Dalyan – 9th & 10th October

I was up and feeding the cats around 7am on Sunday 9th October, the mornings were starting to get a little chilly now. Captain Caveman was still a sneezy mess despite 180mg of fexofenadine each day. The internet was still patchy too so we decided to cycle over to our apartment for breakfast. We left the cats out playing and had a lovely leisurely journey back in to town. We ate fresh bread, various spreads and I had yoghurt with jam.
The issue of the pool and garden maintenance raised it’s head again when we were told of complaints from some neighbour’s guests. The pool and garden was unkempt, the communal electric was off and the rentals in 2 apartments had complained to their Estate Agent. They had asked for a full refund and moved out, we couldn’t understand the issue with the electric though. Captain Caveman took over the communal payment of the electric for our complex, of 10 apartments several years ago. He had also had a notification from the bank that the payment would be taken tomorrow. As far as we were concerned there shouldn’t have been a problem but it was about to turn in to one.
We stayed home for lunch and had the Slimming World style pizzas with a glass of wine. When we got back to Mark and Kate’s house the sun was almost setting and the cats arrived early for feeding.
We had dinner of the leftover chicken and salad picnic, I had a glass or 2 of wine and Captain Caveman had a beer or 2 while stroking JC, the cat!

By 7.30am on Monday 10th October all the cats had been fed and were playing outside. Bebek and Bubble liked to pretend they were modelling for a photo shoot on top of the sex swing. By 9am Captain Caveman (still a sneezy mess) and I were at Migros picking up some breakfast and provisions. We bought 3 croissants and 1400g of chicken for 123.39 lira (£5.74). I took a photo of the prices of taxis in Dalyan and was getting excited at the arrival of my parents later tonight. They were due to land at 10.30pm at Dalaman airport and we were looking forward to spending lots of time with them.
Back home we shared the croissants and Captain Caveman went Dogging at the shelter. I got involved in pool and garden maintenance issues over messages about the contractor and the communal electric. There were complaints via our Aussie friends about the garden not being tended too and questions asked about if anyone had seen a gardener. I’m no Miss Marple but, by my account, no workman had been since about the end of May. My photo of my bicycle this morning showed the hose pipe and Rosemary bush had not been touched since I left for Vietnam on 3rd June. More back and forth comments went on with some owners about the state of the overhanging bushes and trees (including the ones I had cut down a year or so ago and had resulted in Bougainvillea-gate). I got annoyed, took the scissors down to the garden and started snipping away – I knew that failed hairdressing course would come in handy one day!
Once I’d done as much as I could reach, I sent photos to the affected neighbours, informed them it only took me 10 minutes and messaged Captain Caveman to tell him to pick up the spiky cuttings and bin them when he got back. I was getting a bit peeved with the whole situation! When Captain Caveman returned I made suggestions to get another maintenance company lined up for 2023. If he waited much longer to get someone to price for the job we would miss out as all the good ones get snapped up. My thumb remained numb for the rest of the day, from trimming a hedge with kitchen scissors.

I took a photo of the spare bedroom which now had a new bedside table. I’d bought it last year at IKEA and not put it up, so Captain Caveman had done it. We were ready for having guests now and there were a few due.
News of flash flood warnings in central Vietnam came and we were glad that we weren’t there at the moment. Our friends there were preparing for power outages and severe floods. Meanwhile my parents were at Manchester airport ready to come to Dalyan, after 3 months back in Sheffield. When Captain Caveman returned from Dogging he picked up all the sharp cuttings from the pathway, surveyed my handiwork, got annoyed at the garden situation and didn’t even thank me for trying to help.
That evening, after watering the plants, playing and feeding with the cats I got ready for a night out. Jamie came to pick up Captain Caveman and I at 7pm and we went to his villa. Drew had cooked us a lovely lasagne and we had quite a bit of red wine with it. We got to meet (again) Edna and Norman, Jamie’s dogs, who we would be looking after soon.
It was a lovely meal, Jamie dropped us back off and went to pick up his friend from the airport. Tomorrow was going to be a busy day!

Dalyan – 8th October

While I cleaned and hoovered the lounge, kitchen, dining area and our bedroom on Saturday 8th October, Captain Caveman went to the market. I thought the idea of him getting up early and leaving was so that he could buy provisions and prepare us a nice brunch. There wasn’t any bread or milk in at Mark and Kate’s so by the time I had finished cleaning I was very hungry. Captain Caveman eventually rocked up at 2pm with a picnic lunch and a cooked chicken from the butcher’s. He wasn’t hungry as he’d had a gözleme at the market (because he was there too early). Captain Caveman had also taken himself off supermarket shopping so that’s why he’d been a while. Here’s what he bought, prices in lira;

Migros supermarket

Cherry jam 22.00
Salted nuts 25.90
Stringy cheese 33.50
Wraps 37.50
Eggs 37.90
Mozzarella cheese balls 47.95
Halloumi cheese 52.95
Turkish salami 54.90

Total spent 312.60 lira (£14.53).
That wasn’t a bad price to say there were 3 lots of cheese, which is can be expensive.

After eating our lunch in the (almost) fur free dining area we sat outside and Captain Caveman had a beer. I watered the plants, fed the cats early and we had a walk to the Kingfisher restaurant for dinner. We shared some mezes as a main course, I had a glass of wine and Captain Caveman had a beer. The setting is rustic but beautiful and there are lots of turtles swimming in the surrounding water. The service was excellent and we really enjoyed our evening before walking back after sunset. Unfortunately, for some unknown reason, Captain Caveman started an argument when I pointed out how nice the orange sky looked, reflected in the water. He disappeared to take photos and I walked home by myself and had another early night.

Dalyan – 7th October

There had been a massive storm during the night so I woke up quite tired on Friday 7th October. There had been 4 out of 6 cats in the house during the early hours. Bubble, Squeak, JC and Bebek had come home to shelter because they were scared. It was only at breakfast feeding that the other 2, Casha and Kylie, showed up looking a tad hungry. We cycled back over to our apartment because I needed to use the internet and the one at Mark and Kate’s wasn’t working very well. I did my weekly weigh in only to find I had lost 0.35kg but my measurements weren’t great;
Bust +1.5cm, Waist +2cm, Hips +2cm, no changes to any leg measurements.
We had pasta for lunch at home and then made our way over to Rehab bar for a quick draft beer in the sun. We had a chat with Angelique and Tay, Angelique invited me over to take a look at their new home in Gokbel. The place was impressive, in a gorgeous spot and I helped her measure up for a fence. She dropped me back at Mark and Kate’s, where Captain Caveman had already arrived, and we played with the cats for a bit. Captain Caveman was so sneezy that he wasn’t going to stay over but in the end he did. I promised to hoover and clean everywhere tomorrow to try to get rid of some of the cat fur, in the hope he would be less affected. It might have been a good idea for him not to pet the cute kitties too!

For sunset we walked down to the jetty with an alcoholic beverage and I took lots of photos of the beautiful scenery.
We had the rest of our Sosyete takeaway from last night, for our dinner, and it was still delicious. Captain Caveman was very sneezy, there was no TV and the internet was still not working so we were in bed at just after 9pm.

Dalyan – 5th & 6th October

On Wednesday 5th October Captain Caveman went to help out at the Dog Shelter, we affectionately call this Dogging. The Dalyan doctor called to let me know I could get my booster tomorrow at 10am and I did a bit of stuff on my laptop while the house was quiet. In the local news a paraglider had died at Babadağ so we thought this might put Gay Gaz off doing a jump, but it didn’t.
I made a chicken and veg fried rice for a late lunch which was very tasty.
We went out to look for a new cheese grater, as ours was broken, but we didn’t find a decent one. Instead, we popped for a beer in the sun outside Sofra bar where we happened to bump in to a couple of reprobates. We didn’t stay too long as I’d decided to cook my own version of a Hunter’s Chicken with wedges and carrots that evening. This meant we didn’t eat until 9.45pm but it was quite tasty.

Captain Caveman went Bumming on Thursday 6th October, our name for helping out with the Riverbums. I went to get my 6th booster vaccine at the local doctors where I saw local expats, Judy and Eddie, there and said hello. The jab itself was so quick that they were done before I noticed. As soon as I got home the app had been updated.
We packed our overnight bags and decided to head over to Mark and Kate’s early as we were taking over the cat and house sitting duties from tonight. Captain Caveman is allergic to cats so he was in a bad way quite quickly. We hadn’t brought any food with us as usually Kate has very little room in the fridge and no free freezer space so we ordered food from Sosyete and washed it down with a glass of red wine. There was a power cut which was fairly lengthy but this didn’t affect our dinner delivery. We went to bed early, a storm was starting but the power had returned.

Photo credit – the Riverbums for the ones of Captain Caveman

Dalyan – 4th October

On Tuesday 4th October I went to the local doctors to see if I could get my Corona vaccine booster because my ‘Life Fits in to Home’ app had told me I was due one. This would be my 4th Turkish Pfizer jab, in addition to the 2 Astra Zeneca jabs in Vietnam prior. At the doctor’s they said they needed 6 people so they took my phone number to let me know when they had enough takers. I tootled off to Turkish class next and I really enjoyed my lesson.
At midday I made a halloumi salad for lunch which was very nice then we waited for the temperature to drop a bit. It was still 30°C when Captain Caveman and I went out for a spot of shopping. Here’s what we got and the price in Lira;

Turkcell phone top up for the month
88.00 lira (£4.12)

Migros supermarket

Onions 3.92
Vine ripened tomatoes 13.31
1 litre Tonic 16.00
1 litre Bitter lemon 16.00
Red peppers 16.05
Batteries 19.20
Orange juice 23.25
Barbecue sauce 34.95
Turkey 51.90
Toothpaste 65.00
Slippers (men’s) 89.90

Total spent 299.48 lira (£14)

By 5pm we were back home, on the balcony, sipping beer and nibbling on cheese while contemplating what to have for dinner. I cooked rice and a kind of chicken fajita dish which Captain Caveman had in a wrap but I just had rice with it. It was very tasty and set us up for the evening.
By 9pm we were back at River Terrace where we joined some friends of Kate’s plus Gay Gaz who was a bit excitable. He had completed a microlight flight this morning and was now thinking he was immortal – he had booked to go to Babadağ to do the paragliding next! We limited our drinks to just 2 beers each and Debbie (Darling) came to join us for the second half of the live music. After, there was talk of more drinking in Sofra bar but we declined as I had a busy day tomorrow and we were trying to stick to a budget.

Dalyan – 3rd October

Monday 3rd October was a bit of shocker! We were both quite hungover and I can’t quite remember the specific time when I realised my wedding faux pas yesterday. I had only been invited to the evening party of Victoria Louise Scott and Bünyamin’s wedding but we had attended the whole thing. I wasn’t even sure I was meant to have taken Captain Caveman as a plus one! I didn’t know what the etiquette was, on realising this mistake, so I decided doing nothing for now would be the best idea.
Feeling a bit delicate, Captain Caveman and I took ourselves out for breakfast. It was our first visit to Ela’s Bar & Kitchen and probably Captain Caveman’s first English breakfast in quite some time. It was already busy with customers when we arrived and there were no tables available in the shade so we waited at the bar, while chatting to Nicola, one of the owners. Once seated, we ordered the large breakfast which was 145 lira (£6.88) and included a hot drink. We were a bit thirsty and also ordered freshly squeezed orange juice which was so good.
The breakfast was amazing and a definite contender for the best in Dalyan, I’d say. Captain Caveman helped the owners by adding the place to Google maps and then we walked home.

Even though it was sunny and hot there were signs of the end of season approaching. Leaves were in the pool now, the pump was off, the garden was even more overgrown and we still hadn’t seen the pool or garden man.
That afternoon it was playing on my mind that we may have accidentally attended too much of the wedding yesterday so I sent a message to Victoria, not expecting an answer but more to apologise for my error. We didn’t need a lunch but we did eat dinner at home before our next adventure. I made us chicken and veg wraps with rice and salad, it tasted very nice. Victoria responded to say not to worry, she saw the funny side and reassuringly let me know all was good – I was relieved and happy about this.

Because I had a bicycle, I rode Daisy while Captain Caveman walked to Mark & Kate’s house. We arrived in time to say bye to them, before their airport taxi arrived. Captain Caveman took a beer from Mark and went to sit in the sex swing outside by the pool. Due to a technical hitch we weren’t staying over at Mark and Kate’s that night, after all, which meant we could go out out. We would be cat sitting while they were in England though.
Gay Gaz messaged to say he was in Jiks so we went to meet him for him to tell us he had a microlight flight booked for tomorrow morning. Since the cable car trip, he was wanting to face his fears and we jokingly said we would look out for him going over our apartment tomorrow morning. He was laughing a lot, coughing a lot and putting the customers on the next table off their food.

Dalyan – 2nd October

Captain Caveman was back to his sprightly self on Sunday 2nd October, which looked to be another sunny day. He went to Migros supermarket as they opened at 8.30am to buy some breakfast items. He bought 1 simit, 1 croissant and 1 chocolate & nut croissant for a total of 25.35 lira (£1.20).
We ate breakfast and, while I caught up on my Turkish, Captain Caveman went back to the supermarket for a bigger shop. Here’s the shopping basket and prices in lira;

Migros Supermarket

1 litre soda water 9.75
Salt 11.50
Cheese 15.50
2 packs of chicken livers 16.81
Apple and cherry juice 21.60
A knife 22.95
3 tomato puree 23.76
Marmalade 24.40
Washing powder 29.06
Roll-on deodorant 30.45
Chicken 41.24
Paper towels 79.90
Toilet rolls 119.90
Olive oil 154.90

Total spent 601.72 lira (£28.83)

Back home, we had a nice chicken salad for lunch and then we had to get ready for the biggest event in Dalyan that I’d ever been to!

At 3.30pm we made our way to the Kaunos tea garden where Victoria Louise Scott was getting married to Bünyamin. A while a go I had received an invite to her Facebook group event which I had read out to Captain Caveman so that he could add the itinerary to his phone. These were the details he had:
4pm Wedding ceremony at tea garden
4.30pm boats to the beach, canapés & drinks on board, photos at the beach
6.30pm back up the river by boat to Paradise hotel for the evening meal
8.30pm evening wedding party.
I decided to wear my pink dress and Captain Caveman wore trousers and a shirt, despite it being extremely hot. When we arrived at the tea gardens there were already lots of guests having a refreshment. There was very little shade and we were melting so we decided to grab a beer. We were joined by Mark, Kate, Debbie (Darling), Roy, Nikki and Bianca. Debbie (Darling) and I stood together to watch the ceremony which was very nice. There were lots of guests, as Victoria is very well known in Dalyan, she is also an Admin for the Dalyan Visitors Facebook page.

Captain Caveman and I followed Mark and Kate towards the boats after the ceremony, Debbie (Darling) and Roy were going to go straight to the hotel and see us there.
When we got to the boat, Mark, Kate and Daisy were on Turgay’s boat but it was now full so we hopped on the next one. Captain Caveman ordered a beer and I had a red wine, both cost the same, 70 lira (£3.35). We had a couple and enjoyed some canapés as we sailed down the river. On the boats we had lots of music and dancing and we got involved in the celebrations, feeling so pleased to have been invited. All of the guests we met were lovely and it was an amazing day. Victoria looked absolutely stunning and everyone had dressed up for this momentous occasion. The traditional Turkish band followed us from boat to boat and were incredible (and loud), the young drummer was fantastic.

We arrived at the Paradise hotel and rejoined Debbie (Darling) and Roy who were already sat at a table and had a wine bucket crammed with bottles of wine. There was also a lot of bottled water on the table which, when we went to sit down, a guest came to move out of the way. She took the waters and a bottle of wine to another table and we thought maybe we were in her seats so we moved down a bit. The table was set lovely and there was a post box for us to put our money/cards in. I didn’t realise how close to the top table we were until Victoria and Bünyamin came in to sit at their table, right behind me. The food came out quickly and was absolutely delicious, Captain Caveman shovelled it in like he was starving and ate anything from my plate that I couldn’t manage. The wine on the table to toast wasn’t to my taste as I’m not keen on sparkling rosé so we stuck to our own red wine. We managed to see Deidre who we missed meeting up with in Holland and she helped me sign the wedding book. Because I had contact lenses in, I had trouble seeing what I wrote. Steve came over with a whisky and I had one with the boys to mark the happy day. We were having a lovely time with lots of dancing and drinking. We were pretty tipsy but we had to leave fairly early as we had Drew’s birthday at River Terrace to attend.

At River Terrace we managed to just catch Jamie and Drew before his celebration ended. On the way home my sandal strap broke and I had to hobble down lovers lane to the bar. We then sat to watch Daisy perform her singing but I really couldn’t drink much more. It had been a great day and we had loved seeing so many people having such a good time.

Dalyan, Toparlar waterfall & Yuvarlakcay – 1st October

To say Captain Caveman was feeling rough and looking peaky on Saturday 1st October was an under statement. When I showed him the bottle of whisky with only a quarter of the contents left he was surprised! He had to have a cold wet makeshift flannel on his head and lay on the sofa. Even when our Aussie friends, Amanda and Greg, came to say goodbye he didn’t get up, which was embarrassing. They understood because it has been a bit of a tradition of their’s to end up with a casualty on the day they have to go back to Australia from a holiday, but it is normally one of their own party! It didn’t help that the weather forecast for today in Dalyan was extremely hot and sunny. The temperature would reach 38°C so it was probably a good thing we were off out this afternoon.

Today we had booked a bus trip with Kate and Daisy to go to Yuvarlakcay. It is up in the mountains and has an icy cold river with some restaurants along it. The bus cost us around 200 lira each (£10) and it left Dalyan bus station at 1pm. Captain Caveman really was struggling as we got on the bus but he had a bottle of water with him. On the way we stopped off at Toparlar waterfall which we had a short walk to and then we stripped off to our swimmers for a dip in the cool pool at the bottom of the waterfall. The rocks were tricky and if you have any issues walking I wouldn’t recommend this bit. I needed help getting in and out as well as guidance on the rocks. I really struggled on one particular bit but Captain Caveman was there to give me a hand up without me hurting my knee too much. I was glad to be wearing my porter sandals from Vietnam to ensure I didn’t slip.

Back in the hot bus Captain Caveman started to feel more unwell. By the time we reached Yuvarlakcay he had to be the first off the bus, despite being sat on the back seat, so he could be sick. While the rest of us found a shady seat by the water in the restaurant, Captain Caveman sorted himself out. Daisy had also had a late night last night so she had a little sleep while Kate and I drank a cold Efes. Captain Caveman arrived, ordered a beer and agreed to share mezes, bread and chips for lunch with all of us. He then had a nap and Daisy fell asleep too, Kate and I were just glad of the cooler temperature. As we left, we did put a toe in the water but it was too cold for a swim and the swings were busy with children, which we couldn’t really turf out.

On the way back to Dalyan the journey seemed a bit quicker, Kate had arranged to meet Mark after pool and we said I’d see Angelique at Rehab. That changed a bit as Captain Caveman went home to bed and Kate had to feed the cats. I managed a drink at Tez bar with Mark, Kate, Roy and Gay Gaz, though, before going to Migros to pick up crisps, wraps and tomato puree. I went home earlier than everyone else to make Captain Caveman a diet pizza.

Photo credit – Daisy, Kate & Captain Caveman

Dalyan – 30th September

Friday 30th September was measurements day and this week they were pretty good;
Bust -3.5cm
Waist -1cm
Hips +1cm
Right thigh no change
Left thigh -0.5cm
Calves no change
Unfortunately I had not lost any weight this week, in fact I weighed 0.15kg heavier.
Captain Caveman and I joined Amanda and Greg for a Turkish breakfast at Melekanne. This time, because I didn’t have to be anywhere for the rest of the day, I indulged in most of it except for the eggs, tomatoes and cucumber. It was very nice and we all enjoyed it very much but, as I half expected, I had a bad stomach before we had even left the restaurant.

I went home while Captain Caveman went to Migros supermarket where he spent 72 lira (£3.70) on pasta, pesto and another ice cube tray. The weather was still lovely so we had balcony beers in the afternoon. It was, sadly, Amanda and Greg’s last night so we decided to have a bit of a soirée round at our apartment.
Amanda and Greg were doing the last of their renovations and had decided to put a table up for sale on one of the Facebook groups. They had not had any viewers yet so they asked if we could keep it at our place and show it to anyone interested, and hopefully sell it. We agreed and Captain Caveman went over to help Greg carry it back from their Reading Rooms apartment. I’d had a chicken curry in the slow cooker all day so we had that for dinner before people started to arrive for our whisky night.

Attending our evening was Amanda & Greg, Jackie & David, the 2 of us and Sonuç. We decided we would open the 17 year old Craigellachie which Mr Huy had sent as a gift and I put out just a few nibbles.
We had a great night and the whisky was excellent. Captain Caveman must have really liked it because, while the rest of us had between none and 2 whiskies each, he drank more than half the bottle to himself. He ate most of the nibbles before the guests could too, so he was in a particularly greedy mood. He also fell asleep in his chair several times, Sonuç was the last to leave about 1.30am and I don’t think Captain Caveman made it to bed for some time.

Dalyan – 29th September

On Thursday 29th September we had a rather lovely day. After I’d finished my morning’s tasks, it was time to go over to view the bicycle that was for sale. Sarah, who works at Hotel Dalyance, was selling an ordinary basket bicycle for 500 lira (£24 approx). Captain Caveman and I walked it to her house in the hot sun and when we got there, he took it for a test cycle. I went in to the house with Sarah and fussed the dogs, who were really sweet. Captain Caveman decided the bicycle was worth the money, he paid for it and then I had a little go to cycle it. I’m not so proficient on a new bicycle and on a busy road but I gave it a try. I had to stop a couple of times to suss out the gears and then I decided we could go to the Kaunos tea gardens on our way home. The Turkish tea is only 4 lira (20p) and is very good so I had that. Captain Caveman had a lemon drink and we shared a spinach and cheese gözleme (square pancake) which were very nice. It was then I realised my bicycle had a name, Daisy Uğur, so I sent a photo of it to Daisy who was highly amused as one of her friends is called Uğur. I agreed to give her the bike as a wedding present should she ever marry Uğur.

On the way back home we went through town and changed some dollars at Aksoy jewellers. I had to be at the hairdresser’s for 4.30pm for my hair doing so Captain Caveman went shopping in Migros.

Here’s what he bought;
1 brown sliced loaf 24.95
1 ice cube tray 49.95
650g chicken 65.13

Total spent 140.03 lira (£6.83)

My hair cost me 450 lira (£22) which was cheap by UK prices but had gone up by 150 lira in 3 months. Emrah always does a fantastic job so I was still pleased with my hair. I usually like to go out after I’ve had my hair done but tonight we were staying home. The overgrown shrubbery and trees on our complex were becoming a menace and I had to bend down to get to our stairs without getting my new hair in the leaves and branches!
To celebrate Thirsty Thursday and my new hair (although Captain Caveman hadn’t commented on my new look) I opened a bottle of Tılsım red wine.
We were sat enjoying a glass on the balcony when Greg brought us over an orange chair which they had decided to replace. The Aussies had been tarting up their apartments and were getting rid of some really nice items.
Captain Caveman loved his new chair and sat in it straight away to check it out. It was super comfy and we both like the colour so we kept it. For dinner Captain Caveman whipped up a chicken and halloumi salad and we polished off the wine!

Dalyan – 27th & 28th September

Our Turkish class was cancelled on the morning of Tuesday 27th September. This meant I could enjoy an unexpected easy day at home. For breakfast I had peaches, figs, yoghurt and honey while Captain Caveman made himself an omelette to have with fresh bread. Our Aussie friends had took themselves off to IKEA in İzmir and Captain Caveman had started to do some small jobs around the apartment.
I got on with pickling some beetroot and onions and then we got an unexpected invite out. Kate messaged to let us know that Daisy would be singing at River Terrace that evening so would we come along to support her. Of course, we said yes but decided we would eat at home first. Captain Caveman had his first go at making the pizzas on wraps and they turned out pretty nice. He also did a Halloumi side salad and we opened a bottle of Tılsım red wine to go with it.
We got to River Terrace before Daisy started singing and she was a bit nervous, she has a lovely singing voice though. By 10pm she was performing a great version of Country Roads, she was pretty good at an Amy Winehouse song too. The customers seemed to enjoy the music, the regular singer and guitarist were also very good but Ali, one of the owners, was totally impressed by Daisy. Kate and I even got up to dance with some other customers from another table so I’d say she had a successful night.

Captain Caveman went to Migros supermarket twice on Wednesday 28th September. The first time he bought 2 chocolate croissants and an onion loaf which cost a total of 40.45 lira (£1.98) and we had a lovely breakfast. On the second visit he bought eggs and bin liners for a total of 54.80 lira (£2.67). For lunch we had the onion bread with hummus, haydari, carrots, gherkins and olives, which was nice.
I spotted a bicycle for sale and enquired about it as it would be great to have some wheels to get about, especially when I’m doing any house or pet sitting for friends. I arranged to go to look at the bike tomorrow and was looking forward to being mobile.
That evening Captain Caveman and I went to the Retro bar quiz with Gay Gaz, Amanda and Greg. Surprisingly we managed to come joint first in the quiz but when we got home Tom, the quizmaster, had put a comment on Facebook that our score was wrong by 10 points so we didn’t actually win. I replied that we hadn’t marked our own so it’s not like we were cheating! I don’t really like quizzes because I’m not very good at them, whereas Captain Caveman loves a quiz. Tom Cree, the man who does the quiz, is very good and makes it more fun. I also like going to Retro bar as it is one of my favourites.

Babadağ, Fethiye and Çalış – 26th September

Monday 26th September was quite a day! Kate, in her capacity of Miss Guided Tours or Miss Adventure, had organised a day trip. Captain Caveman and I called for Amanda & Greg to walk to the bakery opposite Özalp’s to meet the rest of the party; Adam, Kath, Mark, Kate, Daisy, John, Andrea, Janet, Kev, and Gaz. We departed on the minibus towards Fethiye as we were off for a day out at Babadağ, the place where paragliding is a popular sport. We left Dalyan at 10am, by 11.30am I had already had my first nervous wee and had my cable car ticket in my hand. The cost was 170 lira (£8 approx) each so not expensive for tourists. It became apparent that Gay Gaz, Amanda, Daisy and I were not looking forward to the cable car, at all. I’m not scared of heights but I have trouble trusting anything that looks precarious.
As people dallied about waiting for Gay Gaz before getting in to a cable car, Captain Caveman and I were already at the front of the queue. We got told by staff to get in and the maximum allowed per car was 8, I hurried in and sat down as it moved along the platform. No one else had got in with us and the car behind us had a guy with a parachute in. I was terrified and it felt like the longest journey ever as it climbed up to the first station. It was definitely the highest cable car I’d ever been on but Captain Caveman thought it was amusing to see me so scared.

We all reconvened at the restaurant which involved a walk over a bridge with a glass floor down the middle. Ordinarily I wouldn’t have stood on the glass floor but compared to the cable car it was far less worrying and people were standing in the way on each of the sides. There wasn’t enough room at the restaurant for all of us to sit together so, while the rest of the group sat in the sun, Captain Caveman, Amanda, Greg and I sat at a separate table in the shade. Captain Caveman and I ordered burgers and a beer which we really enjoyed and it wasn’t too expensive. Greg had a beef wrap, also good, and Amanda shared her chicken salad with a wasps.

The next part of ascending the mountain involved a chair lift, which I have been on before when I went skiing a long time ago. Both Amanda and I didn’t want to go on it but I kind of talked her in to it, only to regret it. I had a complete meltdown on this one and hated every second. Obviously Captain Caveman and Greg were fine with it but Amanda and I were not and were extremely emotional when we got off. Poor Greg had a migraine coming on but luckily I had medication with me so he was able to prevent it. Captain Caveman took himself off for a laugh and couldn’t believe how scared I had been.
As the guys decided to carry on right to the top of the mountain, Amanda and I decided we would walk down to the cable car station – there was no way we would get on the chair lift again. We managed to watch lots of mental paragliders jumping off the mountainside but we couldn’t get our head round the 5 year old child doing it with an adult.

Video of the chair lift we went on

By 3pm we were back at the 1700m cable car height and about to go back down. Kate had lost Mark, who had wandered up to the mountain top, with John, later than everyone else so she felt like she was herding cats. On the way up I had sat with my back to the sea but on the way down I thought it might be better to face the drop – it wasn’t. Daisy, Greg and I were facing forward while Captain Caveman and Amanda were going backwards. Halfway down both Daisy and I spotted the same fraying rope above us, at exactly the same time. Captain Caveman tried to reassure us by saying it would still be safe but managed to make it worse. I felt like I was hyperventilating for most of the cable car journey and, although the views were amazing, all I could concentrate on was getting out.

The next part of our day involved a drive in to Fethiye, where there was a quick pit stop at Address restaurant and bar where we managed to smash some crockery moving tables. Amanda, Greg and Captain Caveman tootled off to the Turkish delight shop, Kate collected the water taxi tokens for us all to go to Çalış.
Of course no trip is complete without a visit to Charcoal Palace for fish and chips, the draft Becks beer was now 40 lira (£1.95) per pint so some people took advantage of that and most had the fish and chips. Some had battered sausage and onion rings. It was great, as always, and I felt very full and sleepy on the journey back home.
It had been a great day out and now Captain Caveman fancied doing a tandem paraglide jump from the top of Babadağ. I think I will be busy that day!

Photo Credit – Captain Caveman

Dalyan – 25th September

Captain Caveman went to get bread from the bakery on Sunday 25th September. He chose wholemeal bread which I’m not a fan of but he did bring me back a simit, similar to a bagel with sesame seeds on. I had that for breakfast with olives, cheese, kaymak (Turkish clotted cream) and honey.
That evening there was an event on in Dalyan, live music at the top of bar street, which we decided to go to. There had been 2 previous similar events that we had missed while in Vietnam so we were looking forward to seeing what all the fuss was about. Kate had booked a table for a few of us at the White House for dinner so Captain Caveman and I decided to go for an early bar on our way to meet up. We had a couple of glasses of wine at Aşkın’s bar which was rather nice and we got nice complimentary snacks.
At the White House we were given the best upstairs table where the other attendees were; Mark, Kate, Daisy, Adam & Kath, Julie & Issy, John & Andrea.
We ordered wine and decided against starters as there was complimentary lavaş (balloon bread). I had meatballs with cheese, Daisy had steak, Kate had popeye chicken, Mark & Captain Caveman both had beef wellington. The food was great even though it did take a while to come out with it being so busy, but we didn’t mind and the staff were very professional. The beef wellington was easily the best meal of the night and I wish I’d ordered it. I sampled that and Kate’s popeye chicken which was also very tasty. The music was ok but after we had eaten such a lovely meal we were not really up for dancing about. Captain Caveman and I left between 10.30pm and 11pm and had a walk back home to bed. It was probably for the best as tomorrow we had another fun day out planned.

Dalyan – 24th September

Captain Caveman dislikes that I don’t get up early so on Saturday 24th September I had set my alarm to make sure we got to the weekly market. This would be the first time in about 3 years that Captain Caveman had been and he was looking forward to it.
We mainly purchased fruit and veg; onions, potatoes, olives, red cabbage, lettuce, spring onions, figs, plums, peaches, pears and honey. As Captain Caveman was paying and there were no receipts I didn’t note the amount we spent but to give you an idea the most expensive item was a jar of local honey at 80 lira (£3.80).
On the walk back from the market I bit in to one of the pears, only to find it was bad. For lunch we had a lovely salad which Captain Caveman bought a fresh cooked chicken from the butcher’s to go with. That was also 80 lira (£3.80) which is still cheap in English equivalent but the last time Captain Caveman had been here they were only 15 lira but worked out at £2.50 then. I let him know that bread loaves, which used to be 1 lira, were now 3 lira so that he wouldn’t be taken by surprise at the bakery.
In the afternoon we had peaches, plums and figs with a drizzle of honey on – that was delicious.
By 5pm we were in the A101 supermarket buying more essentials, then we popped to Migros for what we were still missing;

A101 Supermarket
Lemons 5.24
Clotted cream 23.50

Total 28.74 lira (£1.37)

Migros Supermarket
Tomato Ketchup 22.00
Gluten Free flour 23.50
Halloumi cheese 28.30
Gherkins 31.90
Mozzarella cheese balls 34.90
Yoghurt 35.95
Fabric Softener 36.90
Washing powder 38.75
Nuts 44.90
Mouthwash 54.90

Total spent 352 lira (£16.77)

We called in to Jiks pub after for a drink where we sat in the beer garden with Sue, Shiela and Ian. I had a cherry juice, Captain Caveman an Efes Malt. We noticed that the service in Jiks wasn’t as sharp as it once was and they had new staff.
Back home, the lights on the pool were on and didn’t seem to be on a timer any more, there were also new additional lights that had been installed. The pool looked like someone had tipped some salt in it but it was still dirty and we hadn’t seen a pool guy yet.
For dinner I decided to try an old favourite from when I used to eat healthy. I think it came from a Slimming World idea to make pizzas from wraps and keep the toppings basic. For each pizza I used 2 spoons of passata as the base, 1.5 slices of salami, 4 olives, 2 mushrooms, a few slices of red pepper and 3 small balls of cheese, sliced thinly. It takes only 7 minutes in the oven and it was the first time Captain Caveman had tried them. We enjoyed the low calorie pizzas, so much so that I got annoyed with Captain Caveman for snaffling it in too loudly. Captain Caveman was annoyed with me for commenting on his lack of manners so I went to bed early.

Dalyan – 22nd & 23rd September

Thursday 22nd September was another relaxing day spent mainly at home. Captain Caveman got up early and donned his scruffy clothes to rejoin the Riverbums on their weekly clean up. Captain Caveman loves a bit of what we affectionately call Bumming and, while he was working hard, I made a chicken casserole in the slow cooker.
I was meant to take myself off to the unveiling of the Kaptan June memorial opening but I got carried away with other tasks. Amanda, Greg and Chris were spending their day at Kaunos ruins and then BC Spa which we had also been invited along to, but I declined. It was a bit hot for me to enjoy walking round the ruins.
That night we enjoyed the chicken casserole with roast potatoes and a gin.
We had a very busy weekend coming up so I needed to take things easy again.

Amanda, Greg, Chris, Captain Caveman and I went to Saklı Bahçe for a Turkish breakfast on Friday 23rd September. I am still finding that when I eat out, especially Turkish breakfast, I have a bad stomach. Usually, I just suffer it but we had a busy day and I didn’t fancy being ill so I just drank tea and had a few chips while the others had 4 massive Turkish breakfasts. I was so jealous because I wanted to shovel it down like Captain Caveman but didn’t want to risk it.
Next, the 5 of us walked to Mark & Kate’s where we were invited to try out their paddle board and kayaks. With 3 of the group being Aussies it was no surprise that Greg and Chris were very good at it. Kate had put out some nibbles which I was surprised that, after the massive breakfast, Captain Caveman was having Vegemite with bread. I ate some crisps and drank water. Captain Caveman and Mark went off in a couple of kayaks but I wasn’t brave enough to try it because of my old knee injury and not being able to get back out.
Gay Gaz arrived with booze so we started on the wine in the afternoon. We all got to meet some of the cats and the newest one was very cute. Later, we decided to go back in to town while the Aussies tootled off to sort some stuff out. Captain Caveman, Gay Gaz and I went for a drink at Retro bar to see Nazim, Murat, Nusret and Gonca. We noticed that the cafe opposite Retro at M Hotel had closed, Nazim said they were making some improvements and would open again soon. Mark and Kate had plans to go to Lukka bar for the music bingo but, unfortunately, there was not enough spaces for the 3 of us to join them so we decided to take ourselves off for dinner.
I’ve been to Okyanus lots of times but I mainly go for lunch. I had a lovely mushroom pasta dish and I was impressed with it. While we were eating, Kate came over to say there were 3 spaces at Lukka Bingo and so we were squeezed in.
The Bingo is more of a music quiz and Mehmet is just really funny with how he presents it. We had a marvellous evening which ended with Gay Gaz on a chair singing ‘Its raining men’ as his taxi came to take him home.