Olivera Resort Hotel Ayvalik

... nk there and they had got a tv out of the back room and set ıt all up wıth the satılıte and put on the football just for Ian so we sat and watched that wıth them Ian had a Rakı whıch ıs the tradıtıonal turkısh mens drınk ıts terrıble lıke Ouzo and Pastıche and he was so drunk after ıt fallıng over and snorıng wıth the party popper noıces agaın.

... 305;t of land rıght next to the beach. A man came out to meet us shakıng hands wıth the taxı drıver and the englısh teacher who also taught hıs son badly lol. In the garden there where 3 goats a rabbıt and 2 mean lookıng dogs we agreed a prıce 18 englısh pounds a nıght for the both of us and thats that thıs ıs now where we are stayıng ıts too funny for words but really suprısıngly clean and the ...

Why are we leaving gorgeous Ayvalik, our stunning guesthouse and lovely friends to go and see ruins I wonder as Tania harries me off to the bus stop.<br><br>Two hours later and having checked into a hotel where the owner admits "I am Gobi" (yep really) we trek uphill solidly for the next hour and it's 35 degrees plus. Perhaps this should be called schlepping to Asclepion. <br><br>However, the place was genuinely stunning and it ...

... with no bus service and no taxi in sight. Luckily the hospitality of the Turks came through and we were able to get a ride up to the top of the hill in time to get an hour of viewing in as the shadows started to lengthen. We had seen the ruins perched up above town but once we were standing in the midst of the ruins gazing so far down at the town below we realized had mis-calculated the height and distances involved. Once again the defining characteristic ...

... only non-Turkish person around. That was fine. I found a spot on the top deck which housed most of the young people. Turkish music was blaring for most of the boat ride. All the young people sang and danced for most of the day. It was really nice. AT one point all the women on the boat started belly dancing which I thought was fantastic. It was really well done and very classy. It was a great atmosphere. There were even 2 DJs \ entertainers that were responsible for keeping the crowd ...

... in as much hiking as I do, on trails and off, in America and elsewhere, I rarely see wild animals. So this was quite enjoyable for me--as sudden and hard to encapture in memory as it was. Much of the hike was wandering about private property trying to get to an objective I saw, but couldn't find a way to it. However, at one point I was walking down a tractor trail when I saw ahead of me about 30 yards, in this case, a young girl in a garden hutch. At about the same moment ...

... mere description of it. In fact they felt so sorry for him that they gave him a pack of Lincolnshire sausages and a tin of baked beans - delicious. Now to the fishing. Since teaming up in September 2007 our two heroes have, so far, despite their sophisticated kit and suicidal breakfasts,caught a sum total of 9 fish. Nonetheless they are held in awe by the local Turks (many of whom catch that many in a morning) who watch their every move. Only one of the fish ...

... more right to the Iraqi oil fields than the Americans. And of course, the Americans in the video are the military presence in Iraq and are taken hostage. That's the basic plot....I could go on about it but it was stupid as I said...the thing that makes it interesting was the way each country is depicted...the Americans trying to implement democracy...the Iraqis pretending to be appreciative but manipulating everybody and the Turks just trying to stake ...

... so a bit like the Mt Maunganui for this area. We drove right round the peninsula to a town called Foca (pronounced Fohcha, cos the "c" has a little squiggle thing under it) and found a great apartment hotel right on the harbour front, with 2 bedrooms and a separate lounge/kitchen area - an unheard of amount of space after most of the small 1 room pensions we've been staying in! We watched the sun go down over the harbour and headed into the little town centre for a meal - perfect!.

Monday 14th November After two comfortable and warm nights I decided to move on. Bit of a problem checking out. I had paid two days in advance but when it came to leaving the owner insisted I had only paid for one. The discussion became heated but I refused to back down and left the pansiyon on a sour note. I tried to think charitably and believe the owner was becoming senile. I really wasn't sure where I should go today but, in the end, caught a bus to ...