Dalyan – 29th September

Unfortunately I couldn’t work on the morning of Friday 29th September, as planned, because I had to go to the water company to try to put a bill in my name. This was going to be more stressful than it should have been because of a couple of reasons, the main one being that Captain Caveman wasn’t here. Sonuç’s wife, Leanne, who works at King Emlak seemed to think we could use her boss’s Power of Attorney from buying the apartment to get it sorted but her boss, Sezgin, would have to come with us. She was meant to pick me up at 9.30am and Sezgin would meet us at the water company. That didn’t happen and at 11am I was pacing up and down wondering when they would show up. Plan B was that Leanne was sending the guy from the office who used to go to school and play football with a member of staff at the water place and we were going to do our best to ‘sort’ it. I popped on a nice dress and took all my ID and a copy of an old bill.
When we arrived the two Turkish fellas were like long lost brothers, stroking and rubbing each other’s tummies and laughing a lot. At one point I thought I should get ready for a tummy tickle but, for a fee of 900 lira (£26.87), I was now the proud owner of a water bill. My next bill would be in November for 59 lira (£1.76) for the previous month and they had cancelled Captain Caveman’s direct debit. Another expense I wasn’t expecting and now I had to go straight to the bank to get the direct debit set up so that I could take the paper back to the Fethiye office for my residency approval.
Leanne had managed to sort this out and I bet she knew I was not happy with the situation, having predicted this would happen. Luckily she had saved the day and I was very grateful. The King Emlak bloke drove me back to the office so I took the opportunity to pop to the supermarket for some essentials and a thank you gift for Leanne and her colleague. I had to be careful what I spent as my laptop had started running slow and it looked like I needed to buy a new one for work – more expense I could have done without. Here’s what I spent and the prices in lira:
Migros Supermarket
Plastic bag 0.50
2 packets of biscuits 20.00
2 tins of chopped tomatoes 40.00
3 bottles of Angora white wine 470.22
Total spent 530.72 lira (£17.02)
The Angora wine was on offer which was a real bonus so I got a couple of bottles for home. I dropped a bottle of wine and some biscuits off with Leanne to show my appreciation and called into A101 shop on my way home. I bought some fresh figs for 19.90 lira (59p) as I love them.
Vanessa popped over in the afternoon and she brought me Matt’s old laptop to use, which was a real help! She also offered to come with me, back to Fethiye, to take the water bill and see if I would get my residency renewal. Sonuç probably couldn’t make it until later in the week so we decided we would go on Monday – what a good friend she is! For dinner I had another mystery meal from the freezer which I thought was going to be a casserole but it was actually a beef curry which was really good and went well with steamed rice.

Dalyan – 21st & 22nd September

My first day back in Dalyan on Thursday 21st September should have been a quiet one and, as I’d been away for a while, I had a few errands to run. The first job was bank related to sort out stuff for my forthcoming residency renewal meeting, the second was to contact Sonuç to ask if he had got my appointment date yet. It turned out that he had not been able to go any further with that while I was out of the country, because I had not yet paid for my health insurance for next year. I asked for a price and to get that sorted so we could proceed then went to the supermarket and bakery to get some provisions for breakfast. Here’s what I bought and the prices back in Turkish lira:

Fresh loaf of bread 7.50
1 punnet of plums 27.14
2 Quark 35.90
Total spent 70.54 Lira (£2.11)

I was surprised to see that Quark prices had increased, but good that plums were in season now and really cheap.
By the time I got home I had a price of 2,100 lira (£58.78) for a year’s insurance so I arranged to go in to the office and pay it. I also popped to the photographer for new passport sized photos at 200 lira (£5.60), again for the residency renewal application.
At 5pm I met Sonuc, and Leanne, at Lukka bar where I gave him my passport photos and signed some documents. He told me I worried too much and to stop taking any notice of what other people were saying about the renewal process and people getting rejected as I would be fine.
By 7pm I had popped round to Jamie’s to give him his birthday wine and the bottle of Tanqueray gin then accidentally ended up staying to try pineapple gin with diet lemonade which Jamie was having. It went down very well and I got asked to stay for dinner – a delicious veggie pasta bake with cheese. It was a lovely night and I was a bit tipsy when I got home. Drew was leaving for the UK the next day so it was good to have a bit of an impromptu send off session.

On Friday 22nd September I had more excitement in the diary; after a breakfast of fresh bread with butter and a cup of Yorkshire tea then a lunch of Toblerone and plums I was ready to get picked up for a quick trip out of Dalyan. I was going with a friend to Fethiye to run an errand. It went as expected and we even had chance to stock up on sea sickness tablets and some migraine tablets for a Dalyan dweller who was having trouble finding them locally.
Once we had done the task we went for, we had a cup of çay before coming back to Dalyan.
For dinner I made a Slimming World chicken and chickpea curry with steamed rice and it was rather good.

Lardos – 15th & 16th September

I don’t know if it was because Xena knew that Captain Caveman was leaving or that she had eaten something she shouldn’t have, but we were woken up at 4am on Friday 15th September with her being sick on the bedroom floor. She seemed fine after that but I decided to keep my eye on her today and not give her any of the leftovers or the bone from Valantina’s. At 6.30am we were at the bakery getting a sandwich for Captain Caveman to take with him on his 2 hour bus ride to Diagoras airport in Rhodes. The bus was at 7am so we said our goodbyes and, of course, I was sad to be parting ways again but it made sense for me to stay in Turkey while Captain Caveman spent the rest of his 41 days out of Turkey. Money was tight and I needed to work so there was no point me going with Captain Caveman, spending more money.

I took Xena for a walk, she was a bit sad and didn’t want to go far so we just did the short walking route which Steve had suggested. I had grapes, a peach and some yoghurt for breakfast and then worked from 11am to 4.15pm with breaks in between. This meant I had already worked a bit of my time from next week.
When I went to take some washing in, I noticed that someone had put some discarded takeaway food on to the terrace for the cats to eat. It looked greasy and smelled disgusting so I removed it and threw it away. Apollo was not happy with that decision and had a face on with me. When I fed the cats the Friskies, they went mental for it, apparently it’s got something in it that makes it very moreish. For my dinner I made egg fried rice which I had with some left over pork, onion and potatoes – it was very nice. Xena had snuggles as she was missing Captain Caveman and we had a quiet Friday night in. She wasn’t sick again but I wanted to stay in with her, just in case.

I was looking forward to sleeping in on Saturday 16th September but at 4.15am Xena was sick again. Trixie knew Xena was out of sorts so we all got on the sofa in the living room for cuddles. It was just bile but I was worried and decided to just walk her a short way around the block at 7am. By 7.30am we were back and Xena was hiding behind a tree in the garden while I watered the plants. Before 10am I had a video call with Captain Caveman who was concerned if Xena was ok too and came on the phone to talk to her.
Later, I decided to nip to the shops to stock up on things to take back to Turkey, as well as a few provisions to tide me over at Steve and Michelle’s for the next few days. I spent almost €18 (£16) on Teriyaki sauce, Sweet & Sour sauce, bacon lardons, cereal, pitta bread, crisps, plums and snackpots – using the rest of the cash Euros I had left. Aside from that quick shop, I stayed close to Xena and kept an eye on her.
For dinner I ate the mushroom snackpot, some crisps, bran flakes and a couple of plums. I watched a bit of TV but had an early night.

Lardos – 14th September

It was Captain Caveman’s last day in Rhodes on Thursday 14th September, as he was catching a flight to the UK tomorrow. He would spend a month in Europe, seeing family and friends and I hoped to meet him in Italy if work and funds allowed. I still had another 5 days in Rhodes then I was going back to Dalyan. He took Xena on her last morning walk with him and I knew they were going to miss each other.
Our first job of the day was to go to buy the pet food. I’d consulted with Steve who had told us which ones to get. The big supermarket they go to, near Faliraki, has it much cheaper than a local supermarket but we had no option as there was very little left.
At ABC Supermarket we bought the following:
Fairy Liquid 2.79
2 x Dog food 3.74
2kg Friskies Cat food 10.70
Total Spent €17.23 (£15.04)

After shopping, we saw Mark and Maria, in Memories bar sat having a coffee so we went to join them. I ordered a juice but Captain Caveman ordered an Alpha beer! By 12.30pm we had been for a walk to find the house Captain Caveman had booked for us and my parents when they come to visit next month. It was very close to the village centre and looked like it would be a lovely Airbnb so I was pleased. Next, we went to Cuckoo’s Nest for coffee (I had water) with Louise and Mark. It was Steve’s birthday today so we took a photo to send to him. Captain Caveman had been trying to have pistachio ice-cream since being in Lardos but they never seemed to have any. Today they did, on his last day, so he had one and I had a lemon sorbet.
Back home we had bread, hummus and Baba Ghanoush for lunch and we had plans to celebrate our last night together for a while, with a meal out. We didn’t have much money between us so we didn’t want to go mad. In Rhodes I can’t change lira and some places won’t accept my Turkish bank card.

We started our evening out with Mojitos at Cuckoo’s Nest and for some reason my Turkish bank card does not like the machine there as it wouldn’t work. Captain Caveman had to pay using the last of our cash Euros, aside from his bus fare to the airport tomorrow. We had a gorgeous meal that evening at one of my favourite restaurants in Rhodes, Valantina’s. Here’s what we had with the prices in Euros;
1 cheese balls starter 7.50
1 Moussaka 11.50
1 Tomahawk pork steak 15.90
2 Carafes of red wine 16.00
Total spent €50.90 (£44.43)

My pork steak and all the trimmings was amazing and I think Captain Caveman wished he’d had that, even though his moussaka was nice, just not as big a portion. Valantina’s was definitely on the list for when my parents visited Lardos too. The complimentary pomegranate ouzo shots went down well and we wandered home feeling satisfied, with some leftovers for me and Xena. We decided to finish off the night watching a bit of Jimmy Car on Netflix but Captain Caveman fell asleep.

Photo credit – some photos by Captain Caveman

Lardos – 11th & 12th September

I worked from 8.30am to 11.30 am on Monday 11th September, while Captain Caveman went shopping and prepared meals. Here is what he bought at the shops with prices in Euros;
ABC Supermarket
1 orange pepper 1.16
Orange juice 1.29
Mayonnaise 1.99
Grapes 2.08
Baba Ghanoush 2.50
Hummus 2.50
Eggs 2.69
Spaghetti 3.04
Cheese 3.12
Total Spent €20.37 (£17.65)

After a quick break to let Xena on the garden, check on the cats and discuss meal plans for today, I was back at work until 1pm. I had a chicken wrap for lunch with chicken, rocket and a bit of cheese then got back to work until 6pm.
At 6.30pm we went to the pharmacy and to buy another notebook and pen.
Here’s what I bought from the chemist, who was super helpful and offered advice on how to get rid of my eczema (which was definitely getting worse on my back):
Paracetamol tablets 2.00
Aerolin Inhaler 2.20
Imodium tablets 4.51
Aloe Vera Gel 12.00
14 Farviron Tablets 20.94
Total Spent €41.65 (£36.09)

I’d ran out of Aloe Vera gel, which I buy much cheaper in Dalyan and use to soothe my eczema so we had to pay the price. The medication to treat the eczema is an anti-fungal tablet, usually used to treat thrush. The chemist told me it was expensive but would definitely work so I took his advice and got it. This was probably the most expensive medication I had ever purchased. I had no idea how much it would be over the counter in England but I did think the inhaler was very cheap. On the way home we called in to the supermarket to cost up dog and cat food as we were running out and we decided to take photos and ask Steve and Michelle which would be best, before buying any. We weren’t flush and didn’t want to be wasting money unnecessarily, I also thought we had an extra cat as Steve had mentioned they had 13 but I was convinced there was 14.

We had a couple of drinks at Yamas Bar and then went home for a cat count to check that I wasn’t feeding one extra. Captain Caveman made a pasta with pesto sauce for dinner which was very tasty and I was getting used to having my chef back. I put the aloe vera gel on, took the first of the 14 tablets and hoped the €21 had been worth it. We were going to watch another film but it was getting late so we went to bed after pet cuddles.

I worked 9am to 4pm on Tuesday 12th September, with breaks for lunch and pet checking. I had buttered toast and a cup of tea for breakfast, once Captain Caveman and Xena had come back from their walk and the cats had all been fed. We had a bit of a picnic style lunch with all of the stuff we had in the fridge. At 6pm I had got myself involved in a cat photo identification parade as I tried to work out which cat was which and who the extra one was. I had already eliminated Billy Big Bollocks from next door who came to bully Steve and Michelle’s cats and try to steal their food – he was not included in the total amount of cats. In the end, it turned out I was correct about the number of cats that Steve and Michelle were responsible for, but it was 13 plus Billy Big Bollocks who they sometimes feed but I hadn’t been! I’d been thinking that Winnie and the Bella Lookalike were different cats but they were actually the same one!
For dinner Captain Caveman made chicken fajitas with wraps and they were very good. We watched Ted Bundy & the Green River Killer later on but that was also a bit of a let-down and Captain Caveman fell asleep this time.

Lardos – 7th September

Captain Caveman and I had established roles by Thursday 7th September; I was in charge of cats, pet feeding, garden watering and working while Captain Caveman was responsible for laundry, dog walking and preparing lunch and dinner. Xena absolutely loves Captain Caveman and she was so much calmer under his watch, it was cute to see them together. I had a banana and a cup of tea for breakfast, he had some sausage/tomato and sourdough combo. For lunch we had Baba Ghanoush, hummus and pita bread. For dinner it was pasta again followed by peaches with yoghurt. I worked from 8am to 5.55pm with breaks in between.
There was more after work shopping and here are the items we got, with prices in Euros:

ABC Supermarket
Bag 0.15
Blue Cheese 1.80
Halloumi 3.32
Chicken 11.92
Total Spent €17.19 (£14.94)

The other supermarket
Bag 0.12
Mushrooms 0.61
Potatoes 0.88
Peppers 1.53
Eggs 1.53
Pesto 3.68
Total Spent €8.35 (£7.25)

Because I got a bit peckish in between meals I ended up eating some biscuits from the cupboard which were not diet friendly but I did only consume 14 syns, making it a total of 31 syns so far this week.

Lardos – 6th September

Wednesday 6th September was a much less hectic day. Captain Caveman and I started the day with a short walk round the block with Xena, the dog. We did 4km and were back home before 8am, for me to get ready for work and to feed the cats. As it was Fat Club day back in Dalyan, I got weighed on Steve and Michelle’s scales to find I was 1.3kg lighter than when I was last here, a month ago. Captain Caveman was 1.5kg more than last time. My measurements weren’t so good though, as I had lost 2cm from my bust but put on 4cm on my waist and 1cm on my hips.
For breakfast we were rather naughty and had croissants from the Lardos bakery on the way back from ABC Supermarket. Here’s what we bought at the supermarket and the prices in Euros:
Bag 0.15
Tomatoes 0.62
Pasta 0.79
Potatoes 0.89
Red Onions 1.03
Peaches 1.85
Hummus 2.37
Baba Ghanoush 2.50
Yoghurt 3.54
Gluten Free Sausages 4.58
Coffee 5.31
Total Spent €23.63 (£20.53)

As expected, the shopping basket in Rhodes is more expensive than what I’m used to in Turkey, but it wasn’t ridiculous.
After working for a couple of hours, I had a break for lunch with Captain Caveman, we had salad with the hummus and Baba Ghanoush and some lovely sourdough, also from the bakery. I went back to work until 6.15pm then had a break and another walk. On the way back home we called at a different supermarket to buy the following:
Washing Powder and Fabric Softener €9.79
3 boxes of passata €1.78
Toothpaste €1.35
Total Spent €15.55 (£13.51)

Toothpaste is more expensive in Dalyan but washing powder is almost half the price and it’s always interesting shopping in foreign supermarkets you’re not familiar with, while trying to pick out some bargains.
For dinner, Captain Caveman made sausage and veg pasta in a tomato based sauce, which was really delicious and had some leftovers for tomorrow.

Dalyan – 25th August

I spent the morning of Friday 25th August making sure I had all the paperwork and information that I needed for my residency renewal appointment. Next week we were able to apply for the appointment date as it can be applied for up to 60 days before my existing expiry date.
At 11am, we were all booked in to BC Spa for our spa treatments which consisted of a foam and scrub in the hamam, a face mask and a massage. The classic package cost us £35, lasted 75 minutes and was really good, even better than the last time I had it.
For lunch the 3 of us treated ourselves to a meal at Egehan with a glass of wine. We had complimentary starters of hummus, red pepper and walnut dip and baba ghanoush – all were delicious. For mains we had the following; Clare Sea Bass 370 lira (£11), Kelly meatballs 300 lira (£8.96) with an extra side salad instead of the usual rice and chips, I had mantı, Turkish pasta, 270 lira (£8.06). The food was delicious and it’s a lovely little boutique hotel with dining by the pool. After Egehan, the girls fancied an ice cream so I introduced them to the delights of Cherry Up where they both selected 3 scoops in a tub for 70 lira (£2.09) each. I’m not a huge ice-cream fan so I didn’t have any, I was still full from lunch.
Our next stop was the supermarket as we had decided to stay in at BC Spa tonight.
We chose to take a bit of a buffet/picnic approach where I bought the shopping and the girls bought the wine. Here’s what was in the shopping basket and the prices in lira:

Migros Supermarket

2 plastic bags 0.50
Apples 9.87
Chocolate biscuits 10.00
Turkey ‘ham’ slices 16.90
2 packs of normal sliced turkey 19.50
Cucumber 22.72
Tomatoes 36.25
Hummus 40.75
Plastic plates 49.50
Walnuts 53.50
Crispbreads 72.00
Pastrami slices 79.50
Smoked cheese 104.90
Smoked turkey slices 109.50
White cheese 119.90
Total spent 745.29 lira (£22.25)

Kelly and Clare thought it might make a nice addition to our evening dining to get some takeaway meat from the Kokoreç place. We waited for a fresh portion to be cooked but I wasn’t sure if it would be very nice, especially as I don’t tend to like eating lamb or goat. It cost 180 lira (£5.37) for just 100g so it wasn’t cheap but it is considered a delicacy in Turkey.

I called at home on the way back so that I could get changed and pick up a corkscrew, more wine from the fridge and a few bits and bobs from the fridge/cupboard. We had a feast and plenty of wine, while chatting away. The ofal didn’t end up getting eaten as it looked disgusting when we took off the lid and none of us could bring ourselves to taste the very fatty, now cold, meat. I got home after 1am, a little merry after another great day with my friends.

Dalyan – 23rd August

It was Captain Caveman’s last day in Phong Nha on Wednesday 23rd August; his caving season had ended and he would be off to Saigon tomorrow for some fun before he flew to Turkey.
Meanwhile in Dalyan, for some reason, I stopped writing down what I ate as from today which meant I was likely to go off track with my Slimming World Plan. I got weighed at home and had stayed the same as last week. Strangely, my measurements were a bit unusual this week; I’d put 4cm on my bust, lost 2cm from my waist and 4cm from my hips. This was the slimmest my waist had been in ages and was only 2cm away from my target. I still had Fat Club Carol’s scales to face this afternoon so I would see how I did there.
I popped to the bank to withdraw some cash as I was running low and had a leisurely morning. I checked flights to Naples and found that for me they were around £130 one way, via London or Istanbul. For my parents they were only around £25 from Manchester.
I messaged Kelly who was already on her way here, to ask about plans for meeting later. Fikri was already booked for a taxi to pick Kelly up from Dalaman airport when she landed at 9.35pm and take her to BC Spa, where she was staying for 5 nights. We agreed to play it by ear for this evening as she wasn’t certain how late it would be or how tired she might feel and would text me when she got to the hotel.
At Fat Club I had also stayed the same as last week which was a bit disappointing but, not a loss.
On my way home I did a bit of shopping and here’s what I got, with prices in lira.

Migros Supermarket

Green tea 16.90
UHT skimmed milk 20.50
1 can boiled beans 21.50
6 eggs 27.75
2 cans of pink grapefruit drink 30.00
Walnuts 44.50
Fabric Softener 67.50
Total spent 228.65 lira (£6.72)

Şok Supermarket

Plastic bag 0.25
Washing powder 175.25
Total spent 175.50 lira (£5.16)

Again, I’d made the sensible choice not to go to Rehab bar to meet the pool gang and be tempted to drink too much alcohol.
I did eat macaroni cheese balls done in the airfryer for lunch which was a bit naughty and not diet friendly at all. I sat on the balcony and chilled out a bit but the new holiday renters staying in the apartment opposite were very noisy, especially the father of the English family. They spent hours in the pool as it was still hot at 6pm, I couldn’t fault them even though I still hadn’t been in our pool yet.
For dinner I tried something new, airfryer cauliflower steaks and roasted veggies which I had on the balcony with a vodka and grapefruit.

At 11pm, Kelly contacted me from the hotel and was up for meeting up. I walked over to BC Spa and we had a big hug – it had been far too long! Thinking we would just go somewhere nearby, I suggested Okyanus for a drink and a catch up but it might have been the wrong choice. We ordered a bottle of white wine and Kelly had not had dinner so she asked our friendly waiter, Bakı, if she could just have tomatoes and cucumbers as a salad. He was very obliging and I’ve known him for some years now. He took a bit of a shine to Kelly so we couldn’t enjoy much of a private conversation without him joining us – one of the downsides of living in paradise but Kelly didn’t mind. I walked Kelly back the short distance to BC Spa where she had a lovely room and we arranged to meet tomorrow, ready for Clare arriving. I got in just after 1am and was so excited to have seen Kelly again, this next few days was going to be amazing!

Dalyan – 17th August

After feeding and playing with Molly for a bit on Thursday 17th August, I did a big shop. Here’s what I bought and the prices in lira:

Migros Supermarket

1 plastic bag 0.25
Green peppers 4.19
Cucumber 5.10
Cornflour 8.25
Courgettes 9.42
Noodles 14.90
Ginger 17.59
Apples 17.76
Fat free yoghurt 21.50
Cumin 27.90
Peaches 32.47
Broccoli 33.90
Olives 36.50
Spinach 37.90
Garlic powder 39.90
Wraps 41.50
4 X Quark 50.00
Green Beans 54.90
Mozzarella 59.90
Artichokes 63.90
Falafel 64.90
1 jar roasted red peppers 72.90
Mac & Cheese balls 74.90
Spray oil 79.90
Soap 87.66
Turkey slices 89.90
Cherries 100.72
Whikas Cat Food 111.66
1kg chicken 143.72
Frozen blackberries 159.90
Frozen raspberries 249.90

Total spent 1,829.69 lira (£53.62)

This was probably the most that I’ve ever spent in the supermarket this year in one shop and I struggled to carry it home.
I called in to a couple of other shops along the way back where I bought Airfryer liners and bun cases for 95 lira (£2.78), coconut milk for 60 lira (£1.76) and a water refill for 50 lira (£1.47).

I had fruit and quark for breakfast and I was trying hard not to fall off the Slimming World plan. I went back to check on, play with and feed Molly, she was pleased to see I’d got her more food. I took 112 lira out of the pot for the Whiskas too which had 8 pouches in.
For lunch I had some of the airfried chicken in a salad with beetroot and 2 cups of green tea. At 5.30pm I met Ann at Kefal tea gardens for a çay and a chat.
I checked on Molly again and let her know I would only be there twice tomorrow as I had plans. For dinner I made a chicken chow mein with mushrooms and broccoli in and it was delicious. In the evening I had an apple and some cherries but resisted alcohol, this meant my syns for the day were only 10.

Dalyan – 15th & 16th August

Fat Club had been moved to a day earlier due to the women’s football, so I got weighed at home on Tuesday 15th August to find I was 0.5kg lighter than last week. As always, Carol’s scales were what mattered so my real result would be this afternoon. I did my measurements to find I’d lost 1cm from my bust, my hips were the same but I’d put 1cm on my waist. I’d only drank alcohol 3 times in the last week, which was helping keep on track.
I went to Rob and Tracy’s to feed and play with Molly, the cat, and had just cherries for breakfast. On my way back home, I noticed that the gardening company had done a bit of pruning around the complex but it still wasn’t looking great. I popped back to Molly at lunch time and fed her some treats then it was time to get ready for Fat Club. I was disappointed to find I had stayed the same as last week on Carol’s scales.
I was a bit naughty when I went shopping, I got myself some treats. Here’s what I got at the shop and the prices in lira:

Şevikoğlu Supermarket

2 chocolate orange bars 6.50
Black tea 18.90
Greaseproof paper 23.90
Tortilla wraps 29.90
Gherkins 36.90

Total spent 116.10 lira (£3.41)

Seeing as I had no Yorkshire tea left, I’d had to resort to Turkish black tea, which I had with a couple of chocolate orange bars. The tea is meant to be good for eczema, which was not getting any better.
I fed and played with Molly again in the early evening before going home for dinner. I had a tandoori style chicken with a wrap and some quark. Then had another treat of popcorn and crisps while watching Netflix.

Wednesday 16th August was pay day for me and I’d been invited to go up to Rehab bar in the afternoon. I have no interest in watching football, women’s or otherwise, so I decided on a nice relaxing day at home. I had a green tea and some beans on wholemeal toast for breakfast. I made a pizza wrap in the airfryer for lunch then had a healthy feta and beetroot salad for dinner. I also cooked the whole chicken in the airfryer so that I had meat for the rest of the week’s meals.
I took my cat sitting duties seriously and went to look after Molly 3 times, she really was a sweet cat.
That evening, I finished off the bottle of rosé wine at home and watched Netflix.

Dalyan – 14th August

By 8am on Monday 14th August I was in Rob and Tracy’s apartment feeding Molly, the cat. While I was there, I took some photos, played with Molly and spoke to Captain Caveman who was at a party with some porters. We discussed me meeting him in Naples at the beginning of October but the flights went via London which was a bit of a faff and they weren’t particularly cheap. Before work, I had cheese on toast for breakfast, but no Yorkshire tea as I had ran out. I messaged our gardening company, to let them know they needed to tidy the grounds of our complex and they replied to say they would come today – they didn’t.
I went back to check the cat at lunch time and, as the owners had not left enough food or cat litter in for Molly, I located the spare cash as instructed by Rob. I would check the price when I next went to the supermarket as I had no idea how much cat food was, these days. I played with Molly for a bit, she’s a lovely cat but a bit on the chunky side. I took more photos and admired the river view. Back at home, I had mantı (Turkish pasta) for lunch then got back to work.
I went to meet Kate, Mark and Jamie at Sofra bar at 7pm Kate explained she’d been unable to bring me a 2024 diary back from England and she’d forgotten about the Yorkshire tea. I was back to being on a constant look out for a diary as I was getting quite booked up for 2024 already. I messaged Captain Caveman and he said he would try to get me some Yorkshire tea and a diary when he came back from Vietnam in 2 weeks. I finished my drink, kept hold of Teddy, the AWOL dog, until Ghislaine came to collect him again then I went back to feed Molly.
I called at the shops for some provisions and got the following items:

Migros Supermarket

Plastic bag 0.25
Mints 9.50
Popcorn 15.00
Salt & Vinegar crisps 21.00
745g Cherries 89.33
644g chicken thighs 96.28
2kg whole chicken 113.34

Total spent 344.70 lira (£10.17)

Bim Supermarket

Brown sliced loaf 13.75 lira (41p)

It was late by the time I was going home and I’d forgotten to get anything out for dinner. I decided to have a Hatay kebab which tasted great at the time but I’m sure I’d come to regret it at Fat Club on Wednesday.

Dalyan – 6th to 8th August

I didn’t get out of bed to feed the cats until 7.15am on Sunday 6th August. I was feeling tired. After feeding the cats and watering the plants I did a bit of blogging. I was quite behind and really needed to catch up. I’d mistakenly thought I’d be able to do that while I was house and pet sitting but the internet wasn’t up to much. It also meant that I probably wouldn’t be able to work online from this house tomorrow and I decided to rearrange my work schedule. I had beans on toast for lunch and lots of fresh fruit. Kate suggested I turn her home grown tomatoes in to sun-dried ones but, instead, I made a fresh tomato sauce to go with some pasta and ate it for dinner.
I got messages from Kelly and Clare, who were looking forward to arriving in Dalyan later in the month and I was getting excited for their visit. Captain Caveman would also be back on their last day so we could all do something together. I was in bed before 10pm, picking out recipes from Carol’s Slimming World book.

Monday 7th August followed a similar pattern to the previous day; cat feeding, plant watering, blog editing. I’d decided to work from home once back at home so I had a little swim. Unfortunately, my eczema seemed to be getting worse, possibly from the chemicals in the pool. The cats were more playful today, especially as I tried to drink my tea from a Yorkshire tea mug.
I had mantı (Turkish pasta) for lunch and popped to Migros and Rehab bar on the puff truck in the late afternoon. I needed to pay my bar bill which was 240 lira (£7.22) for the 3 pints I had on Saturday.
At Migros I bought soup, cooked meats and some aloe vera gel (for my eczema) for a total of 114.26 lira (£3.44). Back at Mark and Kate’s, there was more cat feeding then I had a turkey and lettuce wrap for dinner. Another early night was had but I decided that tomorrow I would go back to our apartment to work from there in the day time.

When I woke up on Tuesday 8th August the power was off but I didn’t know if it was a widespread power cut or not. I fed the cats then I took the puff truck back to my place where the power was on and I messaged people who live in the same area as Mark and Kate to check if they had power. It turned out to be everyone in the area. I made Slimming World friendly pancakes from egg and banana for breakfast and did a bit of work. I had 2 Yorkshire teas as a nice treat before getting the laptop out.
I had an airfryer jacket potato with cheese and a Linden tea for lunch, which was lovely. I spoke to Captain Caveman for the first time in a while (he’s not one for keeping in touch or asking how I’m doing) and we came up with a holiday plan. Once he was over in Turkey, he could only spend 90 days here so he intended to go to England and Europe for about 40 days. He did ask if I wanted to go too but I just couldn’t afford it, so I said no. We did think I could possibly meet him in Naples or Rome though, as the flights between Italy and Rhodes were so cheap. I said I’d consider that and went back to work until 5.15pm.
Back at Mark and Kate’s I fed the cats and watered the plants, while our own garden seemed to be neglected in comparison and we have a maintenance company there. That evening, I spoke to Ma and Pa and suggested meeting in Italy as per Captain Caveman’s idea. They were also open to this plan and we said we would factor it in to our October holiday. It was almost midnight when I went to bed, tomorrow I had a busier day planned.

Dalyan – 1st & 2nd August

I had another healthy day on Tuesday 1st August. For breakfast I had banana, peach, strawberries with quark and a herbal tea. I went to buy another water for the cooler to find it had now gone up to 50 lira (£1.50) for 19 litres but he did deliver it quicker than last time.
For lunch I had a chicken and veg pasta then I worked for about 3 hours in the afternoon, once it had cooled down a bit. I was conscious that I was off to Fat Club tomorrow so I was trying my best to be good, it was my third day without alcohol too. I had wholemeal toast for dinner and then decided to pop out to the shops because there seemed to be an increase in the amount of ants we had in the apartment. Here’s what I bought and the prices in lira;

Migros supermarket

Boiled beans 16.90
Bulgur wheat 27.95
Tomato paste 32.50
Ant spray 45.25
Total spent 199.15 lira (£5.96)

Şarküteri
2 tins Heinz baked beans 90.00
Cheddar cheese 110.00
Total spent 200.00 lira (£5.98)

The English products were obviously more expensive here but I really fancied treating myself to beans and cheese.

I was on a last-ditch attempt to have lost weight this week on Wednesday 2nd August. I weighed myself on the home scales and I seemed to have done ok but we would have to go by Carol’s official scales at Fat Club. My measurements were less favourable; bust -2cm, waist +2cm, hips +3cm. This wasn’t boding well for a loss this week and I had consumed 266 syns in total, on a 110 syn allowance!
I’d done an hour’s work when I noticed the water in the cooler was only half full – it was leaking! I googled how to fix it and did, then mopped up the floor! I had slimming world friendly ‘pancakes’ for breakfast which were made from 2 of my least favourite foods; eggs and bananas mashed together and cooked. I drank 2 Lotus teas and a litre of water, I also made 3 omelettes and popped them in the freezer for egg fried rice at a later date. For lunch I had veggie pasta and another litre of water.
I finished work at 2.30pm and walked over to Fat Club. I was pleased to find that I had actually lost 0.8kg (1.8lbs) which was great. I went back home to finish off some work before heading back out to the bank and then to Rehab bar to see whoever was left of the pool gang. Mark, Kate, John and Andrea were still there so I joined them for a drink, with it being pay day. I limited myself to 2 pints of draft Efes and then joined Mark and Kate for another drink (a glass of red wine) at Rodrigo’s. Mark ordered a burger from the burger place next door while Kate and I had chicken rice and chickpeas (really tasty and healthier) from across the road.
I walked home via the river and took some photos of the boats along the way. After a cup of tea, I had an early night as I was working tomorrow and then off for a week of cat sitting.

Dalyan – 26th to 28th July

On Wednesday 26th July I made a concerted effort to get back in control of the diet and budget. I had a month until my friends from England visited and I wanted to be able to lose a bit of weight and save some money before they arrived. The last few weeks had been very slack in both those departments and I needed to get back on it.

I had strawberries, cherries and quark for breakfast with cinnamon tea then I remembered to take my measurements. I’d put 1cm on my bust, stayed the same on my waist and lost 1cm from my hips.
I had cheese, rice crackers and olives with more cinnamon tea for lunch and I worked until 2.35pm.
At 3pm I was at Fat Club to face Carol’s scales and start again on my weight loss journey. To my absolute amazement, I’d lost 0.3kg this week and was able to rush back to my laptop feeling quite motivated. I finished work at 5.35pm and went to see which reprobates were left at Rehab bar after pool. It was just the hardcore few so I had a couple of pints of Efes with Mark and Kate who I’d not seen properly in ages and I’d missed them. We took a photo of the 3 of us to send to Steve and Michelle, in Rhodes, who were really going through some horrendous fire situations and we wanted them to know we were thinking of them.

I got a lift with Mark and Kate, on the puff truck, round to Jamie’s where I had been invited over for an impromptu BBQ. I tried to be good and only drank half a bottle of red wine, had plain chicken, beef and salad. Unfortunately I found it impossible to resist Drew’s homemade croutons, nan bread, peanuts and Nanny Kay’s brownie. I’d been feeling a little sad, worrying about Steve and Michelle, their friends and all the animals affected by the Rhodes fires. Everyone did their best to cheer me up, Nanny Kay even wore her sandals which she’d got from Rhodes and we sent love to Steve and Michelle to try to show support. Towards the end of the night we even discussed a mini break to Rhodes with my friends.
As we were leaving, Ann suggested a nightcap in town so she and I popped to Cafe Ivy for a drink. I got home and went straight to bed, looking forward to a lazy day tomorrow.

I helped a friend with a holiday itinerary on Thursday 27th July and did a few chores at home. I popped a beef and pumpkin curry in to the slow cooker for dinner too. It was far too hot to go out but I did need some provisions. I made a shopping list for when the sun had gone down. Steve and Michelle were back home but there was still a chance of resurgence as the winds were unpredictable in Rhodes. I had fruit for lunch and drank lots of water and herbal tea.
By 7pm I’d been to the bank and was swanning round Migros getting some shopping in. They didn’t have all that I had on my list so I also had to go to Şok, here’s what I bought and the prices in lira;

Migros supermarket

2 Quark 23.80
1 Tupperware box 25.37
1 pack Linden tea 27.50
Blueberries 29.90
Bananas 34.44
Rice 41.50
Kitchen roll 48.77
575g mince beef 109.00
Total spent 340.28 lira (£10.23)

Şok supermarket

Chicken meatballs 27.50
Jasmin rice 29.50
Chicken burgers 33.50
Oats 34.00
Cheese balls 42.50
Basmati rice 44.50
Pizza wraps 44.90
Total spent 256.40 (£7.71)

My beef curry was lovely, I had plenty left for the freezer and I was ready for another early night.

On Friday 28th July my friend, Annie, let us know that she was on her way to Dalyan. As I ate my breakfast, she suggested that her and I join a boat trip tomorrow as the weather forecast for the next few days was scorching hot with very little breeze. Of course, what kind of a friend would I be if I didn’t go one better than joining an existing boat trip. Before lunch I’d arranged a private boat trip with Princess of Ekincik and invited a few friends to join us.
I had fruit for breakfast, and a pizza wrap in the airfryer for lunch because the AC man was due over. I’d asked Leanne at King Emlak if we could get a workman round to service the units as they didn’t seem to be working properly. She’d just messaged me to say he would have to come over the weekend, when he arrived. He proceeded to drag the TV, which is directly beneath the living room AC unit, from the wall. This ripped the wires out of situ and disrupted the small DVD cupboard as it’s all attached. He was not careful at all so I rushed in to help, wearing what can only be described as beachwear. In the end, I had to go and sit on the balcony as he was making a bit of a mess and I was annoyed that he’d pulled all the wires out for the TV and internet out when I had no idea how to put them back.
He took a while, had to replace two broken capacitors and I still wasn’t sure how much more than a service it was going to cost me. When he left he didn’t even clean the floors and told me to get the mop out! Luckily, he did fix the cupboard and TV, making sure that and the internet worked, so I was relieved. I tried to get Leanne to send a cleaner but she was busy so it looked like I’d have to do it. On a more positive note, the AC was working much better and it was pretty chilly. Leanne even gave me a great AC tip; put it on to dehumidifier around 25°C and it will do it’s thing!
I ate leftover beef curry, with nan bread warmed in the airfryer, for dinner. I’d had trouble getting the remaining curry in to the freezer so I took a random box of Tupperware out with pineapple in so that I could finish that off.