4th December 2013 - The Day Fethiyespor Wrote A Little Piece Of History

There are some days in your life that you never forget. Yesterday was one of those days - it was a historic day where your body and head doesn't quite know what to do with itself; it was a combination of complete frustration, happiness, excitement, that head-in-hands-completely-gutted feeling that has no one-word adjective to describe it, jump-up-and-down elation...and then more jump-up-and-down elation. And this morning, well no jumping up and down but a silly, fixed grin. Let us tell you all about it...

4th December 2013 - Fenerbahçe v Fethiyespor - Morning - The frustrated but happy bit...
Today is the day Fethiyespor are at Fenerbahçe Şükrü Saraçoğlu Stadium to take on Fenerbahçe in the 4th round of the Ziraat Turkey Cup. This is big. There's an ongoing exodus to Istanbul by Fethiyespor supporters. We want to be on the way to Istanbul, too. We really want to be. Circumstances that can't be helped mean we can't be there - amidst the happiness, there's also frustration. 

And we are enjoying the day, too. Really enjoying the day. The frustration is part of that enjoyment. Facebook and Twitter are in overdrive - well they are if you like the Fethiyespor 1933 Facebook page and are friends with people who support Fethiyespor. At one point, I share a video (you can watch that video, here: Beşkazanın Ruhu) and then look at my newsfeed - it's a whole list of friends who have also shared the video. I've never seen my newsfeed look like this before. It's all a bit crazy. One long stream of the same video. We're all online, all following, all sharing...all bombarding Facebook and Twitter with Fethiyespor, with match day. 

Constant updates, photos of fans en route by bus and plane, photos of fans already in Kadıköy, more videos. If you're a supporter of any team, you'll know that 'big match' feeling, that anticipation, that excitement, the build up...and Fethiyespor supporters used Facebook and Twitter to feed all that throughout the day. 

4th December 2013 - Fenerbahçe v Fethiyespor - Early evening - the excitement bit...

Well, we've been excited since the draw was made and it hit home that Fethiyespor were going to be playing one of the most famous teams in Turkish football. But all of a sudden, we've been so busy sharing all things Fethiyespor all day (by now, there must be people who had never heard of Fethiyespor before who are now fully aware of who they are) we've not realised the time. Wow, nearly match time. Come on, let's go. We're watching the game at Güven's. They're big Fethiyespor fans, too. It's only right we go there. 

And the teams come out onto the pitch. It's the occasion here that's exciting; just watching Fethiyespor play football against Fenerbahçe. It doesn't feel real. And Fethiyespor are actually holding their own and are playing well. Still no expectations, though. We're all just enjoying it. It's not been a happy time for the club so far this season. Everyone needs this.

4th December 2013 - Fenerbahçe v Fethiyespor - half-time - the head-in-hands-completely-gutted bit...

45 minutes and counting. Our heads are in half-time mode now and it's been a great first half. We're looking forward to half-time pide. And then - well 'gutted' is the wrong word. Dismay? Despair? We're in the last seconds of injury time in the first half and Sabri Turgut goes to clear the ball...and we all watch it climb over goalkeeper Sammy Ndjock's head before dropping, quite gently, almost in slow motion, into his own goal. 

Whaaat? Nooooo. Hands on cheeks, gazing at the screen, watching the slow motion replay, willing the ball to go in any direction other than towards the goal. This has been the story of Fethiyespor's season. I want to cry for Sabri Turgut. What's he feeling like, right now? I feel a bit queasy...just really sad inside...gutted? We still manage to polish off the pide, though! I'm supposed to be taking photos of all this but the camera remains in its bag, hung over the chair next to me. To be honest, it doesn't even cross my mind.

4th December 2013 - Fenerbahçe v Fethiyespor - second half - the jump up and down elation bit...
Fethiyespor have a new technical director, Engin İpekoğlu. Wonder what he's said to the team at half time because they come out playing well, playing better than Fenerbahçe...they look like they're going to score...and then Onur Okan only goes and scores. And we are jumping up and down and shouting in elation...and Onur Okan's face looks like he too can't quite believe he's just scored a goal against Fenerbahçe in Fenerbahçe's stadium.

More jump-up-and-down elation as another goal is scored...immediately followed by jump-up-and-down-shout-at-the-tv as the goal is called offside and the replay shows it wasn't offside. But wow, anyway; it's looking like Fethiyespor are going to take Fenerbahçe to extra time. 7 minutes left - we can't believe this - Ahmet Aras doesn't just scrabble another goal for Fethiyespor, he scores a great goal for Fethiyespor! Waaaaahhhhhh, and other primeval noises fill the bar...

...And I'd love to tell you all about the last few minutes of the match but I really don't remember them, aside from aching, aching, aching inside for the referee to blow the whistle...and he did eventually blow the whistle...and on 4th December 2013, Fethiyespor wrote history and beat Fenerbahçe 2-1 in the 4th round of the Ziraat Türkiye Kupası. This wasn't supposed to happen. Today, Fethiye and Fethiyespor supporters all over Turkey and the rest of the word are smiling...and lots of us have changed our Facebook profile photos to Fethiyespor pictures...well, you've got to, haven't you. 

• Back in August, we wrote 15 Fantastic Reasons To Support Fethiyespor. Looks like we might have to make that 16 reasons - because they beat Fenerbahçe.
• Thanks to Fethiyespor 1933 for the photos and for their ridiculous amount of updates yesterday. Their Facebook page is still in overdrive today, if you want to join us in being carried away and making sure we all make this moment last as long as possible.

Christmas Gift Ideas 2013 - Feeling Festive In Turkey

As the festive season is fast approaching, we thought we'd spread some good cheer and give you some ideas for Christmas gifts for anyone you know who loves Fethiye and Turkey...and of course, that person could always be yourself! Who says you can't buy yourself a Christmas present? We all deserve a treat every now and then, don't we? 

(Kind Of) Turkish Festive Gift Ideas For 2013 

1. Elif Şafak Novels
Unfortunately, there aren't too many Turkish authors who are translated into English. However, author, columnist and speaker Elif Şafak is one author whose novels and other writings are available in various languages. The Bastard of Istanbulis one of her more famous recent offerings but she has a full collection available here

2. The Jack Scott Collection
We can't have a Christmas list and not include fellow blogger, Jack Scott, can we? Especially when his books are so funny. Click to see books by Jack Scott

3. Buy a Kindle For Summer Holidays To Turkey
You can buy Standard Kindleswhich keep it simple - so you can just read your books on the beaches of Turkey! But now there are all-singing-all-dancing affairs too - the Kindle Firealso lets you keep up to date with all your social media and take photos while reading your books. One for the multi taskers of this world.

4. Cameras
When you're in Fethiye (and most other places in Turkey for that matter), you can't help but take countless photos of the scenery. A few weeks ago, we mentioned we'd bought a new camera. I'm still learning my way around it but am loving it. My camera is the Fujifilm FinePix HS30EXR (16 MP and 30x manual optical zoom)- but there's already a newer version of it with 42x zoom. I also bought this bagfor it. 

5. Book A Hotel Or A Flight
Isn't that romantic? Compare prices and then book a hotel in Turkey or anywhere else in the world. And if you need a flight, use our tool to find the best prices and book a flight. 

5. Deck your home with hand crafts from Turkey and South and Central Asia
For an online shop, try The Turkish Trading Company. Accessories, (they've just got some fab teapots in...coveting), bags, textiles, home accessories and lighting. Full of temptation, this site. For lots more goodies, here's the link to Turkish Trading Company.

6. Hand-decorated Kitchen Utensils
Something a little bit different for the kitchen. This is the Etsy store of another fellow blogger, Krista, of Rambling Tart who delivers worldwide. She burns wood in decorative patterns and has a kitchen utensil collection and also some Christmas tree decorations. Here's the link to her Rambling Tart Etsy Store.

7. Make a visit to the Fethiyespor Store
This is one for those of you living in Fethiye. Lots of Fethiyespor goodies you can buy that will post easily to friends and family in the UK and elsewhere - jerseys, scarves, enamel lapel badges, key rings... If you don't want to be bothered with creating a parcel, save the coffee mugs for your friends here in Fethiye. 

9. Make A Charity Donation
Lots of us make charity donations over the Christmas period. In November, Barry ran the Istanbul Marathon and I did the 10k to raise money for Cystic Fibrosis Trust because our friend's two small children have the disease. 

We know lots of you have already donated (thank you) but our Just Giving page is open until February 2014 - so if you haven't donated yet and would like to, here's the link to our Just Giving page. 

And that's it - short and sweet this year. We've done longer lists in previous years so if you were hoping to see Turkish cookery book ideas, guide books about Turkey and trekking books, our 2011 Top Christmas gifts is also worth a quick scan.

Turkish Recipes: Domates Soslu Misket Köfte

Ahh, our love of köfte once more makes itself known on this blog. I wonder how many times we've written about it now...recipes for Tekirdağ Köftesi and just good old barbecued köfte; stories of köfte appreciation in Eskişehir and easily the most distinctive version we've tried to date, Doğubeyazıt Köftesi - that really was a find! 

For this post, we're back to the köfte recipe rather than devouring those made by other people. This recipe is a favourite in our house, Domates soslu misket köfte (köfte in a tomato stew), and as usual, we play around with it to suit our own taste. A quick scan around the internet reveals others do the same so we don't need to feel too guilty about that. Let's get started...

A Turkish Recipe For Domates Soslu Misket Köfte
Köfte comes in all shapes and sizes and, for this recipe, 'misket' means your köfte is rolled into little balls. They're usually smaller than the ones in our recipe - we like golf ball sized misket köfte.

Form your misket köfte

In this recipe, we used a mixture of minced beef and lamb. You can do this or choose one of the two.

• Finely chop or grate one small (or half a large) onion and add it to 300g of minced meat.
• Now add a generous handful of breadcrumbs. 
• Break one egg into the mixture.
• We're generous with our herbs and spices at this point. Sprinkle in some cumin, chilli flakes, coriander powder, oregano, and season with salt and pepper.
• Give it all a good stir together - and then you need to get your hands dirty. Get your hands in there and knead your meat mixture for a few minutes.
• Now take small portions of the meat mixture and roll it into small rounds. You can choose how big or small to make them.
• Roll each one in a little plain flour.

Seared misket köfte

For The Tomato Sauce

Again, for the tomato sauce, we tend to throw in whatever's left over in the fridge. Green beans or peppers are a favourite. On the day we made this particular domates soslu misket köfte, we had mushrooms and spinach in the fridge so they found themselves making up part of the stew.

• Finely chop one small onion.
• Sauté the onion in a deep pan with a glug of olive oil and, once it begins to sweat, if you're using them, add your mushrooms / peppers / spinach.
• Stir these round for a few minutes until they begin to soften.
• Now add 2 medium-sized, chopped tomatoes (or 1 tin of chopped tomatoes) and stir.
• Add a pinch of oregano, chilli flakes, one sugar cube (half a teaspoon) and a small splash of vinegar.
• Season with salt and pepper, give the sauce a stir and leave to simmer.
• While your sauce is gently simmering, heat a large non-stick frying pan on a high heat. When it's hot, add your misket köfte and sear on all sides so that the juices are sealed.
• Now reduce the heat to medium and saute until cooked through. (How long you need to cook them for depends on how big you make your köfte. Ours take 10-15 minutes.)

Do a taste test with your sauce and add more seasoning if needed. You can now either add your köfte to the sauce, cover and leave to simmer for a further few minutes a further few minutes, or serve your köfte on a plate straight away and drizzle the tomato sauce over the top.

Domates Soslu Misket Köfte

We prefer the latter because we prefer the seared texture on the outside of the köfte. Some people serve their domates soslu misket köfte with rice on the side. If you would like to do this, click this link for our Turkish rice recipe. However, as this is one of our favourite dishes, we leave it completely as it is and savour the meaty flavours.

Afiyet Olsun

A Blast Of Colour In Fethiye - Renklerle Barışa Doğru By Alkan Çuhadar

It's (not very) creatively known by lots of English speakers in Fethiye as 'The Big Blue Building.' You'll know the one we mean; it's one of those constructions you grow to feel a strange affection for because it just doesn't blend in with its immediate surroundings - well, it's bright blue for a start.

Anyway, The Big Blue Building is actually the Fethiye Kültür Merkezi (the culture centre) and has an indoor and outdoor theatre, workshops and a gallery for exhibitions put on by various creative types. We love an exhibition but, for some reason, rarely venture into the gallery. Until yesterday, the last time we were there was to look at the exhibition of Ottoman photographs taken by archaeologist, Professor John Garstang...and that was two years ago. 

Banner outside the culture centre

Yesterday, we put that right by visiting an exhibition by Turkish artist, Alkan Çuhadar. A friend had been to visit and uploaded photos to Facebook. We're suckers for bright colours and this exhibition is called Renklerle Barışa Doğru (I guess the best, but not literal, translation for this is Peace Through Colour). I sent her a quick message asking if it was okay to take photos. Yes, was the answer.

Sulh and Cömert

So we decided to have a stroll up to the culture centre yesterday afternoon to take a closer look for ourselves. 

Renklerin Kardeşliği and Cesaret

Each painting in the Renklerle Barışa Doğru exhibition is original - acrylic on canvas - and they're all named, obviously, with a theme around peace. The two paintings in the main part of this shot are Renklerin Kardeşliği and Cesaret ('Brotherhood of Colours' and 'Courage').

Inside the gallery

It's not a huge exhibition - well, the gallery isn't big enough for that - but if you're like us and bright colours lift your spirits for the day, it's well worth a visit. And the artist, Alkan Çuhadar, will be more than happy to see you. It's his first solo exhibition so to have visitors strolling around and enjoying his work must be a nice feeling for him. 

Heyecan and Dinamik

He doesn't speak much English but we managed a small conversation in Turkish. He's a really friendly guy and, if our Turkish was better, we're sure he would have happily told us all about his paintings. If your Turkish is decent, you can put this to the test when you visit. 

A selection of the paintings inside the exhibition

But art isn't about language, anyway, is it? If you're just passing, any time over the weekend, drop in to have a look, or even do what we did and make a special journey to go there. We weren't disappointed...and we've made a mental note to visit the culture centre exhibitions more often in the future.

Renklerle Barışa Doğru by Alkan Çuhadar - Useful Info

• The Renklerle Barışa Doğru exhibition is running through this weekend until 1st December 2013
• Entrance is free 
• If you feel taken by any of the paintings, they are for sale, but they're also there for your enjoyment, too. We certainly enjoyed them.
• Fethiye Culture Centre is on Fethiye harbour, opposite Beşkaza Meydanı (the town square) and is marked here on our map of Fethiye
• The gallery is easily visible, directly opposite you as you go up the steps between the outdoor stage and the seating