Kalkan Turkey Forum - EnjoyKalkan.com
Kalkan Discussion => Holiday Reports and Reviews => Topic started by: kalkan4eva on June 12, 2018, 10:50:33 PM
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Indeed.
Its been all go since we arrived in Turkey, Saturday lunchtime!
Out of the airport to stand 21 where the pre-booked taxi was waiting. Not Enes as it has been for the last 10 years, not any Kalkan company...and as we made our way down the slope to the stands at Dalaman there were lots of transfer companies we’ve got to know over the years but we passed them by.
Mehmet was waiting from Airport Transfers (does what it says on the tin!) and gave us cold water and biscuits as we set off for our Gocek adventure. Mehmet tells us his grandfather built the hotel we were staying in...what a lovely coincidence.
A mere 30 mins after leaving Dalaman we were pulling up outside a Kipa supermarket...here is your hotel...erm! Well Mehmet neglected to say, since his grandfather built it, he then sold it on and now the upstairs is hotel and the ground floor supermarket. It looked nothing like the photos on booking.com and I was mentally composing my angry email as we pulled our cases around to the pedestrianised front. Then suddenly it became very familiar.
We were shown to our room and the view made everything alright with the world....angry email a distant memory.
Gocek is smaller than I imagined and I’ve heard it described as Kalkan on the flat. It isnt! Just my opinion.
What impressed BH so much was their efforts to save the planet - recycling at every turn and electric scooters and buggies...what impressed me so much was the most amazing collection of yachts and super yachts in one place...I mean every single boat in either D Marina or Mega Yacht Marina (I swear this is its actual name) was in the multi millions of pounds. We spotted a cruise liner docked at the far end of the harbour and as we got closer we realised it wasn’t a cruise liner at all, but the amazing I Dynasty super yacht. A cool $200m worth of abject luxury owned by one of them there Oligarchs...
We both now hold the record for the number of times the word “wow” can be said if such a short space of time.
Sunday is market day in Gocek and I expected to walk some distance to get there but 5 minutes after leaving the hotel, we were in the thick of it. Albeit a much smaller, less tat sort of market than Kalkan or Fethiye, we still managed to find blag DVD’s and underpants so mission accomplished.
Next stop on the road trip was Fethiye, a place we have visited so many times but never stayed. We’d agreed a price with the Gocek taxi co-operative and within 40 mins we were pulling up outside a much better looking hotel ie no Kipa basement, right on the front overlooking the Marina. The view was super stunning and the room just right for our overnight stay. We dropped our luggage and headed straight to the old town for a wander around and could not believe how quiet Fethiye was. Later that evening we headed over to the Fish Market, a place we have had lunch in so many times over the years, but have never visited in the evening. It felt like everyone in Fethiye was actually here..the place was bouncing and we took one of the last tables in our restaurant of choice and waited for the king prawns we’d purchased from our seller of choice to be returned to us, cooked in garlic and chilli sauce. They did not disappoint!
We planned to visit a beach club next day, but one look at the weather forecast meant the plans needed to change. BH swears by BBC Weather and it was showing rain at 11am...I looked at Accuweather and it said rain at 2pm, which meant we could do a half day boat trip or a beach club before we had to check-out. I tend to look for the best one and stick with it, BH just sticks with BBC.
So the 11am rain won out and the beach club/boat trip shelved. A walk along the harbour was chosen instead and after going from the Marina right along as far the lighthouse building and back, rain did actually start on cue at 11am...BH felt vindicated by his decision...until it stopped 11 minutes later and the sun came out. Oh!
We spent the rest of the time on the hotel’s roof terrace until the Fethiye co-operative taxi driver came to collect us. As we drove away from Fethiye at 2pm, the rain set in...just sayin!
At this point we couldn’t wait to get to Kalkan, although our driver had other ideas, barely inching over 50 miles per hour, we noted the Bati Antalya would have got us there quicker. As we rounded the corner and took in Kalkan for the first time this year, I swear our driver gasped first. At this point he went even slower...if that was indeed possible...and spent as much time as us looking over at that special view. I get a quivery lip and moist eyes at this point then pull myself together by the time we hit the traffic light junction...no just something in my eye, I mutter to BH, I’m fine! Like he doesn’t know!
It felt good to be “home”. We dropped our cases and headed into town for a very late lunch at Fotos....where the Efes is as cold and as cheap as you’ll find it in Kalkan.
Today has been our first full day in Kalkan and we’ve used it wisely, buying provisions, meeting friends and getting the essential Turkish bath. This year we thought we’d go to Rhapsody and give Dimitris our business after many years of going to Atlantis. Slightly more expensive but the longest time and most soap I’ve ever experienced...I think I disappeared at one point under a mound of foam.
Tonight we ate at Fener. The food fabulous, the bill ridiculous. How you can eat so well but so cheaply at the harbour is beyond me! We love that so many groups of young Turkish boys will come and drink lemonade and eat ice cream and do so in harmony with each other - so different from our own culture.
Rounding off the night with a trek up cardiac hill....it doesnt get any easier....meant we could reward ourselves with brandy coffees and chocolate on the roof terrace.
Hello Paradise...I’ve missed you.
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Oh what a fabulous report mood and in it is me at the mo fighting my way through definetly going maybe going and we’ll see if we can gat it in if all else fails mode.
I liked Fetiyhe when we were there for a short time three years ago. Our hotel wasn’t part of a supermarket but the hospital but very well situated for a walk along the front and to the old town.
Glad you arrived safely and look forward to your musings on our special place.
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Oh K4E what a fab fab start to your holiday. Thoroughly enjoyed reading your blog and look forward to reading about more of your adventures. :D :D :D
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Yay, you're back!
K4E anf Shirl in the same town, now you're talking! ;)
Loved hearing about Gocek and Fethiye but glad you're back where your heart lies. Happy holidays. :-*
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Precisely lizilu......watch out Kalkan!
K4E the start of your holiday sounds amazing.......I can't wait till I also get a little choked as we come round the corner and see the view......in 4 days!!!! :) :) :)
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Oh my, Babs, K4E and Shirl! The 3 Degrees hit Kalkan! :o I can't wait. ;)
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Flaming June!
Its absolutely roasting for this time of year, the recently laid tarmac - which I have to say is most unpleasant - is oozing out of the great dollops that have dropped into potholes. Its an obstacle course to avoid it in the road that runs alongside our accommodation. We noticed, with great sadness, the baby tortoise from HanInn had met a horrible untimely end in one such expanse...no doubt getting stuck and then driven over. I was heartbroken.
We aren’t getting much walking in at the moment as BH is suffering from a hip problem...so much smaller less arduous treks for now, hoping the drugs will kick in shortly as I’m down on the cocktail points already! He also arrived in Kalkan with toothache but we popped into pharmacy to see if we could get some Bonjela or Ambesol...describing what he wanted by rubbing his gum, a tube of pink gel was offered as the solution....a rather large tube! BH rubbed it in, saying it felt gloopy but noted the pain had started to ease. Turns out we had been given glue to stick dentures in place! A different pharmacist, a different day...some tablets have sorted him out!
We’ve had a lazy few days, but can manage to fill our time amazingly well doing naff all. I had my usual pedicure at Jasmine on Kalamar Road. Once Betul had worked her magic - I bet she wishes she could take an industrial sander to my trotters - my feet were looking fantastic and only 50TL...it would cost a small fortune at home for a similar transformation. BH waited in Johnny’s AKA the Pirate Ship. I know its not everyone’s cup of tea, but good luck to him generating business...it was certainly full when we were there.
Yesterday was the first boat trip of the holiday - a special one for our Shirl’s birthday. Adem and Kemal had decorated the boat with balloons, bunting, rose petals and Christmas tinsel and her arrival was a greeted with music and fireworks - quite a spectacle and she was so touched! We had the best day on Yildiz 3 which was sailing so close and in parallel with Yildiz 2 for most of the day as they’d hired a photographer to do some photos for their website. Such a lovely group of people we were so lucky although one of the more colourful passengers, who was travelling on her own, did insist on regaling us with tales of her amorous love life with her Turkish suitors...Oh My! She was very entertaining, shall we say, and fortunately her stories didnt seem to offend or upset the rest of us.
We didnt get back to the harbour until after 7...a lengthy delay whilst the anchor was dislodged from its stuck position thanks to Yasin from Whisper boat (who seems to possess lungs the size of an inflatable dingy) and Ramazan who used the motor from his Eyul boat to drag it out. We all cheered but quite frankly we would have been happy to stay there forever.
It was drinks at Fener with Jayne and Bob and suddenly it was evening! It did mean the walk of shame with our beach clothes and hair styled by the sea past some of Kalkan’s smartest restaurants...Jayne keeping her eyes fixed to her feet in case she saw someone she recognised.
Days don’t come more wonderful than this....
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K4E what a fab holiday your having already! Hope Daz's hip and tooth improves soon. We've walked the tarmac along the boulevard road this morning and it is certainly gross!
But... on another note, thank you for sharing my day yesterday. What fun we all had it was absolutely wonderful! You summed it up so well! :D
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Sounds as if you had a brilliant birthday Shirl, wish we'd been in Kalkan a few days earlier so we could have joined in the fun!
I don't like the sound of all this tarmac.......is it really Daz's hip or are you just being slowed down by the tar......I imagine once it's settled in, it'll look ok.....in about 10 years!
Sounds as if you're very busy doing nothing....just the way it should be! :)
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Oh I wish you were too Babs and of course my partner in crime! :D :D
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Shirl, I think we’ve hijacked K4E’s blog! :laugh:
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How fantastic stuck on a boat with entertainment and photographers, I can’t wait to see those photos! Just wished I could have been there to witness it. Sounds like Shirl had the perfect birthday.
That tarmac sounds awful and I was nearly in tears thinking about that poor little tortoise. My tears of sadness soon turned into tears of laughter though as I read out to OH re your BH’s denture gel predicament! We both cracked up! Actually I bet the glue filled the little hole that caused the pain so was prob the best thing he could have used!
I’m really enjoying these blogs and now with Babs on board too it’ll be almost worth not being in Kalkan just so I can read all about your adventures and pretend I’m there with you 3 amigos.
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Lizilu, next year definitely 4 amigos and not 3 :D. K4e apologies for hijacking your blog ;D. Really must get on with doing mine, been nice taking a back seat and enjoying everybody else's. :D
Sx
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I’ve already done that thing you shouldn’t do...start thinking about how many days are left and how we can fit everything in. BH has started a chart...I swear if he could access a PC it would be a spreadsheet!
We do have 2 weeks left, but boy oh boy how can we fit everything in in that time?
Friday was weird (weather-wise) for June. After the oppressive heat of the last few days, it was probably right that we had some rain...and it was the cats and dogs variety as opposed to a shower. The black clouds kind of enveloped Kalkan at 6pm and as we sat from our vantage point in Moonlight an hour or so later the heavens opened! Then we watched what can only be described as organised chaos as large TV’s were taken in then put out again then taken in again, whilst the parasols doubled up as very large umbrellas...once they were in place, which only seemed to happen after lots of shouting and gesticulating. We had booked to eat in Alternatif but similar chaos ensued...heavy rain in June, it seems is a deal breaker. Wegot chatting to a couple who had to abandon their evening in Lal as no makeshift rain barriers were forthcoming...how sad! When we eventually got to our table the seats nearest the balcony were soaked through but the welcome was warm and the food, although smaller portions than previous years, was just delicious.
Our daily walks have returned although not on the level I would prefer. We were invited to a BBQ and the walk up to Lizo on Kalamar felt as arduous as anything we’d done to date. I think...no, I know...we thought getting in the pool at midnight was a jolly good idea, but really..it isnt! I could still smell the chlorine the following day.
On Sunday, as Jayne has already said, we met for drinks in Kaya where Kadir wowed us with his amazing magic and then Marley’s delivered some more magic of a different kind. Loved their food and also enjoyed a pretty good Margarita. The company made the evening, of course it did, but do pop this place on your restaurant list...particularly if you like burgers.
Today has been another full-on day with one thing and another...we also found that a lot of ATM’s were cashless at the end of the 3 day holiday. Our usual exchange is Is Bank, but that wouldnt play ball so we ventured into the Bank itself to see if they could help. We were given ticket 519 and told to take a seat...at which point I noticed although there were only 6 people waiting but person being served was ticket 215..? I cannot explain what happened over the next half hour but the ticket system certainly does not work the way you would expect. I could also not get my head around what people were actually doing in the bank...they appeared to be handing over money, then being given money which they then handed back.
It will come as no surprise to know that we needed to exchange sterling into Turkish Lira in order to buy Euro’s...go figure!
We’d planned to watch the England game with friends in Moonlight...the place was rammed but as if by magic...not sure if it was Kadir’s doing....as soon as the game kicked off, so did Muhitidin’s internet connection! Every game we have watched here over the last couple of major tournaments has gone the same way, with a half full Utopia cheering the goal around a minute before the Moonlight TV’s have caught up, means quite a quickly a fully-occupied Utopia and a loss of business. And they never learn from this....we vowed to watch the next game somewhere else, although as it’s on Election Day, it will be a dry house wherever we end up!
We are off to Meis tomorrow, by Gulet! New for us, and something we’ve been looking forward to from the minute we booked it...! If I don’t see a turtle or two...I’ll be pretty miffed...!
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Try AKBank ATMs for sterling. The one just up from Akin has never let me down.
pw
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Thanks, pw. We had sterling, just needed the exchange ATM facility at IS Bank to turn it into Lira :) :)
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Another fab report K4E, it's hard not to count down isn't it? But you have ages yet. It's only just begun, looking forward to hearing all about Meis, and hopefully you got to see the turtles :D :D :D
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To be fair, I’ve been a bit lardy with my reports this holiday....
The weather has thrown me...clouds and rain in June...? What’s the world coming to?
More Blurgh Blurgh June than Va Va June since I last checked in, but it appears normal service has now been resumed.
Our trip to Meis on a Gulet...? Oh yes, that was where I left off and what can I say about this day that I havent already on social media? We’ve been to Meis a fair few times on the ferry and thoroughly enjoyed it, but this trip just beats it all ends up. Yes it’s cheaper to take the ferry and spend a few hours on Meis, but if you want to see more of the island and get a feel for it “after hours” this is the trip for you! We were picked up at 9.30..the car was not designed for 4 people who are above minature size and weight, but we managed and made friends immediately with a our lovely fellow passengers...how could we not almost sitting on each other’s knees..? After the formalities which included a man with a gun checking us and our passports over, we arrived in Meis...maybe 10 minutes later than the ferry. Passports again, somewhat smoothed by Captain Osman’s freshly picked cherries from his family farm...not sure if it was true but the huge bag of the blackest, juiciest cherries seemed to go down well with the Greek authorities. We then left the harbour to sail around beautiful Meis...it was an overcast day, but eventually the sun poked through the clouds as we made our scheduled stops. I’m not sure what the highlight of this part of the trip was - the fabulous BBQ fish lunch or the Blue Cave - both were spectacular.
We docked back in the harbour at 4.30pm, giving us 5 hours free time on Meis....our sunset wasn’t as clear as I’d hoped....clouded out at the crucial moment, but I took so many photos my camera died. If I tell you it has a battery life of 10 hrs and was fully charged, you will understand the pressure I put it under. Turtles frolicking in the bay as we ate dinner at Athina was probably BH’s favourite part of the trip. It was, we all agreed, the best way to see this pretty island on a day trip!
We said goodbye to Bob and Jayne on Thursday, but hello to Babs and Gary! BH doesn’t frequent this site and is a bit sceptical of the friendships I strike up online through our shared love of Kalkan but has loved meeting new friends through EK. Bob is now known as Monkey to BH...I have no words.
As we said our final farewells in Moonlight after a fabulous dinner at Lal, we bumped into the Lizards and it rounded off the night beautifully.
Next day we were on Yildiz 2, but Bh was feeling “worse for wear”...I told Os it was a hangover but as the day wore on, it was apparently a little worse than that. BH slept for most of the trip and missed all the lovely food and socialising. By the time we got back to the harbour he was feeling slightly more human but still not right. It was only when we got back to our apartment and were chatting did we realise Osman hadn’t charged us for BH....a trip down to the harbour first thing next day allowed us to put that right!
Its been Election Day today and so many of our Turkish friends believed a change was coming....early reports say otherwise so we can only hope any protests that may follow in other parts of Turkey are peaceful and don’t involve injury or loss of life. Alcohol was freely available to buy all day in bars, restaurants and independent retailers but the national chains played by the rules. The bottle of Angora we tried to buy in Kipa was easily bought elsewhere...bars were full to bursting with people watching the England game...fortified with Efes.
The days have already started to run away with themselves and I wonder how we will decide on the things we’ll miss out on this year. Patara is on our schedule for tomorrow, but with BH still not 100%, who knows...?
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K4E loving your blog and your trip to Meis is definitely on our list next time, sounds amazing! Hope Daz feels better and hopefully you get to Patara. Monkey that has just made us laugh! ;D ;D
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As a long time lurker on the site I finally had to register so I can comment!
We were on the Meis trip with K4E, it wasn't until the day after and I was back lurking that it clicked! I'm slightly miffed that I may have passed Blue Lizard in the street, I have a secret ambition to meet him, his posts always make me smile!
The trip was indeed a wonderful day, so many different elements made it special, the car journey not withstanding! I am sure that as word gets round in Kalkan more people will take up the opportunity .
I trust Daz is feeling better, hope it wasn't all the seawater he swallowed whilst performing his life saving techniques that did for him ;)
Enjoy your last week X
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K4E......loved hearing bout your Meis trip, both on here and in real life! It was lovely to meet you and Shirl and your other halves! I'd love to know why your BH calls Bob Monkey!! :laugh:
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That trip sounds amazing K4E! We’ve got to do that for sure and thanks for spilling the beans. Hope BH is recovering nicely and enjoy the rest of your holiday. The three degrees are now the 2 Ronnies (sorry couldn’t think of any other twosomes) now Shirl is winging her way home.
Enjoy your last week in paradise :-*
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I may have spoken too soon when I said normal service had resumed on the weather...a couple of days of clouds, rain and swirling winds followed hot on the heels of what I would say is normal June weather for Kalkan....but what is normal these days when the UK is hotter than Chile?
BH/Daz has continued to be under the weather...nothing we can put our finger on exactly, which is difficult for me as I’m a fixer and my oversized medicine bag usually has a remedy for most ailments, if not the Pharmacy are pretty good...but vague symptoms of general unwellness and not firing on all cylinders are hard to match to a pill. My “go to” for being out of sorts is Alker Seltzer...and he has wiped me out of my supply without the benefits.
We managed Patara and it was one of his good days.... arriving at 9am to a deserted beach was just beautiful and we made our way to the very last beds in the furthest corner. We had the beach to ourselves for maybe 20 minutes and it was bliss, although it was damn near impossible to put your feet in the sand even at this early hour...it was going to be a hot one!
I could not believe it when the next people arrived, despite every singe bed on the beach being available they set up camp on the next ones to us....is it just me that thinks this is weird?
The day got hotter and the breeze just dropped to nothing but the sea was inviting...once I’d done my version of the funky chicken over the molten hot sand to get in and out. I’d remembered no wine is available at the cafe, although several types of beer are, and had brought frozen gin and limonata with me. Boy they were refreshing with a large bag of the amazing cherries you can buy right now. Such a civilised way to wind down our time at the beach.
Around 5pm we showered and set off to walk into Patara...the shower cooled us down but we were soon roasting hot on that road. By the time we got to Simbar and Beanies it looked as though someone had tipped a bucket of water over our heads, but I felt I earned my Long Island Iced Teas...and some.
On Tuesday we met Babs and Gary and had dinner in Salonika. Love this restaurant and their new bar area is one of my new favourite places to sit - the food and the company were just perfect! This lovely little street gets better and better each year and is more vibrant and entertaining than the harbour for me.
We woke on Wednesday to a mass of clouds...more of the dark grey variety than any other. We’d planned to walk over to Kisla but the weather was not inviting so we made it as far as Patara Prince via the beach and winding through Komurluk and headed back on the top road. The views from here are simply stunning but the weather was not photo friendly! We noticed a couple of buses had pulled in nearer to the old town and there appears to be an official photo stop here...complete with the obligatory strange activity equipment. Lots of people with their cameras taking in that wonderful view...how pretty Kalkan looks from up high! The wind was really whipping up and we hoped it would blow the clouds away and it certainly did a decent job of it.
The sun was in and out for most of the day, then shortly after 10pm the heavens opened...just for good measure.
Yesterday was our last market day so we stocked up on spices, green tea and the heaviest of all heavy weights 6 boxes of Turkish Delight.I bought a couple of Longchamps from Jale’s stall and a couple of the LVMH shawls as Christmas presents and yet another pair of sunglasses....oh and cherries...the fattest, juciest, blackest, sweetest cherries you can ever hope to find a mere 7TL a kilo.
I have yet to buy a bag...its a long story but I’m hopeful that Ertan from BSG can come up trumps at the last minute, but so far he has been unable to get the bag I set my heart on before I left UK. It’s coming from Istanbul...but like the cushions on the town beach...always coming in a couple of days. We’ll see!
Just 4 days left...I cannot tell you where the time has gone!
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Since Chile is in Winter, and the southernmost tip is on a similar latitude to Dumfries, and the Northern extreme roughly equivalent to Mumbai, almost anywhere north of the equator is going to be hotter or colder than somewhere in Chile!
Probably why their wine is better than some other countries I can think of!
(The Weather: probably the one thing you can't do anything about, apart from Sunrise and Sunset times.) >:D :angel:
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Hope Daz is now on the mend. It’s awful being ill on holiday isn’t it. I can’t believe you’ve been there 3 weeks, they time really is flying by. Enjoy your last day and fingers crossed your bag has arrived. :)
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Hope that bag comes.....as the sun beds have arrived on the beach maybe this is an omen?! Lovely to have dinner with you and Daz and a sneaky last night G&T in moonlight as Moonlight virgins. You can probably blame us for the unusual weather.....we seem to have that effect! ::)
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And then there were none....
Not either of the Two Ronnies (thanks Lizilu), or more upsetting for me, no more days. And so for another year our Kalkan adventure has finished...here come the boohoos!
Our last few days were spent chilling and trying to get Daz/BH up to firing on more cylinders. We had come to the conclusion - thanks to Dr Google - that he'd had Heatstroke...thankfully not any other kind of stroke! Google, when not being used for a medical diagnosis, mentions that a new book indicates Bruce Lee died of heatstroke so more care was taken to ensure he didn't over heat in those last few days...seeing how it can affect athletic young men differently! I'll just leave that there....
We had watched the England game in Moonlight..finally getting it right in terms of their satellite channel, the place was rammed, Muhitdin's pad went into overdrive, the seats were rearranged and placed like some elaborate Jenga game and when there were no more seats left, chairs were taken from nearby restaurants and even Nuri's bag shop.
A small group of Belgian fans had a great night....just sayin!
We had not managed a beach club - it was all about the heatstroke - but we did manage the town beach. Daz spent a fair amount of the day under the parasol and in and out of the sea - the stones had been levelled off a day or two before but the high winds took it right back to square one. It was a lovely breezy day and the sea was choppy...so choppy that my graceful entrance into the sea was completely undone by my comedy exit. I fell awkwardly in my stupid stylish crocs and was sucked back into the sea (prone) whilst being battered by what felt like a hundred boulders. Luckily for me, it seemed only Daz saw this slapstick moment but failed to help me as he couldn't move for laughing...apparently. I thought I'd mastered the art of getting in and out of the sea at the town beach...I need to think again - or buy sturdy footwear!
Well Ertan wasnt able to come up with the bag, although he'll keep trying and contact me if he can...sending it over to the UK if he does. Such good service...! I bought a nice pale blue Gucci tote in the sale...a mere £50! It was my consolation bag as I was keeping the fund in its healthy state for the dream bag arrival...I live in hope!
Our last two meals were at Coast Tapas and Chata - both excelled in terms of food and service. Great to see Omer back in Kalkan, he certainly knows how to deliver a stylish offering - the renovation of this lovely old building has been very sympathetic and beautifully done! Chata's Chateaubriand was fabulous and at 180TL for the two of us, an absolute steal.
And before we knew it, it was Monday and our Kalkan Sun Driver had arrived to take us back to Dalaman...the dreaded journey. As we rose above Kalkan on the D400...that bit of grit found its way back to my eye.
Geri yakında, Kalkan!
Final thoughts:
Kalkan was busier than it has been for a good few years...not sure its recovered yet to 2014 levels but I hope with all my heart it continues to grow. Building work has definitely slowed down...almost to a standstill. There were no major new developments that we could see and some of the big developers over the past 10 years seemed to be conspicuous by their absence. Its a shame that the lovely old Asifya Hotel is still an empty ugly shell on Kalamar Road and Roberto's Beach Club continues to be a massive white scar on the beautiful landscape.
Portions have gotten smaller...some of our favourite restaurants were offering tiny fillet steaks with two chips and a smattering of veg...whilst it tasted wonderful, it was taking nouvelle cuisine a step too far! I'm happy to report the fillet steaks in Mussaka are twice the size of any others we had (same price) and still the same consistently high quality. Marley's ran them a very close second! The aforementioned Chata's Chateaubriand...try saying that after a few margaritas...was our favourite meal of the holiday.
Talking of Margaritas they are my yardstick measure of a good cocktail....I could not split it between Marleys, Coast and Fener for the best one in Kalkan. The best one of the holiday was in West Cafe in Gocek....divine! It was also the cheapest.
It was lovely meeting with some EK'ers - Bob & Jayne, Blue Lizard, Babs and Alibobs. Shame this forum has dropped in popularity over the years, I still love it! Love reading about everyone's holidays and Kalkan out of season. Please try and post if you can and keep it going.
I took 7 books and read just 5 of them...too busy being nursemaid. Case Histories by Kate Atkinson, The Break, Marian Keyes, The Girl You Left Behind JoJo Moyes, The Keeper of Lost Things Ruth Hogan and He Said She Said Erin Kelly are in order of preference.
Who knew that Chile isn't actually hot...? Note to self, when making an analogy do extensive research on the world wide web first ;)
A shellac in Turkey is not the same quality as a shellac at home...in my opinion.
The 2M shop near Lime Bar is the best little shop in Kalkan, run by the nicest family. Our constant free turkish delight will have added considerable poundage to my frame...but it was impossible to resist. Also good to see the old Yali (Anka) back up to good stock levels and trading better than it has done for a good few years. Kalkan has a great selection of supermarkets - something for everyone and every budget.
I took a ring to Yardan for repair - I thought it was missing a diamond but my platinum and diamond eternity ring from Tiffany's had actually split. He checked over my other rings and found the claw holding the diamond on my engagement ring had twisted out of shape - also Tiffany's. I have no idea what I do day in day out to do such damage.... He repaired both and returned them to me like new in a matter of days for the princely sum of £70. Incredible!
Daz also took his prescription to Ibo at Kaptans...now Kaptan Optik. His glasses were prepared and fitted whilst we waited and were absolutely perfect. Boots Opticians...take note!
The election came and went and the outcome a foregone conclusion. The only thing we noticed, apart from getting less Lira for your pound, was the noisy - and I mean NOISY - musical campaign vans stopped. It was a blessed relief...give me Boris's Brexit Bus any day....I know it wasn't actually Boris's bus, it was the Vote Leave Campaign's bus, I don't want to get into semantics, call it poetic licence, if you will. Just don't think it needs to be corrected...! :laugh:
Shall we do it all again next year...? Go on then!
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K4E summing up or what??? Absolutely lovely! All I can say is that we loved sharing just a small part of your fabulous holiday. Was so nice to meet you and Daz and look forward to next year :D :D :D x
Oh and if Ertan can come up with the bag we can bring it back in November! :D
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Or we could pick the bag up in September! ;D Lovely summing up. Hope Daz is feeling much better now.
Thanks for sharing your holiday with us K4E and thanks for sharing real time.....a treat!
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Or we can bring it back in August ;D ;D ;D
Oh I've loved your reports and what a fab summing up. I know it takes time and effort to report back to us who are devouring your every word and I thank you for that. I too would love to see more posts on here. We need to promote the site more. Maybe mention it more on social media? I'm guilty too. I put a post about boat contact details on the FOKer's site as I thought maybe I wouldn't get much response on here. I felt like I was betraying EK !
Thanks again and enjoy this lovely weather to top your tan up. Hope Daz is firing on all cylinders again too. :-*
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I too have enjoyed reading your reports, can't believe that I was in the illustrious company of Kalkan4eva for a whole day without realising it!
We are glad that Daz is feeling better.
We had the Chata chateaubriand on our last night too and totally agree with you.
Also,totally agree with you about the Shellac - it's off my fingernails now but building up to the de- pedicure. Getting Artex off a ceiling would be easier!
We are hopefully back in October, planning on flying to Antalya, going to Cirali and Kas for a couple of nights, a week in Kalkan and then Fethie, Gocek and Dalyan before flying back to Dalaman.....wonder where we got that idea from? ;-)
Alison & Dave X
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Excellent blog as always K4E. I'm only just catching up with this year's stories from Kalkan and I'm really grateful to everyone that has taken the time to write. We aren't going to have an opportunity to visit this year but looking forward to planning our next visit.
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Oh keith, what a shame you are getting over to Kalkan this year - hope all is ok?
Look forward to when keith can...be in Kalkan :-*