Our Bluebell Woods

The woods by our house

Carlidnack in Cornwall

A lovely holiday in Fethiye

View from the breakfast terrace

We had a great week in Turkey last week mainly because the hotel was so fab.  It was listed as a five star on the website and it certainly was.  The service was great but not intrusive and the views of the marina and my future 100ft yacht (pending lottery win!) were a site to behold especially from the rooftop breakfast terrace. The hotel is called Ece Saray and is on the marina in Fethiye. I wouldn’t normally advertise on my blog but the service was amazing, you didn’t need to lift a finger and the facilities were great.  We ate in the restaurant a couple of times in the evening, which we enjoyed.  We had a suite, so plenty of space to lounge about also with fantastic views of the marina. We had a jacuzzi bath, a new thing for me, into which I poured bubble bath and wished I hadn’t in seconds!

Ece Saray Hotel Fethiye Turkey

Hotel Pool

Fethiye is a working town and so outside of the marina and the traditional Ottoman squares can seem down to earth to say the least.  It does have it’s charms though and the Turkish people are very friendly.  Bartering is mandatory and the traders expect it, in fact almost disappointed when people accept the first price they give. The old town can be a bit touristy but once you get past the fake designer gear and find a cafe to take a seat and watch the world go by it becomes more than a bit interesting.  There is incredible history in this area going back beyond Ottoman to Byzantine times, rock tombs and ancient monuments provide plenty to wonder at.

For me the only bit that ruins it is the fact that I have to fly there.  Some people actually seem to enjoy it but I cannot see the attraction of sitting in something for 4 hours that defies gravity and prevents me from moving my legs.  I have to say that was probably the tightest legroom I have ever known but what can you expect for £300 return?

Warm sun and the ailing back door

As I look away from my computer out of the window and across the fields I can see that it is going to be a fabulous sunset.  If next door weren’t having a bonfire with black smoke plumes rising into the air it could almost be idyllic.

The beach at Maenporth this morning

Been like spring today and it’s funny when the sun comes out you don’t walk very far in Cornwall without someone wanting a chat.  Today was not good though, I ended up humouring the bloke with the runny nose who wanted to tell me all about his experiences with the NHS and how long it has taken to get his ‘back door’ problems sorted out.

I didn’t want to visualise it and thankfully he respected that, however he did feel that I should know that once they had polished his handle up a bit he would be fine!   They must see me coming from a hundred paces!

Still a lovely day though.

Tonksey’s Birthday Bash in Cornwall

Well last weekend was certainly one to behold.  10 of us took upon the very brave task of eating and drinking as much as we possibly could in celebration of Tonksey’s Birthday.  We laughed from Friday night until Monday afternoon non-stop.  Some of the party fun can be viewed on my Flickr page including how to eat an After Eight properly and how not to play table tennis.  Friday night was the first night, so everyone sits around and chats nicely, has a bit of a laugh but nothing outrageous.  Having said that I felt like a jumbo jet had landed on my head when I woke up on Saturday morning!

Martin, Tonksey, Dave the Sausage, John and Dave

Saturday night we had to behave ourselves because we dined out at the Ferryboat.  Having said that we heard a rumour that phosphorescence was occuring on the Helford River. The subsequent stampede (in full Benny Hill fashion) to view the alleged  phenomenon could only be construed by the management to be a very large group of people doing a runner! 

The next day we decided that we needed more food and proceeded to the Red Lion in Mawnan Smith, where I have to say we had an absolutely excellent lunch, roast dinner with plenty of everything, especially scrummy roast potatoes.  I had bread and butter pudding, sheer indulgence, but if you can’t do it on a Sunday when can you? One of our number (who shall remain nameless) stood up after his dinner and found the chair still attached to him, well wedged in - probably just the 12 roast potatoes for you next time!  Again, there was a steady flow of people leaving from nearby tables as our bar bill increased!

Once we had eaten them out of pub and home we headed back to the holiday cottage for our final night.  We started with Charades, then moved on to ‘how to eat an after eight’ and then finally on to ‘who am I?’.  The cheating was outrageous but it was very funny.  Most of us had rude words taped to our foreheads at one time or another and the hysteria never stopped.  We had to stop for refreshments in the form of toasted sandwiches after a couple of hours – gosh you need to keep your strength up and we were clearly starving!  Once everyone had got over the shock that Wagner was still in the competition and that Cher and Paige were in the bottom two, the fun carried on (nobody seemed too concerned about the Strictly vote).

The next day we’re all a bit quiet but still alive, which is nothing short of a miracle.  Top weekend, top company!

See the birthday photoset on Flickr.

Mylor Harbour Last Weekend

Just looked at this photo of the boats at Mylor from last weekend.  Our walk in the sunshine was lovely, it is usually quiet when all of the holiday makers go home but there were plenty of people about.  Boats still in the water for now, won’t be long before most of them are lifted out.  Looking forward to being able to take the dogs on Maenporth Beach again from tomorrow.

What’s he done now?

There was a clatter, which interrupted my very intricate photographing of a daisy. Not that I needed a photo of a daisy, which is probably a good thing.  As I twist to see what the comotion was all about, it is clear to see that yet again Rafferty was in the middle of it and is now making his getaway.  Only a kayak paddle to worry about this time, unlike the other day when he came back smelling of Branston pickle.  I hate to think which one of the builders in the neighbouring house had to go without lunch.

Sunday lovely Sunday!

Another gorgeous day in Cornwall today. The sea was like a mill pond and as blue as ever.  People were swimming at Woodlands beach, it is the best time aparently because the water has had all summer to warm up.  Needless to say I will take their word for it!

A family of ducks on the river at Stratford

Clearly on a mission…

Our new BBQ

John disappeared off down the garden for a few days and said he was building a BBQ. I haven’t been down there for ages because I have been working too hard, very sad! The moral of the story is, never leave men to their own devices or you might end up with an erection you didn’t bargain for. Yes mine is the size of a bus stop and sits proudly in my garden between the Camelia and a giant grass thing. It is masquerading as a BBQ but I wouldn’t be surprised if there are a few optics and a beer tap next time I go down there!

Apple Picking

My dog apple picking his own way!

He also selects ripe blackberries very well.  Once he has learned pastry making we will be laughing!

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