May 21, 2013 - turkey

hi everyone, we left istanbul on a 6 hr bus trip passed through galippoli and then got on a ferry to canakkale,we might go and see anzac cove while we are here its not far away but we cant get close to it by transport you have to walk the last 3 km itshould be interesting then i can say to everyone I've been there ha ha. It is 29 degrees at the moment and very humid,but it's better than being in Melbourne, staying here for 3 days then back to istanbul before getting on the ship hope all is well at home take care love robin and rod

May 11, 2013 - On to Turkey!

We got up early and took a cab to the airport. The flight to Turkey from Amsterdam is about equivalent of a trip from Rochester to Denver - a 3 hour hop. We flew on KLM and the service was first class. Clearing customs was not bad and we remembered to obtain a Visa (some people did not and had to go back and then stand in the passport line all over again!). After a long cab ride from the airport that faced many stops and then very fast treks (to the next bottleneck), we got to the Hotel Rixos where we checked in and then chose a restaurant...

May 7, 2013 - Alanya

Time flies when you’re having fun. More days filled with sunshine, lounging on the beach and lots of swimming. On Friday Koray kindly offered to assist us in getting David’s laptop fixed and we three caught the Dolmuş into Alanya Centrum to a computer shop he recommended, Pro-Set, and he explained to them the work we wanted done. We then walked to the boat harbour and booked a tour for Monday before catching the Dolmuş back. We drove into Alanyum on Saturday, did some shopping at Carrefour then walked along to the Kipa supermarket to stock...

Apr 25, 2013 - Anzac Day in Alanya

The campground has started to get busier, and we have met some new motor homers, Hans and Gertrud from Germany who are travelling west, and Kevin and his Turkish wife Nurçan, from the UK who are heading for Cyprus. Both stayed only for one night but we enjoyed getting to know them and swapping travel stories. We have also had visits from Koray Tezcan, the ex-president of the Turkish Camping Club, who has been very helpful and informative. Other visits have been from a German couple who live in Ecem Apartments (where we stayed for 3 weeks)...

Apr 16, 2013 - Alanya

Another week has passed and we have been taking a holiday from our holiday! Each day has been beautiful and we have walked the few steps to the beach and spent time on the loungers and swimming – what luxury! Yesterday we had a trip to town in Homer, went to Alanyum shopping centre for a supermarket shop, and while there David persuaded me to buy a bikini. Gasp…shock…horror!!! But here all shapes and sizes wear bikinis, and some of the men have to be seen to be believed. After this little spree we went back to visit Ken and Ayşe and check...

Apr 9, 2013 - Alanya - back at Perle Camping

Sunday was a gorgeous day and we spent some time on the beach on the loungers reading and we had our first swim. The water was lovely once we were in! Monday was market day and we had to dodge showers to go and buy our vegetables. The apartment we’ve been staying in has been rented and the new tenants are moving in on Wednesday, so today we moved back up the road to Perle Camping. We are sad to farewell the tortoises in the garden and our three-legged doggy friend, Tequila, from next door. It was nice to have the space of the apartment and...

Apr 6, 2013 - Alanya

We have spent another lovely week at the apartment, enjoying relaxing, reading and taking more walks. The temperature is warm and we have had some stunning days. One day we took a long walk (a couple of hours) away from Alanya central along the beach front, resting for a while at a café on the beach for hamburgers and drinks. We also trialled the exercise equipment - these machines are often found in parks and along popular walking trails. We saw lots of lizards along the sea wall, enjoying the sunshine. Ayşe arrived back from up north...

Mar 28, 2013 - Alanya

The weather over the past several days has been changeable, sometimes beautiful days and sometimes cold and windy. We have done a lot of walking; into Alanya, around Oba where we are staying and along the beach. On Monday our new friends from Fethiye, Don and Maureen came to stay at Perle Camping, and we spent some time with them walking around Alanya and visiting the Castle. Ken drove us up to the Castle and dropped us near the top, and after having a good look round we walked a short way down the castle road, had some lunch then caught a...

Mar 18, 2013 - Ken's in Alanya

About mid-day on Saturday we left Perle Camping and drove the 10 mins or so back towards Alanya to Ken and Ayşe’s, and moved into the downstairs apartment. So much space! In the afternoon we went for a short walk with Ken and the weather turned cold and we got soaked in a heavy shower. It was cold enough that we had to have the heat pump on and that night there was a thunderstorm and the power went off for a while. On Sunday we spent a lazy day; it was fine but windy and we had lunch with Ken outside on the patio. Today was a lovely sunny...

Mar 15, 2013 - Perle Camping in Alanya

Yesterday we were having a late breakfast when Ken arrived. We had been in email contact with him during our travels and it was lovely to meet him at last. He is a good friend of Sue’s sister’s partner and now lives with his Turkish wife, Ayşe here in Alanya. She is away up north for a few days at present. After a lengthy chat over coffee, Ken drove us back into Alanya to show us where they live (and offered for us to take our washing to do – saving us €5!). They have an apartment downstairs which is currently vacant and Ken has kindly...

Mar 13, 2013 - Antalya to Alanya

We stayed 2 nights at Denizer Camping. Tuesday was a drizzly day so we decided not to take the dolmuş into Antalya. We had a visit from an elderly man who knocked on our door and proceeded to chat away to us in Turkish. He had a bit of French also, but when he couldn’t make us understand he went away and came back with a young man who spoke good English. We then got asked lots of questions about Homer, as the older man “would like to buy one”. When we told him what it cost, he translated “that would buy 3 houses in Antalya”. After that Ali...

Mar 11, 2013 - Antalya

We stayed the weekend at Orkinos Camping, taking a long walk into town and back along the beach on Saturday. Most of the shops are closed, or being refitted, until summer comes, and most of the many hotels are closed also. On the beach, I was “picked up” by Ünal, a Turk who worked in a nearby 5-star hotel (it was his day off) and he invited us to have a çay with him back at a local café. Despite having a husband in tow, it was obvious that he was only interested in talking to me and afterwards he presented me with a box of Turkish Delight...