On Thursday 23rd January, after the morning dog walk, I decided to try out a new breakfast idea. I put 2 bananas in a bowl and mashed them up, added milk, oats and peanut butter before putting it in to a silicon baking tray and cooking it in the air fryer for about 30 minutes. It was very nice with my cup of tea and I had 2 pieces – the rest would go in the fridge and could be eaten cold. It made 8 pieces at probably a couple of syns each, so would be a filling breakfast. I worked all day and it was getting busier with enquiries as we got towards the January pay day. Lady C wouldn’t go on her bed at first, because it had been outside where the cats sleep so I turned it over and moved it in to the sun – she liked that and had a sunbathe. I had a very late lunch of the bulgur wheat burgers and onion dip from yesterday’s Taster Session party and they reheated well in the air fryer – I saved the recipe for future reference. Captain Caveman was in Mexborough this morning, meeting his new manager so I was looking forward to talking to him later to find out when he would start the job and how things had gone. In the afternoon I took a break from work to follow up on some actions from Monday’s networking session. On the second walk of the day, Lady C managed to walk a whole 4 blocks and even continued past her own house and gate to walk for one more block. I was so proud of her for finally learning that. In the evening Captain Caveman called with an update, all had gone well with his Mexborough meeting and he had a start date of 3rd February, his first few days would be in Scotland. I had curry and rice for dinner and continued watching some rubbish on the TV while searching for holidays for potential customers.
Gratitude List 1. A successful new breakfast dish 2. Lady C finally managing to do the walk I had wanted for her 2 weeks ago 3. Captain Caveman’s job updates.
Weigh day and Fat Club comes round so quickly and on Wednesday 22nd January I knew my actions from yesterday were going to have an impact. I didn’t bother getting weighed at home, I decided to leave it to Carol’s scales later and we had something a little different planned for today’s session. One of the ladies had agreed to hold a Taster Session party at her house and we all planned to take a dish and share it, along with some wine. I had tea and toast in the morning and took Lady C on a longer walk so that she would sleep all afternoon. It was remarkably sunny, despite the weather forecast saying it should’ve been bouncing down with rain, so I popped to the shops. Here’s what I bought with prices in lira;
I also worked all morning and up until just before 3pm so that I could take the rest of the day off, but I still had the team meeting tonight to get back for. I roasted some chickpeas in the air fryer and packed up some rice and my rice cooker to take to Debbie’s, who was hosting.
At the Taster Session we all got weighed first and I had, unsurprisingly, put on 0.3kg (0.7lb), meaning that I was just over my target weight now. We had so much syn free or low syn food with wine and we all had such a laugh. It was great to have this support group to keep us all on track or just be there when we fell off the plan, as was so easy to do while living in a holiday town like Dalyan. We had a really nice butternut squash soup from Sarah & Rob, which we all agreed was a firm favourite. The bulgur wheat & sweet potato burgers with an onion dip were fantastic. Debbie had even added some air fryer chips and roasted veggies. One of my favourites from a previous taster session were the cheese pasties which Carol had made and I couldn’t resist having a few of those. I loved Tina’s lentil curry which went well with my steamed rice and some couscous. My two helpings of the dahl went down so well that I forgot to get a photo of it but it always tastes better than it looks anyway. I drank red wine, Debbie also surprised us with a bottle of fizz to cheers the occasion and it was really lovely. But the most surprising dish of the afternoon came from Brigette who had turned fruit and mini meringues in to a masterpiece by stirring some Salted Caramel flavoured Options in to Quark to make the ultimate diet dessert! It was a game changer! While we were busy enjoying ourselves, there was a storm and it rained heavily but by the time Debbie had packed me up with leftover veggie burgers and dip it had stopped.
Luckily, Lady C was now a master of sploshing and she was very happy to get ankle deep in all the puddles, I sploshed along with her as I had my wellies on! That evening, I didn’t have or need any dinner and I was busy with our Resort Experts team meeting. The meeting went well but there was definitely something that I related to well. As is the nature of the business we were seeing quite a few time wasters from potential customers who were asking for quotes from multiple sources and then booking direct anyway. This was likely to happen but it was definitely increasing and we even had people asking 2 of the team for different countries but with the same names and dates. We were encouraged to share our business page with family and friends and ask them to like, follow and share, which I had been doing. I was finding I had more commitment from complete strangers and I wasn’t sure why. I was trying not to compare myself to others but I was still struggling to get family and friends to even like or follow my business page. Some of my team members had over 1,000 followers already and I was stuck at less than 250 and most of them were people I didn’t know. I had 1,700 friends on Facebook but not that many were following me. Naively I had thought at least 50% of my Facebook friends would be on board but it turned out to be less than 10%. So, if you are reading this and haven’t already, please can you like and follow my Jo Lo – Resort Experts Facebook page!? I’d be very grateful and I will most certainly have sent you an invite to it that you may have missed or ignored if you had more important things going on at the time. It really does help build up my business if I get more followers and it also allows access to other useful functions once I get over 500 followers. Here’s the link: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61567498001133
Thanks to all of you that have liked and followed already, or even popped a comment on – I really appreciate it and know I really can help more people find great holidays and accommodation. I’ve seen so many that I want to go to myself but I’m being sensible for now! I spoke to Captain Caveman before bed and he had a meeting tomorrow with his new manager so I didn’t bother him with my ‘first world’ problems. He was doing well and had plans to go to the cinema in Sheffield this weekend and then was off back down to London for a few days to see his parents.
Gratitude List 1. The Fat Club Taster Session party 2. Having the support of the Fat Club ladies to keep me going 3. Speaking to Captain Caveman who was adapting to England very well.
Debbie and Mike had invited me to join them for a trip out on Tuesday 21st January. The plan was to drive over to Göcek to the wine shop so that we could all take advantage of the reasonably priced wine before it went up in price. I had just 1 slice of wholemeal toast with cheese spread and a cup of tea for breakfast before walking Lady C. The drive to Göcek was smooth and we were in the Levissi Wine House by 11.30am. I was impressed that I had remembered where it was as Debbie had parked on a main road where I hadn’t got my bearings. The lady at the shop recognised me and we chatted about coming all the way from Dalyan for the lovely wine. She said that we could still buy the stock she had left at the same price but it would be going up and stocks were running low. The stocks of Merlot had depleted quite fast but there were still stocks of the Makri brand as well as the Levissi Cabernet Sauvignon, the Gamay (a favourite of ours) and the Petit Verdot. There was still lots of rosé and white but the 3 of us only wanted to get red this time. I decided on 12 bottles of the Gamay which, at still only 150 lira (£3.41), was a great spend of 1,800 lira (£41) for a case of 12. I’m sure that a couple of nights out on the town drinking wine in the Dalyan bars would come to that so I was pleased. I was well versed with borrowing the trolley from nearby Carrefour supermarket, as instructed previously on our first visit with Ian and Janet. I was still very grateful for their recommendation of Levissi Wine House as it meant that we had saved a lot of money on our wine purchases in the last few months. Steering the trolley was funny and, while Debbie went to bring the car nearer, Mike and I tried our best to not injure anyone, or ourselves, with a wayward trolley. As we were so quick stocking up on the wine, we decided to have a little wander in Göcek and we even did the tourist thing of standing on a bridge and getting photos for the Instagram. A couple of young ladies were there doing it and so we just had to join in! Göcek has a lovely port and the sun was shining so after a stroll we returned to a fancy café/restaurant on the harbour front for a beverage. West Café & Bistro was a popular place and the staff were very efficient when us ‘oldies’ didn’t want to use the QR code menus and brought actual ones for us. We weren’t eating but I did take a photo of the menu and noticed a soup was 210 lira (£4.77), pizzas started at 330 lira (£7.50) and a chicken kebab main was 570 lira (£12.95). The place was spotlessly clean and had good toilets so I thought the prices reflected the quality of the place. Debbie and Mike shared a cafetière of coffee and I really enjoyed my large Turkish tea. The tea was 75 lira (£1.70) which is very expensive for Turkish prices, however, it did come very well presented and with a biscuit. We all commented how lovely it was to sit there and enjoy our drinks in the sunshine on such a glorious day. I also thought it would be a great place to come with friends and family when they are over to visit. What we didn’t notice until we were leaving was that they had a cake counter so next time that might be one to try for a treat.
We decided, as we were on a budget, that we would stick to our plan and eat lunch at Dalaman prison café on the way back. As it was my weigh day tomorrow I was planning on eating healthily but ended up throwing caution to the wind by ordering the köfte which came with bread, chips and onion rings. It was absolutely delicious and our total bill for the 3 of us, with drinks too, came to just 730 lira (£16.60). Less than £6 each for a substantial lunch was more my kind of eatery and the service at the prison is also excellent. As we left the café, it started to rain so it looked like we had timed our jaunt well, and I’m so glad I had decided to go. When we got back to Dalyan, I got the wine in to the cupboards so that I wouldn’t be tempted to drink any tonight, my 4th consecutive alcohol free evening. Lady C and I went out for a walk early as the heavy rain was coming and Chico had been waiting patiently to join us. We also bumped in to a friend who lives round the corner and said hello to her 2 dogs and then another stray joined us on the rest of the walk. There was sploshing aplenty for Lady C and she was soaked when we got back home. She slept while I cracked on with some work and then we had a bit of fun doing the biscuit trick again. We watched repeats of ‘Celebrity Coach Trip’ on TV, the one with Paul Danan on, from ages ago. By bed time I was very tired and really looking forward to a good sleep.
Gratitude List 1. Having some time off to go to Göcek 2. Enjoying a prison lunch 3. Lady C being really well behaved and meeting other dogs.
Photo credit – the photos of me in Göcek taken by Debbie
I was up extra early on Monday 20th January so that I could get organised as today was a busy day. My Mom needed some help which involved popping to the bank so I had moved my work schedule around to accommodate her as it was urgent. I usually avoid banks on a Monday morning as they are busy and always a queue but we didn’t think there was a choice at that point. I had my tea and toast then took Lady C out for a walk. I scheduled posts to go live while I was away from my laptop and then walked to the bank. It was very busy and it turned out a lot of the expats were there for the same reason. A text had been sent out to a lot of bank account holders to say that they must come to the bank with their ID before the 1st February and it had then caused a bit of a concern. Some account holders were, obviously, out of the country and not due to return until later in the year so had been allowed to send an email of their passports over. The woman bank teller who I saw said this was not possible, I tried to give her my parents’ ID which I had on my phone but she insisted she would need their signature too and it would be fine to wait until after their return. It just meant that after February they wouldn’t be able to make any transfers from their Turkish bank accounts. It had been a complete waste of time and they could have put that on the message to save themselves all that bother but at least my parents needn’t be concerned. For some reason, I had changed my passport and renewed my residency recently but they didn’t want my ID! This obviously then lead to people posting about it on various Facebook groups with misinformation going around. I rushed back to let out Lady C and had to eat my lunch of soup and a cheese sandwich while on a Networking video call with Enfys Malone. It was a very interesting experience and it was enlightening to see how many people were purely there to offload all their issues! There were some really interesting people on the call though and it was the first time I had been able to speak to like-minded business people and also other authors, which was great. I shared the title of my book and it was well received – it got a few laughs even. For the rest of the afternoon I was playing catch up and had a few enquiries for holidays in Egypt and The Canaries. For dinner I had curry with egg rice and even got to speak to Captain Caveman who was keeping busy and had secured a deal on a place to rent for the next 3 months in Sheffield, where he would be based. It felt like he had been away for longer than just 3 weeks but he was looking forward to starting his new job in 2 weeks’ time. He needed me to find his log book out of storage which we thought was in the over stairs cupboard. I would get some help to reach it with the ladder and take it with me when I visited the UK next month. The flights were really cheap if I could squeeze it in. I worked really late that night as I needed to get quotes out and I had already made a decision to take quite a few hours off tomorrow for an exciting trip out of Dalyan!
Gratitude List 1. Sorting Ma & Pa out with the bank thing, so they didn’t have to worry 2. Speaking to Captain Caveman who seemed to be doing well 3. Joining my first online networking event.
After a couple of exciting nights out this week, it was time to take it steady on Saturday 18th January. After a dog walk and beans on toast with a cup of tea for breakfast, I decided to do something similar to last week. I had just a bit of editing and the summary of my ‘You Can’t Shit Yourself on a Bicycle…’ book to finish off so I decided to crack on with it. Unfortunately, Amazon seemed to think I already had an account so I couldn’t log in to attempt to upload the book! It also kept sending codes to a phone number that I didn’t have and was annoying. I had more cake for lunch as I didn’t have any time to make something and then I did quite a long walk with Lady C and Chico. Back home, I had a chicken and chickpea curry with steamed rice and then taught Lady C a new trick. She wasn’t keen on the biscuits in her bowl so I was trying to encourage her to eat 5 before she was allowed a piece of chicken sausage as a treat. I lined the biscuits up on the step but she wouldn’t take them. I lined them up on the carpet but then she decided she wanted to get her own biscuits from the bowl. After some perseverance she managed it and was so excited to get the treat.
Gratitude List 1. Seeing Lady C and Chico getting along on the walk 2. Lady C learning the biscuit trick 3. Having enough discipline to not quit, when Amazon tipped me over the edge (for the first time).
I was meant to be going on a walk on Sunday 19th January and I hadn’t thought I would need to set an alarm! Unfortunately, I woke up 15 minutes before I would need to be setting off and hadn’t had chance to walk Lady C. I messaged to cancel and said I would head to the Kaunos tea gardens for after they got back so that I could catch up with the Secret Squirrel Sunday walkers. After a dog walk, I had orange and pink grapefruit, tea and toast. I got invited to an online networking event for free which Lisa Johnson, a famous online business strategist, had recommended, so I signed up to do that tomorrow. I did make it in time to meet the walkers and was surprised to see so many police at and around the tea gardens but I wasn’t sure what for. On the way back I went to the bank and then the shop, here is what I bought with prices in lira;
When I got back, I sat down with a cup of tea and a Dido chocolate bar while catching up on some admin. It was lovely and sunny out, so I took Lady C out for an early walk and decided to try her off the lead for a short stretch just to see what she would do. She surprised me and was quite good. That evening I got invited round to Jamie and Drew’s where we finished off the roast chicken dinner from Wednesday (it had been frozen) but we decided to do it without any boozing. Edna was not impressed that I was on water and she had a little sulk. When I got home I did a bit of work before bed as I had an important errand to run tomorrow morning.
Gratitude List 1. Having an unplanned lay in on a Sunday 2. Having tea with the Secret Squirrel Sunday Walkers 3. An impromptu dinner with Jamie, Drew, Norman and Edna.
Photo credit – some of the Sunday walk from Debbie
On Friday 17th January I had to knuckle down and make up for being a bit slack yesterday and I was on a mission. I had my early morning 2 cups of tea while waiting for Lady C to wake up so we could go for a walk. She was a bit reluctant but we managed it and she seemed to be getting a bit keener to go the way I wanted and to walk for longer. I had a disagreement with a bloke on Facebook who didn’t like a holiday I’d posted and was challenging the photos which I had shared from an easyJet booking at the Binlik hotel. I was only round the corner from the Binlik Hotel and decided to go take my own photos. When I got there the builders were there but the man let me have a look and was happy for me to take photos. It looked like they were doing a good job actually and I was pleased I’d been to check. For brunch, mainly as I had forgotten to eat breakfast, I decided I wanted to have beans on toast. I was so happy to have found them the other day at the shop next to Waterfall bar for only 57.50 lira (£1.31) and I wish I’d bought more as they are almost double that price in Migros and they don’t always have them in. I also had another piece of birthday cake for afters but then I got on with more work as I had big plans for tonight – I was actually going out out!!! After completing all my work and doing all my Friday Follow ups, I decided to finish at 3.30pm so that I could go to buy a frying pan from a woman selling lots of new kitchenware (as you do). As luck would have it she had some cute dogs which I also got to pet a little. I also had to nip to the shop, walk and feed the dog, get a shower and get ready for a night out with friends – more belated birthday celebrations! At the shop I just popped to Migros for wholemeal bread and some chickpeas which cost a total of 80.90 lira (£1.84). On the evening walk Lady C was getting a bit confident with Chico, who had taken to joining us on most walks, and was definitely listening to my commands more. I really liked her but she definitely needed far more exercise and a diet. I said this to her and she just looked at me with eyes that said she wasn’t the one polishing off birthday cake instead of a proper meal.
I arrived at Duble restaurant just before 7pm and was warmly greeted by the owner, Ibo. It is one of my favourite places to eat in Dalyan as I think the food and drink is reasonably priced, it’s clean, has a great selection of food but most of all I really like the owner and his wife. It’s located in the old market square and is only small but Ibo has done a lot with it since opening. There’s always a good mix of nationalities and many Turkish friends go there to eat. It just so happened that Debbie and Mike also really like Duble and had chosen it for tonight’s belated birthday celebration. When we arrived there was someone smoking but Ibo asked them to stop and the rest of the evening was smoke free. We decided to choose mezes to share and went to the counter to have a look at the substantial selection. It was a hard choice but we opted for red cabbage, haydari (garlic yoghurt with herbs), mushrooms and something none of us had tried before; sea beans. We ordered a bottle of red wine and some water, we got plenty of warm fresh bread to accompany the mezes which were so fresh and delicious. Surprisingly, the sea beans were fantastic; like samphire but better! They tasted a little bit like artichoke in brine but with the texture of some shrubbery. Ibo had recommended them to us so I think he was pleased we liked them. He knows I’m fussy! After wine, chat, laughs and trying to pronounce the Turkish for sea beans (deniz fasulyesi) we decided we had better order some mains. I was in two minds whether to try the chicken dish with a sauce which Debbie ordered or copy Mike on my usual choice of chicken shish. Having had quite a lot to eat with the mezes and bread already, I decided that I would order the liver as it is one of the best dishes that Duble does, in my opinion. It comes on a skillet with red onion sprinkled with herbs and sumac. For some reason we got a bit giddy and also ordered chips to share, not realising chips would come with the other mains. I had asked Captain Caveman if it was ok to share the news of him getting a new job in the UK and he said it was now official and I could tell Debbie and Mike. They were really pleased for him and we all did a cheers, sending him the photo of us all.
After the excellent meal, we all decided it would be a nice change to go and see the live band which is on each week at Nil Lounge. Debbie and Mike had not been before and I hadn’t been in quite a while so we were up for it. At Nil Lounge it was fairly busy for a Friday night in winter but we managed to find a seat almost opposite the ‘stage’. We had a good view of the lead guitarist as he morphed himself in to a Jimmi Hendrix impersonator and contorted his face up like he was either aroused or needed a poo! I don’t think Debbie, Mike and I had laughed so much but then Jimmi came over to our table, thrusting and fingering his guitar from behind his head, like something possessed. I got dragged up on to the ‘dancefloor’ by Sue who was in her element and having such a good time! It was so funny and we did have an amazing night. The band was great and the female vocalist had such a great repertoire of songs. Although Nil Lounge is not the cheapest place to drink, it was still just less than £20 for a bottle of decent red wine so definitely worth it if you don’t mind a free grind from the guitarist as he strummed in front of you and generally showed off. It’s worth going just to see the show he puts on!
Gratitude List 1. Beans on Toast as a treat 2. Buying a decent frying pan 3. A fantastic birthday night out with great friends and celebrating Captain Caveman’s new job too.
When I woke up on Thursday 16th January it was apparent that I had been quite drunk last night – as I had cut down so much on the alcohol to lose weight and save money, I was a real lightweight! I hadn’t put my phone on silent and I saw what I had sent to Nanny Kay last night! OMG. Of course, the writing down 3 things on my gratitude list had not been done before bed, either. I felt terrible and my headache continued until well past dog walks and breakfast. While I made a cup of tea I tried to work out what had happened to the remaining birthday cake that I had come home with. When I put the tea bag in the bin I notice that the cake box was neatly folded and disposed of! Surely, I had not eaten half a birthday cake when I got home!? I looked around the room and at Lady C for any clues, there were none. I was in the fridge, getting the milk, and noticed quite a few containers that weren’t there before. When I opened them, they were full of badly sliced birthday cake. Then it dawned on me that I had decided it would be safer to keep it out of harm’s way from Lady C by slicing and storing it. Oh dear, even drunk me was now making sensible decisions! I checked that I had remembered to also bring home my presents, which I had. In the afternoon I took Lady C on a very sunny walk, she even waited for Chico to join us and then I had a slice of cake for lunch! I had some strange message requests from some random men saying Hi on Whatsapp so I blocked them. When I spoke to Captain Caveman later on, I was able to congratulate him on his new job as he had officially got it, assuming all the HR and Medical outcomes were satisfactory. He was pleased, I was delighted and really proud of Captain Caveman for doing what he was doing. He would be working for an engineering company as a senior project manager, based in the UK. We looked at flights for me to perhaps pop to England to visit him around mid-February, and between the 2 stints of dog sitting for Norman & Edna. It was only £57 return but we didn’t book the flight yet as it would depend on where Captain Caveman would be working. That evening, I had the rest of the lentil and chickpea curry for dinner, did the bare minimum of work and went to bed early, swearing that drinking on a school night was no longer for me.
Gratitude List 1. Not offending 79yr old Nanny Kay 2. Finding the cake 3. Captain Caveman getting the job.
I’m always busy on Wednesdays and Wednesday 15th January was no different. I started the day with tea and toast and a check of my measurements. I’d lost 1cm from my bust, but my waist and hips had stayed the same. I had consumed 228 syns this week so it was not going to be good on Carol’s scales this afternoon at Fat Club. I had so much on my To Do list that I was quite glad of the cancellation of Turkish class that morning so I could get stuck in, after the dog walk of which Lady C was going a little further each day. I nipped to the shop to get more ingredients for my dish for tonight’s meal. Here’s what I bought with prices in lira;
Şevikoğlu Supermarket 1 Dido chocolate bar 15.00 Milk 29.90 1 pack of tortilla 54.90 Cauliflower 93.49 Total spent 193.29 lira (£4.39)
When I spoke to Captain Caveman he was very calm and collected and said he thought the interview had gone well and they were going to get him an offer and the contract out. Captain Caveman was waiting to find out more details in this paperwork before committing but it did sound like this was going to work out well for him. I was really pleased that things were going in the right direction as, despite being a positive person, I do worry more than Captain Caveman does. He also helped me install Maps.me on my phone so that I could find places easier when offline, perhaps on a Sunday Walk. Foolishly, I ate a chocolate bar and some peanuts for lunch, put my cauliflower cheese in the slow cooker and then went to Fat Club at Nish Caria hotel, as usual. Unfortunately, I had put on 0.5kg so I was now exactly at my target weight. I was going to need to be careful this week with those ‘extras’. I finished Fat Club and rushed to meet a lady from the walking group who was going to be at Waterfall bar to return Captain Caveman’s walking poles. As is often the case in Dalyan, that did not go to plan! I ended up paying 140 lira (£3.18) for a glass of red wine to sit on my own in Waterfall bar. I wasted 50 minutes and risked my cauliflower chees being spoiled to have to go find the lady’s house, when she called me with directions, then turned out not to be at home! She came running down the street in a flap with a tale about her ID card not arriving before she left for England.
I rushed back to a slightly overcooked cauliflower cheese and a dog who wondered what had kept me. We did the dog walk and I got ready for an evening with friends. Jamie picked me up, with Julia already in the car so she got to hold my cauliflower cheese (not a euphemism), which was precariously covered with tin foil and in a tray with handles on. We then went to pick up Nanny Kay, which meant she could join me on the wine. I’d brought a nice bottle of the Levissi stash over and my dish went in the oven. Jamie and Drew were the perfect hosts; as Drew took charge in the kitchen, Jamie poured everyone a glass of celebration fizz which was so lovely!!! We were celebrating quite a few occasions including Drew’s return, my birthday, several people’s departures and just being together for a laugh!!! Not only had Jamie and Drew put on the soirée and bought the Prosecco, they had also bought me a bottle of red wine. Nanny Kay had got me a card and a gift which I thought was a cricket bat at first, but it turned out to be a lovely hand painted paddle type item which you hang on a wall. I certainly didn’t already have one so she had chosen well and it was very kind of her. The drinks flowed, the music came from Alexa, which I didn’t even know they had, and our Sunday Dinner on a Wednesday (so wild) was delightful. I had no idea that Jamie and Drew had got me a birthday cake too and everyone sang ‘Happy Birthday’ to me. Even Norman and Edna tried to get a piece of cake, which was gorgeous and blowing out candles has made a comeback since Covid (who knew!?). I felt so lucky to be with such good company and of course we had a great time, laughing non-stop and even dancing. We ended up all shouting song requests at Alexa while keeping Fikri, our taxi driver, waiting a little too long at the end of the night! He was slightly miffed at having to wait for us so all 3 of us put in extra lira. Jamie insisted I take the remaining cake home and I remember holding it in the taxi as I clambered out and wobbled about getting up the steps and indoors. It was late and I don’t recall what happened to the cake from that point. I do remember drinking one glass of water in an attempt to ward off the hangover I knew I would have tomorrow. I also recall checking Nanny Kay had got home ok, despite us all going in the taxi together. I also followed it up with a very crude post from Facebook which was a good job Nanny Kay had a sense of humour.
I felt bad that I didn’t get to say bye to The Aussies on Tuesday 14th January because I hadn’t realised they were leaving for Istanbul today and I was so wrapped up in work. I was really pleased when they left me a big bag of ‘stuff’ at my door, which was kind of them. I had buttered toast, oranges and tea for breakfast and cracked on with my day. I had a massive To Do list as well as chores to get through and I was glad to be busy. Jamie’s partner, Drew, was on his way over to Dalyan so I was invited to a soirée at their place tomorrow night, which I was really looking forward to. When I walked past the currency exchange shop, I noticed the lira to pound rate had dropped a bit an was now showing 41.2 lira to the pound. Captain Caveman had been back in the UK for 2 weeks already and was still having to adjust to the cold weather there. At 2.30pm (UK time), Captain Caveman had a follow up interview in Warrington so I was also keeping everything crossed that all went well. At lunchtime I had soup and a cheese sandwich plus more peanuts and I had the leftover lentil and chickpea curry with steamed rice for dinner. It still meant that I had consumed far more syns than I should’ve, despite the extra allowances. I was really pleased when Lady C, joined by our new walking buddy Chico, managed a much longer walk and seemed happier. Chico got no love from her though but let me give her a chin tickle.
Gratitude List 1. Goodies from The Aussies. 2. Captain Caveman’s interview going well 3. Having a longer walk with Lady C
It rained heavily all day on Sunday 12th January and I had trouble getting Lady C out for a walk. Once she was out though, she discovered she liked a bit of sploshing in puddles and I had to dry her off with a towel which the damp cats had been on. She was not impressed and demanded snacks! I had more juicy oranges and pink grapefruit for breakfast, vegetable soup for lunch and peanuts for snacks. I did a few enquiries for work but I had a feeling they were time wasters – it’s hard to tell. I defrosted a chicken casserole for dinner and had it with slow cooker cauliflower cheese as I had so much cauliflower. It was very tasty and I really enjoyed a wet wintery day indoors.
Gratitude List 1. Good homemade food 2. Being warm in the AC 3. Sploshing in puddles.
Monday 13th January was a busy working day and I was loving having the new Resort Experts quote tool. It was reducing the time I was spending producing quotes. I was up very early, it finally stopped raining and I managed to get Lady C out but she didn’t want to go far. She wouldn’t go in the direction of the bin, when I needed to put some rubbish in, so I hooked her on to the gate – she wasn’t impressed. We met up with a dog who had been abandoned, Chico, who started to join our walks. Luckily, a kind Turkish lady was feeding her and let her shelter on her balcony when it rained.
I was also playing catch up because of taking some time off at the weekend. Unfortunately, I got a message from The Aussies to say they were leaving at 7am tomorrow and wanted to meet up today to say bye but I just didn’t have time. I barely had chance to go to the corner shop to buy some provisions, here’s what I bought with prices in lira;
Fresh bread 10.00 1 Açma & 1 simit 70.00 1 tin of Heinz beans 57.50 Red cheese 133.00 Total spent 270.50 lira (£6.15)
I worked most of the day, had a couple of rain dodging short dog walks and ate the same as what I had yesterday for lunch and dinner – I do love a batch cook to free up time.
Gratitude List 1. Buying treats of baked beans and cheese!!!! 2. More genuine Resort Experts enquiries coming through 3. Time saving solutions.
Even though it was my birthday on Saturday 11th January, I had made the decision not to celebrate it. I had a half finished handy travel tips book that I had been wanting to finish for ages, but it always took a backseat. I decided today that I would turn my phone on silent, take the day off work and get it finished. I no longer wanted to make it perfect and decided that I would do a series of them, meaning I could do short books which readers would be able to read quickly and even take on holiday with them. I had gorgeous oranges and pink grapefruit on my doorstep so I had picked them and made juice which was so good. I had cheese spread on bread for breakfast and then took Lady C on a walk. I cracked on with the ‘You Can’t Shit Yourself on a Bicycle……and other handy travel tips’ book and got quite far. I didn’t stop for lunch until 2.30pm when I had a feta cheese salad with my overpriced lettuce. I had the slow cooker out and made a very quick and easy dahl for dinner. I spoke to my parents who wished me a happy birthday and then I spoke to Captain Caveman who later sent me photos of Whernside and Pen-y-gent with snow on. I think he was just about getting used to how cold it was in the UK. When I came off the phone I had a delivery from good friends, some flowers, Dido chocolate bars and a birthday card – which I thought was really sweet and made my day. After finishing all the chapters of the book, bar one chapter that needed changing, and taking Lady C out for a walk, I decided to sit and watch a film on Netflix as a break from my screen. I chose badly; ‘Mother of the Bride’ wasn’t funny and not my thing at all so I decided to watch a documentary next; ‘Avicii – I’m Tim’ was really good but rather sad, obviously. I got an invite to Nil Lounge tonight for the Cat Paws charity night. I politely declined as I was doing my best to be disciplined with my time. The Aussies were soldiering on too and had a barbecue which I also declined as I wanted to concentrate on getting the book finished. By this time it was raining but weather doesn’t stop a group of Aussies having a barbecue. I’d also been invited to Duble for birthday celebrations which we had already postponed too. My lentil and chickpea curry was rather tasty but I didn’t even have a drink on my birthday. I did watch another film that was mildly entertaining called Carry-On. I went to bed without setting an alarm as I had nowhere to be tomorrow and knew I’d wake up early anyway.
Gratitude List 1. So many birthday wishes, plus cards and gifts 2. Fresh tasty food 3. Book Day – at last.
My day started with overnight oats and frozen berries for breakfast with my Yorkshire tea on Thursday 9th January. Lady C, the dog, was still napping and wasn’t too keen to go outside in the cold. When we did get out for her morning walk she managed to get the whole way around the block. I left her at home while I went to run some errands which included going to the bank and picking up some bread and a cheese flavoured açma from the bakery, for 35 lira (80p). I decided to call at A101 and get some treats too. Here’s what I bought with the prices in lira;
A101 Supermarket 2pm 1 Dido chocolate bar 16.50 Jellies 17.00 1 Pot noodle 22.00 1 Bounty chocolate bar 24.50 Total spent 80.00 lira (£1.82)
I bumped in to a friend in the town and had a bit of a chat and then had to dash. It was around lunch time by this point and when I arrived at our complex, two of The Aussies, were on the terrace waiting for the rest of the family to arrive back from a trip across the river. Another 2 were at home ill with Covid symptoms and Amanda told me that all but her, and 2 of their party of 9, had had Covid. I’d still not had it and I didn’t want it – I couldn’t afford to be unable to work. I backed away and said farewell as I had to get back to my laptop, just as the remaining 5 Aussies arrived. For lunch, which was very late I had the pot noodle and the cheese açma then got on with my expanding To Do list again before another dog walk. For dinner I had a veggie lentil bolognese with pasta and a glass of red wine. I spoke to Captain Caveman who was back at his friend’s house in Sheffield and was planning some excitement at the weekend. In the evening I started watching Black Doves and did some blog editing at the same time.
Gratitude 1. A January self-care chart to remind me to look after myself 2. Bumping in to a friend for a chat 3. One of my Resort Experts colleagues, in Majorca, helping me with a list of 50 ideas for social media posts.
Now that I could have between 40 and 60 extra syns per week, plus up to 3 extra Healthy A & Bs per day, I was ready for more flexibility in my food on Friday 10th January. I was awake early and ploughing through my substantial To Do list while I drank my tea and ate my overnight oats with berries. There was dog walking, cat feeding and general animal stuff. Lady C was rather disgruntled that at least 4 cats were sleeping on her bed when we got back to her house. We had another short walk at lunch time as I wanted to keep her active while the weather was fine, I felt she was a little lazy and didn’t want her getting bored. When we got back this time, the cats were feeding and one had made a bed out of a spare box on the table. I ate an aubergine dip with bread and feta then had some peanuts as a snack. I also cancelled all my plans that involved other people, for the next 3 days. In Turkey if you have Covid, there are no rules to say that you must stay home but I checked with the friends who I was meant to be visiting today, one was an ex medical professional who was at risk, and they definitely didn’t want me to join them, for up to 5 days, just in case I had caught it. It was unlikely, as we had been outside and at a distance, but I’d been feeling under the weather with aches and a bit of a sore throat. Rain was definitely forecast this weekend so I decided that I would use the time to be productive instead. For dinner I had leftover lentil bolognese with potato wedges which I did in the air fryer and topped with cheese, since I was allowed extra now. As it was a Friday and I was not going out, I decided to have a glass of wine. I spent Friday night totting up my finances to make sure I would have enough money deposited in to the bank for the new residency rules. For me to stay as a resident now, I needed to deposit at least 33,156 lira per month, which was about £755 at today’s rate. I was short by £170 but with still enough time to sort it out. I finished watching Black Doves in the evening, which I wasn’t massively impressed by. I started watching Breakthrough but couldn’t get in to that either. At 11pm, Captain Caveman called to say he was on his way to the Yorkshire Dales for the weekend and that he would call me tomorrow. I told him to message me first as I had planned to turn my phone off and get on with something important for the day. Before I went to bed, I got a message from the bank to say that my parents had put me some birthday money in to my Turkish bank, which was really kind of them and would be nice to get myself something nice, or maybe have my hair done at last.
Gratitude List 1. That the cats were outdoor ones and I didn’t have to do much with them 2. Having time to watch some TV 3. Deciding to stay home tomorrow and make time to do something I had been meaning to do for a while.
I’d arranged to look after a cute dog from Tuesday 7th January. I had my Yorkshire tea and overnight oats with grapefruit for breakfast. I packed up my work stuff and some food for lunch and dinner, plus wellies as it looked like rain later. Around the time I was waiting for my friend to pick me up, the power went off and so I had no internet. We drove to hers and the little dog, who I affectionately renamed Lady C, seemed a bit sad that the big suitcases were out. The lovely neighbours popped round and I met them and a few of the regular cat visitors who I would also be feeding and keeping an eye on. While I was saying bye to my friends, Captain Caveman was in a Premier Inn in Sheffield, preparing for an interview. He’d decided to check in there for a couple of nights so that he had no distractions and had somewhere nice and comfy to stay. Meanwhile, Lady C was out on her dog bed, having a snoozy sunbathe while I caught up with some emails. I made the kitchen island in to my temporary desk. Unfortunately, I got a message to say that the flight was delayed and then later that it was cancelled due to a medical emergency on the inbound fight. Luckily, my friends were offered a room in a hotel for the night so Lady C was stuck with me. I’d only had a cheese spread sandwich for lunch with waiting to see what was happening with flights etc, but, after a very short dog walk, I had chicken and vegetable stir fry with egg noodles for dinner. That evening I started to watch the latest Harlen Coban series ‘Missing You’ and I waited for a video call from Captain Caveman. When we spoke, Captain Caveman seemed optimistic and I was a bit relieved. In between all of that I still managed to do some work and I was tired, looking forward to some much needed sleep, before a busy day tomorrow.
Gratitude List 1. Captain Caveman having an interview lined up 2. Captain Caveman finding somewhere nice and comfy to stay in Sheffield 3. Watching TV.
I was meant to have been going on a fabulous Princess of Ekincik boat trip on Wednesday 8th January and had done my best to move my working day around, however it was not to be and I had to let The Aussies down. I wasn’t feeling too great and had been up since 5am. I tried to go back to sleep but we had the new Resort Experts Quote tool to test so I started that. When I took Lady C for a walk she was very stubborn, she wouldn’t go in the direction I wanted to and she was really funny and cute. I didn’t do my weight but I did take my measurements and I had stayed the same on my bust, put 1cm on my waist and 2cm on my hips – this was not boding well for Carol’s scales at Fat Club later. I spoke to the dog’s owners and they were eventually heading off on the new flight to Gatwick after a disappointing stay at the Ramada Hotel in Dalaman. I had just an orange, which I picked from the garden, for my breakfast – it tasted delicious. At 2pm I should have been meeting a walking group friend to go to Ortaca. She had arranged for free Turkish lessons if we could get a group of 20 people and now we needed to go to Ortaca with our residency permits to register. I didn’t have the time to break off what I was doing, so I sent her a photo of my ID and she agreed to take it for me. When I finally got on the scales at Fat Club, I was surprised to find I had lost 0.3kg (0.7lb) which meant I was now 0.5kg under my target. I was very pleased and only having consumed 167 syns this week had really helped. Carol loaned me a Slimming World book which was about how I managed to maintain this healthier weight from now on and I took it home to digest the information. What I had not realised is that once you hit your target weight, you can have extra Healthy A & B options as well as a few more syns, although you are meant to use them for healthier fats rather than crisps. If I’d known that at the beginning, it might have spurred me on a bit faster!! I had soup, then cheese and crackers with 2 glasses of wine as my little treat and got ready for a busy evening. I had a video call with Captain Caveman who had been to another online meeting/interview and things were progressing on the job front. As he was staying in a hotel, he hadn’t got weighed but he hadn’t been over indulging since he got back, too much. My next appointment was at 8pm when I attended the Resort Experts team meeting and found out we were able to match On the Beach quotes using Classic Collection – this was really good for people looking online at cheap package holidays. The Quote tool was working and we were able to use it for more operators later this week. I finally got sat on the sofa about 10pm and finished watching the rest of ‘Missing You’. It was a late night and I was quite tired so I decided that tomorrow I needed to take it a bit easier.
Gratitude List 1. Captain Caveman having a second interview 2. Losing weight 3. Having the opportunity to test the Resort Experts’ new quote tool.
I was a busy bee on Monday 6th January as I had enrolled myself on a free course. It was a 2025 Sales Games Plan Workshop with Enfys Malone, who had been recommended to me by Lisa Johnson, the famous one. I didn’t have any breakfast, just a cup of tea and then had red veg soup and a cheese sandwich for my lunch as I had been busy with work stuff all morning. The online workshop with Enfys was very good and I ended up with quite a few actions to add to my to do list. While I was doing that for a few hours, Captain Caveman was on his way up to Sheffield on a bus in the snow. That evening I had chicken fajitas for dinner and waited for a message or call from Captain Caveman to say he had safely arrived. He forgot to message me but I asked my sister what the weather was like. She hadn’t been out but said the snow was probably just on the pavements and the roads were ok. I busied myself with editing some content and drinking some sage tea. I was really enjoying the benefits of sage tea – it made me feel calmer and my menopause symptoms were far fewer.
Gratitude List 1. The useful free Sales course with Enfys 2. Knowing that Captain Caveman was off to Sheffield, my home town 3. Enjoying my last day of being dog free for a few weeks.
There was no official Sunday walk on Sunday 5th January, as Captain Caveman had now left Dalyan and there was no one else willing/available to take on the task of organising one this week. I’d decided I would not always be free as I worked some weekends and I also was a bit of a fair-weather girl who couldn’t read a map. The sun was out and so when I got up and had my cup of tea, I messaged Debbie and Janet to see if they were going on a walk. They said they were up for a short stroll and Debbie let Sezgin and Nur know too so we could meet at the tea gardens at 11am. It turned in to a bit of a Secret Squirrel Sunday walk, quite by chance. We all started off togged up in many layers, as it was a very cold morning despite the sun. We had lost one walker before leaving the Mosque Square and we watched some stand up paddle boarders on the river. One of them fell in, which must have been a bit refreshing for them. By 12.45pm I had taken so many layers off that my bag was full of clothes and I had very hot feet. I was wearing Captain Caveman’s wool socks with my wellies to make them comfier. We went to the tea gardens afterwards and had a hot beverage and a bit of a laugh.
After the walk, I went to the shops to stock up, here’s what I bought with prices in lira;
Migros Supermarket 2 red onions 10.72 1 chocolate bar 14.40 Spring onions 34.94 1.2kg carrots 64.84 720g sweet potatoes 71.96 3 Quark 89.95 Spray olive oil 129.95 705g chicken breasts 105.72 912g chicken thighs 184.64 Total spent 707.15 lira (£16.07)
When I got home, Captain Caveman had been busy setting up a Facebook Group and had invited me to be the admin on it. I treated myself to the açma with kaymak and jam for my brunch and made a chicken casserole in the slow cooker for dinner. The weather forecast was looking bad again for next week so I got on with work and then started looking at my own holidays. I had a quick look at costs of package holidays to Marrakech in February and saw one at £229 per person from Gatwick, hand luggage only but staying at a nice place with a pool. Captain Caveman thought this was a bit pricey and I looked at flights which came up at a bargain £35 return from Gatwick. I would still have to add my flights from Turkey to the UK on top of that, though. I went to bed thinking of a weekend in Marrakech and knowing the sales course I was on tomorrow had come at a good time.
Gratitude List 1. The Secret Squirrel Sunday Walk 2. Bargain chicken from Migros 3. Captain Caveman including me in his projects and plans.
joloyolo 