back to life

Usually Hasan and I will visit his parents together mostly because I need an interpreter as I can’t usually understand one syllable my in laws say. But I needed to drive from Marmaris to Kuşadası to deliver some belongings for a friend who was going there on holiday. After visiting some friends, dropping off the stuff and an overnight stay, I made my way on the long drive back to Marmaris.

Halfway home is Akçeşme  Village, the seat of my in laws and where my husband grew up. It’s a small village with 150 houses about 3km from the main road. There is not much in the village but houses, a couple of little grocery shops and a tea shop where my father in law was keeping watch for me. After he jumped in the car we made our way around to the house.

I must admit I was dreading it a bit because of the language barrier and because the other villagers have a tendency to come and stare at the foreigner. But I must say this time I had a very pleasant visit. We talked as much as my Turkish knowledge and her village accent/slang allowed and she made me some dinner. She made some lovely Turkish food; Gazatma- a dish of fried peppers, potatoes and aubergines topped with garlic yogurt and cooked tomatoes, and Sarma- vine leaves wrapped around a rice mixture, with some salad and chips….yum!

Another reason for the lovely visit, they are looking after our dog, Dab, so I had a bit of a play with him, drank some tea and bid them all farewell and set off for Marmaris.

I will definitely visit on my own again, it wasn’t nearly as bad as my mind was making it out to be.