£54), a few people from Fat Club were in to them so I was tempted and I know my mom fancied one.
By 2.30pm my mom and I were back in Bim on Atatürk Road buying the last air fryer then over to the other Bim in the Turkish quarter to buy another one. They were reduced to 1699 lira (£50.76) so we decided to get one each. The bank had been out of order, I only had card so my mom paid for both. They weren’t heavy but in the heat it was hard to walk about carrying the bulky boxes. It was unfortunate that my parents wouldn’t get to try it out just yet, though, as they were leaving late tonight, going back home to England.
That night we decided to celebrate in style and had booked a table for the 7 of us at Bistro Blue, one of our favourite restaurants. Beforehand, we met at one of my parents’ new favourites, Tapa, for drinks. I called at the bank to find that they were temporarily limiting withdrawals to 250/300 lira which is less than £10 per time so it was taking ages for people to get enough money out and it was all in small denominations – I’ve never had so many 10 lira (30p) notes! The drinks at Tapa aren’t the cheapest in town but, despite it’s river location, it is also not the most expensive. The wine is a good one, Angora, for 95 lira (£2.84) per glass. A Turkish cider cost 150 lira (£4.48) which I don’t think is worth it so I no longer drink cider in Turkey. Our drinks bill came to 1,380 lira (£41.23) for 10 drinks, including 4 ciders, 4 pints of Efes and a Tequila Sunrise, which was definitely cheaper than what my family would have paid back in Sheffield.
At Bistro Blue we all had starters and main courses, including prawns, mushrooms, liver & onions, fish and steaks washed down with several wines. It was delicious and an excellent choice for celebrating my parents’ last night. We even splashed out on a couple of the bottles of nice wine with it being a special occasion, the end of my parents’ holiday and the last time we’d probably all be together for a while. The food and service was as lovely as always and I really enjoyed my pepper steak, my parents had their last fix of liver and onions which got great reviews too. Annie & Selahı made sure we gave Ma & Pa a good send off and we all had a cheeky amaretto for our farewell drink.
After seeing our parents off, and trying not to cry, the rest of us went for another drink at Tapa where Gayle tried one of the new marshmallow martini cocktails which was a bit like a dessert and Morgan had a daiquiri. It had been a great night and I was looking forward to putting my feet up for a bit of a rest tomorrow, but of course I had another event to attend.
I got up before 9am on Thursday 4th May and made myself a cup of Yorkshire tea then checked my messages. My Mom hadn’t messaged yet but they might still be on English time and were 2 hours behind. The rain was heavy and it wasn’t the best weather for my parents to be welcomed in. I logged on to my emails and sent my invoice for payment to my boss. I didn’t have breakfast as I thought my parents might be hungry and up for meeting for food, especially as they wouldn’t have got any shopping in yet. I went to the shop to order more water and generally pottered about but by midday I was hungry and still hadn’t heard from Ma & Pa. I ate a small bit of courgette tortilla from the fridge and I’d got a beef stew out of the freezer for dinner. At 1pm my Mom messaged to see if I’d got up yet, as she’d thought I’d still be in bed with a hangover. They popped over to mine, it was good to see them and I made cups of Yorkshire tea for us all. They had already had quite a busy morning; shopping, getting the internet put back on and a breakfast at Ela’s Kitchen (when the rain came down hard). If only I’d known I’d have joined them at my favourite place for breakfast. After drinking tea, my parents went back to their place to drop their shopping off and we arranged to meet again later. The Bengisu Boys were playing at the Jazz Bistro bar tonight and they had an open mic as their support so I was really looking forward to it. Having eaten very little all day, I was ravenous so I ate my beef stew and then had cream crackers with cheese, cheese spread, gherkins and beef bacon. I needed to line my stomach but be fairly healthy as tonight I was wearing Carol’s size 12 dress for the first time out in public. I didn’t wear the heels as it was raining and I knew I’d be dancing, instead I wore my £1 Primark flipflops which Daisy had got me. My parents and I sat at a table quite near the front and we asked for a menu to check prices of the drinks. They didn’t have draft beer on but an Efes bottle was 100 lira (£4.08) on the menu, which was a bit pricey. Ramazan came to take our order and told us that because the band was playing for free tonight a beer would only be 70 lira (£2.86) which was more reasonable. The various support acts, including Daisy, were all really good and entertaining. The place really filled up and the staff were definitely overstretched – it took ages to get served and they ran out of beer. Most of Mark and Kate’s table left earlier because of that which was a shame. Like an idiot, I had forgotten my phone so I was unable to take photos of us or the band. I did ask a friend to take some but they weren’t the best! I met a girl in the toilet queue who I recognised as Fatma, the Algerian waitress from Heybe during a power cut a year ago. She was amazed that I remembered her because of her ghost story she told me, Louisa, Linda and Alex. She got up and did a few songs and played guitar – she was very good too. It was a great night and all 3 of us were on the dancefloor giving the ball a kick! When we came to pay the bill we’d had 12 beers between the 3 of us which wasn’t bad. We decided to have ‘one more drink’ in Sofra bar after, as you do! When I got home, and after dancing like a woman possessed, I was hungry. I’d got half a Lukka Sunday dinner out of the freezer for tomorrow which I warmed up and had with Oxo gravy at 3.45am.
It was Fat Club day again on Wednesday 3rd May and what a day it would turn out to be for my last Wednesday in Dalyan. It was less than 13 hours until my parents landed at Dalaman airport, less than 4 days until I would be on my way to Rhodes and 10 days until I arrived in Ho Chi Minh city, Vietnam, to meet Captain Caveman. I took my measurements; I’d lost 2cm from my bust, 1cm from my hips but my waist (where I needed to lose it the most) had stayed the same. In another last ditch attempt to lose weight today I did 70 seconds squat, 90 seconds plank, 30 crunches and 20 leg lifts – it was very difficult! For breakfast I only had chickpea biscuits and courgette tortilla with a cup of Yorkshire tea. At 12.30pm I had an appointment with Emrah, my hairdresser, for a cut, colour and styling. I ended up having my hair washed by Mehmet instead of one of the girls, as it was busy and he did a great job. After finishing my hair, Emrah took a few photos for me and I couldn’t help thinking that Edna would be pleased I still had the cavalier look to match her.
I decided I would wear one of my newly acquired dresses to Fat Club as I had a feeling I’d be going out after, to meet the pool gang for the last time in a while. When I got on Carol’s scales I had lost 0.5kg (1.1lb) so I was pleased with that. I had now lost 8.2kg (18lb) in total and it was definitely noticeable. I got a lift round to Rehab bar with Carol where I proceeded to have 2 celebratory draft beers. I bumped in to Dan, who I’d played pool with before, and he was having a daiquiri at the bar. He’d gone for a red fruit one to detract from his rather pink and painful looking sunburn. Carol and I joined Kate, Pamela, Gareth and Julie, sat outside Rehab until the sun went in. Carol was a bit giddy at how much weight I’d lost and insisted we took photos in the street. Kaan, the Tequila boat captain, stopped by to say hello and liked my new leopard print dress and my new weight loss, he even asked if I still had a husband! I obviously let him know I was still very much with Captain Caveman and was off to see him soon. After getting chatting to Gareth and Julie I was almost late for my next engagement of the day. I had been invited by Ann to her daughter, Jacqueline’s birthday celebration at Sofra bar and I was looking forward to it.
I joined Ann, Jacqueline, Lee, Jamie and Drew at Sofra bar for birthday celebrations at 7.30pm. My parents were currently on their flight to Dalaman and would arrive in a couple of hours but planned to go straight to their apartment. Jacqueline and Lee had flown in from Manchester earlier today and Ann had organised a cake from Louize as a surprise. I wasn’t going to have any cake due to the fact that I was meant to be on a diet but I was ‘forced’ in to it and it’s one of the best ones of Louize’s I’ve had. I had picked up Daisy’s sunglasses when I left Rehab bar, and had them in my bag. She messaged to ask the whereabouts of them which gave me the idea to send her photos of everyone around me wearing them. My reply to Daisy being ‘do you mean these?’ Even the staff, the dogs (including a stray that wanted in on the fun), and some other friends got involved. Şükrü made Jac do a birthday shot with him and she chose apple sourz! By 10.30pm the birthday celebrations were over and everyone paid up and got ready to leave. I, on the other hand, and not had my hair done and put a frock on for me to go home early. My Mom had messaged to say they had arrived but weren’t coming out as they were tired from travelling. Mom said she would message tomorrow so we could finally see each other again.
I went to meet Wendy, from Sheffield, and friends in Rodrigo’s bar and ended up giving the ball a right kick with Wendy, Jackie, Turgay, Kirsty, Sally, Sandra, Mal, Alice, Savaş and Ozzy. It must have been about 3am when we got turfed out and made our way home. I didn’t cook myself any random meals when I got in but I did set my alarm so that I’d be up and ready to see my parents in the morning.
joloyolo 