June In Fethiye – A Gradual Emergence From Lockdown

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June was the month where Turkey started the process of coming out of lockdown.

A process that was never going to be easy, as other countries are also finding out.

It’s going to be a long bumpy road. But we’ve all just got to keep pressing on, using our common sense.

At least, that’s what we’re doing.

So what has the emergence from lockdown looked like for us in Fethiye? What has changed since our last Fethiye news update?

Back To The Seafront

It’s the little things, isn’t it?

All we wanted, throughout lockdown, was to be able to walk along the harbour and Çalış Beach.

At the beginning of the month, that happened!

Ahh, that first walk along Çalış Beach. That first run along the harbour. That first stroll.

All life’s happy moments.

The beach was quiet, as you can see. No concerns about social distancing on this day.

As the month has progressed, a few of the restaurants and snack bars have started to open. And the beds and umbrellas are out.

It’s certainly not life as we knew it. But it’s where we’re at.

And we’ll take that for now.

We’ve got to wear masks when we’re out of the house. Restaurants and cafes must adhere to various regulations:

• distanced tables
• provision of hand sanitisers
• disinfecting of tables
• taking of temperature

are the main ones as far as customers are concerned.

Çalış Water Taxi

We’re used to watching the Çalış Water Taxi chugging back and forth across the bay from May 1st.

This year, that date was put back to June 8th. For obvious reasons.

The boats plying the route are immaculate and have lots of room.

There aren’t too many tourists around at the moment. So, for now, it’s hoped locals can keep the service going by giving it some support.

And why wouldn’t anyone want to sail across the bay on the Çalış Water Taxi?

Paspatur Slowly Opening Up

And, on that opposite side of the bay, in Fethiye, the harbourside cafes and restaurants opened and the old town of Pasaptur has slowly started to wake up from its enforced hibernation.

Most of the shops are open and Yengen is doing a brisk trade.

Deep Blue Bar has opened its doors. These days, they have oodles of room for socially distanced seating.

So we’ve whiled away a couple of quiet afternoons catching up with Turkish friends we’ve missed during lockdown.

And, as I type on July 1st, the lovely Cafe Park Teras announced a few days ago that they will open their doors for business today.

So, shops and most of the restaurants are open, as are the beaches. And now, we do our best to make sure it stays that way.

We’re still living very much a quiet Fethiye-Çalış life. Walking between the two.

Jumping on a bus or dolmuş isn’t top of our priority list just yet. But that could change soon.

We’re taking our emergence from lockdown at a slow and steady pace…

On The Blog

With our slow and steady pace in mind, it means we’ve had more time to spend on the blog.

Lots of much needed background work is going on which will improve the blog for the future.

But there’s lots more writing going on, too. And experiences that lead to writing those pieces.

In The Kitchen

For example, we finally got round to doing homemade pide.

And it’s been a revelation!

The dough is quick and easy to make. So it’s great to be a able to knock up a tasty pide lunch whenever we feel like it.

I’ve even bought a wooden paddle from Fethiye market so I can slide them into the oven tray easier.

In our article, we did two traditional fillings. But in the home, it’s great to try new things. So we’ve experimented with some seafood toppings, too.

Last week, a follower of our Twitter account posted her photo of the pide she had made using our recipe.

This gave us the perfect opportunity to ask for feedback on how easy she found the recipe to follow.

A thumbs up from her. So happy days for us!

And, if you follow us on Instagram and see our stories there, you’ll know we’ve been busy making lots of other dishes, too, buth Turkish and international.

The weather’s really hotting up now so it’s all about salads and dips.

We’ve currently got a big bowl of garlic yoghurt with carrots in the fridge.

And the best refresher food of all; our melon and cheese salad is back on the menu.

That’s definitely an acknowledgement that summer has arrived.

Turkish Breakfast

Also in June, we decided it was high time to share the joy of the traditional Turkish breakfast on the blog.

It’s many people’s favourite pastime when they visit Turkey. And it’s easy to see why.

So, a gaping hole in the blog has now been filled by way of all these tasty breakfast ingredients.

What memories are made of.

So, as you can see, we might be out of lockdown. But Turkey is far from out of the woods just yet.

And we’re keeping life slow and simple for the time being.

That doesn’t mean we can’t support local, though.

A lovely meal at Gustorante for Barry’s mum’s birthday. A few drinks at a revitalised Sarge’s (it seems busier than ever).

And now July is upon us.

We still have some curfews in place. Over-65s must be home by 8pm for example. We all hope that changes soon.

And fingers crossed for a successful month for the businesses that have already opened.

And for those that are preparing to open…

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