This is Week One, Week Two will follow.
Prefix
We normally go away for 17 nights for our summer holidays but due to the price of the flights when they came out in May last year we reduced to 14 nights to ensure we came within budget. So flights were booked for the 11 of us, four apartments booked where we normally stay and we are on countdown for our 2013 holiday.
Fast forward to May this year and I receive an email informing me that our complex can only supply three apartments and not four as booked with deposit paid, would my daughter and boyfriend move across the road, unfortunately this was not acceptable to us and suddenly my emails were not receiving replies, and midweek I discover we have all been unfriended on Facebook so I didn’t know if I have apartments or not.
A call to John and like a knight in shining armour he comes through for us and we have four rooms at the Sun Village which I book within the hour and pay for, formal cancellation is sent to my original apartments which receives a reply and I am offered my deposit back either by bank transfer or I can pick it up when we are in town, I go for the second option to save bank costs.
June arrives and I have good news, for those who read my trip report last year you will know that my company merged with another and there was a possibility that I would be made redundant, I formally hear that I have a position in the new organisation which will come into effect on the 1st July and my job is starting to look a bit safer, the second half of the year is turning out to be better than the first half.
Thursday 25th and my final day at work is finished, I am officially on holiday, we don’t travel until Monday but I have so many days to still take this year that I decide to take an extra day.
This holiday there are 11 of us going.
Room 1 – Myself, my wife, my youngest daughter and her best friend.
Room 2 – My Eldest Daughter and Boyfriend
Room 3 – Two good friends and their 13 year son.
Room 4 – Two good friends
Monday 29th July – Departure Day
4.00am and the alarm is going off, why is it when going on holiday you always wake up immediately, even only after 4 hours sleep, why can’t I do that when the alarm goes off for work, why do I always feel half a sleep and tired.
We all get ready (6 of us) and by 4.45am we are waiting for the 5am taxi/minibus who arrives two minutes early, cases are loaded and I offer payment for the return journey, I was expecting £150 but he surprises me with £113, the reduction is due to the fact we live in the same road (although I don’t really know him) and we are repeat customers. That’s money for the airport drinks sorted.
We drive across town to pick up the second couple who are ready for us and it’s off to the airport, the other family are making their own way.
Being early the Motorway is quiet and we are at T2 Manchester at 5.50am, plenty of time until our 8.30am flight.
The Monarch Online Checkin queue had about 50 people in it but with the five desks we were checked in well under 15 minutes. The normal Monarch Desks must have had 400+ people queuing.
At Security there were no queues; T2 security always appears to be far more efficient than T1
Duty free we purchased 2 litres of Gordons Gin for £22 and 400 Silkcut for £50, cigarettes were the same price on the Monarch flight and I could have saved £2 on the Gin.
Off to the bar for the first holiday drink and down to the smoking area for the last couple of cigarettes, unfortunately I have started again and it was time to board at 7.45am.
Boarding was called with Advantage Card holders and those in rows 1-8 called first, we were in rows 1,2 and 3 as we had booked extra leg room seats so were first to board, our plane was an A300-600R so for rows 1-8 you actually turn left as you board hence these rows are not blocking others boarding. I presume the others were called by seat row from the back to the front.
The A300 seat configuration was 3-3-3, the normal configuration is 2-4-2 so the seats were very narrow, the first three rows have tables in the armrests which made it slightly worse so to say the least the fit was a bit tight, normal seats are 18”-19” wide these were 17” however the legroom was good with a 34” seat pitch.
I am actually going on the same plane at the end of September and I have changed my seats from Row 3 to Row 4 to get that little extra room.
I understand that Monarch are due to replace their aging fleet of A300 aircraft sometime in 2014, it’s about time, I won’t book another flight on one of these, I will choose the flights serviced by the A321 or A330 planes.
Everyone was boarded and doors closed and we pushed back about 15 minutes late, the Health and Safety demo was broadcast on the entertainment screens, they were not used for the rest of the flight.
The flight was good, drinks service was quick and the prices were the same as last year, we were advised to buy the drinks for the entire flight from this service.
Pre-booked meals were served followed by scratch cards and then duty free, We had taken sandwiches so no meal for us but it did smell good.
The plane although old was clean, the crew were pleasant , we had a little turbulence once and the seat belt light was switched on, we descended into Dalaman and touched down on time, all the gates were occupied so we parked on a remote stand and were bussed to the terminal.
Apart from the narrow seats it was a very good flight.
Visa desk queues were minimal as were passport control, we were down to the luggage area very quickly, we were assigned the same luggage belt as a Manchester Thomson 767 flight that arrived 15 minutes earlier so there were now 600 people waiting for luggage at the same belt when other belts were empty. A crazy decision In my opinion.
Now for my only RANT
Parents, I know your kids are excited and want to help but it doesn’t help when your 8 year old is standing next to you and people are swinging around 20Kg suitcases from the conveyor, please do as I do and ask your kids to stand with your partner away from the belt, 1) it is safer for them, 2) it makes it easier to for others to collect luggage from the belt.
Before people shoot me down in flames I do understand that there are also single parent travellers who have to keep their kids close by.
End of RANT
After 30 minutes we are still missing two cases from our party, not many people are left , maybe 50, that panic feeling starts to appear, no bags are coming up the conveyor, after what seems to be an eternity some more start arriving including one of ours, the last case we are waiting for is the very last case to arrive, panic over.
We proceeded to the exit, there were no customs offices stopping people, once outside while in the shade we moved to one side so not to obstruct others and stopped, I went to find the transfer voucher in my ruck sack but before I knew it a very abrupt female security office is ordering us down the ramp, we obey as I am sure that is a gun on her belt.
Down the ramp to the transfer point and we quickly spotted a driver holding a board with my name, he checked our voucher, gave us the details of the return pickup and then helped us with the luggage to a large minibus, luggage loaded and we were off, the bus was clean and comfortable and had air conditioning but it took a while for the temperature to come down as it has been standing in the sun for a while and was a large vehicle to cool but it got their eventually.
Outside the airport we stopped for free water which was welcome as what we had left was warm and this was cold. The driver was extremely good and I felt extremely safe with his driving. I didn’t time the journey but I believe it was less than 90 minutes to the apartments. I still love the view as you come over the last crest and Marmaris appears below you.
The transfer was arranged through ICR and I definitely recommend them.
At the Sun Village we were welcomed by Jamie and Mama, we were offered a choice of rooms and we chose all the ground floor rooms. 101, 102, 103 & 104
Cases were taken to the room and the children quickly got changed into their swim gear which we had packed on the top of the cases and they headed to the pool.
We paid for the Aircon and Safe at £30 and £10 per week so in total £80 for the two weeks.
Time for that first drink and it’s off to the bar, those first Efes are the best. Drinks at the Sun Village are 7TL for a large Efes, 9TL for a Gordons Gin, 1TL for a small water, 2.5 Lira for 5 Litres of Water, 9TL for cocktails.
The rooms are really nice; they have been revamped over the winter with new furniture. The bedroom has two single beds, a wardrobe with draws, a dressing table and a bedside cabinet and draw, we found the space was amble for the four of us by doubling up on hangers which there were plenty.
The kitchen living room had a table and four chairs and a double pull out sofa bed which the girls shared. We moved the table onto the balcony which is large and had four chairs. Kitchen equipment was the norm for these types of apartments, two ring electric hob, kettle, fridge etc, there was plenty of plates and cutlery, certainly enough for our needs as we only make the occasional sandwich in the apartment.
The safe is mounted in the bedroom wall, it is small and is only suitable for passports, mobiles, money and Jewellery, large format cameras, tablets etc had to be left in the room however we felt safe as all the rooms are in view of the bar area.
Room 101, the sliding doors are very stiff and difficult to open, this was reported to Jamie but nothing was done while we were there but Mama did say it would be looked at, I did not mention it to ICR as it was not a problem for me but hopefully they will rectify the issue.
Room 104, is the last room before the sewers exit the building, my daughter did have an issue that the pipes became blogged due to an apartment flushing toilet paper down the loo, Mama and Ozzy quickly resolved the issue by removing the toilet and putting a pipe down to the blockage and blasting it away with water. So those who think that they don’t want to use the bins please think again, one day it may be your room.
After a few drinks we got ready to go out for our first meal and we all decided on the Three (4) Bells, all 11 of us trooped off together, on the way we popped into Best Supermarket as some of the group wanted to change some Money, the rate was 2.90, I had already change £1500 in the UK at 2.86 earlier in the year as I didn’t want the risk of it dropping too much before we arrived, I was happy with what I got and still am.
Arriving at the three bells we had no problem getting a table, we were welcomed back by the staff and Smiley looked after us during our meal.
During the holiday I made a note of the meals we had together with costs to enlighten people on this years prices, when we eat together as a group we always spit into families to make paying the bill easier so for the rest of this review I will only refer to the food and drinks that the four of us had.
Usual bread and dips
Yam Yam Chicken
No 3 of the Korean Menu
Chicken Breast
Pizza
Large Coke
Large Beer
Large Sprite
Gin and Lemonade
Total 123 Lira (£42.41)
Back to the apartments for more drinks and it was an early night retiring just after 1am after a long day.
Tuesday 30th July
We woke naturally about 9.30am, we must have slept through the call to prayer and as ScouseFitz had already sorted out the local chickens with his threats we didn’t hear them. (For the best holiday blog have a read of viewtopic.php?f=40&t=17522 )
A couple of Coffee’s later and sun protection applied it was time to find a sunbed, this was not a problem and there were quite a few available, no early morning towels here it appears.
My eldest daughter checked who wanted a Turkish Bath and with her boyfriend went off to the ICR office to arrange the baths for later in the day.
I was now a bit peckish as I had only had coffee for breakfast so I ordered a Bacon butty from Mama which came with chips, my wife had the mixed Omelette and the girls had a chicken sandwich each, Mama’s food is really good and is on the large side so very good value for money.
I suddenly remembered that I had arranged to meet the manageress of the apartments that we were forced to cancel at 12:00 noon so my wife and I took the five minute walk around the corner. Unfortunately she was not available but the £400 deposit had been left with the head waiter for me. We took time to have a drink and catch up with the staff, we also met our friends from London who had booked though Thomas Cook to meet up with us, the place was packed, all the sun beds were taken I was actually relieved that the Sun Village was so peaceful and quiet. Anyway drinks are finished, belongings collected and we are off back to our apartments followed by our London friends who in the end spend a lot of time with us over the two weeks.
Communication routes still appear to be closed to me regarding these apartments, I do hope the manageress makes contact with me at some point in the future so we can put this episode behind us and remain friends.
Back to the apartments with our friends and a few more drinks are sampled at the bar, the rest of the group come over to catch up, before we knew it the driver had arrived from the Turkish Bath and those going quickly grabbed their belonging and shot off in the bus, the rest of us carried on chatting for a bit longer.
The Turkish Bath was though Icmeler Online and I believe was £5 each, when the group returned that said they had a great time and the hard sell wasn’t too bad as it was at the beginning, two of the men agreed to a Pedicure and they said it was excellent with all the rough skin being removed, apparently we men do not take care of our feet correctly.
A few dips in the pool and it was time for Balcony drinks where the most important decision of the day is made, where do we go to eat tonight, in the end we decide to split up for the evening.
I decide I want a steak and there is no better steak than Vince’s in Icmeler, again we are welcomed back by Vince, the changes to his restaurant are very nice and it is now quite a bit larger, our table was inside as he was busy but we had a large fan that kept us all comfortable.
Usual bread and dips
Peppered Steak
Gammon Steak
Chicken Plank
Chicken Curry
Large Efes
Gin & Sprite
Large Sprite
Large Fanta
Total 115 TL (£39.65)
Once again the steak was cooked to perfection and in my opinion still remains the best steak house in Icmeler. My wife really enjoyed her Gammon and my daughter her chicken once she scrapped the Béarnaise sauce off, she hadn’t tried it before and she didn’t like it, however I tasted it and thought it was excellent. My youngest daughter is one of the fussiest eaters there is in the world and would be happy with a Tomato Ketchup sandwich if we let her.
My daughter’s best friend has not been to Icmeler before so it’s time for her first walk around, we go to the Waterfall restaurant first to see the animals, we were lucky to get away without one particular rabbit being kidnapped and stuffed in a handbag.
We continue down towards Deniz Kapisa and walk along the prom towards the canal.
Both the girls have a Turkish ice cream which are 5 Lira each from the seller between Kontes and CoCo Beach and the seller had a bit of fun with them.
We suddenly hear our names called from Kontes and two of our friends are sitting there, we wait for them to pay the bill and it’s off to the Magic Garden, my favourite bar in Icmeler. Our friend’s comments regarding Kontes was the food was very good and reasonably priced.
The Magic garden is quite empty so we don’t have a problem getting a seat, we are soon joined by our friends from London who ate at the Bonjour restaurant and said the Sea Food Casserole was excellent. A few drinks later and after a good conversation it was time to walk back to the old village.
On the way back we walked past Ambience, the doorman asked us to look around in case we want to come back during the holiday so we pop in, It was still early so the place was empty but it looks quite good but I will be honest it’s not my cup of tea, I’m a bit old for this type of thing now.
The DJ called the girls up to his area and they had a go at mixing some records.
Finally back at the apartments we had a bit of a surprise, a family were leaving and there was an impromptu pool party where everyone was thrown in. This is the first time I have ever been in the pool at night and it was wonderful, it was actually like getting into a warm bath.
Some final drinks and it was time to call it a day.
Wednesday 31st July
A nice quiet day is on the cards the morning is spent around the pool sun bathing by most of the group but personally I don’t lie in the sun so spend most of the morning in the shade by the bar with the odd dip in the pool for a cool down.
Lunch was a simple affair of bread, cheese and salami on the apartment balcony, the supermarket across the road from the Sun Village has quite a good selection so no point in walking to Tansas or Migros.
Following lunch four of us adults decided to walk down to the ICR office to book some trips for later in the week, the kids remained sunbathing and playing in the pool with the others (Should really stop calling them kids now at 20 and 17), on the way out we popped to our friends apartments to see if they wanted to join any of the trips.
Wow it’s a hot day and even though only a short walk to the ICR office we soon purchased some water at the corner shop.
Elaine welcomed us, first we confirmed the AI Boat Trip for the following Sunday then we booked the following:-
1 - Seven People for the Horse Riding on the Thursday
2 - Four people for the Akyaka trip on the Friday
3 – Five people for the Aquadream water park on the Friday
Now the girls are getting older they can now do their own thing so we didn’t need to join them for the Horse Riding (Good job because they don’t have shire horses for me) and I no longer enjoy the water park.
Following ICR we went to Buffaloes for a couple of drinks, us men took advantage of the 3TL a pint draft beer which was nice and cold and went down very well, the ladies however spotted Magners at 15TL per bottle (pint) but in the end we did have two drinks to their one, it was a pleasant few hours out of the apartments we arrived back via Migros supermarket just in time for Balcony drinks.
Why we had been away Elaine had called to say that due to the horse riding being busy could we go slightly earlier in the morning, this was not an issue and Jamie let me use the phone to call the ICR office to confirm the earlier pickup the following day.
We all decided that that a Sizzler was on the cards, as we used to always to go Captain Bulls#!ts we decided to try the new location and renamed restaurant of YOLO.
We all got ready, it is worth saying at this point that we never had any issues with hot water at the Sun Village, if you are on the ground floor it may take a minute for the hot water to come through but there was always plenty, also there were never issues with the water fluctuating between cold and scolding that I have experienced elsewhere. Shower cubicles are slightly on the small side but no issues.
We left slightly early to head down to YOLO as all 11 of us were going and we hadn’t booked, the front of the restaurant was already busy but Jimmy organised us a table at the back of the restaurant with a nice cooling fan.
Drinks orders taken, food decided on the free bread and dips soon arrived. We did have to wait a while for our main course but this was not an issue, it was busy and for Chef to cook 11 meals to arrive at the same time is no mean feat. We had good conversation, the opportunity to leave the table and have a cigarette at the bar which was away from everyone eating, the second visit Jimmy poured me a small beer on the house. The food arrived and as usually it was excellent and plates were soon cleared.
YOLO
Usual bread and dips
Hot Sizzling Beef with Garlic * 2
Chicken breast
Chicken Chow Mein
Large Efes * 2
Gin & Sprite * 3
Large Sprite * 2
Large Fanta
Small Fanta
Small Water
Tea & Liqueurs (Free)
Total 153.5TL (£53)
As some of the group had an early start in the morning it was time to return to the apartments for a few drinks, most retired early but a couple of us stayed up to sample a few more.
Thursday 1st August
It’s 7.45am and it’s the first morning that the alarm goes off to ensure we are up in time, a simple breakfast is prepared accompanied with coffee to bring me around.
Our two friends from the other apartments who are going to join the trip arrive and those going from our party all gather in the shade by the bar waiting for the pickup, it’s going to be a hot day.
Out of the seven going four of them are on my holiday insurance, I knew they wanted to go horse riding so a word of warning, if you are going Horse Riding check your insurance policy as some don’t cover it and class it as a dangerous sport. The first policy I nearly purchased excluded horseriding, the second policy it was covered however there is a statement in the policy that you must all take reasonable care so I asked my party to wear helmets.
The pickup arrived and they all disappears returning 2.5 hours later, 6 out of 7 had a great morning and really enjoyed it, my youngest got scared as at one point her horse decided to jump into the river instead of walk in like the rest, she managed to hang on but it frightened her, one of the guides led her horse for her for a while but she was still not happy so got off and spend the rest to the trip with the camera man running around getting into the best positions for the photo’s to be taken.
They all wore helmets thankfully but when they asked for them the guides laughed and said they were only for children however they insisted for insurance purposes, If my youngest had fallen it may have saved her from a severe injury.
The rest of the day was spent around the pool and bar, finally it’s balcony drinks time, the sun village has a large patch of mint growing and we started to pick a few sprigs to go in the gin and vodka based drinks, it makes a refreshing change and the smell is wonderful.
We all decided we wanted something simple so the choice was Nefis
Nefis
Usual bread and dips
Tomato soup
Lamb Kebab
Adana Kebab
Chicken wings
Chicken pizza
Fanta * 6
Sprite * 2
Total 87TL (£30)
I love the Adana Kebabs from Nefis, I had heard that now sell alcoholic drinks but when I asked I was informed that as it was Ramadan no alcohol was available, this was not an issue.
Following Nefis some of us split up and went our way, the girls decided that they wanted ice chocolates from Café Savas so off to the beach we head.
Café Savas
Ice Chocolates * 3
Large Efes
Total 32TL (£11)
Tomorrow some of the group are off on more trips so we start heading back to the apartments calling in the Magic garden on the way back for a quick drink.
When we arrive back our friends had already returned and we were joined by the London family from the other apartments so what was going to be an early night turned out to be quite a late one.
Friday 2nd August
Woken up by the alarm at 8am everyone got ready for their trips, my wife and I were not going on one as we had decided we would go for a walk.
The jeep for the Akayaka trip arrived at 9.30 and off one group went, the pickup for the waterpark arrived between 10:00 and 10:15. It felt quite strange that there was just my wife and I left and everyone else had gone off on trips.
We had only had coffee for breakfast so we decided we would go down to the Three (4) bells for a full English.
We got ready picked up the camera and left the apartments about 10:30 for a gentle stroll down to the restaurant.
Could this be the new green car?
The Three Bells was quiet, the full cooked breakfast was excellent and we spend a nice hour people watching as they headed for the beach.
We decided to continue our walk back to the old village via the Rhodes apartments, we have booked the Rhodes for our October break, this was booked purely from recommendations on the forum, part of me is wishing we had booked the Sun Village as we are having such a good time there but another part of me is saying that we should try new places so we have more choice in the future.
Arriving at Rhodes we head straight for the bar where we are welcomed by Tango, we order drinks which I notice are slightly on the expensive side, typically 1TL per drink more than most places but there again we are on holiday and with the great exchange rate a pint is still only costing me £2.75, not as good as the 50p cost in 2002 but all countries have inflation and the government in the end have basically brought alcohol tax in line with other countries.
The apartments do look really nice, the pool is large with plenty of sunbeds but we are very surprised how quiet it is although I believe they are fully booked.
Drinks finished and it’s time to continue our walk as we head towards Tommy’s
What a house, on closer inspection it’s actually two.
Arriving at Tommy’s there are about 15 people having drinks, I knew Tommy over the winter had refurbished the place and wow it does look really good.
Well it would be rude not to stop for a drink so we grap a seat and Tommy is immediately next to us taking our orders, as usual I’m on the beer and my wife decides to sample the strongbow, it is so hot today we end up spending quite a bit of time here in front of a nice cooling fan, my wife had two drinks, I had three. Tommy is a wonderful host and spent time taking to us, we also met a couple of scousers, one who lives in Icmeler, they were good fun to speak to.
Tommy’s prices are very reasonable, and while there we looked at the menu and promised to return to sample the food one evening.
Time to leave again so bill paid we start the slow stroll back to the apartments, on the way we come across a villa for sale, it looks lovely, if only we had the money, maybe one day.
Villa foe sale
We decided to head towards the old mosque up past Captain Sinbad’s, as my wife is not dressed correctly she doesn’t cross the threshold and come through the gate but I do and have a look through the Windows as I know it is not prayer time, I am quite surprised from what I can see, inside appears to be very basic, I don’t know why but I expected to see more decoration.
We walk along the narrow road a bit further and then turn round to head back, as we arrive at the apartments the kids are getting out of the transfer from the Waterpark, it’s 16:00 and they have had a great time.
They said they were searched for food and drink when they arrived, they loaded one card between them with cash for food and drinks and said prices were reasonable. The slides were all open except for one which had some damage but that didn’t ruin the day. Lockers were available for cloths and valuables. At one point an announcement was made that the foam party was about to start, this was not expected but they loved it.
At 3pm it was announced that the slides were closing for one hour to give the staff a break so they decided it was time to leave, they just went to the desk and were directed to a minibus to bring them back to the apartments.
For many years we have visited the Atlantis water park, this was their first trip to Aquadream and although more expensive to get in the girls said they would not go back to the Atlantis.
The scary slide is the big orange one on the right of the photograph
About 17:30 our other friends arrived back from the Akayaka trip, as I recommended it I was concerned that they had a great time, no problems, they loved it. Apparently there had only been the one jeep with Mustapha as their guide, they had a great day and would also recommend it to others.
Again it’s Balcony drinks time and we all discuss our day and all decide we will head to Tommy’s for our evening meal, everyone has had a long day and no one wanted to go too far.
We leave the apartments at 8pm and wander up to Tommy’s, when we arrived I was surprised how quiet it was. The service was excellent as was the food, my wife said her lamb shank she had was the best meal so far, I will be honest I enjoyed my Fajita’s but I had drank too much during the day to really appreciate it, I was not drunk or Tipsy but extremely bloated from too many Efes, oh well my mistake. Everyone else really enjoyed their meal.
Tommys
Usual bread and dips
Chick Fajitas
Lamb Shank
Margarita Pizza
Hawaiian Pizza
Gin & Sprite * 2
Large Beer
Large Sprite * 2
Large Coke
Large Fanta
Turkish Cidre
Total 148.5TL (£51)
Back to the apartments we chatted with other guests and had a few games of pool, I have switched to Gin from Efes, that horrible bloated feeling is now disappearing and I am feeling a lot better, I always have one day where I drink far too much and I think this is the one this holiday.
We have stuck lucky with the other guests at the Sun Village they are all nice people, Gill , Damian and their lovely family are great to talk too, the other guests were also friendly but I don’t remember all their names.
Saturday 3rd August
No alarm clock this morning, we wake naturally and it’s gone 10am, today the original plan is to just spend time around the pool, lunch was on the balcony when the kids decide they want to go to the inflatable climbing course down by the beach, my wife goes with them together with the family of three.
They all return a few hours later, while they were in the area they popped down to see what nights Stella is on this year, we have heard that shows are only on when they are full and there have been cancellations, they meet Eric on the door who we have known since 2003 and book 14 seats for the Monday night for the meal and show, he says it will be on as there have been a lot off bookings and Michael was doing more shows the following week as the resort is busier.
Time for the final swim of the day before balcony drinks.
Over the years we have been a frequent customer of Harry Rams but this year due to ill health he has closed down, most of us fancied fish and chips or pie and chips so I suggest Fryer Tucks as it has been recommended so many times on the forum, 8 of us troop down the other family decide on somewhere else.
Fryer Tucks
Cod, Chips, Mushy Peas and Curry Sauce
Lamb Chops, Chips and Gravy
Chips & Gravy * 2
Strawberry Cheesecake *2
Treacle Sponge & Ice Cream
Carrot Cake
Large Efes
Gin & Sprite * 2
Large Fanta
Large Sprite
Small Fanta
Total 166TL (£57)
The only complaint I had was the curry sauce, it was to say not to my taste and was just bland, thankfully it was in it’s own bowl so didn’t ruin the meal, the rest of the meal was fantastic, the fish was beautiful white cod in a crispy batter, we should have tried here years ago. I am not a desert person but couldn’t resist.
If you have not been before you must try Fryer Tucks, before leaving I did mention the curry sauce to the owner who said she would check it out.
The kids decided to go shopping and the rest of us went to the Magic Garden where we met our friends.
Back at the apartments a final couple of drinks and it’s time for bed, tomorrow we have a big day.
Sunday 4th August
8am and the alarm is going off again, we are all up and get ready for a 9.30am pickup for the All Inclusive ICR boat trip, I have been trying to go on this for years but there have never been enough people, the main reason I always wanted to go was to meet other forum members and put faces to names etc.
We had started to arrange this back in the UK and eventually we got to the magic 20 guests required for the trip to run, coming in at £20 a head some decided it was too expensive but the way I looked at it was that if I had four+ beers I would be saving money compared the normal trip where there is a cash bar.
Our friends from the other apartments arrived and the transfer arrived more or less on time, on board the transfer was Paul (ScousFitz) and his lovely family, there was one more pickup from vinces of a couple from the forum and we are off to Marmaris to meet the boat.
There were 20 of us on board plus JT who was a wonderful host, it was a pleasure to meet him after being a member on the forum for the last nine years.
Amazing although there were two sunbeds per person we all seemed to group together at the front of the boat.
The skipper quickly cast off and it was off to the first swim break, John was surprised that no one had asked for a drink yet so ensured we all knew the bar was open. Oh well it’s only 10am but that free poured (1/2 pint glasses) of beer went down well.
We spent 30 minutes at our first swim stop, John asked if anyone wanted to goto to Turunc during the day or an extra bay, we decided on Turunc as some wanted to go. Following the first swim we set off to our lunch stop which took about an hour to cruise there, plenty of time for drinking.
We stopped in a lovely bay for lunch, lunch consisted of Pasta, Salad, Chicken and Meatballs, it was fantastic and as the boat was only half full everyone was offered a second helping, I even managed to get a small third helping as well.
Another couple of dips and we set off for a third bay to swim in.
After another lovely swim time to cruise to Turunc
In Turunc we all disembarked, we went in search of a chemist as my daughter’s friend had started coming out in prickly heat, The chemist was excellent and recommended two creams to be applied together plus a tablet to be taken three time a day. Over the next two days they had the desired affect and seemed to work wonders.
Leaving Turunc after an hour we were asked if we wanted dropping off in Mamaris at the end of the day, we chose Icmeler.
We stopped at another bay before the return to Icmeler and JT helped behind the bar pouring very good value Vodkas (In other words large).
Once in Icmeler we were told to wait on the pier for the bus back to the apartments which duly turned up 10 minutes later.
The trip was excellent value, it was a select few forum members, all were friendly and we had no idiots on board, I worked out that my own bar bill would have been £25+ so for £20 for the whole trip it was great value and I would recommend the trip to anyone.
It was a pleasure to get to know JT and Paul and I hope to go up to Pauls pub in November to meet up with them again.
Back at the apartments we had a dip in the pool and the usual Balcony drinks, we all wanted to something different for our evening meal so we went our separate ways.
We ended up at the Three Bells, my daughter is not a big eater and is fussy with her food but she loves the Sunday dinner here so there was no real choice.
The food as normal was great and we timed it just right to get a table as they were busy.
Three (4) Bells
Roast Beef
Roast Chicken
Roast Lamb
Chicken Burger
Large Beer * 2 (Tubourg)
Gin & Sprite * 2
Large Coke
Large Sprite
Small Sprite
Total 140TL (£48)
Afterwards we went for a walk (maybe via the Magic Garden) before meeting back with everyone for drinks at the apartments.
End of Week One, Week Two to Follow
As usual I have not really proof ready this document so apologies for all the spelling and grammar mistakes.
