Dalyan – 5th & 6th November

It wasn’t raining when we woke up on Sunday 5th November but the forecast was very bad. Captain Caveman had to postpone the Sunday walk this week and by 10.20am there were dark clouds forming. I’d invited my parents and Kaan to join Captain Caveman, Caroline and I for a Sunday dinner around 5pm that evening.
Caroline had a banana for breakfast, Captain Caveman cooked himself a menemen style meal (tomato and eggs) and I had toast. It started to rain heavily and it looked like no one was going anywhere. I got on with the preparation for our Sunday roast, I cooked the whole chicken, roast potatoes, carrots, leeks and Yorkshire puddings. I messaged Mom to bring the gravy as I realised I had none in. Kaan brought a bottle of red wine and some rakı, my parents brought a bottle of white wine and some beers. Caroline had already started us on the gin with rather ample measures! The meal was nice but I didn’t take any photos, mainly as I was too busy being the hostess with the mostest. Conversation was mainly about Caroline’s forthcoming trip to see the archaeological ruins in the East of Turkey. Kaan stressed his concern of her riding all that way alone as a woman but she is a strong, independent woman. I went on to wine and tried to limit my booze, my parents were the first to leave and Captain Caveman was keeping up with Caroline on the gin. Kaan doesn’t drink much and was taking it easy on the rakı. It was a good job as once a litre of gin had been polished off Captain Caveman and Caroline were keen to move on to the rakı. I was taking it easy as I was scheduled to work tomorrow, talk of Caroline leaving around 10am was fleetingly mentioned but I doubted that would be a good idea.
By the end of the evening, I had gone to bed after Captain Caveman started being argumentative (well, more than usual) and I couldn’t be bothered with it.

I did the right thing by moving my working day from Monday 6th November to split it between Tuesday and Wednesday. Captain Caveman had gone dogging so I spent time with Caroline. She had decided she would postpone her motorbike adventure to Wednesday but she was going to go on a couple of outings in the meantime. She said she doesn’t like to plan too much and would rather go with the flow. I had a couple of Slimming World muffins, strawberries and some cherry juice for brunch then managed a bit of blogging while Caroline got ready to go out for the afternoon.
Captain Caveman arrived back home from the dog shelter, showered, then went to the shop for essentials. Here’s the info:

Şok Supermarket
Bread 25
15 Eggs 55
Fabric Softener 55
Total spent 135 lira (£3.97)

That night Captain Caveman and I had an impromptu night in on our own as Caroline had been asked out on a date. We watched a bit of Netflix and had leftover veggie curry with steamed rice for dinner.

Dalyan – 1st & 2nd November

I was surprised to learn it was Caroline’s birthday on Wednesday 1st November. Not only had she arrived a week earlier than we thought she would, but I would not get paid for 10 days and even then it was only half the pay I had planned for. Ironically, we had a very full fridge, freezer and cupboards at home as I was expecting not to be going out too much in the lead up to our friend’s visit. I didn’t hear from Captain Caveman or Caroline first thing as I let the dogs out then fed them and made a cup of tea. Norman was cute when I got my cuppa as he wanted to go upstairs ‘back to bobos’. We sat on the sofa for a bit of an extra sleep until it was time to go for a walk. I did my measurements to find my bust was the same but I’d lost 4cm from my waist and 3cm from my hips. This looked promising for Carol’s scales at Fat Club later. I worked in the morning and then I made my taster session food for Fat Club. I made the flour-less syn free muffins which look terrible but taste quite nice. Captain Caveman popped round and he’d been out with Caroline last night for drinks then food. Captain Caveman was very hung over and there was still no word from Caroline. I suggested we go to one of our favourite restaurants tonight for Caroline’s birthday and invited my parents too. It turns out that Captain Caveman and Caroline had been drinking at Bistro Blue last night but we would still go again tonight for an impromptu birthday meal. I left Jamie’s place and the pooches to go to Fat Club. I was disappointed to only have lost 0.1kg (0.2lb) but a loss is a loss, as they say at Fat Club. I couldn’t share the lentil soup that Carol made or the fritters by Janice, as they had chillies in but I did get the recipes to make my own without the heat. I couldn’t eat the fishy offering either but I did try and I enjoyed the mushroom paté as well as the hummus. My berry and banana ‘muffins’ were tried and people agreed they weren’t quite as terrible as they sounded or looked.
Jamie was back by tea time and he’d unfortunately inherited a street dog on his complex who some holiday makers had brought home. He asked me to take the dog back to bar street as they aren’t allowed to have them wandering around the complex. I did, and the dog seemed genuinely happy to get back to his fellow pooches for the night.
That evening, Captain Caveman had said he would pay for our meal so I didn’t even take my purse to Bistro Blue or Tez bar, where we started the birthday celebrations. My parents danced with some of the other Tez-pats to ‘Sweet Caroline’ as a thoughtful birthday treat for our friend. Caroline was happy to meet Tez who was going to help her organise a motorbike for her adventure tours to Şanlıurfa and Cappadocia next week. We had some amazing food at Bistro Blue although I noticed Caroline didn’t eat all of her’s. She said she felt unwell so she left before we had finished our drinks. When we came to pay Captain Caveman didn’t have enough on his card and I hadn’t brought any way of paying with me so we had to borrow the money from my parents. It was 1,740 lira including wine, which was just over £50 and not an expense I had budgeted for this week. The food and service had been great and I’d really enjoyed it but we now needed to make sure we stayed in to eat what we had at home.

While Captain Caveman went Bumming on Thursday 2nd November, Caroline had a lay in. I popped to the shops for sanitary towels and milk which cost a total of 36.75 lira (£1.08). Surprisingly, milk was more expensive than sanitary towels in Dalyan and it’s not usual or easy to find tampons in Dalyan supermarkets – they can be purchased at the pharmacy. When Caroline got up she had a banana for breakfast as she doesn’t eat breakfast and then went to ask Tez about hiring the motorbike. She was heading over to see the famous archaeological sights at Göbeklitepe, Şanlıurfa, and wanted to do it on a big motorbike. Both Captain Caveman and I do like to plan things but Caroline had said she was much more of a non-planning type of traveller. Her mission on this trip was to ‘search for people’s truth’ which I was sure that I fully understood.
Captain Caveman and I had a walk to the water company to get his deposit back from when he had the water in his name, unfortunately they didn’t understand our English or my Google translated Turkish, which was convenient for them!
At 2.30pm Captain Caveman and I met up with Caroline at Kaunos tea gardens where I had a double çay and a chicken döner, Caroline a juice and a chicken döner and Captain Caveman had an Efes beer and a mixed toasted sandwich. I paid the 305 lira (£8.97) but I did say we would be eating in tonight as we were on a budget and I was meant to be on a diet!
My words fell on deaf ears as we bumped in to Kaan at Tequila Bar and joined him for a drink, sat in the sun. Captain Caveman and I just had beer but Caroline, who was on her holidays, had a couple of Aperol Spritzes. Another stray dog or two joined us, one was particularly cute but a bit smelly. When the sun went in, Caroline decided she needed some white tops ready for her motorbiking adventure. We popped to the shop where she picked up a couple of t-shirts/sweatshirts. On the way home we stopped at Tez bar to finalise the bike arrangements for tomorrow and for Captain Caveman and Caroline to have a beer.

Dalyan – 29th to 31st October

We had a nice relaxing day on Sunday 29th October. Captain Caveman got his bicycle wheel fixed for 135 lira (£3.96) which he was pleased about. We shared a sausage roll and a cheese & onion roll each for breakfast and both agreed they were lovely. For lunch I had cheese spread and bread but I decided to make a vegetable curry in the slow cooker for dinner. While I was chopping the veg, Captain Caveman got a call from our friend Caroline. We know her from Phong Nha, in Vietnam, she lives in Hoi An now and is Australian but had been in Greece for the last month. Caroline had made loose plans to see us in Rhodes but they never materialised so she would like to come and visit us in Dalyan…. tomorrow! Her flight would land in Dalaman airport at 3pm so it was all systems go to make up the spare bed and get the house clean for our friend’s arrival.
We had the veggie curry with steamed rice which was delicious and, of course, we had some spare. We had a few grapes after and wondered how long a visit to Dalyan Caroline was planning.

I worked from 8am until 5pm on Monday 30th October and this would be my last week of working 16 hours. I’d already done some extra from last week so it meant I’d definitely be finished by Tuesday. I had Yorkshire tea and buttered wholemeal toast for breakfast. Captain Caveman went dogging, he likes to walk the dogs at the dog shelter so sometimes he goes up there to help out. He was back for lunch so we had leftover cauliflower mac and cheese.
As we knew Caroline was arriving this afternoon, we asked the taxi to take her to Lukka bar, where Captain Caveman would go to meet her. I would finish working and then join them.
As I was getting changed to go meet Caroline and Captain Caveman, I saw a post on Facebook reporting a dog that had turned up at someone’s house in Dalyan. It looked similar to Debbie (Darling)’s Brinny but had a different collar on. I messaged Debbie (Darling) who said it was Brinny’s sister, owned by a Turkish man.
I also had a message from Kelly, back in the UK, the girls were hoping to be able to book their holiday to Rhodes for next September and had a few questions. It was a long way off but I hoped I’d be able to join them for a holiday.
I met Caroline and Captain Caveman at Lukka bar, she looked well and was dressed for winter despite the warm weather in Dalyan. We had a beer together and she told us a bit about her trip to Greece and Sweden. We couldn’t sit about as we had a night out to get to so it was back home for curry before heading out to Sofra bar. The Bengisu Boys were playing a gig and they are great musicians so it turned in to a good night. By 10pm both Captain Caveman and I were on the Sofra ‘dancefloor’ giving it what-for! Caroline was too cool for dancing with the ‘olds’ but was testing out the drink menu and being acquainted with our friends.
VLS arrived and I did a karaoke song with her. It was awful and I could see that Şükrü would never let me put in another request! By 11.30pm Brinny’s sister, the escaped dog, had found us and was keeping us company. The walk home, at just gone midnight, involved several stray dogs escorting us home and Caroline tried not to get attached, as she loves dogs.

On Tuesday 31st October Captain Caveman went off to Bridge so that I could work in peace, leaving Caroline with me. I had plans at lunch time to go over to Jamie’s as I was looking after his cute little dogs, Norman and Edna, for a few days. It turned out I’d got confused about the amount of hours I needed to work this week as my boss only wanted me to do 8 per week with immediate affect as from last week, so I’d already worked them. It was going to be incredibly tight for money for the next couple of months so it’s a good job we don’t do Christmas presents or celebrate Christmas out here, in Turkey.
I left Caroline to her own devices following a discussion about the use of psilocybin mushrooms for trauma. I packed a bag and headed over to Jamie’s, taking my lunch with me.
Around 1.15pm I was just getting a nice feta cheese salad ready to eat when Captain Caveman arrived at Jamie’s. He was meant to have been going back home to see Caroline for lunch but shared my salad. I sent him over to look after our guest with instructions to keep in touch while I looked after Norman and Edna. I didn’t see or hear from Captain Caveman or Caroline again that evening so I had a lovely quiet one with a leftover chicken and veggie curry. I obviously stayed over at Jamie’s and the pooches wanted to come upstairs to bed with me. I told them they had to sleep in their own bed downstairs and gave them a kiss. I didn’t have any alcohol, it was Fat Club tomorrow and I was only on 273 syns for the week. The Fat Club meeting tomorrow had a taster session that we all had to take something for so I’d brought over my ingredients to make something in the morning.

Dalyan – 27th & 28th October

On Friday 27th October I had a fruit salad for breakfast and Captain Caveman had gone to Bridge when I got logged on to the laptop. I’d already done my hours for this week but my boss wanted a video call.
Steve explained that he only needed me to work half as much up until the end of the year. I was also going to have to finish work after the week commencing 18th December to have Christmas and New Year off.
We agreed I’d work my usual hours until the end of this month and then half the hours for the next 6 weeks after that. Obviously, I was a bit disappointed, especially as I need to earn a certain amount to maintain my residency that I’d recently paid so much to get.
When Captain Caveman got back we both went food shopping and here’s what we bought:

BIM supermarket
Wholemeal loaf 14.50
Bin bags 17.50
Wraps 31.50
Crisps 37.00
15 eggs 55.00
12 toilet rolls 62.00
Total spent 217.50 lira (£6.40)

A101 Supermarket
1l cherry juice 32.00 lira (£0.94)

Migros Supermarket
1 bag of porridge oats 4.25
Cheese biscuits 9.00
Peanut butter 65.90
Total spent 79.15 lira (£2.33)

I just had wholemeal toast for lunch as I wasn’t hungry and it would soon be dinner time. We were also hosting a small cheese and wine evening at our apartment for my parents, Jamie, and Drew.
Today was pay day and we’d been invited to a party at Rehab bar to say bye to a bloke who neither of us knew who looks after cats. Kate was hosting and wanted us to attend but with reduced work afoot, it was time to decline non-essential outings and frivolities – I needed to save the pennies!
For dinner we had chicken köfte with potato wedges and vegetables before getting ready to entertain our guests.
My parents arrived first and we got chatting, then Jamie and Drew arrived with Börek (Turkish pastries with cheese in) – the diet was out of the window once again!
We had a good night with plenty of wine and lots of laughs, where we all enjoyed ourselves.

It was market day on Saturday 28th October so, after a cup of Yorkshire tea in bed, we got ready for a shopping trip.
We didn’t need too much this week but here’s what we bought:

Stall 1
Lettuce, pumpkin, red peppers and tomatoes
70 lira (£2.06)

Stall 2
Grapes 20 lira (£0.59)

Stall 3
5 bananas 45 lira (£1.32)

Total market spend 135 lira (£3.97).

When we got back, I had grapes for breakfast as Kate was on her way over. She had bought some cat food from an online company but when it came, it was not correct and she needed to send it back and complain. That took longer than expected and still couldn’t be submitted so she went home a bit stressed.
In the afternoon I went over to Vanessa’s where she’d just made sausage rolls and cheese and onion rolls. We ate some and drank white wine & soda while catching up on all the comings and goings of life. Later, we encouraged Kate to join us and she cycled over. It was a lovely afternoon and I didn’t get in until pretty late, with spare sausage rolls to take home too. I left Vanessa getting on the back of her friend’s mobility scooter and heading for a night in Rodrigo’s.
I made a Slimming World friendly cauliflower mac and cheese for dinner using pasta, cauliflower, pumpkin, bacon, garlic, yoghurt, eggs, paprika and thyme. It was surprisingly good and we both enjoyed it.

Dalyan – 16th to 18th October

On Monday 16th October it was business as usual in Dalyan. I needed to get back in to healthy eating, cutting down on the alcohol and, if I wanted to hit my weight target by the end of the year, do it seriously. Captain Caveman and I were now both in Dalyan for the rest of the year and I was really looking forward to us spending 11 weeks together. My parents were also going to be in Dalyan for the rest of the year which was great but I hoped they wouldn’t get bored in the winter. We also needed to save some money as we had some scheduled visits from friends in the coming weeks. We’d had a great holiday but now it was back to work.
My first job was to get weighed so that I knew how much damage I’d done and what I needed to lose still. Amazingly, I was the same weight as I was 12 days ago and 1kg lighter than on Steve and Michelle’s scales 5 days ago – I wasn’t as concerned about facing Carol’s scales on Wednesday now.
The next job was to go to the bank and check the finances, they had taken quite a bruising and it was time to cut back for a few weeks now. While I cracked on with a day’s work, Captain Caveman was also getting back in to his routine and took himself off dogging followed by a bridge session with John.
For dinner, Captain Caveman made a simple, diet friendly and tasty chicken and veg pasta. It was another alcohol free night for me as I wanted to be healthier and didn’t want to put any weight back on before Wednesday’s Fat Club.

I worked from 9.30am to 5.45pm on Tuesday 17th October and, although I’d done my hours for this week I decided i would make up for having a shorter week last week.
I was still trying hard to get back in to a healthier lifestyle and eating plan so I had made a chicken casserole in the slow cooker which I did with airfryer potatoes for dinner. I’d not been writing down my syns but I decided that I would get back in to that habit tomorrow after my Fat Club weigh-in. We opened a bottle of rosé wine from the fridge and shared that with our very tasty and syn free dinner.

On Wednesday 18th October I was definitely getting back in to my Slimming World regime. I started the day with a breakfast of overnight oats, made with quark and frozen raspberries, and a cup of Yorkshire tea. I got weighed on the home scales and had lost 0.95kg (2lb) since Monday! My measurements showed I’d lost 1cm from my bust but put 3cm on my waist and hips. I was now at the target measurement for my bust but I still needed to lose 7cm from my waist and 6cm from my hips. I was hoping to get that done before the end of the year if I could stay motivated and stick to my goals. I had a light lunch of random stuff from the fridge; turkey, sun-dried tomato, olives, gherkins, blue cheese, and salami in a wrap and we would be having the same as yesterday for dinner.
As I was working a bit extra this week, I only had time to nip in to the Fat Club meeting and get weighed. I was so pleased to have lost 0.4kg (0.9lb) on Carol’s scales, as I really wasn’t expecting it to be a good result. On the way home from getting weighed, I called in to Migros supermarket where I picked up potatoes and fat free yogurt for 30.10 lira (89p).
Back at home, I worked for another couple of hours before having our leftover chicken casserole with airfryer potatoes for dinner. There was heavy rain forecast, despite it being a decent temperature, so I decided to bring the lounging chair and foot stool from the balcony in to the living room. Captain Caveman was straight in it and I thought I might live to regret this decision as he now had a handy place to sit and play bridge all day on his phone! With dinner we opened a bottle of red wine which we had in the wine rack for just over a year. We had brought it back from Datça Vineyard when we went last year for my parents’ anniversary. I’m not sure which of us was the most impressed that I’d not drunk it.
We watched a bit of Netflix and treated ourselves to cheese and crackers so my syns for today were 34, more than double my daily allowance. This was not the best of starts and tomorrow was likely to prove somewhat difficult as we had an exciting day planned.

Lardos – 14th October

Not only was Saturday 14th October the last full day and night of our Rhodes holiday, but it was also Ma & Pa’s wedding anniversary. We’d not been able to celebrate it properly for one reason or another these last few years so I’d decided it would be lovely to do something special. Nothing gets past my Mom, though, so I had to hatch a plan that everyone but my parents were in on. Yara Yachting were booked for a day’s private boat trip and I’d invited Steve and Michelle to join my parents, Captain Caveman and I.
I told my parents that we were going to meet Steve and Michelle at Cuckoo’s Nest for coffee at 9.30am, which was quite early. I pretended it was the only time Steve and Michelle could fit us in with work so we could all go to the beach. Everyone had a coffee and some had pastries (bought from the bakery) at Cuckoo’s Nest, I didn’t as I knew I’d be sailing. When the Yara Yachting car came to pick us up in Lardos Square I lied and said it must be a friend of Steve and Michelle’s, giving us a lift in the hot sun to save us walking. Even when we got to Kiotari Beach they were none the wiser and my Mom started looking for which sunbeds we might want to sit on. I went to pay for the trip while Captain Caveman kept my parents from rolling out a towel, then I told them. My Mom was so surprised that she hugged and thanked everyone for their anniversary surprise.
We had to get a small tender to the yacht in 2 trips, Captain Caveman escorted my parents so they could safely be first on to the yacht. I followed with Steve and Michelle and, once on board, the 2 captains gave us a bit of information while we got seated. My parents were given 3 choices of where they wanted to sail to and they chose Hawaii Beach, aka Pink Floyd beach. By 10am we were on our way for a private all day tour with just the 6 of us and the 2 captains – how exciting. The trip ran from 10am to 4pm with all food and drink (alcohol) included. I’m surprised we lasted until gone 11am before I asked if we could pop some fizz. The crew were lovely, amusing and one was a great story teller. We were also asked if we wanted to sail the boat, so my Mom had a go and was quite good. Captain Caveman, who has experience, followed with a go and really loved it so we left him to it. I was glad that he’d worn his Masto Designs stork patterned shirt too as he looked the part and I got lots of photos of him, posing. Even though I once sailed a speed boat down the Saigon river, after a gin tasting event, I decided I wouldn’t do that again and risk an incident. I was quite happy to indulge in some sparkling Greek Cair wine with my parents, who were still a bit in shock at the surprise.
When we stopped for a swim near to Hawaii beach, Steve went off snorkelling while Dad and I braved the cold water. It was rather chilly and my legs were going a bit numb but I knew we might not get another chance to say we’d swam in Pink Floyd’s bay. Ma, Michelle and Captain Caveman were happy to sit on board sipping their drinks while Dad and I attempted to swim round the (fairly big) yacht. Realising we were missing out on the all inclusive drinks was enough of an excuse for us to get out and join the others. Steve returned having seen lots of sea life and even he hadn’t explored this area before, so he was pleased.

Our lunch was amazing, I’d been a little worried that Mom and I wouldn’t enjoy it as we are quite fussy eaters but we both loved it. At one point people went on to beer but I carried on with the fizz mostly and we were all quite merry by the time our day trip came to an end. As us ladies still had full glasses, we sent the 3 men in the first tender while we carried on drinking and laughing. Michelle didn’t seem as drunk as us as I concentrated on getting off the yacht in to the dinghy. I’d been concerned about my parents being able to get off and on but they were better than I was. The boatman on the tender dropped us off on the beach where the guys were waiting for us.

Photo credit – some taken by Mom and Captain Caveman

After a wonderful day of sailing for my parents’ anniversary, the Yara Yachting pick-up service took us back to Lardos Square. I’d envisaged we might go straight back home for showers and to get changed for dinner but Steve suggested a beer in Memories bar and we all sat down. At one point I went off to get a cardigan and put our wet swimmers and towels in the washer to get them done for us leaving tomorrow. We decided we would go for a meal at Savas Restaurant round the corner which started well. We ordered carafes of wine, I don’t remember what Captain Caveman and I ate as Steve had started cutting off bits of his pork and was trying to feed it to my mom and I. Dad’s poor eyesight benefitted him as he was at the other end of the table eating his Pastitsio. I don’t think the restaurant owner and staff were too impressed with the loudness from our table and then, the card machine wasn’t working for any of us to pay.
We should all have gone home at that point but a rather merry Steve was insistant on more drinks as I escorted him back over to Memories. Ironically, we would all have some rather hilarious memories of today as we tried our best to keep Steve from getting shots. As things got rather messy it was up to mom to give her excuses to leave. Steve wanted us to stay for more drinking but Mom was having none of it, she wanted to enjoy what was left of their anniversary with Dad. Captain Caveman and I had also had quite our full and wanted to escort my parents back to make sure they didn’t get lost. We all had such a great time for our last day and night in Rhodes but tomorrow we were off back to Turkey!

Lardos – 13th October

Captain Caveman, my parents and I were moving locations on Friday 13th October. We had breakfast at London’s Athena hotel and then decided to go for the earlier bus as I had a work meeting with Steve and Michelle back in Lardos. I took half of my sausage sandwich with me as I couldn’t finish it all. Captain Caveman had booked us a traditional greek house for the 4 of us to stay in, not far from Steve and Michelle’s house. The bus from Lindos to Lardos was just €1.80 (£1.54) and took about 20 minutes, as it went via Pefkos. When we got to Lardos, Steve told me to take the afternoon off to enjoy being with my parents, which was really nice of him. We checked in to Animone and it was rather lovely. In the afternoon we had a little walk to Alapou wine store for a quick wine tasting and I bought a bottle of rosé wine, one I’d had before. The wine store is amazing and has so much choice, they even sell beers and spirits for the non-wine drinkers. I paid €36 (£30.87) for the 6 wine tasting glasses of wine and €7.30 (£6.26) for the bottle of wine, before saying our goodbyes. We could quite easily have stayed longer but we had to get back to get ready for tonight’s Greek night in Lardos square. Back at our traditional Greek house, we got ready then shared the rosé wine I bought, it was very nice and refreshing, we also drank all the water from the fridge.

That evening, my parents, Captain Caveman, Steve, Michelle and I were booked in at Valantina’s restaurant in Lardos. It’s one of my favourite places to eat in Rhodes and I wanted my parents to experience it. We all had the sharing starter then all but my parents ordered pork dishes, my Mom had seafood and Dad had a chicken shish. Our pork dishes were fantastic, Mom loved the seafood and the carafes of wine went down well too. The dinner cost €55 (£47.17) per couple, including starters and wine and I really enjoyed it. We also managed a couple of drinks in Cuckoo’s Nest, where we were able to watch the Greek night while clapping along to the dancing and music.
Back ‘home’ my parents had the bedroom with the 2 double beds in and we slept up some steps opposite the bathroom and washing machine. Captain Caveman had decided to put the laundry on so it was a bit noisy and I couldn’t sleep through the spin cycle.

Lindos – 12th October

The breakfast at Lindos Athena on Thursday 12th October was pretty good and I enjoyed it. My parents sunbathed by the pool, Captain Caveman kept covered up and out of the pool due to his rash. I did a bit of work and organised for Steve and Michelle to come over later on.

When Steve and Michelle arrived they gave my parents a lift down Cardiac Hill, in to Lindos town, while Captain Caveman and I walked. My parents had a look over the edge to the sea, next to the bust of Ionnais Zigdis, a Greek politician. We walked to Mario’s as we were off to introduce my parents to the curry sauce. It was very busy, we ordered drinks and food. Dad had pork with curry sauce which was a normal size but Mom had a huge pork chop. It was so good and we got given free shots from the owner at the end of our meal. After our meal we had a walk through the streets of Lindos, calling at Pals for a drink. We bumped in to an old friend and ex-colleague of mine, Elaine. She was in Rhodes, staying in Pefkos, with her hubby and friends and we had been trying to meet up for a few days. Steve and Michelle had work the next day so couldn’t stay out out but they kindly dropped my parents back off and picked up some luggage to take back with them to Lardos, where we would be going tomorrow. We had a couple of drinks at the bar before going back to our rooms for the last sleep at Lindos Athena. It was a lovely hotel but not one of us had been in the pool which was a shame. We managed to pay our bills for drinks and breakfasts, which came to €135 (£115.81) for Captain Caveman and I on our room for the 2 nights (not including the accommodation). Our last round of drinks for the evening was €36.50 (£31.31). Tomorrow we would be up early and off to Lardos but at least we didn’t have to carry as many bags on the bus.

Rhodes Town & Lindos – 11th October

On Wednesday 11th October Captain Caveman was up and about before me, unpacking his bag. I got so excited when he gave me my 2024 Diary as I’d been wanting (needing) one for ages. As it was a Wednesday it was weigh day but I had no scales, probably a good job considering how many syns I must have had this week! I did do my measurements though and they were as follows:
Bust -2cm,
Waist +2cm,
Hips +1cm.

We checked out of the Kahlua Apartments and made our way to the bus station as we were off to stay in Lindos for a couple of nights. Michelle had recommended the Lindos Athena hotel where my Mom had booked the last two rooms for us. On the way to the bus station we stopped off at a cafe for breakfast. My parents and Captain Caveman ordered omelettes which were lovely but I made the mistake of ordering a cheese and bacon pancake. It came smothered in mayonnaise both inside and on the top and I couldn’t eat it. My parents paid for breakfast, and we walked to the bus station where Captain Caveman had already bought our bus tickets. It was only €5.50 (£4.72) each and took about an hour and 20 minutes. My parents had a big case and a couple of bags between them but it wasn’t too cumbersome to get it on the bus. Captain Caveman and I had 3 bags between us so we all filled the bag area with our luggage.

The journey went well and we got off at Lindos bus station for the short walk to the hotel. When we arrived, we insisted Ma & Pa have the best corner room, with (distant) views of the Acropolis and we took the smaller, but perfectly adequate, double room. Lindos Athena was very nice and, while my parents and Captain Caveman went down to the pool and bar area, I did a bit of work. The internet was good, I used the chest of drawers as a desk but I didn’t work for too long.

We met for a drink at the bar then walked in to Lindos for our evening meal. We called at Lindian House for a pre dinner drink so that my Mom could see the Acropolis lit up from their roof terrace area.

Captain Caveman had chosen a nice rooftop restaurant called Kamariko for dinner and it didn’t disappoint. Dad and I had pork, Captain Caveman had lamb and my Mom had a seafood dish which was massive. We all enjoyed our dinner, Dad particularly enjoyed the complimentary dessert. The cost per couple for the meal was €51.65 (£44.29) including wine. Back at the hotel, we had a nightcap at the bar before bed, where our bed was super comfy.

Rhodes Town – 10th October

After an ok sleep we were all up and about early on Tuesday 10th October, ready for the delights of Rhodes Town.
Captain Caveman and I had already decided we would take my parents to Dali for breakfast and he’d checked on the internet that it was open. Off we all toddled with a short stroll along the seafront to one of our favourite Rhodes cafés. Unfortunately, when we got there it was closed and there were decorators at work. I checked if they were likely to open any time soon and they weren’t so that was our first plan scuppered. Almost an hour later, we were having a breakfast drink in a cafe because we were thirsty and/or needing the toilet. Captain Caveman paid for our coffees and juices and we decided to head nearer to the port to find somewhere open for breakfast. By 9.40am we had found Trianon Cafe that was open and serving breakfast. We all ordered a full english which included an orange juice for €13 (£11.13), I had an earl grey tea, Mom a cappuccino, Captain Caveman a double espresso and we all shared water. It wasn’t the best breakfast I’d ever had but, considering we were in Rhodes, it would do. I was surprised to see my mom drink her orange juice as it doesn’t agree with her but it was fresh and tasted good. The total bill came to €62.70 (£53.69) but we were all full and probably wouldn’t need any lunch.

We had a wander through the old town and Captain Caveman took up his role of tour guide as we weaved through the cobbled streets and away from the crowds. Just before midday mom felt a bit unwell (it was probably that orange juice) and we found a lovely little bar to have a rest up in. Baluse had a lady owner who was friendly, the big Alpha beers were €4.50 (£3.85) and a sprite (for Ma) was €4 (£3.43) – we did all comment the beers were much better value. By 1pm we were back off on our walking tour of the old town where we managed to wear out my parents. We had an afternoon rest and a freshen up at the apartments before heading back out for a night out.

We started with the short walk to Malt pub where we saw the sunset and had some beers, a round of 4 came to €20.50 (£17.55) so we had a couple in there before walking back to the restaurant, Rodos Blue, where we went last time with Jamie, Drew and Nanny kay. Between us we ordered a moussaka, grilled pork, 2 beef stifado, a small carafe of white wine and a large carafe of red wine and it came to €68 (£58.23). Wine is good and reasonably priced in Rhodes so we were quite happy to indulge. I also knew I wouldn’t be getting weighed tomorrow so I was being a bit naughty with the syns and had stopped counting.
On our way back to the apartments we had a nightcap at a nearby bar and my Mom found that the shop below where we were staying, sold sherry!

Lardos & Rhodes Town – 9th October

On Monday 9th October I worked a full day at Steve and Michelle’s. When we finished work, Michelle decided she would drive me to Rhodes Town, instead of me getting the bus. We went to Gyro and Burger in Afandou on our way, where the food is always great. This time both Steve and I had the burgers and Michelle had the Gyros, all of which were very tasty and big portions. I was conscious we still had a car journey to go so I took the rest of my burger with me. For 3 soft drinks and the 3 meals it came to €23.90 (£20.90).

I said bye to Michelle and Steve who dropped me right across the road from Kahlua Apartments – it was raining. Our holiday plans included coming back to Lardos so we would meet up again very soon. I went upstairs to the reception area only to realise I needed to check-in at the shop downstairs. Back down in the very well stocked shop I got given the keys to both rooms and a nice gentleman showed me round one of them. I decided Captain Caveman and I would take the one with the single beds on the top floor, giving my parents the room nearer to reception, with a double bed. I ate the rest of my cheese burger and had a brief lay down.

When everyone arrived, it was almost 10pm so we decided to go to the Mexican place round the corner for beers and snacks. I was that excited to see everyone that I forgot to take any photos. We all had a big Alpha beer each then ordered some food, I had a fish taco without chillies and it was great. Mom said her burrito was excellent too. We had more big Alpha beers before paying our bill, which came to €70.50 (£60.41), beers were €5 (£4.28) each. We had a walk to a bar not far from where we were staying and called for a nightcap; red wine for Captain Caveman and I, gin & tonic for Ma and brandy and lemonade for Dad. We chose Koykos bar as we had been there before with Jamie, Drew & Nanny Kay and it was nice but it was quite dimly lit and already after midnight. We paid €27 (£23.14) for our 4 drinks and walked back to the hotel for some sleep.
Captain Caveman slept in the furthest away bed from me so I wouldn’t touch him and his shingles. He was feeling better but still had a scabby rash so we didn’t want to chance me catching it.

Lardos – 7th & 8th October

I had a bit of a sleep in on Saturday 7th October and did a bit of work in the afternoon from Steve and Michelle’s. They were working for some of the weekend too but had some people to see in Afandou. I got dropped off at a bar where I caught up on some blog editing while drinking peach iced tea and eating a bacon sandwich – I couldn’t remember when I last had one!

That evening we went to Lindos to meet a friend of Steve and Michelle’s and they introduced me to one of their favourite eateries, Mario’s. They were so enthusiastic about the Thai style curry sauce that all 3 of them ordered it with their pork or chicken. Being a bit fussy with my food, I couldn’t bring myself round to ordering the two together so I settled for just a pork chop with chips and salad. When the food came I had a dip of the sauce and it was incredible. I then had to order an extra portion of curry sauce as it was just so good.

Back in Lardos, to say it got a bit messy was probably an understatement. We ended up meeting Mark, Maria, Lu, Az, Hannah and some other friends of their’s. We drank in the bars around Lardos square and Steve decided it would be a good idea to drink shots (it wasn’t). We spent a small fortune that night and it got a bit out of hand, Steve borrowed a pineapple off the bar and we didn’t get home until around 4.45am.

As you can probably imagine, Sunday 8th October was pretty uneventful for me!
I spent most of the day feeling very ‘tired’ while Steve and Michelle went visiting friends and work contacts. I was happy for a day off and was looking forward to seeing Captain Caveman and my parents tomorrow night. Captain Caveman had booked us 2 rooms at Kahlua Apartments in Rhodes Town and he sent me screen shots so I could work out how to get there from the bus station. Michelle had offered to drive me, after work, but it seemed easier to get the bus as I’d done it before. I fed the animals while Steve and Michelle were out but had gone to bed before they returned home. Meanwhile, my parents were getting ready to fly from Manchester to Rhodes and Captain Caveman was enjoying his last night in Naples.

Dalyan – 5th October

Captain Caveman and I had both been invited to a wedding on Thursday 5th October. Of course, Captain Caveman was in Italy and couldn’t make it, but he’d also got shingles and wouldn’t have been there anyway. I had accepted the invite and needed to take it steady as I had a ferry to catch to Rhodes early the next day. Our initial plan for my parents and I to meet Captain Caveman in Naples had been scrapped, not just because of the shingles. Dad was waiting for an eye appointment and didn’t want to be in Italy when it came. Instead, we had agreed to meet in Rhodes Town on Monday (9th), where we would all spend 6 nights in Rhodes together.
I worked for a couple of hours in the morning, packed for my Rhodes trip and then had some leftover food with rice.

The wedding of Bill and Jaxx took place on a boat so we met at Paradise Hotel to get on the boats, where there were some familiar friendly faces. When Bill arrived he was having the 2 dogs, Big Boy and Lucy, with him for the ceremony. He’d also supplied some punch for us to have on the journey to pick up his beautiful bride.

Jaxx looked like a beautiful little doll in her wedding dress and the 2 boats sailed together to a spot for the ceremony. I had a couple of the punch drinks which I was convinced was made from cherry and vodka but my fellow guests said they didn’t think it was alcoholic and had quite a few.
There was a female celebrant who did a rather unique service and speech which everyone enjoyed.

The sun was shining and it was a beautiful wedding, followed by a dinner and party back at Bill and Jaxx’s lovely villa, with the bar and garden kitted out for the wedding party. We had a great time and my plans to not drink too much went out of the window as the champagne was poured. Dinner was served quite late so I was rather trollied as we enjoyed the steak dinner followed by some gorgeous cheese. One of the wedding party even shared her port with us and I, of course, made some new friends who were absolutely lovely.
I vaguely recall getting in, after a lift in to town with my new mates, setting the alarm for 5.30am and hoping I didn’t sleep through it. Fikri’s taxi was booked to pick me up at 6am and take me to Ortaca so that I could get the first bus to Fethiye.

Dalyan – 1st to 4th October

Sunday 1st October had some of my favourite things; dogs and curry! I had to wake the dogs up at 8.10am as I needed a wee. We went for a little walk and they shared water when they got back as both were thirsty. I had left over chicken tenders for breakfast and then had a bad stomach! By 11.20am I was feeling a bit better and had started catching up on my blogging; Edna was helping, while Norman snored away from his bed. Edna soon got bored as there was no juicy gossip and had a snooze. It was raining before 2pm and both dogs were snoring away as I typed.
That afternoon I got some bad news from the computer repair man. My laptop was going to cost too much to fix and would be better to buy a new one. I took the dogs on a reluctant but short walk in the rain and then gave them their dinner – they love meal times.
I couldn’t be bothered to cook and I’d not been to the market so I decided to order a curry from Spice Garden, as a treat. I decided to go for the chicken set menu which was 445 lira (£13.28) and included the following; Chicken Tikka starter, Chicken Masala main, Saag Aloo side. For a bit extra I also added in a garlic and cheese naan bread and then would split the whole lot over 2 meals. The food is obviously not prepared or cooked by Indian chefs but it’s as near as I was going to get in Turkey and it tasted great. At bed time Norman and Edna were the first to go to bed, not leaving me much room on the bed!

I had another day off on Monday 2nd October so that I could go back to the Fethiye office to complete my residency renewal by taking a copy of my water bill, in my name. I was still looking after Norman and Edna but Jamie had said they would be ok left after their morning walkies and breakfast, as he was due back around 1pm. I decided that it would be a bit irresponsible, should he get delayed for any reason and I’d be all the way in Fethiye on a bus so I arranged with Vanessa to get the 2pm bus.
I also got a message from the computer repair man to say he had found me a potential new laptop; a Toshiba i5 cpu 8GB RAM 240GB SSD with an English keyboard. I know nothing about laptops so I sent it on to Captain Caveman to check out and see if it was worth the 7,500 lira (£220) it was priced at.
At 3pm we were in the Fethiye office, where I saw the same lady. It turned out she spoke English and didn’t remember my application. I helped her find it on the pile, gave her my paperwork, which she copied. She then passed me the paper to say I had renewed residency for just under a year. My card would be posted within the next month and I’d been in there less than 3 minutes. I was so relieved but couldn’t help thinking that all this extra expense and stress could’ve been avoided!
Just 14 minutes later, Vanessa and I were about to tuck in to a Big Mac meal each in MacDonald’s. By 4.15pm we had decided to walk it back to the bus station as it was glorious weather. It was great to have had Vanessa there with me and it made a nice afternoon. It was late by the time we got in to Ortaca, where we decided to have an ice-cream as we were peckish and thirsty. Michelle messaged to ask if I would buy her some vitamins which are expensive in Rhodes, but we had already left Fethiye by the time I got the info. We walked out of the bus station in Ortaca to find a Gratis pharmacy, and they had 3 bottles left. I bought 2 at 99 lira (£2.91) each and with discount. We were late getting back to Dalyan so I warmed up some curry for dinner about 9pm at home. I lit some candles and relaxed – my residency renewal was finally done and I could relax until August next year!

On Tuesday 3rd October I had 3 days left in Dalyan before I went back to Rhodes. The plans to join Captain Caveman in Italy had changed as it turned out his rash was shingles! Instead, he and my parents would meet me in Rhodes in 6 days time.
I had fresh figs, peach and strawberries for breakfast then got on with work. For lunch I had cheese on toast, done in the Airfryer. It was a lovely, sunny day but I was indoors working, after being off yesterday. Steve sent me through my ferry ticket which was only €25 (£21.60), with discount. It did mean getting up at 5.30am on Friday morning though. For dinner I put the leftover chicken tikka starter in to the saag aloo and had that, very nice it was too. Fat Club was probably not going to see a loss from me tomorrow, but I had definitely drank less alcohol as I couldn’t afford to go out now!

It was weigh-in day on Wednesday 4th October and I wasn’t optimistic. I took my measurements to find I had put on 4cm on my bust but lost 4cm from my hips and 2cm from my waist. I worked for a couple of hours in the morning and I was quite enjoying the red keyboard of Matt’s laptop.
At Fat Club, Carol’s scales showed that I had put on 0.3kg (0.7lb), which wasn’t ideal.
I decided to make a stir-fry for dinner which I ate with steamed rice and it was delicious. I worked a few more hours later on then, around 9.30pm I spoke to Captain Caveman who was now in Turin but suffering with Shingles. I had an early night as tomorrow I had something exciting planned for my last day in Dalyan.

Dalyan – 30th September

I packed my bag on Saturday 30th September for a 3 day dog sit at Jamie’s, as he and Drew were off on a romantic break away. I got there about 9.30am, Norman & Edna were pleased to see me and Edna was hoping we would be going down the pub to see Skippy. We had some cuddles and some fun outside in the sun before an afternoon walk. I was tempted to take them to Rehab bar to see the pool gang but decided it might be better for them to stay home, as Norman loves an afternoon/early evening nap.

I walked in the sun to Rehab bar where I met up with a few of the regular attendees, most had already gone home as the pool match was coming to an end. Someone left their sunglasses on the table so we all tried them on and I posted on Facebook so the owner might notice.

It was getting a bit chilly and almost time for me to get back to feed the pooches so we had a quick refreshment in Aşkın’s bar on the way home. Vanessa was still out, Matt had gone home earlier so she was going to Fry Box to take him back some dinner. I’d never tried it but a few people had said how good it was so I decided to go along and get some too. It was certainly not Slimming World friendly and I knew I’d regret having it. I took it back to Jamie’s and fed Norman and Edna before I ate my KFC style chicken strips and chips with BBQ sauce. It was very nice but as I was eating it, I did wonder if my stomach would be able to tolerate the fried food. That night the dogs insisted that they come to bed with me and we were all settled down before 11pm.
September had been a busy month, however, October wasn’t about to get any quieter.