Dalyan – 27th February

It was Captain Caveman’s last full day and night in Dalyan on Friday 27th February. He decided it would be nice to go out for breakfast and we chose Ela’s Kitchen, another favourite of ours. Unfortunately, it meant I had to cancel a call with a friend that we had booked in, but she understood and said to enjoy my time with Captain Caveman. We called at the bank to put in English money to cover the council tax expense and in readiness for our last couple of days. The breakfast was so good and my massive sandwich came with chips and salad. Here’s what we had with prices in lira:

Ela’s Kitchen
1 Espresso 120
1 Yorkshire tea 140
1 Menemen 350
1 Bacon & mushroom sandwich 450
Total spent 1,060 lira (£17.97)

My next mission was to leave Captain Caveman to get on with work and for me to go find a phone case, and a kettle in Ortaca. I was also booked in to have my hair done at my favourite hairdressers. The bus takes about 30 minutes and is just over a £1 each way but it can get busy.
Once in Ortaca I spent over an hour traipsing between phone shops and electrical stores. Interestingly, 2 shops sold the same make and model of phone that I had in my hand but none of them sold cases for them. There was no way I could have a phone without a case so I was a bit disappointed and would have to see if I could get one online. I couldn’t even find a suitable kettle so I decided to give up and go early to the hairdresser’s. I took some Turkish delight which cost 150 lira (£2.54) and was from the lovely shop I bought gifts from last time. I’d completely forgotten it was Ramadan but, luckily, most of the staff weren’t observing and we shared the sweet treats.
I love going to Emrah to have my hair done as he always does such a good job. I know I can get it cheaper in Dalyan but it’s one of the things I really value and trust – a good hairdresser. The cost of a colour, cut, blow-dry and curling cost me 2,300 lira plus I gave a tip of 200 lira, so I spent 2,500 lira (£42.37) and I felt human again – and my hair looked pretty good too!
On the way home I popped in to Migros to buy that Turkish kettle I’d seen for 799.95 lira (£13.56) and a packet of wraps for 120 lira (£2.03). The cashier told me to go home and check that the kettle worked and to bring it straight back if it didn’t.
I didn’t need telling twice, the kettle was out of the box in no time as Captain Caveman was giddy to see how it worked too. For the price I paid, I was happy with the kettle with the tea pot on the top.

After finishing work, Captain Caveman and I met Jamie and Geoff in Sofra bar and had a few Friday night beverages. I’d not eaten since breakfast so the wine went straight to my head and I jumped at the suggestion of food, by which time it was almost 10pm so finding a venue may have proved tricky. Jamie was on it and got us booked in to Ela’s Kitchen, for the 2nd time today. Here’s what Captain Caveman and I had, prices in lira on our last night together;

Ela’s Kitchen
Walnut pesto pasta 550
İskender kebab 700
Drinks 975
Total spent 2,225 lira (£37.72)

We had a great time but I was drunk and couldn’t remember finishing the İskender kebab or getting home. I didn’t realise at the time that we had spent more than £120 in a day – that would usually last me almost a month! We got home and I don’t recall getting undressed or setting the alarm for tomorrow’s boat trip.

Gratitude List
1. Food at Ela’s Kitchen (twice in a day)
2. Getting my hair done and the new kettle
3. Having a night out with Captain Caveman, Jamie and Geoff.

Dalyan – 23rd & 24th February

On Monday 23rd February Captain Caveman needed me to find the paper work for the Council Tax from last year. One of the jobs he was doing while he was here was sorting out paperwork, insurances and anything he needed signatures for. I usually work in the morning but today Captain Caveman needed me to help him and he wasn’t working until midday our time (9am UK time).
Oddly, although we only paid 3,379.20 lira (£57.27) for a whole year’s council tax, this was an increase of 55% on last year’s. This was based on us being 2 people in a 2 bedroom apartment. Captain Caveman was ecstatic about how low this cost was as his monthly amount in Pontefract on solo occupancy was twice the price of our annual amount for just one month!
We both worked hard and I made us a bowl of soup for a late lunch at 3pm, then went back to work. I finished at 7pm so that I could cook Captain Caveman and I a meal for when he finished at 8pm. I was tired but glad that Captain Caveman had been able to work all day and the 2 lots of internet we had, worked enough for us to both work from home. We have Captainnet for the home WiFi which can be very slow at times so I also have Turkcell as a back up on our ‘bat phone’.

Gratitude List
1. Council Tax bargains despite a 55% increase
2. Managing to get stuff done
3. Having Captain Caveman in Dalyan.

By 8.15am on Tuesday 24th February Captain Caveman and I were on a walk round Dalyan before starting work. The weather was fine but the water levels hadn’t receded that much yet. We called at the bakery where we bought 1 simit, 1 açma and a fresh loaf for 50 lira (85p). We decided to have a breakfast at home so we called at the shop for some more breakfast essentials, prices in lira;

Şok Supermarket
1 plastic bag 1.00
Cherry jam 59.50
10 eggs 75.00
Honey 99.00
Total spent 234.50 lira (£3.97)

Back home, we tucked in to our breakfast with me knowing that Weigh day tomorrow was not going to have a good result.
Both of us got on with work and I even squeezed in a Lisa Johnson Fabulous Foundation session to catch up with my friend who was flying through it.
We had a late lunch of leek and potato soup then more working until after 7pm when I made us a mystery frozen meal. I’d not remembered what it was and even after tasting it, we weren’t sure but it was pretty spicy.

Gratitude List
1. A morning walk with Captain Caveman
2. Getting stuff done from my to do list
3. A random spicy meal which we were impressed with.

Dalyan – 20th & 21st February

It was my last full day and night on Friday 20th February before Captain Caveman’s arrival in Dalyan tomorrow. This meant that I had a to do list as long as my arm to try to get everything done today. I was aiming to take Sunday off so that I could spend the day with Captain Caveman and some friends on a boat trip. I finally finished for the day at gone 9pm and made myself some pesto pasta for a quick dinner. I didn’t leave the house so it was another zero spend day but tomorrow I would go to the market and get some shopping ready for Captain Caveman.

Gratitude List
1. Looking forward to seeing Captain Caveman
2. Working hard to get everything done
3. Pasta.

The day that Captain Caveman was flying to Dalyan was finally here on Saturday 21st February. This would be his first visit of the year and wasn’t quite the holiday we would’ve liked as he still needed to work as usual while he was here; Monday to Friday – 12 noon to 8pm, which was 9am to 5pm UK time. He’d stayed in the Tribe hotel at Manchester airport last night, so it meant he could have a good breakfast before his flight took off at 1.45pm.
Before 9am I had spent an hour working, and could hear the builders at the apartment downstairs. The Aussies were replacing their balcony railings with metal ones and I was surprised to see them working in the rain.

I ventured over to see Jamie & Norman who were going to the market. Jamie gave me a lift there as it was raining again. I spent less than £3 this week as I had some fresh veg left at home. Here’s what I got with prices in lira;

Market
Stall 1
Carrots 20 lira (34p)
Stall 2
Potatoes, onions & garlic 45 lira (76p)
Stall 3
Apples and oranges 65 lira (£1.10)
Stall 4
Peppers 30 lira (51p)
Total spent 160 lira (£2.72)

After a quick mooch round the weekly market, Jamie dropped me off in town. I still had items on my shopping list that I’d not managed to get and I wanted to stock up, ready for Captain Caveman. Here’s what I bought with prices in lira;

A101 Supermarket
Mints 22.50
Biscuits 25.00
Crisps 45.00
Wipes for glasses 49.50
Cherry tomatoes 49.50
Wraps 90.00
Kaymak 92.50
12 toilet rolls 105.00
Total spent 479.00 lira (£8.12)

Parlak Bakery
Bread 15 lira (26p)

I put the shopping away, had a tidy up and cleaned the house before deciding to tot up my total spending for February, up to today!
I’d started February with £91 left from January and it had been a self imposed challenge to see if I could live off that for the first 3 weeks of February. If you’re an avid reader you will know that because of a planned night out with friends for Valentine’s, I’d almost spent it after 2 weeks in. So, I did a cheeky cheat and isolated that weekend’s splurge and carried on to see if I could still spend up to £91 plus the £37 extravagant weekend. It wasn’t easy, especially as each time I went to the shops, there were a few items I couldn’t get hold of. This meant that when I went again, it was tempting to buy extra treats that weren’t essential.
Anyway, here’s the results with the night out in;
Week 1 spent £25.97
Week 2 spent £57.72
Week 3 spent £38.63
Total £122.32, which meant I overspent by £31.32! If I took the night out from week 2 where I spent £37.29 extra, my total was only £20.34. which would mean a total of £85.03 and being under by £5.97. Of course, I had cheated and didn’t achieve it but I know I would’ve given up and spent more had I not isolated that blip. I think it’s still impressive to have spent less than £41 per week for 3 weeks running. It also showed me that it was possible to live in Dalyan cheaply. Lucky for me, Captain Caveman was bringing cash with him and we were going to be less frugal for the last week of February.
After doing a bit of work on an itinerary for Vietnam, I had a curry for dinner and then decided to open a bottle of red wine while I waited for Captain Caveman to arrive.

Captain Caveman’s flight was due to land at Dalaman airport at 9pm, however, it took off 39 minutes late. We’d already agreed for me not to save or cook Captain Caveman any dinner but we would have some drinks with cheese and biscuits instead. At 10pm I got a message from Sonuç, our airport pick up driver, to say they were just leaving Dalaman now. Captain Caveman had only an underseat bag so he was through quickly once they had landed. He arrived bearing gifts of a brand new Oppo phone for me, 2 boxes of solid coconut, 2 vacuum bags with the stuff I left in London and new electric toothbrush heads. I was so excited to have a new phone as my old one was playing up more and more – I had hoped to get one the next time I was back in Vietnam. I cried with happiness and was so overwhelmed as it was better than my existing model. He’d also treated himself to a nice bottle of Rakı for £26 at Duty Free.
We had a glass of wine and then, as it was Saturday night about 11pm, we decided to head to Sofra bar. I was surprised to find it was empty apart from a couple of people who left not long after we got there. Captain Caveman had his first Efes Malt and I had a red wine, they went down so well that we had a second. Our bill came to 660 lira (£11.19) and Captain Caveman was very happy with that price. I knew I would find spending money so freely this week a bit of a change, after my attempts to live off less than £5 per day!
Back home, I prepared a cheese board and we had some wine with it. Captain Caveman seemed to react to the wine here in Turkey and I think it’s because it’s got sulphites in. We finally called it a night at 2.20am so it’s a good job the planned boat trip for tomorrow had been postponed due to unsafe water levels.

Gratitude List
1. Shopping
2. A new phone
3. Captain Caveman arriving in Dalyan.

Dalyan – 18th & 19th February

It was a busier day on Wednesday 18th February and it was also weigh day. At home the scales said I had stayed the same as last week and my measurements showed no change to my bust, 2cm off my waist but 2cm on my hips. Carol’s scales this afternoon would be the official result.
I added more items to the shopping list and went over to Ren Garden for the Fat Club meeting. I had a tea which was 60 lira (£1.02) and Carol’s scales showed I had lost 0.75kg (1.7lb) – I was happy with that! I called at the shop while we had a gap in the rain, here’s what I bought with prices in lira;

Migros Supermarket
Milk 25.80
Dark chocolate 54.95
Marshmallows 59.95
3 Dido chocolate bars 70.10
Basmati rice 78.95
2 Quark 111.90
Total spent 401.45 lira (£6.80)

Back home I had a late lunch/early dinner of chicken and veg fried rice which I added edamame beans to, one of my favourites. They say on the packet not to freeze edamame beans but they were fine.
I went back to my laptop for the rest of the afternoon then I decided to have a wander.

The recent rains had been quite brutal so whenever it stopped it was good to get the wellies on and go out! A friend shared photos from the beach which had been hit hard with the storms, while the Dalyan river had flooded – Tapa was now advising patrons to use their back door!
By the time I got back home, it was dark and I noticed a delivery of something weird for The Aussie’s apartment downstairs. I made an assumption that my noise cancelling headphones might be coming in handy over the following days!

Gratitude List
1. Losing Weight
2. Shopping (including some treats)
3. A rare early evening walk.

I was pretty much in my office all day and night on Thursday 19th February. At 9am I started the Lisa Johnson Fabulous Foundations course. My friend had already got started yesterday so I was playing catch up. It was very good and was a free course to help business owners get their businesses off the ground and growing in the right way. It was useful and then I had a chat with my mate, who had also got on well with it. We discussed and decided to help each other be accountable for getting things moving in the right direction. At 2pm we had the Resort Experts team meeting, and I eventually ate lunch of leftover fried rice, at 3.20pm. Next week, both Captain Caveman and I would be working from home and I was a bit concerned how we were going to fit in any free time as I simply didn’t seem to have any lately. I did some work in the afternoon and then had a video call with Vanessa who was due over to Dalyan later this month.
My dinner ended up being a Slimming World wrap pizza at 9pm and then I was fit for nothing but had managed another zero spend day and had not left the house. I told myself it would all be worth it in the end and to just keep going.

Gratitude List
1. Starting the Fabulous Foundations course
2. Good food
3. Zero spend day.

Dalyan – 15th February

There was a bit of excitement on Sunday 15th February as the flights for Poland and Brussels were going to be booked today. Captain Caveman had already said he would book our two and our good friend, Louisa, was going to be booking hers as we had invited her to join our adventure. Captain Caveman was going to Poland for 5 days of Bridge so this meant Louisa and I could be off exploring without him during some of the trip and then in Belgium we planned to introduce her to the Brussels Beer Festival and our favourite kebab place. I was so excited that I went for a walk outside not realising how bad the floods had been, the Dalyan river was now starting to overflow. The worry among the Dalyan Dwellers, who like to drink in Tapa bar, was if they would still be able to get in the front door! I stopped to take some photos, my phone was still playing up and kept deleting stuff but today I managed to get quite a few that saved. I always say hello to the street dogs who I’ve called Bowie and Dexter, they are friendly and love a little stroke.
I decided to go to the shops, despite already having almost blown the budget by spending £37 on food and drink out this weekend. So that I wouldn’t throw in the towel on Frugal February, I cheated a bit and isolated that particular expense to see if, without that, I would still be able to save money. Otherwise I knew I’d just admit I’d failed and not continue to be frugal.
I took the day off while it had stopped raining and wanted to buy some things in readiness for Captain Caveman arriving next weekend. Here’s what I bought with prices in lira;

Migros Supermarket
Onions 6.33
Bleach 45.95
6 Eggs 59.95
Olives 61.50
Wholemeal bread 99.50
1.5kg whole chicken 124.24
3 Quark 167.85
Mouthwash & shower gel pack 259.95
Total spent 825.27 lira (£13.99)

Parlak Bakery
Bread & Simit 30 lira (51p)

I’d not heard back from Captain Caveman about the flights so I set up a Facebook group with him, Louisa and I so that he could post any instructions on which flights to book. I’d already let him know that I would be meeting a friend at 2pm at the tea gardens and wouldn’t have WiFi. I spent less than 50 lira (85p) on tea and we had a good chat. My friend had organised a boat trip for next Sunday which we were going on and she was looking forward to seeing Captain Caveman.
It was 5.30pm when I left and walked home to see a load of activity in the Poland/Belgium group chat, plus a missed call from Louisa. Nevertheless, it was all booked! As I scrolled through the updates and screenshots I still wasn’t convinced we were all on the same flights but Captain Caveman and Louisa seemed to have it all under control. I was really looking forward to it, especially as this would be my first visit to Poland.
While I chatted to Louisa I prepared a Sunday dinner, she was also excited and had been to Poland before but not the Beer Festival. We laughed as I think Captain Caveman had been a bit vague on his plans for me to be a Bridge Widow, although it had all worked out well now that I had a friend to keep me from moaning at him for playing too much Bridge! My Sunday dinner was lovely and after that, I spoke to Captain Caveman who was also excited to have got our trip booked. This time next week he would be here in Dalyan with me.

Gratitude List
1. A morning walk
2. Catching up with a friend at the tea gardens
3. Finalising the Poland/Belgium plans.

Dalyan – 10th & 11th February

It was the last day with Norman on Tuesday 10th February. I’d let him know that Little Daddy and Step Daddy Drew were going to be home before tea time. Norman was taking it all in his little stride as he’d already seen me tidying stuff up and popping the washing machine and dish washer on. He knew the score as he was so used to it now. Next month he would have his 15th birthday while Jamie and Drew were away so I said we could have a small party. Today I knew I had a window of opportunity to be able to do all my chores before it rained. The forecast didn’t look good, I had tea and toast where Norman took advantage of the last breakfast and got 3 corners! And still begged for more, I was going to miss him. I took the day off to clean the house as it did smell and look like a farmyard. When I checked the flight, it was due to land 30 minutes early and I still had all of downstairs to clean and tidy. When I let Norman out for a wee I noticed that the skies looked very dark as I said bye to Norman who was quite content in his bed, patiently waiting for his owners to return home.
I messaged Jamie to say I had just left his place and was heading home, as I reached my parents it started to rain a little bit and by the time I was on the corner of my street, there was thunder.
I’d been indoors about 10 seconds when there was a huge storm so I went to the window in the study to film it. I had a shower, put some lounge wear and a hoody on and was going to have a nap. I ended up doing 2 hours worth of work from about 4.15pm, even though I was really tired after such a busy day. I had sausage casserole for dinner, took more photos of the leaky bathroom window and put towels in all the spots where there was water coming in, before finally getting in to bed around 10pm. My phone was on do not disturb and I was looking forward to a lay in until 8am tomorrow.

Gratitude List
1. Norman
2. Getting back home before the storm came
3. Not setting my alarm for so early.

My day was very busy on Wednesday 11th February and unfortunately, I was woken up with the storms, including lightening at 5.30am – so much for a lay in.
I scheduled Facebook content for a couple of hours before I got up and made myself a cup of tea to bring back to bed.
When I got weighed I was pleased to see I had lost 1.6kg (3.5lb) and my measurements were very favourable too; I’d lost 2cm from my bust, 1cm from my waist and 4cm from my hips!
I worked in the morning, including attending an Anex webinar, then Jamie popped round for a cup of tea. I didn’t have time for any lunch as I then went to Fat Club, where Carol’s scales agreed with my home ones. I only spent 60 lira (£1.02) on a pot of tea and this time we all had just the right amount of money. On the way back, I nipped in to the shop and decided to buy a few expensive items while they were at a discounted price. Here’s what I got, with the prices in lira;

Migros Supermarket
Milk 25.80
Cashew nuts 95.00
2 Quark 111.90
Frozen blackberries 149.95
Mozzarella cheese 168.95
Frozen mixed fruit 189.95
Frozen Blueberries 214.95
Total spent 956.50 lira (£16.21)

Parlak Bakery
Loaf & açma 30 lira (51p)

I was meant to be on a Zoom call with Claire Clarke’s Create Publish Grow group but I ended up missing it as I had to take a call. By 6pm I was playing catch up on a course with Carrie Green, founder of the Female Entrepreneur Association. She was running a free course entitled She Means Business to help women, like me, create more income streams. I did that for about an hour and then I was begging for mercy as I had to do some Resort Experts quotes and hadn’t had any dinner. After a cheese sandwich, I was in bed not long after midnight and I didn’t set an alarm for tomorrow.

Gratitude List
1. Losing weight
2. Shopping
3. Being busy.

Dalyan – 3rd February

Amazingly, the sun came out on Tuesday 3rd February so Norman and I were both really pleased about that. I’d been doing well with the Frugal February so far and I had just 1 week left until Jamie & Drew came back. After a few hours of work, tea and toast for breakfast, my pen ran out just as I came to the end of my notepad – which was weird! I decided to go for a walk and call at the shops for new ones. Here’s what I spent, prices in lira, still keeping the budget in mind;

Dalyan Stationers

2 pens 100
2 notebooks 200
Total spent 300 lira (£5.08)

I could have bought just 1 of each but decided I would have spares for next time, even though I could’ve saved spending £2.54.

Migros Supermarket

Wholemeal bread 99.50
2 Quark 111.90
Fabric Softener 116.95
900g chicken breast 193.99
4 tins tomatoes 199.80
Total 722.14 lira (£12.24)

I decided to pop in to the supermarket as I wanted a sliced wholemeal loaf and some chicken. While there, I spotted they had fabric softener on offer for the 1440ml, large size (which I had run out of) and they had restocked the tins of tomatoes. Tinned tomatoes are like rocking horse shit here, in the winter, so I grabbed 4 – again, not an essential but I like to get them when I see them. I dropped the tomatoes and softener off at home and took the rest of the stuff back with me to Jamie’s.
Norman was loving being back outside too but there seemed to be a lot of cats around, which he wasn’t keen on. We had a lovely walk, with no rain too.
I worked until 9.30pm, including some stuff for my next book, and had a chicken, chickpea and spinach curry for dinner.

Gratitude List
1. Shopping for non essentials but still being within my budget
2. A walk in the sun
3. Norman.

Dalyan – 30th & 31st January

Friday 30th January was a busy day but I took a couple of hours off in the afternoon and I decided to take Sunday off this week. Pay day weekends, which mainly fall at the end of the month are usually my busiest times, so I was working tonight and all day tomorrow. It was still a bit damp out there and I was on day 11 of my 22 days of dog sitting Norman – half way through. Jamie and Drew were having a lovely time on their cruise and we got some photos and updates from Jamie in the WhatsApp group, making us all jealous of the amazing weather he was enjoying.
I continued to work as hard as I could at building my travel business and promoting my books. I even got an update from Facebook on my author’s page to say ‘Congrats! You’ve completed our ads academy’. This was more impressive in that I didn’t know I was trying to complete it. I still found it hard to grow an audience and, with how Facebook works with followers, it was frustrating. I had invited people to follow, which means they can see my posts on preview without actually clicking the follow button but then people just stay in the limbo position and I can’t count them as a follower (because they aren’t) to get the extra benefits from Facebook for having more followers. Meanwhile, I also can’t remove and re invite them either.
At 2.30pm I downed tools and headed over to speak to a friend of a friend, who needed a cat sitter. A mutual friend had suggested me and we’d arranged for me to visit them today. The cats were sweet and quite playful, the owners I knew from seeing them about town. I was there an hour and a half but then had to get back to walk Norman, I called at the shop on the way back and here’s what I bought with prices in lira;

Migros
Plastic bag 1.00
Mints 23.45
Popcorn 34.95
Grapefruit drink 38.90
Olives 46.12
Dark chocolate 69.95
Feta cheese 149.90
Tofu 162.95
Total spent 527.22 lira (£9.25)

Unfortunately, there was no chicken left and I’d planned to cook a teriyaki chicken for dinner – I bought tofu as a replacement but wasn’t confident about that.
Norman was reluctant to set off for a walk but I made him, it was not raining when we left. When we returned home we were both absolutely soaked and had got caught in the downpour. Norman actually fell out with me and wouldn’t participate in a video to Little Daddy and Step Daddy Drew. He then demanded he should get a treat for enduring such a wet walk!
By 7pm he was on the sofa snoring away as I shelved the idea of tofu for tea and had a make do dinner of cheese and biscuits with olives so I could carry on working.

Gratitude List
1. Working hard
2. Norman
3. Cheese.

I was a bit out of sync on Saturday 31st January, so much so that I completely forgot it was market day. It rained all day and I had lots of stuff to get on with so I was busy at my laptop and I made a soup in the slow cooker.
At 11.30am, Norman started begging for a snack and he’d already had breakfast, 2 corners of toast and 1 gravy bone snack. He was not snoozy in the slightest and it was pouring with rain outside so he couldn’t go for a walk.
I had a couple of calls booked in with friends and one of them was to discuss more travel arrangements for the end of the year. I didn’t have my lunch, of halloumi pasta, until gone 3pm and after work, at 7.30pm, I decided to tot up my January income v expenditure and how the monthly budget had gone.
For the first time in a while, I’d managed to survive without too much hassle, but I had been looked after by Captain Caveman for the first 16 days of the month in Morocco and the UK. I added the holiday and Sheffield trip up separately to Türkiye which showed I’d spent a total of £668 (£600 of which had been paid for by Captain Caveman giving me the money).
Once back in Turkey I’d spent another £178 in total (including bills) and had a whopping £91 to carry over in to February.
I was pleased with that but I was starting Frugal February tomorrow in an attempt to build up an emergency fund. I wanted to get to the stage where I had spare money so, although I was going to have some treats, I had decided I needed to prioritise.
Captain Caveman was due to visit me on the 21st of next month so I set myself a goal to see if I could get by on not spending more than that £91, carried over from January, in the next 3 weeks. If I could, it would mean I’d effectively managed a no spend 3 weeks! It was going to be tough and I actually thought it might not be achievable but I was going to do my absolute best. What do you think, could I do it? Could you live off £30 per week in Türkiye for 3 weeks, if you tried to?

Gratitude List
1. Norman
2. Holiday planning
3. Surviving and having an impressively good January.

Dalyan – 25th January

My first task on Sunday 25th January was to encourage Norman, who was very snoozy, to go outside. He was quite sleepy most of the day but he did have a corner or 2 of toast before napping. I got on with work and it was going to be a long day as I’d signed up for a free course which started late tonight. I had a lunch break at 3.30pm and decided to go to the shops to stock up for the rest of the week. Here’s what I bought with prices in lira;

BIM Supermarket
Pasta 14.00
Bread 15.00
Satsumas 18.73
Rice crackers 23.50
Sweetcorn 32.50
Bananas 41.83
2 Dido chocolate bars 43.50
Mushrooms 48.00
Wholemeal bread 52.00
Wraps 63.50
600g chicken breasts 145.19
Frozen chicken pieces 170.00
700g chicken thighs 179.53
Total spent 847 lira (£14.86)

I made a chicken and leek pasta bake for dinner which was amazing and had a few portions left for fridge/freezer. Norman put in another complaint when he thought his dinner was late as we had been back from a walk for over 30 minutes.
In the evening we watched some TV and I fell asleep on the sofa until my alarm went off for a Facebook Live session I’d agreed to join. Tomorrow was the start of a challenge called the Race to Recurring Revenue with business strategist Lisa Johnson, so I joined an 11pm welcome party on my laptop.

Gratitude List
1. Norman
2. Food shopping
3. A tasty dinner.

Dalyan – 24th January

It was quite a busy day on Saturday 24th January and I was glad to get to the weekly market for the first time in 2026. On my way there, I checked my messages/Facebook and noticed some kind comments about The Handy Travel Planner, which was encouraging.

The market was busier than I’d expected but I guess folks were getting out in between the pockets of rain, as more bad weather was likely. Here’s what I bought with prices in lira;

Stall 1
potatoes & red onions 60 lira (£1.05)

Stall 2
carrots, cabbage & broccoli 65 lira (£1.14)

Stall 3
leeks 35 lira (61p)

Stall 4
peppers 80 lira (£1.40)

Stall 5
strawberries, spring onions, tomatoes, apples, mushrooms & mange-tout
Total 460 lira (£8.07)

Stall 6
Gözleme/Pancake 150 lira (£2.63)
Total spent 850 lira (£14.91)

It was a big spend this week but I’d not got any fresh produce in since my return from the UK, so it was needed. I’d also decided that splashing out on the mushroom and cheese gözleme was a great idea and would save me cooking any lunch. I even sat at the stall and ate it in the market, like a local. I made it back to the corner of Jamie’s road when the rain came again so Norman wasn’t too pleased that his walk would be delayed.
Tonight I had plans to go to a friend’s for a curry night, which I was looking forward to. Unfortunately, one of the attendees was ill and couldn’t make it so it was cancelled.
I decided to take Norman for a walk and the rain eased off so we went right along the river. On my way back round, my friends were in Corner Bar so Norman and I joined them. I had a soda water and 2 red wines which came to 400 lira (£7) and this time I made sure I paid on card to be able to keep track easier. Norman got a chance to clean the floor of any scraps but, unfortunately, as we got halfway home, the rain came again and we got a bit wet. Norman put in a complaint about wet paws and late dinner so we had to do a video for Jamie. The night was finished off with me eating pasta for dinner and watching Death in Paradise on TV until I fell asleep on the sofa.

Gratitude List
1. Dalyan market
2. Norman
3. Drinks with friends.

Dalyan – 22nd & 23rd January

There was an almighty bang at 4am on Thursday 22nd January, following a blustery night’s storm. I got out of bed, put my clothes on over the top of my pyjamas and grabbed my house keys and phone. My first thought was that there was someone breaking in to the house and I had to get to little Norman to make sure he was safe. I put the upstairs stair light on and spread my keys between my fingers, making a fist! I got downstairs to the main door which was still locked and I could see no issue there. Norman was snoring away, undisturbed, I checked each door and all was still secure so I didn’t know what it was. I turned back to check if there was anyone/anything upstairs which could have made such a noise and that’s when I stood on the culprit!
A picture had fallen from above the door and was on the hall floor, surprisingly still in one piece. I picked it up, it was made of heavy wood and had been stuck to the wall with what looked like a flimsy bit of velcro. I was almost annoyed there hadn’t been an intruder as I shoved it in a drawer and went back to bed.
When I got back up, just 3 hours later, the day was all about Norman. It was very windy and grey outdoors but Norman had an official complaint not related to weather. He usually has a corner of my toast and he’d not had any this morning so he was huffing about it. We did a video for Jamie so that the complaint was logged and I decided to walk to the shop. Norman wouldn’t even venture outside so I decided the nearest shop would do. Here’s what I bought, with prices in lira;

Şevikoğlu Supermarket
Onions 4.08
Bread 15.00
1 simit 15.00
1 açma 15.00
Peppers 32.96
Total spent 82.04 lira (£1.44)

I did some work and started to think about a trip to somewhere else in Türkiye for a girls trip. Anex Tour UK offer me discount on my own bookings and are also really good for client bookings too. I mulled ideas over while I ate a simit with Red Leicester cheese. Norman came up on the sofa next to me and had afternoon snoozes as it started to rain heavily.
At 2pm I dialled in to the Resort Experts team meeting and, although Jamie couldn’t attend, he did send a photo to the group WhatsApp to give his reasons – he was sipping champagne on a business class flight.
Norman snored throughout the meeting as a storm came in, then I got a couple of messages from Captain Caveman. He had booked me 2 flights and was sending the confirmation; one to go back to the UK at the beginning of July, the other for a return trip to Madrid a few days later. We were off to the Mad Cool Festival for a few days – I’d never been to Madrid before so I was excited. Captain Caveman had already got us Metallica tickets in London, just before that too.
When it came to dog walking time, Norman took one look outside and knew he had to go in the garden as the rain was very heavy. He was quick but came back soaked and had to get dried off with a towel. It was gone 8.30pm when I ate my dinner of chicken with some mystery defrosted food.
I watched a bit of TV and almost fell asleep on the sofa.

Gratitude List
1. Not having an intruder in the house
2. Norman
3. Not getting soaked in the rain.

I woke up at 7am on Friday 23rd January and let Norman out, it was still rainy and he wasn’t keen. After his breakfast, I cheered him up with a corner or 2 of toast and he went back to bed while I cracked on with my morning. I had decided to throw caution to the wind and join a weekend trip to the Costa Del Sol in the summer with a group of friends. It had been quite a while since I’d been on a girl’s weekend so I jumped at the chance and I got us a good deal on the accomodation.
At 5.30pm it stopped raining so I whisked Norman out for a walk. I also checked around for any rain or storm damage as our main bathroom had quite a bit of water come in the sky light and the wall had gone damp. I put the AC on dehumidifier mode and went to the bank to get cash for the market tomorrow and to the shop to buy provisions. Here’s what I bought with prices in lira;

Migros Supermarket
Pasta 15.25
Haribo jellies 29.95
1 tin of tomatoes 49.95
Chickpeas 69.95
Halloumi 96.50
3 Quark 149.85
Total spent 411.45 lira (£7.22)

I had sofa snuggles with Norman and then spoke to Captain Caveman as he was driving to/from work. It was gone 9.30pm when I started cooking a meal, I decided to have spaghetti carbonara as it would be quick and I was hungry. It turned out well and I really enjoyed it. Tomorrow I had allowed time off for a market trip if the weather stayed fine.

Gratitude List
1. Norman
2. More holiday plans
3. Carbonara.

Dalyan – 19th to 21st January

Monday 19th January was a busy day for me, not only unpacking, doing laundry and working but also getting ready for my next lot of shenanigans. I had flown back when I had, so that I could look after Norman, the dog, for 22 days starting tomorrow.
I managed to have a quick morning walk to the bank to get out some cash as the sun was shining. I also paid the internet for 2 months at Captainnet – they wouldn’t let me pay for longer as more price increases were due. On my way back, I called at the shop to stock up on a few essentials, here’s what I bought with prices in lira;

Migros Supermarket

Milk 10.90
1 Quark 49.95
Pesto sauce 144.95
4 tins tomatoes 199.80
Frozen berries 229.95
Total spent 635.55 lira (£11.15)

I took time out of my busy schedule for helping a Facebook friend on a budget who was in Vietnam and needed somewhere to stay at Tet holiday. I put Chung, one of my best friend’s in Phong Nha, in touch and she offered their home at a bargain price and included the new year dinner because it was a friend of mine – how lovely of her.
Next, I started looking at flights to Spain, from Turkey, which weren’t ideal so I thought about my next trip back to to the UK. I’d probably tie in a week with Captain Caveman and then join a friend’s trip to Spain. It was all very exciting and it felt good to know I’d be having a few trips in 2026. I didn’t finish work until 9.30pm by which time it was too late for a proper dinner so I just had cheese and biscuits.

Gratitude List
1. A walk around sunny Dalyan
2. Helping a visitor to Phong Nha out
3. Planning trips for myself and friends.

Tuesday 20th January turned out to be a bit unusual. I worked from home in the morning at mine and Jamie picked me up just after lunch. When I got to his place, Norman and I had been left in charge of a painter who was just there for the rest of the day. This was going to be the longest I’d looked after Norman and he was almost 15 years old so when Jamie said bye to Norman, he told him he had to live until he got back. I also hoped he would survive and all looked promising as he could still walk quite well and had a great appetite.
The painter and I did our best to make sure Norman didn’t end up with a dark green mustache and it was so cold in Jamie’s with all the doors and windows open – I struggled to type! Norman was not impressed either as it looked like the weather forecast was showing rain over the next week or two. After doing a dog walk as far as my house, Norman decided he’d had enough and didn’t want to walk by the river. In the evening, I went to meet Penny and Phil at Corner Bar. It had now become the popular bar for Dalyan Dwellers so they were in there with Lady C, the dog. I ended up having 3 wines which were 170 lira (£3) each so prices, although cheaper than the UK, had gone up a little. The wine was Harman which is ok but not as good as the UK stuff I’d got used to. I ended up paying cash of 600 lira (£10.53) as the change didn’t come back as expected. For dinner, I had a warmed up, previously batch cooked freezer meal then had a video call with Captain Caveman. I ended up sleeping on the sofa, to keep my eye on Norman who was already snoring away!

Gratitude List
1. Norman
2. Getting rid of the painter so we could shut the doors again
3. Drinks with Penny & Phil.

I was awake very early on Wednesday 21st January after an uncomfortable night on the sofa. I made a cup of tea and realised I’d not got enough bread for toast so had to make do. I worked all morning, including helping a colleague know what information to get from a new client looking for holiday quotes – my new book, The Handy Travel Planner, came in handy and I sent her a photo of the pages I use to collate this type of information. I did a video of Norman for Jamie & Drew as an update for them to see how he was doing. My phone was still playing up but was doing videos while deleting any photos I took – I was saving up for a new one.
Today was weigh day, my measurements showed that I’d put on centimetres on my bust and hips but lost on my waist. I’d not been to Fat Club since before Christmas so it wasn’t going to be a good result. I had put on 2.7kg (6lb) in 5 weeks!!! That was going to take some shifting but I would try my best to lose it in the 5 weeks I had until Captain Caveman arrived. I now needed to lose almost 8kg (1st 3lb) to get back down to my target weight. We have the Fat Club group meeting at Caria Luxury hotel, which is very nice but there was a bit of a to-do when a cup of Turkish tea had increased to 80 lira (£1.40), which I also thought was steep! The group decided we might look for another venue for future weeks.
After a dog walk and feeding, I just had pasta for dinner as I had a couple of holiday enquiries I was working on until 10pm. Tonight, I was looking forward to a better night’s sleep.

Gratitude List
1. Norman
2. Seeing the ladies at Fat Club again
3. Being warmer today.

London & Gatwick – 17th January

My flight from Gatwick to Dalaman was scheduled for 5.15pm on Saturday 17th January. It was my last day in Barnes and we had great plans for my last morning. My friend, Claire and her daughter were on the way over to join us for breakfast. Even though I’d been in England for 18 days (plus 8 in Morocco), it had been quite tricky to meet up with friends. I appreciated most had family or Christmas and New Year commitments so it had only been possible in the last week, but I’d already planned to be back at work and celebrating birthdays with my sister. I really understood that not all friends could put themselves out for me being back in town but I really appreciated the ones who did. Claire drove from Kent to Barnes where Captain Caveman had cooked a superb breakfast for us all – even popping to Barnes Farmer’s Market for fresh produce.
Of course, I had decided to repack my case in the garden room and was mid pack when my friend arrived. They helped me try to get my massive case with all the food in, to under 15kg. Gill brought down the scales and we weighed them several times until we were sure they were under the weight limit.
After catching up and planning to see each other more in 2026, it was time to get to the airport. Captain Caveman isn’t one for airport farewells so I knew he was hoping I’d leave him in Barnes so he could get on with playing some Bridge. I decided he should come with us so at least if my suitcase weighed heavy he could take some stuff back home. Being the practical sort, he agreed and brought my empty rucksack which we had already decided wouldn’t fit in my case.

We had a nice drive to Gatwick airport from Barnes and I was grateful to spend a bit more time with Claire who had very kindly offered to take me to the airport. It costs £10 now to drop someone off at Gatwick which was a bit extreme and Claire ended up paying that. We said our farewells and we had a plan to get together in the summer which I was very excited about.
Captain Caveman came in to the airport and to the bag drop where things didn’t go to plan. My case weighed 17.8kg on the easyJet scales and I had to remove items. Captain Caveman was on it and took out some of my clothes, the frozen crumpets, tomato paste and curry pastes which I had multiple of. He took out some other products and when we weighed at just over 15kg the member of staff said that was ok. As they got distracted with another member of staff asking about my hand luggage, Captain Caveman slipped a few items back in to the case. Those scales were very biased so we were a bit annoyed and I was glad Captain Caveman was there. The goodbye wasn’t too bad as Captain Caveman had already planned to come out to see me in 5 week’s time, but I still got upset. We had spent almost a month together and I had felt very lucky at all the treats and experiences I’d had with him – even spending Christmas Day in Barking had been fun.

Once through security at Gatwick airport, where I didn’t need to take anything out of my bag and more than 100ml liquids were allowed, I decided I would have a look for some new headphones. The ones I had been borrowing from Captain Caveman had fell apart so I had left them with him. I decided I would use the rest of my birthday money to get myself a good pair, they did cost £49.99 but were noise cancelling, which I wanted. At the gate, my hand luggage underseat bag got checked and the man behind me had to pay extra for being a few centimetres over as easyJet were being really strict – he tried to argue as he works for easyJet but they were having none of it and charged him £34. On the flight, I was sat in 14D which was an aisle seat behind the exit row and had a couple sat next to me and 2 young women in the seats across the aisle from me. When the flight attendant came round she asked if the 3 of us in our row were together, I said not and she asked me and the 2 women across the aisle to move forward a seat, to the exit row. The man on my row wasn’t too happy about that as he wanted to move but the staff member said no to him, without a reason. Ironically, my underseat case which now had the wheels off to fit the specification, had to go in the overhead locker and I could put the wheels back on.

During the flight, I decided to celebrate the end of my fabulous 26 day holiday with the 2 for 1 prosecco and a chicken teriyaki with jasmine rice. It cost me £23.95 which was expensive but I really enjoyed it. I watched something on Netflix and filled in more of my copy of The Handy Travel Planner with all the new travel plans I had for 2026; Madrid, Bulgaria, Lebanon, Brussels, more Turkey and a couple of unknowns yet. I ended up spending another £12.50 on more Prosecco and I opened the midget gems which I’d stuffed in my coat pocket. I fell asleep before midnight and was due to land by 12.30am.

Gratitude List
1. A delicious Barnes breakfast with everyone
2. Getting to see Claire and her daughter
3. Having had such a great 26 days away that I was sad to be leaving.

Pontecarlo to Sheffield – 13th January

I was at Pontefract Tanshelf train station in the dark on the morning of Tuesday 13th January, waiting for my train back to Sheffield. A return ticket was £12.30 which I had to collect at the station using a code for the machine on the opposite platform. Captain Caveman was driving up to Scotland for work and an interview tomorrow. I’d decided to spend my birthday money and arranged to meet Vanessa for a spot of shopping in Marks & Sparks, before going back to my parents for the evening.
I met Vanessa at 9.30am and we went straight to the M&S cafe for Yorkshire tea and bacon rolls. Vanessa treated me for a late birthday gift, which was lovely and we caught up on everything. She’d arrived limping and in need of paracetamol as she had a broken toe. I was surprised she had still turned up as she was in pain despite it being strapped up. I bought a really nice jumper for £20, using some of my birthday money and I picked up part of a present for my sister. I had decided that we would buy her Hotel Chocolat products but, after a chat with the shop assistant who said they couldn’t guarantee any of the chocolate was safe for coeliacs, we left empty handed. Next, we walked down to Primark where I picked up 2 thermal tops for £11 (using my birthday money). We popped in to Superdrug and Holland & Barrett where I stocked up on 4 boxes of Gin Gins for a bargain £10.20.
We decided to have a quick look in the Korean shop and then we both needed the toilet so we nipped in to see what was on at the cinema and go there. I was tempted by the pick n mix stalk but resisted. Our next stop was to get tea and cake at Massarella cafe on the ground floor of Atkinson’s. It was full of pensioners and I could see why, their jam and cream scones were excellent and the pots of tea ideal for at least 2 cups each. Oddly, each item was priced £3.50 whether it be a pot of tea or a sweet treat. This gave Vanessa time to rest before catching her bus and I went back to M&S to pick up some bits for tonight’s dinner. I’d offered to cook but Mom had said we could have burgers and chips if I didn’t want to spend money unnecessarily. I did fancy something a bit healthier for dinner but the M&S food section had looked like it had been hit by a plague of locusts. There was not much left and what they did have didn’t appeal so I just bought some breaded mushrooms and onion rings to go with the burgers, plus some ibuprofen and a plastic bag, spending a total of £9.20. I managed to get the 3.30pm bus, costing £2.60 for the 20 minute journey to Mosborough.
When I got to my parents’ it was getting late but I managed to log on and deal with some emails before food. The dinner was a bit too much and Dad couldn’t eat his, I soldiered on and Mom did ok but we had to leave room for birthday cake. It did make me laugh that Dad, who was complaining he couldn’t eat a burger, managed more than one small piece of chocolate cake – but it was amazing. By 9.30pm crisps were out and the salt and vinegar ones from Aldi were so good! Tomorrow was weigh day and I knew I had put on lots of weight because all my clothes were tight, especially around the waist!

Gratitude List

Meeting up with Vanessa for more birthday celebrations
So much food
Birthday cake with my parents.

Pontecarlo – 12th January

It was our first day back ‘in the office’ on Monday 12th January and I had lots to catch up on. Resort Experts had a new system being launched which would make our jobs easier and included automation and task, enquiry and holiday management. It looked very good and I was keen to have a go at using it.
Today was also the day I got to open my actual real copies of ‘The Handy Travel Planner’, both hardback and paperback. They looked and felt great, even if I do say so myself, and I was pleased with them. Now I just needed to sell them. My aim was to sell at least 1 per day, which doesn’t sound a lot but it was a target to start off. Ideally to be able to make a minimum wage type of income, I needed to sell in excessive of 10 per day – which I think is a bit of a stretch. What I should’ve done is ask people to buy a copy for themselves or someone else as a birthday gift to me – but I was too busy being hungover!

If you are reading this and haven’t bought a copy yet, I’d really appreciate it if you would – the paperback is just under £15 and the reviews and feedback so far have been extremely positive. Here’s the link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0G7S5VX47/
You can see it as buying me my belated birthday drink but with so many more benefits for you too. Thank you! 🤪
It’s also available in Europe, USA, Canada and Australia. If you’re in Turkey, it’s better to ask me to bring you a copy back from the UK next time I go.

Both Captain Caveman and I worked all day with barely a break, except for a quick sandwich at lunch. By 7pm we had gone for a rather chilly walk to Asda but got sidetracked and ended up in the Robin Hood pub because it was so cold out. I ordered a pint of tap water and a cherry beer, Captain Caveman had a toffee stout which nearly tipped me over the edge, after drinking stout on the birthday night out. We just had the one drink then went shopping, here’s what we bought with prices in pounds;

Asda Supermarket

1 bag for life 0.40*
6 packs of crisps 1.00*
Coriander 1 05*
Paprika 1.05*
2 Tomato Puree 1.36*
Spinach 1.60
2 Chinese sauces 1.66*
Lazy Ginger 2.00*
2 Moroccan Seasoning 2.20*
4 Slow Cooker sachets 2.50*
Curry Meal kit 3.00*
2 packs cheese slices 5.08
Options hot chocolate 5.64*
3 packs of Cheese 7.95*
Total spent £39.49

*were items for me to take back to Turkey.

During the shopping, I needed the loo and discovered that Asda didn’t have a toilet so I had to call back in to the pub, but didn’t get another drink. It was really cold so we hurried home to have a pasta bolognese, cooked by Captain Caveman. We opened the Christmas Belgian beer to drink in mugs and I only managed a little bit – it was very nice but the alcohol was not going down well with me.
It had been a decent day but we were still both tired after the wild weekend, with a very early start due tomorrow.

Gratitude List
1. The Handy Travel Planner – all my hard work had paid off
2. Getting caught up with work stuff
3. A lovely evening with Captain Caveman.