Dalyan – 23rd February

I was awake for sunrise on Thursday 23rd February and got up early for my cup of Yorkshire tea. I decided that since I’d had zero syns on weigh day, yesterday, I was also going to be good today. I’d done a meal plan but instead of it being for the week, I had just done it up to Saturday. This is because I would buy what was on offer at the market and plan the rest of my meals around that. For breakfast I had a banana, strawberries, pineapple and quark. Debbie (Darling) messaged me to ask if I fancied joining her and Sue after their Turkish class this afternoon and I did, as I’d not seen either of them for ages. I had my lunch first which was a bit of an eclectic mix; radishes, carrots, stuffed vine leaves, roasted pumpkin and potato wedges.
I met Debbie (Darling) and Sue outside Lukka bar, where they were having a beverage. Katrina was getting ready to open up the Maizie Moo shop for the season and she gave me my dogsitting money, which was nice. It would have been easy for me then to spend that money on having an alcoholic beverage but I resisted. We wandered over to Tez bar where I just had a soda water with ice. After saying hello to Angela and chatting briefly to Gary about residency renewals, it was time for me to go. At 5pm I walked to meet Jamie, we had arranged to set off on a dog walk from Mosque Square then call in to Waterfall bar. Again, I was good and had just 2 sodas, Jamie had coffees. On my way home, I decided to treat myself at the Şarküteri where I bought the following;
1 tin Heinz baked beans 35.00
BBQ sauce 45.00
Gluten free soy sauce 50.00
1 tin Coconut milk 55.00
Total spent 185.00 lira (£8.20)

It’s expensive to buy imported food here but I’d decided that I really wanted those items and had only spent just over the equivalent of a bottle of wine from the off-licence.
When I got home I made more of my fake takeaway, sweet and sour chicken, which I had with egg noodles and loved every mouthful.
I had a video call with my parents, the last for a while as they were off on holiday, then I did another Decluttering Bootcamp challenge at 10pm. I was starting to see some areas I could make some small changes and improvements, which was really good.

Dalyan – 22nd February

When I got up on Wednesday 22nd February I was a bit fragile, I’d gone to bed about 3am when I had woke up a bit chilly on Mark and Kate’s sofa. Mark was already up and about, had fed the cats and was cleaning the kitchen cupboard fronts when I emerged. I got a cup of tea and a little later I decided to walk home. I got a few hundred metres when Tayfur showed up on his new motorbike and gave me a lift to Rehab bar – it was very whizzy.
On the way home I called at the pharmacy where I got another box of pills for 150 lira (£6.44) and some imodium for 20 lira (86p).
Back home I was keen to know my weight, I got on the scales and had lost a little bit but Carol’s scales would be the true test. I did my measurements and they were pretty good;
Bust -2cm,
Waist and hips no change,
Right thigh and calf -0.5cm
Left thigh +0.5cm
Right calf no change.
I had strawberries and a herbal tea for breakfast then went for a walk. I managed to catch up on the 2nd day of the Decluttering Bootcamp where I had a challenge based on some action that I would need to take.
For lunch I had more vegetable soup with pasta and then went over to Jamie’s to let Norman and Edna out. Jamie was at an appointment in another town with Nanny Kay so I just spent an hour with the dogs at lunch time. Edna was so excited to see me that she went straight in for cuddles and wanting to sit on my lap, Norman seemed a bit cheesed off that I’d woken him up and he paced about a bit. Edna was wriggling about and when I laughed at her new hair do she was confused, Norman came up on the sofa for snuggles and we tried to get a group selfie. Edna was up for it, once her appearance was sorted, Norman less so. Amazingly, at Fat Club, I had lost 0.7kg (1.5lb) and was happy with that. I had a diet coke there and then walked to Rehab bar for 2 soda waters while chatting to the pool group.
I left about 5pm, called to get some bread and, when I got home, I treated myself to a cheese sandwich and some mantı, Turkish ravioli. I waited up until 10pm to do the next decluttering challenge about vision and I did a couple of tasks on the back of it.

Dalyan – 21st February

I had a banana, Kate’s fruit salad, with added strawberries, pineapple, and quark for breakfast on Tuesday 21st February. I also tried some Linden tea which Jamie had brought me to sooth a bad stomach. It seemed to work and I wasn’t affected by the banana, like before. For lunch I had some healthy bits and pieces in an effort to get a good weigh-in result tomorrow at Fat Club. Kate was off to the UK this afternoon so had asked me and a couple of other friends to ‘look after’ Mark while she was away.
Even though it was Pancake Day today, I decided I would have mine tomorrow, after Fat Club. In the afternoon I met up with Jamie, Norman and Edna and we had a dog walk along the river then Edna insisted we call in to the Waterfall bar. She had forgotten that it was a Tuesday and Skippy doesn’t go in on a Tuesday. I had a diet coke and 2 wines, we were joined by John, Andrea and Mark on their way home from Tez bar.
Captain Caveman had been at his briefing for his next Son Doong trip but had managed to get a quick call in, which I took outside. We had a rough plan that I would be visiting Phong Nha, as well as having some holidays in both Vietnam and Singapore. I would only stay for 6 weeks which meant I had no visa issues and would be leaving Phong Nha when the weather was unbearable in July and August.
Jamie went home to feed the dogs and have his own dinner, John and Andrea said bye too, then Mark and I bought some wine and milk at the shop, got Fikri’s taxi to mine where I picked up a bag. We drove to Mark’s and he fed the cats then reheated us up some leftover Chinese for dinner and opened the wine. The cats that stayed in were super cute and were happy to settle in to their beds for the night. We decided to watch a film, drink wine and later have cheese, chorizo and Ritz crackers. The diet had fallen short again and I’m sure it would mean a bad result tomorrow at Fat Club. It also meant that I had missed day 2 of the Decluttering Bootcamp, luckily I could catch up tomorrow on replay. It was after midnight when Mark went to bed and left me asleep on the recliner sofa, I’d obviously nodded off during the film.

Dalyan – 20th February

My week started quite positively on Monday 20th February! I confirmed a house and pet sitting job in Rhodes. I checked out some flights and chatted to Captain Caveman about the possibility of going to Vietnam from Athens, in May.
For breakfast I just had a cup of Yorkshire tea and some orange juice, left by Kate yesterday. I decided to go out for a walk as I needed to run a few errands and get some exercise in. I called at the stationers to buy a notebook and pencil which cost just 35 lira (£1.50). I went to the pharmacy to buy contraceptive pills and order more, one month’s worth was now 163 lira (£7) and they were in short supply. For lunch I had the rest of the fresh bread with tomato soup and gorgonzola cheese. Today would be a no meat, no alcohol and more exercise kind of a day.
In the afternoon I decided to take my Marks and Spencer black boots to the cobbler as one of them had a cut in the rubber soul. I went for a walk around Gülpınar, checked on my parents’ place and then walked the long way back after about an hour. The boots had been repaired at a cost of 280 lira (£12) which was quite an unexpected expense but cheaper than buying a new pair. Rain was forecast later in the month so I needed these or to buy some wellies.
I had a banana for a snack then had a bad stomach again – I don’t even like bananas. For dinner I had left over leek and potato soup from Jamie and I added some cooked pasta to make it even more filling.
Around 6pm Jamie popped round, with Norman and Edna, as he was passing on his evening dog walk. The dogs were really excited to visit and were so happy to see me and be allowed on the sofa for cuddles.
In the evening, I stayed up to join the first one of Heather’s Decluttering Bootcamps at 10pm (Turkish time) and I found it really interesting. It was all about planning, Heather did a live session where she taught us how to plan to declutter a specific small part of our home and then set us a challenge to do. We would post our outcome in the group and then join for the next challenge tomorrow at the same time.

Sunday – 19th February

Sunday 19th February was a lovely day all round. It was still dark when I set up my makeshift dining area, ready for my first Sunday dinner with 4 guests. Some had doubted I’d get everyone in, in our small apartment, but I’d squeezed in 7 for a curry night once, although that was a bit too much and we didn’t have enough spare chairs.
I had a cup of Yorkshire tea and some fruit to start my day off then took a trip to the shop. Here’s what I bought, some of which I needed for today, with the prices in lira:

Migros Supermarket

Fresh ginger 4.00
Fresh bread 5.00
Bottle of water 5.45
Becel spread 17.45
6 bottles of soda water 18.75
Flour 19.50
White beans 27.90
Fresh milk 28.90
Fabric softener 41.50
Falafel 49.90
3 tins of tomatoes 59.76
Toilet roll 68.90
Chicken breasts 78.45
500g Diced beef 82.00
Total spent 507.46 lira (£22.26)

I called at the corner shop to chase up what had happened to my water refill and they had forgotten again. They promised it would be there by noon and it was.
Jamie was the first to arrive with his leek and potato soup and a bottle of water with cordial in. Next was Matt with his slippers and he grabbed the orange chair so he could pop them on. Mark and Kate arrived late and hungover after Sofra last night. Kate had brought orange juice and soda water as she wasn’t drinking alcohol today. She’d also brought a huge fruit salad for dessert. Luckily, I had got some cream and some ice-cream at the ready. Mark brought some cans of Efes and had them in a cooler but he too wasn’t feeling like drinking much. I had been looking forward to wine today and had opened a bottle of Tılsım, just for me by the looks of it! After a bit of a chat I warmed up Jamie’s soup in the Pampered Chef jug that he said was microwave friendly. Unfortunately it wasn’t and the handle melted so we had to resort to the good old fashioned pan method. In the to-do I forgot to get the butter out of the fridge but no one commented as we ate the soup and dry bread. Jamie’s soup was packed full of extra veggies and tasted really good. Our next course was more of a chicken casserole with carrots, onion, leeks and boiled potatoes. I served this with Yorkshire puddings and mini jacket potatoes so that it was more diet friendly than a usual roast dinner. Kate had brought some stuffing to accompany it and I’d made a chicken gravy from my own stock for those that wanted it.
For afters we were ate the fruit salad with different combinations of toppings (crumbled ginger biscuits, ice-cream and cream). It was a lovely get together and Mark did quite a bit of the washing up and clearing/rinsing the plates as he likes a tidy ship. Once everyone had gone I finished the wine off and chilled out on the sofa for the rest of the day.

Dalyan – 18th February

On Saturday 18th February Jamie picked me up at 10am and we went to the Saturday market together in his car. I was glad of this as I had quite a list of things I wanted to get and knew my bag would be heavy.
We were both on a tight schedule today as I had arranged to get the bus to Fethiye and didn’t know what time I’d be back.
At the market I bought lots of fruit and vegetables which came to a total of 253.50 lira (£11.18). This was the most I’d spent at the market in one go, in quite a while but was also good that I was planning meals and buying more healthy fresh produce. We bumped in to Greg, a well known Dalyan resident, and he took our photo for his Facebook update. I took his photo for my blog and we had a little chat. Then Jamie dropped me back home with my heavy bags and popped in for a cup of tea.
When Jamie left I chopped my strawberries and pineapple ready for later. I had already had 2 cups of Yorkshire tea so my breakfast was 1 banana and some strawberries. I’d not suffered with a bad stomach for some months now, mainly after cutting down on eating out. For some reason I don’t think my body liked the banana and I was quite poorly after eating it. I had a cheese sandwich at lunch time but still wasn’t feeling too well and wasn’t looking forward to travelling by bus this afternoon.

After a swift trip out of Dalyan for a couple of hours I was back in time to meet Ann and Jamie at Sofra bar at 5.30pm. Sofra bar is the place to watch sport on a weekend so is a popular bar for most people in Dalyan. Jamie and I had already decided we weren’t drinking alcohol today and weren’t staying out because we each had our dinner planned (there is only so many waters you can drink in a bar). It made a nice change to frequent a pub I’m usually in more of a tangle at. Around 8.30pm Jamie left, then me in the opposite direction having briefly seen and chatted to Cath, Keith, Mark, Kate, Sarah, Rach and Nuri, some of who were ordering food or staying for more drinks. For dinner I made from scratch a sweet and sour chicken, using an adaptation of a Slimming World recipe and it was one of the best I’ve had. It was also a fraction of the cost of going for a Chinese meal. The only downside was that I didn’t make more of it!

Photo credit – Greg Frank

Dalyan – 16th & 17th February

On Thursday 16th February I was looking forward to a day at home with nice healthy food, no meat, no alcohol, perhaps some exercise and no dramas.
I had a slice of wholemeal toast with 1 cheese triangle on, some cherry juice, a satsuma and some quark.
For lunch I had leftover vegan bolognese, some in a pasta bake and some in a stuffed pepper. I was loving this meat free alternative. I had a snack of some of the lovely chocolate that Nanny Kay had given me, then I went for a walk to one of the Estate Agents.
Some friends of mine who are looking to move to Dalyan had seen a property come up for rent and I’d agreed to view it on their behalf. When I arrived at the Estate Agents they weren’t there so I waited outside for them. We drove to Arıkbaşi where the 2 bedroom property was. It was nice and there was a massive garden for the dog so I took lots of photos and a video and thought it would be a good fit. I was chatting back and forth to my friend about the property which unfortunately they got pipped at the post with and we got messaging about general life. I happened to mention that this week I had put my CV out there again due to being without work. How fortuitous that they would be looking for someone to work part time for them shortly and they agreed to send me more info.
I had a veggie wrap pizza for dinner which meant it was my first meatless day for this week. I also refrained from any alcohol today, despite it being wine Wednesday. That evening it was quite chilly so I decided to put 2 duvets inside the one cover on the spare bed and move in to the spare bedroom, where it would be warmer.

Friday 17th February was a lovely relaxing day. I had fresh bread and 16 olives for breakfast with a Yorkshire tea and a cherry juice.
For lunch I made an egg fried rice with 2cm of Turkish sausage, garlic, onion, carrot and sweetcorn. My Turkish class at 2pm had been cancelled so I got on with a few chores at home. For dinner I had mantı, Turkish ravioli, with a spoonful of quark on top.
I finished off the white wine in the fridge from Tuesday and I made some popcorn in my popcorn maker, so that it’s oil or butter free. I added soda water and ice to my glass of wine in an attempt to be a bit healthier. I was doing well on the diet so far this week and wanted to continue to do well, even if it was just making some substitutions rather than limiting myself completely. I also decided to sign up for a free master class on decluttering with my friend, Heather, at the end of the month and put myself down for the daily challenges which would start next week. Even though I do live a minimal clutter kind of life, I still find it’s a good idea to keep on top of these things – plus Heather is just so good at what she does that I wanted to be a part of it to show support and see what I could gain from it.

Dalyan – 15th February

Fat Club on Wednesday 15th February was cancelled because the venue was busy having taken in earthquake survivors. I got weighed at home to find I was the same as last week so that wasn’t ideal but not too bad. My measurements were as follows;
Bust -2cm,
Waist -3cm,
Hips -2cm,
Right Thigh no change
Left Thigh -1cm,
Right Calf -1cm,
Left Calf -0.5cm.
These were good results and I had Slimming World friendly soup for lunch.
At 3pm I had a wander to the tea gardens near BC Spa to meet Janice and Tina from Fat Club. I enjoy seeing the ladies from this group and we talk about how good or bad a week we’ve had on our diets and share some ideas and recipes so we don’t get too bored. The sun was out, it was warm and even the street dog behind us had to move in to the shade after a while. After an hour I walked along the river and up to Rehab bar where I just had soda water with ice and lemon. I didn’t stay long, just enough to say hello to some of the Pool group and to see Matt was in high spirits round the pool table.
Back home I had left over chicken şakşuka and rice, followed by quark for dinner. At 7pm I went to Lukka bar to meet Jamie and the Beverley Sisters where we played pool. Jamie and I stuck to water as we were trying to be healthy and we had a good laugh. The Beverley Sisters are really good fun and one of them was as bad as me at pool. I left before 10pm and then had a small red wine and some cheese with cream crackers before bed.

Dalyan – 14th February

Tuesday 14th February was a good day, despite me waking up at 3.40am. It was cold and I obviously went back to sleep. At 8am I got the best message ever from Captain Caveman. We don’t often spend Valentine’s Day together so it was nice to know he loved me.
For breakfast I had chocolate and tahini with bread and some cherry juice. I was trying to be good seeing as I had Fat Club tomorrow and I’d gone way over on my syn allowance this week. For lunch I had a simit with cheese spread and in the afternoon I went for a walk, then to the shops and bank.
Here’s what I bought and the prices in lira;

Migros Supermarket
Wet wipes 13.90
Stuffed vine leaves 17.90
Cheese spread 18.50
Eggs 22.45
Green peppers 24.14
2 Quark 25.00
Carrots 27.75
1 tin chopped tomatoes 29.90
Total spent 179.54 lira (£7.98)

I’d planned a non-valentine’s Valentine’s Day at mine that evening and everyone was bringing some food and drink.
On the guest list was Ann, Nanny Kay and Jamie. Ann brought a massive salad and some other healthy nibbles, including potatoes, Jamie brought his version of a chicken şakşuka (aubergine and tomato based), I had the rice in the rice cooker and had made vegan Bolognese (using lentils instead of beef mince) which I’d stuffed the green peppers with then roasted. I poured the drinks and we had a good natter. We sat at the table to eat and all the food was delicious, and healthy. However, le pièce de la résistance was Nanny Kay’s dessert; she’d not let us down with her promised Christmas pudding and cream. It was amazing and quite naughty, but a great way to end our Valentine’s evening. As a treat, Nanny Kay had also bought me a bar of chocolate which looked a bit too tempting.
It was 1am by the time I got to bed having had a really nice night with close friends.

Dalyan – 13th February

I woke up at 8am on Monday 13th February and felt relatively refreshed considering I’d missed sleep on Friday and Saturday nights but had since had about 14 hours sleep, in two lots. I mixed hazelnut spread with tahini and had that with fresh bread for breakfast with a cup of Yorkshire tea. Foolishly, I didn’t have any lunch but was running late to meet Jamie, Mark, Kate, Matt, John, Andrea and Kev in Waterfall bar. Jamie drank coffee but I really fancied a beer so I had 3. Jamie, Kate and I were talking about healthy eating and roast dinners. I decided I’d try doing a Slimming World friendly Sunday dinner at the weekend and invited Matt, Mark, Kate and Jamie. Kate was doing the pudding, I the main and now we’d roped Jamie in for the soup starter. I was merrily going on my way home to make myself some dinner and have a nice relaxing day when I got waylaid.
Walking past Jiks I saw Roy and he called me over to join him and Sarah, who I’d not seen since before she moved to Eskiköy in September. I sat down and ordered a glass of red wine but then, almost immediately, Roy left. While Sarah caught me up on some of her life of late I had 2 glasses of red wine and a pizza. It was a bit overdone but I manage to get it down me without realising, as I’d had a few to drink by this time.
I went home feeling a bit disappointed that my lack of willpower had let me down (again), I really needed to be more motivated if I wanted to lose weight and stick to my budget. I decided I would really give it more effort this week and try to not get sidetracked on my way home in future.

Dalyan – 12th February

I was back home in Dalyan before 11am on Sunday 12th February and I could not wait to get a shower and have a sleep! I’d had a short spell away from Dalyan and had been gone for 37 hours. After a cup of Yorkshire tea, I showered first then took out my leftover Sunday dinner (from Lukka bar last week) from the freezer. Next, I cooked and ate some mantı, a Turkish ravioli, as I was starving. Once in bed, I turned my phone on to Do not Disturb, I set my alarm for 7pm so that I could sleep for 7 hours then eat dinner and go back to bed.
At 7pm I put my Sunday dinner in the oven and added some additional sucuk, Turkish salami, to the chopped sprouts to make them a bit tastier. I also made up some gravy from an Oxo cube to freshen up and keep the beef moist. It was an absolute delight, my evening was relaxed and I was back in bed by midnight.

Dalyan – 9th & 10th February

On Thursday 9th February I woke up feeling cold despite wearing my dressing gown for bed. I had a cup of Yorkshire tea and some cornflakes before getting on with some last minute arrangements for the weekend.
For lunch I had a bit of a mixture; 10 olives, 4 gherkins, carrots, pickled onions, and homemade Baba Ganoush with fresh bread.
I decided on another no meat day today as I was trying to be extra frugal with the housekeeping. I slipped off the diet somewhat in the afternoon when I ate a small bag of jellies (which I was meant to be packing in my rucksack for the weekend), drank an Efes beer and ate 2 pieces of chocolate orange. I went to Tez bar to say goodbye to Vanessa and Brad. This is why I had the beer, but it was still within my syns and I was under control, honest!
I got back on track for dinner with veggie egg fried rice but then ended up having a glass of red wine with some cheese while watching Netflix.

My blog posts were about to get disrupted slightly from today, Friday 10th February. I decided to take a day off from blogging about life.
I had a cup of Yorkshire tea and some fresh bread with hazelnut spread, to finish it off. At 9.30am I got picked up to go to Fethiye in the morning but was back within a few hours.
I made it back in time for a quick shop, where I bought some probiotic drinks, wine gums and satsumas for a total of 46.12 lira (£2). I ate steamed rice with sweetcorn and egg for lunch, before going to Lukka bar for my Turkish class.
In the afternoon I accidentally snaffled some crisps because I was peckish then had a veggie pot noodle for dinner. I had managed my 3rd day of no meat and 2nd day of no alcohol this week but I did know that tomorrow I would definitely be going off plan.
I packed my bags, including a Tupperware of emergency snacks such as carrots, walnuts, cake, jellies, a satsuma and the rest of the chocolate orange. I tried to have a nap but didn’t get one. My blog would miss a day tomorrow and start again on Sunday.

Dalyan – 8th February

Wednesday 8th February was Fat Club day and it wasn’t looking good for any weight loss. I had consumed 376% of the Slimming World weekly syn allowance and almost half of it was in alcohol. There were only 2 days when I didn’t have any booze this week and my measurements were not good either;
Bust +3cm,
Waist +3cm,
Hips stayed the same
Right thigh +2cm,
Left thigh +3cm,
Right calf +1.5cm,
Left calf +2cm.
Even my legs were fatter!
I had toast with a cheese triangle and some winter tea for breakfast, then a ‘diet’ pizza for lunch. I decided that today would be a meat and alcohol free day and I also did a bit of a walk then called at the bank.
At Fat Club I made all my excuses as I went over to Carol’s scales; I had put weight on! This was no surprise but it was only 0.2kg (not even half a pound!) which was quite the miracle I needed. I heeded my own advice and had a 1.5 litre bottle of water which I made myself drink during the 1 hour meeting.
After Fat Club finished at 4pm, I headed over to Rehab bar. Vanessa had told me that she was bringing some goodies to celebrate Matt’s 60th birthday with the pool group. When I arrived it looked like the ‘party’ was over and, luckily for the diet, I’d missed the cakes! Kate had saved me a cheese and potato ‘sausage’ roll which was superb and I had 2 pieces of Turkish delight. In the interests of damage limitations, I stuck to soda water and was thinking the others would be giving the ball a right kick for Matt’s birthday. Matt didn’t seem in the mood and he, Vanessa and Brad left at around 5pm. It might be the last time I saw them, as Vanessa and Brad were going back to the UK on Friday. I had another soda water with Mark and Kate before going to the shops on my way home for dinner. Here’s what I bought:

Migros Supermarket
1 pot noodle 9.90
Milk 17.50
Walnuts 32.50
Total spent 59.90 lira (£2 60)

Şok Supermarket
Fresh bread 5.00
2 packets of jellies 9.00
1 packet of veggie ravioli 11.50
1 packet of meat ravioli 29.90
Total spent 45.50 lira (£1.97)

Back home I noticed that someone had chopped some branches down and they were in the way of the gate. It was bitterly cold so I had some french onion soup, Slimming World style, for dinner with the fresh bread. As I’d resisted alcohol I allowed myself 4 pieces of chocolate orange (only 10 syns).

Dalyan – 7th February

On Tuesday 7th February I had an appointment with Vanessa and our friend ‘007’ at 11.15am. The Turkish classes were now back at Lukka bar, which although it was nearer to where I lived, it meant we wouldn’t be going to Ela’s Kitchen. The temptation to have a fry up breakfast would be avoided at least though. For lunch we went to Jiks and all ordered the breakfast, mine without eggs and tomatoes, and it was good, but not a patch on the one at Ela’s Kitchen.
After lunch, Vanessa and I tried to buy cutters for removing Brad’s stitches but the pharmacist said he needed to go to a doctor for that. Next, we went to singing group at the Merhaba Cafe, in Mico hotel. As we were leaving I got a message from Jamie, he was at Lukka bar with the Beverley sisters if I fancied popping in. I did and I had myself a beer and some peanuts while chatting away. Mark came to meet us for one and then was off to Tez with Kate, so I joined them. Matt, Vanessa and Brad also came to join as Vanessa had said they all fancied a burger. I unexpectedly decided to join them for food and ordered a cheese burger too, completely forgetting I’d already gone way over my syn allowance and that it was Fat Club tomorrow. Matt didn’t want a burger after all and Tez ordered him a tuna and onion pizza from Pizza 48, which luckily arrived at the same time as the burgers.
It was the first time I’d had a burger at Tez bar and I have to say it was absolutely delicious. It was really getting cold at night so by 7.30pm I was back home in front of the TV with a blanket over my legs! As I’d already ruined my diet, I went one step further and ate some of the dark chocolate orange from Josh! I’d gone a bit mad on the spending today, despite me still waiting on some money I was owed. Today I’d spent a whopping 500 lira (just less than £22) on lunch, beers and dinner – I would probably regret not being frugal.

Dalyan – 6th February

On Monday 6th February at 4.25am I woke up thinking that the dogs were walking up and down the bed. I thought I’d overslept so I checked my phone for the time. I also noticed that Brad had replied to say he’d got home ok but he’d had missed calls and messages from his mom, dad and girlfriend! I looked over to the dogs after putting the bedside light on and they were still asleep. I thought I must’ve been dreaming or still drunk and went back to sleep. When I woke up again I heard the terrible news of the horrendous earthquake in East Turkey and Syria. I checked the time of it and it was when I’d been woken up. Friends in Antalya said they felt it there, where the rooms shook as if someone was trying to break in.

I was definitely looking forward to Katrina and Jamie coming back from Antalya today. I think I’d found my doggy limit with 2 dogs and a very young puppy. I quickly wolfed down some cereal and a cup of Yorkshire tea for breakfast. I took the 3 dogs out for a fairly short walk and told them that they were going to see Jamie and Katrina later. Norman was impatient, Little Ted oblivious and Edna needed further information related to an exact ETA. As I was cleaning up and getting ready for my departure, I realised I’d not yet eaten up the bacon Jamie had told me I should have (how unlike me)! I cooked bacon with pasta, mushrooms and a cheese triangle for my lunch and there was a bit left for later. I was hoping the 6.5 hours of walking I’d done this last 4 days would help with the weight loss and counteract the alcohol. Little Ted had found himself a little bit fond of Dennis, the doorstop, so I had to sit him on top of the water cooler so he couldn’t get humped or peed on.

By 6pm the dogs were getting impatient for their owners to come back, especially as some of Jamie and Katrina’s luggage had already arrived before them, courtesy of Ünal. I ate the rest of the bacon pasta and put some moisturiser on my sore hands. I’d washed them so much this weekend, from cleaning up puppy pee, that they were cracked and stinging.
They were finally back, but the mood was pretty sombre as I started to realise that some of our Turkish friends had family in the areas affected by the earthquake that morning. At the time, none of us realised just how bad it was.
When I got home I sat with a blanket on the sofa enjoying the peace and quiet!