Escape to the Blue Lagoon

We flew from Istanbul to Dalaman and took a bus from there to our hotel in Fethiye on the Mediterranean coast. After a short rest we walked along the waterfront which is filled with boats offering tours and diving trips and eventually stopped for a seafood dinner. We all opted for a meze dinner that consisted of a number of small plates of seafood including octopus 2 ways, calamari 2 ways, lumberjack fish cooked in lemon (ala ceviche), shrimp, a shrimp and cheese patty, some kind of miscellaneous seafood egg-roll-like item as well as a seafood casserole which was tasty but hard to identify. I was quite proud of myself for not only trying everything they brought to the table but actually enjoying much of it. By the time we finished, which seemed like hours later, it was time for bed.

We didn’t have to be ready until 10:30 the next morning so after a traditional Turkish breakfast (essentially deconstructed greek salad – tomatoes, cucumber, and cheese) Colleen and I went for a walk through town in the daylight. It was already quite hot so after a bit of walking we stopped at a café and each ordered some fresh fruit juice – watermelon for Colleen and pear for me. While the pear was a shocking color of pink that didn’t seem quite normal, it tasted delicious. At 10:30 we met in the lobby and headed out for our first day of hiking. We walked along a dirt road with spectacular Mediterranean views and then dipped down through a forest to the town on Kaya for lunch. We ate on a breezy terrace overlooking the small village and farms. Since the restaurant was also a wine store we decided to order a bottle of Turkish fruit wine for our table. After a little debate we decided on the cherry wine. I, being a huge fan of cherries, was particularly excited to give it a taste. I’d never had fruit wine before and wasn’t quite sure what to expect but after my first taste I quickly discovered that Robitussen cough syrup was modeling it’s taste off of Turkish cherry wine and doing a really good job of it.

After lunch our hike continued through the ghost town of Kayaköy. It had been inhabited by the Greeks but after WWI the Greeks and Turks made a swap and all of the Greeks living in Turkey were sent back to Greece and vice versa. No one ever returned to Kayaköy and now the only inhabitants are the goats which made me question whether our guide was calling it a ghost town or a goat town.

Our hike continued to the blue lagoon in the town of Ölüdeniz. Once we arrived at the blue lagoon we changed into our swim suits and went for a swim. The water was the perfect temperature and in no way was I interested in escaping from the blue lagoon. We were given about two hours to frolick in the water (although after about an hour I went to watch the Germans destroy England’s hope of a World Cup.)

Eventually it was time to depart the blue lagoon and head to our hotel in nearby Kabak. En-route to our hotel our guide (Mutlu) was sharing details for the following day’s activities. After hearing what was being offered we staged a mini revolt and demanded to go paragliding instead. At first Mutlu seemed a bit annoyed by the request but eventually gave in and coordinated everything for us. The only bad news was that we would have to wake up a little early than other days so we could get to the Paragliding office back in Ölüdeniz by 8:30. While the drive from sea level to the 2000 meter high peak of up Baba Dağ was not fun, it quickly proved worthwhile. I wasn’t out of the truck more than 5 minutes before I was geared up and told to run. I really only got one real step in before the wind got us and my feet no longer reached the ground. While paragliding doesn’t give you the same rush as skydiving, it was still worth every penny.

After paragliding we headed back to Kabak for a lunch of Turkish pancakes. These are nothing like American pancakes. In fact, I don’t really know how to describe them except to say they are a cross between a crepe and quesadilla. Mine was filled with potatoes, cheese and parsley and was quite delicious and just enough food to fuel me for our hike through the butterfly valley back to our hotel. Similar to the day before, the hike gave us some great views of the Mediterranean but I was disappointed that there was not a butterfly to be seen anywhere.