Another blaze in Fethiye, Turkey.
A blaze somehow ignited in the grass and rapidly spread up the slopes of Menderes mountain in Patlangiç part of Fethiye today. At least three fire engines and their crews fought to bring the fire under control and their efforts were joined by a helicopter crew.

Fortunately the fire teams and local people managed to put the fire out before too much damage was done but still approximately twenty thousand square meters of olive grove have suffered damage.

In the above picture you can see that the two fire engines have got up right close to the perimeter of the fire.

Below is a third engine providing safety to the nearby homes which have been endanged by the blaze.

With the help of the helicopter support, the flames are dowsed with sea water and rapidly brought under control. The fire was pretty much under control within an hour and a half, although quenching work continued for another couple of hours to ensure that it did not start up again.

Its very sad to see the land damaged by fire, below is a photo of the area before the devastaion. Notice how green and pleasant the land is. It is good that no-one was injured by the blaze, however, certainly there would have been loss of animal life. There are many wild tortoise in this region as well as rabbit and a type of fox. Some will no doubt have perished.

The result after the fire is clear - many of the olive trees will have been severly damaged. On a positive note though, the land will recover. It will take a few years but gradually the olive trees will send out new sprouts, fresh leaves will appear and the trees will even start to produce olives again.

Here is an interesting shot of the helicopter as it passed overhead. Notice that it seems to have a double set of rota blades. Looks like a new machine - so its good to see that there is investment in protecting the environment.

The much awaited Çalış Carnival - Fethiye’s first real carnival is now less than two weeks away!

The carnival is a week-long event starting with a Beach BBQ at the Koca Calis Surf Cafe on Saturday 31st May. The Beach BBQ will consist of juicy steaks, chichen and kofte with some fantastic salads and fruit dishes.

The SurfCafe will be hosting this relaxing and fun night out on the beach. we’ll be provided with disco dancing mixed with the sounds of the waves gently lapping around the edges of the bay. I think it going to be a great night out!

The Surf Cafe which usually provides wind surf and kite surfing tuition is located on the northern edge of calis … but no need to worry about transport as SurfCafe will be providing a free shuttle bus service every 30 minutes between the Metal Bridge ( water taxi office ) and their establisment in Koca calis.
The shuttle service starts at 7.00pm.

The cost of the Beach BBQ meal is just 15 YTL and a proportion will be donated to the carnival charities. For tickets and information please ring: 0533 855 49 19

Happy partying!

Val has been running her bar for about 18 years so she has certainly seen some changes in Fethiye during her time.

The present location of Vals bar is very central, close to the new Fethiye Cultural Centre.

Vals Bar has become a refreshing focal point for many English residents as well as tourists where a cool beer, a pick-me-up cup of coffee or something a little stronger can be enjoyed while you catch up on whats going on.

As we can see from this photo that Val has a good range of spirits, wines and cocktails - something for every pallete

If you need a snack tor a meal to go along with your drink then Val can always get something brought over from one of the nearby cafes.

There is something else about Vals Bar thats very interesting and really useful - she runs a free lending library of over 2000 English language books. The extensive collection has been built up over the years by the generosity of visitors who have given books that they have finished reading so that others can benefit from them.

There is no charge to borrow the books, just remember to return them and when possible drop in some extra ones

The spirit of giving doesn’t end with lending out books, Val is also part of a group of individuals that donate to needy causes. There are several orphanages in Fethiye and they have been provided with needed exercise books, clothing and other materials that really help to make a difference to the childrens lives.

The old peoples home in Fethiye has also benefited from donations of wheelchairs,bedside furniture, carpetting and mosquito screening.

Another project that received valuable help was the Fethiye Freinds of Animals Centre that looks after stray dogs and cats. There is on-going support from English residents and tourist that want to do something positive for the local community.

If you want to help out - its simple, just buy something useful, and drop it in at Vals Bar. As the pile grows into a worthwhile donation - it is sent off to a local needy group who will benefit.

For more informatoin - just drop into Vals Bars and have a chat with her.

It Rained a Bit in Fethiye Today!

Turkey’s weather here in Fethiye is getting to be as changeable as the UK !

Welcome to sunny Fethiye in Turkey !
Take a look at this:

Looks like a river right?

and this:

Well this is no river !
This is how our road looked and if we follow it up to the ever so nice little natural water spout…

… as you can see it is slightly overflowing.

The water is supposed to come out of a channel under the arch, like you see in these photos that were taken before the rain.

In fact, usually the natural spring is a delightful area that is used by the families as a social chatting point, often one of the neighbours makes a pot of tea and they sit under the tree for the afternoon.

Incidentally, most of the locals fill up water bottles here for their drinking water. They all have piped tap water but they prefer the taste of this natural mountain water and they have been drinking it from this source for the past couple of hundred years.

But if you came here today and wanted to explore around the “cesme” you would have some difficulty climbing the stairs!

Going up to the next level didn’t get much easier:

Well at least summer is on the way so hopefully that was the last of the heavy rains - but who can tell the weather is getting so unpredictable.

I remember my first summer here in Fethiye some 9 years ago. The sky was blue and clear from the day I arrived in late May right through until October. I don’t think I saw any clouds at all the summer and I thought “WOW” maybe the clouds are kept out because we are surrounded by mountains. well things have changed !!

The Human Sandwich House of Fethiye.

I guess that’s a strange title!

But I think its well deserved.
This is a specially designed house just waiting for the next earthquake to happen.

Look at these photos:

Do you notice anything missing ?

Look carefully and you will see that there are NO concrete columns AT ALL !!!

Incredible but true !
However the master genius who designed this house in a designated High Risk Earthquake zone ( Zone No. 1) has used plenty on concrete somewhere else.

Yes, he has used it for the base and for the floor between the lower and upper level flats. So that’s about ten tons of concrete carefully laid on top of these fragile Turkish “wafer-bricks” with no supporting columns.

So when the next earth-quake ( or even maybe a heavy lorry passes) the family that will be renting the downstairs flat will get very nicely quished flat in this “human sandwich” house.

Ne güzel !