Turkey part 2

Claire

Sep 13

After the excitement of the birthday and busy day we decided to have a quiet day on the beach. All the restaurants had sun loungers available to rent, although most didn't charge for these if you purchased food or drinks from them. Once again we dipped in and out of the sea, the water was shallow for quite a distance, although if you stood still too long the fish had a tendency to give you a pedicure ! We ate in the apartment that evening as the next morning was to be an early start.

We had booked a trip to Pamukkale and Heirapolis. It was a fair distance and our pick up was 6am, once again we watched the sun rising over the hills. This trip could have been a disaster, but wasn't thanks to a great sense of humour and a large Irish group sat near the back of the coach with us. After our pick up we headed out and after 2 hours stopped for breakfast at a roadside cafe. The breakfast was awful, a boiled egg, some bread, a piece of dried up cheese and a couple of olives. Even the tour guide apologised when we got back on the coach. Shortly after setting off we had to make an emergency stop and the guide was propelled down the aisle along with several bags from the overhead compartment, falling heavily he then left us to go and get his injuries checked over. Thankfully the driver and passengers were all ok.

Pamukkale was spectacular, it is a UNESCO site of natural beauty, it is calcium rocks with pools of natural spring water. It was lovely, but no shade and very hot, over 40 degree temperatures. Here also is Heirapolis, a large ancient site with many ruins to explore set out over a vast area but the temperature made this very difficult. We visited the Cleopatra pools and walked up towards the amphitheater but the steep paths and heat was too much for us to make it all the way.

It was almost time for the coach to leave so we headed back, again without a guide but air conditioning. After an hour we stopped at a marble factory for a tour and lunch. The food here was delicious, once fed and watered we set off homeward. Once again disaster struck, half way up a steep hill a sudden loud hissing noise and one of the Irish lads knew exactly the problem. The air brake cable ! We pulled off the road onto a lay-by and with the driver and a screwdriver he had a look. As he feared the cable had come away, he managed to do a temporary repair with what was available and the driver made a couple of phone calls. The repair was enough to get us up the hill, very slowly, and into a garage where a mechanic was waiting with all the right tools to finish the job and after a half hour delay we finally headed down the mountain and back to Marmaris.

I've never been so grateful to get back to the apartment, exhausted, a little hungry but amused at the crazy day we had just experienced.

Once again we opted for a quiet, pool day to recover and ate on the balcony. The holiday was quickly passing by. I decided to take the teen out of a fun day and give grandma a bit of peace. So we booked onto a jeep safari. It was wet and wild ! An hour of racing through the hills with water guns shooting at the other jeeps and people. I don't think either of us have laugh so much or been so wet. Then they took us off to 'the Jesus beach' where you can walk on water, or so it appears. The lake is so shallow in parts it does look like you are walking on water in the middle. It's not the biggest beach but gave us an hour or so to dry out a little before heading off into the hills to splash in waterfalls (Number 62 of The 100). This water was very different, the beach was warm but the waterfalls were ice cold and very refreshing.

After these busy few days we decided to have a lazy morning and a lie in, followed by a wander along the beach and an evening in Marmaris itself, exploring the souk and picking up a few gifts for family. We sat outside the Mosque listening to the call to prayer. It was lovely.

Our last full day was spent once again on the beach, swimming in the sea and another Turkish bath in the evening. A great end to a relaxing holiday. With the packing done we enjoyed our last Turkish meal and took a walk along to say goodbye to Gino.

At 10am our car arrived and whisked us off to the airport and back to reality. It was a wonderful break, a quality time with the family to unwind and have fun.

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