The decision has been made, notice given and we are in the throes of arranging our departure from Turkey. Why leave when it all seems so good here? I suppose that it was getting too easy to stay and maybe we were getting a bit stuck in a rut. Too far from the family and not enough holiday time to see them. Time for new adventures,...blah, blah ,blah.
Next stop is Guangzhou, China. An international school in a fabulous part of the country. Can hardly wait to go shopping and eating in Hong Kong!
Stay tuned.

"May you live in interesting times!" Curse or not, it is an interesting time to be living in Turkey. Even though the war zone, the front along the Iraqi border seems a long way away, it is weird to think that I could drive there in a day. For months we have been watching the buildup in the area. Convoys of military trucks, trains loaded down with tanks and other implements of war, all heading east and in the last week there has been a marked increase in the amount of jet fighter traffic in and out of the local air base. Quite a number of people we know have been called up and the general populace are out in the streets baying for PKK blood. To tell the truth I am amazed that the government has held back for this long!
In the last couple of weeks there have been demonstrations all over Turkey. From toddlers to Grannies, they get out in the streets waving flags and calling on the government to do something. It's really something to see!. I was truly amazed to see on the news last night that there was a march in Istanbul in support of the PKK. It's no surprise that it all turned nasty.
What truly surprises me in all this is the inaction of the US and the Iraqi government(?) in allowing a recognized terrorist group to operate freely and mount attacks on a NATO ally from territory that they are suppose to control. No, it just shows that this 'War on terror" is two faced and the US makes no friends by turning a blind eye to what has been happening in northern Iraq. By trying to keep the Iraqi Kurds quiet and keep the oil flowing the US is risking losing the support of a major friend in the Islamic world. Tread softly George but maybe it's time to get out that big stick and do something for a friend.

The holidays roll on into August and so does the heat. I suppose that it's a good thing that we are still staying close to water although swimming in the smallish pool at our current hotel seems more like a tepid bath than refreshing dip.

We almost got stuck at our last stop. Managed to stay for over a week in a Bodrum bodrum and really found it hard to leave the madness of a Turkish holiday town. Rhondda went to the ballet performance at Bodrum Castle the other night. A great venue but having a very loud 'call to prayers' in the middle of a dramatic dance sequence killed the magic for a while.

The few days of sailing a Gulet from cove to cove was a treat but we really had to keep in mind that a Gulet is not really a performance sailing yacht and it didn't really take much of a lapse of concentration for things to got a bit pear shaped. It was all fun though and truly hands on sailing. Bodrum Cup this year?

So we have moved on and started our trek back to Tarsus. last night we arrived in Fethiye and have taken up a room in the attic of a small hotel on the waterfront. We had hoped for a sea view and we got one, albeit a very "Fawlty Towers" If you stick your head out the window you can see Torquay kind of view. Problem yok!

As southern Turkey simmers under the summer sun we are spending as much time as we can on, in or close to the water. "I'm feeling a bit hot!---Splash!" It's a tough job but it's got to be done.

Last weekend was a general election here. Most of Turkey and a lot of the rest of the world was holding it's collective breath in anticipation of the outcome. Money markets watched as the Lira seesawed up and down and finally settled on Monday. The foreign tourists probably took no notice at all until the found that they couldn't buy alcohol on Sunday. The outcome? The incumbent AK Party increased it's share of the vote by more than 10% but lost seats. Go figure. What will happen next is anybody's guess. Watch this space.

Greetings from fabulous Termessos. It is one of the few ancient cities that was able to defy the army of Alexander the Great. In the third century BC, Alexander managed to force his way through the narrow pass at the bottom of the valley but he gave up on the seige of the city as it was too high in the mountains and far too well defended. He gave it a miss and went on to sack palces like Sargalassos instead.

High in the mountains, Termessos is probably one of the most spectacular ancient places in Turkey. Well worth the hike up the track. Smiles all round as you can see. More from Termessos when we get to more reliable internet connections.