New Year In Turkey - Week 29

Monday 31st December 2018

It was time to leave our spot on the beach and head to Finike. 

We stopped at Olympos on the way. The road down to the ancient city slowly dwindled into a dirt track flanked by make shift market stalls and tree houses, and at one point we had to drive across a shallow river. At the end we came to the car park guarded by a couple of security men. We entered the site through the turnstile and walked along the path looking at the ancient ruins on both sides. It was largely overgrown but we loved it as it had that “Indiana Jones” feel to it. We wandered off the path a couple of times to see what the arrows were pointing to and had to clamber over boulders and rickety bridges made of twigs!! It was brilliant.

At the end we were treated to a stunning view of the turquoise ocean. A man, from a Turkish family sat on the pebbles, asked us where we came from and said welcome to Turkey. The people are so friendly, it’s a little bit disconcerting sometimes but nice too.

  

We carried on to the town of Finike and parked in a car park opposite the beach. The winding road to it was good but a bit steep in places. Finike is the start of the scenic route the D400.

The car park was flat and had free WiFi so we were set up for the evening.

A bit later, a Turkish guy knocked on the door and said welcome and started to talk to us for about 20 minutes about how his dream was to own a Motorhome and travel the world, but his wife wasn’t keen. He told us that every summer, the town held an orange festival and showed us some photos on his phone. Apparently Finike is famous for oranges which would explain the lamp posts.

He told us he had a jewellery shop in the town and invited us over for a cup of tea. We tried our best to say no but he was so nice, we didn’t want to offend him. After buying a necklace and matching bracelet from him lol, he loaded us up with postcards as a New Years Eve gift and invited us out for a meal with him & his wife. This time we politely refused. The rest of the evening was quiet & uneventful and by 11:30 we were snoring.

The weather app said it was going to rain all day so as it had cleared up for a while, we went on a stroll around the harbour. It’s beautiful and would probably be even more so in the sunshine. They even had a huge Turkish flag painted on the rocks above the town. 

The D400 hugs the coastline and is a very scenic drive. The road was in good condition and not very busy. The colours of the Aegean Sea were stunning even though the weather was a bit rubbish.

We carried on to the town of Demre to visit the Santa Claus Museum. I was expecting the big fat man with big round belly that shook when he laughed like a bowl full of jelly!! It turned out to be the ruined church of Saint Nicholas ...

The Church of St. Nicholas in ancient Myra (modern Kale or Demre) is a ruined Byzantine church containing the tomb of St. Nicholas of Myra (the inspiration for Santa Claus), as well as many fine mosaics and murals ...

It was an interesting place to spend an hour but I think they were pushing it a bit calling it the Santa Claus Museum lol.

By this time our stomachs were rumbling and as we walked past a restaurant we decided to get some lunch. The guys from the local fire brigade were eating there so that was a good sign. We ordered a Turkish pizza each with mixed toppings and a soft drink. The waiter bought over a huge piping hot flat bread that hung over the sides of the plate. More plates and dishes were bought out, one with butter, one containing salsa and the other a flavoured yoghurt. A plate piled up with salad. Another one with green chillis and lemon slices and then our pizzas. Omg it was a veritable feast!! It was delicious too. When we asked for the bill we couldn’t believe the price ... 33 Turkish Lira ... £4.79!!

While we were in the area we visited the ancient city of Myre with its amphitheater and rock tombs dating back to early Christian times. I really had no idea Turkey had such an amazing amount of ancient history!

Back at Harriet, we were offered some freshly squeezed orange juice by the car park man. His cafe/parking area was surround by orange trees.

We continued on the coastal road with views over looking the sea and the small islands just off shore.

Andy had found a brilliant place to stop for the night on the park4night app. It was overlooking the sea right next door to a restored amphitheatre. The campsite was just up the road but like many others, closed for the winter. We settled in for the evening and tried to drown out the noise of the rain with an episode of the Blacklist (thank you Netflix). We hoped the weather would clear up by morning as the scenery was stunning. Instead, we were woken up at 2am by the biggest clap of thunder. The second clap of thunder was so loud, we could feel the sound waves reverberating through the van!! Luckily the storm soon died down and we were able to get some sleep.

Next morning it was still raining off and on so we made a dash for the amphitheater. Climbed the steps up one side, took some photos of Harriet and walked down the steps the other side just as the heavens opened.

There was nothing we could do except truck on further up the coast to Fethiye. We found a spot in the car park near the marina and went in search of some food.

The next day, we went a walk around the harbour and town. Didn’t really feel up to much as I had man flu. The person who gave it to me shall be nameless but his name starts with A and ends in Y. Guess if you can, good job I love him.

The car park was busy on Friday morning. The Turks just park where they want to whether they block people in or not.

I was feeling a lot better and the weather had improved, so we decided to stay another day. The Friday market had come to town so no wonder there were cars everywhere!! The market was huge and full of stalls selling every type of fresh produce you could think of. Vegetables, fruit, nuts, eggs, herbs and stuff we had never seen before.

We watched some ladies sitting rolling out dough, and after putting different fillings on half of it, folding it in two, they cooked it. A bit like a stuffed pancake. We tried a cheese and spinach one but it wasn’t very nice.

Pasta salad it was then. After lunch we walked back into town and found a hairdressers so I could have my hair cut.

On the way into Fethiye, we’d spotted a restaurant called Big Yellow Taxi Gasoline so we wandered down the promenade lined with palm trees and ordered some tea.

It rained all that night with thunder and lightening mixed in. But when we got up the next morning the sun was shinning. We went another quick stroll along the waters edge and then filled the van with water and got back on the road.

Before heading to Marmaris we did a quick detour to Karaköy. It’s basically an abandoned village but because it had been raining and it was slippery underfoot (and Turkey doesn’t do health & safety), we didn’t go exploring.

We carried on along the D400 admiring the pine covered mountains and flat fertile valleys covered in orange & lemon groves. There were views of the beautiful blue sea and sandy bays and palm trees everywhere. We saw signs telling us to beware of cows, goats, pigs, deer and people carrying bags. We followed people on motorbikes & quads with no helmets on. There were people selling mushrooms stood at the side of the road and make shift market stalls every couple of hundred yards or so selling citrus fruits and pomegranates. The sun shone and the rain poured and it was fantastic. 

We parked up next to the Marina in Marmaris. I cooked tea whilst Andy did a recce and after watching some more Blacklist, we went to bed.

We awoke to blue skies so first job was to see if we could find some information on ferries to Rhodes. The Greek Island was only 1 hours boat ride away so we couldn’t miss visiting. Unfortunately it doesn’t take vehicles and only sails on Wednesdays and Saturdays, but luckily there was a secure car park at the ferry port for Harriet.

Armed with all the information we needed, we walked back to the marina to have a look around the huge expensive boats and yachts. The small shops selling high end gear were housed under white washed arch ways decorated with citrus trees and Christmas lights. We hoped they knew it was Epiphany and the holiday stuff needed to be taken down before bad luck ensued.

After lunch we moved Harriet up the road away from the noise of the town. We found parking down a side street lined with hotels that ended on the beach. We joined 2 other motorhomes, both from Bulgaria. We hadn’t seen many vans since leaving Istanbul. It was a great spot thanks to park4night and all the different nationalities of motorhomers who have contributed to this great app!!

We walked along the revetment in the sunshine. The wind was still chilly so everyone was rugged up. The view of the natural harbour, surrounded by the beautiful pine clad hills, was stunning. Most of the hotels were closed for winter and we could see the damage the recent torrential rain had done to the beach. But there were still lots of people out enjoying themselves. Some were fishing, some were walking with their families and some were even sat on the tables & chairs on the beach eating and drinking. As we got closer to the centre a small market was in full swing selling all sorts of stuff including cheese.