Before we even contemplated leaving the apartment in Madrid on Friday 10th July, I read that fans of Twenty One Pilots had been queuing since stupid o’clock this morning ready for tonight’s performance at the Mad Cool festival. People were suffering from heat stroke and there had been incidents of medical attention being needed. I had a morning of work and then we popped to Lidl to replenish the food stocks. Here’s what we bought with prices in Euros;
Lidl Supermarket 2 bread rolls 0.58 Onion 0.84 2 apples 0.88 Crisps 0.92 Coffee 0.95 Bread 0.99 Gazpacho 1.05 Salami 1.79 Fruit Mentos 1.99 Cheese 2.75 Total spent €12.74 (£10.90)
Captain Caveman was still feeling a bit dehydrated so he had a coffee drink and a cold Gazpacho drink to sort him out a bit. My blisters were pretty bad so we called in the pharmacy where I bought Blister plasters for €5 (£4.28) and some effervescent rehydration tablets for €9.80 (£8.38). There was a fire engine near the apartment and we thought it was a fire or a cat rescue, it turned out to be a falling branch.
It was insanely hot now in Madrid and we were struggling to get motivated for day 3 of the Mad Cool festival. We got there in time to see The Pixies who were excellent and definitely another highlight for us. I was particularly hopeful for Kings of Leon who followed on the big stage but they didn’t wow me as much as I thought they would. The crowd seemed to love them and maybe it was just because we were too hot. We made a sensible decision to miss the last band and leave Twenty One Pilots to the youngsters. It was still just after midnight when we got back home but the over 40°C temperatures were certainly taking their toll on us. Tomorrow was the last day and we had the horrible dilemma of at least 3 acts who were overlapping and we wanted to see them all.
Gratitude List 1. Surviving Day 3 of the Mad Cool festival 2. Seeing The Pixies 3. Blister plasters and rehydration tablets.
I met a friend for a walk and talk at 7.30am on Friday 26th June. We talked about how my trip to England and Europe had gone. She’d also been busy so it was a good catch up and we had to wait at Kaunos tea gardens for it to open. We just had 1 large tea and 2 waters for 65 lira (£1.05) then both went back home to get on with our days. Upon my return, I snipped as much of the unruly bushes that I could then messaged the gardening company to ask them to do the rest – it had obviously not been touched for 3 weeks at our side of the complex, but Block A looked very tidy. I finished work at 4pm, despite having a lot to do still, as I needed to get prepared for my guests. I’d invited Richard and Michelle over for a curry at mine but I needed to get some ingredients in as I’d not done a proper shop yet. Here’s what I bought with prices in lira;
Star Gurme 1 tin baked beans & 1 jar curry sauce Total spent 300 lira (£4.84)
Yaman Büfe 2 1 bottle of Angora red wine 525 3 Dido chocolate bars 105 Total spent 630 lira (£10.16)
I didn’t need the beans or curry sauce but had walked all the way to buy curry paste and they didn’t have the one I wanted. I couldn’t remember if I had an alternative at home so I bought the jar in case I needed it to make a quick version of my chicken curry. The naan bread is just a pide type of bread but does the trick.
I threw everything in to the slow cooker and had a paste at home I could use, plus it didn’t need to be ready until 9pm so I had time; 4 hours on high. I met my friends in Retro bar for a pre dinner drink (or 2) and they brought me some gifts which was really lovely and much appreciated. I paid the bar bill this time at 950 lira (£15.32) and then we went over to mine for curry. We had another drink while I popped the rice in the rice cooker and we had a good old chat, mainly about holidays and future plans. The curry went down well and the Dido chocolate bars worked as a dessert. It wasn’t a late one as I had work in the morning and my guests were off on a boat trip.
Gratitude List 1. Walk by the river with a friend 2. Retro bar for drinks with friends 3. Hosting a curry night at mine.
There were so many things that we could have done on Tuesday 16th June but I was aware that with only one day and another night, the best thing to do was live like a local in Santa Ponsa. My host, the Mallorca Resort Expert, had asked if I’d wanted to do a boat trip, go to the pirate show or see any of the sights while I was there – I preferred to spend time with her. I did have some work to do but we kept it to a minimum as well as working on content ideas for our social media work pages. My friend had took the liberty of guessing what I might like for breakfast and had served it up on the balcony, overlooking the beach and sea. Our meal was a feast of yoghurt with fruit, cheese and ham on bread with garlic dip, olives, tomatoes, more bread and a hot drink. It was so good and we ate while people watching the goings on at the beach below. We decided that’s where we would spend some time today, on the beach! We donned our swimmers, put on the suncream, grabbed our beach towels (my new one was super light) and a parasol before tackling those steps down to the beach. The sand was soft and hot but there was a lovely breeze as we sat down with a small bag of picnic type items. We had to keep an eye on the cheeky gulls who were well practiced in stealing any treats they fancied from people’s bags while they were in the sea. It was my first time this year, just lazing on the beach. Despite being so near to it in Dalyan, I rarely have a day off for beach going and thought perhaps I should do more of it.
Around 4pm we decided to head back ‘home’, after a walk along the seafront path and calling at the shop. I noticed my face was pretty pink and decided it might be a good idea to treat us to a face mask to prevent my skin looking like a typical Brit abroad, later! Here’s what we bought, with prices in Euros;
Santa Ponsa Supermarket 1.5l bottled water 0.31 Apple juice 1.00 500ml Fanta Lemon 2.00 1 can Mixed fruit cider 2.35 2 Aloe Vera face masks 3.00 Total spent €8.66 (£7.36)
I did a bit of work then we popped on the face masks and had a 10 minute lay down which turned into a cheeky cat nap but my face felt and looked loads better after it. Back on that fantastic sea view balcony, we ate a really lovely meal of mozzarella, tomato, avocado and basil served with fresh bread, olives, rice crackers and a peach. I chatted on about how Fanta lemon in Spain is different to that in the UK. We also managed to have a croissant which we hadn’t eaten earlier. I was stuffed and feeling relaxed and happy, but not looking forward to leaving at 4am tomorrow morning. The visit had gone too quickly but I was still glad to have had some time in Santa Ponsa, which was so beautiful.
The evening plan was to simply watch the sunset at Il Chiringo, in Costa De La Calma. It was a place the Mallorca Resort Expert had been to many times before and she wanted me to see it for myself. After dinner we walked to the venue, bumping into a man with his dog on the way, who invited us to go to his house. We didn’t go but it struck me that the locals were friendly, and his dog was cute. When we arrived we had timed it perfectly and were sat amongst the other locals who were all coming in from a swim to have a sunset drink or bite to eat. It was beautiful and I felt so lucky to get to see it, I perhaps wouldn’t have found out about this hidden gem if I wasn’t staying with my friend. I wasn’t sure what to order to drink so I tried my first shandy made with lemon Fanta (commonly called Clara) for €4 (£3.40) and my fellow sunset watcher had an alcohol free beer which was slightly more at €4.50 (£3.83). I thought this was very reasonable given the location – the Fanta shandy was an absolute game changer. We walked back, taking those steps for the last time where a cat watched us. He was nicknamed The Manager as he was in charge of the place. I packed my stuff in to Pauline, my petite pink under seat case, I had a full neck pillow too but this time I was flying with easyJet so there was no need for booking the exit row seat. We both set alarms on both phones so that we could make sure I didn’t miss my flight.
Gratitude List 1. Spending time, both for work and personally, with the Mallorca Resort Expert 2. An afternoon at the beach 3. Sunset at Il Chiringo
Typical of a last day before a holiday, I was busy on Thursday 11th June and had an early start. Claire and I also made sure I booked the airport transfer to our hotel tomorrow which, as a Resort Expert, worked out cheaper for me to book with Suntransfers. I attended an online workshop about copy content with Georgina and then checked in for my flight tomorrow. Although I only planned on taking Pauline, my petite pink under seat bag, I was cheating a bit by sharing toiletries with Claire which would go in her checked in bag. I wasn’t taking my own shampoo, conditioner or shower gel, but I was taking a deodorant stick and toothy tabs. I was also taking Captain Caveman’s ‘Scrubba’ a portable washing contraption in case I wouldn’t have the use of a washing machine over the next 10 days in various destinations. At midday it was the Resort Experts team meeting where we were told that we would be getting our own new websites built for us, next month and that was exciting. One of my customers who is also one of my best friends was on her way to the airport so I kept particular attention to see how she got on as we would be on holiday at the same time but in different countries. Unfortunately, her flight was delayed due to a problem with the plane. I stopped work mid afternoon and joined Claire on a quick trip to Sainsbury’s – I decided I needed to buy more knickers as well as pick up some Euros, ready for my 10 days in Europe. Here’s what I bought with prices in pounds;
Sainsbury’s 3 seam free knickers 9.00 3 pizzas 11.55 1 bottle of red wine 9.50 Razors 1.00 Glacier Fruits 1.50 Crisps 2.20 2 garlic & herb dips 3.70 Nectar card discounts – 10.17 Total spent £32.13
We dashed off for the school pick up of Claire’s daughter and then realised I had forgotten to get some Euros, so we all went back. I managed to get rid of some Scottish £20 notes but it did take a while, being so far south. This was also a good excuse for a cafe visit where Claire treated me to an earl grey tea, her daughter had chicken tenders and chips which looked fab and Claire dialled in to a meeting. I also was in touch with my friend who was still stuck at the airport with plane issues. Claire and I attended Otford Primary school’s summer concert in the evening while leaving the men to do tasks like walk Reg, put the pizzas in the oven and attempt (and fail) to fit a sofa bed in a van. Claire’s daughter was playing piano so we went along to support – it was actually a lot better than I had anticipated. Having been a young musician myself, it brought back lots of good memories and we all got a chance to sing a Beatles song where I gave it a bit of welly – who doesn’t love singing along to Yellow Submarine?! We got back home to pizzas and wine and I realised that I’d been so slack on taking photos that I insisted we have a family one where Claire displayed her unusual sense of humour. The out of office was on but I was still waiting to hear from my friend who was on the flight and was due to arrive in her destination after midnight. She had let me know they were taking off and I asked her to message once she was safely at the hotel so that I didn’t have to worry. I set an early alarm so I could check that they had arrived safely at her hotel.
Gratitude List 1. New knickers 2. Being invited to Otford Primary summer concert 3. A last family dinner with Claire, her family and Captain Caveman.
It was time to hold on to your hats on Tuesday 2nd June as my 3 week holiday adventure was about to start. I had managed to pack Pauline, my petite pink under seat suitcase, with everything I needed to get me as far as sunny Sheffield. I was dressed for the heatwave, which everyone in the UK was talking about, and I wasn’t even taking a coat! At 9.50am I was in the bank, making sure all was in order and that I had my holiday insurance. I didn’t have it earlier due to the bank holiday and today Murat, at the bank, sent me off to Delfin insurers to get it instead. I was going to be away for 3 weeks in the UK and Europe, including 5 days cruising down the Danube and I paid just 900 lira (£15) for my travel insurance. Next, I bought 2 packs of pills for 884.48 lira (£14.74) and then popped to Migros for essentials. I spent 124.85 lira (£2.08) on cereal bars, 1 tub of quark and some haribo jellies. I bought a simit, cheese spread and a chocolate croissant at Parlak bakery for 190 lira (£3.17) and then went to say bye to my parents. On the way I decided to drop off Jamie and Drew’s key and when I arrived, I found Drew in his underpants looking tired. Norman was just about to have breakfast while Dennis the doorstop had soggy paws where Norman had done a little wee.
I said farewell to Ma & Pa then rushed home to shower ready for a midday pick up with Sonuç, who I’ve been using for airport transfers for a number of years. At the airport I said bye to Sonuç and headed through security as I was already checked in online. I was early and, as I’m frugal, I don’t like to waste money in Dalaman airport. A good top tip for anyone flying from Dalaman airport who likes a drink; if you’re the type of person who begrudges wasting money on an airport Gin & Tonic in one of the most expensive airports, but have a couple of hours to kill, try this. Instead of paying more in the bar or a lounge, treat yourself to a cocktail tinny or mini bottle of wine (or 3) which are on sale just to the right as you leave the duty free area. Then find yourself a quiet spot, or put your noise cancelling headphones on and relax until boarding!
My flight left 45 minutes late but I did have access to a water dispenser near Gate 42 in the international departures. The flight went fine, apart from it being delayed so I had to hurry to get my 18.17 train at Manchester airport. I was meant to arrive in to Sheffield at 19.34 with plans to meet Captain Caveman in the Wellington pub, near Kelham Island. I didn’t yet know where he had moved to so this made sense, however, I ended up on the slow train and arrived almost 1 hour late. I caught the tram from Sheffield station to Shalesmoor which cost £2.50. What I hadn’t known was that Captain Caveman had arranged for our friend, Luan, to also be there to meet me, which was a lovely surprise. Luan got the round in while Captain Caveman was preoccupied with a pub quiz that was halfway through. His friend was doing it and he was helping her while trying to pretend he wasn’t more interested in the quiz than my arrival. With it being a school night, Luan left first while I listened to the results of the quiz I hadn’t entered. Captain Caveman showed me round his new home; a 2 bedroomed flat in Kelham Island near to a few bars and cafes. It was a great location and I knew it was going to be a fun week in Sheffield.
Gratitude List 1. Having time to say bye to a few people 2. Going to the UK and Europe for 3 weeks with Pauline, my petite pink suitcase. 3. Seeing Captain Caveman and Luan in the Wellington pub.
There was excitement in the air on Monday 27th April as my parents were arriving in Dalyan tonight. I’d not seen them for almost 3 months so I was looking forward to seeing them and had promised to run some errands for them before they got here around midnight. I got up really early so I could get some work done before I headed out to the bank to draw out cash to take to Captainnet to put the internet on. There was a queue with it being a Monday so I didn’t have time to get the shopping and turn on the electric just yet. I rushed back to squeeze lunch in of an apple with peanut butter as I had a Tech masterclass booked in at 2pm. The zoom meeting went well but then I had more actions to add to the never ending to do list. The pool and garden men were back and sorting out the pool and seemed to be doing well so far. At 4pm I broke off work to go to the shop to get my parents some water, milk, bread and margarine as requested. I also got them some eggs and bananas which they didn’t ask for but I thought would be good for tomorrow’s breakfast. I came back home as I had a call with a customer and then I went over to my parents with the shopping to turn their mains electric on. It is quite dark around he streets late at night so I wanted to make sure the outside stair light worked. I don’t have a key to check inside but was concerned as the outside light didn’t work. I had to tie the 2 bags on to the door handle as it wasn’t one you could hook a bag over and I didn’t want cats to get at it. Because I couldn’t get the light to work I messaged their taxi company and asked if they would make sure the driver put his torch on and walked them to the door. I checked the internet was working and it was so they could at least message me when they arrived. I went back home and it was already 8pm by this time so I just had some sourdough, cheese and olives for dinner. I had a chat with my sister and was on the phone until around 11pm, she was also looking forward to coming to Dalyan next month. I then wondered if I should wander round to meet my parents but thought better of it – they would probably rather me not interfere and go straight to bed. I ended up falling asleep around midnigt.
Gratitude List
1. A Tech masterclass to help with passive income
2. Getting all the stuff sorted for Ma & Pa’s arrival
I’d overexerted myself a little which meant I had been feeling run down, I had got worse on Friday 24th April and had to cancel my morning walk with a friend and my afternoon hair appointment. As I didn’t have any meetings or calls until midday, I treated myself to a cup of tea back in bed. I was really tired and my body ached, I felt a bit sickly and hoped I wasn’t coming down with something. I did the final day of Easi Passive Income with Natalie and Collette in my pyjamas and it was really good. I also won a prize but wasn’t concentrating, due to feeling ill, and wasn’t sure what it was exactly. I confirmed the Captain Boris cheese and wine boat trip for Ma, Pa, Gayle and I for next month. I still had the English money from Captain Caveman in an envelope, which he had left me in February for me to use. I had decided to keep it in reserve for boat trips and airport taxis so that those things didn’t have to come out of my daily budget money. Quite frankly, it was burning a proverbial hole in that envelope and I was looking forward to a relaxing boat trip or two. At 5.30pm I decided to get out of the office and go to the shops as I needed to buy some meat and withdraw some cash for the market tomorrow. Unfortunately, Migros didn’t have the chicken I wanted so here’s what I bought, with prices in lira:
Migros Supermarket 1 Dido chocolate bar 19.00 Hummus 51.90 Bitter lemon 80.00 Total spent 140.90 lira (£2.35)
I’d also checked out which yoghurt they had in the shop for when my sister arrived, as she prefers to eat fat free yoghurt – they don’t have it here. I noted that the new gardener and pool man had started work so we would perhaps have a nice complex this year. Georgina and Holly shared their free funnel so I took the opportunity but I still didn’t have a platform to put it on – I would sort it when I felt better. I sat outside and ate some loquats from the tree. I had pasta for dinner and then watched Netflix in bed, still feeling unwell. I hoped I felt better soon as I had a very busy weekend coming up!
Gratitude List 1. Back to bed with a cup of tea 2. Winning something, even if I can’t recall what it was 3. Having some rest.
I’d not had much sleep when I woke up on Saturday 25th April due to the Jazz bar blaring out music until 2am! It was quite chilly as I made my cup of tea and took it back to bed. Kate had invited me on the yellow boat for a day trip today but I had too much to do and was on a boat trip tomorrow already. I’d done a few hours work before going to the market at 11am. Here’s what I bought with prices in lira:
I called in to see Jamie, Drew and Norman and Drew gave me 2 bars of Vietnamese chocolate which I was very excited about. I had leftover pasta for lunch and a piece of chocolate. I’d had to move meeting a friend this morning as I wasn’t well still so made my way to meet her at the tea gardens at 4pm. My friend also had invited me on another boat trip for tomorrow but I couldn’t go on that one either because I was already going on Julia’s boat trip. I headed home to finish off the Easi Passive Income tasks and, while I waited for news on how a friend’s brain tumour surgery had gone, I had a glass of white wine. I had spaghetti bolognese for dinner and then a relatively early night.
Gratitude List 1. Being busy at work 2. Market shopping 3. Chocolate from Drew.
Surprisingly, Saturday 18th April didn’t have the rain it had been forecast and was actually warm and sunny. Carol from Fat Club had been in touch to say she was enjoying her Rhine cruise which was starting in Frankfurt. I had booked her trip with Travelpack and we had found her a German ship which had the Juliet cabin she wanted and couldn’t find. She was quickly turning in to my new PR woman as she posted all over Facebook and in the Fat Club group chat how thrilled she was with this trip already. I was pleased as I know Carol and Ian are a sociable pair and wasn’t sure if they may miss having plenty of fellow Brits around them. After working all morning, I walked over to Vanessa & Matt’s. We had a cup of tea and then walked to the market. I only bought strawberries at 185 lira (£3.08) then we went to my usual pancake stall for a spot of lunch. Vanessa had a chocolate pancake and I chose a spinach one and, although the prices of them had gone up recently, they cost just 300 lira (£5) for both, which is reasonable and they are filling. After the market, Vanessa and I decided to call in to Ren Garden and we sat in the garden room at the back with a glass of white wine and soda each so we could chat. We had just 2 glasses each with the soda and then had to leave. Matt had been trying to get old of Vanessa but her phone was on silent, to tell us to come to Corner bar. I said I’d head home and Vanessa could catch up with everyone in Corner bar. As I’d paid for the pancakes at the market, I just put 200 lira (£3.33) towards the bill and then we said our farewells. I called at the bakery and bought bread for 20 lira (33p) making a total spend for today of 705 lira (£11.95). In the evening I spoke on a video call with my mom who was getting excited to be coming out to Dalyan soon.
Gratitude List 1. Carol being pleased with the cruise I’d booked for her 2. Meeting up with Vanessa 3. A video call with Ma.
I had debated having a day away from the laptop on Sunday 19th April but I realised it was not a good idea. From next week I had lots of stuff booked in that meant being away from the desk, so I really needed to make the most of it while I could. I also had 3 new enquiries, 2 of which were about cruises and one for a trip to Turkey. Messenger had started playing up and wasn’t working, I also was having trouble with the banking app. I had got it in my diary that I needed to pick up sourdough from Mesude today so I rushed off to do that, midmorning. On the way, I bumped in to my favourite white dogs and had to give them some attention. This week I was trying the caraway seed sourdough, as well as the ciabatta one. It came to 500 lira (£8.33) for both loaves and I was pleased with the quality. They stay fresh for ages and it’s also great to freeze – it’s so much better for my stomach than other types, too. Next, I called at Migros to pick up some essentials – here’s what I bought with prices in lira:
Migros Supermarket Pasta 13.50 Tomato purée 38.92 Green Tea 61.95 Dates 99.90 2 Quark 111.90 4 tins of tomatoes 149.84 Feta style cheese 174.90 Total spent 650.91 lira (£10.84)
I’d not intended on getting the tomato products but they had plenty and they were on offer, so I seized my chance, knowing I was already going to be over the budget this week! I hurried back and did a few quotes then carried on with more admin and content work. I ate roasted courgettes with cauliflower cheese for lunch, which was tasty. The sourdough trial was a huge success and I was very impressed with it. In the evening I had a walk and bought some contraception pills which had increased a lot in price. I paid 884.48 lira (£14.74) for 2 packs and they were now more expensive than paying for them in the UK. In November they had been £1.50 per pack cheaper! For dinner I had a chicken, chickpea and spinach curry with steamed rice and it was really good.
Gratitude List 1. Having too much to do to take a Sunday off 2. Sourdough – caraway seed was a game changer 3. Good food.
It was market day on Saturday 11th April so I took my list and walked there via the bank. Because of the Easter bank holiday I hadn’t been paid my regular wage yet but I was doing ok because of the extra work I’d done last week and could afford to shop still. I did more moving of money from one account to another to ensure that I was putting in the amount required to keep residency in Turkey. At the moment the rules are that they only check the last 3 months before residency renewal that the minimum wage times 1.5 is being deposited. However, like all things related to rules and processes, things can change so I had decided that I would do this for 12 months prior to my renewal date – just in case. I hoped we would get paid on Monday and then I could top it up.
At the market I bought the following, prices in lira:
On the walk back home, I called in to the English export shop to see how much the Heinz baked beans were. They were too expensive for me to justify but I did see they had a brand of baked beans I hadn’t seen before. They were 60 lira (£1) so I decided, for the first time in quite a while, that I would buy the cheap version and see how they were. Beans on toast is one of the meals I miss the most when I’m away from the UK. While on a spending spree, I also called at the shops, here’s what I bought in lira:
A101 Supermarket 1 Dido chocolate bar 28.50 Wraps 49.50 2 Quark 109.90 Frozen fruit 189.00 Frozen chicken 189.00 Total spent 565.90 lira (£9.43)
Of course I didn’t get everything on my list but I was struggling to find some items and went back home as I was hungry. I had beans on toast, trying a third of the tin mixed with a spot of milk. They were ok but you could definitely tell they weren’t Heinz. I did some work in the afternoon and I asked (it was practically begging) people I was friends on Facebook with to follow my Resort Experts Business page. I even asked my colleagues and the owners of Resort Experts to follow me as I really wanted to get my number of followers to over 500 so I could earn money from Facebook. I was surprised that the more senior members of Resort Experts weren’t already following me so I asked them to and they did. I was finally over 400 followers and just needed another 100 to be able to monetize my page. Many people were viewing my page but had not actually clicked follower so if this is you, please do click that follow button on my Jo Lo – Resort Experts Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/share/18SmSVGKVp/
I went back to the shops after work and here’s the extra things I bought with prices in lira:
Migros Supermarket 2 small Milk 15.80 1 big Milk 37.25 Olives 43.05 White cheese 117.90 Fabric Softener 130.95 Total spent 354.95 lira (£5.92)
Gratitude List 1. Being able to food shop despite waiting for pay day 2. Reaching 400 Followers on my Jo Lo – Resort Experts page in order to get nearer to earning money from Facebook 3. Beans on Toast.
Tuesday 7th April was spent working on book stuff and Resort Experts. I was awake at 7.30am and it was quite cold. I was getting a few more holiday enquiries and the places people seemed to be looking at were Albania, Türkiye, Greece and Spain. I got lots done and had a chicken and chickpea curry around 7pm. I totted up my weekly spend and at £79.31, I was over my £70 budget despite the 4 days of zero spending. But I had earned extra this weekend so I didn’t mind. It did show me how easy it is to spend too much if I agree to go out drinking too often and I should probably limit it to once per week. I briefly spoke to Captain Caveman who was in Bristol for work and had had to delay his moving in to his Sheffield flat until Friday, when he could go back up North.
Gratitude List 1. Being busy 2. Nice food 3. Having a 4th zero spend day this week.
I was up early and doing my measurements on Wednesday 8th April; my bust and hips had stayed the same and I had lost 1cm from my waist. On my home scales I had lost 0.5kg (1.1lb) so I was optimistic for Carol’s scales at Fat Club later. After working hard on admin tasks and having no time for a lunch, I headed to Ren Garden for our Fat Club meet up, I was running late and was a bit stressed that I had not finished what I was doing. Tomorrow I had promised to meet up with friends too so it meant I would need to work tonight. At Fat Club I had lost just 0.15kg (0.3lb) on Carol’s scales, so I was disappointed but it was still a loss! I had a pot of tea for 100 lira (£1.69) and resisted the cookies and cake that were on display. After, I popped to the shops and here’s what I bought, with prices in lira:
I went straight back to work and regretted not making the soup I intended to earlier. I had an important email which told me I was a little further down the process of getting ‘The Handy Travel Planner’ in to actual book shops in the UK this summer. At 7pm I closed the laptop and decided to go for an impromptu walk as I was conscious I wasn’t getting enough exercise. I took a few photos as the sun was setting and bumped into Jamie and Norman and The Aussies, as well as Onur from Simple. I stopped to say hello to everyone and then continued to walk the long way home. I was meant to pick up something I had forgotten at the shop but I forgot again. I made a chicken wrap for dinner and had an early night as I was very tired.
Gratitude List 1. Losing weight 2. More progress on the book situation 3. An evening walk.
I spent Easter Day, Sunday 5th April, working on that Resort Experts Supplier list. I was finally getting through it, but not without so many interruptions from friends to meet for drinks. It was ironic really as I don’t think I’d had this many messages, voice notes and calls to invite me out this year, but as soon as I’m busy this is what happens. I felt bad for letting people down but I was happy to focus on what was important to me right now. I was also working on booking a family holiday for a client. They had been recommended by a friend, which is always good and much appreciated.
I didn’t eat until 3pm, just more left over bolognese, and more messages to check if I’d changed my mind about going out yet. I hadn’t, as I really just needed to get on with the work task I had agreed to do. I muted my phone again so I could focus. I finally finished for the night and was absolutely knackered. I didn’t leave the house so it was my 3rd zero spend day in a row. I had set my budget for April at £10 per day again and, so far, I was on track. I was hoping to finish my Resort Experts task tomorrow and I was looking forward to getting out, after working all weekend and not leaving the house during daylight since Thursday! I didn’t eat another meal but I decided to have a glass of Ron Zacapa rum before bed. I put on a Netflix film and instantly fell asleep. When I got in bed the Jazz bar decided to play loud (not Jazz) music and then there was a big storm so I didn’t get to sleep early.
Gratitude List
1. Having the willpower to keep focused on what I needed to do. 2. More leftover bolognese 3. A 3rd day of zero spend!
Monday 6th April was a strange Easter Monday, not that it’s celebrated in Turkey. I was on day 4 of the Resort Experts supplier work and I was almost done. I totted up how much I had left to do and sent an update to Sam, one of the owners. I decided to go outside to empty the bin and go to the bakery. I fancied a pain au chocolat or a croissant and I needed bread. Not having been outside in day light since Thursday, or in darkness and stormy weather since Friday night, it felt good. My new phone camera highlighted how tired I looked and I really did need to get more sleep! I bought a chocolate croissant and bread at Parlak bakery for 140 lira (£2.37). Fresh bread had now gone up to 20 lira (33p) but was still cheap. I headed back to the office and cracked on with work. I got thanked and paid for working all Easter weekend so I was pleased with that. My new client decided to go ahead with the villa holiday and we got it paid in full so that the flights were secured too.
I had agreed to meet Debbie (Darling) who wanted to pay me some sponsor money to give to Captain Caveman. A few people, including Jamie, were meeting at Caria Hotel, on the river front, but were going to be eating there. I had a cheese sandwich for a very late lunch and didn’t get there until 5.45pm. By this time most people were rather merry. It was decided it was going to get chilly shortly as the sun was going in, so we walked to Sofra bar and I ordered a red wine. Debbie gave me the money and then went outside while Jamie, Helen and I tried to guess which city her friends were from. We had a good laugh and I ordered another red wine just as Debbie (Darling) came in to say hello to Ali and Brinny, the dog, who had just stopped by on their walk, to say hi. Debbie (Darling) announced that she had had enough and had to go home. Her Mr G (cocktail) was barely touched and she said she couldn’t drink it. Being a keen advocate of not wasting anything, I ended up having it. I paid my bill of 300 lira (£5.08) for 2 red wines and said bye to anyone we knew. Jamie and I then went to Ren Garden for more red wine. Jamie insisted on a bottle so we paid 400 lira (£6.78) each then I insisted I needed to get to Migros before it closed as I didn’t have anything in for dinner tonight or food for tomorrow. We said bye and I, a little tipsy, went shopping – here’s what I bought with prices in lira:
Migros Supermarket 2 packs Mentos 46.90 1 Quark 55.95 Boiled beans 86.95 Toilet rolls 107.50 3 Bountys 109.90 1 Ham and mushroom pizza 189.95 A 2kg whole chicken 204.90 Total spent 802.05 lira (£13.59)
This is where I realised my error previously on the Bountys, they were on offer but only at 3 for the price of 2. As I was paying for the shopping, I realised I was desperate for a pee and decided it would be a good idea to nip in to Jiks. I ended up having more wine and ordering a pizza. A bloke who I know but hadn’t seen in a while, joined me and we ended up having a nice evening. My bill in Jiks came to 600 lira (£10.16) meaning I had spent almost £38 today! I reassured myself that at least I’d only been out one day of the 4 day weekend, so it could easily have been more.
Gratitude List 1. Getting paid for weekend work, as promised 2. Finding a suitable villa holiday for a new client 3. Going out for drinks after finishing 4 days of hard work.
Thursday 2nd April was a little frustrating for me, mainly with first world problems. The first one was that I was trying to get my Jo Lo – Resort Experts business page up to more than 500 followers on Facebook so that I could start to earn a bit of money from it. I was still on less than 400 despite having invited loads of my Facebook friends. How it works on Facebook is that once you’re invited to follow a page, you can view it but I can’t ask again unless the invite is declined. It means that it doesn’t count towards my stats and I can’t do anything about it except to keep asking all of the people who are not following to follow in posts like this. So, if you are not following already please do, if really helps me!!! https://www.facebook.com/share/1H3GWv8k4z/
The next minor inconvenience was waiting to speak to Sam, one of the owners at Resort Experts, to discuss some paid work over the Easter weekend. He’d offered paid work to get all the Supplier information held on a spreadsheet in to the new Zone database. He’d done it using AI but of course it now needed checking and all the gaps filling in. It was quite a tedious task but I love those kinds of jobs and I was up for it. Geoff – the Benidorm Resort Expert, had turned up at Sam’s house and prevented our Teams call to get started. My third frustration was not knowing what I was going to be paid this month and when the paid day would be. As there had been changes to the process recently, I still was unable to work it out and I had to expect nothing. I have to plan for my 50,000 lira (£850) per month to go in to my Turkish bank account for residency rules purposes which is quite time consuming. I don’t earn that in a month so I have to work out how much short I will be each month so Captain Caveman or other income can top it up. I had worked out that if I could sell just 6 books per day, I wouldn’t need to worry about the dates I would get paid from Resort Experts holiday bookings. My aim for the rest of this year was to write more books and increase book sales so that I could spend less time budgeting and worrying about money. I warmed up bolognese for a late lunch and got on with quite a bit of work in the afternoon. I’d had a referral from a friend for a family holiday which I was looking at. Turkey would’ve been an ideal destination were it not for needing morning flights so we decided Spain or the Balearic Islands suited the family better. I finally spoke to Sam about my weekend job and it was agreed I would start tomorrow. The job was easy but time consuming and what a lot of people would call boring – I liked those types of jobs and could do it easily. My final frustration was a shopping and budget related one; as there was no meat left when I went shopping yesterday, I had to go back today. This meant I had less zero spend days and inevitably it’s likely to make me spend more as I saw things I would like or on offer. Here’s what I bought with prices in lira:
Outdoors it was incredibly blustery but dry after quite a storm last night. Everything was covered in red sand which had blown in from a dessert. It was weird and everything looked dirty. The Shell petrol station, near Migros, was being knocked down too. I hadn’t noticed until after I had scoffed the Bounty, with a cup of earl grey tea, that I had been charged more than it had been priced at – that would teach me for not sticking to the Slimming World plan. I decided to watch something on Netflix and had popcorn and cheese for dinner as I was too tired to cook.
Gratitude List 1. Getting through a frustrating day by staying positive 2. Agreeing to take on a paid weekend job over Easter to boost the holiday fund 3. Having friends recommend me to their friends and colleagues.
On Wednesday 1st April I woke up much earlier than I would’ve liked, now that I didn’t have to get up for Norman. April started off with me trying to decide if I could maintain the £10 per day budget for another month – I had proved it could be done but it wasn’t easy. I had friends here, I’d been invited to events and outings plus a boat trip booked in and a trip to the hairdresser’s. So, realistically, I really should try to keep my spending to a minimum even though Captain Caveman had offered to continue to support me, as needed. The minimum wage for a Turkish person was 33,000 lira (£550) per month and I was trying to ensure I lived below that. I didn’t have rent or electricity to pay out of that, though, so I didn’t know how the locals were managing to live. A 1 bedroom apartment in Dalyan was costing over 20,000 lira (£339) now.
I got weighed to find I had put on 0.6kg (1.3lb) using my home scales but my measurements were more favourable; no change to my bust or hips but 3cm off my waist. At Fat Club I did better on Carol’s scales but had still put on 0.35kg (0.8lb). I spent just 30 lira (51p) on water and resisted the very tempting cookies at Ren Garden. I called at Migros after the group meet up and bought the following, prices in lira;
Migros Supermarket
Green peppers 56.04 Red peppers 58.64 Olives 61.50 6 eggs 72.95 Cashew nuts 95.00 2 Quark 111.90 Cheese 166.90 Total spent 622.93 lira (£10.56)
After work I had arranged to meet The Aussies, Amanda and Greg, for the opening of Lukka bar. It’s one of the closest bar and restaurants to where I live and the owners, Mehmet and Katrina are friends of mine. In my honest opinion this place is not for cheap chasers as they tend to have higher prices than some of the popular places with expats, however, I like the location, the staff and the quality so it’s been on my favourites list for a number of years. We’d said 6pm and I got there on time and waited for my friends who are usually late, I met the new staff and spoke to Mehmet, the owner. Lukka bar had been decorated and it was much more red and black, which looked good. I ordered a soda water while I waited for my friends. I wasn’t planning on eating at Lukka as I had food out of the freezer but my friends wanted to. They ordered gin and tonic and whiskey sours so I ordered a glass of Angora red wine. Amanda ordered a satay chicken and Greg ordered another chicken dish with a sauce so I just ordered a starter of the garlic mushrooms. Incidentally, when we ordered our meals, we were asked if we had any allergies and Mehmet even checked if I could eat bread with my mushrooms and that I wasn’t gluten free. He let me know that this year they were going to be able to do gluten free meals and gluten free bread – this was good for my Coeliac sister who was visiting this summer.
The food was excellent and was still the old menu while the new chef and staff got up to speed. The service was good too and not intrusive. Although Lukka is certainly not the cheapest place in town, I didn’t think it extortionate by any means. Here’s what I paid for what I had;
1 Soda water 70 lira (£1.19) 1 glass Angora red wine 250 lira (£4.24) 1 Garlic mushrooms 300 lira (£5.08) Tip 100 (£1.69) Total spent 720 lira (£12.20)
It was a really good evening, despite the torrential rain by the time we were leaving. The Aussies went off to meet friends at Corner bar but I was good and went home for an early night. As I climbed in to bed, Captain Caveman was leaving Saigon to fly back to Heathrow. He would land at 3pm tomorrow and be back at work on Friday.
Gratitude List
1. The Fat Club group 2. Meeting up with The Aussies 3. A great night out at Lukka bar.
It was my last day with Norman on Tuesday 31st March and he was eager to get his breakfast rather than featuring in a video for Little Daddy. Jamie was due to land at 7pm so I had all day to tidy, clean, nip to the shops and do work. Norman was aware of what was going on because he was doing a security check and seemed a bit sad.
In the morning I worked on helping potential customers with hand luggage only packing tips and quotes for the Costa Del Sol in Spain. Since the war against Iran had started, I’d noticed that some of my customers were choosing to holiday nearer to home this summer. Of course, I had managed to have booked in even more travel bargains for myself. For 2026 I now had 8 holidays booked, 4 with Captain Caveman. This made a good change compared to last year and I was certainly taking advantage of the cheap deals. This didn’t include being lucky enough to also be visiting the UK 3 times this year, as well as having the holiday town of Dalyan as my home for the rest of the time. Already, I had booked several friends their holidays to come to Dalyan too, so I was looking forward to this year.
After some work, I cleaned the house. In between all that, I used up some browning bananas and an egg to make an oatcake (as you do)! As it was Sabotage Tuesday I didn’t want to be tempted to eat things I shouldn’t because I had been quite good since Norman’s birthday celebrations. I found a lovely deal in Corfu at one of the fancy Grecotel chain hotels and sent it to 3 people who had asked about Corfu and Greek holidays. In the afternoon, I nipped to the bank to take out my ‘spare’ money for March, in readiness for doing the same during April (tomorrow). I popped to the shop to top back up anything I had used at Jamie’s, and spent just 111.85 lira (£1.89) on those essentials. Norman snored away while I worked and seemed quite happy on the sofa. I spoke to Captain Caveman who was getting a train in Vietnam and heading back to Ho Chi Minh before his flight back to the UK tomorrow. Once I knew Jamie was on his way, I was able to pop back home and relax. It was my dad’s birthday so I managed to get a video call in and sing Happy Birthday to him before eating and then having an early night. I bravely checked the March spending for the whole month. This last 3 days I’d spent £17.88 which meant that for the last 10 days I had spent only £46.52 against a budget of £100 (£10 per day). The monthly budget ended up being £270 for March, after I upped it from £221 (£5 per day) 2 weeks in to the month. I actually spent a grand total of £228.73 in March which meant I was £41.27 under budget and only £7.30 over the original budget. Adjusting it mid month had helped me claw some of it back and I was pleased to have done it. This had meant that the money I had saved was used for some of my 2026 holidays. I’d enjoyed the challenge of Money Minded March and was pleased to see that I’d spent half the amount of the previous month. Unfortunately, my weight loss had not gone as well in March and I was slightly heavier at the end of the month than I was at the beginning. More shenanigans were coming up for April; more outings, some celebrations and The Aussies were back in town!
Gratitude List 1. Norman 2. Managing to be under the (revised) budget for March 3. Video calls with Captain Caveman and Dad.
My first job of the day on Sunday 29th March was to check the expenditure for the last week. I’d spent only £28.64 this week and had 4 zero spend days and 5 zero alcohol days. Things were back on track. I did still have 3 days left in March and I needed to buy some things so I would see if I could keep this up through to the next month. The sun was back out after a very wet and stormy day yesterday so I took Norman out for a walk and Nanny Kay popped round. I also did some writing, ate my Sunday dinner for lunch at 4pm and worked until gone 6pm. Over in a very hot and sticky Southern Vietnam, Captain Caveman had completed the 300km of his charity cycling event and was almost broken. He was very pleased to have raised a great amount of money for Saigon Children’s Charity and said he was going to do it again next year, too. We discussed me coming over to Vietnam and decided we would both go together next year as I had missed being there to support him. At 7.30pm I took myself off to the shops and decided to treat myself, here’s what I bought with prices in lira;
joloyolo 