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November / December News Roundup

It’s time for another monthly Fethiye news update! And we’re late again.

But we’re late with this one for good reason. We’ve recently returned from our first trip to the UK in over ten years!

It was a very quick trip to see family and friends. And we did take laptops back with us.

But, of course, they never saw the light of day. They remained zipped in their bags for the duration of the stay.

Anyway, we managed to cram a lot into our very short few days in our old hometown of Wigan.

If you follow us on social media, you’ll know we caught up with friends and family at the Standish Christmas market.

We also fulfilled our long-held ambition to take part in our first ever Parkrun!

Haigh Woodlands Parkrun
A crisp clear morning for the Haigh Woodlands Parkrun

It was a freezing cold but wonderfully crisp morning as we trotted around the (at times) muddy but beautiful Haigh Woodland Parkrun course at Haigh Hall in Wigan.

A lovely, friendly atmosphere! Thanks and well done to all you lovely people who take part and volunteer to keep the Parkrun events happening around the world every Saturday morning.

It was everything we wanted it to be!

After the Parkrun was done and dusted, food and drink activities involved trying lots of different beers and ales and eating lots of pork!

And after that few days lovely indulgence, we don’t mind admitting that it is now also equally lovely to get back to some lighter portions of Turkish food!

For 2022-23 at least, travel to some parts of the UK for people living in this area of Turkey has been made a lot easier by way of direct flights from Dalaman Airport.

Hopefully, that will continue in the future, negating the need for a more expensive, longer journey to Antalya Airport. Or a change at one of the Istanbul airports.

Autumnal Fethiye Weather

Whilst we’ve experienced some frosty temperatures in the northwest of England, we have returned to a Fethiye that is still in the throes of pleasant, Mediterranean autumnal temperatures.

If you keep an eye on the Fethiye weather, you’ll know that at the beginning of November, it was still really warm and sunny.

And then, for the second half of the month, the much needed rainfall finally arrived. We still need a lot more!

The best autumn days are when the morning starts off bright and sunny, only for the clouds and rain to catch you out in the afternoon.

Çalış Beach November Sunset
A quick downpour rewards us with a Çalış Beach November sunset

That happened to us on November 7th. A sunny walk along Çalış Beach and then a huge blanket of grey rumbled down from the north.

A dramatic Çalış Beach sunset was our reward once the rain had passed.

Commemorating Atatürk & The Fallen

If November is the month of anything, it is surely the month of remembrance.

In Turkey, on November 10th, we remember the passing of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, founder of the Turkish Republic.

He passed away at Dolmabahçe Palace in Istanbul on that day in 1938 at 9:05 am.

The country falls silent for 1 minute at 9:05 am each year on November 10th and commemorations are held at his mausoleum in Ankara, Anıtkabir.

For us, we also remember those who lost their lives in the two World Wars and other subsequent conflicts.

In Istanbul, we have visited the Haidar Pasha Cemetery which contains graves of Commonwealth soldiers, amongst others. Do visit if you’re ever in Istanbul.

In the Fethiye area, Remembrance Day was commemorated in both Hisrarönü and Çalış with ceremonies.

Summer 2022 Packed Away

After the disruption of the pandemic, a decent summer season and the ongoing good weather into November meant the season continued for a little longer than usual.

The Çalış water taxi continued to run until November 11th. And the beds and umbrellas remained in place long the beach for part of the month, too.

Çalış Water Taxi
The Çalış Water Taxi continued to run into November

Eventually, however, the time came to pack away the 2022 summer season.

In the second half of November, the beds and umbrellas were collected. And the day trip boats along the canal were taken out of the water.

They’re now enjoying their well earned rest in dry dock opposite the fishermen’s cooperative.

The World In Fethiye

‘The World’ is actually a cruise ship.

We don’t get many visits from cruise ships in Fethiye. So when they do appear on the horizon, people tend to look them up.

On the morning of November 11th, The World slowly made its way into the bay and stayed for a couple of days.

The World Cruise Ship In Fethiye
The World made a visit to Fethiye in November

It’s different to lots of other cruise ships because people either own the berths on the ship or they rent them long term. A ship full of people, living there.

And, well, we guess they travel the world.

Each to their own. Wouldn’t be our way to travel the world, but if that’s their thing, good for them!

Fethiye Ultra

26th November was the day the Fethiye Ultra took place. There was a 10k, 25k and 50k event.

A glorious sunny day for the runners. Barry took part in the 10k.

Although it was sunny, there was a bit of a cold breeze. So I was grateful Barry was only doing the 10k.

Start Line Of Fethiye Ultra
Mandatory dog at the start line

A short wait for me to cheer him in!

The start and finish line was in the meydan of Fethi Bey Park. We were a bit exposed to the breezes there!

Big well done to all those who took part. We were around for some of the 50k runners coming in. Full respect to them!

Registration is already open for a few of the 2023 running events around the country so we’ll be updating our page in the next few days.

Fethiyespor

We finally made it to our first match of this season!

Fethiyespor plated at home against Pazarspor and won 1-0. Hurray!

That was after another loss at the beginning of the month and the arrival of a new technical director. So it was a much-needed win.

Not the most exciting of matches. But 3 points gained nonetheless…

Eating & Drinking

If you know the Fethiye area, you’ll know that, outside of the resorts, life pretty much continues as normal throughout winter. Most local bars and restaurants are open for business.

We tried a couple of new (to us) places in November. But will go again before we write about them just so we have more to tell you about the food.

Iksirci Tezcan Toastie And Fruit Juice
We’ve updated our article about Iksirci Tezcan

On our Facebook page, we’ve shared articles about some of the places that stay open all year.

Mezgit Cafe along Fethiye harbour is always popular for a good old balık ekmek (fish sandwich).

In November, we also went to İksirci Tezcan for a tost and freshly squeezed fruit juice.

We’ve now updated that article with new photos and information about İksirci Tezcan.

In The Kitchen

As well as the two new recipes we’ve added to the blog in November (see below), November is also a cracking month for seasonal food.

This is the month when winter fruits and vegetables start to make an appearance.

Chayote squash and the prized saffron milk cap mushroom (çıntar) appear on the local markets – especially the Friday village market.

Kapuska Turkish Cabbage Stew
If you’ve never made this, give it a go

Cabbage season means one of our favourite winter dishes, kapuska. A delicious Turkish cabbage stew!

And on Fethiye fish market, we can start shopping for winter fish. Of course, hamsi tava (fried hamsi) is on the menu, as is hamsili pilav.

And, don’t worry if you’ve not made yours yet, there’s still time! But November is a great month for making your mince pie filling and your winter chutney.

Christmas Mince Pie Recipe
There’s still time to make your mince pie filling

It’s also soup season, of course. A good old Turkish spicy red lentil soup is a great winter warmer!

If you’re starting to plan some festive foods and nibbles for any get togethers, you might be having in the run up to Christmas, check out our Christmas party food ideas.

Obviously, they have a Turkish twist to them.

On The Blog

Two new simple recipes were added to the blog in November.

Sahanda yumurta – Turkish fried eggs – are a favourite for many and very much deserve to be a part of our Turkish recipes collection.

Sahanda yumurta has also been added to our list of Turkish egg recipes.

Turkish Fried Eggs Sahanda Yumurta
simple comfort food – sahanda yumurta

After being asked about it, we also couldn’t resist adding a Turkish spaghetti recipe to the blog.

If you have ever been on a Fethiye boat trip, you’ll know exactly what we mean with the phrase, ‘Turkish spaghetti.

Guaranteed to appear on any boat trip meze table.

And In Other News

There’s always something that jumps out at us over the weeks that’s worth sharing in these news updates. Even if they’re not necessarily Fethiye-related.

Two bits of news for you, for this update…

Geological World Heritage

We all know that Turkey is blessed with various sites and constructions that have been awarded UNESCO World Heritage status.

Recently, a new category was set up to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the United Nations International Union of Geosciences. And the top 200 geological sites were listed.

You probably won’t be surprised that the rock formations of Cappadocia and the travertines of Pamukkale were selected in the top 100.

Pamukkale Cotton Castle, Turkey
Pamukkale made the list

Mount Memrut made the top 200.

According to this HDN article, the list is not a list of descending order or importance but rather, broken down into categories.

The purpose of the list is to both protect and promote the sites as a heritage of humanity and to pass them on to future generations.

A Michelin Guide For Istanbul

Can you believe it’s taken until 2022 for a Michelin Guide to be collated for the great city of Istanbul? Surely one of the culinary capitals of the world.

This great Bloomberg article gives the list of those who have been recognised. It also addresses the potential pros and cons for the Istanbul food scene.

It will be a boost for tourism to the city. There are those who actively search out Michelin starred restaurants and travel purely to eat in them.

If Michelin-style food is not your thing, never fear. Istanbul has oodles of choice for the rest of us.

It’s a dream place for foodies!

And Into December…

Our quick hop to the UK meant we missed this year’s Çalış Christmas market so we’re not feeling too festive, just yet.

But we’ll get there.

Let’s see what the rest of the month brings…

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