Richard and Emily Vs. The World: Fethiye

We booked this hotel on booking.com because they had a great deal on a double room. It advertises as being close to a small beach, but we didn't see it. It's also not very close to the marina nor bus station in town (about 1.5 km). So when we arrived, we took a taxi that cost about $6.50 (expensive!). The hotel is situated near the boardwalk along the seaside, which is very nice. They also have a pool out front which would be nice if it were really warm.

The reception lady is a very sweet British woman who was very understanding when we discovered we selected the wrong date of our arrival. We still got a room, though (thankfully it's low season!). We ended up with and older room with two twin beds that had been pushed together, and another twin bed in the room. The ensuite bathroom was reminiscent of Korea – the shower wasn't separate, just a shower head over an empty space in the bathroom. There was also a balcony with two comfy chairs that had a small view of the ocean. For what we paid (50 lira/$30 / night), it was perfectly fine.

They added this cute little touch as well.

Breakfast was a typical Turkish breakfast: cucumbers, tomatoes, olives, bread, butter, cheese, jams, coffee or tea, and eggs. Our second morning they served potatoes, fried bread, and sausages in addition to the regular breakfast. The hotel is definitely more of a budget hotel than a mid- or high-end place. But the service was excellent and the breakfast was great. It's a great walk along the boardwalk from the hotel to the center of the city. If you want a cheap place to stay that still provides service and breakfast, choose this hotel. If you want something more central or more recently renovated, then choose a hotel in the center.

We got into Fethiye around 9PM on Monday November, 21^st. The bus ride was quite the cultural experience. When we left Aphrodisias, there were only four people on the bus. So, the bus driver would honk at any pedestrians along the way, slow down, and see if anyone was going to Fethiye. We picked up a half dozen more people this way in the first half hour. Eventually, the bus got pretty full. Every time he passed or was passed by a mini-bus, they would honk horns at each other. The strangest thing that he did was randomly stop by the side of the road where a guy had a bunch of gas cans, get gas with the mini-bus still running, and smoke near the gas pump while all this was going on. It wasn't a normal gas pump either. It was a mechanical pump with an improvised funnel and a hose that went into the mini-bus. In addition to this, his cell phone was never out of his hand. He was either texting or talking the entire time. That is whenever he wasn't flirting with the girl sitting up front. At first it was frustrating, but then all we could do was laugh at the absurdity of it all.

When we finally got to Fethiye, we went straight to the hotel (see Alis Hotel Review). The next day, we got up, showered, ate breakfast, and went about wandering around the town. The very first thing I did was get a barber shop shave. It was the first time I had done it, and I was a little nervous. They move pretty fast with that sharp little piece of metal next to your throat. I can definitely say though that it is the closest shave I have ever had. It was worth the $6 I paid, and I'm hoping to do it again before we leave Turkey. Perhaps I'll get a Turkish shave complete with fire and threading.

After that, we walked along the waterfront. They have a lot of very lovely cafes lining the harbor. We stopped in a couple for tea and pomegranate juice ($1.50 for a large glass). We also saw the tourist boats, but it is low season, so they were all docked and not in the mood to try to lure us in for tours. We did a little shopping in the old district and ate lunch.

Not a single one of these boats was running.

That's a large glass of fresh squeezed pomegranate juice for around $1.50

This was one of many outdoor cafes along the harbor.

You can definitely tell it is low season

This is where the Mediterranean diet part comes in. We decided we should take in some of the fresh caught fish while we are here. For lunch we had sea bass for the rock bottom price of $11. It was accompanied by a salad. It was in the middle of town near the boats, so it was “expensive.” Dinner is where we got a really great deal. Emily got moussaka and I got swordfish steak. The swordfish steak was also $11, but it was the size of Emily's face, about an inch thick, and came with fries and a sizable salad. This was all accompanied by fresh baked flat bread, naturally. Emily's moussaka was the size of a football, and came with a separate dish for sides at the bargain price of about $9. We were absolutely stuffed after, but managed to squeeze in some baklava and Turkish coffee. We're trying not to gain too much weight, but that will be a difficult task over the next week or so as we ~~eat~~ make our way through the Mediterranean.