Four Days in Fethiye

The sun was shining perfectly for a day in Fethiye. We happily explored our AirBnb (a few too many stairs, but otherwise perfect) with the beautiful view from the balcony, and then after a couple of showers, Joe and Terry went to pick up some things from the grocery store and Jan and I relaxed in the sun. They returned with some snacks and breakfast foods, and a few beers, and we unwound on the balcony with one before heading out to explore.  

The balcony

We wandered out to the promenade and strolled down the beach for awhile before stopping off for lunch.  The restaurants mostly catered to British tourists, but there were some good Turkish options as well.  We continued our walk, stopping in a few shops to pick up a few odds and ends and booking our boat trip for the next day (which was surprisingly cheap) and then taking the water taxi into Fethiye to peruse the city center.  We decided to save the proper tour for another day, and instead wandered through the old town and the shops before calling it a day and heading back into Calis Beach.  We wandered back to the house, put together some food and sat on the balcony to watch the sunset.  We played a game of Heads Up and then called it a night as we had an early-ish start the next day and we had had a long day. 

The next morning shone bright and beautiful as the day before.  The forecast had called for some storms, but fortunately they held off.  We had a quick breakfast and put our bags together before being picked up.  We gathered a few more people in our van (including a nice Chinese girl named Sarah, who stayed around us for the day) and then on to Oludeniz where the boat was leaving from.  Oludeniz is famous for its transparently clear water, and it did not disappoint.  

We boarded the boat- the first ones on, and found one of the very few places that were outside and in the shade.  It turns out the boat had a tab system (which I hate) and made sense for the cheap entry onto the boat in the first place.  It took about an hour for everyone to arrive- about 50 people, but apparently this can get up to 300 during the busy season- we were all very grateful there wasn’t that many people.  It was a beautiful day on the water- but I was truly baffled by the amount of tourists that arrived on the boat sunburnt and stayed out in the sun all day.  It looked painful, and one woman later on, when Jan told her she looked very red, said that it would just turn brown later.  It wouldn’t, it was going to be a painful peel, but apparently this is the mentality of many British tourists.  We made our first stop at the Blue Cave, and then turned the waterslide on, and in I went.  It was considerably colder than I had been expecting, but it managed to be a pleasant shock to the system even though I didn’t stay in long.

We continued on our way with the next stop at the Butterfly  Valley.  We paid the entrance fee and then meandered through the valley- where there was a serious lack of butterflies- up to the waterfall.  Even without the butterflies it was a beautiful hike.  Our next stop was at Aquarium Bay for lunch, where we joined by another stray- a Turkish-Spanish guy- and Sarah.  After a delicious lunch of trout or a disappointing lunch of chicken, we were off again to St. Nicholas Island where we had the option of water sports (which we didn’t take) and then to the Cold Water Spring where Joe took the waterslide chute in- I was deterred by the words ‘cold water’ so I didn’t join in, and then to our last stop at Camel Beach where Jan and Terry went for a swim and Joe and I stayed on the boat with a beer.  One of the staff went cliff jumping for our amusement (although it was a bit lame) but then we headed back.  We took a big bumpy van back to our hotel, showered and then went for a sunset dinner.  We wandered the promenade before heading home for tea on the balcony and then off to bed.

Our last full day in Fethiye got off to a lazy start.  We had breakfast in and then slowly headed to the water taxi to go into town.  We stopped for a Turkish coffee and baklava on the other side and then found our way up to the rock tombs- forgoing the castle, as it was only ruins- which had a fantastic view of the harbour after a steep climb up to the tombs.  

We went shopping in the old town where I found the most beautiful handbag I have ever seen- with a pricetag to match that didn’t fit my budget in any way shape or form- so I sadly left it alone.  Jan picked up a few odds and ends though before we headed to a fabulous lunch near a pond in the market.  I went to pick up one of the cushions to change chairs and was hit by a very unhappy mewing noise.  A handful of kittens were sleeping peacefully beside us, and when one stumbled out we were treated to his delightful kitten antics while we ate.  Dinner and a show.  We wandered a bit longer through the center and then took the water taxi back, stopping for ice cream on the way back.  Jan and Joe rested for a bit while Terry and I went to explore the promenade in the other direction and Terry went for one last swim.  We finished up the evening with some beer and chips, teaching Jan and Terry how to play Yahtzee- with Jan having some of the best luck I have ever seen.  The boys went to get a pizza and it was a lovely last evening.

We finished up the holiday with a full English breakfast on the beach, where we saw some turtles playing in the water- but they sadly didn’t come up onto the beach.  Then Joe and I said our farewells and headed to the bus station for the long 20hr bus journey back to Malatya.