VisionInBlue

So now I'm done with my holiday we can get back to some reality. At the weekend I went to my Uncle's Wedding. Congratulations Uncle and Auntie S!

The happy couple.

My wedding present, aren't I a clever thing!

My whole outfit, a silk dress was a stupid idea in that temperature!

September 29th

This morning was pretty much a drag. I hate waiting at the best of times but there wasn’t even time to do anything. I’d pretty much finished packing by 8.30 so sat out and read my book. I had my last bit of banter with a waiter and then went to get changed.

I filled out my comments form and that was the last thing we handed in before leaving.

Bodrum airport is tiny and to save them time you get to x-ray your own luggage, you also get to lift it onto a waist high platform which was a bit of a struggle for some. Yet another scam by the airlines, when we got to the desk we asked if there were any legroom seats. All of these seats are at £25 extra, unless of course you wait until the end and they aren’t taken by paying customers you get them for free of charge if there isn’t anything else.

My conclusion is that the scales at Gatwick are broken as my bag weighed 17.8 in Turkey and it had a lot less in it. I can’t remember if I put this tip in but people we met told us that if your bag comes in just overweight and they try to charge you [which is currently £8 a kg I believe], you should ask them for proof of when the scales were last checked. They are supposed to “align” the scales after a certain amount of baggage has been through and you have a right to check. Obviously the scales at Gatwick were weighing in our favour, if it comes out extremely heavy there probably isn’t a lot of point checking as you must have just over packed! Mind you they aren’t as strict coming back as the couple in front were 16kg over weight and didn’t get charged.

We brought our duty free, I was sorely tempted by an apple Smirnoff but plumped for regular absolut. All the alcohol was a bit cheaper than back home but negligible. Dad went for a wander and asked if we wanted anything, I could smell chips and had the urge. If you converted the lira price to pounds sterling would you like to hazard a guess at the price? £4.50 for what was a very small portion of chips.

The flight was the usual trauma but sausage and mash for lunch was good. We’re coming down to land and as we’re coming in to London it’s funny to see a layer of cloud as if it’s land, but beautiful.

September 28th

So, in the end last night I watched the show. It was a comedy showcase but apart from two of the animators being dressed as women [which was quite funny] the rest was quite “serious”. I then popped down to the disco with Dad. It is basically a bar on the cliff at the waters edge with a dance floor on the need. Needless to say I didn’t stay long.

This morning I attempted to get in the pool and was up to my thighs when I thought better of it and got out. A tad too cold.

It’s a bit too cloudy today but only those whispy ones, if I could remember any things from my Geography lessons I’d tell you what they were called.

As predicted not a lot happened today. I had my last stint of sunbathing but am quite riled that I have one patch that wont tan. For some reason one strap mark has tanned and the other hasn’t. Don’t ask me why, I have no clue! The really irritating thing is I have a one-shouldered top and it’s the other shoulder!! Typical!

Well, I’ve packed my belongings, it took me a mere ten minutes or so as I didn’t need to concentrate. My case is packed in two sections. Essential washing and non essential washing. I felt like I was leaving loads of stuff out but I have so much less to pack. No bathroom stuff, no lotions. That was what took all the thinking on the way out, this time I just have to make sure everything is empty when I leave the room and I know I’ve packed everything.

Mum says she’s going out for an hours sunbathing in the morning, that seems like a lot of hassle to me. I’m just going to have breakfast, mooch around a bit, come back and shower then go to reception for 10.30. I should eventually get back home for 6ish.

I was asked if I’d come back. The Turkish are lovely people and it’s a wonderful place. I certainly might come back to the country but not to this hotel as it definitely tops the strange hotel list. Also to its credit though it also tops the list of most attractive staff.

September 27th

Only six big lengths today. It wasn’t that it was particularly cold or anything, in fact it was quite nice, but there were people watching me so the first three lengths were done so fast I felt like my lungs were burning. I’ll spend today mainly in the sun as I want to get rid of these bloody tan lines. So as long as all the darks clouds miss us it should be mission accomplished.

It is now ridiculously hot out there so I’ve retreated to the bar where there’s a breeze and drink! I’ve been out here for an hour and a half in the sun and my lines are as blended as they’re going to be because I can’t lay in it any longer.

These last few days have been a little depressing as going home has been on my mind. I’ve been trying to think of it as another day of fun to be had but it’s not working. Maybe if I think of it as another day of flirting instead. Yep, it’s certainly cheered me up if nothing else!

September 26th

Friday morning. As I went through the corridor everything had a dark blue hue. It looked amazing but you knew it meant rain. Sure enough it started while Mum and I were at breakfast. Our hotel towels are out but to be honest they can’t get much wetter than they are already.

Mum is still inside drinking tea but I fancied a wander. I ended up standing out on the deck watching the water. You can’t see Kos today because of the cloud, so what is normally a whole horizon of land is now just a crescent and I’m standing in the middle of it. The rain here is certainly nicer than at home. The light rain, tiny specks that only leave one ring around them when they hit the water, sounds like champagne fizzing in a glass. Watching the surface of the water you could tell it was about to get heavier as the water was over run by large splashes and ripples. It probably is like that at home, you just can’t appreciate it when it’s bouncing off concrete and cars.

It’s 8.30 and I’ve taken cover at reception as I was getting in the way at the main bar while they were trying to move tables out of the rain. It has now stopped raining but trying to find somewhere dry to sit is a bit of a task. I also wandered around a bit of the block by reception. I’m not sure what they consist of but one side has quite large patios/balconies that are about the size of ours. The other side is entirely small, they have a small plastic table and two chairs but you cant move them as they appear to be wedged in. I don’t think they thought that one through! I also found the mini golf, Dad had found it yesterday and told me where to look. It only took us 10 days to find it! I don’t think they want people to find it though. You walk up a path next to the tennis court, after about 10 metres it stops. All you can see as you stand there is a grass bank. If you persist, you come to the six hole mini golf course. It’s six vacuum formed golf holes, I’ll have to ask them what par for the course is.

I’ve just flicked through my photos and I’ve taken 200. God bless the digital camera. I don’t quite know what I’ve taken 200 photos of though. It’s probably about 120 when you take out all the fuzzy ones, ones with my finger in the screen and ones that were somehow taken as the camera was going in or out of the case.

We’ll be going into Bodrum this morning. Mum wants to pop in even though we brought her souvenirs already. I did see some quite funky bags though and I might pop in to the shoe place as well. I know, I can hear you all screaming “but you have enough bags and shoes!” Well go and wash your mouth out with soap and water. YOU CAN NEVER HAVE ENOUGH SHOES AND BAGS!

Yet another entertaining story. Last night Mum & Dad went for dinner, now bear in mind the restaurant doesn’t close until 9.30 and they were back in the bar by 9 [so it’s not like they were keeping them from going home or anything]. They’d both finished their main and were about to go and get some dessert. A waiter came and cleared their plates and while they were still sitting there they also to the rest of their cutlery, the condiments, napkins and table runner. Now I thought that was hilarious… but how rude can you get!?

The only way I could get wetter was if someone had actually dunked me in the sea. Even then I wouldn’t be much wetter than I am now. We pootled into Bodrum and had a wander. We literally got five shops before the heavens opened, I was already wet and really couldn’t face the prospect of shopping in the rain. So I turned back for the hotel and as my luck goes I got hit with the worst of it. It was at the point where I was walking under canopies but my shoes were squelching and my hair was dripping that I thought “so why am I trying to stay under cover?” and just kept walking. Only a bored tourist would.

Yet again I’m contemplating. Do I just say sod it and go for a swim or read my book? Yet another tough choice! Ho hum. Oh and to give you some indication of how wet I was and the amount of water around, yesterdays maid put down one towel to soak up water, todays put down three… yes it was that wet. It’s bucketing it down again… I wonder where Mum and Dad are? Hehehe. As it turns out Mum and Dad got a cab back from Bodrum. It would have been a dead cert even without the rain.

All the horrible things have been dawning on me today. When I get home I’ve got to see if I can get my dress dry cleaned in two days. I’ve got to go to the framers and fork over a load of money. I’ve been paid today so when I get back I have to pay my bills. What did I do to deserve all that fun!? [I know, go on holiday for two weeks!]

According to one of the animators said there are now going to be ten days of solid sun. Who knows though as I don’t trust a word they say. One yesterday tried to convince me he had 12 girlfriends!