We
are already nearly 3 weeks into September and they seem to have flown by. The weather is pleasanter – I have
actually been chilly when I have been walking the dogs in the morning! I also know it’s autumn because I have seen
some of the birds that pass through on their migration. Bee-eaters are one which I found about a
few years ago and now look out for in Spring and Autumn. They are very pretty, but also have a
distinctive whistling sort of song which is usually the first thing I notice. I have just read up about them and found they
are European bee-eaters that go to Africa for winter, they only catch bees (and
some other insects) as they fly and they hit and rub them on the ground to get
rid of the sting!
The
last week has been a holiday in Turkey and there were quite a few Turkish
families in Fethiye but most of them have left now as schools finally start
back – after 13 weeks – tomorrow. Kaan
will be back at school tomorrow; Emre is not going back up to university in
Ankara until next weekend. He has some
money and is trying to find a car so that he is more mobile up there but the
prices of second hand cars are so ridiculous here – a 2000 model (ie. 16 year
old) Fiat Palio hatchback is going for about 10,000 TL - £2,600!
On
the subject of cars, the authorities have, for some unknown reason, stopped the
charge for on-the-street parking in Fethiye, with the result that everyone
drives in and it is IMPOSSIBLE to find a parking space. Worse still, because the actual parking
spaces are full with cars that stay there all day as their owners work in town,
anyone who wants to pop in to one of the shops on the main street double parks
so there is only one lane left for traffic and you can’t even DRIVE round town. They need a solution because it really is a
nightmare; thankfully I hardly need to go into town any more as we have
everything we need in Calis!
At
Poppy, we have been busy; to help make up for the poor season we are renting some
of the apartments to university students for the winter. Most of them have moved in over the last few
days with a couple of rooms still to come.
I bought some portable canvas wardrobes and metal beds from an internet
site and Kaan has been busy putting them together. In true Ikea style, the instructions are a rather
hard to follow and there is always a screw left over – but he has done a good job!
 |
| Poppy helping Kaan! |
And
finally, Kaan and I had a day in Kalkan visiting my sister and brother-in-law
who have rented a villa there. The views
are spectacular, but the fact that the villa was free for this peak time when
they booked in May – and that the lovely hotel they usually stay at closed for
the season in June – show that Kalkan is suffering as much if not more than
Fethiye.
