Sheffield and Pontecarlo – 5th August

I worked and packed my things up in the morning of Tuesday 5th August. Mom came in to ask if I fancied a roast pork sandwich for lunch from the shop and I’d not had one this visit so, of course, I said yes. All 3 of us went for a walk as I wanted to get Captain Caveman a tin opener. He’d declined to buy the £1 one in IKEA which was probably rubbish so I got him one for a whopping £7 from the Co-op.
Ma left Pa with me while she went to the post office and cash machine but the sandwiches were ready before she returned. I had everything but dripping on, Dad had everything and Mom had her’s without apple sauce. I paid £14.60 for 3 sandwiches and a packet of pork scratchings which I didn’t think was bad and is cheaper than Beres. My sister, Gayle, popped round in the afternoon with Sumo, the dog, and we all said our goodbyes, hoping to see them in Turkey soon enough.
I got the 5.30pm bus in to town for £2.60 and then I got the 18.49 train from Sheffield to Wakefield Kirkgate. There, it was after 7pm and the waiting room closes so I was really cold in the wind as I had to wait 20 minutes for the train to Pontefract Tanshelf. I ate a packet of salt n vinegar discos while I waited and wondered why I’d not been eating more crisps this visit. I didn’t realise there were no toilet facilities at the station so I was pretty desperate for a pee when I got on the train. Luckily the train had toilets and it meant I arrived just after 8pm to be met by Captain Caveman, without jogging about for the loo.
He took my bag and we walked straight to the Robin Hood pub ready for the quiz. There were no seats inside and the huge beer garden was very smokey so we stood up next to the entrance. The quiz was a good one where we didn’t embarrass ourselves but we didn’t win. I had cherry beers and, at half time, they did sandwiches which were welcomed. I’m not usually a fan of a pub quiz, especially with genius Captain Caveman, but I did enjoy this one.
I was tired by the time we walked home so it was straight to bed without even checking where all the IKEA items were.

Gratitude List
1. Pork sandwiches with my parents
2. Being able to say bye to Gayle and Sumo
3. Pub quizzing in Pontecarlo with Captain Caveman.

Pontecarlo – 30th July

Captain Caveman had meetings from 9am on Wednesday 30th July and I had them from 10am. My Giffgaff phone was not responding well to being a hotspot for me to work from so I volunteered myself to do the breakfast sandwich run. Tuck In (great name for a sarnie shop) was just a few metres up the road and I ordered a bacon and tomato sandwich for Captain Caveman and a sausage sandwich for me. The 2 staff in there were really friendly and were asking if I was new round here. I explained I was visiting my other half who had just moved in and that we hadn’t yet had chance to stock up etc. The lady there recommended we use the Olio app to get free or cheap stuff, which was really nice of her. The sandwiches were lovely and it certainly wouldn’t be our last time there.
I took some photos of Captain Caveman’s new abode and then noticed I had a Resort Experts review from one of my close friends and now a customer. It was lovely and I was really pleased as, for some reason, it’s often more difficult to convince friends to support your business, while complete strangers are more likely to buy from you.
I attended my last Substack Zoom training with Ade at 10am and added to my to do list to look at setting up a profile, next month. Hopefully, this would bring more strangers in to my online world for both holidays and my book(s).
I made a shoping list for the house and then got on with more work until Captain Caveman’s lunch break. We drove to the supermarket and here’s what we bought with prices in pounds;

Tesco Supermarket
Fajita seasoning 0.85
8 Tortillas 0.99
150g Raspberries 1.70
500g peppers 1.79
4 toilet rolls 1.80
1 kitchen utensil 2.25
650g chicken breasts 5.10
4 way Extension cable 6.50
Plug adaptor 8.00
Total spent £28.98

I was looking forward to being able to use my new clubcard but I only had an email with the number on. A member of staff had to come over and key it in as I hadn’t downloaded the app which had a pretend card on it. I was hoping I’d get sent a physical card but, apparently, not any more. We did get 28 club card points, though, but not much use to me in Turkey.
For lunch Captain Caveman made himself something and I went to the shop for a sausage roll. It was a minimum spend of a fiver on a card so I treated myself to something I’d not seen before – a Ponte Pig. It’s like a gingerbread man but in the shape of a pig and was very nice. The shop staff were all friendly and I was really liking Pontefract, so much so that I’d started to affectionately refer to it as Pontecarlo.

At 1.30pm there was a delivery and I was so excited that it was for me! Captain Caveman had ordered me a new suitcase with detachable wheels, and small enough to fit under the seat on a plane! It was great and I could get more stuff than I thought I would in it!

To celebrate my new luggage we decided to have a walk through the area to a pub, The Carleton. It was one of those Greene King pubs and seemed to be very good with lots of different events on. A board advertised a monthly dog walk on the last Sunday of each month and lots of quizzes. We had a pint there which was less than £9 for 2 and then we walked back for Captain Caveman to cook us our first meal at home.

He’d already bought a big electric paella type pan so we had delicious chicken fajitas. He made his own tomato salsa and we were grateful for the 2 plates my Mom had given us. We drank white wine which I splashed out £9 on for a bottle, at the local shop. We didn’t have any wine glasses so we drank out of Mr & Mrs mugs, left by the previous tennants. The food was tasty and we had a great first full day in Pontecarlo – still no internet as Virgin are shit, but that’s too boring a story!

Gratitude List
1. Breakfast butties from Tuck In
2. A first try of a Ponte Pig
3. A lovely evening with Captain Caveman in Pontecarlo.

Sheffield to Pontefract – 29th July

$Sheffield to Pontefract – 29th July$

Tuesday 29th July was full of excitement as I was leaving Mosborough and Sheffield to go visit Captain Caveman at his new home in Pontefract. A place I’d not been to for quite some years. I worked in the morning then had a tea break where my Mom offered to give Captain Caveman her big slow cooker and I said he’d have it – ideal for batch cooking! I also tried some fab chocolate cookies from Aldi. My sister came to say bye and I gave her a copy of my book as she had still not managed to order one to read. She’s the funny one of the family so it would be interesting to see what she thought of it.

I said my farewells and rushed for the 3.35pm bus from Mosborough to Sheffield train station. The train wasn’t until 4.44pm so I had a browse round M&S and the Whistlestop before going to the platform. My first train was on time to Wakefield Kirkgate where I had to wait 11 mins for the next train to Pontefract. I arrived at Pontefract Tanshelf station at 6.02pm and Captain Caveman was there to meet me. It was very cold and looked like rain as we walked to the big Tesco to get something for dinner. It was obvious that if we had a club card we would save quite a lot, so I asked the very helpful security guard where we could get a club card. We had to get it online although he did offer to let us use his this time. We decided we would leave the big shop until tomorrow, apply for the club card and go check out a pub in town.

We arrived at the Malt Shovel, where I had an overwhelming sense of deja vu. We ordered drinks which were cheap but the barmaid insisted I had a taster of the pale ale with it being expensive at £4.60 a pint!! I applied for the Tesco club card and then had to go outside to have a look around, I felt sure I’d been here before. When I saw the alley next to the pub I realised it was the building where I sometimes had worked on Saturdays as a mortgage advisor at the Alliance and Leicester. I recognised the back upstairs rooms as well as the place now being made in to a strange bar called Society. I worked out it was probably over 30 years ago since I’d been there.

Next, we walked towards where Captain Caveman lived and called at another pub, the Robin Hood. This was a much more cosy place which happened to have a quiz on Tuesdays. We got chatting to some locals but we didn’t stay for the quiz as we needed to get home and eat.

It was about a 10 minute walk up a hill and Captain Caveman was living on a quiet road near to a Chinese takeaway, a sandwich shop and a newsagents/off licence shop. The Chinese was closed for a holiday so Captain Caveman bought us a bottle of red wine from the shop and we decided to order a pizza from nearby Papa John’s. While we waited for the delivery, I got a tour of the house. It was mostly unfurnished but did have a double bed with wardrobes in one bedroom. The kitchen was nice and modern but with very little crockery and the downstairs bathroom had a bath with a shower over it but no bathmat and only the one towel! There was no internet because Captain Caveman was waiting for Virgin to install the cable. All of the outside dustbins were rammed full from when the previous tenants had moved out and they had also left quite a few items. Luckily there was a washer, a tumble dryer, an oven/grill, a fridge and a freezer so all was good. Overall, I liked the house and could see Captain Caveman being happy there, for at least the next 6 months.
The pizza arrived and it was lovely, washed down with the wine while sat on camping chairs at the folding table/desk!

Gratitude List
1. Spending time with family
2. A trip to Pontefract to see Captain Caveman’s new home
3. Pizza and wine with Captain Caveman.

Sheffield – 27th July

I really enjoyed spending Sunday 27th July with Captain Caveman, Ma & Pa. I had tea and toast for breakfast followed by finishing off the butter chicken and rice from Friday night. We chilled out and I also managed to eat the M&S salad I still had in the fridge. In the afternoon, Captain Caveman and I went for a walk to the new Mosborough Co-op which had been the talk of the village. Mom had got a Co-op card so we took that but it turned out she needed a different coloured one. The Co-op was quite impressive and had lots of choice. Here’s what we bought with prices in pounds;

Co-op
Antihistamines 2.30
1 bottle of white wine 7.65
Total spent £9.95

When we got back, Ma had excelled herself with a roast chicken Sunday dinner with all the trimmings. Ma and I sat upstairs in the new comfy chairs with a glass of wine while it cooked and it was really nice with the sun streaming in. The dinner was fantastic and Captain Caveman was particularly impressed with the Yorkshire puddings and stuffing.
After eating, we drank wine in the living room and just relaxed after a boozy weekend. Captain Caveman was off back to Pontefract tomorrow, I would join him in a couple of days so he booked me my train tickets.

Gratitude List
1. A visit to Mosborough Co-op
2. Spending the day with my parents
3. A fantastic Sunday Dinner (I forgot to take photos).

Sevenoaks – 20th July

While Captain Caveman was due back to London on the morning of Sunday 20th July, I was settling in to my new home in Otford, near Sevenoaks, for the next 5 nights. It was cold, I wish I’d brought more clothes and Captain Caveman bought me a train ticket up to Sheffield for Friday so that we could see family, friends and go to the Tramlines music festival. Claire drove us to the station so that I could pick up my tickets and Captain Caveman could get his train back to Barnes. I was both sad to say bye to Captain Caveman, after 9 days together, but excited to be spending some time with Claire and her family, plus Reg the dog!
Claire and I popped to Sainsbury’s where I wanted to pay for the shopping but she was having none of it as she grabbed some food for a Sunday roast. Of course we had to take a photo of us messing about at the scanner! I accompanied Claire and Reg to take her daughter to an activity in the afternoon, while Claire’s hubby, Mark, sorted out a roast dinner with help from his daughter who was on to Yorkshire pudding and cookies. The Go Active briefing was interesting and I even ventured in to the venue to go to the loo. While all the other parents got to chat on, Claire and I took off with Reg the dog for a walk. We’d just set off when it started to rain – thankfully I had left my raincoat there last time!

Back home, we had a nice cup of tea and sampled Mark’s daughter’s cookies – that girl is a talented chef! I was also treated to an amazing Sunday roast with pork and crackling, roast potatoes, plenty of fresh vegetables, gravy and the most amazing Yorkshires I’d had in a while! Of course, there was wine which then lead on to us having an absolutely hilarious and random evening! It started with the cheese slapping game – let me explain for those not familiar; 2 people take it in turns to ask each other questions about themselves and if they get a wrong answer they are slapped in the face with a cheese slice! It was my first time playing it with Claire’s daughter and my face hurt from laughing, everyone was surprised how many I got right and Reg the dog loved it when the cheese fell on the floor. There was much laughter and confusion when Claire did selfies on Snapchat and made us in to men – both of us decided we were much more attractive as fellas too! We played more games – this time there was Claire, Mark, the 2 daughters and me. It was so funny and I wasn’t as good at the next game.

I’m not sure who had the bright idea of getting the karaoke out (it was Claire!) at 9pm on a school night but – I loved it! It was so funny when I was being told off by a kid for not knowing the lyrics to a Taylor Swift song. Poor Mark was probably wondering what on earth he had let himself in for by agreeing to me staying!

Gratitude List
1. Spending time with Claire and her family
2. Roast Pork dinner with all the trimmings
3. Evening entertainment to rival a weekend at Butlins!

Photo Credit – some photos by Claire and Mark

Dalyan – 18th July

To celebrate Captain Caveman’s birthday on Friday 18th July I decided to get him out for a coffee and a croissant before work. We went to a local coffee shop called Hermanos, where I had a pain au chocolat with an earl grey tea and Captain Caveman had a plain croissant with a double espresso. I enjoyed mine but Captain Caveman wasn’t impressed. He popped to the shop while I drank my pot of tea and he bought a Hovis wholemeal loaf for £1.39 from Sainsbury’s.

We were back home and working before 9am and Captain Caveman had a very busy day ahead so we would celebrate his birthday tonight. I had a sandwich for lunch around 1pm and we finally finished work about 6pm. Captain Caveman’s Ma had been to get a cake so we all gathered in the garden. Captain Caveman’s Pa was in charge of beverages and opened a bottle of fizz to mark the occasion. I was surprised to find out that singing Happy Birthday wasn’t required. I was having none of that and we sang, even though Captain Caveman isn’t one for celebrating birthdays particularly. The carrot cake was delicious and the bubbles was such a lovely thing to do, sat in a sunny spot in the garden. I’d even popped on a dress to wear as Mike and Gill had booked us in at Omm, a Lebanese restaurant, for dinner.

We had a nice stroll to the restaurant, Barnes is such a lovely area of London. It was my first time visiting Omm and I was very impressed. The place was stylish, there was lots of staff and we had a nice table. We decided to share lots of sharing plates and some rather pleasant Lebanese rosé wine. The food was absolutely delicious and we all had a great time. At the end of the meal, Mike and I got chatting to the owner who was really friendly. It was another one of my new favourite places to eat now. Captain Caveman fancied a nightcap in the pub on the way home so we persuaded Ma & Pa to join us. It was gone 10pm when we got to the Coach & Horses where the men ordered pints, I had my usual red wine and Gill had already had sufficient so decided it was time to call it a night.
Despite it being a normal working day for Captain Caveman and I, his birthday and turned out to be rather lovely – thanks to his parents. Tonight was my last night with Captain Caveman for a week, as we were going to be spending time apart, after a rather eventful Saturday!

Gratitude List
1. Getting to spend Captain Caveman’s birthday with him
2. Cake, candles and celebrations with the family
3. An excellent birthday meal at Omm.

Photo credit – some photos by Captain Caveman & Gill

London – 15th July

On Tuesday 15th July I had a mission to do for a lady I hadn’t seen for a while. We used to go to the same Turkish class in Dalyan a few years ago and she lives in Scotland. I’d responded to a request for help on Facebook as she needed her passports picking up from London and I was in London, or certainly a lot nearer than she was. I decided to take the morning off work and head in to the city. I got the train to Tottenham Court Road and then walked towards the British Museum to collect the passports at a small office. I’d got all the relevant paperwork and permission so I picked up the passports in a straightforward manner. I was going to visit the British museum afterwards but it was still closed.

By 10.45am I had wandered down the very empty street to a Burger King where I got myself a cup of tea and a sausage sandwich for just under a fiver. I let my friend know I had her passports and they were safe, I would post them up to Scotland from Barnes tomorrow. I was going to go straight back to Barnes but the weather started to take a bit of a turn, it started to rain and was extremely windy. Luckily, I wanted to buy a strapless bra and some hand luggage/wheelie case so I headed back towards the tube station to Uniqlo and Primark.
Captain Caveman had booked me my flight back to Dalaman and we had chosen to return on the 11th of next month. As the rain came down and it got chilly I wondered if a month in England was wise. I would be on the same flight as Drew and I just had hand luggage so I wanted to get something more useful than what I had now. I browsed for ages but only managed to buy a dress for £20 in Uniqlo and try on far too many bras which didn’t fit! I didn’t manage to find any bras but I did buy some treats instead, here’s the info with prices in pounds;

Primark
1 pack of travel bottles 1.00
Zebra Print Flipflops 1.50
A black backpack 10.00
Total spent £12.50

The backpack had been reduced from £24 and had a separate laptop section which I was pleased with. It came in handy to put all my stuff in as I braved the weather on Oxford Street. By 1.20pm the rain had eased off and the panic buying of umbrellas had subsided. I’d messaged a friend who works in London to see if she was free for lunch. She wasn’t, but could meet around 3.30pm so I decided to find something free to do until then.

Captain Caveman had recommended places nearby that I could do some sightseeing at, which was good. It might not have been the best choice given the weather, but I’d picked the Post Building which has a Roof Terrace worthy of checking out. If you’ve not been, it’s worth a look if you’re in the area and the man on the security desk is very nice and helpful. I did have to show photo ID and put my backpack through a scanner which I guess is the norm in London now.
The rain stopped and although it was quite blowy at the top of the Post Building, the views were amazing. It’s only on the 9th floor but it feels higher, there’s nowhere to sit, it’s just a view point and some pretty plants. There is also a toilet which I, of course, took advantage of. After taking some photos and chatting to a lady from Grantham about Doris Stokes, I made my way back down and out to Oxford Street. It had been a nice way to spend half an hour and it’s free so even better. I’d even learned something about mailbag delivery and chutes!

I decided to make my way back to Waterloo, hoping to catch a quick meet up with my friend when she finished work. I managed to resist a full English breakfast, fish and chips or anything else that wasn’t healthy. When I got to Waterloo I was hungry so I grabbed a late lunch of my favourite Super Nutty Wholefood salad from M&S and a chocolate bar for £4.80.
I ate it in the station while keeping an eye out for pesky pigeons then I wandered up to the pub to meet Liz. I bought a pint of Inchs cider for £7.20 and sat at a table next to the toilets.
When Liz arrived it was so good to see her, even if it was just for an hour before she got her train home. We laughed, chatted, almost cried and made the most of our catch up. I completely forgot to get a photo too, which I regretted as soon as I got on my train back to Barnes.

I messaged Captain Caveman to say I was on my way back and he was just finishing a taxing day at work. When I got back, Captain Caveman looked tired and we decided to go for a walk to the Coach and Horses and the shops. Captain Caveman bought me a glass of red wine and he had a pint of beer which was around £15 for the two. My red wine was really nice and I asked to get a photo of the bottle for future reference.
We decided to buy stuff for tomorrow’s meal too as we had both got very busy work days coming up. Here’s what we bought at Marks and Spencer, prices in pounds;

M&S
Fusilli pasta 0.75
Garlic baguette 1.30
Pilau rice 2.20
Indian starters 4.25
Lamb Rogan josh 4.15
Chicken tikka 4.40
Raspberries and blackcurrants 5.25
4 cans of Guiness 5.75
1 bottle of red wine 6.00
2 bottles of fizz 13.00
Total spent £47.05

Captain Caveman made sausage and veg pasta for dinner which we had with garlic bread. I was conscious to try not to eat so much bread so I only had 3 pieces and Captain Caveman polished off the rest. By 9.15pm we were on the sofa in the lounge, trying not to fall asleep when the heavy rain came. I remembered that Captain Caveman had opened the upstairs bedroom window and went up to check it was closed in case rain could get in. I hadn’t seen rain for a bit so I stood and watched it, feeling quite chilly and wishing I’d brought some socks!

Gratitude List
1. Being able to help save time, money and stress for a friend by picking up her passports
2. Sightseeing and seeing Liz in London
3. Spending time with Captain Caveman after our busy days.

Barnes -12th July

Saturday 12th July was such a wonderful day which started with me waking up cold at 7am – I was still on Turkish time. I got weighed on the bathroom scales, more as a benchmark to see what I weighed on those scales and to track while I was in the UK. The scales said I was 1.3kg (2.9lb) lighter than I had been on Carol’s scales last Wednesday.
That meant I was only 1.1kg (2.4lb) over target and I knew that I was going to be enjoying quite a few treats that weren’t Slimming World friendly while I was in England. Captain Caveman made me bacon sandwiches for breakfast and I had a cup of tea. Shockingly, it wasn’t Yorkshire tea but I still drank it. We had a trip out to the Farmer’s Market and the supermarket where I got my first glimpse of a couple of things; 1) how expensive things were going to be compared to Dalyan and 2) how much more choice there would be available to me. Here’s what we bought with the prices in pounds;

Farmers Market
1 Black pudding
1 Sausage roll
1 Scotch Egg
1 Pork Belly
Total spent £15

M&S
Milk 0.75
1 bag of salad 1.70
Cream cheese 2.50
Sourdough 2.65
Shropshire blue cheese 2.75
2 Avocados 3.70
Red Leicester cheese 3.80
250g Raspberries 3.90
Total spent £21.75

Today was an important date in the Barnes calendar as it was the day of the Barnes Fair. We’d planned my trip especially so that I could experience it for the first time. Luckily, I had arrived in the heatwave of England as all of my UK friends had been warning me about. I’d only brought summer clothes, sandals and flipflops with high expectations of enjoying the English summer while escaping the heat in Dalyan.
By 1pm we had started to browse the stalls of the fantastic Barnes Fair and I had spotted a Zebra stool that I thought would make a great present for a friend, who’s birthday BBQ we were going to next weekend. We ummed and ahhed about the logistics of taking it on a train and whether it would even fit with their design of the new house and decided to leave it for now.
We wandered round the various stalls which were really good but I was conscious not to buy anything I didn’t need. We did stumble upon a gift that was easier to carry and bought artisan chilli jam products from a lovely lady at Chilli Porter. While Captain Caveman took the stuff back to the house, I perused the list of stalls and took a photo of the map in case I got lost. I spoke to one of the organisers and volunteered Captain Caveman for the hold a plank competition. Upon his return, Captain Caveman was not up for the competition and we went off to the Sun Inn pub for a lunchtime beverage. Here 2 pints were £15 and everything was being served in plastic cups because of the event. We shared a table with a few interesting people and the atmosphere was very nice.
Back home, I posted some photos on the family WhatsApp group as I was so impressed with the fair. It was very warm for London and we had a bite to eat, some water and some raspberries at home. I then fell asleep on the sofa (perhaps from too much excitement)!

At 5pm, Captain Caveman woke me up and we went back to Barnes Fair for another look around. We wanted to find certain stalls on our list and end at the Brown Dog. We didn’t find the Brown Dog stall so settled for the Wimbledon Brewery one. I chose a glass of pink fizz for £8.50 but they didn’t have any left. There was champagne for £11 but I was reluctant to pay that much to drink it from a plastic flute, so I didn’t bother. Captain Caveman ordered a pint of SW19 for £7.50 and had to pay an extra £2 for the plastic cup deposit. I was a bit shocked by this and even more surprised when they couldn’t give the refund at the end as they had no process in place. It was getting a bit busy, lots of families with prams and dogs and it was actually a bit sweaty.

We decided to stroll round to the Coach and Horses for a pint, still £14 for 2, but served with a better service, a friendlier attitude and an apology for their plastic cups. Next, we wandered round to the Brown Dog where it was only £12 for 2 pints, in glasses, and I had a rhubarb beer which was great.
Back home, Captain Caveman made pasta for dinner, which should have been last night’s meal. It was good but I was so tired that as soon as I got on the sofa, I fell asleep.

Gratitude List
1. Barnes Fair
2. Sunny England
3. Having fun with Captain Caveman.

Dalyan – 9th July

It was my last weigh day for at least a couple of weeks on Wednesday 9th July. I was feeling quite confident that I would have lost weight, especially as I had not touched a drop of alcohol for 5 days. I did my measurements and had lost 1cm from my bust and waist and lost 3cm off my hips. I was pleased with that as I was 2cm under target on my bust and only over by 1cm on both waist and hips. When I got on the home scales, I was disappointed to find I had put 0.15kg (0.3lb) on. Hopefully Carol’s scales would be kinder at Fat Club later. I shoved the ingredients for a chicken fajita dish in the slow cooker, which would be ready for mid afternoon.
I worked until midday when I was learning something new (again). I had decided to join a free zoom call about Substack. I’d only just found out about this new platform which is ideal for writers and I wanted to find out more. The session with Ade went well and I got a lot out of it, I decided to wait until I had attended the next session before setting up my Substack.
I carried on with work and stopped to go to Fat Club at 3pm. To my further disappointment, I had put on 0.6kg (1.3lb) so I wasn’t too pleased. On the way back home I popped in to Migros where I bought several packs of sweets and chocolate to restock my collection. I bought 7 items for 225.95 lira (£4.18) and decided I would pack some in my hand luggage for my trip to the UK this weekend. I quickly had a chicken fajita wrap, then I worked until almost 7pm. I went to meet friends at Kaunos tea garden, which was nice and I paid just 40 lira (74p) for a lemon soda.
Captain Caveman had wanted to have a call but I had to say I’d ring when I got home. I finally got to chat with him at 11.15pm so we didn’t really talk much.

Gratitude List
1. Losing centimetres
2. Substack training
3. An evening out with friends but no alcohol.

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Dalyan – 7th & 8th July

Norman and I were awake early on Monday 7th July, both needing a pee. The temperature at that time of day was much cooler and comfortable. After tea and toast it was time to crack on with Resort Experts work for the day. I often get friend requests on Facebook from people I’ve not met and don’t know but this morning I got one from a lady called Liz. I never add people I don’t at least know, even if we haven’t met in person. We had a friend in common from Rhodes and I recognised her from posts on a group I’m in. However, when I looked at her Facebook profile, the last 3 posts were saying it was a fake/scam profile and not to share posts. I messaged the woman to ask what was going on and she seemed real and fairly normal. I still didn’t accept the friend request though.
By 9am, Norman was fast asleep and snoring away again.
At midday I attended a webinar session with Lisa Johnson where she was sharing some thoughts and knowledge which I thought might help me. It was only for 30 minutes but was useful.
Jamie and Drew arrived back a little earlier than expected, I went back to Fire Opal as I had another webinar booked in. This next one was some training with a lady called Katrina Young who was delivering a session on AI. Primarily on keeping ChatGPT in check, powerful prompts, scaling up a business and automating certain tasks using AI.
It was interesting, although most of it went above my head. I took lots of notes though.
After the training, I put some of what I’d learned in to place and it was really good. I just needed more practice and more time to do it, now.

Gratitude List
1. Norman being so easy to look after
2. Insights from Lisa Johnson
3. Learning more about AI from Katrina Young.

I didn’t get up until 8.30am on Tuesday 8th July and then I got on with writing content for my various social media pages. I am an agent for a supplier called Classic Collection and they had some great deals on for city breaks as well as summer holidays so I got involved in searching those. I’d seen a couple of city breaks that I liked the look of myself, including a 4 star mini break in Nantes, France, in August for £199 and a 3 star weekend in Krakow, Poland, in January for £125. They also had some luxury 5 Star holidays in Greece which looked fantastic. After working until 3pm and not having had any lunch, I decided to take a break and walk around the town, calling at the shops. Here’s what I bought with prices in lira;

Migros Supermarket
Green Peppers 13.99
Mentos 20.95
Haribo jellies 22.45
Biscuits 32.95
Salt & Vinegar crisps 48.95
Pasta sauce 52.95
2 croissants 69.90
Cooked chicken pieces 69.95
Total spent 332.09 lira (£6.15)

Balcı Pharmacy
2 packs Cerazette 658.36 lira (£12.19)

Parlak Bakery
1 loaf 15.00
1 cheese salad sandwich 60.00
Total spent 75.00ira (£1.39)

I ate the sandwich for lunch and then continued with my to do lists until 8.30pm. I had chicken pesto pasta for dinner and then an early night.

Gratitude List
1. Looking at city breaks
2. Shopping and some fresh air
3. Easy meals to save time.

Dalyan – 6th July

Jamie, Drew and Nanny Kay were off to Kuşadası on Sunday 6th July for a couple of days. They were staying in the same hotel Captain Caveman and I had stayed in on our last visit, Sunday Beach at Ladies Beach. I was in charge of Norman and I arrived at 8.30am, to a snoring Norman who didn’t even hear me come in. As it was a lovely sunny day, I decided to plonk myself down by the pool before it got too hot. When Norman woke up he came over for some attention and a lay on the sunbed for a couple of minutes.
It was strange there only being Norman, now that Edna had passed away, and I felt a little bit sad. A white feather came down between me and Norman on the sunbed and, if you believe in things like that, it might have symbolised Edna.
We moved in to the shade and got some water then I had mushroom and pepper pasta for lunch.

When it got too hot, Norman took himself off for an afternoon nap on the sofa, in the AC. By 6pm I decided I would have a swim. Usually, when I’m at Jamie’s, I don’t go in the pool but it was very hot today. I waited until the sun had gone in to take Norman for a walk and I’d thought we might go to Lukka and have a drink there. Norman had other ideas and, after a walk almost as far as Lukka, he decided he wasn’t up for socialising and wanted to go back home. I hadn’t brought anything over for dinner so I decided to have another walk, without Norman, and get some food on the way home. I called at the shop and bought the following, prices in lira;

Migros Supermarket
Milk 31.25
125g Blueberries 49.95
Total spent 81.20 lira (£1.50)

I’d intended to buy something to cook for dinner but it was already 8.30pm and I couldn’t be bothered.

Sheche Burger was the last place I walked past on my way home so I couldn’t resist. I decided to order the original burger with french fries and a homemade lemonade to take out. My dinner cost 500 lira (£9.26) and was really tasty for a treat, which I enjoyed more than I thought I would.
At bedtime, Norman was keen to come with me so he slept on my bed – snoring contentedly away.

Gratitude List
1. A bit of a rest day with only minimal work done
2. Sheche Burger for dinner
3. Norman, he’s just so cute.

Dalyan – 4th & 5th July

Friday 4th July was my last day with Lady C, it was also just one week until I would be back in the UK. Penny and Phil were flying back tonight but didn’t land until almost 4am tomorrow. I spent the day working and making sure Lady C was ok. I had a sandwich then walked Lady C, she was fine and didn’t seem bothered from the dog issue yesterday. When we got back, she let me check out where the other dog had tried to bite her and there was a bit of a cut. I messaged Penny to let her know and described which street it had happened near but I had no idea where the young boy and the dogs lived.
It was a pretty quiet day really.

Gratitude List
1. Last day with Caramel
2. It being a Friday
3. Being ready for Penny & Phil’s return.

On Saturday 5th July I had woken up early, my care of Lady C had come to an end and I’d arranged to meet Jamie.
The neighbour opposite had closed the stair door so there were no more cat shit incidents, which was nice!
I had a curry for lunch and then went to the shops to get some essentials and restock up on wine. It had slipped my mind to check if there was still wine in the fridge after the comings and goings of the week. Here’s what I spent with prices in lira;

A101 Supermarket
Washing up sponges 22.50
Frozen berries 179.00
Total spent 201.50 lira (£3.73)

Yaman Büfe
3 bottles of wine 709 lira (£13.13)

After more curry for dinner, I walked over to Penny and Phil’s with the wine and we had a bit of a catch up. Lady C was happy to have her owners back too.
Back home, I had a much needed early night after doing the washing.

Gratitude List
1. A quick catch up with Jamie
2. Being home to a cat shit free apartment
3. Home made curry from the freezer.

Dalyan – 1st & 2nd July

July was going to be an exciting month!
On Tuesday 1st July I updated each of my To Do Lists (I have 3; Resort Experts, My Book stuff and Personal). I was conscious that I only had 11 more days in Turkey before I would fly to the UK to spend time with Captain Caveman, who would be celebrating his birthday and moving in to a new home. I had not yet booked my return flight as I wasn’t sure if I would get a good price to travel back in the school holidays or not, if I stayed more than a couple of weeks.
While I drank water and waited for Lady C to wake up I checked how my blog had done for last month. I was pleased to see it had 24% more views than the month before and was mainly being read in the UK, Turkey and the USA. Unfortunately, Vietnam readers were now way down the list and no longer in the top 10 so I did want to try to increase that again in July. It had been a year since I was there and over 6 months since Captain Caveman was there – we missed it!
After doing some Resort Experts work in the morning, I spoke to Captain Caveman who was at his parents in London. There was a heatwave and he’d had to sleep downstairs so he was preparing me for a hot summer in England.
At lunch time I had some soup and looked at a post from my colleague in Italy, which was to help us have a happy July with 31 daily prompts. When I had my tea break at 3pm, I noticed Lady C had chosen to lay on the hot floor outside to sunbathe! I let her know that at 4pm we had visitors coming; Darcy, the dog, was getting dropped off while her owner went out with a friend. And my friend, Bev, was coming over for a cup of tea and a chat.
When Darcy arrived, she ran in to the conservatory and did a wee with excitement on the sofa and the floor. Lady C was not impressed by the little pup and was not sympathetic when Darcy started to sneeze multiple times. Poor little Darcy kept sneezing and wouldn’t stop so I picked her up to check her nose. She had a bit of a flower or plant stuck up her nostril so I had to get it out with my little finger nail. Bev arrived, after I’d cleaned the wee up and we decided wine would be a better choice so we had a couple of glasses each – Fat Club weigh in tomorrow was not looking promising! It was nice to catch up and we nattered on about all sorts.
Bev didn’t stay too long and I fed both dogs in separate rooms as they were ready for dinner. It was after 8pm when it was cool enough for both dog’s paws on the pavements and they walked well together. I had a mushroom pasta about 9pm for dinner and then settled down with the dogs. I couldn’t watch TV as the TTnet still wasn’t up to it so I watched something on my phone. When it was time for Darcy to be collected, she was already snoozing away, next to me on the sofa. Lady C was happy when Darcy left as she does like to be the only dog in the house.

Gratitude List
1. Cute dogs
2. Busy with Resort Experts
3. Seeing Bev for the first time in a while.

My measurements were not good on Wednesday 2nd July. I’d put 1cm on my bust, my waist had remained the same but I’d put 3cm on my hips (that will be the fab Bakewell tart from Ela Bakes)!!! It didn’t look good for Fat Club weigh-in and I would have to wait until 3pm to find out my weight. I worked up until then and decided to walk, so that at least I was getting some exercise. It was very hot out and I arrived at Fat Club a bit sweaty. I was gobsmacked to find I had lost 0.9kg (2lb) and it made my day! There was a bit of a grumble at the group as the drinks prices had gone up. A small water had gone from 25 lira (46p) to 50 lira (92p) and that was the shock of the day. I didn’t think it was too bad to sit in a nice hotel and drink a cold water which they supplied a glass and lots of ice for, but doubling the prices was a bit of a surprise. Usually, each July there is a general price increase in shops anyway so I was expecting it.
I went straight back to work and had leftover mushroom pasta for dinner – no alcohol. Once it cooled down I took Lady C out for her walk and she was happy to be let off the lead for a little bit on the back paths.
At 9pm I decided to pop to the shops to get something for dinner tomorrow night. Here’s what I bought, prices in lira;

Şevikoğlu Supermarket
Onions 5.21
Peppers 8.22
Bread 15.00
1kg chicken breast 144.80
Total spent 173.23 lira (£3.27)

I meant to buy more wine but I couldn’t be bothered to walk all the way to Yaman Büfe and the Şevikoğlu was more expensive.
I had an early night and didn’t even bother with any wine today, conscious I only had one more weigh-in before my UK trip.

Gratitude List
1. Losing weight when I didn’t expect it
2. Walking with Lady C off the lead
3. A no alcohol day on a Wine Wednesday.

Dalyan – 26th June

It was pretty hot already on Thursday 26th June as I walked to Queen Accommodation Services’ office to meet Yusuf. He had agreed to show me a 2 bedroom property that had just come on sale for £170,000. There were people staying there so we couldn’t go in until tomorrow but I had a friend who wanted to know what the location was like and might be interested in buying it. They were concerned that it might be a bit too near to town and the petrol station so I agreed to do a reccy of the outside of the property.

Yusuf took me for a quick spin on one of the new 3 wheel electric scooters that they have for rent. They are about £15 per day depending on how long you rent them out for and were really handy to nip about in the heat. Queen also do money exchange now too which is handy if you’re up that way or the bank/jewellers were closed.

Video of us on the 3 wheel electric scooter

I liked the property location straight away and it was actually on a quiet street far enough away from the petrol station and main road. The nearest restaurant would be Olivia’s and it was easy walking distance to bars.
I took videos and photos so I could send them to my friend but I also liked the look of the place myself. Captain Caveman was not thinking of selling his apartment at Fire Opal at all, but I did think that if my friend wasn’t interested, I would mention it to him. I also made a second appointment to look inside the property tomorrow morning.

On the way back home, I called at the shops and was already feeling the heat a bit. Here’s what I bought, prices in lira;

BIM supermarket
2 Dido chocolate bars 29.00
Naan breads 67.50
Kitchen rolls 79.00
Total spent 175.50 lira (£3.31)

Parlak Bakery
1 loaf 15
1 simit 15
1 croisant 40
Total spent 70 lira (£1.32)

I sent my friend the videos and photos of the property for sale and they were still unsure and would wait until I went back tomorrow to view inside. By midday it was 36°C in Dalyan and about to get to 20°C in Sheffield. I hoped it would warm up in the UK before my visit. I worked for the rest of the day, including have a few work calls and meetings.

I finished just before 5pm, which was very early for me, as I had been invited to a friend’s house for dinner. Penny & Phil had invited me to join them and their friends, Karen & Andy (parents of Darcy the dog), for dinner. I took a bottle of wine and some Turkish delight over and we ate a lovely lasagne with garlic bread and salad, which had been made by Ela Bakes. I loved the meal, and ate quite a lot – it tasted really good. For dessert there was also a massive Bakewell tart which was amazing!

We had a lovely night and I even got some leftover lasagne and Bakewell tart to take home, which was very much appreciated. Penny tried to insist I get a taxi home but I walked back, passing a cat sat on a motorbike with a carpet over it. It was almost midnight by the time I got home – on a school night, too!

Gratitude List
1. Whizzing about in a 3 wheel electric scooter with Yusuf
2. Finding a great Dalyan property for a friend
3. A fab dinner with friends, trying Ela Bakes for the first time.

Dalyan – 24th & 25th June

Tuesday 24th June was day 3 of not leaving the house or spending any money. It felt strangely therapeutic. I saw an ex Turkish Class member and Facebook friend had posted on Facebook needing someone in London. She needed passports picking up which were going to cost £400 to have couriered so I messaged to say I could help if she could wait until I went there in a couple of weeks time. I also looked at flights to come back in time for Nanny Kay’s 80th birthday celebrations and they were now getting a bit pricier. I ate beans on toast for breakfast around 11.30am after sorting out my social media posts for the day and dealing with a couple of enquiries.
I’d ate cauliflower and cashew nut soup for lunch with wholemeal bread and then got back on with all my tasks. I stopped at 6pm to warm up some sausage casserole, not realising I didn’t have any potatoes in the house. By 8.30pm I was in bed with a facemask on and feeling really tired. I did a Facebook quiz to find out which country suited me to live in and wasn’t surprised to find it was Japan. I reposted the quiz so that others could have a go but it seemed a few people couldn’t get it to work. It was a shame as I wondered if any of the Dalyan Dwellers would have got somewhere other than Turkey as their answer. Tomorrow it would be weigh day and time to face Carol’s scales after indulging too much while Captain Caveman was here.

Gratitude List
1. Lovely home made food
2. Another zero spend, and zero alcohol day
3. Getting stuff done.

Of course the scales weren’t going to show a loss on Wednesday 25th June, after all the eating and drinking I’d done while Captain Caveman was here. It wasn’t surprising that my home scales said I had put on 0.5kg (1.1lb) this week. My measurements, though, showed no changes at all, which was good. While working in the morning I tried to help a friend out by sharing her post about a raffle to raise money for a local charity and unfortunately I didn’t really look at it too closely. I later noticed I was posting something that is illegal in Turkey, promoting alcohol, so I had to mess about taking it down but join the local charity page to share a version of it. I didn’t have time to eat lunch and headed to Fat Club via the bank a bit late. To my surprise, I was only showing a gain of 0.2kg (0.4lb) on Carol’s scales but I think I had been lucky really. I was now a whopping 2.7kg (6lb) over target and I only had 2 more Fat Club weigh-ins before I went back to the UK.
After Fat Club I popped to buy 2 more AC remotes but they hadn’t got them in yet and said to come back on Tuesday. I called at the shop and bought the following, prices in lira;

Migros Supermarket
1 plastic bag 0.50
Haribo jellies 22.45
Cheese spread 29.90
Biscuits 31.95
Bin bags 44.95
Batteries 74.95
Mushrooms 79.95
Toilet roll 108.95
Wholemeal wraps 110.00
4 Quark 116.00
Mouthwash 124.95
Total spent 744.55 lira (£14.05)

I went back home and did a couple of work related tasks before doing a few reviews on Facebook for places Captain Caveman and I had enjoyed on his visit. It followed with comments of people complaining about the price of things, yet again, on and off-topic point! Dalyan really is not that expensive in comparison to lots of other places and it got on my nerves that I was only trying to put nice reviews on not argue with people on the internet! I’m all for saving money, obviously, but arguing about the prices on a nice review is, in my opinion, not good form.
I noticed that the Dalyan Şarküteri had some offers on until the end of the month so I popped out around sunset to grab some imported products. I bought the following, prices in lira;

Dalyan Şarküteri
1 tin Heinz baked beans 65.00
1 tin Coconut milk 75.00
250g Lurpak butter 220.00
Total spent 360 lira (£6.79)

I spoke to Captain Caveman who was very busy working hard in London so didn’t have time to ask how I was, but I’d got used to that now. I lit my citronella candle put loads of Maizie Moo repellent on and treated myself to a White Russian (the cocktail) on the balcony. A couple of jays came to visit and I didn’t end up eating dinner of sausage casserole with potatoes and white cabbage until 10.30pm. Tomorrow I had another busy day as I had agreed to view a house for sale for a friend.

Gratitude List
1. Weigh day being better than expected
2. Being able to afford some shopping
3. White Russians on the balcony.