Antalya is on the south west coast of Turkey, between the Mediterranean Sea and the Taurus Mountains.
We arrived in Antalya late afternoon on 16 May, we parked on what we believed was the outskirts of town not far from the beach.
I did manage to get a swim and we also had a long walk along the promenade
Our van was booked into a body work shop at 9am the following morning .
We had 2 jobs that needed doing on the van, one was the bonnet where the sun had cracked the fibreglass and the other was a small dent in the back where some one went into the back of us in our first hour in Albania!
We had a couple of air bnb’s lined up but we deliberately didn’t book anything until the body work guy had seen the job. He had been recommended by someone I was chatting to on social media who had used him when she was in Turkey.
It was a Wednesday, we were there at 9am but we were really surprised at how big Antalya was, it seemed to be the size of London or at least close. He said it would be ready on Monday and he immediately started stripping everything down. Dee thought that it would be ready before then as he was so fast getting going.
We booked one of the air bnb’s and the landlord actually came to pick us up, we had to wait about an hour which was fine as there was a cafe opposite.
Our air bnb host arrived. He was so helpful, even with translation. The apartment was a small studio apartment at the edge of the old town. It was about half an hour away in the car. We paid for 3 nights as we thought the van might be ready on Saturday but he said we could extend til Monday if necessary.
We chose this apartment based on location and the fact that it had a washing machine and outside space.
The location was good, it was roughly 20 minutes to walk to the old town and about 30 minutes to walk to the beach. The apartment was very small and although we are used to that it wasn’t the best layout and the cooking facilities weren’t great. The outside space was completely in the shade which suited Dee fine. There were other things that could have been better but it suited our needs and the owner really did go the extra mile.
Off to explore The Old Town
Once we were settled we headed to the old town and to see Hadrian’s Gate.
Hadrian’s Gate was once a part of the city walls and served as a grand entrance to the old city of Antalya. It was built in the year 130 AD in honour of the Roman Emperor Hadrian’s visit to the city.
Today, it is a prominent landmark and a testament to the historical significance of Antalya during the Roman era. It’s a popular destination for anyone visiting the city.
The gate is constructed from white marble. Above the arches, you’ll find decorative reliefs depicting scenes from mythology.
Here I am with Kaptan Mustafa Ekizler, he lived in Antalya between 1905 and 2000. He witnessed numerous events throughout his life and earned his living at sea for 85 years of his life!
We also had a lovely lunch out right on a cliff overlooking the sea. It actually felt like we were on a mini holiday.
After lunch we had look round the harbour before heading back to our apartment.
The following day we decided to have a walk to the beach which did of course mean I could have a swim.
The walk was about 35 minutes, a bit further than walking to the old town. Here is Dee at the top of the beach. We did do down and I did have a swim just before the rain came!
Can you see me standing by the heart below by the ‘Antalya’ sign.
Day 3 at our Air bnb we went once again to The Old Town and also got a few bits we needed from the shops on the way. By now we were starting to feel like we’d had enough and couldn’t wait to get Jovanna back and be on our way again. The guy doing the work seemed to be getting through it very fast and had sent loads of photos, we were hoping it would be finished the following day.
The following day we thought about getting the bus to see some waterfalls but decided not to in case we had to rush to get back. We went for a walk instead and then had an early lunch of meneman, a Turkish dish with eggs and tomato’s and spices. We ate lunch in a cafe in the local area near where we were staying and it was so much cheaper than in the tourist area in town.
It was around lunch time that we had a text to say that our van would be ready at 3pm. We were really happy. We immediately let our air bnb host know and he said he would come and pick us up and take us there.
He really was so helpful and once again helped us with translation and getting a bank transfer to the guy that did the work.
Once everything was done we were on our way. We were going to meet our friend’s Steve and Elisa Jones, they were at the park up for Chimera Flames, the one we hadn’t made it to so we were heading back to meet them and see the flames. They were with Seb and Christine, the people we’d met briefly at Kaş.
Although we did like Antalya and it seemed to have a lot to offer, we were so happy to be on our way.
Here is a very happy Dee driving away from Antalya!
Our next post will start at the park up at Cirali and The Chimera flames. Watch out for it to find out about The Chimera Flames and where we went next.
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Our Life on the Road 