Category Archives: Living in Turkey

Anything to do with day to day living in Turkey

Fethiye sunsets

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Calis sunset 9" x 6" Acrylic on mount board

Calis sunset
9″ x 6″ Acrylic on mount board

Generally, sunsets here are not as spectacular as on the European Atlantic coastline. Beautiful, of course, but they lack the drama of the weather fronts that rush onto the shores of Galway,  Galloway and Gwynedd.  I’m not complaining about the clear skies, far from it, and I acknowledge that many evenings, back in the UK, cloud covers the sun completely.  Occasionally though, we get treated to a wonderful sunset here in Fethiye.  You could argue that it’s  more special because it’s rare but I think that when it comes to watching sunsets, because each one is unique, you can never have too much of a good thing.

Lavender

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Lavender 8" x 6" Acrylic on mount card

Lavender
9″ x 6″ Acrylic on mount card

Young farmer and entrepreneur, Barış Özkan from Kayaköy,  bought a couple of hundred lavender plants to try out 3 years ago.  It seems the conditions are perfect up there although it’s not a crop seen locally.  Rapid drainage, alkaline soil, plenty of light, heat, and excellent air circulation are required and  I know it’s produced successfully on the Cesme peinsular and in Isparta.  I not heard anything since and I wonder if he was successful?

Nayla Restaurant

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Our art group meet up on Thursday mornings at the Nayla Restaurant on Fethiye promenade.  They kindly let us work in a part of the premises which is rarely used in the mornings and it offers astounding views and good natural light.  We have had to use some less than satisfactory venues in the past and I want to give Nayla a huge thank you for their kind offer. They don’t make a great deal of money selling us coffee so that makes it even more generous.  Feel free to come and join us any Thursday morning.

Wood Lane 9" x 6" Acrylic on mount board

SOLD

This week I am beginning a series of paintings to explore a new technique for me.  I love this style and I’m really pleased with the results so far.

Goodbye Dalaman charter flights for the winter

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Poppies 12" x 8" Watercolour on NOT paper

Poppies
12″ x 8″ Watercolour on NOT paper

The end of October brings the last influx of tourists and sees the expat community taking advantage of  of the remaining 4 hour flights to the UK.  There are a few  specials over Xmas and the New Year but generally, until next Spring,  one can only travel here via Istanbul and that always means a long wait in an expensive terminal, interminable in fact.

 

 

 

 

 

Iris2 12" x 8", Watercolour on NOT paper

Iris2
12″ x 8″, Watercolour on NOT paper

Gina is buzzing off on Friday to visit family and hit the shops and, in between completing the lengthy Job List, I hope to make the most of the cooler weather and do some landscape painting.  Meanwhile, I dusted off the watercolours and painted a couple of our most common flowers.

Çalıs Sunday market

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Çalis market 9" x 6" Acrylic on mount board

Çalis market
9″ x 6″ Acrylic on mount board

There are daıly markets spread around Fethıye of which the Tuesday market ın town is the bıggest and most popular.  The smaller Sunday version in Calis is a peculiarly British affair due to the large number of expats living in the area and functions as a meeting place and social occasion.  You are liable to hear more English spoken than Turkish but the goods on sale remain the same.  We rarely need stuff other than fresh food from the markets so do most of our shopping at the Fethiye farmers market on Friday, however last week I travelled to Calis purely to obtain ideas for some street paintings.  If you come to Fethiye, be sure not to miss one of these mediterranean markets, the experience is definitely one to savour.

Unseasonal weather

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Before the Storm 12" x 9" Acrylic on mount board

Before the Storm
12″ x 9″ Acrylic on mount board

Some parts of Fethiye experienced temperatures of 6C last night and the wind is still blowing hard from the North.  There are many visitors still here and I don’t suppose that they are very impressed although the sun is shining as usual.  Snow is falling in the Black Sea regions so it could be worse.  I’ve completed my self-imposed target of a daily still life and have enjoyed it, but I’m enjoying work on a large canvas of Fethiye Bay even more.  So I’ve confirmed my conclusion of the 18th …. It’s the daily painting, not the painting a day that counts.