Day 8 – Saturday 16 May

Another great sleep; it is so nice to be able to have opening windows and as the Hideaway is away from clubs and bars it is very peaceful except for the early call of the roosters next door. We had a leisurely start, packed and went up on the terrace to have breakfast with that beautiful view. The sea looked calmer this morning compared to yesterday, but no doubt the winds will come later.

Breakfast was not quite as good as yesterday, but nothing to complain about at all, and I still enjoyed an array of salads and herbs enough to satisfy the fussiest of manatee.  After breakfast we went the short walk to the amphitheater that we can see from our balcony window.  The restoration is evident in the newer blocks, however a lot of the original is still there. What I particularly enjoyed about the walk was it was about 5 minutes up a slope and you entered at the top level, vs. those without this access come in from the bottom and navigate the steps!

Our exit drive out of the edge of old town went very smoothly, so I am very pleased with the extra care we took in booking accommodation with consideration for a car.  The streets are very narrow in the old towns and navigations do not always get it right. Although having said that, our Apple Maps has been on the button so far. Neither of us forget a holiday in France where we missed our train because we could not navigate out of the old town!

The scenery from Kas to Fethiye was pretty with blue ocean and turquoise bays fringed by rocky cliffs and a consistent winding road. Whilst the bays look very tempting, most are not accessible due to being below the cliff.  There is a distinct lack of sand beaches that we are used to at home in the South Pacific.  We did however, have the beach at Oludinez and the Blue lagoon as our next stop.

Closer to Fethiye the road takes you inland for a bit, and we saw more huge mountain ranges, some topped with snow. We ventured off the highway to get some cash in a town which gave us an authentic non touristic peak at life here.  There is a lot of poverty as we would consider, and this aligns with the terrible inflation our host at the Hideaway was telling us about, and also the one at Goreme. There seems to be the very rich, and the rest have to work harder just to make ends meet with the inflation, as well as cut things out.  Many people in the service industry are not happy and in some areas it shows.

The terroir is also harsh. There are rivers fed from the hills/mountains and the soil is a deep almost purple red like in some areas of Australia.  The difference is the red soil is filled with many white rocks – large and small, so I imagine very hard to cultivate. In the low areas and valleys there are thousands of tunnels houses that must feed the nation. A lot of tomatoes and I imagine the other foods they eat – capsicum, cucumber etc.  In humble little garden plots I see onions being planted an obligatory grape vine or two, and knurled aged fruit trees tended by bent over elderly.

Oludinez  beach and lagoon are about 15 minutes Kas side of Fethiye, and Fethiye about 2 hours drive from Kas. Before the beach we stopped off for a boat shaped pide and cuppa at Oludinez shops before descending the big hill down to the beach. 

The beach and lagoon are like a resort type arrangement with chairs for rent, bars, cafes, water activities for hire. The beach is white pebble and the lagoon netted and shallow for children. You can enter the beach free, but parking is 300TYL and if you want to go to the lagoon area it is another 100TYL each.  We paid for all the above and set off with great anticipation of having a swim in the lovely water.

As we find, sometimes things live up to the hype and at other times they don’t to various degrees.  The beach looked lovely, and the water reasonably clear, however the lagoon was not as clear or spectacular as some photos we have seen.  It was still very nice, however the bays we stopped at yesterday on the boat trip were crystal clear and the colours amazing. Perhaps we were spoilt by that?

The water was a little bracing when we first went in, but we found some warmer spots and had a good 20 minutes swimming around before lounging on our chairs for an hour or so in the balmy warmth of a day that started at around 30 degrees in the peak, to a pleasant 26 mid late afternoon. This is a rare thing for Vern and I who are mostly on the go on holiday unless it is a cruise, however it was very welcomed.

More negotiating Turkish drivers to get to our splurge hotel in Fethiye, and on check in were delighted to be met outside by a valet who took our bags and parked our car (free here in hotel). It got better to be advised we were upgraded to a full sea view, from a partial sea view!  We were also upgraded at the Hideaway from garden to sea…. 

As we were a little tired and it was already 7pm we did not want to drive into town, or walk in and find somewhere to eat, so we ate at the restaurant of the Yacht Class hotel, called Miro. It is also mentioned in the Michelin magazine and has prices to accompany it.  Handsome wait staff in a beige and white uniform fussed around us; and presented the meals with flair. The exclusive waterfront setting was like a movie set, with yachts on mirrored water and fish breaking the surface in silver whirls, whilst beautiful diners talked quietly illuminated by lamp light.

I had a calamari dish and Vern a lasagne.  Mine was woefully small for 1,600 TYL, however Verns was nice enough – apparently he reported it was not as good as mine by any means (of course). Vern had an EFS and I tried a raki which is a Turkish aniseed flavoured spirit like ouzo that you drink with water. To finish the meal we shared a chocolate soufflé (lava cake).  It was amazing and the highlight of the meal. Total cost NZD 172.00

We went upstairs, enjoyed the xxl bath, and then I felt so tired I could not blog – or even look at my phone. Then my stomach did not feel good. About 1.5 hour after the last mouth full severe explosive diarrhoea started, then the most projectile vomit I have ever done.  OMG food poisoning.

 I could add some totally gross details which I won’t – suffice to say it is the worst case of stomach trouble I have ever experienced.  Not happy campers at all.