Dalyan – 5th November

On Tuesday 5th November it was all go, seeing as yesterday I had been out at the beach for most of the day. Today was the day that Vanessa and Matt left to go back to the UK via Istanbul, Captain Caveman had a morning Bridge session and it was a month since Captain Caveman had arrived in Dalyan. Obviously, it had not been all hearts and flowers – more Bridge and me getting on Captain Caveman’s nerves for nagging him to do anything other than play or watch Bridge.
I had a reply from a very nice man at Sotheby’s who had said that, as my Egyptian fine art prints were valued at less than £5,000 he couldn’t help me. He then proceeded to help me by telling me that my particular prints were worth at least £100 each and that I should get in touch with Bonham’s in London, as well as a few other auction houses he mentioned. I went to the post office, as I was hopeful of getting my new Residency card today. The same nice man I saw on Friday, told me that yesterday the post man had come from Ortaca with it but I wasn’t in so it was now at the Post Office in Ortaca and, if I didn’t collect it this week, they would send it up to Muğla. I had spent pretty much every weekday since my appointment not going out and the day they supposedly try to deliver it, I’m out! They had not called or texted so I guessed he hadn’t actually tried to post it. What a palava, I asked the man what time the postman had been and he gave me the impression that he didn’t believe he had been either. He called the post office in Ortaca and asked them to bring it to the post office in Dalyan this afternoon and I said I would be back at 3pm. I really hoped that would happen as I didn’t fancy a bus ride to Ortaca, or a day out in Muğla trying to track down my new card.
I had overnight oats for breakfast and then nibbled on olives while doing some work. Captain Caveman came back and we had pumpkin soup with orzo and bread before I went to meet Mom and go back to the post office. As it was a new month I conducted the banking to put in my required amount in and then waited in the queue at the post office. My new residency card had arrived, only 42 days after my appointment and just 17 days after the old one expired! This gave me an indication that if I wanted to leave Turkey for longer than 15 days in 2025, I would potentially be looking at 7th May before I could book a flight, knowing that I had the card in my hand. Our next stop was Captainnet where I updated the man with my new card, he seemed happy but reminded me that even though I had a new card, it was only valid for 6 months, but I could apply again in 4 months and I could only pay my internet for 1 month at time.
Mom and I wandered over to the bank where I withdrew what I had put in and then added some more from my English account to draw out tomorrow. We called at the shop where I bought the following, prices in lira;

Migros Supermarket
2 tins tomatoes 59.90
Frozen berries 99.95
Total spent 159.85 lira (£3.58)

I said farewell to my Mom as my parents were off out with friends tonight for a meal.
Back home, Captain Caveman made pasta for dinner and I had a glass of white wine with it. I decided to cook some chestnuts for a snack while watching a film but had a bit of an issue. As I was eating a chestnut my tooth cracked, one with an old filling in, and the whole filling and most of the tooth came out. Just what I needed – a visit to the dentist in the morning! Tomorrow was weigh day and I had consumed 283 syns this week so tomorrow’s Fat Club weigh in wasn’t looking favourable. I took a paracetamol for the tooth pain and went to bed early.

Dalyan – 4th November

On the morning of Monday 4th November, we realised we were out of eggs so I popped to Şok Supermarket and bought 15 for 72.50 lira (£1.63) and then went back home for pancakes for breakfast. I’d got some Yorkshire pudding mixture left over from yesterday so it was silly not to eat it up.
There was a bit of excitement for a Monday, and I had decided to take myself off on location. My boss and the sales manager at Resort Experts had been advocating it in the last discussions I had had with them, so I asked if a few people fancied meeting me there, my new office for the day. I had decided that I was going to join Captain Caveman, Ian, Janet and Patricia (from the walking crew) and get a lift to the nearest beach. Captain Caveman had been in touch with the İçmeler walking group and they were doing a walk over the hills close to Iztuzu beach so he, Ian and Patricia had decided to join. Janet and I had already said it was beyond our capabilities but we could use our time wisely while waiting for them, at the beach. I don’t often get to work from the beach and I thought it would be really lovely – a bit different to my usual Mondays. My parents were up for it and said they would get the bus down, a couple of friends said they would pop down too, perhaps for lunch at the cafe. After a hot beverage and saying bye to the walking lot, there was initially just Janet and I. We took some photos and chatted and then my parents arrived. Dad went straight in to the sea and was pleasantly surprised that the temperature was still swimmable and fine once you got in. My friends were next to arrive. After a lunch of a chicken sandwich for a bargain 150 lira (£3.37), and it was rather substantial, I decided it was time for a swim in the sea. Dad was right – it was lovely.
The time flew by and, before we knew it, my parents had to get the last bus back to Dalyan, my friends had to get back as the dogs weren’t being made too welcome on the beach and had to be left in the car (with a window open).
When Captain Caveman and his walking friends returned it was certainly cracking on, timewise. Ian & Janet gave Patricia, Captain Caveman and I a lift back to Dalyan and we all got dropped off near the Waterfall bar.

I had a soda water and Captain Caveman had an Efes while I fought with my wet swimmers in the loo. I didn’t have any wifi but I was due to pop over to Vanessa’s to say bye once I got home. As we were sat there, at the bar at Waterfall, Vanessa and Matt pulled up in a car and by chance we got to say bye. They had been to ours already and left us some goodies on the stairs. Even though they were planning on spending their last evening in Dalyan at home, they had been invited to a BBQ so were off there instead.
Captain Caveman was quite tired when he got in so he lolled on the sofa playing Bridge on his phone while I made a chicken and vegetable stir fry with steamed rice for dinner. We were still peckish a bit later so we had bread and olives and some Turkish Delight while watching something on Netflix. I’d loved ‘working’ from the beach today and I felt refreshed.

Dalyan – 1st November

On Friday 1st November I got up early so I could have my cup of tea in bed and then get to the post office to see if my new residency card had been delivered there. Captain Caveman woke up to news that there was a possibility of some work that would be ideal for him and that cheered me up a lot. I was definitely more stressed than he was about him not having any set plans yet for what he was going to do when he had to leave Turkey in 2 months’ time. Captain Caveman was very relaxed about it all but I hated not knowing where he (or I) would be for 2025.
Captain Caveman and I walked as far as the Post Office together and he went off to Bridge Club. At the Post Office, I learned from the very helpful man, that my residency card was still in Ankara and I was advised to come back on Tuesday.
On the way back home, I called at the bakery for fresh bread and treated myself to an açma (a cross between a croissant and a bagel) which I would have when I got back with the last of Vanessa’s homemade strawberry jam. I took some measurements and photos of my David Roberts’ Egyptian fine art prints which I still had and decided to email Sotheby’s and some other auction houses to find out the value of them. I’d bought them about 30 years ago and, since leaving England and bringing them to Turkey, I had kept them in storage as I no longer had anywhere to hang them. I really loved them and I didn’t want to part with them but it seemed silly to have them in a cupboard and not sell them to someone who would love them, while also raising a bit of spare cash. With the start of the new month I was very aware of the need to be as frugal as possible, Captain Caveman’s Vietnamese bank card no longer worked in Turkey and I was only just in to my new part time role as a Travel Adviser for Resort Experts. I was conscious that I would still not be able to spend money willy-nilly until I was able to be in a more steady position.
I spent the rest of the morning tidying and cleaning the house as we had guests over this evening. Captain Caveman came back from Bridge Club and we had pasta with chicken, pumpkin, sucuk, quark, egg and cheese. It was quite tasty and filling, ready for tonight’s drinking session. In the afternoon, while I hoovered and cleaned the apartment, Captain Caveman was given the job of putting the sun lounger cushions underneath our bed, getting out the spare chairs and cleaning the downstairs bathroom. When I came downstairs he was playing Bridge and had only half done his jobs so I redid the downstairs toilet and told him to do the main bathroom (which generally he uses) and I did the en-suite (my bathroom). I was knackered and sweaty after doing the hoovering and, after a shower, still needed to go to the shops. At 5.45pm, we left what was not done and took the bins out on our way for the shopping. Here’s what we bought, with prices in lira;

Migros Supermarket
2 cartons tomato puree 29.90
Peanut butter 69.95
Total spent 99.95 lira (£2.25)

Yamun Bufe 2
1 Salt & Vinegar crisps 45.00
1 Rituel Red wine 210.00
1 Isabey White wine 220.00
Total spent 475.00 lira (£10.72)

We were now ready for our Gin Night. It was Captain Caveman’s first one and the first at our place, the last one had been at Jamie’s. We had pumpkin and vegetable homemade soup with fresh bread for dinner and had poured a whiskey when the guests started to arrive. We had a lovely night, despite our apartment only just fitting everyone in, but at least it was cozy and a good laugh. Julia brought Coco & Bebe (her dogs) who are so lovely and it was the first time Captain Caveman had met them. Jamie mentioned a friend in the British Virgin Islands and I asked if she might know my friend, Kev. It turned out Lisa and Kev were meeting tomorrow for a beach day in the BVI – what a small world! It wasn’t a particularly wild night, although I did manage to drink about a bottle of wine to myself and ate some crisps as a treat. I went to bed about 1am, after Captain Caveman had already fallen asleep.

Dalyan – 30th October

Captain Caveman had decided to go for a reccy for his Sunday Walks on Wednesday 30th October. I’d like to have thought that he had taken the hint that he was cheesing me off by lolling about playing Bridge in a horizontal fashion, but I doubt it! After my cup of tea in bed, I took my measurements and got on the home scales. My bust had stayed the same, my waist was now -1cm beneath my target but my hips had put on 2cm. The home scales showed that I had lost 1.2kg (2.6lb) since last week which was really good news but I know, recently, Carol’s scales at Fat Club had not been as kind.
I made myself a vegetarian pho for breakfast then did my Turkish homework before I had to go to the lesson at 11.30am. This week we were having the lesson at Ela’s Kitchen but we didn’t know until last minute that Lukka had closed. The smell of the breakfasts was amazing and I wanted to get a nice cup of Yorkshire tea but I hadn’t taken enough money with me – I’d know for the next time! Instead I had a soda water. I like it at Ela’s for having a Turkish lesson as it is easier to hear Sioned, our teacher, as it’s a quiet spot.

I did a quick bit of work and ate a banana before it was time to go to Fat Club at lunch. As expected, Carol’s scales were not as kind. I had lost only 0.8kg (1.7lb) but it was still a loss and I was pleased. Captain Caveman had not yet joined the Fat Club but he was certainly following the plan for meals. He’d only lost 100g this week but 2kg over the last 3 weeks. It was a little disconcerting that he had lost 0.5kg more than me in 3 weeks without trying. I didn’t stay long at the group today as I had a video call booked in with the Resort Experts Sales Manager at 4pm, but I did quickly call in to the supermarket as we needed some cheese. Here’s what I ended up buying as a bit of a treat, prices in lira;

Migros Supermarket
1 Bounty chocolate bar 34.90
Cheddar cheese 139.95
2 x 400g 7% fat beef mince 479.90
Total spent 654.75 lira (£14.75)

I’d gone a bit mad buying mince but it’s not too often that they have the lower fat one and I had suggested my parents come round for dinner one night, when they were available. Today they had gone to Ortaca and they were going to Babadağ either tomorrow or Friday, so maybe at the weekend. They were going to let me know when they had a free evening as their social calendar was pretty full.
My video call went well and the Sales Manager is loads of fun plus he knows what he is doing. He lives in Benidorm and has been there for over 30 years, which was good to know for any of my friends and potential customers who fancied a bit of Costa Blanca.
The team meeting was at 8pm that night, too, so I was very busy today. Captain Caveman came home, asked how I had done at Fat Club and told me he was taking me out for a glass of wine (with cheese) at Retro bar. It’s only round the corner from us and was closing for the winter this weekend. I grabbed a fleece, as the evenings were getting cooler, and off we popped. Retro Bar was really lovely and the wine and cheese went down well at only 100 lira (£2.25) each. We rushed back for the team meeting only for me to have got the time wrong as the UK and Spain had put their clocks back at the weekend, while Turkey keeps them the same all year. We could have had another drink at Retro, but at least I was home and we were only having leftover curry and saag aloo for dinner with steamed rice.

Dalyan – 29th October

I was working from my bed with a cup of tea before 8am on Tuesday 29th October, while Captain Caveman made himself breakfast and got ready for his morning of Bridge Club. I read that Vietnam Airlines had launched a non-stop flight between Hanoi, Vietnam, and Phnom Penh, Cambodia, and would run on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. This was good news and I added it to my list of itinerary options for future trips. I also put a post on my Resort Experts Facebook page of me on a swing in the sea while in Koh Rong Samloem, Cambodia. For breakfast I had cheese and olives with a green tea (no bread today as it was weigh day again tomorrow).
Despite all the rubbish going on and having a partner who’s main focus was being the world’s best Bridge player, I had decided to keep focused and remain positive. There was nothing I could do to change anyone else and it would take too much energy and time that I didn’t have spare. I decided I was just going to focus on myself and let everyone else around me get on with whatever they were doing. If not, I was going to drive myself mad.
Around midday, I decided to pop to the pharmacy and shops for a bit of fresh air and a few essentials. Here’s what I bought with the prices in lira;

Pharmacy
1 box of Cerazette pills 329.18 lira (£7.38)

I thought the price for one month’s contraceptive pills was higher than it should be!

Migros Supermarket
Dido Chocolate bar 16.50
Diet Coke 30.00
Fanta orange 30.00
Tonic 45.00
Spinach 46.95
1kg chicken breast 170.50
Total spent 338.86 lira (£7.60)

I love those Dido chocolate bars and didn’t even get one on sale this time!
When Captain Caveman got back from Bridge he made a pasta dish for lunch which was probably only about 3 syns, as it had sucuk in. I worked in the afternoon and then made dinner. I did a Slimming World Roast Potato Saag Aloo, which was very nice and went well with the chicken curry and steamed rice. I ended the week on 194 syns, which was 72 less than last week’s and half of it was for alcohol, so I was hopeful for a loss tomorrow.

Dalyan – 28th October

On Monday 28th October I was up early and the sun was shining. While Captain Caveman went Dogging, I had work and errands to do. My first task was to go to the bank and make sure I had put in my 26,000 lira (or more) to keep up my residency requirements. I also needed to draw out some cash as it was time to pay for my Captainnet (internet) again, but still without my new residency card. My parents were off on the yellow boat again with other Dalyan Dwellers for the weekly Köyceğiz trip. They often go to Tuana, a bar/restaurant on the water front, for drinks and lunch. At Captainnet I usually deal with the lady who works there but this time there was a new man and he refused to let me extend the internet without a valid residency card, at first. I showed him my official piece of paper that said I had renewed and he made 2 phone calls. Today was Republic Day (Cumhuriyet Bayram) in Turkey, so I told him I would need to have the internet because of the special day – perhaps the Turks would not be able to acknowledge today without the internet so I hoped that would work. He took another 10 minutes of over-mauling my paper with his grubby hands and then agreed, saying I needed to come back as soon as I received the card. Of course, I agreed, paid him the 400 lira (£8.99) for the month, then went to Migros for some essentials – here’s what I bought, with prices in lira;

Migros Supermarket
Green tea 23.00
Chickpeas 33.95
15 eggs 72.50
1.4kg sweet potatoes 94.91
Total spent 224.26 lira (£5.04)

Back home, I made banana, oat and egg pancake for breakfast but the banana was too unripe still and I could only eat half of it before the rest had to go in the bin.
At noon I had a meeting with my boss which went well and I was now part of the Resort Experts team.

When Captain Caveman got home from Dogging we had leek & potato soup for lunch followed by some peanuts in the afternoon. I had a couple of friends respond to my Resort Experts post to ask for quotes so I spent the afternoon on Crete, Portugal and the Canaries for 2025 holidays. Captain Caveman warmed up left over Chicken Provençal and made sweet potato and normal potato wedges in the air fryer to go with it, for dinner.
In the evening, we watched something on Youtube as we couldn’t get the Netflix to work on the TV and it was too late to get a code from the guy who is in charge of it. I can’t recall what we watched but I know that Captain Caveman was fast asleep and snoring well before the end.

Dalyan – 25th & 26th October

I had a very productive Friday 25th October, I had an early breakfast of tea and overnight oats before starting work at 9am. I did lots of training and I added more to my growing To Do list. Captain Caveman was at Bridge Club and had left about 9.45am, he came back at 1pm for lunch but I was still working so I asked him to make our meal. He made some really tasty chicken fajita wraps which I ate at 1.30pm then went back to some more training at 2pm.
Captain Caveman seemed ill with his constant sneezing and blowing his nose and was snappy with me so I suggested he actually did have some rest in bed to sleep it off. I had to remind him that he was not going to bed so that he could play Bridge on his phone all afternoon.
I had scheduled in to my diary to work until 4pm but my Mom was available for me to pop round. We’d mentioned about having an evening together soon and I asked what plans they had for the weekend. They had been invited to one of our friend’s houses for cheese and wine tomorrow night so we suggested Sunday evening would be good for Captain Caveman and I, if they didn’t get a better offer!
I went to the shops as we needed Quark and tinned tomatoes. Word from the Fat Club group had let me know they had some in stock. Here’s what I bought and the prices in lira;

Migros Supermarket
Milk 28.25
2 tins of tomatoes 59.90
2 Quark 59.90
632g Chicken thighs 132.72
Total spent 280.77 lira (£6.32)

When I got home, Captain Caveman was on the sofa, playing Bridge and still very sneezy. We both agreed I should have bought more tomatoes while they were in stock and I toddled back off, while he went to bed.

Migros Supermarket
Pasta 11.75
Penne pasta 14.96
1kg Flour 22.50
3 tins of tomatoes 89.85
Total spent 139.06 lira (£3.13)

When I got back I cleared out one of the spare room cupboards and prepared dinner which was only a veggie curry, omelette and steamed rice. When I went in to check on Captain Caveman, he was playing Bridge and we had a row. I was annoyed that he was meant to be in bed because he was too ill to do anything else! I told him I was very concerned about this Bridge addiction and that was all he was spending his time doing. His response made me even more mad; he was not addicted because he hadn’t reached 10,000 hours in 3 years yet! Now I realised that was his aim and he obviously was not going to do anything else until he reached that target. I was fuming! Shoot me now!!!!

Captain Caveman was still sneezing and sniffling and had taken to waking me up just before 7.30am with a sneeze on Saturday 26th October. He brought me a cup of Yorkshire tea in bed and we were due to go to the market. We didn’t end up getting there until 11am but we had quite a list of things to get this week. Here’s what we bought at each stall, with prices in lira;

Stall 1
Potatoes & Onions 80 lira (£1.80)

Stall 2
Leeks, pumpkin, red cabbage, 1 lemon
200 lira (£4.50)

Stall 3
Tomatoes & peppers 105 lira (£2.36)

Stall 4
Carrots & Apples 52 lira (£1.71)

Stall 5
Peanuts 100 lira (£2.25)

Stall 6
Mushrooms 50 lira (£1.13)

Stall 7
Olives 100 lira (£2.25)

Total spent 687 lira (£15.47)

This was the most we had spent at the market in a while but we had got quite a lot for the money, some of which would easily last longer than next week, and we still had over 12 (mostly unripe) bananas in the fruit bowl.
Captain Caveman had wanted to go out for a Turkish breakfast but Saklı Bahçe had been closed when he checked. I love Turkish breakfasts but they always make me have a bad stomach for at least 2 days so I preferred to avoid them where possible. I suggested that we could make our own version of a Turkish breakfast at home and I prepared the table with all of this; feta style cheese, roasted red peppers in Quark with garlic, gherkins, baba ghanoush, olives, tomatoes, bread, jam, honey and sliced apple. Captain Caveman made himself an egg to go with his too.
While Captain Caveman played more Bridge on his phone in the afternoon (I give up!), I sorted out lots of clothes and belongings from the spare room and started putting clothes which had been packed away in to the washing pile. We’d already agreed that Captain Caveman would cook dinner tonight so that I could get on with things I needed to do but hadn’t yet. He made a spaghetti carbonara which was very tasty and we shared some red wine with it.

Dalyan – 20th to 22nd October

It was quite a bit cooler in the morning when I woke up with Captain Caveman’s alarm at 7.30am on Sunday 20th October. The forecast for the rest of the month looked really good, though. Captain Caveman brought me my cup of tea in bed and he was looking forward to the Sunday Walk. I was looking less forward to it as I was really tired and a little overwhelmed at how much was on my To Do list, so much so that most of it wasn’t even written on a list yet! I decided I wouldn’t go on the Sunday Walk today, so that I could take the time to get some things done. It didn’t quite work out as planned but I did manage to get some cheese and spinach pasties made with wraps, Slimming World style, and put some lentil, tomato, pumpkin and carrot soup in the slow cooker. It’s surprising how long it takes to chop veg, as Captain Caveman was back from his walk and ready for lunch before I’d done much else. We had leek and potato soup with a freshly cooked pasty and it was delicious.
Luckily, for dinner I had already got out the remaining beef kleftiko from the freezer so all I had to do was pop on the rice cooker and knock up some red cabbage to go with it.

While Captain Caveman went Dogging on the morning of Monday 21st October, I did some work for my new venture, ate overnight oats for breakfast and had a pomegranate when I took a break. I booked in my first meeting with the boss for tomorrow afternoon. At lunch time Captain Caveman came back and I heated up some of the veggie soup for us, with bread!! For dinner I warmed up another freezer special, which was the chicken curry with steamed rice. Later, Captain Caveman and I decided to watch Netflix and I made popcorn, without butter, in my popcorn maker. Within minutes of starting to watch something, Captain Caveman was asleep and snoring away.

I had my usual cup of tea in bed on Tuesday 22nd October and then stayed out of the way of Captain Caveman making his breakfast. He went to his Bridge Club and I made myself some veggie egg fried rice for a late breakfast.
I had a meeting with my new boss where he ran through the Resort Experts’ intranet sight, the quote system, the marketing guide and set me some homework. The session went well and I left the call knowing I had a lot of training to do while my Facebook business page was being built for me. I had 8 training videos to watch and would start doing them tomorrow. I also made a Work To do list and would continue to add to it as I went along.
Captain Caveman called at the shops on the way back from Bridge Club and bought fresh bread for 10 lira (22p) and 2.4kg of bananas for 141.12 lira (£3.17). The bananas, of which there were 13, looked very hard and unripe but Captain Caveman was sure they would quickly ripen. We had lentil and vegetable soup with cheese on toast, which Captain Caveman made as I was still doing work related things. I carried on working, mainly reading and training related stuff, while Captain Caveman lay down and played Bridge on his phone all afternoon.
At 5.30pm, I suggested we go to the shops so that I could get some fresh air and Captain Caveman could stop playing Bridge as it seemed to be getting even more of an obsession recently. Here’s what we bought, prices in lira;

Migros Supermarket
Potatoes 6.63
Spring onions 24.95
2 Quark 59.90
Tortilla wraps 59.95
Sucuk (Turkish salami) 95.90
Butter 99.95
White Cheese (like Feta) 114.90
Total Spent 500.13 lira (£11.24)

Unfortunately, I wanted to buy chicken, but they had none left – this often seems to happen on a Tuesday for some reason. We walked on to the next shop to look for chicken.

A101 Supermarket
1.7kg Whole chicken 171.24 lira (£3.85)

Back home, and after a snack of cheese spread on bread, I made myself a cup of tea and then got to chopping vegetables. Captain Caveman had gone upstairs for a live online Bridge session but I cannot stand the voice of the man presenting it!
I made roast chicken with rosemary and garlic potatoes, red cabbage and spinach and it tasted really good. There was also plenty left for tomorrow’s meals. I’d already consumed 250 syns this week and then drank 2 glasses of red wine as I’d not had a drink since Friday. This was probably bad news for any anticipated weight loss this week!

Dalyan – 15th October

On Tuesday 15th October I made Vietnamese pho ga (chicken noodle soup) for breakfast, which was really tasty. Obviously, it was using pho stock cubes from Vietnam so not completely authentic, but it definitely satisfied my craving for it. I added chillies to Captain Caveman’s but they were a bit lively! I messaged Mom, as she had still not messaged about not popping over last night. They had ended up in Tapa with the rest of the boat trip friends. She said her battery had died but assumed we wouldn’t have come even if she had invited us!
Captain Caveman went to Bridge Club and I attended day 2 of the Get it Started free course, which went really well. I got peckish late morning and had a banana sandwich but still had leek and potato soup with Captain Caveman for lunch.
While he popped to the shops to buy ordinary rice from Bim for less than a £1 for 1kg, I finished my course homework and did some work on my book and blog.
I nipped to the bank, checked the exchange rate at Aksoy and the exchange place near the turtle roundabout; they were 44.0 and 43.5. I went to my parents’, to wish them a late happy anniversary, they were having a quiet day after a large one on the booze yesterday. They had loved their time on the yellow boat yesterday and said they had been invited on a free trip for this weekend, which was the same date as a boat trip they were on with us. They’d turned it down because of not wanting to let me down on the one I’d organised, that wasn’t free.
Back home, I nibbled on grapes and some peanuts and then made courgette risotto for dinner. I really liked it, Captain Caveman isn’t keen on courgettes but he still ate 2 portions of it! There was no wine tonight as I had weigh in tomorrow and I had done quite well on only consuming 162 syns this week.

Dalyan – 9th & 10th October

When I took my measurements on Wednesday 9th October I was pleasantly surprised that they weren’t worse; I had put 1cm on my bust and hips but my waist had stayed the same. On the home scales though, I had put on 1.1kg (2.4lb), which I was less pleased, but not surprised, about. Captain Caveman also got weighed and he decided he would start to track what he weighed, although he was not overweight, like me.
I only had a Yorkshire tea but no breakfast as I didn’t have time before my Turkish class and I needed to call at the bank (again). I had re-joined a group, as there weren’t any spaces for a private lesson, so I went along to my first one. It was held at Lukka bar and it was nice to find I already knew 2 of the other members of the class, Cath & Keith. I had missed a lot of Turkish but I didn’t struggle to keep up too much. When I had time, I needed to revise what I already had learned but I didn’t seem to get round to it above everything else on the To Do list. At Lukka I ordered a Turkish tea for 25 lira (56p), which is cheap but 2.5 times more than at the tea gardens.
I came home for lunch and we ate a chicken and chickpea curry I had batched cooked a while ago and was Slimming World friendly. At Fat Club, I’m not actually sure what happened, but Carol’s scales said I had stayed the same as last week. This was odd as this morning I had been heavier plus I had been eating and drinking since. I was pleased, but knew I’d have to be careful it didn’t catch up with me next week.
A friend popped round in the afternoon to say hello and bring me a couple of items of clothes which I had left at her place. We had a chat and she didn’t stay long. I made a salad for dinner, trying to start the week off on track but then we opened a bottle of rosé wine. I had 2 glasses but Captain Caveman had a really bad sneezing fit after drinking it and was probably allergic to the sulphites in it, as he was quite ill.

Captain Caveman joined the Riverbums on their clean up team on Thursday 10th October. They go out by boat, every Thursday morning, to clean up rubbish from the river and surrounding areas. It was on his schedule and we affectionately call it Bumming. I had a cup of tea, bread with butter and jam for breakfast.
I spent the morning sending out more CVs, doing some writing and researching a new company that I was interested in working for while it was quiet at home.
For lunch I made some Slimming World muffins which contained sweet potato, onion, spinach, egg, milk, feta and spices. Unfortunately they stuck to the Yorkshire pudding tin, despite using spray oil, and the tray was ruined. On the plus side, the muffins tasted amazing. They must have been good as I was hoping they would last until tomorrow but when I looked up, Captain Caveman had polished off 5!!!
We were having more curry for dinner but I had run out of Jasmine rice so Captain Caveman went to the shop. Here’s what he bought and the prices in lira:

Şok Supermarket
10 Eggs 59.00
2 x 1kg bags Jasmine rice 89.00
Washing powder 199.90
Total spent 347.90 lira (£7.77)

That night we had our curry with naan bread and it was really tasty, Captain Caveman decided it would go well with a rum so I also had one. He was still extremely sneezy but not quite as bad as yesterday.

Dalyan – 2nd October

On Wednesday 2nd October Jamie had left me in charge of his dogs, Norman & Edna.
First I did my measurements and found that they were very favourable; 1cm off my bust and 3cm off both waist and hips so I was looking forward to seeing Carol’s scales at Fat Club later. On my home scales I had lost over 2kg so it was looking good. I had a cup of tea with cheese spread on toast and grabbed a few things to take with me.
On leaving mine, I noticed the gardener had now trimmed some of the plants and finally cleared the walk way by the gate. I arrived early at Jamie’s, Norman was still asleep but Edna was keen to know if Aunty Jo would be bringing any treats. I also noticed on Facebook that there were flood warnings in Sheffield. Here in Dalyan, the weather was lovely. Jamie had a new patio door in and I quickly found out that Norman was obsessed at going through it.

For lunch I had a feta salad with radishes then wrote my shopping list. I popped on a slow cooker soup back at mine then decided to go to the shops as I needed some toiletries. I bought Olive Oil shampoo, conditioner and shower gel for a total of 250 lira (£5.51) which I thought was reasonable for some really good stuff. Ideally, I needed to go to the hair dresser, as I hadn’t been since June, but I couldn’t justify spending the money on it just yet and hoped I could once Captain Caveman arrived. In Migros I bought sweet potatoes, tinned tomatoes, ginger and red cheddar for a total of 246.17 lira (£5.42).
At Fat Club I was a little disappointed that I hadn’t lost more weight but I did lose 2kg (4.4lb) which was not to be sniffed at. I paid 50 lira (£1.10) for a large water to keep hydrated. At dinner time I had a bit of a feast as I had a Slimming World wrap pizza as a starter and then a portion of chickpea curry with rice, which was very nice. Dog walks and cuddles were had, Norman & Edna even came with me back home as I needed to turn off the soup and decant it in to batches.

Dalyan – 27th September

For breakfast on Friday 27th September I had half a tub of overnight oats and a cup of Yorkshire tea. I spoke to Captain Caveman around 10am my time, he was at Caroline’s and she had gone to 9 Grains for a meeting while he stayed home with Vee, the dog. Captain Caveman was now free to book his flights and so he did that and sent me his flight details straight after the call. He would leave Saigon on the 4th October, fly via Bangkok to Istanbul with Thai Airways and then get the Turkish Airlines flight to arrive in to Dalaman at 9.05am on 5th October. What a relief, he was finally booked and just had to avoid the next bout of stormy weather that was heading in that direction soon.
I remembered I needed to get back to the shops so off I went, prices in lira of what I bought;

Bim Supermarket
1 Notebook 12.50
Bin liners 21.00
Total spent 33.50 lira (73p)

Şarküteri shop
1 Small (142ml) Henderson’s relish
1 (400ml) tin of coconut milk
1 (150ml) bottle of rice vinegar
1 (150ml) bottle of Oyster sauce
Total spent 335.00 lira (£7.33)

All of these items are classed as foreign and so include import tax, making them quite pricey compared to back in the UK.

Migros Supermarket
1 bag 0.25
Bay leaves 24.95
Wholemeal sliced bread 44.50
Basil 44.95
650g yoghurt 77.50
10 eggs 99.95
Feta cheese 114.90
Total spent 407.00 lira (£8.91)

Over the last 2 days, I had spent the most in ages on provisions and groceries as I had not known how much I was going to need for my residency renewal. With that finished, it did mean I could actually get a little bit back to normal and actually spend some of what I had put aside for housekeeping and bills.
My next task was to pay for another month of internet at Captain Net where the lady was reluctant to give it to me because of my residency card expiring on the 19th October. I showed her my piece of paper and explained as best I could that I was waiting for my card but it would come after the 19th of next month. She would only let me renew the internet for one month and told me that I must have my card by the next time I came to pay. This was unlikely as the new cards were being sent about 2 weeks after the old ones expired. It cost 400 lira (£8.75) which is a bit of a bargain for a whole month of internet and I don’t even have the best plan, as we no longer watch TV so I don’t really need it. For lunch I had a mini wrap with curried chicken, veg and yoghurt in and it tasted amazing. I had a green tea and completed the last of the Planner Ideation course with Claire Clarke. I’d enjoyed it and I had got plenty of free training and information out of the course, which was good.
I did mean to top up my Turkish phone with credit but I decided to wait until Captain Caveman arrived as it wasn’t essential and I didn’t really go out much these days to need it. I complained again to the pool and gardening company that the pool water seemed very low and there was no pump on (they also had still not cleaned the grounds). To my surprise I got a reply almost straight away to say they were already on it and fixing the electrics because it was broken and he needed 400 lira from each of the 10 owners. I thought it a very convenient amount (the same as the hose) and asked for a receipt. His answer was that he could not provide a receipt or bill as the workman would then charge more for it – the joys of living in Dalyan!

In the evening I was reunited at last with my rice cooker and I had an amazing chicken curry and steamed rice for dinner, washed down with 2 gin and zero calorie tonics. I chilled out and watched some Netflix in the evening and even worked out how to get music on the TV after not being at home properly, since March.

Dalyan – 26th September

As my parents left for a trip to Capadoccia with Dalyan friends, Captain Caveman should’ve been arriving in Turkey on Thursday 26th September. However, because he still needed to wait for some paperwork after leaving his job at Oxalis, he couldn’t leave Vietnam yet. He had decided that he would go to Hoi An to see our friend, Caroline, and other friends, while he was still waiting to tie up loose ends. I was obviously disappointed he wasn’t here yet and, of course, I was practically out of cash until he arrived. With hindsight, we should’ve planned it better and I should’ve stayed in Vietnam longer. I decided to check on my home scales how my weight compared to Carol’s yesterday and I was 1.3kg (almost 3lb) lighter but I still needed to lose 4kg (over half a stone) to hit target. For breakfast I ate half of my overnight oats and had an earl grey tea. I realised I really needed to go to the shops and had been saving a bit of cash to get the shopping in for when Captain Caveman arrived. Even though he hadn’t yet booked a flight, I decided to stock up and hope he booked it soon. Here’s what I splashed out on my ‘big shop’, prices in lira;

Migros Supermarket
Red onions 7.27
Courgettes 24.88
Chicken stock cubes 29.50
Chickpeas 31.90
Olive oil liquid soap 32.95
Soy Sauce 44.95
2 Quark 47.90
Sweet potatoes 84.59
983g Chicken breasts 186.72
Parmesan cheese 199.90
822g Chicken thighs 246.56
Total spent 938.12 lira (£20.57)

Şok Supermarket
Red peppers 9.42
Couscous 10.75
Green peppers 18.94
Mozzarella cheese 57.90
400g Diced Beef 216.00
Total spent 313.01 lira (£6.86)

I was pleased to get the beef at a good price and I was surprised to find that chicken thighs were more expensive than breasts, although Turkish people often prefer thigh meat in cooking. I was in Şok when Captain Caveman messaged to say he could call now. I replied to say give me 5-10 minutes to get home and off I rushed, excited that he may have good news and could book his flight. I had intended to go to a couple of other shops as I didn’t have everything from my shopping list, however, I hurried back and texted to say I was back. I then got a photo from Captain Caveman of him and Caroline drinking beers in a restaurant and he said he was busy and out for dinner now so couldn’t call. How rude!
For lunch I had cheese and crackers and finished the other half of my breakfast with a green tea.
I put the beef, some sweet potato, onion, tomatoes and spices in to the slow cooker and adapted a Greek Lamb Kleftiko Slimming World recipe for dinner. I couldn’t be bothered to go back to the shops and I might not have time before my next appointment. I continued with the next session of the Planner Ideation course and then just chilled out at home. It was nice to be back at Captain Caveman’s apartment but I was still waiting to find out when he would return.

Fethiye & Dalyan – 23rd September

My residency renewal appointment was at 8.30am on Monday 23rd September at the Fethiye Government office. I had enlisted the help of a friend so that I wasn’t doing it alone and at least I wasn’t on the bus as I needed to be at Julia’s straight after to look after the dogs.
When I got to the Government building, I gave my documents in to a woman and waited. After less than 15 minutes I got called in and she asked if I had paid the application fee/taxes yet. I said not and she gave me a piece of paper, with the $55 fee written on it, to go and do that. I’d been hoping I could apply for 1 year but it wasn’t to be and I could only go for 6 months. We went to the tax office and paid the fee, which was fairly quick. Back at the Government building, I gave the lady I saw before, my receipt and she granted me my residency renewal, for 6 months. I got the official piece of paper and some of my documents back. I was pleased although now it meant I would need to apply again in February for the next one and wouldn’t be able to leave the country for more than 15 days until after I got my new card at the end of April, which was an inconvenience. We walked back to the car, calling at a bag shop to get a handle fixed for my friend. Then we were off back to Dalyan, as I needed to be back for the 4 dogs. In the car, we ate the sandwiches, biscuits and mints which I had brought and then drove back.
I should have felt excited that I was able to celebrate another 6 months of legally being able to reside in Turkey. For some reason I didn’t feel that and I wasn’t sure why not. It had not cost me as much as a lot of people had been saying it would either – here’s the breakdown of what I spent the money on;

Health Insurance for 1 year 1924.20 lira
Residency application fee for 6 months $55 (1,883 lira)
New Residency card fee 565 lira
2 lots of passport biometric photos 750 lira
Post Office and eDevlet sorting 400 lira
Location check for my address on the system 500 lira

Total 6,022.20 (£132).

I was pleased that I hadn’t had to wait for a delayed Captain Caveman to return for us to pay for a new rental agreement when I could use the original one from 2019. It also turned out I hadn’t needed the other ones we had paid to translate at the notary in the subsequent years, as the original one is on a rolling 12 months anyway.

On opening the gate at Julia’s house at 11.30am, I was met by a cheeky looking Norman, who was patrolling the perimeter. All the other dogs were inside, in the AC, having a chill out. I was so glad to switch people for dogs as I messaged Jamie to let him know I got approved and that I was now back in Dalyan with some very happy dogs. For lunch I had been left a tasty bolognese that needed eating up so I reheated it and had that. Later, I popped my bikini on to have a swim in the lovely pool. I did 2 separate walks with Norman & Edna first and then with Coco & Bebe.

That evening, I relaxed with the dogs who were so cute and I ate a Sunday dinner which Jamie, Drew & Julia had left for me to eat and it was delicious. All 4 dogs wanted some but they didn’t get any as they had leftover chicken and steak saved for them.
I was so happy to be sat having cuddles with cute dogs while having a glass of red wine and some chocolate as a treat to myself for getting another 6 months residency. I was glad to know that my parents were already on their way to Dalaman airport and would be arriving after midnight tonight. I was very much looking forward to seeing them again.
I left the dogs snoozing and I walked in to town and called at the supermarket. Here’s what I bought, prices in lira;

Migros Supermarket
Gold Chocolate brownies 7.00
Milk 8.95
Soup 25.90
1 Pot noodle 19.95
Wholemeal sliced loaf 44.95
Total spent 107.00 lira (£2.35)

The rate had reached 45.6 now so this was an absolute bargain in English money.

Dalyan – 22nd September

Gayle messaged me on the morning of Sunday 22nd September asking where is good to go for Menemen and did I fancy a last breakfast with them. I don’t eat eggs and tomatoes generally so it’s not a dish I like but everyone I know who does, says that Ela’s Kitchen has the best one. Gayle said they had already been there 3 times this holiday so had wanted to try somewhere else and was thinking of Cinar. They didn’t have Menemen on their menu so we ended up at Ela’s, anyway. Beforehand, I had walked over to their’s and they had helped me bring all the rest of my stuff over from my parents’ upstairs room. My parents were arriving in a couple of days but I only had a 2 day window to get my stuff before they left for a holiday in Cappadocia.
Once at Ela’s Kitchen, one of my favourite breakfast places, Neil and Gayle both had their usual and I was extra hungry so I had a large full English (no tomatoes or eggs) and a cup of Yorkshire tea. The food was as good as always and I ate every bit of it as I was pretty peckish. The bill came to a total of 1300 lira (£28.63) for all of us so less than an English tenner each for a great breakfast.

After breakfast, Gayle & Neil were going back to get ready for leaving Dalyan tomorrow and, as I was up and off to Fethiye really early, today was the last day I would see them. They invited me to join them at Kingfisher restaurant that night but I was mindful they would probably want a romantic night by themselves. I did invite them to call in at mine for a drink before or after though, so we could say goodbye. I had really had a great time with them and I wasn’t really sure when I would see them again. I popped to the shops and picked up some essentials, including provisions for my trip to Fethiye tomorrow, prices below in lira;

Migros Supermarket
1 plastic bag 0.25
1 Quark 29.95
Water 34.90
Total spent 65.10 lira (£1.44)

Şok Supermarket
Water 9.75
Biscuits 17.00
Turkey ham 22.00
Cheese slices 28.50
Total spent 77.25 (£1.70)

Bakery
1 fresh loaf 10 lira (22p)

When I got home, I had a video call with Captain Caveman and I mentioned about me going to Fethiye tomorrow. He didn’t seem at all interested and was preoccupied with something else. He said he would call me back after he had a shower but then he forgot. I was a bit cheesed off that he had not wished me well for my appointment either. Was I maybe imagining that he really didn’t care if I got it renewed or not!?
Jamie picked me up at 6.30pm and I was outside trimming the bush that our gardener still hadn’t touched. The elusive gardening company were still experts at doing absolutely nothing and the bougainvillea was below face level for anyone going through the gate. My neighbours were older than me and had to duck beneath the spiky branches. We drove over to Julia’s so that I could pick up a key, meet her dogs and go through the requirements of what I was needed to do for the next few days of doggy care. Coco & Bebe were a little shy of me at first, while Norman & Edna were pleased to see me. Edna was a bit less giddy than usual but it was probably because she was at Aunty Julia’s house and wanted to show she was behaving better than the resident dogs! I wasn’t there long and then decided I would walk the 20 minutes back in to town, calling at the shops again on the way back. Here’s what I bought with the prices in lira;

Migros Supermarket
Dido Trio chocolate bar 13.50
Dido Lemon chocolate bar 14.00
Popcorn 21.50
Total spent 49.00 lira (£1.08)

Nova Market (used to be Selcuk Market)
1 bottle of white wine 200.00 lira (£4.41)

I was definitely noticing that, although prices had gone up a little in Dalyan, the prices for drinks and snacks in the shops were definitely cheaper here than in England and Rhodes.

I made cheese and turkey ham sandwiches for tomorrow’s trip to Fethiye, even though it should have been a short visit once there. I was preparing for if it was not straight forward as I didn’t want to be spending money on lunch out. I ate a sandwich while waiting for Gayle & Neil to pop in after their meal at Kingfisher.
When they arrived, they weren’t as merry as I had expected they might be on their last night. They had a lovely meal but said they were finished quite early and then had to sit around for a while waiting to get the boat back. We had a couple of drinks and a good laugh. We had used my parents’ shopping trolley earlier to bring some of my stuff over, so they took that back with them.
We had hugs goodbye, which is unusual as my sister is not normally one for hugs or soppy farewells. We had all had a really good time together on the occasions I had joined them and there had not been any falling out whatsoever – we were obviously maturing! I was actually very sad to see them leave and a little bit glad that I wouldn’t be able to see them drive off to the airport tomorrow at 9.30am, in case I got upset. I don’t think they wanted to leave Dalyan, having had such a great holiday but they had to get back for the dog.
I got all my documents together and set my alarm for 6am so that I could be up and ready for tomorrow’s residency renewal appointment.