Dalyan – 20th & 21st March

While Captain Caveman completed his last day at work on Friday 20th March, in readiness for his charity cycling event in Vietnam, I got a lot of admin done. It seemed cooler and looked like it might rain, which is usually the case whenever I have Norman, the dog. Jamie and Drew were off on holiday and Norman was going to be in my care while he celebrated his 15th birthday.
I wasn’t expected to finish work until after 8pm tonight so, at 3pm, I nipped out for a quick bit of fresh air and to the shop as I needed some essentials. I checked against the budget and I had just over £18 left for this week, plus the cash I had in my purse for the market tomorrow. It was Bayram, a bank holiday for Ramadan, so I wanted to get meat before it sold out and make sure I got cash out before ATMs ran short. Here’s what I bought at the supermarket, with prices in lira;

Migros Supermarket
Onions 5.31
Peanuts 52.00
Dark chocolate 66.95
Mushrooms 86.95
Wholemeal sliced loaf 97.50
500g Beef mince 375.00
Total spent 683.73 lira (£11.59)

Beef is expensive in Turkey so I’d gone mad by buying mince at over £6 for 500g but I fancied making a Bolognese this weekend.
I had a cruise training session with Travelpack from 7pm so I was still working until gone 8pm, then I made a pasta dinner with a glass of wine to round off my week. I’d plan to get more content for my next book done this weekend but I was already feeling exhausted.
I topped up my wine and tried to relax. Captain Caveman sent me a photo of a vodka named after me in the duty free – he was finally on his way to Vietnam for 2 weeks, and I was a little bit jealous that I wasn’t going too.

Gratitude List

1. Getting some work done

2. Excellent free Cruise Training with Travelpack

3. Pasta and wine.

Things certainly didn’t go according to plan on Saturday 21st March. While Captain Caveman had arrived in China for a 7 hour lay over but was unable to get to the lounge, I shoved the ingredients for a Bolognese in the slow cooker. I had plans to go to the market. Jamie and Drew weren’t leaving for the airport until 11.15pm but I had said I would meet them for an afternoon farewell drink and also go over to their’s for wine after dinner. I called round to Jamie and Drew’s on my way to the market, Norman was still in his bed.
Unfortunately, the market had limited stalls open due to Bayram so I only bought 5 bananas and 2 courgettes for 85 lira (£1.44). Back home, I ate more homemade soup for lunch. I didn’t make the 3pm drinks with Jamie & Drew, as agreed, because I was waiting for a work related call with one of the owners of Resort Experts. That didn’t happen until much later than expected so it was 7pm by the time I left the house.
When I got to Ren Garden, it was empty so I waited. Jamie and Drew had been in Sofra bar with friends. Drew arrived first, followed later by Jamie – late, ladened with shopping bags and walking Norman.
Drew just had the one drink and left, as Jamie and I were talking about work. We ordered another wine and continued on about work, even though we both had to get home for dinner. My 2 wines were 300 lira (£5.08) and we left Ren Garden, intending on going home to eat dinner. I only got as far as next door in Jik’s where another glass of wine was ordered.
Jamie and I parted ways after Jik’s where my glass of wine was 150 lira (£2.56), I bought a bottle of red wine from Yaman Büfe 2, to have later and rushed home to turn off, then eat, my Bolognese.
When I arrived at Jamie & Drew’s to see them off, Norman was napping, Drew was drinking wine and Jamie had popped out to the bank. The electric gate wasn’t working so there was some faffing about with that and I had to look away for fear of a finger or hand being cut off.
The taxi arrived and I said bye to both, Norman got kisses from Little Daddy and Step Daddy Drew, but didn’t seem unduly concerned – he was used to the comings and goings of us all now.
I went inside feeling tired but poured myself another glass of wine, which I would probably regret in the morning. Going through the menopause has meant that my body cannot tolerate alcohol like it used to.

Gratitude List
1. Getting work stuff sorted
2. Norman
3. Farewell wines with Jamie and Drew.

Dalyan – 19th March

On Thursday 19th March I was busy but doing the bit of my job I enjoy most – speaking to potential and existing customers. I made myself some fresh orange juice to have with my homemade lentil soup for a late lunch and it was very good. The oranges from Kate were just so juicy and tasted of sunshine.
I spoke to Captain Caveman who was flying to Vietnam tomorrow so was busy getting everything ready. He had also moved out of the house in Pontefract and was hoping to be living in Sheffield when he returned in April.
In the evening I decided a walk by the river was a good idea, despite it being dark already, and I called to the off licence for a bottle of wine. It wasn’t in the budget but I felt I needed it and it was just 300 lira (£5.08) for the one I liked. I called at the bank and took out some cash for the market this weekend.
Back home I had another chat with Captain Caveman as I was trying to plan when to visit him in the UK. I had seen a cheap flight for Easter but he said not to bother as he had volunteered to work all of it. We discussed May and June but he couldn’t commit to where he would be and nothing got agreed. Later I enjoyed a glass of wine while I caught up on my blogging.

Gratitude List
1. Fresh orange juice
2. Speaking to Captain Caveman
3. A lovely glass of red wine.

Dalyan – 16th March

I was beside myself with excitement on Monday 16th March; Claire Clarke, my publishing consultant, was about to give me help to get my book(s) in to actual UK bookshops – on the shelves or to preorder! I needed to buy the ISBN numbers for the books. These were £93 for 3 or £175 for 10. I spoke to Captain Caveman who was super supportive and thought that it was a great idea to get more of my books out in to the world. I decided to buy the 10 ISBNs as it would mean I had the rest for all my other books – if I didn’t think of myself as a writer or author before, I needed to now!

Claire and I got on a Zoom call at 1pm and, while it was technical for me, we got through the necessary work to get it set up (I won’t bore you with the details but it wouldn’t have been easy to do on my own). At the end of the call, I had a few more things from Claire to do and she was going to do her tasks. We would reconvene once we got an answer from the publishing company, which would allow us to then be on the national database for all booksellers in the UK.

I was so giddy, as I’d been trying to get to a point where my book(s) could be found in bookshops rather than just on Amazon. If all went well, all those people who ‘didn’t do Amazon’ would be able to buy my books in a bookshop this summer! ‘The Handy Travel Planner’ was first in line, then we would add ‘You Can’t Shit Yourself’ on a Bicycle…’ before the next couple I was currently working on. There was a slight setback in that my next book, ‘You Can’t Eat a Whole Blancmange and Dance….and other handy travel tips’ would be delayed. It was a bit scary, but also very exciting.

I was so grateful for Claire being there to support me and if you’re reading this and want to get a planner or journal published you should definitely get in touch (link below).

https://iamclaireclarke.co.uk/

I decided to celebrate in the evening; Vanessa was going back to the UK so we had arranged for me to join her and Matt for fish & chips at Cadde Balık. We’d had it planned for a while and Vanessa came to call for me at 5.30pm. Matt had decided not to come as he had eaten out at lunch time so wasn’t hungry.

As we were walking along the river, Vanessa said the reason we had picked fish and chips was because of Matt, and I’d been recently so we decided to change the venue so we could have a celebratory wine. We arrived at River House and the weather was nice enough to sit outside at 6pm. We decided to splash out with a full meal plus wine and it was amazing. Here’s what we had with prices in lira;

River House

1 soda water 50
1 Carafe white wine 590
1 Lahmacun 295
1 Chicken risotto 850
1 Liver & Onions 950
1 chocolate pancake 230
Total 2,965 lira (£50.25)

We also got free bread and mezzes so we had lots of food! Various stray cats and dogs waited to see if they would get any leftovers and one dog got a bit of liver from Vanessa. Obviously, we split the bill. It was the most I’d spent on a meal out in a while but I thought it was excellent. While we were there, a friend from the UK on holiday here, stopped by and she joined us. It was a lovely girl’s night and it felt nice to go out and treat myself while saying bye to one of my best friends. I would worry about the £70 weekly budget later!

When I got home, things had progressed with the pay day chase up and we were getting paid tomorrow. I was certainly looking forward to the money being in our accounts!

Gratitude List

1. Progress on getting my books in to actual UK book shops!

2. Getting to say hello to a friend on holiday

3. A wonderful send off for Vanessa.

Dalyan – 15th March

It was an interesting day on Sunday 15th March; I’d already turned down an invite to a boat trip with a friend so that I could get on with tasks that I needed to do. I had something exciting brewing with regards to my books but I couldn’t say anything yet, mainly as I didn’t have all the information. It was Mother’s Day in the UK but they don’t celebrate it in Turkey. I messaged Mom to see when I could call as I didn’t know if she might be doing something with my sister. I tootled off to meet Nanny Kay, Jamie, Drew and Norman in Luvi, a cafe I’d not really taken any notice of before.
It’s next door to Mimi’s and near Ozzy’s Bar in the square next to Migros. It took a short while to order a hot chocolate on account of the staff making the others’ 3 drinks but it was worth the wait and cost 140 lira (£2.37), it wasn’t much more for wine and the wine by the bottle was reasonable, I noted.
The cafe was nice and Norman got some attention. I decided to call to see if there was any chicken on offer on the way back, and I had run out of oats.
I was in luck and here’s what I bought with prices in lira;

Şok Supermarket
Oats 87.50
876g Chicken drumsticks 118.26
958g Chicken breasts 238.54
Total spent 444.30 lira (£7.53)

I had a bit of a fiasco with trying to log in to my Amazon account, which was irritating because I needed access for the important meeting I had booked in for tomorrow. That was frustrating as I was sure I had the right details.
In the afternoon I walked over to Vanessa’s, while eating a banana in place of breakfast or lunch, and had a cup of tea with her and Matt and picked up a bag of oranges.
Vanessa and I decided to have a walk round town and called at the tea gardens, it was incredibly busy. We’d already seen Mark, Kate, Pamela and Glynn in Efe bar when Vanessa dropped a scarf off for someone who had left it. Next, we went to Public bar for a glass of wine. It’s one of the more expensive places at 180 lira (£3.05) for a white wine and we shared a soda. I was getting peckish and thought I might order food at Public but resisted and we called at the supermarket. Vanessa recommended some chicken pieces that were a bit like a KFC and I decided to buy those. A bag of them was only 189 lira (£3.20) so much cheaper than eating out and I had wraps at home already, so that was late lunch and early dinner sorted. In the evening I had a video call with my Mom to wish her Happy Mother’s Day.

Gratitude List
1. Cancelled plans
2. Catching up with Vanessa
3. Chicken wrap at home.

Dalyan – 11th & 12th March

My weight on the home scales on Wednesday 11th March showed no change and I hoped that was because the battery was low on them. My measurements were much more favourable as I had lost 1cm from my bust and waist and 3cm from my hips. I just needed to lose 3cm more from my waist and hips to be back to target.
After a couple of hours work, I did day 3 of The Signal, the free course which was really opening my eyes to how I write content and how I might want to improve it in the future. At 1pm I was on a zoom call with the publisher, Claire Clarke, and the Create, Publish, Grow group that I’m part of. We started to discuss advertising and getting our books in to actual bookshops which is what I really needed. I still wanted to do more book sales as I knew my handy travel tips and the handy travel planner could certainly help more people have better holidays.
At Fat Club I had a bit of a surprise when I got on Carol’s scales – I had lost 1.9kg (3.8lb) so, naturally, I was pleased. The swimming pool and the garden area at Ren was looking good, ready for the tourists coming soon. It was colder than it looked out so I was regretting wearing shorts! I spent just 30 lira (51p) on a water, although I was meant to be on a zero spend day today. I rushed back home as I had more work commitments booked in which meant I couldn’t make it to Matt’s birthday meal at the new fish place in town. I’d decided I might meet them after for drinks but I didn’t go in the end. I’d not been paid yet and I was keen to wait until I knew what I was getting, before I spent money on going out or alcohol, plus I was absolutely knackered. Most of the people out had gone to Corner bar, some had gone home. I had an early night, ready for another busy day tomorrow.

Gratitude List
1. Free help with courses and zoom
2. Losing weight
3. A very low spend, zero alcohol day.

It was a busy day in Dalyan on Thursday 12th March. I did a couple of hours work while having tea and toast. At 10am I attended the 4th session of The Signal with Georgina Chapman.
In the Resort Experts team meeting at 2pm there was no apology or mention of the late pay day so I asked the question (again). Luckily, we were reassured that it was being worked on as we spoke. It was likely we would get paid tomorrow but definitely by Friday! I was fine with that, I just wanted to know how much I was getting and when, so that I could make sure my money was in the Turkish bank account before the Bayram bank holidays. It was hot today so I sat outside and got sunburn through my black trousers. I ate left over curry for lunch, outside on the balcony.

At 6pm I decided to go for a walk and take some photos by the river, go to the bank and call for some wine. I bought 2 bottles for 560 lira (£9.49) and took them over to Jamie & Drew’s where I had been invited for dinner.

At Jamie’s I sat outside with a glass of red while chatting to Lucy (Drew’s sister-in-law) and getting to know Scott (her friend). They are really nice people and we had such a laugh. Nanny Kay arrived shortly after and more wine and more laughs were had before enjoying a delicious chicken dinner.
It was late when I got home and I was a bit tipsy!

Gratitude List
1. My new phone and camera
2. A great night at Jamie & Drew’s.
3. Wine.

Dalyan – 10th March

I was so busy on Tuesday 10th March, the day started with the banana cake and tea and then I was in the office until 3pm.
I bought Captain Caveman’s annual Earthquake Insurance for 1,797 lira (£30) as well as the annual home insurance for 10,723 lira (£182). I now use Aytaç Burçak of Saraymine Sigorta for all our insurances as he knows what he’s doing and is easy to do business with.
I needed some essentials and some lunch so, at 3.30pm I took a break and went to the shops. Here’s what I got with prices in lira;

Parlak Bakery
1 Bread 15
1 simit 15
Total spent 30 lira (51p)

Migros Supermarket
Bin Liners 29.95
4 Quark 180.00
Total spent 209.95 lira (£3.56)

I got as many Quark as I could because they were on offer. Back home I ate the simit with cheese, olives and gherkins for a very late lunch, before getting back to my desk.
There was still no email or sign of pay from Resort Experts but I was reliably informed it could sometimes be as late as the 14th so I waited patiently.
I arranged for some quotes for home repairs to be done by Leanne at King Emlak and then I finished a busy day around 6.30pm.

I went to meet friends who were back from the UK and had brought me butter back. When I got to Corner Bar, I ordered a red wine, and found out my friends had forgotten the butter! Still, it was nice to see them as I don’t get out an awful lot these days and they always make an effort to check on me, which is nice.
I paid 170 lira (£2.88) for a glass of wine, but limited it as I had Fat Club tomorrow!
Jamie walked past and was with Norman, the dog, Drew and his sister-in-law and her friend so we all did the usual hellos and Norman got a stroke.
Back home I had curry for dinner and then did some writing. I hoped I’d done enough this week to lose some weight at Fat Club tomorrow.

Gratitude List
1. Getting boring tasks sorted
2. Seeing friends
3. Nice food.

Dalyan – 1st & 2nd March

Over my morning tea and toast on Sunday 1st March, I checked my blog stats. I had just 1% more views in February than January. Interestingly, I had viewers from a country which wasn’t previously on my viewers list, let alone at number 4:
1. UK
2. USA
3. Türkiye
4. Israel
5. Australia
6. Vietnam
7. Hong Kong
8. Ireland
9. Canada
10. Sweden

Because I had taken Friday and Saturday off to accommodate Captain Caveman being here and the postponed boat trip, today was spent in the spare room/office catching up and drinking tea which I made with my new kettle! I loved the new kettle but I did think I might need to be careful about increasing the amount of caffeine I consumed. I consciously made sure today was a zero spend and zero alcohol day but tomorrow I did need to go food shopping as I didn’t have much in, especially as I had missed the Saturday market yesterday. I decided to set my budget for the first week of the new month at just £50, although strictly speaking I could have put it at £140 – I chose not to so that £90 could go in to my emergency/travel fund.
Captain Caveman got back fine and I had my first proper meal of the day at 8.20pm, just a pasta dish that I knocked up. I’d not even left the house today.

Gratitude List
1. Catching up on stuff after 2 days off
2. Having good blog stats
3. A zero spend day to get me back on track.

After tea, toast and a couple of hours of work on Monday 2nd March, I decided to pop to the shops to stock back up. Here’s what I bought with prices in lira:

Migros Supermarket
4 small milk 51.60
Bananas 52.36
Olives 61.50
1 Sweet potato 64.17
Chickpeas 69.95
Rye loaf 85.00
Soy sauce 89.97
Mozzarella cheese 169.90
Total spent 644.45 lira (£10.92)

I’ve been buying my milk in small cartons to reduce waste. If I buy a normal sized carton, there’s a chance I don’t use it all before it goes off and I don’t like to waste it. I had tried putting it in to ice cube trays but I’m not convinced it’s as good with my Yorkshire tea. There was also a shortage of meat on the shelves so I would have to try again later or tomorrow.
While I was looking at my copy of ‘The Handy Travel Planner’, which I’m using a lot, I noticed I’d already added Israel and Iran to countries I wouldn’t visit, before any war started. The planner was proving to be better than I thought for mult-trip planning.
I had a check of flights to the UK to see Captain Caveman when he returned from Vietnam at Easter. I could get a one way without luggage for £30 and I almost booked it. It’s a good job I didn’t as Captain Caveman said not to bother as he was down to work on site over the Easter weekend. We toyed with the idea of me going back at the end of April/beginning of May but the flight prices were higher, my parents were arriving in Dalyan around then and I was looking forward to seeing them. I didn’t book anything and decided to see how things went.
That evening I had been invited round to dinner with Jamie, Drew and Nanny Kay so I called at the Yaman Büfe 2, off licence, and picked up a bottle of wine for 300 lira (£5.08). When I got there Jamie ordered me a phone case from Trendyol as he’s got an account and I gave him the 400 lira (£6.78) cash for it. I had no idea if this was a good deal but to me it felt like an absolute bargain to not have a broken phone if I should drop it. Norman was pleased to have visitors and he was keen to get a snaffle of something, as usual. We discussed requirements for his 15th birthday and Nanny Kay very kindly agreed to make a carrot cake for the occasion.
We had a lovely homemade meal of shepherd’s pie and plenty of wine. It was pretty late when I got home having had a good day where I’d spent a total of £22.78, mainly as I had only done half a good shop.

Gratitude List
1. Allocating more budget in March
2. A walk and a shop for fresh air
3. Dinner & wine with friends

Dalyan – 27th February

It was Captain Caveman’s last full day and night in Dalyan on Friday 27th February. He decided it would be nice to go out for breakfast and we chose Ela’s Kitchen, another favourite of ours. Unfortunately, it meant I had to cancel a call with a friend that we had booked in, but she understood and said to enjoy my time with Captain Caveman. We called at the bank to put in English money to cover the council tax expense and in readiness for our last couple of days. The breakfast was so good and my massive sandwich came with chips and salad. Here’s what we had with prices in lira:

Ela’s Kitchen
1 Espresso 120
1 Yorkshire tea 140
1 Menemen 350
1 Bacon & mushroom sandwich 450
Total spent 1,060 lira (£17.97)

My next mission was to leave Captain Caveman to get on with work and for me to go find a phone case, and a kettle in Ortaca. I was also booked in to have my hair done at my favourite hairdressers. The bus takes about 30 minutes and is just over a £1 each way but it can get busy.
Once in Ortaca I spent over an hour traipsing between phone shops and electrical stores. Interestingly, 2 shops sold the same make and model of phone that I had in my hand but none of them sold cases for them. There was no way I could have a phone without a case so I was a bit disappointed and would have to see if I could get one online. I couldn’t even find a suitable kettle so I decided to give up and go early to the hairdresser’s. I took some Turkish delight which cost 150 lira (£2.54) and was from the lovely shop I bought gifts from last time. I’d completely forgotten it was Ramadan but, luckily, most of the staff weren’t observing and we shared the sweet treats.
I love going to Emrah to have my hair done as he always does such a good job. I know I can get it cheaper in Dalyan but it’s one of the things I really value and trust – a good hairdresser. The cost of a colour, cut, blow-dry and curling cost me 2,300 lira plus I gave a tip of 200 lira, so I spent 2,500 lira (£42.37) and I felt human again – and my hair looked pretty good too!
On the way home I popped in to Migros to buy that Turkish kettle I’d seen for 799.95 lira (£13.56) and a packet of wraps for 120 lira (£2.03). The cashier told me to go home and check that the kettle worked and to bring it straight back if it didn’t.
I didn’t need telling twice, the kettle was out of the box in no time as Captain Caveman was giddy to see how it worked too. For the price I paid, I was happy with the kettle with the tea pot on the top.

After finishing work, Captain Caveman and I met Jamie and Geoff in Sofra bar and had a few Friday night beverages. I’d not eaten since breakfast so the wine went straight to my head and I jumped at the suggestion of food, by which time it was almost 10pm so finding a venue may have proved tricky. Jamie was on it and got us booked in to Ela’s Kitchen, for the 2nd time today. Here’s what Captain Caveman and I had, prices in lira on our last night together;

Ela’s Kitchen
Walnut pesto pasta 550
İskender kebab 700
Drinks 975
Total spent 2,225 lira (£37.72)

We had a great time but I was drunk and couldn’t remember finishing the İskender kebab or getting home. I didn’t realise at the time that we had spent more than £120 in a day – that would usually last me almost a month! We got home and I don’t recall getting undressed or setting the alarm for tomorrow’s boat trip.

Gratitude List
1. Food at Ela’s Kitchen (twice in a day)
2. Getting my hair done and the new kettle
3. Having a night out with Captain Caveman, Jamie and Geoff.

Dalyan – 25th & 26th February

There were plans for an after work outing on Wednesday 25th February and I was looking forward to it. I was also quite tired on our morning walk round Dalyan where we saw that the water levels were back down. The Dalyan Dwellers who had been having to use the back door only, for drinking at Tapa bar would be pleased with that progress.

Before breakfast I did my measurements and got weighed. Despite putting 1cm on my bust and waist and losing 1cm from my hips, the home scales said I had lost 0.4kg (0.9lb), which I was surprised about. I felt sure I would’ve put on some.
After work and soup for lunch, I popped off to Fat Club where I had unfortunately put on 0.25kg (0.5lb) on Carol’s scales, so that was disappointing but better than I had expected, plus I was about to ruin it with a night out. I finished more from my to do list and left Captain Caveman working until late but he would join us later. I met Nanny Kay, Jamie and his Dad, Geoff, at Ren Garden for a drink before dinner. I just had a red wine for 150 lira (£2.54) then it was time to go for food.
Captain Caveman joined the 4 of us at Jik’s pub where we ordered food. All of us except Jamie ordered pizzas, Jamie chose a chicken curry. Jik’s is one of those places that is consistent and has friendly staff. The wine and beers flowed for a weekday night too.
Captain Caveman paid our bill of 1,760 lira (£29.83) which included red wines, beers, pizzas and chips. I thoroughly enjoyed our evening out and didn’t think about having to get up early tomorrow.

Gratitude List
1. Seeing Dalyan being dryer
2. Being lighter on the home scales than at Fat Club
3. An excellent evening out with friends.

Disaster struck on Thursday 26th February when our kettle started to leak! It turned out that the calcite in the tap water had finally made the kettle come apart where the measurement level section was. We didn’t have a walk as we both had work and laundry to do. While Captain Caveman had a meeting, I went to several shops to see if there were any kettles. They were very expensive in the electrical shops although there was a Turkish style kettle and tea pot in Migros for only 800 lira (£13.69) but I wasn’t sure it would be good enough. I decided to wait as tomorrow I was taking the afternoon off to go to Ortaca and I might find one there.
For our dinner, Captain Caveman had insisted that we go out to another one of our favourite restaurants in Dalyan. We arrived at Duble just after 8pm when Captain Caveman finished work. Ibo welcomed us and we sat at a nice table inside. We decided to order a bottle of red wine, 2 soups for starters and 3 dishes to share for main; cheese rolls, liver and chicken shish. It was all very tasty and the liver there is my absolute favourite. We had a great night and we ended up paying just less than £40 for the 5 dishes and a bottle of red wine.

Gratitude List
1. Still finding time to go out after working a long day
2. Captain Caveman suggesting Duble for dinner
3. Great food which was such good value for money.

Dalyan – 22nd February

Our first day together on Sunday 22nd February was lovely. Captain Caveman and I had been due to go on a boat trip but, due to the water levels and it not being safe for getting on and off the boat, it had been postponed. This meant we had a free day and I needed to make sure that Captain Caveman didn’t regret not having arranged a Sunday Walk. We decided we would go for food at Kefal tea gardens then have our own short walk, and a leisurely Sunday.
I took my new phone to try out the camera but I didn’t yet have a case for it so needed to be super careful. I took a selfie and the quality of the camera was good, you could see every wrinkle!
Our first stop on the walk was to check out the river levels outside Tapa bar. This was the highest I’d seen it – Captain Caveman and I had to walk round the road way to the Kefal tea gardens as, even with wellies on, it was too deep. When we arrived at Kefal the sun was out and they had the windows open in the indoor area. Here’s what we had and the prices in lira;

Kefal tea gardens
2 Turkish teas 50.00
1 cheese toastie 150.00
1 Turkish breakfast 360.00
Total spent 560 lira (£9.49)

The food was really nice but my Turkish breakfast was so big that Captain Caveman had to help me eat it.

After breakfast we had a meander, we called in to see Jamie and Norman and had quite a walk around Dalyan while the sun was out. As it was a Sunday, there was nowhere open to exchange currency so I paid £100 cash in to my Turkish bank and moved it across so we could draw out some cash to spend. By 3.30pm we were treating ourselves to an alcoholic beverage in the sun outside Public bar. Captain Caveman ordered an Efes for 190 lira (£3.22) and I went mad with a pint of shandy for 220 lira (£3.73). While Captain Caveman didn’t flinch at the costs, I thought it was a little more than I would usually pay for 2 beers but nevertheless, I enjoyed it – my first beer of 2026. It was the first time we had visited this bar and I liked the interior, there were quite a few Turkish visitors too which was good to see.
Next we went to the Kaunos tea gardens where we met a friend for a bit of a chat. We paid the bill and here’s what we had with prices in lira:

Kaunos Tea Gardens
1 water 20.00
1 lemon soda 40.00
1 Tuborg beer 200.00
Total spent 260 lira (£4.41)

It was gone 6pm by the time we left the tea gardens and it was getting a little nippy so we decided to call in to Waterfall bar to say hello. We had a couple of drinks in there and had texted friends who we thought were calling in, but they didn’t arrive. The bill came to 600 lira (£10.17) for 2 wines and 2 beers then we walked towards home, shivering by this time as it had turned cold.
We decided to eat dinner at Çağrı, an old favourite of ours. Here’s what we had with the prices in lira;

Çağrı
1 large water 50
1 Lahmacun 180
1 Mixed salad 200
1 Efes Malt 200
1 red wine 250
2 lentil soups 300
1 pide 320
Tıp 200
Total spent 1700 lira (£28.81)

The food was fantastic and the service super quick, the perfect end to a boozy and relaxing day together. We’d spent around £60 between the 2 of us in just one day and we did comment how good value that was compared to what we’d have spent in the UK on a Sunday, out and about.

Gratitude List
1. A day off with Captain Caveman in Dalyan
2. Having a super new phone that worked, even if I didn’t know how to use it yet
3. Great food and drinks.

Dalyan – 20th & 21st February

It was my last full day and night on Friday 20th February before Captain Caveman’s arrival in Dalyan tomorrow. This meant that I had a to do list as long as my arm to try to get everything done today. I was aiming to take Sunday off so that I could spend the day with Captain Caveman and some friends on a boat trip. I finally finished for the day at gone 9pm and made myself some pesto pasta for a quick dinner. I didn’t leave the house so it was another zero spend day but tomorrow I would go to the market and get some shopping ready for Captain Caveman.

Gratitude List
1. Looking forward to seeing Captain Caveman
2. Working hard to get everything done
3. Pasta.

The day that Captain Caveman was flying to Dalyan was finally here on Saturday 21st February. This would be his first visit of the year and wasn’t quite the holiday we would’ve liked as he still needed to work as usual while he was here; Monday to Friday – 12 noon to 8pm, which was 9am to 5pm UK time. He’d stayed in the Tribe hotel at Manchester airport last night, so it meant he could have a good breakfast before his flight took off at 1.45pm.
Before 9am I had spent an hour working, and could hear the builders at the apartment downstairs. The Aussies were replacing their balcony railings with metal ones and I was surprised to see them working in the rain.

I ventured over to see Jamie & Norman who were going to the market. Jamie gave me a lift there as it was raining again. I spent less than £3 this week as I had some fresh veg left at home. Here’s what I got with prices in lira;

Market
Stall 1
Carrots 20 lira (34p)
Stall 2
Potatoes, onions & garlic 45 lira (76p)
Stall 3
Apples and oranges 65 lira (£1.10)
Stall 4
Peppers 30 lira (51p)
Total spent 160 lira (£2.72)

After a quick mooch round the weekly market, Jamie dropped me off in town. I still had items on my shopping list that I’d not managed to get and I wanted to stock up, ready for Captain Caveman. Here’s what I bought with prices in lira;

A101 Supermarket
Mints 22.50
Biscuits 25.00
Crisps 45.00
Wipes for glasses 49.50
Cherry tomatoes 49.50
Wraps 90.00
Kaymak 92.50
12 toilet rolls 105.00
Total spent 479.00 lira (£8.12)

Parlak Bakery
Bread 15 lira (26p)

I put the shopping away, had a tidy up and cleaned the house before deciding to tot up my total spending for February, up to today!
I’d started February with £91 left from January and it had been a self imposed challenge to see if I could live off that for the first 3 weeks of February. If you’re an avid reader you will know that because of a planned night out with friends for Valentine’s, I’d almost spent it after 2 weeks in. So, I did a cheeky cheat and isolated that weekend’s splurge and carried on to see if I could still spend up to £91 plus the £37 extravagant weekend. It wasn’t easy, especially as each time I went to the shops, there were a few items I couldn’t get hold of. This meant that when I went again, it was tempting to buy extra treats that weren’t essential.
Anyway, here’s the results with the night out in;
Week 1 spent £25.97
Week 2 spent £57.72
Week 3 spent £38.63
Total £122.32, which meant I overspent by £31.32! If I took the night out from week 2 where I spent £37.29 extra, my total was only £20.34. which would mean a total of £85.03 and being under by £5.97. Of course, I had cheated and didn’t achieve it but I know I would’ve given up and spent more had I not isolated that blip. I think it’s still impressive to have spent less than £41 per week for 3 weeks running. It also showed me that it was possible to live in Dalyan cheaply. Lucky for me, Captain Caveman was bringing cash with him and we were going to be less frugal for the last week of February.
After doing a bit of work on an itinerary for Vietnam, I had a curry for dinner and then decided to open a bottle of red wine while I waited for Captain Caveman to arrive.

Captain Caveman’s flight was due to land at Dalaman airport at 9pm, however, it took off 39 minutes late. We’d already agreed for me not to save or cook Captain Caveman any dinner but we would have some drinks with cheese and biscuits instead. At 10pm I got a message from Sonuç, our airport pick up driver, to say they were just leaving Dalaman now. Captain Caveman had only an underseat bag so he was through quickly once they had landed. He arrived bearing gifts of a brand new Oppo phone for me, 2 boxes of solid coconut, 2 vacuum bags with the stuff I left in London and new electric toothbrush heads. I was so excited to have a new phone as my old one was playing up more and more – I had hoped to get one the next time I was back in Vietnam. I cried with happiness and was so overwhelmed as it was better than my existing model. He’d also treated himself to a nice bottle of Rakı for £26 at Duty Free.
We had a glass of wine and then, as it was Saturday night about 11pm, we decided to head to Sofra bar. I was surprised to find it was empty apart from a couple of people who left not long after we got there. Captain Caveman had his first Efes Malt and I had a red wine, they went down so well that we had a second. Our bill came to 660 lira (£11.19) and Captain Caveman was very happy with that price. I knew I would find spending money so freely this week a bit of a change, after my attempts to live off less than £5 per day!
Back home, I prepared a cheese board and we had some wine with it. Captain Caveman seemed to react to the wine here in Turkey and I think it’s because it’s got sulphites in. We finally called it a night at 2.20am so it’s a good job the planned boat trip for tomorrow had been postponed due to unsafe water levels.

Gratitude List
1. Shopping
2. A new phone
3. Captain Caveman arriving in Dalyan.

Dalyan – 12th to 14th February

I was awake at 6am on Thursday 12th February looking at a recipe for chickpea, beetroot and feta salad – as you do! The rain was heavy and loud on the bedroom roof so I got up and started looking at European city breaks. By 3.30pm I had moved on to looking at Japan.
My working day also included the Resort Experts team meeting. I had to fit in all the rest of the Carrie Green sessions as her free course ended at midnight tonight and I’d got behind.
After work I found myself having a wander along the river to stretch my legs and called in to the shop when it started to rain again. Here’s what I bought, prices in lira;

Şok Supermarket
1 Dido Trio 22.50
1 Dido Gold 30.00
Turkish ravioli 37.50
Halloumi 99.50
Total spent 189.50 lira (£3.21)

The river level was very high and looked like it may overflow on to the main path. There was lots of puddles of water everywhere including the corner of our complex where the pool had overflowed again.
I ate Mantı (Turkish Ravioli) for dinner followed by a Dido chocolate bar. I finished the rest of the Carrie Green stuff off, and met the midnight deadline with half an hour to spare.

Gratitude List
1. A wander by the river
2. Chocolate for a treat
3. Finishing the free Carrie Green course.

Friday 13th February was another very wet and stormy day in Dalyan. If I’d not agreed to go out with Jamie, Drew and Nanny Kay that evening, I probably would have remained in lounge wear or a dressing gown all day. We’d arranged to have a pre Valentine’s Day meal out, which Nanny Kay and I have been doing for several years now, and had booked Ela’s Kitchen.
But first I had work to do, and at 11.30am I had a call with a good friend in the UK which was lovely and always makes my day better. In my lunch hour I looked at flights for my own holidays, including for Poland and Belgium later in the year.
In the afternoon I did all my chase up emails and admin, I was enjoying using the new system to add Tasks etc and found it easier to use than Teams.
This week I’d spent £21 already on shopping, despite having 3 no spend days. To stay on track I really needed to only spend £15 tonight but that was going to be near impossible, maybe I would allow myself to borrow out of next week’s portion of the £91 budget of which I currently had £44 left. Jamie picked me up in the car as it was absolutely chucking it down.
I’d not eaten much all day as I’d been busy so at Ela’s, I chose to have a bacon and cheese burger with chips. I’m not usually a burger person but it was so good. Drew chose the same, Jamie had a Chinese style chicken dish and Nanny Kay had a jacket potato. We shared a couple of bottles of wine and the total I paid for my dinner with wine was 1,000 lira (£16.95) so I had gone over my budget, but not by much. Jamie, Drew and Nanny Kay ordered a taxi and I walked home, through Mosque Square where all the tables were set out for a market stall/craft fair tomorrow. It had been almost a month since I’d had a meal and wine out so I had thoroughly enjoyed myself!

Gratitude List
1. Chatting to a friend
2. Getting giddy about a trip to Poland and Belgium in 2026
3. A night out with friends.

I finally got a lay in on Saturday 14th February and didn’t make myself a cup of tea until 10am! Captain Caveman called so we could wish each other Happy Valentine’s Day, something we don’t tend to celebrate and are rarely together for. He was amused by my attempts to live off £91 in 3 weeks and include a meal and drinks out with friends. He offered to send me money but I said I’d be fine until he arrived in a week’s time.
I didn’t bother going to the market and I spent the day catching up on blogging. I also promoted The Handy Travel Planner in the hope more people would buy it and I wouldn’t have to budget so much!
In the evening I had a wander and inadvertently ended up going to Sofra bar where I bumped in to some friends and had wine. Obviously, I spent more than I’d bargained for, another 1,100 lira (£18.64) on wine. I was a bit disappointed with myself that I’d blown most of the rest of the budget, this weekend, though.
This week I had spent 3,406 lira (£57.72) which meant I now only had £7.31 of the whole £91 budget left and a whole week to go! I was pretty sure that was not manageable and would potentially have to admit defeat of living of £91 in 3 weeks.

Gratitude List
1. Having a much needed lay in
2. Speaking to Captain Caveman
3. Catching up on blog post content.

If you would like The Handy Travel Planner to help you make sure you have even better holidays, you can find it here:

Dalyan – 24th January

It was quite a busy day on Saturday 24th January and I was glad to get to the weekly market for the first time in 2026. On my way there, I checked my messages/Facebook and noticed some kind comments about The Handy Travel Planner, which was encouraging.

The market was busier than I’d expected but I guess folks were getting out in between the pockets of rain, as more bad weather was likely. Here’s what I bought with prices in lira;

Stall 1
potatoes & red onions 60 lira (£1.05)

Stall 2
carrots, cabbage & broccoli 65 lira (£1.14)

Stall 3
leeks 35 lira (61p)

Stall 4
peppers 80 lira (£1.40)

Stall 5
strawberries, spring onions, tomatoes, apples, mushrooms & mange-tout
Total 460 lira (£8.07)

Stall 6
Gözleme/Pancake 150 lira (£2.63)
Total spent 850 lira (£14.91)

It was a big spend this week but I’d not got any fresh produce in since my return from the UK, so it was needed. I’d also decided that splashing out on the mushroom and cheese gözleme was a great idea and would save me cooking any lunch. I even sat at the stall and ate it in the market, like a local. I made it back to the corner of Jamie’s road when the rain came again so Norman wasn’t too pleased that his walk would be delayed.
Tonight I had plans to go to a friend’s for a curry night, which I was looking forward to. Unfortunately, one of the attendees was ill and couldn’t make it so it was cancelled.
I decided to take Norman for a walk and the rain eased off so we went right along the river. On my way back round, my friends were in Corner Bar so Norman and I joined them. I had a soda water and 2 red wines which came to 400 lira (£7) and this time I made sure I paid on card to be able to keep track easier. Norman got a chance to clean the floor of any scraps but, unfortunately, as we got halfway home, the rain came again and we got a bit wet. Norman put in a complaint about wet paws and late dinner so we had to do a video for Jamie. The night was finished off with me eating pasta for dinner and watching Death in Paradise on TV until I fell asleep on the sofa.

Gratitude List
1. Dalyan market
2. Norman
3. Drinks with friends.

Dalaman to Dalyan – 18th January

I landed at Dalaman airport at 12.30am on Sunday 18th January and waited quite a while for my suit case, in fact I was one of the last out of the airport. I hadn’t managed to drink the prosecco on the plane so I had some to bring home, I didn’t bother with anything at Duty Free as I was going to try to cut down on alcohol. Unfortunately, while going through the nothing to declare exit, I got stopped. The staff member there opened my suitcase and, because of the last minute cramming in of produce, it was in a bit of disarray with food all over the place. The man asked me what it was and pointed at the food. I replied it was food as I was cooking dinner for my family and friends tonight. He smiled, said ok and let me go! I was so relieved because I really hadn’t want it to be confiscated.
My usual taxi man, Sonuç was on his way to the UK with his family so he had sent Engin. He took my case and we travelled back fairly quickly to Dalyan where he dropped me at the gate to the apartment complex and the fare was £30. The taxi rank at the airport is only £25 but I prefer to have a driver I know when arriving in the night/early hours and they don’t always drop you at your home when coming from Dalaman. I went in, put the electric back on and decided to unpack so that I could get the food in the fridge and freezer. Despite having to leave some back in the UK, I still had loads of lovely stuff which is either expensive or unavailable in Turkey.
I went to bed and although it was quite cold in Dalyan, it was still a bit warmer than London. I didn’t set an alarm as I didn’t have to be anywhere until later in the day. I didn’t have the internet with it being a Sunday so it was a nice quiet day. I did manage a bit of a walk round the town and to the bank. I got an update from 2 of my customers who were on a sleeper train, heading to Dong Hoi and were going to be staying in Phong Nha, Vietnam. They seemed to be enjoying themselves so far and I was looking forward to finding out how they would like Phong Nha.
At 5.30pm I popped my new Christmas and birthday clothes on and I met Jamie at Ela’s Kitchen for a Sunday dinner. I’d been a bit reluctant when he asked to book it in as I thought I’d have had enough English food but I decided to go for the Sunday dinner. It was a relatively new thing at Ela’s, with soup for starter, beef for main and cake for afters. They offer choice of chicken or nut roast at 850 lira (£15), beef at 950 lira (£17) or lamb at 1,100 lira (£19) which included the 3 courses. The food was really good and I was super stuffed, I also had a glass of red wine to wash it down with. When we went to get the bill, Jamie insisted on paying for it as a birthday treat, which was really lovely.

Gratitude List
1. Getting back to Dalyan with a suitcase full of treats
2. Having a good sleep
3. Sunday dinner birthday celebrations with Jamie.

Pontecarlo to London – 16th January

Friday 16th January was a busy day as Captain Caveman and I started work early in our respective working from home offices. We had train tickets booked to London later so had planned for a 4pm finish. I had a video sent from Dagne in Majorca who had taken time to have a proper look at her new copy of The Handy Travel Planner and she loved it. I was pleased as she was the first non-UK person to get her hands on a copy. It was great feedback that the planner also worked in other countries and for foreigners who spoke English.

By 4pm Captain Caveman and I had logged off and were ready to leave Pontecarlo. For me, it would be the last time I’d be in this house as Captain Caveman was moving out in March. He’d decided to move to Sheffield and I was pleased he would be moving to somewhere he would probably be happier and have more of a social life.
The taxi came and we got to the train station to see a few trains were delayed. Ours came and it was full, with kids sitting in our seats. Captain Caveman turfed them out and we sat down, cracked open a train tin and started to relax. I went to the cafe carriage to get us more light refreshments (gin & tonic for him, wine for me), plus a snack and the journey seemed to go very quickly. The train journey price was £19.80 each from Ponte to London King’s Cross, then £4.20 each to Barnes which I thought was quite reasonable.

When we arrived in Barnes, at Captain Caveman’s parents’ home, it was gone 8.30pm. As we said our hellos I could smell a roast dinner cooking (nothing gets past me). Captain Caveman had failed to mention that his parents were doing a full on roast pork dinner for my last dinner in the UK – I almost cried. In the living room with a glass of wine, more excitement came as I opened a delayed Christmas gift from a friend – a thoughtful bottle of Argentinian Malbec and some caramel cheesecake macarons. We decided to have these with dinner and for afters we ate cheese and biscuits then the macarons. It was such a lovely last evening in the UK and I knew that this time I was going to miss it more than usual.

Gratitude List
1. Dagne’s video with The Handy Travel Planner
2. A belated Christmas gift
3. A lovely family meal in Barnes.

If being better prepared for your future holidays is something you would like to happen, you can get my planner here:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0G7S5VX47/

joloyolo

The ramblings and observations of a fortysomething lady of leisure

Tag: wine